Zeynep Sultan Mosque

Zeynep Sultan Mosque (in Turkish Zeynep Sultan Camii) is a mosque built in 1769 by Ayazma Mosque’s architect Mehmet Tahir Aga for Ahmed III’s daughter Zeynep Asime Sultan. It evokes Byzantine churches because of its architectural style and materials that were used in its construction.

The mosque is on Alemdar Caddesi (Street) in Istanbul, across the street from Gülhane Park, not far from the Hagia Sophia, and viewable from the tram that circulates the city. In the back side of the mosque, there is a building, which was once used as mektep and now being used as primary school. The part once used as sebil is now closed. In front of the mosque, there is a fountain, which was actually part of Abdul-Hamid I’s külliye. The fountain was carried here in 1920s when 4. Vakıf Han’s construction in Eminönü. The “Osmanlı Araştırmaları Vakfı” (English: Foundation for Research on the Ottoman Empire is above the mosque.

Ottoman military hero Alemdar Mustafa Pasha’s grave is in hazîre of the mosque and due to road construction Zeynep Sultan’s corpse in the cellar is waiting for the time of her new tomb’s construction. The grave of Melek Mehmet Pasha (in office 1792-1794), who was Selim III’s Grand Vizier and Zeynep Sultan’s husband, is also in the hazîre of the mosque.

Sümbül Efendi Mosque

Koca Mustafa Pasha Mosque is popularly known as Sümbül Efendi Mosque or Sümbül Tomb. Its official name is Pîr Yusuf Sümbül Sinan itsitânesi.

It is a religious building from the Eastern Roman period in the Koca Mustafa Pasha district of Istanbul. The 6th century pieces and column capitals were proven to be a place of worship of the 6th century. The monastery works from the apostle named Hagios Andreas and Krisei, believed to impose Christianity on the Byzantine people.

The iconoclasm is for considerable destruction under the current. In the construction of the church, which forms the basis of Koca Mustafa Pasha Mosque. The building that operated as a monastery and church until the conquest of Istanbul in 1486 to turn it into a mosque.

You can go to there by public city buses. From Beyazıt city bus number 35A. From Balat city bus number 35D, From Taksim city bus number 35C. From Eminönü city bus number 35. Or yo can take tram from Sultanahmet to Yusuf pasa station. From Yusuf pasa bus station you can have a all buses with 35 number goes to Koca Mustafa Pasha. Just you need to walk 5 minutes from bus station to Sümbül Efendi Mosque.

Sokullu Mehmed Pasha Mosque

Sokullu Mehmed Pasha Mosque was designed by imperial architect Sinan for Grand Vizier Sokullu Mehmet Pasha, the husband of one of the grand daughters of Suleyman the Magnificent. Completed around 1571, it was built on a steep slope and, as a result, features an interesting two-story courtyard in front of the mosque. The bottom level of the courtyard consisted of shops whose rents would support the upkeep of the mosque. The complex also included a madrassah and accommodations for the students.

The mosque was designed as a hexagon inside of a rectangle and is topped by a dome surrounded by four smaller semi-domes. Though smaller than many Ottoman era mosques, it is exquisite nonetheless. The interior is best known for its extensive use of Iznik tiles, mostly in blue and green and forming a variety of floral designs. Nearly 100 stained glass windows create a bright and colorful prayer hall and calligraphic tiles proclaim the 99 attributes of God. The mosque also contains four fragments of the sacred Black Stone in the Kaaba at Mecca.

Though it was restored to some extent in 1930, the mosque today remains largely in its original state.

Practical Information
If you are staying in or around Sultanahmet, the mosque may be an easy walk from your hotel. It is certainly within a few minutes of sights like the Blue Mosque or Sultanahmet Square. Coming from elsewhere in Istanbul, take the tram and get off at Cemberlitas or Sultanahmet. If the mosque isn’t open when you arrive, you may need to find the guardian to open it for you. Visitors should dress conservatively and remove their shoes before entering the mosque.

Sehzedabası Mosgue

Süleyman the Magnificent built this square-shaped mosque between 1543 and 1548 as a memorial to his son Mehmet, who died of smallpox in 1543 at the age of 22. It was the first important mosque to be designed by Mimar Sinan and has a lovely garden setting, two double-balconied minarets and attractive exterior decoration. Inside, the central dome is supported by four semidomes (one on each side of the square).

Sehzedabası Mosgue, among the many important people buried in tile-encrusted tombs on the mosque’s eastern side are Prince Mehmet, his brothers and sisters and two of Süleyman’s grand vezirs: Rüstem Paşa and İbrahim Paşa. Other still-surviving parts of the külliye include a partially demolished medrese and a tabhane (inn for travelling dervishes) that is now used as a laboratory by the neighbouring Vefa Lycée.

Mihrimah Sultan Mosque, in Istanbul

Mihrimah Sultan Mosque, In Istanbul there are two mosques dedicated to Mihrimah Sultan, most belowed daughter of Süleyman the Magnificent and his wife Hürrem (Roxellana), and also the wife of the Grand vizier Rüstem Pasha. One of these mosques is located at Edirnekapi neighborhood next the old city walls on the European side of the city, and the other one at Üsküdar district on the Asian shores.

Mosque at Edirnekapi

Mihrimah Sultan mosque is located on Fevzi Pasa Street at Edirnekapi neighborhood by the ancient city walls, near the Chora church museum. The location is also one of the seven hills of the ancient Byzantium where there was an old Byzantine monastery originaly. The mosque was built between 1562-1565 by the architect Sinan with the order of Süleyman the Magnificent. It was badly damaged during an earthquake by the end of 19th century and was restored in the beginning of 20th century. The complex is formed by a mosque, a madrassa, a primary school, Turkish bath, and a shrine (türbe in Turkish).

The mosque has a square plan standing on a high platform. The dome is 37 meters high from the ground and its diameter is about 20 meters. It has a single dome and a single minaret. There are 161 windows so inside gets always enough light. Wooden window shutters and doors are inlaid with mother of pearl and ivory. The pulpit (Minber) and the niche (Mihrab) are made of stone and are the finest examples of the period. Although the interior decoration of the mosque is simple but great, many of them were re-made during the restorations under the reign of sultan Abdülhamit.

The courtyard is accessible from the street by steep steps where on the right hand side there is a madrassa at two corners of the inner courtyard. Unusually, these madrassas have no classroom sections therefore there was a separate school. The primary school and the tomb (türbe) of Güzelce Ahmed Pasha are found in the right hand corner of the mosque’s kiblah. There is also a Turkish bath in the same area next to the street. The fountain for the ablutions (Sadirvan in Turkish) stands in the inner courtyard, but nothing remains of the market today.

Mosque at Usküdar

Mihrimah Sultan mosque is located in Üsküdar Square just across the local ferry pier near Marmaray construction site. It was also built by the architect Sinan with the order of sultan Süleyman between 1547-1548. The complex was formed of a mosque with two minarets, a madrassa, tomb (türbe in Turkish), primary school, caravanserai, soup kitchen, and a small hospital, but only some of these buildings have survived until our day.

The madrassa is located to the north of the mosque but it doesn’t bear its original function today; it’s used as a small health center. Mihrimah’s two sons and the Grand Vizier Ibrahim Ethem Pasha are buried in the tombs (türbe) between the mosque and the madrassa. The primary school is located on the kiblah side of the mosque. The hospice, soup kitchen and caravanserai have not survived.

A fine fountain for the ablutions (Sadirvan) stands in the courtyard. When you enter the mosque, there is a single dome. The window shutters have inlay decorations. The pulpit (Minber) and the niche (Mihrab) are made of marble with fine ornaments.

The mosque was completely restored in 2013 and re-opened to public in 2014.

Hope to see you soon in Istanbul.

Nuruosmaniye Mosque

Nuruosmaniye Mosque in Istanbul, The construction of the Nuruosmaniye Mosque was started by Sultan Mahmud I in 1748 and completed by Sultan Osman III in 1755. It’s a typical Baroque and Rococo style mosque which was a very popular architecture of 1700’s within the Ottoman Empire. The mosque was built on one of the seven hills of Istanbul by a Greek minority architect named Simeon and Mustafa Aga.

The mosque has a semi-circular courtyard with no fountain for the ablutions but only taps today. There are two minarets each having two balconies. It has a single dome and no column within the prayer hall but raised on four large arches, having a diameter of 25 meters (82 feet) and the height of 43 meters (141 feet). There are many ornaments on its main walls, stone crescent on the minaret tops, stone work of the niche (Mihrab) and the pulpit (Minbar). On the east corner of the prayer hall there is the sultan’s lodge with latticework between its columns, accessed by a ramp outside the mosque. The existence of many windows provide lots of light but also justifying the name of the mosque: Nuruosmaniye means “The Light of Osman”. It also gave its name to the neighborhood.

The Nuruosmaniye Complex has a manuscript library as well with thousands of volumes containing also collections belonging to the sultans. This section is closed to the public except researchers with special permission. In the complex, there is also a medresse and a soup kitchen to the north, a mausoleum where Sultan Osman III’s mother (Sehsuvar Valide Sultan) is buried, and a public fountain.

The mosque is in Nuruosmaniye neighborhood near Eminonu, just next to the Grand Bazaar, to the northwest of the Cemberlitas column.

Nuruosmaniye Camii
No:13 34440 Cemberlitas – Istanbul
Tel: (212) 528 09 06

Open daily except prayer times

Beyazid Mosque

Built from 1500 to 1505 under Sultan Beyazit II, Beyazid Mosque is one of the oldest mosques in Istanbul. It is located next to Istanbul University and the Grand Bazaar in the center of a large 16th-century complex that includes schools and other buildings.

History of Beyazid Mosque

Construction on the Beyazit Mosque began in 1501, overseen by architect Yakub Sah Bin Sultan. The mosque was built over the ruins of the Forum of Tauri built by the Byzantine Emperor Theodosius. The pavement of the courtyard and the pillars of the ablutions fountain are reused materials from the Forum.

The Beyazit Mosque was completed in 1506. Sultan Beyazit II died in 1512 and was buried in the gardens with his family.

What to See at Beyazid Mosque

The mosque’s architecture is inspired by the Byzantine Hagia Sophia with a central dome, semi-domes, and a central prayer area with galleries. The dome is 16.78 meters in diameter (the Hagia Sophia’s is 31m). Other elements were inspired by the Fatih Mosque, such as the buttresses and columns alongside the dome.

The mosque was once at the center of a large complex, including a school (medrese), kitchen, caravanserai, hamam, and soup kitchen for the poor. The soup kitchen and caravanserai, on the left of the mosque, now house the Beyazit State Library, while the former medrese houses a school of calligraphy.

Fatih Sultan Mosque

The Fatih Mosque Complex (Fatih Camii ve Külliyesi) in Istanbul has a lovely interior like many Turkish mosques, but the primary importance of this mosque is its illustrious permanent resident, Mehmet the Conqueror (Fatih Sultan Mehmet).

History of Fatih Camii

The Imperial Fatih Mosque was constructed between 1462 and 1470 by Sultan Fatih Mehmet (“Mehmet the Conqueror”; 1432-81), who took Constantinople in 1453. The architect was Atik Sinan, not to be confused with the Sinan hired by Suleyman.

Sultan Mehmet’s goal was to build an Islamic monument more spectacular than the Hagia Sophia Church. Legend has it that when the mosque failed to reach as high as the church – despite being built a top a hill – the sultan had the architect’s hands cut off.

The mosque complex included a caravansary, a hospital, several hamams, the kitchens, and a market. Its school instructed up to 1,000 students at a time.

After an earthquake in 1509, the complex was restored by Beyazit II. During another earthquake in 1771, most of it collapsed. The present mosque and complex mostly date from a reconstruction under Mustafa III, completed in 1771. The mihrab, medreses (schools), and inner courtyard survive from the original complex.

What to See at Fatih Camii

The large Fatih Mosque stands atop the highest hill in Istanbul. Like the other classical mosques in the city, it has a tall central dome supported by semi-domes on all four sides. The painting of the spacious interior reveals a Baroque influence on 18th-century Ottoman art.

Surviving elements from the original 15th-century mosque include three galleries of the courtyard, the portal, the mihrab and the lower shafts of the minarets. The tombs of Mehmet II and his wife are located outside the mihrab wall.

The Fatih Mosque was built over the site of the Church of the Holy Apostles. Reused building materials from the church, such as column pieces and stone blocks of the foundations, have been identified in the courtyard of the Fatih Mosque.

Each Wednesday the area around the mosque is filled with a busy street market.