The Eski Mosque ( el, Εσκί Τζαμί, from tr, Eski Camii, "Old Mosque") is a

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

in the Greek town of

Komotini Komotini ( el, Κομοτηνή, tr, Gümülcine, bg, Комотини) is a city in the region of East Macedonia and Thrace, northeastern Greece. It is the capital of the Rhodope. It was the administrative centre of the Rhodope-Evros super-pr ...

dating back to 1608, or 1677/88, based on an inscription. Despite its name, the Eski Mosque was built after the Yeni ("New") Mosque of 1585, but it is likely that an original mosque stood at that place, dating back to the time of the Ottoman conquest of the area under Evrenos. According to the 1892 Ottoman '' salname'', the mosque featured an inscription in a "non-Ottoman" language, hence it is possible that the mosque was built on the site of a former

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

church. In the 1910s, the

Bulgarians Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe. Etymology Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely understo ...

turned the mosque into a church and destroyed part of the

minaret A minaret (; ar, منارة, translit=manāra, or ar, مِئْذَنة, translit=miʾḏana, links=no; tr, minare; fa, گل‌دسته, translit=goldaste) is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generall ...

(up to the Sherefe). The building was returned to the Moslem minority in 1919-20, under the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

administration of Komotini. By then, the demolished minaret and the current 2 balconies were rebuilt.

Sources

* {{Mosques in Greece Buildings and structures in Komotini Ottoman mosques in Greece 17th-century mosques 17th-century architecture in Greece Mosque buildings with domes Ottoman architecture in Western Thrace