Youssef Dey Mosque, also known as Al B'chamqiya, is a 17th-century

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, ...

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

, located in

Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the second-holiest city in Islam, and the capital of the ...

area of the city. The mosque is considered significant as it was the first Ottoman- Turkish mosque to be built in Tunis. An official Historical Monument, it operated primarily as public speaking venue before becoming a real mosque by Youssef Dey in 1631. At the time it was the 11th mosque to be built in the capital. In the late nineteenth century it underwent extensive restoration, ordered by Ali Bey. A decree in 1926 saw the mosque become an annex of the

University of Ez-Zitouna Ez-Zitouna University ( ar, جامعة الزيتونة, french: Université Ez-Zitouna) is a public ancient university in Tunis, Tunisia. The university originates in the Al-Zaytuna Mosque, founded at the end of the 7th century or in the early 8 ...

. Minaret, mosquée Youssef Dey.jpg, Minaret De moskee Becquia in Tunis.jpg, Beginning of the 20th century File:Street of Tunis in 1908.JPG, Youssef Dey Mosque in 1908 File:La medina Tunis.JPG, External view Tunisia332.jpg, Internal view Tunisia335.jpg, Mosque courtyard

Hall of prayer

The prayer room is framed by courtyards on three sides to the east, north and west. Along the northern facade, a portico plays the role of gallery-narthex. Rectangular in plan, the room perpetuates the classical plan of the hypostyle hall; it consists of nine

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

s and seven bays. The arches rest on columns, of various origins, which carry capitals of

Hafsid The Hafsids ( ar, الحفصيون ) were a Sunni Muslim dynasty of Berber descentC. Magbaily Fyle, ''Introduction to the History of African Civilization: Precolonial Africa'', (University Press of America, 1999), 84. who ruled Ifriqiya (western ...

type, except some ancient examples. The covering of the prayer hall is in

groin vault A groin vault or groined vault (also sometimes known as a double barrel vault or cross vault) is produced by the intersection at right angles of two barrel vaults. Honour, H. and J. Fleming, (2009) ''A World History of Art''. 7th edn. London: Lau ...

; a cupola on an octagonal base and horns in front of the mihrab.Youssef Dey Mosque (Museum without Borders)
/ref> Near the latter is the masonry minbar covered with panels of polychrome

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

; this is a novelty by contribution to mosques of

Maliki The ( ar, مَالِكِي) school is one of the four major schools of Islamic jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. It was founded by Malik ibn Anas in the 8th century. The Maliki school of jurisprudence relies on the Quran and hadiths as primary ...

s whose minbar is executed in wood. Mosquée de Youssef Day, Tunis 21 septembre 2013, (05).jpg, Detail of one of the doors of the mosque. Mosquée Youssef Dey 12.jpg, Interior view of the prayer hall. At the bottom is the mihrab.

Minaret

Its minaret is the first

octagonal In geometry, an octagon (from the Greek ὀκτάγωνον ''oktágōnon'', "eight angles") is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon. A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, w ...

minaret to be built in Tunis and was made by the

s. The octagonal tower rises above a square base. It ends with a balcony protected by a wooden awning, the whole is crowned by a lantern with pyramidal roof covered with green tiles. Mosquée de Youssef Day, Tunis 21 septembre 2013, (10).jpg, View of the minaret. Mosquée de Youssef Day, Tunis 21 septembre 2013, (09).jpg, View of the upper part of the minaret.

Mausoleum

The mosque also includes the mausoleum of Youssef Dey, inaugurating in Tunis the funeral mosque in which the tomb of the founder associates with the place of worship. Square plan, the mausoleum is covered with a pyramidal roof covered with green tiles. It has on each face a large central

blind arcade A blind arcade or blank arcade is an arcade (a series of arches) that has no actual openings and that is applied to the surface of a wall as a decorative element: i.e., the arches are not windows or openings but are part of the masonry face. It is ...

, flanked by two levels of recesses in flat bottom. The facings of the white marble facades are accented with clavellus alternating black and white. A commemorative inscription on the central arch provides the date of construction of the mausoleum. Mausolée Sidi Youssef, Tunis, 21 septembre 2013, (02).jpg, View of the mausoleum closing the burials of Youssef Dey and his family. Tunisia334.jpg, A mausoleum door, topped by a commemorative inscription. File:Sur les toits de la Médina.JPG,

References

{{Medina of Tunis Mosques Mosques in the medina of Tunis Religious buildings and structures completed in 1631 17th-century mosques 1631 establishments in the Ottoman Empire 1631 establishments in Africa Ottoman architecture in Tunisia