The Murat Pasha Mosque () is a 15th century Ottoman

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

squeezed in between two busy roads linking

Aksaray Aksaray () is a city in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. It is the seat of Aksaray Province and Aksaray District.

and Yusufpaşa in the

Fatih Fatih () is a municipality and district of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 15 km2, and its population is 368,227 (2022). It is home to almost all of the provincial authorities (including the mayor's office, police headquarters, metro ...

district of

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Architecture

The

was commissioned in 1465-66 by Hass Murad Pasha (mod. Turkish ''Has Murat Paşa'') and completed after his death by his brother

Mesih Pasha Mesih Pasha or Misac Pasha (1443–1501) was an Ottoman statesman of Byzantine Greek origin, being a nephew of the last Roman emperor, Constantine XI Palaiologos. He served as Kapudan Pasha of the Ottoman Navy and was Grand Vizier of the Ottoman ...

, who was buried here. The mosque is designed in the early Ottoman style perfected in

Bursa Bursa () is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the Marmara Region, Bursa is one of the industrial centers of the country. Most of ...

. The main space is a 2 x 1 rectangle covered by two identical domes, each high and in diameter. The ''

mihrab ''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall". ...

'' and ''

minbar A minbar (; sometimes romanized as ''mimber'') is a pulpit in a mosque where the imam (leader of prayers) stands to deliver sermons (, ''khutbah''). It is also used in other similar contexts, such as in a Hussainiya where the speaker sits and le ...

'' are on the short side of the rectangle. The main space is approached via a narthex rather like those in

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

churches. This is preceded by a portico. File:Murat Pasha Mosque DSCF3755.jpg, Entrance to the grounds of the mosque File:Murat Pasha Mosque DSCF3740.jpg, The front facade of the mosque File:Murat Pasha Mosque DSCF3738.jpg, The entrance portal of the mosque File:Murat Pasha Mosque DSCF3712.jpg, Interior of the mosque, near the ''

'' and ''

'' File:Murat Pasha Mosque DSCF3728.jpg, Interior of the two main domes of the mosque

References

Sources

* * {{Ottoman architecture Mosques completed in the 1470s Ottoman mosques in Istanbul Mosque buildings with domes in Turkey Buildings and structures completed in 1471 Mosque buildings with minarets in Turkey

Architecture

See also

References

Sources