Nallı Masjid (), also known as ''İmam Ali Mescidi'' or ''Babıali Mescidi'', is a late 19th-century small mosque located at Ankara Street northwest of the historic

Sublime Porte The Sublime Porte, also known as the Ottoman Porte or High Porte ( or ''Babıali''; ), was a synecdoche or metaphor used to refer collectively to the central government of the Ottoman Empire in Istanbul. It is particularly referred to the buildi ...

building (which is the

Istanbul Governor's Office Buildings and structures of the Ottoman Empire Government buildings completed in 1756 1756 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Official residences in Turkey Buildings and structures in Istanbul Fatih Istanbul Governor's Office ...

today), at

Cağaloğlu Cağaloğlu is a quarter located in the Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey. Much of the publishing industry in Istanbul is located in Cağaloğlu. It is also famous for its ancient hamam, or Turkish bath, known as the Cağaloğlu Hamam. Name The ...

quarter of

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 old

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.

History

It was built by İmam Ali Efendi, a relative of Ottoman religious scholar, poet and mystic saint

Akshamsaddin Akshamsaddin (Muhammad Shams al-Din bin Hamzah, ) (1389 in Damascus – 16 February 1459 in Göynük, Bolu), was an influential Ottoman Sunni Muslim scholar, poet, and mystic saint. Biography He was the grandson of Shahab al-Din al-Suhraward ...

(1389–1459) during the

Ottoman Sultan The sultans of the Ottoman Empire (), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to Dissolution of the Ottoman Em ...

Mehmed the Conqueror Mehmed II (; , ; 30 March 14323 May 1481), commonly known as Mehmed the Conqueror (; ), was twice the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from August 1444 to September 1446 and then later from February 1451 to May 1481. In Mehmed II's first reign, ...

(reigned 1444–1446, 1451–1481) in the 15th century. Originally, the mosque was situated within the yard of the Sublime Porte Building with one side on Ankara Street. It came to appearance when the traffic on the Ankara Street became limited due to the construction of

Marmaray Marmaray () is a commuter rail line located in Istanbul, Turkey. The line runs from Halkalı, on the European side, to Gebze, on the Asian side, along the north shore of the Sea of Marmara. Mostly using the right-of-way of two existing com ...

. İmam Ali Efendi's grave is found behind the close Cevdet Pasha Library building. It was turned into a mosque after

Grand vizier Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...

Hekimoğlu Ali Pasha Hekimoğlu Ali Pasha (1689 – 13 August 1758) was an Ottoman statesman and military leader who served as Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire three times. Family His father, Nuh, was a Venetian convert to Islam who worked in Constantinople (m ...

's (1689–1758) brother Feyzullah Efendi built a

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 ...

. The building burnt down during the Fire of Sublime Porte () in the 1800s. According to the inscription calligraphed by Mustafa İzzet Efendi, the mosque was rebuilt in 1869. A second inscription by Sami Efendi states its restoration in 1902.

Architecture

The mosque is designed in eclectic architectural style and some details are used which are normally seen in the Indian and

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

architecture. It is painted today in red and white, although the original color was yellow and beige. It has a square-plan of dimensions. It has one dome sitting on an octagonal haunch. The mosque's only

minaret A minaret is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generally used to project the Muslim call to prayer (''adhan'') from a muezzin, but they also served as landmarks and symbols of Islam's presence. They can h ...

was built in

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

, and has one balcony. The mosque takes its name "Nallı" (literally:

horseshoe A horseshoe is a product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human toenail, altho ...

) from reliefs of horseshoe figures found on the minaret. Istanbul asv2021-11 img35 Nallı Mosque.jpg, Interior view Istanbul asv2021-11 img34 Nallı Mosque.jpg, 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". ...

IstanbulGovernor'sOffice (3).jpg, Nallı Masjid (left) next to the

, former headquarters of the

Ottoman Government The Ottoman Empire developed over the years as a despotism with the Sultan as the supreme ruler of a centralized government that had an effective control of its provinces, officials and inhabitants. Wealth and rank could be inherited but were ...

, called the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nalli Mashid Ottoman mosques in Istanbul Fatih Mosques completed in the 1860s Religious buildings and structures completed in 1869 1869 establishments in the Ottoman Empire 19th-century mosques in Turkey Mosque buildings with domes in Turkey Mosque buildings with minarets in Turkey