| The Blue Mosque | |
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| Basic information | |
| Location | Istanbul, Turkey |
| Geographic coordinates | 41°00′20″N 28°58′39″E / 41.005483°N 28.977385°E |
| Affiliation | Islam |
| Architectural description | |
| Architect(s) | Sedefkâr Mehmed Ağa |
| Architectural type | Mosque |
| Architectural style | Islamic, Late Classical Ottoman |
| Completed | 1616 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 10,000 |
| Length | 72 m |
| Width | 64 m |
| Dome height (outer) | 43 m |
| Dome dia. (inner) | 23,5 m[1] |
| Minaret(s) | 6 |
| Minaret height | 64 m |
The Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Turkish: Sultanahmet Camii) is an historic mosque in Istanbul. The mosque is popularly known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior.
It was built from 1609 to 1616, during the rule of Ahmed I. Its Külliye contains a tomb of the founder, a madrasah and a hospice. While still used as a mosque, the Sultan Ahmed Mosque has also become a popular tourist attraction.
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Architecture [edit]
The Sultan Ahmed Mosque has one main dome, six minarets, and eight secondary domes. The design is the culmination of two centuries of both Ottoman mosque and Byzantine church development. It incorporates some Byzantine elements of the neighboring Hagia Sophia with traditional Islamic architecture and is considered to be the last great mosque of the classical period. The architect, Sedefkâr Mehmed Ağa, synthesized the ideas of his master Sinan, aiming for overwhelming size, majesty and splendour.
Exterior [edit]
The facade of the spacious forecourt was built in the same manner as the facade of the Süleymaniye Mosque, except for the addition of the turrets on the corner domes. The court is about as large as the mosque itself and is surrounded by a continuous vaulted arcade (revak). It has ablution facilities on both sides. The central hexagonal fountain is small relative to the courtyard. The monumental but narrow gateway to the courtyard stands out architecturally from the arcade. Its semi-dome has a fine stalactite structure, crowned by a small ribbed dome on a tall tholobate.
A heavy iron chain hangs in the upper part of the court entrance on the western side. Only the sultan was allowed to enter the court of the mosque on horseback. The chain was put there, so that the sultan had to lower his head every time he entered the court to avoid being hit. This was a symbolic gesture, to ensure the humility of the ruler in the face of the divine.
The six minarets were a matter of contention and a first, since four minarets were the common maximum. Only after one more minaret was added to the Masjid al-Haram, Grand Mosque, in Mecca was the six minarets issue settled.
Interior [edit]
At its lower levels and at every pier, the interior of the mosque is lined with more than 20,000 handmade ceramic tiles, made at Iznik (the ancient Nicaea) in more than fifty different tulip designs. The tiles at lower levels are traditional in design, while at gallery level their design becomes flamboyant with representations of flowers, fruit and cypresses. More than 20,000 tiles were made under the supervision of the Iznik master potter Kasap Haci and Baris Efendi from Avanos (Cappadocia). The price to be paid for each tile was fixed by the sultan's decree, while tile prices in general increased over time. As a result, the quality of the tiles used in the building decreased gradually. The upper levels of the interior are dominated by blue paint. More than 200 stained glass windows with intricate designs admit natural light, today assisted by chandeliers. On the chandeliers, ostrich eggs are found that were meant to avoid cobwebs inside the mosque by repelling spiders.[2] The decorations include verses from the Qur'an, many of them made by Seyyid Kasim Gubari, regarded as the greatest calligrapher of his time. The floors are covered with carpets, which are donated by the faithful and are regularly replaced as they wear out. The many spacious windows confer a spacious impression. The casements at floor level are decorated with opus sectile. Each exedra has five windows, some of which are blind. Each semi-dome has 14 windows and the central dome 28 (four of which are blind). The coloured glass for the windows was a gift of the Signoria of Venice to the sultan. Most of these coloured windows have by now been replaced by modern versions with little or no artistic merit.
The most important element in the interior of the mosque is the mihrab, which is made of finely carved and sculptured marble, with a stalactite niche and a double inscriptive panel above it. It is surrounded by many windows. The adjacent walls are sheathed in ceramic tiles. To the right of the mihrab is the richly decorated minber, or pulpit, where the imam stands when he is delivering his sermon at the time of noon prayer on Fridays or on holy days. The mosque has been designed so that even when it is at its most crowded, everyone in the mosque can see and hear the imam.
The royal kiosk is situated at the south-east corner. It comprises a platform, a loggia and two small retiring rooms. It gives access to the royal loge in the south-east upper gallery of the mosque. These retiring rooms became the headquarters of the Grand Vizier during the suppression of the rebellious Janissary Corps in 1826. The royal loge (hünkâr mahfil) is supported by ten marble columns. It has its own mihrab, which used to be decorated with a jade rose and gilt[3] and with one hundred Qurans on an inlaid and gilded lecterns.[4]
The many lamps inside the mosque were once covered with gold and gems.[5] Among the glass bowls one could find ostrich eggs and crystal balls.[6] All these decorations have been removed or pillaged for museums.
The great tablets on the walls are inscribed with the names of the caliphs and verses from the Quran. They were originally by the great 17th-century calligrapher Seyyid Kasim Gubari of Diyarbakır but have been repeatedly restored.
Pope Benedict XVI's visit and silent meditation [edit]
Pope Benedict XVI visited the Sultan Ahmed Mosque on 30 November 2006 during his visit to Turkey. It marks as only the second papal visit in history to a Muslim place of worship. Having removed his shoes, the Pope paused for a full two minutes, eyes closed in silent meditation,[7] standing side by side with Mustafa Çağrıcı, the Mufti of Istanbul, and Emrullah Hatipoğlu, the Imam of the Blue Mosque.[8]
The pope “thanked divine Providence for this” and said, “May all believers identify themselves with the one God and bear witness to true brotherhood.” The pontiff noted that Turkey “will be a bridge of friendship and collaboration between East and West”, and he thanked the Turkish people “for the cordiality and sympathy” they showed him throughout his stay, saying, “he felt loved and understood.”[9]
See also [edit]
- Hagia Sophia
- Islam in Turkey
- Islamic architecture
- Ottoman architecture
- List of mosques
- Religion
- Selimiye Mosque
- Shah Mosque
- Süleymaniye Mosque
Media [edit]
Gallery [edit]
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Seen from Sultanahmet Square, close to the Hagia Sophia
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Sunset over the Bosphorus, left the Blue Mosque, right the Hagia Sophia
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Arcaded forecourt with one of the entrance gates
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Prayers inside
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Blue tiles
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Courtyard View
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Gateway to the courtyard
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View of the inner courtyard
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Prayer area
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Main dome and its blue tiles
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Arcades in the inner courtyard
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Two tourists looking at the Blue Mosque from the Sultanahmet Park
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Blue Mosque at dusk
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The blue mosque
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The blue mosque
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The blue mosque
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Blue Mosque at Night
Notes [edit]
- ^ Encyclopedia of architectural and engineering feats, Donald Langmead, Christine Garnaut, page 322, 2001
- ^ "Sultan Ahmet Cami or Blue Mosque". MuslimHeritage.com. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
- ^ Öz, T., "Sultan Ahmet Camii' in Vakiflar Dergisi, I, Ankara, 1938
- ^ Evliya Efendi, Narrative of travels in Europe, Asia, and Africa in the seventeenth century; London, 1846
- ^ Naima M., Annals of the Turkish Empire from 1591 to 1659 of the Christian Era; Frazer, London, 1832
- ^ Tournefort, J.P., Marquis de, Relation d'un voyage du Levant, Amsterdam, 1718
- ^ Foxnews: Pope Benedict XVI Visits Turkey's Famous Blue Mosque, 30 November 2006, retrieved 19 October 2011
- ^ "Pope makes Turkish mosque visit". BBC News. 2006-11-30. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
- ^ "Pope: In mosque I prayed to the one God for all mankind". Asianews.it. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
References [edit]
- Goodwin G., "A History of Ottoman Architecture"; Thames & Hudson Ltd., London, reprinted 2003; ISBN 0-500-27429-0
- Turner, J. (ed.) - Grove Dictionary of Art - Oxford University Press, USA; New edition (January 2, 1996); ISBN 0-19-517068-7
- Sheila S. Blair, Jonathan M. Bloom - "The Art and Architecture of Islam, 1250-1800", Yale University Press, 1994; ISBN 0-300-05888-8
External links [edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Sultan Ahmed Mosque |
- http://www.bluemosque.co / Website About Blue Mosque - Istanbul
- Virtual tour inside Sultan Ahmed Mosque
- Virtual tour inside Sultan Ahmed Mosque (3D panoramas)
- Video of Sultan Ahmend Mosque at dawn call to prayer
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