Kavsara Mustafa Baba Tomb
About the Person:
- Known by the nickname “Kavsara” due to his mastery in the art of basket weaving, Kavsara Mustafa Baba was a Sufi figure who lived in the 17th century.
- He was the founder of the Kavsara Tekke Mosque. The most accurate record of his death is the date H. 1067 (1656-57), as noted on a plaque mentioned in Hadîkatü’l-Cevâmi.
- The date H. 1167 on his tombstone is believed to have been engraved mistakenly at a later time. The verse from the mihrab of his demolished mosque has been relocated to the tomb.
About the Tomb:
Construction Year: 17th century
Ordered by: Family Foundation
Architect: Unknown
Prominent Features:
- The tomb is rectangular and made of concrete; the original structure was entirely wooden.
- It has a grated supplication window facing the street and a simple wooden door opening into a small courtyard on the side.
- There are no original inscriptions remaining; earlier ones were lost in a fire.
- The large inscription and the verse plaque from the demolished Kavsara Tekke Mosque were placed inside the tomb.
- The tomb was maintained for many years through the personal efforts of Mr. Hamdi Erengülü and eventually took its current concrete form.
- The headstone features the Halveti crown motif, inscribed with the couplet: “With heart and soul, a lover of the People of the Cloak / May his soul be blessed, O Kavsara Mustafa Baba” followed by an erroneously engraved date of 1167.
