Nuruosmaniye Madrasa

Audio Narration:

Construction Year:

1755

Location:

Fatih, İstanbul

Ordered By:

Sultan Mahmud I

Architect:

Simeon Kalfa

Changes After Construction:
  • The spaces between the porticoes and some of the niches were enclosed with glazed frames during the period of use.
  • Today, the madrasa and the adjoining imaret are used as a boarding Qur’an course.
  • It has been stated that, during the restoration processes, the madrasa walls were raised in accordance with the approved projects.
Prominent Features:
  • The madrasa and the imaret are positioned in the outer courtyard in the qibla direction; their inscriptions state that they were built in 1755.
  • It has a square plan; around the porticoed courtyard, it consists of twelve student rooms of varying sizes and one classroom.
  • The rooms are domed; the door is at the center of the north facade, and the classroom stands opposite the door.
  • In the practice room, for which the teaching of calligraphy was stipulated in its endowment deed, the calligraphers Abdullah Zuhdi and Arif Efendi of Filibe practiced calligraphy for many years.
  • The baroque style of the complex appears in a simpler form in the madrasa.