10th century (construction as a church); 1500 (conversion into a mosque)
Location:
Fatih, İstanbul
Ordered by:
Emperor Romanos Lekapenos (church); Grand Vizier Mesih Ali Pasha (conversion into a mosque)
Architect:
Unknown
- Changes the building has undergone since its construction
It was converted into a mosque in 1500 by Grand Vizier Mesih Ali Pasha during the reign of Bayezid II.
It was damaged and ruined in the Great Mercan Fire in 1911.
It was reopened for worship after a restoration in 1987.
- Prominent features of the mosque
The building was converted from a church (Myrelaion Church) into a mosque.
The building has a four-supported closed cross plan and is covered with a high, windowed dome.
On the east side, there is an apse with a semicircular interior and three facades on the exterior, and two trefoil-shaped cells.
Next to the church there is a rotunda and a water cistern dating back to the 5th century.
When it was converted into a mosque during the reign of Bayezid II, a mihrab, a wooden minbar and a minaret made of cut stone were added.
The dome has been preserved in its original form and the name of the structure (Bodrum, en: basement) comes from the basement under which it is located.