Bodrum Mesihpaşa Mosque

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Construction Year:

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.