Kurt Çelebi Mosque

Audio Narration

Construction Year:

1600 (First construction), 1985 (Reconstruction)

Location:

Beyoğlu, İstanbul

Ordered by:

Kaptan Kurt Çelebi

Architect:

Unknown

- Changes after its construction
  • It was built by Kaptan (Admiral) Kurt Çelebi, who died in 1611.
  • The first building was magnificent, its walls were made of masonry, its roof was made of wood, and its thick minaret was made of brick.
  • In 1985, as the wooden roof was about to collapse, it was demolished and rebuilt with reinforced concrete and a dome.
  • The minaret of the mosque was also rebuilt from reinforced concrete.
- Prominent Features
  • It is a two-story reinforced concrete building.
  • Its interior is covered with Kütahya tiles.
  • Its minbar and preacher’s pulpit are made of inlaid marble.
  • The last verses of the Surah Al-Hashr are written in Kütahya tiles on the inner perimeter of the dome.
  • It is also known as the “Acı Çeşme Mosque” due to the historical “Acı Çeşme” (en: Bitter Fountain) located next to the Qibla direction.
  • The tomb of Kaptan Kurt Çelebi, the commissioner of the previous mosque, is located on the lower floor.