Blue Mosque ( Sultanahmet Camii )

Blue Mosque ( Sultanahmet Camii )

 

The Blue Mosque, one of the most famous monuments of the Turkish and Islamic world, is the only mosque built with six minarets. The area where it is located also includes many important works built in earlier periods of İstanbul. The mosque silhouette has become the symbol of the city of İsytanbul. The original name of this mosque is I. Sultan Ahmet Mosque, but it is also know as the Blue Mosque owing to the glazed tiles decorating its interior. The mosque, built between the years 1609 - 1616, was located in a large scale complex wihch included social and cultural structures such as a bazaar, a bath,a cookhouse, a hospital, schools. Unfortunately, these have not been preserved. The architect of the mosque was Mimar Mehmet Aga. The architect of the mosque was and apprenttüice of Koca Sinan, the great architect of Turkish classical architecture, and he applied a plan formerly used by his master but on a greater scale.  He decorated the interior side of the mosque painstakingly, like a jeweler. The actual entrance to the Blue Mosque is at the side of the roman era Hippodrome. The interior courtyard. These and the main structure are situated on a platform. When you enter through one of the three entrance doors, you will notice the painting, glazed tiles and stained glass that supplement the outer view. The interior is one large space wihch rises above four large pillars which support broad and sharp arches. The interior of the mosque is embillished with over 20 000 marvelous pieces of glazed İznik tiles. The upper sides of the glazed tiles and interior sides of all domes are embellished by ornate painting. The pulpit, decorated with marvelous carving isnear the altar past the main enterance. On the other side, the lodge of the sultans can be seen in the form of a balcony. The dome, with a diameter of 23,5m and a height of 43 meters, is illuminated by 260 windows. The single domes tomb of Sultan Ahmet, who ordered the bulding of the mosque, and the madrasah are to the south of the mosque towards Hagia Sophia. It is said that there are 16 minaters symbols ( Şerefe ) on the six minarets of the mosque because Sultan Ahmet was the 16th sultan of the Ottoman Empire. The minarets are another example of the Turkish style, Spiral stairs lead to the minaret symbols. The domes and the minarets are coated with lead. The crescents on their tips are made of copper coated with gold.