Şemsi Pasha Mosque

The Şemsi Pasha Mosque (Turkish: Şemsi Paşa Camii, also spelled Chamsi-Pasha) is an Ottoman mosque located in the large and densely populated district of Üsküdar, in Istanbul, Turkey.

History

The Şemsi Pasha Mosque was designed by Ottoman imperial architect Mimar Sinan for Şemsi Pasha. The Mosque is one of the smallest of Mimar Sinan's works in Istanbul, however its miniature dimensions combined with its picturesque waterfront location have made it one of the most attractive mosques in the city. The Mosque is a celebrated example of the chief architect's skill in organically blending architecture with the natural landscape.

Architecture

The complex stands on a roughly rectangular site aligned east–west with the

A gate along the seawall opens into the precinct courtyard, which is shared by the mosque and the madrasa. A secondary gate along the cemetery wall to the east also leads to this courtyard via a narrow passage. The mosque portico, which envelops the prayer hall to the northwest and southwest, is faced across the courtyard with the madrasa arcade, at a smaller scale. Both the portico and arcade are covered by shed roofs and have pointed arches carried on columns with diamond-cut capitals. The mosque portico was rebuilt during the 1940 restoration. A single minaret with a single balcony rises above it, adjoining the southwest corner of the prayer hall. Entered through a marble portal on its northwest wall, the prayer hall is surmounted by a single dome, which measures about eight meters in diameter. The transition to the dome is achieved with four squinches over an octagonal drum pierced with four arched windows. The prayer hall has nine casement windows – two on each wall with an additional window on the southeast wall. Each casement is topped by an arched window with a different coloured glass composition, and a circular window is placed above the mihrab. The simple marble mihrab has a muqarnas hood. Muqarnas carvings were also used to highlight the springing of the squinch arches. The wooden minbar is a modern replacement.

The

• 
  Semsi Ahmet Pasha mosque from ferry
• 
  Semsi Ahmet Pasha mosque exterior of complex
• 
  Semsi Ahmet Pasha medrese across garden from mosque front
• 
  View from the Bosphorus
• 
  Semsi Ahmet Pasha mosque from side
• 
  Semsi Ahmet Pasha mosque interior
• 
  Semsi Ahmet Pasha mosque dome
• 
  Semsi Ahmet Pasha mosque window
• 
  Şemsi Ahmet Paşa mosque founders grave

See also

• List of Friday mosques designed by Mimar Sinan

References

• Egli, Hans G. 1997. Sinan: An Interpretation. Istanbul: Ege Yayınları, 138–140.
• Kuran, Aptullah. 1986. Mimar Sinan. Istanbul: Hürriyet Vakıf Yayınları, 193–196.
• Gültekin, Gülbin. 1994. "Semsi Pasa Külliyesi." In Dünden Bugüne Istanbul Ansiklopedisi. Istanbul: Tarih Vakfi, VII, 158–159.
• Necipoglu, Gülru. 2005. The Age of Sinan: Architectural Culture in the Ottoman Empire. London: Reaktion Books, 452–498.
• Sözen, Metin. 1988. Sinan: Architect of the Ages. Istanbul: Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, 312–315.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Şemsi Pasha Mosque.

• Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism – A 360° panorama of Şemsi Pasha Mosque
• Images of Şemsi Ahmet Pasha Mosque
• 18 pictures in a gallery