What Is the Sultanahmet Camii (Blue Mosque)?
This is the imperial mosque of Ottoman Sultan Ahmet I!
What Makes It Historical?
After suffering big losses against the Habsburgs to the northwest and the Persians to the southeast, 19-year old poet-king, Sultan Ahmet I, needed a consolation prize. Only, he didn’t have the spoils of war to build one, so he withdrew funds from the Treasury, a big no-no! Nevertheless, he hired Sedefkâr Mehmed Ağa to design a mosque upon the foundations of an old Byzantine Palace. It was the kind of move meant to say “I lost a bunch of battles, but I’m still sultan!”
That wasn’t where the controversy ended either! Sultan Ahmet wanted six minarets for his mosque, which happened to be the same number as Al-Masjid al-Haram in Mecca! Not to be deterred by naysayers, it’s rumored the sultan ordered a seventh minaret to be built in Mecca and kept on with this seven-year project (1609 – 1616 CE).
Nicknamed the “Blue Mosque” because of its blue, Byzantine-inspired domes, inside there are over 20,000 ceramic tiles featuring 50 kinds of tulip (the sultan’s favorite flower) as well as 200 stained glass windows and calligraphy art by one of the very best, Seyyid Kasim Gubari! Tragically, the sultan died of typhus at the young age of 27 and is buried here on the grounds of his magnificent monument!
How Can I #HelpTheHelpers?
- Volunteer with the World Heritage Volunteers!
- Be a responsible visitor! Please respect the signs and pathways, and treat all structures and artifacts with respect. They’ve endured a lot to survive into the present. They’ll need our help to make it into the future!
How Do I Get There?
Sultan Ahmet, Atmeydanı Cd. No:7
34122 Fatih/İstanbul
(Take Me There!)
When Should I Visit?
Because this is a working mosque, visitors are limited to non-prayer times: 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM, 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM, and 3:30 PM to 16:45 PM! On Fridays, it doesn’t open until 1:00 PM, but if you’re there to pray, you can get started as early as 5:30 AM!