Bayezid II Mosque, Istanbul

The Beyazid Mosque was commissioned by the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid II, and was the second large imperial mosque complex (or selatin mosque) to be erected in Istanbul after the conquest in 1453. The earlier imperial complex, the Fatih Mosque, was later destroyed by earthquakes and completely rebuilt in a different style. As a result, the Beyazid complex is the oldest imperial complex in Istanbul that is preserved in more or less its original form, making it of considerable historical and architectural significance. The mosque was constructed between 1500 and 1505, with a külliye (religious and charitable complex) added immediately afterwards. This included a medrese (theological college), completed in 1507; a large hamam (bathhouse), completed some time before 1507; an imaret (soup kitchen); a caravanserai; and several mausolea including the türbe of Bayezid II himself. The chief architect of the mosque is not directly known. Based on Ottoman documents that mention architects during Bayezit II's reign, 20th-century scholar Rıfkı Melül Meriç identified Yakubşah ibn Islamşah as the most likely architect. One of Yakubşah's assistants, Yusuf ibn Papas, finished off the work on the medrese. This grant confirms the endowment by Mehmed II of the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Mary of the Mongols, the only church in Istanbul that was never converted into a mosque, to the mother of Christodoulos (the Bayezid II Mosque's architect's grandmother) in acknowledgment of the two architects' work. In 19th-century and early 20th-century accounts of the city it is often referred to as "the Pigeon Mosque" because of the large number of birds that congregated nearby to be fed by worshippers. Damage and restoration work The dome was partially rebuilt after an earthquake in 1509, An inscription above the courtyard entrance suggests that repairs were also carried out in 1767 as a result of the earthquake which struck Istanbul in 1766. ==Architecture==

Exterior The mosque is oriented along the northwest–southeast axis with a courtyard to the northwest with an area almost equal to that of the mosque itself. The courtyard has monumental entrance portals on three sides and is surrounded by a colonnaded peristyle supported by twenty columns. Two of the columns are made of porphyry, ten are of verd antique, and six are of pink granite. The central dome is supported by two semi-domes along the main axis and two arches running along the secondary axis. The mosque is constructed entirely of cut stone using coloured stones and marbles. File:BeyazıtMosqueDoor.jpg|The entrance portal to the courtyard File:Bayezid II Mosque courtyard DSCF1149.jpg|The courtyard and its shadirvan BeyazıtCamiAvlu.jpg|The courtyard and the domes BeyazıtCamii.jpg|The view of the mosque from the Beyazıt Square BeyazıtCamiAvlu2.jpg|Columns with different colors File:2007-03-11 03-17 Istanbul 032 Beyazit Moschee (2718629740).jpg|One of the muqarnas-carved capitals in the courtyard File:Bayezid_II_Mosque_Entrance.jpg|Portico and entrance to the prayer hall from the courtyard File:Mosque Architecture - Sultanahmet District - Istanbul - Turkey - 01 (5719267791).jpg|Closer view of the southwestern minaret Interior The mosque interior resembles a smaller scale version of the Hagia Sophia. At the ends of these wings are the two minarets. File:Beyazid II mosque0816.jpg|Interior of the mosque, looking towards the mihrab File:Beyazid II mosque0822.jpg|The mosque's central dome and semi-domes File:BeyazıtMosqueInt.jpg|Closer view of the central dome Other parts of the complex Behind the mosque is a small garden, containing the türbe (tombs) of Sultan Bayezid II, his daughter Selçuk Hatun, and Grand Vizier Koca Mustafa Reşid Pasha. Embedded in the lowest part of the walls are fragments of sculpture from the lost triumphal arch from the Forum of Theodosius, more remains of which are scattered on the ground across the road from the mosque. During restoration of the hamam traces of an old Byzantine church beneath the hamam were uncovered. File:Beyazid II mosque0796.jpg|Cemetery and mausoleums; Bayezid II's mausoleum is on the right File:Beyazid II madrasa Istanbul DSCF2217.jpg|The medrese of the complex (converted to a museum) File:Beyazit hammam DSCF6006.jpg|The Bayezid II Hamam (now a museum) File:Cemetery of the Bayezid II Mosque 01.jpg|The cemetery near the mosque ==See also==