Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii) travel guide

A favorite of believers and tourists alike

At first sight it is the most impressive mosque of the city. Three stories tall, the domes rise to the skies; no other Islamic place of worship except the Holy Mosque in Mecca has six minarets. To atone for this sacrilege, the Turkish authorities happily paid for an additional minaret to be built in Mecca. The so-called Blue Mosque was built by a student of the master architect Sinan at the beginning of the 17th century and tore a deep hole into the treasury. The expenses were, however, worth it -- for future generations. The front courts of the mosque, which was built across from the Hagia Sophia, impress by their size. On the inside, blue tiles, a red carpet, and enormous candleholders hanging down from the dome dominate. From some of the 260 windows -- many of which are colorfully glazed – you look on the Sea of Marmara or onto a pretty mosque garden. The Ottoman ecclesiastical architecture had, however, attained its peak with the Blue Mosque. In the 300 years to follow, there would be no other master builder who could compare himself to Sinan. The Blue Mosque is a must when visiting Istanbul. Because of its popularity, it is thronged with all kinds of leaders, dealers, and smugglers, which has somewhat removed the character of a mosque with a practicing community. Nevertheless, great recitations from the Koran take place on important holidays like the birth of the prophet or first revelation. In summer nights an impressive light show takes place. Tourists enter the mosque by a separate entrance, non-Muslim women are not required to cover their heads. Sultanahmet Meydanı

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