Süleymaniye Mosque

The Süleymaniye Mosque is an Ottoman imperial mosque located on the Third Hill of Istanbul, Turkey. The mosque was commissioned by Suleiman the Magnificent (r. 1520–1566) and designed by the imperial architect Mimar Sinan. It is one of the best-known sights of Istanbul and is considered a masterpiece of Ottoman architecture and one of Mimar Sinan's greatest works. It is the largest Ottoman-era mosque in the city.

Architecture

Like other Ottoman imperial foundations, the mosque is part of a larger külliye (religious and charitable complex) which included madrasas, a public kitchen, and a hospital, among others. Behind the qibla wall of the mosque is an enclosed cemetery containing the separate octagonal mausoleums of Suleiman the Magnificent and his wife Hurrem Sultan (Roxelana).

The courtyard, measuring around 47 by 57 metres, is of exceptional grandeur with a colonnaded peristyle supported by tall columns of marble, granite and porphyry.

Four minarets occupy the four corners of the courtyard. The two taller ones have three balconies and rise to a high 76 m.

Address
Profesör Sıddık Sami Onar Caddesi No:1, Istanbul, Turkey

Established
1550-1557