|
It is located at the Sultanahmet
Square, opposite to the Hagia Sophia church. The Blue Mosque is one
of the most famous religious buildings of the world. The mosque is
one of several mosques known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles
adorning the walls of its interior. This Mosque has become one of
the greatest tourist attractions of Istanbul. The location of the
mosque is just opposite of the Hagia Sophia as it is trying to
compete with it.
The Blue Mosque was commissioned by Sultan Ahmet I as a rival to
Hagia Sophia and designed by architect Mehmet Aga. Construction on
the Blue Mosque began in 1609 and took 7 years. Sultan Ahmet died
only a year after the completion of his masterpiece, at the age of
27. He is buried just outside the Blue Mosque with his wife and 3
sons.
The Sultan Ahmed Mosque ( Blue Mosque ) is one of the two mosques in
Turkey that has six minarets. Each of these fluted, pencil-shaped
minarets has 3 balconies, while the two others at the end of the
forecourt only have 2 balconies.
There is an interesting story of the Blue Mosque. According to
story, Sultan Ahmet I wanted to have a minaret made of gold which is
altin in Turkish. The architect misunderstood Sultan Ahmet as alti
which means six in English. However, when the architect was
shivering as "am I going to be beheaded ?", Sultan Ahmed said "I
liked minarets very much". Prior to that time, no sultan had a
mosque with six minarets.
« back |
print
|
|
