Fatih Mosque was built between 1463 and 1470 AD as part of Istanbul’s greatest university, which included sixteen colleges, a nursing house, a guest house, and a library, all of which were housed inside what is now known as the Fatih neighbourhood. The Mosque is one of Istanbul’s most beautiful archaeological and religious sites, and its current form is not the one on which it was built, due to a massive earthquake that struck Istanbul in 1766 AD, destroying it.
It was reconstructed by architect Muhammad Tahir Agha on Sultan Mustafa III’s orders in 1767 CE. In addition to the mihrab, the only remaining part of the previous mosque was the inner courtyard, which was enclosed by a portico covered with twenty-two domes supported by eighteen columns.
The Inside Beauty of Faith Mosque
Fatih Mosque’s main dome is twenty-six metres in diameter and is supported by four massive pillars. The mihrab is identical to the original building’s mihrab as well as the minbar. Aside from that, the calligraphic ornaments that adorn the mosque are Baroque. The Sultan has his own part in the mosque, which was created in the eighteenth century and is dedicated to his worship. They set aside time for him to recall, read the Quran, and pray.
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There are also sections for women and a room for the creation of natural ink, where the mosque was lit by gas oil before electricity and the smoke was expelled by ventilation sticks. To be removed by calligraphers and converted into ink, to write the Holy Quran in a dedicated room.
Architecture of Fatih Mosque
The Fatih Mosque’s interior design was created by engineer Sinan Agha, a well-known architectural designer, who created it in the style of his earlier works, with two minarets that are identical in shape and scale to this mosque. Furthermore, the central dome is about 26 metres long, with four smaller domes on each axis, each supported by a strong marble column, and the solar clock engraved on the stone is one of the most important monuments in Fatih Mosque. It was embossed on the mosque’s minaret from the direction of Fevzi Pasa Street, and it is regarded one of the most beautiful models of solar clocks in history.
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The presence of a well of water inside the mosque is also notable, and it is now in the shape of a water fountain within the mosque. There is a firefighting water reservoir next to the mosque’s main courtyard entryway, which is encircled by a wall and an iron grid. Sultan Mahmut II created this reservoir in 1825 AD, and it was used during the Ottoman era.
How to Go to Fatih Mosque?
Fatih Mosque is a great example of Turkish Islamic architecture in Istanbul, located on the European side of the city in the Fatih neighbourhood, which is also known as Fatih Istanbul. This mosque, however, was named after Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror, who captured Constantinople in 1453, and it is located in the Fatih tomb’s annex part, may Allah be pleased with him.