Grand Mosque – Bursa
Sane Mind Turkey

Grand Mosque – Bursa

The monumental Grand Mosque represents the culmination of the initial period in the history of the Ottoman Empire. In my previous post, I wrote about the birth of the Empire that started with the Ottoman conquest of Bursa in 1326.

By 1399, when the mosque opened to the public for the first time, Bursa was no longer the capital city and the Ottoman state was much bigger.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

The fact that Ottomans built such a monumental mosque in the city centre, long after it had ceased to be the capital city, underlines that Bursa continued to be spiritually significant. The city retained that status for a long time, until the capture of Istanbul.

Thus, the Ottoman history in Istanbul starts after the conquest in 1453 and it coincides with the shift of the spiritual importance to the new magnificent capital city of the rapidly expanding Empire.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

So, the most recently dated Ottoman historic site in Bursa is, more or less, from that transitional time. Although, Bursa was already full of history by then, because various sultans had already left their mark on the city, over the previous century.

We can see that rich legacy today. Bursa’s historical centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, for a good reason.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Ahmet Münir Pasha Fountain (donation in 1313)

 

I visited the Grand Mosque when I arrived to Bursa. I reached my hotel around 3pm, checked in and left my stuff. Then, I went out to explore the city. The Grand Mosque, in the city centre, is the focal point of every visit. In other words, when you are in Bursa’s historical area, you are always near the Grand Mosque.

 

Grand Mosque - Rise of the Ottoman Empire, Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

I arrived to the mosque just after the afternoon prayer. Although many people were leaving the mosque, a lot of people were still inside at that time. So, photos in this post are from my second visit, the day after.

I mention this because you can hardly see anyone in these photos and perhaps you could get a wrong idea that the mosque is a quiet, peaceful place. On the contrary. The first time when I was there, it was completely packed. There were so many people everywhere, it was almost impossible to take one good photo.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

The following day, I woke up at 8pm and I was in the mosque already by 10am. It was almost empty. I am glad that I’ve seen it, both, busy and empty. Undoubtedly, its busy aspect reflects its immense religious importance, while during quiet times, it’s a tranquil place.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

For me, the time that I spent in this architecturally sublime structure, surrounded by magnificent examples of the Islamic calligraphic art, was like meditation. Apparently, the Grand Mosque is the best place in the whole world to see calligraphic writings, considered to be one of the most important representations of Islamic art.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Main Entrance

 

Sultan Bayezid I commissioned and constructed this mosque. But, that’s not “his” mosque.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Fountain

 

In my articles, Ottoman Imperial Mosques part 1 and part 2, I mentioned that almost every Ottoman sultan had constructed monumental mosque complexes.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Mihrab

 

Bayezid’s complex is the Yilderim Mosque, which I mentioned in my previous post and which I couldn’t see because of restoration works. He built the Grand Mosque to celebrate the victory in the Battle of Nicopolis, in 1396. He originally promised to build 20 mosques, but he built just this one with 20 domes instead.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Mihrab

 

You will probably notice that it’s not like imperial mosques in Istanbul. Rather, it’s similar to mosques constructed in Bursa throughout the 14th century, mainly in the Seljuk architectural style.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

In fact, it is the prime example of early Ottoman architecture and no mosque in Istanbul that I’ve seen looks like this.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

Additionally, not a single mosque in Istanbul has a fountain inside.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

A special feature in the Grand Mosque are beautiful calligraphic writings.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

Apparently, the best calligraphers of the time worked in the mosque.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

The main reason why the interior decoration of mosques is so different from churches of the Christian world, or from Hindu and Buddhist temples, is because Qur’an doesn’t permit idolatry. Images of people or animals are forbidden, as distraction.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

That’s why you can never see an image or a statue of a person in any mosque.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

That’s also why they use other decorative forms to embellish religious places.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

For that reason, calligraphy – the art of writing – takes central place in Islamic art, in addition to architecture, miniature painting, glass, pottery, carpets and embroidery.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Calligraphic Writing

 

They certainly invested a lot of effort in the Grand Mosque, although all other big imperial mosques in Bursa are equally impressive.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

But, the building that we see today is not a completely original structure of 620 years ago.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

Over the course of many centuries, fires and earthquakes damaged the original building.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Calligraphic Writing

 

Still, despite many restoration works, the essence of the original temple remains.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

The mosque is an excellent starting point to explore Bursa. As I’ve already mentioned, numerous historic buildings are in its vicinity and they all create Bursa’s magical atmosphere.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Grand Mosque

 

In the photo below, you can see the side entrance of the mosque. Because of its location, with many buildings and other structures immediately next to it, I couldn’t take a photo that would show the whole mosque. Perhaps, that’s only possible from above, but I couldn’t do that.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
Side Entrance

 

There is also the fountain for ritual cleansing. As it was still early in the morning, you can see only several people that were preparing for prayer. Otherwise, the fountain was very busy, the same as the mosque.

 

Grand Mosque - Bursa
The Fountain

 

Bursa’s magnificent Grand Mosque is deservedly the most famous of all historic sites that you can see in the city.

Artistically and architecturally, it represents the essence of the early Ottoman art.

The period of time after its construction and throughout the 15th century oversaw the rise of the Ottoman Empire, which stimulated further building works in Bursa. But, I will talk about that in my next post.

 

 

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