OTTOMAN IMPERIAL MOSQUES
Ottoman sultans or other members of the dynasty commissioned these historic structures. They were usually built as a külliye, a complex of buildings with a mosque in the centre, surrounded with madrasas, kitchens and other buildings for various charitable services for the poor.
The chief imperial architect, Mimar Sinan, constructed most of the existent complexes in Istanbul. The master architect of the Ottoman Empire for 50 years, he set the pattern for other külliye architects.
Many Ottoman imperial mosques are in other cities in Turkey. Bursa was the first proper capital of the Ottoman Empire and some historically very important religious temples are there. Other Ottoman imperial mosques are in Edirne, Konya, Amasya, Manisa and even in Damascus.

MIHRIMAH SULTAN MOSQUE
Certainly, the chief imperial architect Mimar Sinan was busy building monumental imperial mosques for members of the Ottoman dynasty. His service started with the Haseki Sultan Mosque. However, it was the Şehzade Mosque that impressed Suleiman the Magnificent who then commissioned Sinan to build what is now one of the biggest and most well known structures in Istanbul – the Süleymaniye Mosque.
But before that, Mimar Sinan built the Iskele Mosque in Üsküdar in 1548, also for Mihrimah Sultan.

He completed the mosque in Edirnekapi around 1570. The same as other imperial mosques, this one was also a complex that included a madrasa, a hammam, a mausoleum and a row of shops under the mosque with an aim to finance its running and maintenance. But these shops no longer exist.

However, there are several interesting particularities about this mosque. A massive dome covers the whole structure. Additionally, hundreds of windows decorate the interior making it one of the brightest Ottoman era mosques.

Mimar Sinan was famous for his symbolism. Mihrimah in Persian means “sun and moon”. So, for this mosque in Edirnekapi, he chose the exact location where the sun sets in March. Simultaneously, while the sun sets in Edirnekapi, the moon rises above the other Mihrimah Sultan’s mosque in Üsküdar.
One more particularity is that the Edirnekapi mosque has only one minaret. Normally, imperial mosques have two or more minarets.

Behind the mosque, you can see the Islamic school for Koran teaching.

HAMMAM
The hammam is part of the Mihrimah Sultan Complex and it’s still operational some 450 years after its construction.

I know that this mosque is not very convenient for tourists visiting Istanbul, as it’s far from the most popular touristic area of the city.
However, if you go to see the Chora Church, Tekfur Palace and Theodosian Walls, you can easily visit this mosque too. All these historic buildings are close to each other.
A monumental structure, Mihrimah Sultan Mosque adorns the Edirnekapi neighbourhood and proudly stands as a testament to a famous historic figure from the Ottoman dynasty.
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