İsa Bey Mosque

The İsa Bey Mosque (Turkish: İsa Bey Camii), constructed in 1374–75,^[1] is one of the oldest and most impressive works of architectural art remaining from the Anatolian beyliks. The mosque is situated on the outskirts of the Ayasluğ Hills at Selçuk, İzmir.

İsa Bey Mosque
Religion
Affiliation	Islam
District	Selçuk
Province	İzmir
Region	Aegean Region
Location
Location	Selçuk, Turkey
Architecture
Architect(s)	Şamlı Dımışklıoğlu Ali
Type	Mosque
Style	Islamic, Seljuk
Completed	1374–75
Specifications
Length	56 metres (184 ft)
Width	48 metres (157 ft)
Dome(s)	2
Dome dia. (outer)	9.4 metres (31 ft) and 8.4 metres (28 ft)
Minaret(s)	1
Materials	cut stone, marble, brick

History

It was built by the Syrian architect, 'Ali b. Mushaimish al Dimashki, in honor of the Aydinid Isa Bey.^[2][3] The plans for the mosque are based on the Great Mosque of Damascus.^[4]

By 1829, the mosque was in ruins and by 1842 the minaret had fallen down.^[5] In the 19th century, it was also used as a caravanserai. There is an octagonal Seljuk türbe made of stone and bricks, with a pyramid shaped roof, right next to the mosque.

Architecture

The mosque has two main entrances, to the east and to the west and contains a fountain court.^[4] The western wall has inscriptions and geometric shapes engraved. These walls are covered with marble, whereas the façades on the remaining sides are made of cut stone. It is built asymmetrically on a 48-by-56-metre (157 by 184 ft) base. The rims of its domes, with diameters of 9.4 metres (31 ft) and 8.1 metres (27 ft), are decorated with İznik (Nicaea) tiles. Twelve round columns stand inside its courtyard encircled with porches. Its brick minaret is built on an octagonal base, and the upper part from the balcony is ruined. The mosque had another minaret on the west, which is totally destroyed now. The mihrab (niche or altar) was moved to another mosque, due to a door opened there.

Gallery

• 
  Isa Bey Mosque Exterior view
• 
  Entrance of the courtyard
• 
  Entrance of the mosque
• 
  Interior of the mosque
• 
  Plan

See also

• Aydinid dynasty
• Anatolian beyliks
• Islamic architecture
• Islamic art
• List of mosques
• Timeline of Islamic history
• List of Turkish Grand Mosques

Notes

1. The Evolution of Architectural Form in Turkish Mosques (1300-1700), Suut Kemal Yetkin, Studia Islamica, No. 11 (1959), 76-77.
2. Bloom, Jonathan M. (1993). "On the Transmission of Designs in Early Islamic Architecture". Muqarnas. 10: 21–28. doi:10.2307/1523168. JSTOR 1523168.
3. Behrens-Abouseif, Doris (2012). The Arts of the Mamluks in Egypt and Syria: Evolution and Impact. V&R unipress GmbH. ISBN 978-3-89971-915-4.
4. Bloom, Jonathan; Blair, Sheila S.; Blair, Sheila (14 May 2009). Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art & Architecture: Three-Volume Set. OUP USA. pp. 142–143. ISBN 978-0-19-530991-1.
5. Michael Greenhalgh, From the Romans to the Railways: The Fate of Antiquities in Asia Minor, (Brill, 2013), 90.

References

• Bayrak, Orhan M. (1994). p. 407, Türkiye Tarihi Yerler Rehberi (expanded 3rd edition). İnkılâp Kitabevi. ISBN 975-10-0705-4.

External links

• History and architecture of İsabey Mosque with many photos
• Images of the İsabey Mosque
• Over 30 pictures of the mosque

37°57′08″N 27°21′57″E

• A visit to the Isa Bey Mosque - Photos included