Author
Architect: Hassan bin Abdullah; Decoration teacher: Musa bin Adel.
Author Original
المعمار حسن بن عبد الله؛ معلم الزخرفة موسى بن عادل
Publication Date
26 Safar 797 / 21 January 1394
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Record ID
monument;ISL;tr;Mon01;9;ar
Library Location
Milas, Türkiye
Date
26 Safar 797 / 21 January 1394
Notes
Firuz Bey Mosque, also known as Qurşunlu Mosque, contains a zawiya (shelter for dervishes), a madrasa, and a wide courtyard that includes a cemetery. The madrasa rooms along the western side of the courtyard lost their character in the course of the restoration, while the tombstones that were once in the cemetery were moved to another cemetery. The building is considered an important example of a mosque that includes a zawiya or a madafah. The mosque occupies an area measuring 22.80 x 22.60 metres, and consists of three sections: a hallway for latecomers, an inner courtyard surrounded by two guest houses used to receive guests and accommodate wandering dervishes, and a prayer hall. The central hallway space designated for latecomers is roofed with a dome, while the side spaces are covered by barrel vaults. The inner courtyard contains a low dome, and each of the other rooms is roofed with a dome as well. The square prayer hall is larger than the rest of the rooms, and is about half a meter higher than the inner courtyard. The dome that covers it rests on an octagonal neck. The scope of the transformation of the sections includes corner niches decorated with stalactites. The exterior walls of the building are covered with strips of blue-veined sudra tiles, which reflects high craftsmanship. Because the interior rooms are covered with plaster, it is difficult to know what materials were used in constructing the building. In the northwest corner of the building, a minaret rises above the outer walls, covered with cut polished stones. In addition to the outstanding architectural features, the building’s decorations are noteworthy. The original decorations appear on the recessed parts of the windows, the portico of the later arrivals, the entrance, and the mihrab. In addition, colorful Ashi Qalam decoration was later added to the walls of the rooms and the interior of the dome. Floral and geometric decoration fills the marble beams covering the arch of the central space of the portico, as well as the spaces separating them. What is surprising is the two-color veined marble that adorns the roof of the sloping roof. The rectangular marble slabs of the balustrade in the latecomers' gallery were decorated with openwork engraving, including star designs and interlocking geometric formations. The entrance door framed by a muqarnas surround and a recessed space surrounded by a two-coloured arch, as well as the peak of the entrance arch, are both decorated with carvings. There is a similarity in the decoration of the two-color marble that decorates the recessed and triangular parts of the windows of the upper row and the portico. The marble mihrab is framed by two rows of muqarnas, while its concave surface is decorated with Qur’anic verses, lamps, arabesques, and palm leaves. While the three designs for the lamps hanging on chains were engraved, the other forms of decoration were executed in low relief, and the capitals of the small columns in the niche of the mihrab are decorated with muqarnas. The names of the architect (Hassan bin Abdullah) and the decoration teacher (Musa bin Adel) are inscribed vertically on both sides of the mihrab. The original pulpit of the mosque was moved to Istanbul in 1292 / 1875 and was replaced by the current pulpit. This building, which has recently undergone major renovations, is still open as a place of worship.
Sample Text
Ertan Daş “Firuz Bey Mosque” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;tr;Mon01;9;ar
