GREEN MOSQUE

The Green Mosque (Turkish: Yeşil Camii), also known as the

Mosque of Mehmed I, is a part of a larger complex (Turkish:
külliye) on the east side of Bursa, Turkey, the former capital of the
Ottoman Turks before they captured Constantinople in 1453. The
complex consists of a mosque, türbe, madrasah, kitchen and
bath. The name Green Mosque comes from its green and blue interior tile decorations. The Green
Mosque is often seen as the culmination of the early Ottoman architectural style, mainly due to the level
of aesthetic and technical mastery displayed within the mosque. The Green Mosque was commissioned
in 1412 by Sultan Mehmed I Çelebi, who ruled from 1413 to 1421, after a fight against his brothers to
reunite the Ottoman Empire.[3] Mehmed I was buried in a mausoleum, called the Green Tomb,
commissioned by his son and successor, Murad II, which resides in the complex.[3] The Green Mosque's
exact completion date is uncertain, but it was built between 1419 and 1424.[4] Decorative work
continued on the mosque after Mehmed I's death. The construction of the Green Mosque was
supervised by architect and patron of the arts vizier Hacı İvaz Pasha, who had been a commander under
Mehmed I.

Architecture:

The Green Mosque is based on an inverted T-plan and is a two-story, cube-shaped building with an
extension on the south side. The mosque has a vestibule at the entrance leading up a short staircase to a
central prayer hall. This stairway has four marble cubby-holes (Turkish: papuçluk) on each side for
slippers. These architectural inclusions point to the court being paved previously, although it is now
carpeted. The central hall, which runs from north to south, is flanked by iwans (Turkish: eyvans) on the
east and west. Both are domed and two stories high. There are two doors, smaller iwans, connecting to
corner rooms on the first floor that are similar to those on the north side of the building, each
containing a fireplace. The central hallway running north–south is intersected by a longer hallway
running east–west. Within the central hallway, the main hall contains an octagonal, white marble
fountain with a pool beneath the central dome—the highest dome in the mosque—which is illuminated
by a lantern overhead. On either side of the pool, two further iwans lead to rooms for traveling
dervishes, while a higher raised iwan directly behind the water (when seen from the central hall's
entrance) leads to the prayer hall itself.[9] In this iwan, there is a mihrab niche on the south (qibla) side
of the mosque, as well as two sets of four windows. Immediately past the entrance of the Green
Mosque lies a foyer. From here, wide corridors, framed by Byzantine columns, extend in both directions,
ending in staircases leading to the royal chambers.[10] These corner rooms overlook the interior court,
and connect to yet another small room leading to the royal box, which effectively functions as another
iwan. These chambers contain the winding stairways leading up to the lofts.[11] Between these corner
rooms, a passage opens to the balconies on the northern façade where the minaret steps begin. The
two minarets opposite from each other on the north facade were later additions. A porch was designed
but never built.
Exterior: Marble panels, a majority of which were replaced in the nineteenth century, overlay the
mosque's edifice of hewn sandstone. The door is crowned by a half-dome with a cascade of muqarnas,
whose face is covered with arabesques and Rumi inscriptions.[8] Above the niches on each side of the
entrance door is an inscription dedicated to Hacı İvaz Pasha, the mosque's designer. Between the
inscription and the muqarnas is a small window that illuminates the path to the sultan's box.[8]The
domes on top of the building were originally covered by blue and green tiles but are now clad in lead.[7]
There are windows pierced into drums in the domes and on the exterior walls. An oculus above the
ablution basin in the central hall was enclosed with a lantern at the time of restoration.[7]The two
minarets were fitted with stone spires, carved in the baroque manner, at the time of renovation. They
can only be accessed through the sultan's apartments and by climbing up the winding stairs to the attics.

Techniques:
Decorative elements such as the use of arabesque, geometric interlace (girih) and muqarnas or stalactite
vaults became widely spread. Common among these decorative elements are notions of modularity,
geometry and rhythm. During the years 1720-1890, Ottoman art deviated from the principles of classical
times. In the 18th century, during the Lale (Tulip) period, Ottoman art came under the influence of the
excessive decorations of the west; Baroque, Rococo, Ampir and other styles intermingled with Ottoman
art. Fountains became the characteristic structures of this period. An eclecticism set in. The Aksaray
Valide mosque in Istanbul is an example of the mixture of Turkish art and Gothic style. After 1950, the
trend in constructing buildings came to depend more on their purpose, the requirements of the age,
awareness of town planning and the practicality of construction materials.

Roofing system:
It’s made of sandstone and has marble panels on the sides. The supervisor of the interior tile
decorations is identified by a calligraphic inscription as Nakkas (the Artist) Ali bin Ilyas Ali. A Persian
inscription above the mosque’s mihrab mentions the “Masters of Tabriz.” As it was invaded by the
Timurids in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, Tabriz, a prominent artistic and cultural center in
western Iran, was a particularly important conduit through which Timurid influence reached the Green
Mosque.

Flooring:
The Green Mosque is a two-story, cube-shaped building with an extension on the south side, with an
inverted T-plan. The east-west hallways lead to two stairwells leading to the second floor, as well as
wide corner rooms with fireplaces and windows overlooking the building’s main (north) facade and
sides. Following the short north-south corridor, one enters a wide central chamber with an octagonal
fountain topped by a glass lantern and surrounded by a dome (this replaces the original oculus). In the
hallway connecting the vestibule to the prayer hall, dark green hexagonal tiles cover the walls,
punctuated by a large roundel in the center of each wall. These roundels feature an intricate floral
arabesque in black-line tiles glazed in white, yellow, green, and blue.The recessed mahfils that flank the
opening into the prayer hall are covered in similar dark green hexagonal wainscot tiles with gold
decoration, with a large, intricate arabesque on each ceiling.More of these dark green hexagonal
wainscot tiles, each decorated with a thick layer of gold overlay,[21] cover the large iwans flanking the
prayer hall. A narrow floral black-line band surrounds these tiles, topped by a larger black-line band
featuring a white and gold inscription upon a blue background.In the prayer hall itself, dark green
hexagonal and triangular tiles (including some nineteenth and thirteenth century replacements)[23]
cover the lower portions of the walls

Decoration:

The Green Mosque employs a distinctively diverse range of tile techniques (including black-line tiles
(often mistaken for, yet technically separate from cuerda seca tiles), monochrome underglaze tiles,
mosaic, and painted terra-cotta relief)[13] and colors (including green, blue, turquoise, white, yellow,
light purple, and dark purple).[14] The black-line tiles, which compose the majority of the tiles within the
mosque,[13] reflect an extensive Timurid influence that emerged through the empire's frequent
invasions of Ottoman territories.[15] This influence can also be observed in Timurid ceramics[13] and
architecture in Central Asia, such as the mausolea within the Shah-i Zinda shrine complex.[16]
Moreover, an inscription above the mihrab designates the black-line tiles as “amal-i ustādhān-i Tabrīz”
(work of the masters of Tabriz).[17] Meanwhile, the blue- and turquoise-glazed tiles in the entrance
hallway and iwans, as well as the gold-adorned green hexagonal tiles in the iwans,[18] reveal a Seljuk
influence (which can also be observed in the Karatay Madrasa in Konya)

Carvings:

Carved decorations exist along all exterior elements of the mosque, from the entryway to the mihrabs to
the window frames.The front portal of the mosque is made of carved marble and features a tall,
recessed muqarnas niche, with unique marble tympana (decorated with arabesques)framing the
flanking windows. This portal, framed with floral carvings and scripture, references similar portals found
in Seljuk mosques, madrasas, and mausolea.The two tabhane rooms connected to the central hallway,
designed to provide lodging for travelers, contain carved plaster niches and ocaks (fireplaces with a tall
hood).A three-line calligraphic inscription is put in an arch over one of its door.

References:

i
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Mosque,_Bursa
i
https://nomadicniko.com/2019/10/30/green-mosque/