Masses of Mosques

Before I arrived in Turkey, I already knew what a mosque was.  And now I know a little bit more about what shape and form they take, in Turkey at least. We have seen big mosques:

Blue mosque, Istanbul



Istanbul

and little mosques,

old mosques

Green Mosque, Konya

and older mosques,

Hagia Sophia, Istanbul

 mosques with one dome

Kariye Mosque, Istanbul

and two domes and even one with twenty domes! 

Mosques with one minaret,


on the way to Safranbolu



Sivas

mosques with two minarets
and mosques that like to show off with a surfeit of minarets.  


Blue Mosque, Istanbul

 

There are mosques you go down into

Kayseri

and those you go up into, and some you just go in to.  

Amasya

Bursa

We have seen them decorated with plain tiles

Konya

and ornate tiles

and maybe a little bit too much tile

Painted and carved wood and carved stone

Divrigi



and stained glass

Sultanahmet

But they all have some of the same features.  For example, there is always a place out front for the washing of ones feet:

Yeni, Istanbul

Sokullu Mehmet, Istanbul

 
There is a lavish cone shaped entry point at which all shoes must be taken off:

Amasya



They all have soft wall to wall carpet inside.



Rustem Pasha, Istanbul



Kucuk Ayasofia

There are pillars and arches and vaults:



Kucuk Ayasofia

There is a stylised staircase for the Imam to preach from:


Hagia Sofia, Istanbul

Most importantly, there is the decoratted niche indicating the direction of Mecca towards whom on prays.