Dolmabahçe Mosque

Its construction was started by the order of Bezmiâlem Valide Sultan, who played a role in Ottoman social life as a benevolent personality with her numerous foundations, and was completed by her son, Sultan Abdülmecid, upon her death in 1853. Bezmiâlem Valide Sultan Mosque has been called the Dolmabahçe Mosque since the day it was built, because it fell directly across the courtyard gate of the Dolmabahçe Palace in the direction of the Clock Tower, and this is how it entered the literature.

The construction inscription of the building, dated 1270 (1853-54), which was formerly located on the door of the courtyard facing the Clock Tower, was put in its present location at the foot of the outer wall of the qibla, due to the collapse of the courtyard walls during the opening of Dolmabahçe Square in 1948. The inscription, consisting of four couplets written in celi thuluth calligraphy, is completely decorated with acanthus leaves in Western style, and a large wreath containing Abdülmecid's tughra crowns the middle of its hilly part.

Dolmabahce Mosque, XIX. It was built by Nikogos Balyan, who signed many important works in the 19th century Ottoman architecture, at a time when Western trends were most heavily influenced. In this period, an interesting understanding of interpretation was achieved as a result of fusing styles such as baroque, rococo, empire (empire) with established art accumulation and taste. While there is no significant innovation in this type of mosques in terms of architecture, it is seen that the main change is realized in the exterior and decorations by abandoning the traditional line, classical proportions and motif repertoire to a large extent. Baroque, rococo, and empire-style ornaments are beginning to take the place of traditional Ottoman motifs and decoration. The most important character of the period is the dominance of the "eclectic" (mixed) approach to architecture, and the use of Western elements without being bound by any rule, unlimitedly and occasionally mixing with Ottoman and Islamic elements. In this respect, Dolmabahçe Mosque is a typical example that fully reflects the general approach and artistic taste of the period it belongs to.