picard, 8 months ago to islam

Eyüp Sultan Mosque, Istanbul, Türkiye. Photos from a visit a few years ago. The mosque is located in the Eyüp region of Istanbul.

Named after one of the Companions of Prophet Muhammad, Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (Eyüp is the Turkish form of Ayyub), who is believed to have died in this location in the siege of Constantinople in the 670s. After falling ill during the siege, his final request was to be buried as close as possible to the city walls; his comrades-in-arms fought through the Roman lines to carry out his wish.

The first siege failed. Only in the 1450s was the city eventually conquered, around 775 years later; Eyüp Sultan was one of the first mosques to be built, on the site of Abu Ayyub's grave, a few years after the conquest. By comparison, the famous Blue Mosque was built in the early 1600s - more than 150 years later. The original Eyüp Sultan fell into ruin and was rebuilt in its current form in 1800.

#EyüpSultanMosque #Mosque #Masjid #Islam #Istanbul #Türkiye #Photography #TombTuesday

Another shot in the courtyard, but this time taken much closer to the far wall - looking back slightly leftwards in relation to the previous shot, the tiles can be seen in much more detail. There are a few patterns of tiles, all repeating. The upper third of the wall, the tiles are in pairs - left and right - a central darker blue rounded pattern, half on each tile, surrounded by curved branches with blue flowers, all set on a white background; the pairs repeat across multiple rows, but each row the tile alternate, giving an impression of crossed diagonal lines of darker blue roundels against the paler whiter regions. The middle and lower third of the wall have various zones with many different floral-type patterns on the tiles - mostly blue, but some tending towards green, and a small area with darker red patterns. The right of the frame is taken up by an ornate, golden-framed window with golden flower patterns inlaid around the edge, next to a simple wooden door. The left of the frame can be seen the edge of one of the courtyard's central water fountains, and the wall behind it can be seen the red Turkish flag contrasting with the blue. Close to the flag is an ornate golden-barred window. The central feature of the wall is a large panel, beautifully inlaid with golden Arabic calligraphy on a dark background - the visual effect of the panel is quite stunning. This panel sits above a door-less doorway with a thick leather curtain hanging, rolled up, at the top. A number of similar, smaller panels surround the simple door and ornate window to the right. A crowd of men and women are gathered here, dressed as in the previous shot - though here, we see the men have shirts on below their autumn jackets. The designs on the women's hijabs are quite beautiful and elegant. The crowd appear to be either exiting, or trying to enter, the open doorway below the central Qur'anic panel.
A view inside the mosque, at the front of the prayer area. Bare marble and stone walls, simply decorated with beautiful golden Arabic calligraphy. Windows with ornate frames. High domed ceiling stretches away above the prayer alcove in the front. A few chandeliers hang, chains long from the ceiling, glaring lights barely above head height. A small number of men are gathered here in prayer. Mostly they are standing, alone, gaze turned slightly towards the ground; one man sits on his feet, and one rests against the wall.
Another view inside the mosque, this time from further back. More men can be seen - standing as before, a couple of them in the process of bowing, a few prostrate with their forehead on the ground. From this vantage, one can see the central alcove with the domed ceiling is in fact a half dome and does not comprise the upper ceiling of the mosque - the opening of another, larger, central dome can just be made out covering the main prayer area. To the left and right of the central alcove are more partially domed areas, surrounding the main central dome, with large columns supporting them as they begin to curve around the edge of the shot. There are lots of windows in all the walls - it feels like almost half of the wall area is in fact windows, rectangular windows with semi-circular tops, decorated with metal but not stained glass; the interior is not a dark place. Around the lower portion of the walls, the Arabic calligraphy can be seen decorating seemingly the entire perimeter. Higher up the walls, between each partial dome, can be seen a large circular panel, golden Arabic against a dark background. From this view, three large circular panels can be seen: immediately right and left above the central alcove, the words 'Allah' and 'Muhammad'; further to the left, 'Umar'. At ground level, immediately to the right of the central alcove is an ornate, gold-inlaid stone staircase with a thin, tall golden spire atop the summit. From this angle, it can be more clearly seen just how low the chandeliers hang, within touching distance.

seanbala, 8 months ago to india

Auliya Masjid on the outer circle of Connaught Place in New Delhi, India. You can't quite see it behind the auto but there is a small food stand / cafe right in the side of the mosque.

Photo taken on 21 September 2023.

#India #Delhi #NewDelhi #Mosque #Masjid #Islam #ConnaughtPlace #Travel #TravelPhotography #Photography #StreetPhotography

picard, 10 months ago to turkiye

Photo from a few years ago of Yeni Cami (New Mosque), Istanbul, Türkiye. Despite the name, it's 360 years old; building began in 1597, but it was abandoned and ruined, and damaged in a fire, before construction was completed in 1663. Travelling from Asia to Europe, crossing the Bosporus by ferry the mosque stands imposing on the seafront, making a powerful impression.

#YeniCami #NewMosque #Istanbul #Türkiye #Mosque #Masjid #Photography