The Süleymaniye Mosque

The mosque Sinan built at his height, on the one hill from which you see the whole city.

Built1550–1557, by Mimar Sinan
DistrictFatih
UNESCO World Heritage

Sinan had fifty-odd years of practice behind him when he built it, and wrote that it was his "apprentice" work — the master one would be at Edirne. The interior is lighter and calmer than the Blue Mosque, with less decoration and better acoustics.

The mosque is only the centre of a complex: there were schools, a hospital, a kitchen for the poor, baths. Many of those buildings are still standing around it.

The terrace at the back looks over the Golden Horn and is, without argument, the best free view in Istanbul. Late in the day there is always somebody sitting on the wall.

What to look for

The terrace at the back, over the Golden Horn — the best free view in Istanbul, and almost nobody knows.
The acoustics: Sinan set clay jars into the walls to absorb them. Speak quietly and listen.
The tombs of Süleyman and Roxelana, in the rear garden, lined with İznik tiles inside.
What is left of the külliye: schools, a hospital, a kitchen for the poor and baths, still standing around it.

Before you go

It is off the immediate Sultanahmet circuit — fifteen minutes uphill on foot, and worth every one.
Less crowded than the Blue Mosque at any hour of the day.
Closed to visitors during prayers. The terrace at the back is always open.
An hour, including the pause on the terrace.

Nearby

The Grand Bazaar

More than four thousand shops under vaults, and a map nobody manages to hold in their head.

The Spice Bazaar

An L of vaults beside the harbour, built to pay for the mosque next door.

Hagia Sophia

For a thousand years the largest cathedral in the world, then a mosque, then a museum, and a mosque again today.