Blue Mosque

Construction of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, popularly known as the Blue Mosque, took place from 1609 to 1616 under Sultan Ahmed I. The architect was Sedefkâr Mehmed Agha, a student of the great Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan.

The mosque's interior is decorated with over 20,000 hand-crafted Iznik ceramic tiles featuring blue-dominant floral and geometric patterns. This blue tilework, particularly visible in the upper levels of the prayer hall, gave the mosque its popular Western name.

The Blue Mosque's six minarets were unprecedented for a mosque at the time and initially caused controversy, as the Grand Mosque in Mecca also had six minarets. According to tradition, Ahmed I resolved the dispute by funding the construction of a seventh minaret at the Meccan mosque.

Yes, the Blue Mosque is open to visitors outside of prayer times, and entry is free. Visitors are required to remove their shoes, and women must cover their hair, in keeping with Islamic customs observed at functioning mosques throughout Turkey.