Şehzade Mosque

The Sehzade Mosque in the Fatih district is one of Istanbul's great imperial mosques, completed in 1548 on the order of Suleiman the Magnificent in memory of his favourite son Mehmed, who died in 1543. It is considered the first major work of architect Mimar Sinan, who launched his career here as imperial court architect - he himself later called the building his apprentice piece compared to masterpieces like the Suleymaniye. Characteristic are the almost symmetrical plan with four half-domes, the finely carved minarets and the adjacent turbe holding Mehmed's sarcophagus beneath Iznik tiles. Visitors today find a surprisingly quiet mosque away from the tourist route, with a wide courtyard and an interior where light falls through tall window registers onto the stone floor.