Green mosque (yesil camii) in Bursa, Turkey.

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Yeşil Cami

Top choice in Bursa


Built for Mehmet I, the Yeşil (Green) Cami was completed in 1422 and represents a departure from the previous, Persian-influenced Seljuk architecture that dominated Bursa. Exemplifying Ottoman styling, it contains a harmonious facade and beautiful carved marble work around the central doorway. The mosque was named for the interior walls' greenish-blue tiles.

Diverse calligraphy exists on the niches of the main door to the mosque. Entering its ornate interior, you'll enter a domed central hall with a 15m-high mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca). A narrow staircase leads to the sumptuously tiled hünkar mahfili (sultan's private box) where the great man stayed when in town; the harem and household staff enjoyed less plush digs on either side.