Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Gül Camii, Istanbul


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I found this photo on Les Eglises de Constantinople , Jean Ebersolt, Adolphe Thiers. Paris, 1913.
Old St Theodosia Church was built in
 Istanbul in the late eleventh or early twelfth century to honour the memory of Virgin Martyr Theodosia. It is said that when the city was captured on May 29, feast of the Saint, the church was decked by roses, hence its Turkish name Gül Camii meaning "Mosque of the Roses". Another theory is that its turkish name comes from the dervish called Gül Baba burried here.
Gül Camii, Istanbul
CC picture from 
 English Wikipedia entry 
Gul Mosque

St. Theodosia Ceiling

I found this picture of 12th century Hexagram from the Rose Mosque of Istanbul on Les Eglises de Constantinople, Jean Ebersolt, Adolphe Thiers. Paris, 1913.

Church of St. Theodosia

I found this twelfth century Hexagram picture on Les Eglises de Constantinople, Jean Ebersolt, Adolphe Thiers. Paris, 1913
Since the byzantine name of this former church has not been established with certainty, we use the turkish name here. It has been identified with the churches of Saint Euphemia, Saint Theodosia and that of the Euergetis Monastery. The church is a construction of the twelfth century which stands elevated on an artificial terrace and appearently does not replace an old predecessor. It lay partly in ruins after the ottoman conquest and had to be restored heavily when it was rebuilt as a mosque