Lonely Planet İstanbul Guide

largest of the city’s Protestant churches, it was dedicated in 1868 as the Crimean Memorial Church and restored and renamed in the mid-1990s. Inside, there is a painted rood screen by Scottish artist Mungo McCosh that depicts notable İstanbul residents (mainly expats). Services are so wonderfully High that they would almost be at home at St Peter’s.

AZAPKAPI SOKOLLU MEHMET PAŞA MOSQUE ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; Tersane Caddesi; m Haliç)

MOSQUE

This pretty mosque, designed by Sinan and built in 1577, is unusual in that it, and the minaret, are raised on a platform. It was commissioned by Sokollu Mehmet Paşa, a grand vezir of Süleyman the Magnificent. Today it’s totally overshadowed by the approach to Atatürk/Unkapanı Bridge. Still it’s well worth a visit, particularly for its fine marble mihrab (niche in a minaret indicating the direction of Mecca) and mimber (pulpit in a mosque). The nearby rococo fountain was built by Saliha Valide Hatun, mother of Mahmut I. In 2016 the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality announced a plan to demolish Atatürk Bridge and replace it with a US$34-million tunnel under the Golden Horn connecting the Unkapanı and Kasımpaşa districts. The project’s estimated completion date is 2018. If this does eventuate, the mosque will reclaim its grand setting and once again be listed among the city’s most impressive imperial mosques.

ARAB MOSQUE ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; Arap Camıı; Galata Mahkemesi Sokak, Galata; j Karaköy)

MOSQUE

Built by the Genoese in 1337, this fortress-like mosque was the largest of İstanbul’s Latin churches. Converted to a mosque after the Conquest, it was given to the recently arrived community of Spanish Muslims after their expulsion from Spain in the late 15th century. Notable features include the stone exterior and a magnificent wooden ceiling.

SALT GALATA

CULTURAL CENTRE