Chapter XVIII: Section XV: On the Imperial Mosques in the Mohammedan City of Kostantaniyyeh (1)

The first, and most ancient of these places of worship dedicated to the almighty and everlasting God, is that of Ayá Sófiyah, built, as mentioned in the seventh Section, in the year 5052 after the fall of Adam. It was finished by Aghnádús (Ignatius?), a perfect architect, well skilled in geometry, under the direction of the Prophet Khizr; and forty thousand workmen, seven thousand porters, and three thousand builders, were employed in raising its domes and arches on three thousand pillars. Every part of the world was ransacked to find the richest marbles, and the hardest stones for its walls and columns. Stones of various hues, fit for the throne of Belkís, were brought from Ayá Solúgh (Ephesus) and Aïdinjik; marbles of divers colours were removed from Karamán, Shám (Syria), and the island of Kubrus (Cyprus). Some thousands of incomparable columns, wasp and olive-coloured, were imported from the splendid monuments of the skill of Solomon, standing in the neighbourhood of Átineh (Athens). After working at the building for forty years, Khizr and Aghnádús disappeared one night when they had finished half the dome. Seven years afterwards they appeared again and completed it. On its summit they placed a cross of gold an hundred Alexandrian quintals in weight, visible at Brúsah, Keshísh-dágh (Mount Olympus), ’Alem-dághí, and Istránjeh dághí. On the birth-night of the Prophet there was a dreadful earthquake, by which this and many other wonderful domes were thrown down; but it was afterwards restored by the aid of Khizr, and by the advice of the Prophet, to whom the three hundred patriarchs and monks, presiding over the church, were sent by him. As a memorial of the restoration of the dome by the aid of the Prophet and Khizr, Mohammed the Conqueror suspended in the middle of it, by a golden chain, a Golden Globe, which can hold fifty kílahs of grain, Roman measure; it is within reach of a man’s hand, and beneath it Khizr performed his service to God. Among the pious, many persons have chosen the same place for offering up their orisons; and several who have persevered in saying the morning prayer there for forty days, have obtained the blessings, temporal and spiritual, for which they prayed: it is, therefore, much frequented by the pious and necessitous for that purpose.

_On the Dimensions, Builders, &c. of that ancient place of worship, Ayá Sófiyah._

This mosque is situated on elevated ground at the eastern end of the city, a thousand paces (_ádim_) distant from the Stable-gate (ákhór kapú) near the sea, and a thousand from Seraglio Point. The great cupola which rears its head into the skies is joined by a half-cupola, beneath which is the mihráb (sacred recess), and to the right of it a marble pulpit (_minber_). There are altogether on the whole building no less then 360 gilt cupolas, the largest of which is the great one in the middle; they are ornamented with broad, circular, and crystal glasses, the number of which in the whole mosque amounts to 1,070. The abovementioned cupolas (_kubbehs_) are adorned within by wonderful paintings, representing cherubims and men, the work of Monástir, a painter, skilful as Arzheng. These figures seem even now, to a silent and reflecting observer, to be possessed of life and thought. Besides them, there are, at the four angles supporting the great cupola, four angels, no doubt the four archangels, Jebráyíl (Gabriel), Míkáyíl (Michael), Isráfíl, and ’Azráyíl, standing with their wings extended, each 56 cubits high. Before the birth of the Prophet, these four angels used to speak, and give notice of all dangers which threatened the empire and the city of Islámból; but since his Highness appeared, all talismans have ceased to act. This cupola is supported by four arches (_ták_) that excel the arch of the palace of Kesra (Chosroes) (Táki Kesra), the arch of Khavernak; that of Kaïdafà; that of Káf, and that of Sheddád. The large columns, of the richest colours and most precious marble, are forty Mecca-cubits high; those of the second story are not less beautiful, but are only thirty cubits high. There are two galleries running round three sides of this mosque, and forming upper mosques for the worshippers; there is an ascent to them on both sides, which may be ascended on horseback; it is a royal road paved with white marble. The mosque has altogether 361 doors, of which 101 are large gates, through which large crowds can enter. They are all so bewitched by talismans, that if you count them ever so many times, there always appears to be one more than there was before. They are each twenty cubits high, and are adorned with goldsmith’s work and enamel. The middle gate towards the Kiblah, which is the highest of all, is fifty cubits high. It is made of planks from the ark which Noah constructed with his own hand. Over this central southern gate there is a long coffin of yellow brass, which contains the body of Aï Sóf, who caused Ayá Sófiyáh to be built; and though many emperors have tried at different times to open this coffin, an earthquake and a horrible crash immediately heard within the mosque, have always prevented them from compassing their designs.

Above it, in a niche, supported on small columns, stands a picture of Jerusalem (the ancient Kibleh), in marble; within it there are jewels of inestimable value, but it is also talismanic, and cannot be touched by any body. In this place there stood likewise upon a green column an image of Mother Meryem (the Virgin Mary), holding in her hand a carbuncle as big as a pigeons egg, by the blaze of which the mosque was lighted every night. This carbuncle was also removed in the birthnight of the Prophet, to Kizil Almà (Rome), which received its name (Red Apple) from thence. The Spanish infidels were once or twice masters of Islámból, and thence that egg (the carbuncle) came into their hands. The walls of this mosque, as well as the extremities of the columns, are carved like various flowers, with the most exquisite workmanship. The Mihráb and Minber are of white marble highly ornamented.

_A Description of the four Minárehs (Minarets)._

While Mohammed the Conqueror was residing as Viceroy at Edreneh (Adrianople), there was a great earthquake at Islámból, which made the northern side of Ayá Sófiyah bend, and threatened its ruin. The infidels were much alarmed; but Prince Mohammed, in a friendly manner, sent the old architect, ’Alí Nejjár, who had built the great mosques at Brúsah and Edreneh for Yildirim Báyazíd, and was then living, to the Greek king, in order to repair Ayá Sófiyah. It was he who erected for the support of the building four strong buttresses, every one of which is like the barrier of Yájúj (Gog). The architect having made a staircase of two hundred steps in the buttress on the right side of Ayá Sófiyah, among the shops of the turban-makers (_sárikchí_), the king asked for what purpose this staircase was intended? The architect answered, “For going out upon the leads in case of need?” When the work was completed the king bestowed rich presents on the architect, who returning to Edreneh, said to Sultán Mohammed, “I have secured the cupola of Ayá Sófiyah, O emperor, by four mighty buttresses; to repair it depended on me, to conquer it depends on thee. I have also laid the foundation of a mináreh for thee, where I offered up my prayers.” On that very foundation, three years afterwards, by the will of God, Sultán Mohammed built a most beautiful six-sided mináreh. Sultán Selím II. afterwards, in the year——, added another at the corner opposite to the gate of the Imperial palace (Bábi humáyún, the Sublime Porte), which is more ornamented, but a little lower than that of Mohammed the Conqueror. Sultán Murád III. built subsequently two other minárehs on the north and west side, each with only one gallery.

The ensigns (’alems, _i.e._ the crescents) on the top of these four minárehs are each of twenty cubits, and richly gilt; but that on the great dome is fifty cubits long, and the gilding of it required fifty thousand pieces of gold coin. It is visible at the distance of two farasangs by land, and a hundred miles off by sea. Murád III. also brought from the island of Mermereh (Marmora) two princely basons of white marble, each of them resembling the cupola of a bath, and so large that neither Jemshíd nor Dárá ever possessed such an one. Each of them can contain a thousand kílehs. They stand inside of the mosque, one on the right hand and the other on the left, full of living water, for all the congregation to perform their ablutions and quench their thirst. The same Sultán caused the walls of the mosque to be cleaned and smoothed; he encreased the number of the lamps, and built four raised stone platforms (_mahfil_) for the readers of the Korán, and a lofty pulpit on a slender column for the muëzzins. Sultán Murád IV. the conqueror of Baghdád, raised upon four marble columns a throne (_kursì_) of one piece of marble, for the preacher (_vá’iz_), and appointed eight sheïkhs as preachers of the mosque: the Efendís Kází-zadeh, Uskudárlí Mahmúd, Ibráhím sheïkh to Jerráh Páshá, Sivásí, Kudsí, Terjimán Sheïkhí ’Omar, and the great sheïkh, Emír Ishtíbí, who was so learned and skilful in answering questions and solving difficulties respecting the law, God be praised! We had the happiness and advantage of enjoying the exalted society of all these doctors and hearing their instructions. Sultán Ahmed I. built, on the left of the mihráb, a private recess (_maksúrah_) for the exclusive use of the emperor. In short this mosque, which has no equal on earth, can only be compared to the tabernacle of the seventh heaven, and its dome to the cupola of the ninth. All those who see it, remain lost in astonishment on contemplating its beauties; it is the place where heavenly inspiration descends into the minds of the devout, and which gives a foretaste even here below of the garden of Eden (‘Aden). Sultán Murád IV., who took great delight in this incomparable mosque, erected a wooden enclosure in it within the southern door, and when he went to prayers on Fridays, caused cages, containing a great number of singing-birds, and particularly nightingales, to be hung up there, so that their sweet notes, mingled with the tones of the muëzzins’ voices, filled the mosque with a harmony approaching to that of Paradise. Every night (in the month of Ramazàn) the two thousand lamps lighted there, and the lanterns, containing wax-tapers perfumed with camphor, pour forth streams of light upon light; and in the centre of the dome a circle of lamps represents in letters, as finely formed as those of Yákút Musta’simí, that text of the Scripture, “God is the light of the heavens and the earth.” There are also, on the four sides of the mosque, some thousands of texts in beautiful characters; and there, likewise, by command of Sultan Murád IV., the celebrated writer Etmekjí-zádeh Chelebí wrote the names of the Most High, of the prophet Mohammed and his four companions, in Kara Hisárí hand, so large that each elif measures ten arshíns (10 ells = 23¼ feet), and the rest of the letters are formed in the same proportion. Ayá Sófiyah is the Ka’beh of all Fakírs, and there is no larger mosque in Islámból. It possesses all the spiritual advantages to be obtained in any other, whether it be El Aksà at Kuds (Jerusalem), or the mosque of the Ommaviyyeh (Ommiades), at Shám (Damuscus), or that of El Ez-her at Misr (Cairo). It is always full of holy men, who pass the day there in fasting and the night in prayer. Seventy lectures (on theology) well pleasing to God are delivered there daily, so that to the student it is a mine of knowledge, and it never fails to be frequented by multitudes every day.

_The Servants (Khuddám) of the Mosque._

They are the Imáms (reciters of the Form of Prayer); the Khatíbs (reciters of the Khotbah, bidding-prayer on Friday); Sheïkhs (preachers); Devrkhán (Scripture readers); Ders-’ámils (lecturers); Talabah (students); Muëzzins (cryers, who call to prayers from the Minárehs); Ejzá kháns (lesson readers); Na’t kháns (reciters of the praises of the prophet and his associates); Bevvábs (door-keepers); and Káyims (sextons): in all full two thousand servants, for the revenues of the mosque settled upon it by pious bequests (evkáf) are very large.

_Stations and Places in this Mosque visited as peculiarly fitted for Devotion._

First. Ayá Sófiyah is, in itself, peculiarly the house of God.

Second. The station (Makám) of Moslemah, in a place called U’ch Búják (the three corners), where he, who was commander of the forces in the Khalifate of Mo’áviyyeh, is said to have offered up prayer.

Third. The station of Iyyúb Ansárí, who, after the peace made in the year of the Hijrah 52, entered Ayá Sófiyah and performed a service of two inflections on the spot called Makámi Iyyúb Sultán, south of the Sweating Column. There is now a Mihráb there much frequented at all the five services.

Fourth. The station of ’Omar Ibn ’Abdo-l-’aziz, who being commander at the peace in the year of the Hijrah 97, offered up prayers on the west side of Ayá Sófiyah, at the foot of the green Mihráb. This place goes now by his name.

Fifth. The station of Hárúnu-r-rashíd, who, at his coming a second time to Kostantaniyyeh, in the year of the Hijrah 58, having crucified King Yaghfúr in the belfry of Ayá Sófiyah, offered up prayers within the mosque in the kiblah of the prophet Solomon, on the south-east side, within the gate of the Defunct (Meyyit-kapú-sí).

Sixth. The station of Seyyid Battál Ghází in the sky-smiting belfry of the church.

Seventh. The station of Bábá Ja’fer Sultán, Ambassador of Hárúnu-r-rashíd.

Eighth. The station of Sheïkh Maksúd Sultán, the companion of Bábá Ja’fer. These two, with the king’s (_i.e._ the Greek emperor’s) permission, both offered up prayers on the eastern side of the mosque, within the sepulchral gate (Turbeh-kapú-sí), at the places now bearing their name.

Eighth. The station of Salomon, who is said to have offered up prayer on the ground where Ayá Sófiyah now stands, at the place called the Green Mihráb, to the right of the Minber.

Ninth. The station of Khizr, beneath the gilt ball in the centre of the cupola, is a place where some thousands of holy men have enjoyed the happiness of discoursing with that great prophet.

Tenth. The station of the forty, to the south of the platform of the Muëzzins, is a place where the ground is paved with forty stones of various colours, and where forty holy men stood when the extraordinary accident which happened to Gulábí Aghá took place.

_Narrative of Gulábí Aghá._

Gulábí Aghá, Rikáb dár (stirrup-holder) of Sultán Suleïmán, a pious man, who died at the age of 151 years, relates that in consequence of the great plague in the reign of Sultán Selím II., which at Islámból carried off three thousand souls every day, that prince ordered the prayer Istiská to be proclaimed during three days; and that the mosque being much crowded on the holy night Kadr, in order to hear the sermon of the Sheïkh (_i.e._ Doctor) of the order of Beshiktásh Evliyá Efendí, the Sultán ordered the people present to be numbered. This Sheïkh, who was born at Tareb-afzún (Trapezonde), was a foster-brother of Sultán Suleïmán. The throng to hear his sermon was so great that all the people of Islámból filled the mosque three days before he preached. Sheïkh Yahyá being now in the middle of his sermon, and the whole multitude listening to his admonitions with their utmost attention, Gulábí Aghá, who was in the midst of the crowd, felt himself much distressed by a necessity of withdrawing. His body began to swell like the kettle-drum of Bagdad; he stood up two or three times on tip-toes to see whether there was no possibility of making his way through the multitude, but saw that a man must needs be engulfed in this ocean of men. He was ready to die for shame when he addressed himself to the forty, on the station of whom he was then standing, and begged of them to save him from being disgraced by exposure to the crowd. At that moment he saw a stately man standing near him, in the dress of a Sipáhí (soldier), who said to him, “I will release thee from thy pain;” and thus saying, stretched his sleeve over Gulábí’s head, who instantly found himself transported into a meadow on the bank of the stream near Kághid-khánah. His pain and distress were removed forthwith; and in a moment afterwards he was again in the same place in the mosque. When the sermon was finished all the hundred and one gates were shut except the large one at the south side, where the Defterdár Dervísh Chelebí, son of the Sheïkh Bábá Nakkásh, placed himself with his attendants in order to count all those who were then present in the mosque and its three stories of galleries, whose numbers amounted to fifty-seven thousand men. Gulábí Aghá not having the least doubt that the Sípáhí, who had transported him so charitably into the meadows of Kághid Khánah, was no other than the prophet Khizr himself, laid hold of the skirt of his robe, saying, “I am thy slave, O King! and will never again quit thee.” The Sipáhí answered him very roughly, “Be gone, man! We are not the man of whom thou speakest.” Gulábí Aghá, however, laid hold of him the faster; and the Sipáhí twice boxed his ears, and thus they made their way through the crowd. Gulábí, however, would not lose sight of him, and following him very close, saw him enter a place of retirement near Ayá Sófiyah. Gulábí waited for some time at the door, when, lo! it opened, and there came out a young cook of the Janissaries, elegantly dressed, with his official knife and silver chains. Gulábí instantly laid hold of him; but the Janissary cried out, “Begone, man, thou art mad!” Gulábí, notwithstanding, would not loose his hold; on which the cook of the Janissaries gave him a good thump, and entered a Búzah khánah in the market of Ayá Sófiyah, where he ate some kabábs and bread and drank búzah (a kind of beer), without taking the least notice of Gulábí. The Janissary went out and Gulábí followed him into a narrow street, where finding they were alone, he threw himself down at his feet, and entreated him, saying, “Be gracious to me, O Prophet, and grant me thy love!” The Janissary answered, “O seeker! although thou art a faithful lover, thou art not yet ripe, but wantest much of perfection, and must still undergo many trials; but as, notwithstanding my rebuffs, thou followedst me with unabated zeal, I will now bring thee to an old man, in whose company thou shalt remain forty days without opening thy lips or asking concerning any men or things that shall pass under thine eye.” He then, in that solitary place, knocked at a low and dirty gate, which was opened by an old camel-lipped negro, who pushed them both into the house. Gulábí, when he had recovered his senses, found himself in an assembly of men, who saluted him and received his salutations in return. The Janissary changed dress, and took the chief seat, after having kissed the hand of the old man, to whom he related Gulábí’s adventures. The Sheïkh said, “If he has renounced the world and all the pleasures of the senses, he is welcome in this assembly of Forty.” Gulábí then remained three days and three nights without eating or drinking. His house, family, and relations at U’n-kapání came into his mind; but he put his trust in the Almighty and resigned himself to his will. On the fourth, the old man said, “Now look to the business entrusted to you by God.” At the same time the man, who had first assumed the shape of a Sipáhí and then of a Janissary, stood up and brought out from a closet thirty-eight kinds of weapons, one of which he laid before thirty-eight of the men in company, placing before himself a Janissary’s basin with water in it. Gulábí being eager to drink, his guide said, “Have patience, we shall this day see whether this place be attainable by thee.” Some time afterwards there appeared on the opposite side, a male child; and one of the company, taking his sword, immediately cut off its head. “Friend,” said Gulábí, “why did you kill that boy? Did not I say, do not be curious?” replied his companion, the Janissary. Next appeared two men pursued by a lion, who tore one of them to pieces and eat him up, while the other saved himself by taking shelter behind the Sheïkh. Gulábí asking for an explanation, received the same answer. Next came an innocent little child pursued by a wolf. One of the men, sitting on the prayer-carpet (sejjádeh), took his bow and arrow and shot the beast dead; after which the child vanished in a corner. Three men then appeared on the other side, two of whom were hanged by the Sheïkh’s permission; and the third was about to be hanged, when Gulábí begun to intercede with the Sheïkh for his life. The Janissary seizing Gulábí by the collar, made him sit down in his place, and said, “Did I not tell you to have patience for forty days?” At that moment the water in the basin before the Janissary began to boil and bubble, and two small ships appeared upon it, one of which, by the Janissary’s aid, was saved, but the other perished with all its crew and passengers, except a little boy and girl who escaped to the edge of the basin. The Janissary pushing the innocent boy into the water, he was drowned; but the girl he drew out of the basin. Gulábí crying out, “Why didst thou drown that innocent boy, and why were all those Muselmáns lost in that ship?” The Sheïkh, from his seat as President, said, “Let us give a bit of bread to this man; and come let us offer up a prayer for him in the presence of these Forty.” So they all treated him with kindness and gave him a loaf of bread, an akchah, a piece of gold, a bunch of grapes, a date, and an olive; and prayed for him that he might continue in good health till his happy end, be honoured among the angels, preserved from misfortunes, heavenly and earthly, and die, after a long and prosperous life, under the shadow of the banner of the prophet of God. The whole company, at the termination of the prayer, said “Amen!” The Janissary and the negro door-keeper then laying hold of Gulábí’s collar, said, “Close thy eyes!” He closed his eyes, and on opening them again, suddenly found himself in one of the taverns at Ghalatah, where a crowd of drunken Janissaries hailed him; saying, “Come, old man, and drink a pot with us!” Gulábí, who had fasted three days, and supposed these Janissaries to be of the same kind as that who had been his guide, removed his hunger by partaking of the food prepared in the tavern. At length, when sunset was near, he took a boat to return to the U’n-kapání. On coming into a narrow street he was assailed by two drunken Janissaries, who stripped him of his turban and his sable robe, and said they would kill him if he did not drink another cup of wine. Whether he would or not, he was compelled to drink it. So he returned home naked, and never afterwards left his house again, having abandoned the world and given himself up to a spiritual life, in which he soon became a great man. He dwelt within the U’n-kapání among the goldsmiths, bestowing great liberalities on all comers and goers, to the astonishment of all men. Having heard the account of these extraordinary events which befel the late Gulábí Aghá (to whom God has granted mercy and pardon) at the station of the Forty, in Ayá Sófiyah, from his own mouth, it appeared proper to insert it here. The proof of it rests with the relater. One of the traditions of the Prophet says, “A liar is he who makes a story out of everything he hears.” We now return to our description of the stations in Ayá Sófiyah.

Eleventh. The station of the Apostles on the eastern side of the gallery.

Twelfth. The station of Ak Shemsu-d-dín, near the Sweating Column, which stands on the western side of the South gate. It is a square marble pillar eleven cubits high, and cased to a mans height with brass. It sweats day and night, winter and summer.

Thirteenth. The station of the South-East gate (Kiblah kapú-sí). This gate being made of the wood of Noah’s ark, all merchants who travel by sea, and sailors, are accustomed to offer up a prayer, accompanied by two inclinations of the body, and touch the wood with their hands, saying a Fátihah (_i.e._ the first chapter of the Korán) for the rest of Noah’s soul before they set sail.

_Virtues of the Golden Ball._

If any man have a bad memory which he wishes to improve, he should place himself beneath the Golden Ball suspended in the middle of the cupola, and say the morning prayer seven times; three times repeat the words Allahumma Yá káshifo-l mushkilát Yá ’álimu-s-sir va-l khafiyyát (_i.e._ O God who openest all difficult things and knowest all secret and hidden things), and each time eat seven black grapes, and then whatever he hears will remain fixed in his memory as if engraven on stone. A most noted example of this was Hamdí Chelebí, son of Ak-Shemsu-d-dín, who lived in the village of Turbahlí Góïnuk. He was so foolish and forgetful, that if any one gave him the Selám he was obliged to write the word Selám on a piece of paper and read it before he could comprehend that he ought to answer ‘Ve aleïkum es-selám.’ No doctors could do him any good, so that at last he was completely a prey to forgetfulness, till he went, by Ak-Shemsu-d-dín’s advice, to Ayá Sófiyah, where, after saying the requisite prayers, and eating the grapes as prescribed above, beneath the Golden Ball, he was so completely cured of his stupidity, that he began immediately to compose his poem of Yusuf and Zuleïkhá, which he finished in seven months; after which he wrote his Kiyáfet-námeh (Treatise on Physiognomy), which is known all over the world as a wonderful poem on the nature of the Sons of Adam.

Fourteenth. The station of the cool window, on the south-east side (Kibleh) of Ayá Sófiyah, on the inner side of the Imperial Gate, is a window opening to the north, where fragrant breezes and songs of the nightingales from the garden outside refresh the soul. It is there that Ak-Shemsu-d-dín, immediately after the conquests, delivered his Lectures on Joreïri’s Commentary on the Korán; and having prayed that all students who pursued their studies there should be blessed with success, that spot has ever since been a delightful place. It was there also that our instructor, the Sheïkh of Sheïkhs, Evliyá Efendí, that master of the art of reading the Korán, delivered his lectures on that science to some thousands of hearers.

Fifteenth. The station of the Lord Jesus’s cradle, in a corner on the eastern side of the upper gallery, is a hollow trough of reddish marble like a cradle, where the Christian women used to place their children when sick in order to obtain their recovery.

Sixteenth. The station of the Washing Place of the Lord Jesus. Near the cradle just mentioned above, there is another square trough of stone, where the Prophet Jesus was washed immediately after he was delivered from the womb of his mother Meryem. Kostantín the Ancient, mentioned above, is said to have brought both the cradle and the font from Beïtu-l-lahm to the south of Kudsi Sheríf, but the humble writer of these lines saw the washing-trough of Jesus at Beïtu-l-lahm. That children who are crooked and sickly, when washed in the trough in Ayá Sófiyah immediately become straight and healthy, as if revived by the breath of Jesus, is known to all the world.

Seventeenth. The station of the Gate of the Seven. On the east side of the upper gallery there is a large door, the folds of which are not of wood, but of white marble adorned with sculpture. It is visited and admired by all travellers and architects as not having its fellow on the face of the earth. It is a favourite place of worship.

_The Spectacle of the resplendent Stones._

On the east side of the upper gallery there are five or six smooth flat slabs of various coloured stones, which reflect the rays of the rising sun with so bright a light that the eye of man cannot look stedfastly on them. In short, there are some thousands of holy places of pilgrimage in Ayá Sófiyah, which is a Ka’beh for Fakírs, but the writer of these pages has only described those which he knew. The whole of this mosque is also covered with lead, which has remained uninjured for so many thousand years from its being mixed up with some thousand quintals (kantár) of gold. All architects are lost in astonishment at the solidity of the foundations of this vast building, and no tongue or pen is capable of adequately describing it. We have seen the mosques of all the world; but never one like this. Mohammed the Conqueror, after having repaired this mosque, also repaired that called Little Ayá Sófiyah, near the Kadirghah límání (galley harbour), which had been previously a church built by Elínah, mother of Kostantín.

_The Mosque of Zírek Báshí._

This is also a large mosque, built by Kostantín for the benefit of the soul of the Lord Yahyá (St. John), and called, in the time of the Nasárá (Christians) Menastir Sanjovaniyyeh (Monastero San Giovanni). The holy body of that Saint is now at Malta, which is, therefore, called Sanjovanniyyeh (_i.e._ Malta di San Giovanni). It was carried away by the Maltese infidels from a convent in the village of Beït Sabástiyyeh (Σεβαστὴ), near Kudsi Sheríf. His head is still preserved in a golden dish in a cavern in the middle of the mosque of the Bení Ommayyeh in Shám (Damascus). The Maltese having removed the body of St. John from Beït Sabástiyyeh, carried it to ’Akkah, and there enclosing it in a chest adorned with jewels, conveyed it to their own country; having ever since made all their conquests in the name of St. John, whose name and figure they now bear, together with the cross, upon their banners. As St. John was nearly related to Jesus, on his mother the Virgin Marys side, the mother of Constantin built this mosque as a convent to the honour of his spirit. It was enclosed by a very strong wall, had a cistern of its own, and cells for three thousand monks. After the conquest, Mohammed the Conqueror converted it into a mosque, and it has forty-six cupolas great and small, and many beautiful columns. All its cupolas are gilt, and as it stands upon a hill, it is much admired and extremely conspicuous. In short, Mohammed the Conqueror, in the course of his reign, converted no less than 6,670 large monasteries (deïr) into places of worship for Musulmáns. He afterwards began to build a splendid mosque on his own account. He began by building the Irghát hammámí (workmen’s bath) in the Karamán chárshú-sí (Karamanian market), that the workmen might perform their ablutions every day before they began to work at the mosque. This was finished in forty days, and still bears the same name.

_Description of the Mosque of Mohammed the Conqueror._

The foundations of it were laid in the year 867 (A.D. 1463), and it was finished A.H. 875 (A.D. 1470). The date of its commencement is expressed by the Arabic words Sheyyed-allahu erkánehá. It is situated on high ground, in the midst of Islámból, on the site of a convent which bore the name of king Vezendún (Byzantium). This convent having been entirely destroyed by an earthquake its site was fixed upon for this new mosque by the conqueror.

_Form of this Mosque._

The ascent to it is by a flight of stone steps on the right and left; and its height from the ground to the roof is 87 builders cubits, four cubits being the height from the ground, of the platform on which it stands. It has a large cupola in the centre, and semi-cupolas over the Mihráb. The Mihráb, Mimber, and Mahfils, for the Muëzzins and the Emperor, are of white marble and of ancient workmanship. The cupola has two rows of galleries adorned with lamps. On the left side of the Mihráb stands an ancient banner in long strips, made of Alí’s doublet (jubbeh). There is nothing suspended in this mosque except lamps; but it possesses great spiritual advantages, and prayers offered up in it are sure to be answered, because the workmen employed in building it were all Musulmáns; and to this day neither Jews nor Christians are allowed to enter its blessed doors. Its spirituality was secured by the workmen, who never began their work till they had performed their ablutions, and it was built from the wealth obtained in the Conquest.

On issuing from its southern (kiblah) gate, there is seen on the right hand, a square white marble column, on which the following traditional saying of the Prophet is inscribed in blue and gold and in large Jellí characters, by Demirjí Kúlí:—“Verily, Kostantaniyyeh shall be conquered! How excellent a commander is that commander! How excellent a host is that host!” It is approached on the southern side, also, by two stone staircases on the right and left; and on the four sides of its court (harem) there are stone benches (soffahs) and variegated columns, the sculptures on which astonish the beholder. On a needle-like pillar, within the southern gate of the court, there is a figure representing a Mevleví Dervísh, with his cap and fan (mirvahah). In the centre of this court there is a large basin, covered by a leaden cupola, supported by eight columns. Round this basin there are verdant cypresses towering to the sky like minárehs, and each appearing like a green angel. On the right and left of the mosque there are lofty minárehs, with a single gallery. The cloisters round the court are covered with leaden cupolas, and the floor is paved with variegated marble. On the outside border of the windows of the court the Súrah Fátihah (1st chap. of the Korán) is inscribed in white marble letters on a green ground, in the character invented by Yákút Mosta’simí, which is not equalled by any thing of the kind in all Islámból. The architect, to shew his skill in the construction of this basin in the centre of the court, placed over it a brazen cage like a net, which is also itself a masterpiece. The water rushing out, day and night, from the pipes of this basin, affords abundantly wherewith to quench the thirst of the devout, and enable them to perform their ablutions. The great cupola of the mosque seems also to hang without support, like the vault of heaven. Before the Mihráb is the monument of Mohammed the Conqueror and his family. Besides which, on the sides of the mosque there is a great court which has eight gates, and fine gardens on both sides. Outside of it there are the eight celebrated colleges (Semániyyeh), filled with students, on both sides of which are their apartments and stables. There is also a refectory (Dáru-z-ziyáfet), a hospital (Dáru-sh-shifá), a cáravánseráï for guests, an ancient bath, and an A B C school for children. When all these buildings, crowded together, are seen from a height above, they alone appear like a town full of lead-covered domes.

_Appeal of the Mi’már Báshí (Head Builder) to the Law of the Prophet against the Conqueror._

Mohammed being, like Jem, a very passionate Emperor, severely rebuked the architect for not having built his mosque of the same height as Ayá Sófiyah, and for having cut down the columns, which were each worth the whole tribute of Rúm (Asia Minor). The architect excused himself by saying, that he had cut down two columns three cubits each on purpose to give his building more solidity and strength against the earthquakes, so common in Islámból, and had thus made the mosque lower than Ayá Sófiyah. The Emperor, not satisfied with this excuse, ordered both the architects hands to be cut off, which was done accordingly. On the following day the architect appeared with his family before the tribunal of the Kází, styled Islámból-Mollá-sí, to lay his complaint against the Emperor and appeal to the sentence of the law. The Judge immediately sent his officer (Kiahyà) to cite the Emperor to appear in court. The Conqueror, on receiving this summons, said, “The command of the Prophet’s law must be obeyed!” and immediately putting on his mantle and thrusting a mace into his belt, went into the Court of Law. After having given the selám aleïk, he was about to seat himself in the highest place, when the Kází said, “Sit not down, Prince, but stand on thy feet, together with thine adversary, who has made an appeal to the law. The Mi’már Báshí (head architect) thus made his complaint: “My Lord (Sultánum)! I am a perfect master builder and a skilful mathematician; but this man, because I made his mosque low and cut down two of his columns, has cut off my two hands, has ruined me, and deprived me of the means of supporting my family. It is thy part to pronounce the sentence of the noble law.” The Judge then said to the Emperor, “What sayest thou, Prince? Have you caused this man’s hands to be cut off innocently?” The Emperor immediately replied, “By heaven! my Lord (Sultánum), this man lowered my mosque; and for having cut down two columns of mine, each of which was worth the tribute from Misr (Egypt), and thus robbed my mosque of all renown, by making it so low, I did cut off his hands: it is for thee to pronounce the sentence of the noble law.” The Kází immediately answered: “Prince (Begum), Renown is a misfortune! If a mosque be upon a plain, and low and open, worship in it is not thereby prevented. If thy stone had been a precious stone, its value would have been only that of a stone; but of this man, who has now for these forty years subsisted by his skilful workmanship, you have illegally cut off the hands. He can henceforward do nothing more than cohabit with his wife. The maintenance of him and his numerous family necessarily, by law, falls upon thee. What sayest thou, Prince (Begum)?” Sultán Mahommed answered: “Thou must pronounce the sentence of the law!” “This is the legal sentence,” replied the Kází, “that if the architect requires the law to be strictly enforced, your hands be cut off; for if a man do an illegal act which the noble law doth not allow, that law decrees that he shall be requited according to his deeds.” The Sultán then offered to grant him a pension from the public treasury of the Musulmáns. “No!” returned the Móllá; “it is not lawful to take this from the public treasury: the offence was yours; my sentence, therefore, is, that from your own private purse you shall allow this maimed man ten aspers (akchahs) a-day.” “Let it be twenty aspers a-day,” said the Conqueror; “but let the cutting off of his hands be legalized.” The architect, in the contentment of his heart, exclaimed, “Be it accounted lawful in this world and the next!” and, having received a patent for his pension, withdrew. Sultán Mohammed also received a certificate of his entire acquittal. The Kází then apologized for having treated him as an ordinary suitor; pleading the rigid impartiality of law, which requires justice to be administered to all without distinction; and entreating the Emperor to seat himself on the sacred carpet (sejjádeh). “Efendí,” said the Sultán, somewhat irritated, and drawing out his mace from under the skirt of his robe, “if thou hadst shewn favour to me, saying to thyself, ‘This is the Sultán,’ and hadst wronged the architect, I would have broken thee in pieces with this mace!” “And if thou, Prince (Begum),” said the Kází, “hadst refused to obey the legal sentence pronounced by me, thou wouldst have fallen a victim to Divine vengeance; for I should have delivered thee up to be destroyed by the dragon beneath this carpet.” On saying which he lifted up his carpet, and an enormous dragon put forth its head, vomiting fire from its mouth: “Be still,” said the Kází, and again laid the carpet smooth; on which the Sultán kissed his noble hands, wished him good day, and returned to his palace.

Subsequently, Abdál Sinán, when Mi’már Báshí, added some embellishments to this mosque, and, at a later period, ’Alí Kúshjí, the celebrated astronomer, erected a school for the instruction of Muselmán children in the Korán within the precincts (harem) of this mosque, near the Dyer’s gate (Bóyájíler kapú-sí) opposite to the great dome. The same astronomer also placed there a sun-dial, which has not its equal in the whole world. It is engraved on a square marble tablet, according to that text of the Korán:—“Dost thou at all know how thy Lord hath extended the shadow?”

After these events, in the reign of Báyazíd Velí, there was a great earthquake at Islámból for seven days and six nights. The castle of Ghalatah was damaged in many places; but it was repaired by the architect, Murád, who recorded the date of the repairs in an inscription engraved in the Jellí character on a square marble tablet. The reparations of the city were finished in sixty days. It is written, that this was the severest earthquake since the time of Yánkó ibn Mádyán. Báyazíd afterwards built a bridge of fourteen arches over the river Sakariyah, at the town of Keïveh, in the Sanják of Izmít (Nicomedia); another of nineteen arches, over the river Kizil Irmák, at the city of ’Osmánjik; and a third of nineteen arches, over the Gedúz (Hermus), in the province of Sárú khán; after which he began to build the mosque that bears his name, near the old palace in Islámból. Its foundations were laid in the year 903 (A.D. 1498), and it was finished in A.H. 911 (1505-6). It is built nearly in the same style as the mosque of his father Mohammed the Conqueror; but its two minarets are contiguous, not to it, but to the two rows of houses built on each side for the accommodation of strangers, which were subsequently added to the mosque.

_Description of the Mosque of Sultán Báyazíd II._

It is a square building supporting a large dome, flanked by semi domes on the south-eastern (Kiblah), and opposite sides. On the right and left of the mosque there are two purple columns of porphyry, of which the like are to be found only in the mosque of Sultán Kaláún, in Caïro; and there is suspended from these a double row of lamps. On the right side of the mosque an elevated gallery has been constructed for the use of the Sultáns of the house of ’Osmán at the public service on Fridays. Sultán Ibráhím subsequently enclosed three sides of the gallery with gilt gratings, so that it resembles a beautiful cage, or net-work, or rather a palace of the immortals. The Mihráb, Minber, and Mahfil, though made of marble, are simple and unornamented; and on the first are inscriptions written in beautiful characters. The mosque has five gates, and the outer court (harem) is adorned with stone benches (soffahs), and on each side a cloister, supported by variegated columns; and in the centre there is a large basin, where all the congregation renew their ablutions. A cupola, supported by eight white marble columns, was placed over the basin by Sultán Murád IV., the Conqueror of Baghdád. On different sides of it four lofty cypresses have been planted. When the foundations of this noble mosque were laid, the Mi’már Báshí having asked the Sultán where he should place the mihráb, was desired by his Majesty to tread upon his foot; having done which, he immediately had a vision of the noble Ka’bah, and knew, consequently, where to place the mihráb. He, therefore, prostrated himself at the Sultán’s feet and began the work, the Sultán having previously offered up a prayer, accompanied by two inclinations of the body, for its happy completion. On the first Friday after it was finished, when there was an assembly of some thousands, the congregation, knowing that the Sultán had never in his life failed to offer up the afternoon (’asr) and evening (’ashà) prayers, insisted on his performing the functions of Imám. The Sultán, being aware that no one present was so well acquainted with those services as himself, consented to perform them. As this mosque was entirely built with lawful money, it has great spiritual advantages; and being situated in the centre of the markets of Islámból, is crowded day and night by thousands of devout Muselmáns, who are offering up their prayers there without ceasing; so that it has often happened that before one party has got through the afternoon (’asr) service, as far as the Ayetu-l Kursí (the verse of the throne, Kor. ii. 256), another coming in prevents the first from finishing. The pipes of the basin in the court are never closed, but pour forth streams of water day and night, because the congregation never fails. This mosque is always illuminated by flashes of light; and before the window of the mihráb there is a garden like that of Irem, adorned with various fruits and flowers, where, beneath a monument of white marble, covered with lead, rest the remains of its founder. Round the inner and outer courts of this mosque there are shops of all kinds of trades, with a public kitchen, a refectory, and hostel for travellers; a school for instructing the poor and rich in the Korán; and a college for lectures on the art of reciting it. This court has six gates; and is adorned, externally, with lofty trees, most of them mulberries, under the shades of which some thousands of people gain a livelihood by selling various kinds of things. Outside of this court there is a large valley, called the Meïdán of Sultán Báyazíd, adorned on its four sides with shops; and on one side by the great college of the same Sultán, which has seventy cupolas. The superintendent (Názir) of this mosque is the Sheïkhu-l Islám (_i.e._ the Muftí); he also gives the public lectures in this college. He delivers his lectures once a week, and the students receive a monthly stipend, besides an allowance for meat and wax-lights: this is a very well-endowed foundation. This mosque has altogether 2,040 servants; and none has a better salary than the Muvakkit, or Regulator of Time; because all the seamen and mariners in the empire of Islám depend, for the regulation of time, on the Muvakkit of Sultán Báyazíd Khán; and as the mihráb of this mosque was miraculously placed in the true position of Kiblah: all sea-captains regulate their compasses by it; and all the infidel astronomers in Firengistán, as is universally known, correct their watches and compasses by the mosque of Sultán Báyazíd. Besides this mosque, that Emperor built sixty other places of worship in the countries which he conquered. The mosque and convent of Emír Bokhárí, as well as the mosque of Ghalatah-seráï, were built by him. May God reward all his pious works! His conquests are as follows: The castles of Motón and Korón, Arkáriyah, Kalámitah, Kalávertah, Holómích, Tiribólíchah (Tripolizza), Bállí-Bádrah (Palæ Patræ, _i.e._ Patras), and Anávárín (Navarino), in the year 906 (1500-1). All the above castles are in the southern and western parts of the Peninsula (Morea). He also conquered the castle of Ainah-bakhtí (Naupaktus or Lepanto), A.H. 905 (A.D. 1499, 1500). The fortresses of Kilì and Ak-kirmán were taken in the 889 (A.D. 1484). The castles Várnah, Avlóniyah, and in Arnáútluk (Albania) Durráj (Durazzo), were captured, and a tribute imposed upon Karah Boghdán (Moldavia), in the year 918 (A.D. 1512). After having conquered these and many other castles, he was defeated in a second engagement with his son Selím I., at Chórló (Τούρουλος or Τζορλοῦ), where he was deserted by all his servants, who followed Selím to Islámból and proclaimed him Emperor. Báyazíd Khán was immediately ordered to retire to Dímah-tókah (Dymóticho for Didymótichon); but having reached Hávusah, a small town one days journey distant from Edreneh (Adrianople), died there. Various reports were circulated respecting the cause of his death. Some say that he died sighing, and crying out, “O King Jem!” Others, that having been poisoned by his son, he exclaimed, “May thy life be short, but thy victories many!” His corpse was buried within the precincts of his mosque. He reigned thirty-three years, and was succeeded by his son Selím I., who began his victorious course by a signal defeat of Sháh Ismá’íl, King of Írán, on the plains of Cheldir, beneath the castle of Ak hichkah, where 200,000 Kizil-báshes (Persians) were put to the sword. The Sháh himself escaped with difficulty, accompanied by only seven horsemen, and his Queen Tájlí Khánum was taken prisoner, together with three hundred female captives, who were entrusted to the care of the Defterdár Tájir-zádeh Ja’fer Chelebí, and conducted by him to the threshold of Felicity (the Sublime Porte). In this victorious campaign the following castles were conquered:—Kars, Ak-hichkah, Erdehán, Hasan, Erz Rúm, Baïbúd, Iánijah, Kumákh, Karah-Hamíd, Diyár-Bekr, and forty other castles with their dependencies. Sultán ’Aláu-d-daulah, of the Zúl-kadriyyeh family, Lord of Mer’ash, was also defeated and killed, and his head, together with those of seventy other great chiefs (Bóï Beg), was sent to Ghaurí, Sultán of Egypt, against whom a campaign was immediately commenced: in the course of which Súltán Selím conquered Halebu-sh-shuhbá (the bright), with its twenty, Shám (Damascus), with its forty-two castles; Tarábulu-Shám (Tripoli), with its seventy castles, occupied by the Durúzí (Druzes); Beïtu-l-mokaddas (Jerusalem), Ghazah, and Ramlah, with seventeen castles. In that paradisiacal country, Shám (Syria), he took up his winter-quarters; and in the ensuing year he fought, on the plain of Kákún, the great battle in which Sultán Ghaúrí was routed and slain. The wreck of the army of the Cherákis (Circassians) fled to Misr (Caïro), with Selím Khán at their heels; and after one continued battle for a whole month, the province of Misr (Egypt), with its three hundred cities and seven thousand villages, was given up to the conqueror in the year 922 (A.D. 1516). Híreh Beg was appointed Governor of Misr (Caïro); and Kemàl Páshà-zádeh Ahmed Efendí, Military Judge. Possession was taken of Mekkah and Medínah, and Selím assumed the title of Servant of the two noble Mosques, and exalted his victories to the skies. On his returning to Islámból, he laid the foundation of the mosque which bears his name, but did not live to finish it. He was buried in the kubbeh, opposite the Mihráb. He was born in Tarabefzún (for Tarábuzún, _i.e._ Trebizonde), of which he was Governor while a Prince. He reigned nine years, during which the Khotbah was said in his name in one thousand and one mosques. He was succeeded by his son, the determined supporter of the faith, and the breaker of the heads of the people who contemplated rebellion, the tenth of the Sultáns of the house of ’Osmán, Sultán Suleïmán Khán el Ghází, who finished the mosque begun by his father.

_Description of the Mosque of Sultán Selím I._