Mardin Great Mosque

History

The Great Mosque is the oldest and best-known building in Mardin. It took its present form in the 12th century under the Artuqids and was repaired many times in the centuries that followed. Its thick limestone walls, ribbed dome and single carved minaret established the architectural language the rest of the city would follow.

Why go

The minaret is visible from almost everywhere in the old town — that slender silhouette on the horizon in every photograph of Mardin belongs to this building. The courtyard offers a quiet step back from the noise of the bazaar. The mosque is still in use: not a museum, but a place that has been lived in without interruption for eight hundred years.

Visiting notes

Entry is free. Visit outside prayer times; women may want to carry a headscarf. The best light is late afternoon, when the minaret turns gold from the west. Leaving the courtyard and wandering into the back streets is the best way to understand Mardin.

Getting there

From the mansion, walk down to First Street (Birinci Cadde) and head west; the minaret appears on your right where the bazaar begins. About a 5-minute level walk.