Rumelifeneri Mosque

Aya Yorgi Church is a Greek Orthodox church in the Rumelifeneri neighborhood of the Sarıyer district of Istanbul Province. It is used as a mosque today.

History

It is estimated that Aya Yorgi Church was built in the late Ottoman period on a church dating from the Byzantine era. The church is dedicated to Aya Yorgi (Άγιος Γεώργιος). Rumelifeneri, whose old name was Fanarion (Φανάριον), was an old Greek village, and at the end of the 19th century about 900 people lived in the village. Although the exact construction date of the church is unknown, based on information given by Georg Ogulukian it can be said that the building was erected no later than the 18th century. The fact that at the very beginning of the 19th century it was reported that 300 people turned the Aya Yorgi Church into a mosque by calling the adhan in its courtyard also shows the church’s existence.

In the 1917 Ottoman map of the General Staff of the Military (Erkan-i Harbiye-i Umumiye), the center of Rumelifeneri village is shown as having a public church (Aya Yorgi Church), a mosque (Ramazan Ağa Mosque) and a lighthouse (Rumeli Lighthouse). Aya Yorgi Church was converted into a mosque in 1971 and the mosque was named Rumeli Lighthouse New Mosque.

Architecture

Aya Yorgi Church is a three-apse, single-nave building. These naves, as in the Yalı Church in Ünye and the Yason Church in the district of Perşembe, have a semi-circular form extending outward. Today each apse contains two windows. From an old photograph it is understood that Aya Yorgi Church, built on a rectangular plan, had a bell tower. After being converted into a mosque in 1971, the building underwent extensive renovation. Its interior, including the columns, is completely covered with tiles. A mihrab has been added on the south side. The mosque has a women’s gallery that follows the east, north and west walls. Shops have been added to the western façade from the outside.