Located within Kemeraltı Bazaar today, Şadırvan(altı) Mosque was originally built along the coastline, like the other mosques constructed throughout the 17th century. However, as the inner harbor area gradually filled in over time, the mosque lost its connection to the sea.
As the mosque’s construction inscription has not survived to the present day, its exact construction date remains uncertain. However, in his Seyahatname, Evliya Çelebi states that the mosque was built in 1636-37 based on the now-lost inscription. In Kâtip Çelebi’s Cihannüma, it is referred to as Great Mosque, while Evliya Çelebi’s Seyahatname mentions it as Bıyıklıoğlu Mosque, and in other sources, it is also recorded as Niflizade Mosque. However, no historical record provides information on when the mosque began to be referred to as Şadırvan(altı) Mosque.
Şadırvan(altı) Mosque has the characteristic of being a fevkani (elevated) mosque. Fevkani mosque is an architectural term for mosques built on an infrastructure. There are shops or similar income-generating units on the lower floor of such mosques. Under Şadırvan(altı) Mosque, there are shops, that continue to be actively used today.
The shadırvan, which gives the mosque its name, is particularly striking. Resting on eight columns, the fountain has an octagonal-plan library and a square-plan muvakkithane above it.
If you find yourself in Kemeraltı and its narrow streets lead you to Şadırvan(altı) Mosque, and if you happen to be there in the right season, don’t leave without tasting the verjuice from the tea house nearby.