Muradiye Complex, in Bursa

Muradiye Complex, in Bursa

A dozen turbe (monumental tombs) of the Ottoman imperial family stand in a peaceful graveyard beside the Muradiye mosque.

Many of the tombs belong to the losers of various dynastic feuds --- imperial princes murdered by their sovereign brother, father or cousin --- and are exquisitely decored, as if to exorcise evil memories, Murad II himself (ruled 1431-1451) lies in a severely ascetic and roofless turbe--- perhaps a rebuke to his father's funerary extravaganza at the Green Tomb, elsewhere in the city.

Grand Mosque - Bursa

Grand Mosque - Bursa

The Grand Mosque of Bursa, built in 1399, was the last monumental example of Ulucami--- a mosque design based on a series of parallel domes supported on piers, which later Ottoman architects abandoned in favour of a single central dome.

The effect of the interior is very different (and we think more impressive) than better known mosques of the Ottoman Classical period verses in Istanbul and Edirne.

A matchless collection of Arabic calligraphy, mostly verses of the Qur'an, decorate the mosque interior.

The Grand Mosque of Bursa

Cumalikizik Village in Bursa

Cumalikizik Village in Bursa

Some 200 houses of the traditional Turkish style line the narrow, cobbled streets of ancient Cumalikizik Village, wich has been declared a national landmark.