Iljaz Mirahori Mosque

The Mirahor Mosque (Albanian Xhamia e Ilyaz Bej Mirahorit or short Xhamia e Mirahorit, translated Mosque of equerry ) is a historical building in the city of Korca in southeastern Albania. It applies after the king mosque in Elbasan as the second oldest Islamic house of worship in Albania and as the oldest Einkuppelmoschee the country. Einkuppelmoscheen were quite common in the Western Balkans.

History

The mosque was built in 1495 by Ilyaz Bej Mirahori, the as Janissaries in the siege of Constantinople ( 1453) fought on the side of the Ottomans and married the daughter of the Sultan Mehmed II. He is considered the founders Korças after the city was destroyed in 1440 by the Turks.

The building was renovated repeatedly over the centuries. In 1948 the mosque was included in the list of cultural monuments of Albania. The approximately 32-meter high minaret that had been destroyed by an earthquake in 1961, was built in 2008. In 2013, the mosque with financing of the Turkish government was restored.

Architecture

The Mirahor Mosque consists of a square prayer hall, minaret and a porch. The walls of the building are 11.75 meters long. It is made of white limestone blocks that lie on layers of red brick and are each horizontally separated by bricks. The nearly half- circle-shaped dome is covered with copper and sits on an octagonal base. The interior measures 9.48 meters squared. Today's interior layout was built in the 19th century. The portico with three arches at the front is covered by three small domes. Today, it is glazed, and in the middle of a wooden door was installed.

Next to the mosque is still a grave building of the founder, but probably largely a replica of the 19th century. The buildings are west of the center and south of the Bazaar of Korçë in a yard, which is about 30 x 55 feet tall.