Banya Bashi Mosque

Banya Bashi Mosque stands on bul. Knyaginya Maria Luiza in central Sofia, Bulgaria, beside the Central Market Hall and close to the Central Mineral Baths. It was completed in 1566 during the Ottoman period and is traditionally attributed to Mimar Sinan, the chief imperial architect. Its name means 'many baths', a reference to the mineral springs that rise beneath the site and fed the public baths that stood nearby. The mosque has a single large dome about 15 metres in diameter, supported by a cubic prayer hall, and a slender minaret roughly 40 metres tall, and the interior is a plain, light space with carpeted floors and calligraphic decoration. It was an important centre of worship for Sofia's Muslim community during Ottoman times and remains the city's only working mosque, a status it kept after Bulgaria's liberation in 1878, when most other mosques were destroyed, converted or abandoned. The building has been restored on several occasions in the 20th and early 21st centuries, with attention to the dome, the minaret and the interior paint. Outside, the mosque forms part of the so-called Square of Tolerance, where an Orthodox cathedral, a synagogue, a Catholic church and the mosque stand within a short distance of each other. Visitors may enter outside prayer times, with the entrance fee waived but donations welcomed. Dress rules are observed: shoes are removed, women cover their heads, shoulders and knees, and silence is expected. Photography is generally allowed in the prayer hall if it is respectful and does not disturb worshippers.