The Bodrum Mosque |
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The Bodrum Mosque was formerly the Church of the Monastery of Myrelaion or "the place of myrrh." An archaeological study by Cecil L. Striker in 1965 has invalidated previously held notions regarding the church's origin and confirmed its foundation by Byzantine Admiral Romanus Lecapenus. Grand vizier Mesih Pasa converted the church into a mosque and established an endowment for its expenses circa 1500, as part of a larger campaign of conversion initiated by Bayezid II (1481-1512). The Turkish name for the church, which means 'basement', is thought to refer to its crypt; although the mosque is also known by the name of its Ottoman founder, Mesih Pasa. The Bodrum Mosque was damaged by fire in 1784 and in 1911 when it was abandoned. In 1930, a team of archaeologists led by David Talbot Rice investigated the site around the mosque, discovering the round cistern of Romanus' palace. An unfinished restoration project, which was executed by the Istanbul Archaeology Museum in 1964-65, damaged the historic appearance of the church by replacing a majority of its exterior masonry. In 1965, a second excavation was conducted by art historian Cecil L. Striker focusing on the substructure. A parallel excavation by R. Naumann revealed traces of the imperial palace nearby. Finally in 1986, the church was restored and put into use as a mosque. The cistern was also restored in the 1990s and is used as an underground shopping mall. No other buildings have remained of the Myrelaion monastery.
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