Masjid of the Bostancilar Tabhâne

Located along the Topkapı Palace seafront between the walls and the sea, the Masjid of the Bostancılar Tabhâne was commissioned by Süleyman I (the Magnificent) for the benefit of the imperial guards at the Palace and was demolished during the 1871 railway construction. Although it is designed at sea level, the masjid is set on a tall base. The apparently rectangular prayer hall is covered with a hipped roof. A small minaret emerges from the southwest corner of the masjid; the eastern (sea) and northern façades are lined with rectangular windows. To the south of the structure is another edifice with double-row windows and a roof, which resembles a pavillion. In Melling’s Topkapı Palace plan, this edifice is labelled as the “Chamber of the Sick”, which indicates that the structure was once used as some sort of a hospital or quarantine area for the male personnel (particularly the imperial guards) working at the palace.