Dzhumaya Mosque in the centre of Plovdiv

Church & monasteryCentral Bulgaria & the Balkan Range

Dzhumaya Mosque, the Friday Mosque of Plovdiv

The Dzhumaya Mosque stands in the pedestrian centre of Plovdiv, at the foot of Taksim Tepe, and is one of the oldest and largest Ottoman mosques in the Balkans. Its walls of alternating brick and stone, its tall minaret and its painted interior make it a quiet landmark among Plovdiv's Roman and Revival-era sights. It is an easy stop for anyone exploring the old town.

Nobody can say for certain when this mosque was built: the original inscription is lost, and scholars still argue between the 1360s and the 1430s. Either way, it may be the oldest big Ottoman building in the Balkans.

WhereCentre of Plovdiv, in the pedestrian zone at the foot of Taksim Tepe

TypeEarly Ottoman congregational (Friday) mosque

Best forArchitecture and history fans, and walkers combining the old town with Roman Plovdiv

Getting thereOn foot from anywhere in central Plovdiv; the mosque lies in the pedestrian zone

The history of the Dzhumaya Mosque

The Dzhumaya Mosque, also called the Friday Mosque (Turkish Cuma Camii) or Ulu Dzhumaya, the “Great Friday Mosque”, stands in the heart of Plovdiv. Under Ottoman rule the city was known as Filibe; it became the capital of the Bulgarian part of Thrace and, until 1455–56, the seat of the beylerbey of Rumelia. The mosque is a product of that early period of Ottoman Plovdiv.

Nobody knows exactly when it was built, because the original building inscription has not survived. Some authors credit Sultan Murad I, who ruled from 1362 to 1389 and whose title Hüdavendigâr, “lord of the world”, gave the building one of its names; the seventeenth-century traveller Evliya Çelebi supports this view. The prevailing opinion today favours Murad II, in the first decades of the fifteenth century. The Ottoman historian Abdurrahman Hibri attributes it to him, and the mosque had no endowment of its own in the sixteenth century but was kept going from funds that Murad II set aside for foundations in Edirne. If it was in fact built under Murad I, it would be the oldest large Ottoman monument in the Balkans.

A local legend says that the mosque replaced a church of St Petka, built after the saint’s relics passed through the town in 1228, and in the nineteenth century the writer Lyuben Karavelov noted that it had once been a church. The idea rests entirely on local tradition. During the restoration of 2006–2008, which reached down to the foundations, no trace of an older building was found on the spot.

The walls are laid in alternating courses, two of brick to one of hewn stone, with bricks also set upright between the blocks. This technique had been used in the Balkans before the Ottomans for churches and other buildings, which suggests that the builders were local or Christian craftsmen brought in for the job. The prayer hall measures about 33 by 27 metres, and the minaret rises at the north-east corner of the main façade, decorated with a pattern of diamond-shaped fields typical of the early fifteenth century. Wall paintings inside date from the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. A sundial was added to the south-west corner in 1878.

Later centuries were hard on the building. The arcaded porch of the north façade was pulled down some time after 1880 and replaced by a wooden kiosk with small shops, and the minaret was damaged in the earthquake of 1928. Between 2006 and 2008 the whole mosque was thoroughly restored with funds from the Istanbul metropolitan municipality: walls and pillars were strengthened, the roof was re-covered, the top of the minaret was rebuilt and later layers of paint were removed to reveal the earliest surviving decoration, probably from around 1785. The old wooden kiosk now houses a pastry shop and offices of the Plovdiv muftiate.

Curious facts about the Dzhumaya Mosque

The name means “Friday Mosque”: in Turkish it is the Cuma Camii, and the Ottomans also called it the Murad Mosque after the sultan associated with it.
A poem inscribed above the north entrance is written in Ottoman Turkish, and a sundial placed on the south-west corner in 1878 still marks the time.
The brick-and-stone “cell” masonry is also found in the Boyar House in Melnik, and similar walling appears in the Green Mosque in İznik and the Hüdavendigâr Mosque in Bursa.
Unlike later Ottoman mosques with a single dome, the prayer hall is spread over several domes resting on pillars in the centre of the building.
Under the central dome there was once a cement fountain, built in the early twentieth century, which worked more as a symbol of the courtyard every mosque should have than as a place for ritual washing.
If the early date is right, the Dzhumaya Mosque is older than the Eski Mosque in Haskovo (1395), which is itself counted among the oldest Ottoman monuments in Bulgaria.

Tours near Dzhumaya Mosque

Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:

Food Walk: Bulgarian Food and Culture Tour in Plovdiv

★ 5 (35 reviews) · 3 h

See details ›

Plovdiv, Asen's Fortress and Bachkovo Monastery small group tour with pickup

★ 5 (27 reviews) · 9 h

See details ›

E-Motorcycle Tour in Rhodope Mountains to a Beautiful Canyon View

★ 5 (26 reviews) · 3 h

See details ›

Plovdiv Full-Day Small-Group Tour from Sofia with Pickup

★ 5 (10 reviews) · 7 h

See details ›

Visiting the Dzhumaya Mosque: what to expect

The mosque sits in the pedestrian zone of central Plovdiv, so it is easy to reach on foot and fits naturally into a walk through the old town.
It is a working place of worship; dress modestly and quietly, and check the current opening hours and visiting conditions before you go.
Look at the outside walls with their alternating brick and stone, the minaret at the north-east corner and the sundial on the south-west corner.
Just next to it lie the remains of the Roman stadium of ancient Philippopolis, and Nebet Tepe and the Bishop’s Basilica are a short walk away.
The annex that replaced the old wooden kiosk now holds a pastry shop, a handy stop after the visit.

Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.

Map: where Dzhumaya Mosque is

Photos of Dzhumaya Mosque

Questions

What is the Dzhumaya Mosque in Plovdiv?

It is an early Ottoman Friday mosque in the centre of Plovdiv, regarded as one of the oldest and largest Ottoman mosques in the Balkans. It is also called Ulu Dzhumaya or the Murad Mosque.

When was the Dzhumaya Mosque built?

The date is disputed because the original inscription is lost. Some scholars say under Murad I (before 1389), but most today favour Murad II, probably in the first decades of the fifteenth century.

Was the Dzhumaya Mosque built on the site of a church?

A local legend says it replaced a church of St Petka, but this is based only on tradition. Restoration work down to the foundations in 2006–2008 found no trace of an earlier building.

Where is the Dzhumaya Mosque located?

It stands in the centre of Plovdiv, in the pedestrian zone at the foot of Taksim Tepe, close to the remains of the Roman stadium.

What makes the architecture of the Dzhumaya Mosque special?

Its walls alternate brick and stone, a technique known in the Balkans before the Ottomans, and the prayer hall is covered by several domes on central pillars. The tall minaret is decorated with a diamond-shaped pattern.

Can I visit the Dzhumaya Mosque?

It is an active mosque, so visit respectfully and check the current opening hours and visiting conditions locally before you go.