The Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque originally known as the Saint Nicolas Cathedral

admin ♦ August 6, 2010 ♦ 1 Comment

The Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque originally known as the Saint Nicolas Cathedral and later as the Ayasofya (Saint Sophia) Mosque of Magusa is the largest medieval building in Famagusta, Cyprus. Built between 1298 and c.1400 it was consecrated as a Christian cathedral in 1328. The cathedral was converted into a mosque after the Ottoman Empire captured Famagusta in 1571 and remains a mosque to this day.
The French Lusignan dynasty ruled as Kings of Cyprus from 1190 to 1489 and had brought with them the latest French taste in architecture, notably developments in Gothic architecture.

The cathedral was constructed from AD 1300 to c.1400 and was consecrated in 1328. “After an unfortunate episode when the current bishop embezzled the restoration fund”[1], Bishop Guy of Ibelin bequeathed 20,000 bezants for its construction.[2] The Lusignans would be crowned as Kings of Cyprus in the St. Sophia Cathedral (now Selimiye Mosque) in Nicosia and then crowned as Kings of Jerusalem in the St. Nicolas Cathedral in Famagusta.[3][4]

The building is constructed in a flamboyant Gothic style, quite rare outside France, though “mediated through buildings in the Rhineland”[5]. The historic tie between France and Cyprus is evidenced by its parallels to French archetypes such as the Reims Cathedral. Indeed, so strong is the resemblance, that the building has been dubbed “The Reims of Cyprus”. The building has three doors, twin towers over the aisles and a flat roof, typical of Crusader architecture.Error processing request