Esrefoğlu Mosque Becomes a Global Landmark

Visitor interest has increased in Esrefoglu Mosque, a structure from the Anatolian Seljuk period in Konya’s Beysehir district, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2023. The mosque stands out with its wooden columns and intricate ceiling craftsmanship.

The mosque, which received 283,000 visitors the previous year, hosted 411,000 visitors in 2024 after being recognized as a world heritage site under the title "The Wooden Columned and Beamed Mosque of Medieval Anatolia."

The mosque, built in 1299 by Seyfeddin Süleyman Bey, the founder of the Eşrefoğlu Beylik, an Anatolian Seljuk frontier principality, is considered one of the most advanced and largest examples of mosques with wooden columns and flat earthen roofs, designed in the "great mosque" style that adheres to Seljuk traditions.

The 726-year-old mosque, with its front facade made of cut stone, transports visitors back centuries with its wooden ceiling supported by 48 wooden columns, wooden and ceramic decorations, its minbar crafted in the art of kündekari, its prayer cell, and the bey mahfil.

Prof. Dr. Hüseyin Muşmal, a faculty member of the History Department at Selçuk University's Faculty of Arts, stated that before the mosque was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, it was already a well-known and closely followed work in Turkey due to its unique characteristics.

Muşmal noted:

"It was very important for our mosque to be included in this list. UNESCO not only lists and promotes these works but also sets the necessary standards for their preservation. Around the world, there are scholars, particularly historians and travelers involved in cultural tourism, who follow these works. For this reason, we know that special groups from abroad visit UNESCO-listed sites in Turkey. During this process, increased promotion has also raised the interest of domestic tourists. Only 21 works from Turkey have made it to this list, and Konya has two of them. One was the world-renowned Çatalhöyük. After Eşrefoğlu Mosque was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List, it began to transform into a globally recognized work."