Overview
About the mosque
The mosque's complex consists of a main edifice (a prayer hall), a yard and a twelve-room extension (a boarding house of the madrasa). The main edifice is in its fundamental part a square, then becomes an octagon passing to a circle in the middle part, and is topped by a spherical dome that is 25 m above ground.
The interior has mural paintings of vegetable life and geometric figures and inscriptions of Arabic, phrases from the Qur'an. The yard is known for the arches in front of the twelve rooms that surround it and the minaret is 40 m high.
Background
History
The mosque was initially located in the north-eastern Bulgarian (then Ottoman) town's centre, but is now in Shumen's south-west parts as the town centre moved as a result of the enlargement of the town.
The mosque's name comes from the shape of its dome.
The mosque and the associated buildings is the largest in Bulgaria and after the Sultan Selim Mosque in the Turkish town of Odrin (Edirne) it is the second largest on the Balkan peninsula.
The Tombul Mosque is considered to be a cultural monument of national importance.
Where
Location
Shumen Center, ul. "Georgi Sava Rakovski" 21, 9700 Shumen, BulgariaOpen in Google Maps
Gallery
