Dome

General view of the interior, depicting the light source from the central court; The several important buildings preserved from the early Ottoman period exemplify the Ottoman pattern of urbanization whereby sultans successively built architectural complexes (kulliye) in unurbanized parts of the city, which then became the nuclei of new quarters. The city was also an international centre for the silk and textile trade. Bayezid i Yildirim (Bayezid the Thunderbolt; reigned 1389-1402) chose a hill to the east of the city for his complex (1390-1395), which comprises a Bursa-type mosque, madrasa, tomb for the founder and bath, along with a kitchen, hospital and palace (destroyed). In the commercial centre he commissioned the congregational mosque (Ulu Cami; 1396-1400), a large (68 x 56 m) rectangular building with 12 piers supporting 20 domed bays. [The complex underwent extensive renovation following the 1855 Bursa earthquake.] Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.groveart.com/ (accessed 1/28/2008)