Structural Response of Ortakoy Buyuk Mecidiye Mosque Inistanbul

The Büyük Mecidiye Mosque in Ortaköy, Istanbul, is an emblematic building of the city
with the unique Bosporus view. The original mosque was built in the 18th century. The current
mosque, which was erected in its place, was ordered by the Ottoman sultan Abdülmecid and built
between 1854 and 1856. Its contractors were famous Balyan’s and its architect is Abdülhalim Efendi
[1] .The structure is designed in the Neo-Baroque style. The masonry dome of the structure was
substituted with a relatively light reinforced concrete dome in 60’s, due to serious structural cracks
observed on the dome triggered by soil movements towards the sea [2]. This paper discusses the
results of an assessment effort that was focused on defining the seismic response of the structure.
The results show that the RC dome transfers limited inertia forces to the substructure. Based on the
analyses presented here, the dome is not expected to adversely affect the seismic response of the
structure.