Kurtuluş Mosque

Kurtuluş Mosque, located in the Tepebaşı District of Gaziantep city, was built in 1892 as a church (mother Mary Church). This place is also used as a prison during certain periods. The Kurtuluş Mosque, which stands out as one of the largest mosques in the city, has an imposing image. The interior of the structure, which has a rectangular plan, is separated by steep columns. Cross vaults are located in the arms of the cross section. The central part of the mosque is hooped and has a high dome. Cut stones attract attention in the parts of the wall. Cut stones are found in the wall areas. A hipped roof is preferred in the ceiling section. When the Kurtuluş Mosque is examined, its interesting Gothic architecture comes to the fore in the first place. The church bell is specially brought by an Armenian living in England. It is transferred that this bell was brought from Brazil. The weight of the giant bell is exactly one ton. Today, the bell is moved to Gaziantep Museum as the venue has been converted from a church to a mosque. Where the bell is, it is then converted into a minaret. Kurtuluş mosque is still mentioned in some sources as ‘Church of Our Lady of Antep’. The Kurtuluş Mosque, which has the only minaret balcony, has five gates in total. Two of these face the northern section, but the main large gate opens to the west. In foreign sources, the name of the church is referred as ‘Surp Asdvadzadzin Cathedral’. Sarkis Balyan, an Ottoman Armenian, contributed significantly to the formation of the place. He is also known as Abdulhamid's private architect. At that time, there was a large Armenian population in this region. This congregation is therefore predominantly interested in the church. After the 1920s, the church was used as a prison. It is evaluated by the government as a military base for up to three years. The process of being converted into a mosque takes place in 1980.