Rüstem Paşa's tomb stands in the burial ground of the Şehzade Mosque, immediately to the left of the tomb of Şehzade Mehmed. Like its neighbour it is the work of Mimar Sinan: an octagonal building under a single dome.
The complex around it was built by Süleyman the Magnificent for Mehmed, the son who died young, and it went up between 1543 and 1548 — mosque, soup kitchen, guest rooms, medreses and schools, with the mosque, medrese, guest rooms and tombs enclosed by one walled courtyard. Sinan lavished the most care on Şehzade Mehmed's own tomb, octagonal with two tiers of windows on every face. Other tombs in the same ground hold Şehzade Mahmud, Hatice Sultan, Fatma Sultan and İbrahim Paşa.
The mosque whose burial ground holds the tomb is worth reading as part of the visit. Its plan is square, roofed by a central dome 18.42 metres across that rests on four great piers and is extended by four large half-domes, with a small dome at each corner. The inscription over the central door gives the year 955 of the Hijra, and two minarets with two balconies each frame the building. The courtyard, entered by five gates, is ringed by sixteen domes on twelve columns, with a fountain for ablutions at its centre.
When to go
- Climate
- Across İstanbul as a whole, monthly mean temperatures run from 6.8 °C in January to 24.7 °C in August; the mean stays between 15 and 25 °C in May, June, July, August, September and October; rainfall is heaviest in December (99 mm) and lightest in July (22 mm). Long-term means for 1950-2025 from the Turkish State Meteorological Service (MGM).
