Liberation Mosque

Liberation Mosque
Kurtuluş Camii
Liberation Mosque in May 2009
Religion
Affiliation	Islam, originally Christianity
Location
Location	Şahinbey, Gaziantep Province, Turkey
Architecture
Architect(s)	Sarkis Balyan
Type	mosque
Date established	1986 (as mosque)
Groundbreaking	1892
Completed	1893

Liberation Mosque (Turkish: Kurtuluş Camii), formerly the St. Mary's Cathedral or Holy Mother of God Church (Armenian: Սուրբ Աստուածածին Եկեղեցի, romanized: Surp Asdvazdadzin Egeghetsʿi), is located in the Tepebaşı district of Şahinbey, Gaziantep in Turkey.^[1][2] Initially built as an Armenian Apostolic church, it was converted into a stable after the Armenian genocide; and later, into a jail.^[2] Sarkis Balyan—the Ottoman-Armenian architect serving Sultan Abdul Hamid II—designed the church. The building was constructed between 1892 and 1893, undertaken by the stonemason Sarkis Taşçıyan.^[1][3] The church was part of a complex which also contained a school and the administrative buildings of the dioceses of the kaza of Antep.^[4]

Holy Mother of God Armenian Church as depicted in a photograph in 1920.

In 1915, almost all of the Gaziantep Armenians were deported to the Syrian desert during the genocide.^[5] The church was sealed on 22 August 1915; and its sacramentals and furnishings were put in a large stable, then they were bought and sold at an auction.^[1] For over three years the cathedral was used by government for military purposes.^[1] Next, it was turned into a prison in the early 1920s; and served as such until the 1970s.^[1][6]

The building was converted into a mosque in 1986.^[2] The top half of the bell tower was demolished, the remainder converted into a single-balcony minaret. The bell, which was cast in the 19th century in South America, was taken to Gaziantep Museum.^{[citation needed]}

After renovation, the mosque reopened on 17 June 2017.^[1]

Mosque after the earthquake

During the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, its dome and minarets collapsed.^[7]

See also

• Armenian cultural heritage in Turkey
• Conversion of non-Islamic places of worship into mosques
• Armenian architecture

References

1. Korucu, Serdar (24 June 2017). "Antep'te 'Kilise Olarak Yapılan Cami': Kurtuluş Camii" ['The Mosque Built as a Church' in Antep: Kurtuluş Mosque]. Biamag (in Turkish). Istanbul. Bianet. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
2. Fisk, Robert (2016-10-15). "A beautiful mosque and the dark period of the Armenian genocide". The Independent. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
3. Thomas A. Sinclair: Eastern Turkey. An Architectural and Archaeological Survey. volume 4. The Pindar Press, London 1990, p. 111
4. Osman Koker, "Armenians in Turkey 100 Years Ago", Istanbul 2005, p267.
5. Akçam, Taner (2012). The Young Turks' Crime Against Humanity the Armenian Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing in the Ottoman Empire. Princeton: Princeton University Press. p. 256. ISBN 978-1400841844.
6. Ungor, Ugur; Polatel, Mehmet (2011). Confiscation and Destruction: The Young Turk Seizure of Armenian Property. A&C Black. p. 82. ISBN 978-1441130556.
7. Boncuk, Mehmet. "Tarihi cami depremde hasar gördü". Sabah. Retrieved 8 February 2023.

37°03′37″N 37°22′32″E