Green Tomb (Yeşil Türbe)
Turquoise tiles turned an Ottoman sultan's tomb into Bursa's colour landmark.
Built for Sultan Mehmed I in 1421, the octagonal Green Tomb stands above the Green Mosque complex. Its turquoise exterior tiles and richly worked interior belong to Bursa's early Ottoman architectural landscape.
A monument after the Interregnum
Mehmed I reunited the Ottoman state after the struggle that followed the defeat by Timur. The tomb, attributed to architect Hacı İvaz Pasha, used height, colour and ornament to project recovery. It contains the sultan's cenotaph and those of members of his family.
Look beyond the colour
The name comes from the green and turquoise tiles covering much of the exterior. Around the entrance and windows, marble, inscriptions and interlaced motifs reward a closer look. The tomb forms part of Bursa and Cumalıkızık's UNESCO World Heritage property, inscribed in 2014.
Visit the whole hillside complex
The tomb stands above the Green Mosque within a wider complex that also included a madrasa, bath and public kitchen, so the most coherent visit moves between buildings rather than stopping at the turquoise façade. Yeşil can be reached from central Bursa on foot or by local transport, but the monuments occupy different levels on the hillside. Keep the route compact around the mosque, tomb and museum buildings if steps or slopes are tiring.
