Contemplate the whispers of history echoing in these stones. This is the Ekmekçizade Ahmet Paşa Medresesi. It stands as a testament to Istanbul’s enduring legacy of learning and philanthropy.
Ekmekçizade Ahmet Paşa Medresesi is located in the Vefa district. It sits across from the Molla Hüsrev Mosque on Cemal Yener Tosyalı Caddesi. This külliye includes a medrese, türbe, sebil, çeşme and hazire.
Ahmet Paşa, who served as a financier and vizier during Sultan Ahmet I’s reign, commissioned this small complex in 1618. Its proximity to the Şehzade Mosque eliminated the need for a separate mosque within the complex. The construction of the Ekmekçizade Ahmet Paşa Medresesi is attributed to Sedefkar Mehmet Ağa. He was the architect of the Sultanahmet Mosque before 1618.
Today you can enter through a new gate opened in the west wall. Previously, the entrance was on Cemal Yener Tosyalı Caddesi. The Ekmekçizade Ahmet Paşa Medresesi comprises seven stone rooms and a classroom. The square rooms feature fireplaces and domes. They are arranged in a U-shape around three sides of a rectangular courtyard with porticoes. The tomb and classroom occupy the fourth side. The classroom is a stone square with a dome. It is located to the right of the entrance, in the southeast corner of the courtyard.
An octagonal fountain made of cut stone stands in the courtyard. It is currently undergoing restoration. In 1792, 24 people resided in the medrese. This number increased to 55 by 1869. A 1914 inspection report recorded 20 students.
The Ekmekçizade Ahmet Paşa Medresesi suffered neglect for many years. It became a shelter for the homeless. However, in 1963, the General Directorate of Foundations evacuated the medrese. Architect Cahide Tamer restored it between 1966 and 1968. Later, the adjacent Nuri Bey Mansion was demolished. The medrese became part of the İlim Yayma Cemiyeti student dormitory. Today, the medrese is well-maintained. It continues to serve as the Enül Emin Mahmut Kemal Ünal boys’ dormitory.
The medrese follows a regular rectangular plan. Its entrance is from Kovacılar Caddesi. Nineteen marble columns with baklava-shaped capitals support the portico arches surrounding the courtyard. The porticoes are domed, and the cells behind them are also covered with domes. Across from the classroom is a row of cells with latrines and a bath. The courtyard features a mosque-classroom covered by a large dome on its south side. This space is illuminated by two rows of windows.
Next to the classroom is the tomb of Ekmekçizade. It is about the same size as the classroom. The entrance to the tomb is from Taştekneler Street. The tomb is covered by a large dome. It contains nine sarcophagi of various sizes. It is believed that Ahmed Paşa built the tomb or it was constructed after his death following the medrese’s construction.
Outside the classroom and tomb, along Taştekneler Street, is a large hazire enclosed by walls with many tombstones. The hazire is not well-maintained. An illegal wall was recently built within it. Tombstones with unidentifiable locations are stacked against the walls. The porch above the tomb’s entrance has collapsed.
At the corner where the hazire wall and the tomb meet, there is a beautiful sebil. Ayvansarâyî mentions a dârülkurrâ and sebil belonging to Hüsrev Kethüdâ next to the Molla Hüsrev Mosque. While no trace of the dârülkurrâ remains, Hüsrev Kethüdâ’s sebil is in very poor condition. This small structure, one of Istanbul’s oldest sebils, is buried up to the bottom edge of its lattice due to the rising street level. Three marble columns with muqarnas capitals support the sebil’s marble pointed arches. It likely had a wooden roof with wide eaves. Three intricately patterned lattices are between the columns.
The Ekmekçizade Ahmet Paşa Medresesi is a reminder of a bygone era. It continues to serve as a place of learning and reflection.