Population: 700
Market day: Saturday
The small village of Boğaziçi is buried in the pretty countryside around Denizli to the west of the Ankara road. There would be absolutely no reason to come here were it not for the spectacular old mosque that sits beside the brash new Boğaziçi Çarşı Cami that went up in 1986 when the population was a much healthier 5,000.
There is no certainty about when the mosque was built although in the decoration above the gallery the Arabic number 1772 can be seen. Presumably the actual building would have taken place a few years earlier.
Anyone who has seen the mosque at Kasaba near Kastamonu will be reminded of it immediately they cross the threshold of the Boğaziçi Cami despite the hundreds of years difference in their age. The reason must be the copious use of wood together with the largely red, black and white colour of the paintings on the ceiling, pillars and gallery. The walls of the mosque are completely covered with paintings like those to be seen in the mosque at Akköy, near Pamukkkale, most of them probably completed in 1876 when the mosque was repaired.
On the lefthand side of the hall can be seen scales for weighing the soul of the dead together with steps leading down to hell (represented by a cauldron of flames) and up to heaven (represented by a mass of flowers).
Nearby is a representation of Mecca and the Ka’aba while on the righthand wall there is an image of the mosque at Medina with its many minarets.
Partly obscured by the gallery are other images of rifles and flags, as well as of a dervish cap and begging bowl.
Transport info
There is a timetabled bus service to Boğaziçi from Denizli otogar. If the times don’t suit there are also half-hourly dolmuşes to Baklan, a pleasant 4km walk away past some of the vineyards that produce Pamukkale wines.
