The Bahsita Mosque
A small Mamluk mosque of 1350 in the al-Aqaba quarter of Aleppo, a lane behind the clock tower. Its octagonal minaret was moved to the east wall in 1911.
- Opening hours
- Prayer times; otherwise varies — confirm at the door
- Entry
- Free
- Duration
- 15 minutes
- Best time
- Just outside prayer times, when the hall is empty
- Period
- Mamluk
- Address
- Bahsita, al-Aqaba quarter, Old City, Aleppo
A small mosque one lane back from the main street, in the quarters between the Bab al-Faraj clock tower and the National Library of Aleppo. It is known for its octagonal minaret. It was built in 1350, under the Mamluks, and takes its name from the Bahsita quarter around it. The Aleppine historian Sheikh Kamel al-Ghazzi traced that name to the Syriac Bet Hasiota: the house of purity.
Getting there
In the al-Aqaba quarter, near the clock tower and the national library. If you have to ask the way, the name of the quarter works better than the name of the mosque: Bahsita.
What to see
The shaft of the minaret is octagonal. A single line of inscription runs right around it below the balcony; it is 120 centimetres long, and it is what dates the building — 751 in the Islamic calendar, that is 1350.
Do not miss
The minaret now stands on the east side of the mosque, which is not where it was built. In 1911 it was taken down and moved to the east wall so that the lane beside it could be widened. You are looking at a 14th-century minaret from a spot chosen for it in the 20th century.
Tips
- The minaret is on the east wall; it was moved there in the street widening of 1911
- The inscription band under the balcony carries the date: 751 in the Islamic calendar, 1350
- Ask for the quarter rather than the mosque — Bahsita, next to the clock tower
Transparency
- How this was chosen
- Written by hand; opening hours, entry fee and coordinates are kept as data. A field that is not known for certain is marked as variable rather than guessed.
- Facts checked
- September 2026
- Last updated
- September 15, 2026