The Ibrahim Pasha Mosque is a small domed mosque on Platonos Square in the medieval Old Town of Rhodes, built in the 16th century, not long after the Ottoman conquest of the island. Of the old town's mosques, it is the only one still open for worship, serving the island's Turkish-speaking Muslim community.
The Ibrahim Pasha Mosque at a glance
- Where: Platonos Square (Plateia Platonos), in the Old Town of Rhodes, a few minutes' walk south of Sokratous Street.
- Built: in the 1530s or around 1540–1541; sources differ, and an inscription dates it to the Islamic year 947 (1540/41).
- What it is today: a working mosque, officially licensed by the Greek state in 2019, and part of the Medieval City of Rhodes UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Time needed: 10 minutes to look at it from the square; it is not open to tourists as a sight.
- Named after: Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha, grand vizier of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.
From the Ottoman conquest to today
In 1522 Suleiman the Magnificent besieged Rhodes for six months, and the Knights of St John surrendered and left the island at the start of 1523. For the next four centuries Rhodes was Ottoman. Mosques, baths, fountains and libraries were built inside the medieval walls, some of them in converted churches, and the walled town became home mainly to Muslim and Jewish residents, while most Greek Orthodox families lived in the districts outside the walls. The Ibrahim Pasha Mosque was one of the first mosques built from scratch, and it is often described as the oldest surviving mosque on Rhodes.
In 1912 Italy took the island, and in the 1920s and 1930s the Italian authorities restored many medieval and Ottoman buildings; the mosque's minaret, damaged over the centuries, was rebuilt in reinforced concrete in 1928 and repaired again in the 1930s. Rhodes became part of Greece after the Second World War. Most of the Old Town's mosques have since closed or now stand empty, but the Ibrahim Pasha Mosque has stayed in use, and in 2019 it received an official operating licence from the Greek Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs.
What to look for
- The dome: a single large dome over the square prayer hall, twelve-sided on the outside and about 11.5 metres across.
- The minaret: rising from the north-west corner, with a polygonal base, a slim round shaft and one balcony for the call to prayer.
- The porch: two porticoes at the entrance and a row of three small domes over the area in front of the prayer hall.
- The fountain: an eight-sided ablution fountain with a wooden roof in the courtyard, where worshippers wash before prayer; you may glimpse it from the gate.
- The square itself: Platonos Square is small and quiet, a good place to see how the Ottoman layer of the Old Town sits among the Knights' stone houses.
A living mosque in an old town of monuments
Rhodes Old Town has several Ottoman mosques and prayer halls, and almost all of them are now closed or used for other purposes. The Ibrahim Pasha Mosque is different: it is not a museum but a place where people still pray, busiest at Friday midday prayers. The call to prayer is recited inside the building, not broadcast from the minaret, so most passers-by never notice that the mosque is in use.
Tips for your visit
- Look at the mosque from the square: it is not a tourist sight, and you should not walk in unless invited.
- Avoid Friday midday prayers if you want to take photos, and keep your voice down near the entrance at any time.
- Combine it with a walk through the southern part of the Old Town, which is quieter than the main shopping streets, and come in the morning or late afternoon when the lanes are cooler.
Nearby
- Sokratous Street: the Old Town's main shopping street, once the Ottoman bazaar, a few minutes' walk north.
- Mosque of Suleiman: the pink-plastered mosque at the top of Sokratous Street, founded right after the conquest of 1522; you can see its exterior from the street.
- Hippocrates Square: the square with the Castellania, the Knights' courthouse and exchange, and a fountain where several Old Town streets meet.
- Kahal Shalom Synagogue: the synagogue of the Jewish Quarter, founded in 1577 and the oldest synagogue in Greece, with a small museum of the Jewish community of Rhodes.
See Rhodes with World City Trail
Our Rhodes scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around 2 hours, with about 30 minutes of walking. Among the places it includes are the Palace of the Grand Master and the Street of the Knights in the medieval Old Town. You can play in English, German, French, Italian, Dutch, Polish and Greek.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Rhodes.
Play the Rhodes scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Rhodes →
Play the outdoor escape game in Rhodes →
Facts checked in October 2026.