Rethymno Kara Musa Pasha Mosque

Location: Town

The Kara Musa Pasha Mosque is located on Arkadiou and Hugo Street, near Iroon Square in Rethymnon. It’s an old building, surrounded by trees and greenery, and is not open to the public. It showcases a unique combination of Venetian and Turkish architecture, which you can admire as you take a walk around town.

It is estimated that the mosque was established around 1683 by the Ottoman Governor of Crete during that time. It was named after Kara Musa Pasha (Musa Pasha the Courageous), an admiral of the Ottoman Navy during the Turkish Occupation of Crete in 1646. It is housed in a Venetian building that originally served as the Monastery of Saint Barbara, which was then turned into a mosque by the Turks. In order to transform the church into a Muslim mosque, the Turks added a dome and a minaret.

In the yard, you can see a fountain, some tombstones, and a vaulted grave, which probably belongs to its founder. The believers used to wash themselves in the fountain before entering the mosque.

The mosque remains in good condition, except for the minaret, which has only partially survived.