Bursa: From Prusa to the Early Ottoman Capital – A Cultural Heritage Journey

Publication Date: October 2026

Overview

What: A historic center founded in Antiquity under the name Prusa [1], [6]. In its earliest era, it was home to the kings of Bithynia, an ancient kingdom that ruled over northwestern Anatolia [1]. It was also the first Ottoman capital [1], [6].
Where: Located in the Southern Marmara section of the Marmara Region [1], [5]. It was established between the northwestern foothills of Mount Uludağ and the southern edge of the Bursa Plain [1], [5]. Its terrain is characterized by a sloping topography [1].
Why it matters: It harbors a rich, multi-layered historical heritage [2], [3], [4], [6]. Hellenistic funerary architecture forms the earliest layers of this legacy [2]. Ancient stones salvaged as spolia from the Late Antique and Byzantine eras are integrated into its edifices [3]. It reflects a profound historical continuity extending from intercontinental trade networks to the mausoleums of the founding sultans [4], [6].

The imposing northwestern slopes of Mount Uludağ meet the vast plain along whose southern rim the city lies [1]. Across the centuries, the verdant expanses of this plain and the mountain foothills have intertwined here [1]. From past to present, the city has exhibited a natural pattern of expansion [1]. On one hand, it ascended toward the slopes; on the other, it descended into the fertile plain [1].

Since antiquity, Bursa has acquired a distinct and singular identity [1], [2]. It is among those rare urban centers that have successfully preserved the stratified layers of disparate epochs side by side across the same landscape [1], [2]. The settlement was established during the Hellenistic period, the post-Alexander era of the ancient Greek world [1]. Along its streets endure the physical traces of Eastern Rome and the early Ottoman era that succeeded it [1], [3]. The architectural and cultural heritage of these periods continues to coexist to this day [1], [3].

The tangible strata of the city extend from a hilltop citadel down into the expansive plain [1], [5]. Dressed stones, burial chambers, and venerable edifices convey the narratives of bygone eras to the modern day [2], [3]. In this way, every corner of the city presents its visitors with the enduring hallmarks of a different age [2], [3].

Where is it?

Bursa is a city situated in the Southern Marmara section of the Marmara Region [1], [5]. It also serves as the administrative center of the province bearing its name [1], [5]. The city was founded at the northwestern foot of Mount Uludağ [1]. It occupies a sloping position set between the base of the mountain and the southern border of the plain that shares its name [1].

According to geographical sources, a significant portion of the city is positioned across the lower-lying western terrain [1]. The urban fabric climbs toward the mountain slopes where the incline permits [1]. Concurrently, it descends toward the fertile floor of the plain [1].

The city stretches from east to west as a continuous urban corridor of roughly 8 kilometers between the southern margin of the Bursa Plain and the mountain’s skirts [1].

The Bursa Plain sprawling directly before the city is notably vast [5]. This plain spans an area of approximately 400 square kilometers [5]. Over a prolonged agricultural history, it achieved a vital regional importance [5]. In time, it evolved into an exceptionally productive center for fruit and vegetable cultivation [5].

However, Turkey’s first Organized Industrial Zone was established here [5]. This industrial district endowed the city with an entirely new identity [5]. Waves of external migration originating from the Balkans converged on the city [5]. Alongside domestic migration, the population surged rapidly [5]. Consequently, Bursa expanded into a metropolis exceeding one million residents [5].

As a consequence of this rapid urban expansion, the built environment broadened and encroached upon the plain [5]. More than half of this fertile plain was diverted to non-agricultural uses [5]. Industrialization and demographic growth exerted a direct environmental impact [5]. This dynamic generated soil, water, and air pollution, laying the groundwork for substantial ecological alterations across the local environment [5].

History & Origins

The city’s name in Antiquity was Prusa [1]. The contemporary name Bursa derives directly from this etymological root [1]. A widely accepted consensus exists regarding the founder of the settlement [1]. According to this view, the city was established by Prusias, one of the ancient kings of Bithynia [1]. Bithynia was an ancient kingdom situated east of the Sea of Marmara [1].

Other urban centers in the ancient world also bore the name Prusa [1]. To avoid ambiguity, the settlement was designated “Prusa ad Olympum” [1]. Owing to the ancient name of Mount Uludağ, this designation signifies “Prusa by Olympus” [1]. The exact date of the city’s initial foundation has not been definitively illuminated [1].

Certain historical sources record an intriguing detail regarding its foundation [1]. According to this account, the city was established through the initiative of the Carthaginian general Hannibal, who sought asylum with King Prusias in the late second century BCE [1]. Another view points to a considerably older settlement once occupying the site of the present-day citadel [1]. It is noted that the city was refounded upon this preexisting site by the Bithynian monarchs [1].

Following the defeat of Mithridates, King of Pontus, the city passed into Roman control [1]. Initially, it was annexed to the ancient administrative center of Nicomedia, corresponding to the modern vicinity of Kocaeli and İzmit [1]. Subsequently, during the reign of Emperor Trajan, a dedicated governor was appointed to the city [1].

Following the partition of the Roman Empire, the city remained within the domains of Eastern Rome [1]. During this epoch, it occasionally became the target of Muslim Arab armies and Turkish incursions [1]. Suleiman Shah, son of Qutalmish and conqueror of Anatolia, designated Nicaea (İznik) as his capital in 1080 [1]. Shortly thereafter, Suleiman Shah conquered Bursa [1].

Nicaea reverted to Byzantine control in 1097 [1]. Whether Bursa was also lost to the Byzantines during that juncture remains ambiguous in contemporary records [1]. However, Kilij Arslan I died in 1107 [1]. It is presumed that the city slipped from Turkish governance amid the dynastic succession struggles that erupted upon his death [1].

The city was retaken by Turkish forces in 1113 [1]. Shortly thereafter, however, Emperor Alexios Komnenos recaptured it [1]. From that point onward, the city remained under Byzantine imperial administration [1]. This status endured uninterrupted until the Ottoman conquests [1].

The Byzantine historian Pachymeres provides accounts of the situation around the year 1300 [1]. During this era, Turkish forces were expanding swiftly across western Anatolia [1]. Bursa was one of only three major fortress-cities remaining in Byzantine hands [1]. In 1308, the city forged an alliance with neighboring local Byzantine lords (tekfurs) [1]. In doing so, it sought to withstand the tightening Ottoman siege [1].

Growing rapidly during the early Ottoman period, Bursa became the political capital of the principality following its conquest [4], [6]. In the period preceding the conquest of Constantinople, the city established itself at the center of the trade networks linking Anatolia and Rumelia [4].

Simultaneously, it transformed into one of the most vital entrepôts of international commerce connecting the East and the West [4]. That is, it functioned as a major commercial transit hub where international goods were securely warehoused, protected, and distributed customs-free [4]. In that era, it was both a rival and a complement to Constantinople [4]. Indeed, by the middle of the fifteenth century, Bursa’s population approached that of Constantinople and at times surpassed it [4].

The sixteenth-century poet and antiquarian bookseller Mehemmed b. Ahmed (Şevkî Çelebi) served in the city during the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent [6]. Şevkî Çelebi assumed the office of guardian of the imperial tombs (türbedâr) [6]. He was responsible for the mausoleums of the dynasty’s founder, Osman Gazi (1299–1324), and his son Orhan Gazi (1324–1362) [6].

In his biographical work Menâkıb-ı Emîr Sultan, Şevkî Çelebi portrayed Emîr Sultan as the spiritual guardian of all Ottoman cities [6]. In the verses of his literary works, the poet openly expressed his disillusionment with the imperial trajectory of his era [6]. He voiced a profound nostalgia for the former splendor of Bursa as it had existed during the golden age of Sultan Bayezid I and Emîr Sultan [6].

Architectural Form

Bursa’s architectural character encompasses an extraordinarily rich fabric [2], [3]. This fabric ranges from subterranean Hellenistic tombs to early Ottoman monumental complexes (külliyes) [2], [3]. Within the city, structures dating to the Ottoman era have survived to the present day in a remarkably well-preserved state [2]. In contrast, archaeological data concerning the Hellenistic and earliest phases of the city remain quite limited [2].

Hellenistic Chamber Tomb

A rescue excavation was carried out approximately 400 meters east of the Hisariçi quarter, where the ancient city was originally founded [2]. This excavation was conducted in 1969 [2]. As a result of the work, an in situ chamber tomb was unearthed [2]. This structure holds major significance for the Hellenistic funerary architecture of the Bithynian region [2]. It constitutes the most tangible surviving early monument illustrating the burial customs of the city [2].

The Use of Spolia in Architecture

In numerous buildings of the early Ottoman era, architectural fragments salvaged from antiquity were incorporated through reuse [3]. These elements date to the Late Antique and Byzantine periods [3]. In architectural history, this practice is termed “salvaged material” or, by its original designation, “spolia” [3]. This method entails the repurposing in new constructions of prefabricated marble and stone blocks dismantled from ruined older buildings [3]. Masons either bonded these materials directly into the wall fabric with mortar or incorporated them as load-bearing structural members within the new monument [3].

A wide variety of architectural members were repurposed in these edifices [3]. Column capitals, column shafts, and column bases were employed throughout the buildings [3]. Cornice blocks along eaves and rooflines, as well as balustrade slabs, were likewise set into place [3]. Balustrade panels and marble barrier slabs separating the nave from the clergy’s sacred sanctuary in churches—known in architectural terminology as templon components—were also incorporated into these buildings [3]. Furthermore, ancient marble door frames were reused across various Ottoman structures as vertical side jambs flanking doorways and as horizontal lintels spanning the door openings [3].

Architectural and Material Characteristics of Door Frames

Notable monuments preserve these reused spolia door frames [3]. Chief among these is the Hüdavendigâr Mosque (1364/1365–1385), situated in the Çekirge district [3]. The Lala Şahin Pasha Madrasa (first half of the 14th century) within the citadel (Hisar) is another prominent example [3]. The Tomb of Hatice Sultan (first half of the 16th century), located near the Kaplıca Bathhouse, also features these frames [3].

These buildings incorporate vertical jambs flanking the portal openings [3]. Horizontal lintel blocks span the upper voids of the doorways, surmounted by crowning decorative cornices [3]. A total of twelve distinct molding profiles have been identified across these door frames [3]. A molding profile consists of stepped, concave, or convex carved contours incised into the stone surface to impart aesthetic depth and chiaroscuro [3]. These carved profiles are distinguished from one another by refined fillets, steps, and curvatures executed upon the stone by ancient stonecutters [3].

Comparative studies have evaluated these molding profiles and stone carving configurations [3]. Based on these analyses, a portion of these stones has been determined to date to the fifth and sixth centuries [3]. Another portion has been identified as originating from the Middle or Late Byzantine periods [3].

An examination of the stone types reveals a key material distinction [3]. In the vertical jambs and upper lintels of the Lala Şahin Pasha Madrasa, Gebze rudist limestone was utilized [3]. This stone is a regional variety of limestone containing fossilized remains of rudist bivalves that lived during ancient geological eras [3]. All other door frames, by contrast, were carved from the renowned Proconnesian marble quarried on Marmara Island in antiquity [3]. Proconnesos was the ancient name for Marmara Island in the Sea of Marmara [3]. It was a celebrated quarrying center that supplied high-quality, white and grey-veined stone across the entire Mediterranean and Byzantine realms [3].

Harita

Visiting Notes

When exploring the city, several historical zones can serve as primary focal points [2], [3]. The perimeter of the ancient citadel and the Hisariçi district stand as primary starting points [2], [3]. The Çekirge quarter and the environs of the Kaplıca Bathhouse can likewise be incorporated into itineraries for their wealth of historical monuments [3].

For those intending to visit the historic edifices and funerary complexes, verifying current visiting arrangements with official authorities prior to arrival is recommended [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6].

When walking through the city, the local topography should be kept in mind [1]. The terrain between the slopes of Mount Uludağ and the plain possesses a pronounced incline [1]. It is also essential to consider the city’s 8-kilometer linear stretch along its east-west axis [1]. Planning pedestrian routes in accordance with this physical layout and these spatial distances will ensure a well-structured visit [1].

References

[1] BURSA - TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi (https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/bursa)
[2] PRUSA AD OLYMPUM’DAN (BURSA) BİR ODA MEZAR - International Journal of Social Inquiry (https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/ijsi/article/438307)
[3] Bursa’daki Osmanlı Yapılarının Geç Antik ve Bizans Dönemi Kapı Çerçeveleri - Art-Sanat (https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/iuarts/article/1438408)
[4] Bursa; XV. Asır Sanayi ve Ticaret Tarihine Dair Vesikalar - BELLETEN (https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/ttkbelleten/article/1262758)
[5] Ekolojik Yönleriyle; BURSA OVASI’NDA ARAZİ KULLANILIŞI VE ÇEVRESEL ETKİ DEĞERLENDİRMESİ / Ecological Aspects of Environmental Impact Assessment and Land Use of Bursa Plain - Doğu Coğrafya Dergisi (https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/ataunidcd/article/30953)
[6] Türbedar of the Ottoman Sultans: Şevkî Çelebi’s Nostalgia for the Bursa of Bayezid Han and Emîr Sultan — Fatih Bayram (https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004442351_007)

This article is compiled from scholarly monographs and official architectural inventories. Please verify site access conditions, visiting hours, and ongoing conservation status via official heritage authorities prior to visiting.