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This is the oldest and largest mosque in Sofia, which today houses the National Archaeological Museum. Its construction lasted 40 years and ended in 1494 - almost a century after the conquest of the Balkans by the Ottoman Turks. This bright mosque is completely covered with lead. Around it there was a whole complex of buildings - a madrasah, an inn, a reservoir and a fountain. Until the 19th century, no changes were noted in the building of the mosque and it occupied a central place in the public life of the city of that time. During the two subsequent strong earthquakes, one of the minarets was destroyed and it was gradually neglected and finally abandoned. It was officially declared an Archaeological Museum in 1905. The exposition, which is kept in the Buyuk Mosque, is considered one of the richest on the Balkan Peninsula. The building has been expanded several times to accommodate all the finds and cultural monuments. The museum was severely damaged during the bombing of Sofia in 1944, but was later restored.
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