The Behram Paşa Camii is named after the 16th century Ottoman governor, is the largest in the city and has a splendid interior and fine windows.

Behram Paşa was the 13th Ottoman governor of Diyarbakır since the town became Ottoman. He was a son of Kara Şahin Mustafa Paşa (of the prominent Sokollu family). He had this mosque built from 1564 to 1572, and got the best architect in Ottoman history to do the work: Mimar Sinan.
The mosque is built in the classical Ottoman style with one large dome and a number of smaller ones mounted on high arches. As with many other historical buildings of the city, it is made of the locally found black basalt with alternating bands of white limestone. This decorative building technique can be observed in some parts of southeastern Anatolia and in Syria.

Correspondent: J.M.Criel, Antwerpen.
Sources: ‘Türkiye Tarihi Yerler Kılavuzu’ – M.Orhan Bayrak, Inkılâp Kitabevi, Istanbul, 1994.
& Websites of ‘diyarbakirmuftulugu.gov.tr’ and ‘beautifulmosque.com’ .