Alcazar (Hamza Bey)

The Hamza Bey Mosque stands at the intersection of Egnatia and Venizelou streets, recognizable by the heavy stone arcade that wraps around its exterior. Built in fourteen sixty-eight, it served the Ottoman governor of the city. In the early twentieth century, the prayer hall became the Alcazar cinema. Patrons sat on the site of the original mihrab to watch films, while the courtyard hosted a café. Its marble columns now hold up the fading ghosts of both a sanctuary and a theater.