Research on the Medieval Period in Selçuk

Anonymous Türbe near the Artemision

So-called Tribune in the Artemision

Türbe near the Hospital (Sığla Bey Türbe)

 

According to an agreement between the Turkish General Directorate for Foundations and the OeAI/Ephesos Excavations, excavations and restoration work was carried out on a total of 14 Turkish-Medieval monuments in Selçuk. The main goal of the project is on the one hand the scientific investigation and analysis of the period of the principality of the Aydınoğulları, and on the other hand the preservation of these unique monuments with the aid of modern restoration and conservation methods. In addition, emphasis should be placed on the Selçuk-Ottoman history of the region.

 

The epoch of the princes from Aydın constituted a transitional phase from Selçuk to Ottoman rulership in Anatolia, which was expressed in art and in particular in architecture, and which differed markedly from other regions due to the prevailing traditions in western Anatolia. An individual architectonic style developed, within which Greco-Roman and Byzantine elements fused with Oriental and Turkish ones.

 

 

Anonymous Türbe near the Artemision

In 2009–2011, a Türbe located in the entrance area of the Artemision was investigated archaeologically. Since a building inscription is lacking, neither the donor nor the person in whose honour the building was constructed is known.

 

Above a square ground plan measuring 6.5 × 6.5 m rises an octagonal structure of brick masonry supporting a semi-circular dome with pendentives. In the side pendentives, exactly in the corners of the building, are four small openings. The entrance, framed by profiled marble elements, is found on the north-west side, while window openings are built in to the other three sides.

 

The typical characteristics of architecture from the time of the Aydınoğulları are particularly evident in this building. The walls are constructed of ashlar masonry and bricks; re-used marble architectural elements from antiquity were built in as decorative features. Traces of wooden beam constructions, which served to increase the stability of the walls, are clearly visible. Excavations in the interior of the Türbe revealed a central burial prepared in stone, as well as an additional burial located at the side along the west wall. A bench situated against the east wall served as seating for pilgrims.

 

Around the Türbe a cemetery existed even before it was built, since during the construction of the tomb a number of burials were disturbed. The multitude of juvenile skeletons indicate a high child mortality rate.

 

The results of excavations from the 2011 campaign prove that this area was used as a cemetery long before the Türbe was erected. In addition to an excavated child burial to the south-west of the Türbe, burials of adults, dating to the mid- and late-Byzantine period, could also be documented.

 

The excavated finds from the area to the south of the building are of particular interest; here, a differentiated sequence of phases could be documented. The oldest find to date is a kiln which was destroyed by the construction of the Türbe. A building which is only preserved in its foundations, on the other hand, is later than the Türbe; it was set up directly in front of the southern window. After this structure was abandoned and completely destroyed, the area was once again used as a cemetery, this time probably without interruption until the 19th century.

 

The medieval settlement chronology of the region goes back to the 10th century A.D., that is, to the mid-Byzantine period. Since this epoch is hardly documented at all in Ephesos, the location is of particular importance for the settlement history of Ephesos/Ayasoluk. The bulk of the ceramics found here, however, dates to the 14th and 15th centuries A.D., and material excavated from the foundations indicate that the building itself should date to the late 14th century.

 

The Türbe should be restored in the future, and presented to visitors within the framework of a concept for tourism at the Artemision.

 

Contact

Gottfried Parrer

 

 

So-called Tribune in the Artemision

During excavations in the so-called Tribune in the Artemision, it was possible to confirm a period of later usage for the building which, according to the evidence of the finds, should date to the 14th/15th century A.D. At this time, the Roman building was converted and the former chambers were adapted for residential purposes. For this reason, the window openings were increased in size and entrances to a higher ground level were created. The walls which were erected in front of the structure at the west could perhaps be interpreted as vestibules.

 

The inventory of pottery table wares found here is of good quality and excellent state of preservation; found amongst these are glazed wares as well as some which were produced from a model and decorated with a golden, shining finishing coat. Even when the majority of the ceramics originate from the local region itself, there is nevertheless evidence of a far-reaching trade network which extended on the one hand to Spain and on the other hand to Persia. Pitchers with thread-form coating, as well as red-coloured, small, extremely thin-walled little pots, are evidence of the highly developed glass manufacture known in the Islamic period. On the other hand, spear-heads and lance-heads as well as ammunition point to a military character. Even though the function of this medieval establishment cannot yet be completely clarified, the extremely high-quality of the found objects as well as the militaria make it likely that it represents a manor belonging to the municipality of the medieval town of Ayasoluk.

 

Contact

Archaeology: Lilli Zabrana

Ceramic: Joanita Vroom, Ebru Fındık

 

 

Türbe near the Hospital (Sığla Bey Türbe)

In 2010 scientific research on an anonymous tomb (Türbe), located in the centre of the modern town of Selçuk in front of the State Hospital, was initiated. The structural shell of the 10 × 8.5 m large and ca. 7 m tall monument consists of a mixture of ashlar masonry and bricks, with the bricks having been laid in intentionally creative fashion. Thus, by means of alternating horizontally and vertically laid bricks, a decorative grid-form pattern was created. In addition, reused ancient elements in marble were visibly built in. Above a square ground plan, a semi-circular dome rises up, with Turkish triangles in all corners creating the transition between the walls and the dome. The south-east façade is extended to the exterior by means of a vestibule (Iwan), by means of which the entrance was particularly featured and emphasised.

 

Within the framework of the restoration archaeological excavations in and around the Türbe near the State Hospital in Selçuk were necessary; these were carried out in autumn, 2010. In the course of this work, a number of burials as well as tombstones and covering plaques were found inside the building; these provided important information regarding the construction period as well as those who were buried. Graves were also placed to the north, east and south of the funerary monument, whereas the western area remained free from burials.

 

Of particular importance is a tombstone which names Ahmet Pasha, who died in 1346 and who found his final resting place in the Türbe. Ahmet Pasha was a nobleman of the Aydınoğulları dynasty and one of the founding fathers of Ayasoluk/Selçuk. It can therefore be concluded with certainty that the tomb building was already erected in the first half of the 14th century, thus constituting one of the oldest monuments in Ayasoluk.

 

Contact

Architecture: Soner Bellibaş 

Islamic Art History: Mükkerem Kürüm

 

 

Bibliography

  • F. Krinzinger (Hrsg.), Spätantike und mittelalterliche Keramik aus Ephesos, AForsch 13 = DenkschrWien 332 (Vienna 2005).
  • A. Külzer, Ephesos in byzantinischer Zeit: ein historischer Überblick, in: F. Daim – J. Drauschke (Hrsg.), Byzanz – das Römerreich im Mittelalter: Pracht und Alltag eines Weltreiches, Monographien des RGZM 84, 2, 2 (Mainz 2010) 520–539.
  • S. Ladstätter, Ephesos in byzantinischer Zeit. Das letzte Kapitel einer antiken Großstadt, in: F. Daim – J. Drauschke (Hg.), Byzanz – das Römerreich im Mittelalter: Pracht und Alltag eines Weltreiches, Monographien des RGZM 84, 2, 2 (Mainz 2010) 493–519.
  • S. Pfeiffer-Taş, Funde und Befunde aus dem Schachtbrunnen im Hamam III in Ayasuluk/Ephesos, AForsch 16 = DenkschrWien 389 (Vienna 2010).
  • C. Telci, Ayasuluğ (Selçuk 2010).

 

 

Contact

Sabine Ladstätter

Top