Eskişehir: Seyit Battal Gazi Külliyesi

Saturday, 13 October (Part II)

A stroll in Kent Park, followed by lunch, got our first day in Eskişehir off to a good start (post here).  Mui’s plans for the afternoon, included a drive out of town.  Leaving his family to plans of their own, we borrowed Kerim’s car, and together with mom and Hakan, headed off to Seyitgazi to do some sightseeing.

Seyİtgazİ (red marker) is 27 miles (43 km) south of Eskİṣehİr (the city; yellow marker).
(Green house = İzmİr / blue marker = KÜtahya.)

The town is named for Seyit Battal Gazi, a hero who was martyred in a battle that was fought nearby in 740.  Some historians believe that he was a mythical figure based on the life of an 8th century military leader.  Regardless, he’s an important figure in Turkish folk literature.  We weren’t in Seyitgazi for a pilgrimage, or for any religious reasons, but rather because none of us had ever visited a külliye before.

Glimpse of the Seyİt Battal Gazİ Küllİyesİ on the slopes of üÇler Hill.

What is a külliye you might ask?  Simply put, it is a group of buildings from the Ottoman era or before — a complex, if you will.  Wikipedia describes it as:

… a term which designates a complex of buildings, centered around a mosque and managed within a single institution, often based on a vakıf (foundation), and composed of a medrese [theological school], a darüşşifa [clinic], kitchens, bakery, hammam [bathhouse], other buildings for various benevolent services for the community and further annexed constructions. The tradition of külliye is particularly marked in Turkish architecture within Seljuk, particularly Ottoman Empire and also Timurid architectural legacies.  (More at this Wikipedia link.)

Glimpse of the central courtyard and the domed halls that house a variety of
facilities, such as the bakery, soup kitchen, ceremonial rooms, and headmaster's room.

The Seyit Battal Gazi Külliyesi was built in 1207 on the orders of Ümmühan Sultan, mother of Alaaddin Keykubat I, a sultan of the Seljuk dynasty.  A dervish monastery was added later, and the compex was renovated in 1512 by Bayezid II, an Ottoman sultan.

A meandering walk behind the complex led me to the tomb of Ümmühan Sultan.
a well-educated woman, and a philanthropist, she was instrumental in unearthing
the grave of Seyİt Battal Gazİ, and having a mosque and shrine built in his honor.

Upon arrival at the complex, we paid the suggested donation of 5TL ($2.75).  Then, making our way from the entrance to the courtyard, we peeked into shrines and dervish cells, stopped to visit the shrine of the martyr for whom the külliye is named, and finally ended up at the mosque.

on The grounds of the Küllİye are several shrines.
The sarcophogus in each one is covered with a green cloth with gold designs in Arabic lettering.
(In Islam, green is considered to be a holy color; similar to purple in Christianity.)

Top right is the tomb of Çoban Baba (Shepherd Father), who is said to have
found the grave of SeYİt Battal gazİ.

The tombs of Battal Gazİ (left) and his wife — some say, concubine — Elenora.
legend would have us believe that Battal Gazİ was 18 feet (5.5 m) tall —
likely an indication of his legendary reputation, rather than his physical height.

An inscription above the door dates the mosque to 1207-1208.

Eventually finding ourselves in the central courtyard, we explored the rest of the buildings that make up the complex.

A hayrat (public water fountain built for charity) stands in the center of the courtyard.
The way the bench is situated in front of the fountain leads me to think that
believers use it for ablutions before they go to pray in the mosque.

The Aşevİ (soup kitchen) fed not only those living in the complex,
but also the poor people who lived in the area.

View of Seyİtgazİ from the Headmaster’s Room.

While the others took a break from exploring the grounds, I wandered off to see what was behind the buildings.  That’s how I found the entrance to what used to be the medrese (madrasa, or school of theology).  The interior was a shambles, with picnic tables and broken struts and whatnot piled inside for storage; and it stunk to high heaven with bird droppings — and something else that I’d rather not think of.  Glimpsing a shrine in a room at the back, I gingerly stepped in that direction — thus stumbling upon the tomb of Ümmühan Sultan, who was responsible for the construction of the külliye.  (Photo earlier in the post.)

Left: The mosque as seen from behind the complex.
Right: glimpse of the square towers; some of them are chimneys.

We needed to get back to Eskişehir by 5:00p to ensure that Hakan didn’t miss his train back to Ankara, so we skipped exploring the town of Seyitgazi this time.  As it is, it was a close call.  The stop we made at the guest lodge to pick up some stuff for Hakan, combined with the circuitous route to the train station, delayed us just long enough that it was touch and go for a few heart-stopping moments.

For dinner, we were guests at Mui’s sister’s house.  We enjoyed the feast she prepared in the company of Mui’s niece and nephew, and their families, as well as Mui’s mom.  For whatever reason, I neglected to take pictures.  Suffice to say that we were all pleasantly stuffed as a result of Işıl’s culinary efforts ;-) … and a nice time was had by all.

We leave for İzmir tomorrow night — but not before we do some more sightseeing in downtown Eskişehir.  I’ve been told to expect a full day!