The Öküz Mehmed Pasha Caravanserai (;

ALA-LC ALA-LC (American Library AssociationLibrary of Congress) is a set of standards for romanization, the representation of text in other writing systems using the Latin script. Applications The system is used to represent bibliographic information by ...

: ) is a

caravanserai A caravanserai (or caravansary; ) was an inn that provided lodging for travelers, merchants, and Caravan (travellers), caravans. They were present throughout much of the Islamic world. Depending on the region and period, they were called by a ...

located in

Kuşadası Kuşadası () is a municipality and district of Aydın Province, Turkey. Its area is 265 km2, and its population is 130,835 (2022). It is a large resort town on the Aegean coast. Kuşadası is south of İzmir, and about west of Aydın. T ...

Aydın Province Aydın Province () is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality of southwestern Turkey, located in the Aegean Region. Its area is 8,116 km2, and its population is 1,148,241 (2022). T ...

, western Turkey, built by Ottoman statesman and military commander "Öküz" Mehmed Pasha (died 1619). After its renovation, the building is used as a hotel today.

History

The caravanserai was commissioned by Öküz Mehmed Pasha, who served as Governor of Ottoman Egypt and

Grand Vizier Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...

. It was constructed between 1615 and 1618. Constructed in the form of a fortress to meet the needs of the time, the caravanserai was used as customshouse. The Directorate of Foundations started the renovation of the almost-ruined caravanserai in 1954 that continued until 1966. The cost of renovation totaled to 2.1 million (approx. US$0.21 million), not including the cost for nationalization of shanties on three sides of the ruined structure.

Architecture

The caravanserai is a two-story building with thick walls around a rectangular courtyard of . The building's outside dimensions are . It is built in

rubble masonry Rubble masonry or rubble stone is rough, uneven building stone not laid in regular courses. It may fill the core of a wall which is faced with unit masonry such as brick or ashlar. Some medieval cathedral walls have outer shells of ashlar wi ...

and with gathered stones. It is known that the rooms were originally built with bricks of size . Having the form of a small

citadel A citadel is the most fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of ''city'', meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. ...

, its exterior walls end up in

battlement A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals ...

with

merlon A merlon is the solid, upright section of a battlement (a crenellated parapet) in medieval architecture or fortifications. Merlons are sometimes pierced by narrow, vertical embrasures, or tooth-like slits designed for observation and fire. The sp ...

s. The marble-covered arched main entrance is situated in the north facing the sea. Two niches on two sides inside the entrance help enlarge it. The other entrance, also covered by marble and styled as the main entrance in almost the same size, opens to the east directly into the town's marketplace. The large courtyard is surrounded by rooms behind arched

stoa A stoa (; plural, stoas,"stoa", ''Oxford English Dictionary'', 2nd Ed., 1989 stoai, or stoae ), in ancient Greek architecture, is a covered walkway or portico, commonly for public use. Early stoas were open at the entrance with columns, usually ...

. The corner rooms are reached by a diagonal passage. There are 28 rooms on ground floor, which have a window next to their door under the stoa facing the courtyard. Entrance to the room is over a step. The fireplace in the room, situated in the wall separating the rooms, is flanked by two small closets. There are two stairways in the northwestern and southeastern corners leading from the courtyard to the first floor, constructed one over a half and the other over a full arch. The stairway right of the main entrance has 19 steps while the stairway left of the marketplace entrance has 21 steps. The rooms on the first floor are reached over the balcony with one step at the door. The rooms have each one window looking outside the caravanserai.

Planks A plank is timber that is flat, elongated, and rectangular with parallel faces that are higher and longer than wide. Used primarily in carpentry, planks are critical in the construction of ships, houses, bridges, and many other structures. Plank ...

run the entire building to serve as

lintel A lintel or lintol is a type of beam (a horizontal structural element) that spans openings such as portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented/structural item. In the case ...

for the doors and windows. The fireplace is situated in the wall facing the courtyard because the room-separating walls at this level incorporate the chimneys of the fireplace of the rooms at the ground floor. On the left side of the fireplace, a closet is present. The room over the main entrance with niches is larger than the others, and it has also a bigger window than the others. A narrow stairway hidden in the wall inside the right side niche goes up to the terrace. According to historical records, this room was reserved for the commissioner of customs. On the roof, there is a wide aisle behind the battlement. The merlons were designed suitable for pouring hot oil onto the enemy. To the northwest and northeast corners of the caravanserai, great importance is attached in regard of an attack coming from the sea. The merlons on the northeast corner are higher giving it an impression of a watchtower. The

entablature An entablature (; nativization of Italian , from "in" and "table") is the superstructure of moldings and bands which lies horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and ...

is high at the inside of the structure while the building's height on the outside is . The caravanserai was restored several times in the history, the latest being in 1996. Today, it is in a good condition.

Hotel

In 1968, the renovated caravanserai opened as a hotel of the French

Club Med Club Med SAS, commonly known as Club Med and previously known as Club Méditerranée SA, is a French travel and tourism operator headquartered in Paris, specializing in all-inclusive holidays. Founded in 1950, the company has been primarily ow ...

. Since 1978, the Öküz Mehmed Pasha Caravaserai is run by Club Caravanserail. The hotel features 55 beds in 25 rooms and a suit room. The open-air restaurant is capable of 350 guests. US President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

was among the notable guests, who resided in the hotel during their visits to the nearby historic site

Ephesus Ephesus (; ; ; may ultimately derive from ) was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia, in present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of Apasa, the former Arzawan capital ...

. The site is remembered also as the place, where the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

Minister of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...

George Papandreou George Andreas Papandreou (, , shortened to ''Giorgos'' () to distinguish him from his grandfather; born 16 June 1952) is an American-born Greek politician who served as Prime Minister of Greece from 2009 to 2011. He is currently serving as a ...

and his Turkish counterpart

Ismail Cem In the biblical Book of Genesis, Ishmael (; ; ; ) is the first son of Abraham. His mother was Hagar, the handmaiden of Abraham's wife Sarah. He died at the age of 137. Traditionally, he is seen as the ancestor of the Arabs. Within Islam, Ishm ...

met to improve bilateral relations between the two countries.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Okuz Mehmed Pasha Caravanserai Buildings and structures completed in 1618 Commercial buildings completed in the 17th century Buildings and structures in Aydın Province Buildings and structures of the Ottoman Empire Caravanserais in Turkey History of Aydın Province Kuşadası Redevelopment projects in Turkey Ottoman caravanserais 1618 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Hotels in Turkey