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The Impressive Sultanhani Caravansarai-Aksaray (Legacy of the Ancient Silk Road)
The masjid of the caravanserai is at the centre of the courtyard. It leans on four big arches and contains a mihrab on the inside. It is because a caravanserai is a profane and a very functional building; so-called kiosk-masjid is heightened from the ground to create a space devoted to the house of God. Stables and rooms, which were covering daily services like medication, game, nourishment and assembly, are placed around the courtyard. Barrel vaults cover all these rectangular units. The portal of the enclosed section fronts the masjid in the courtyard. Behind it, is the huge hall of the sleeping and living grounds. The interior is divided into 9 aisles through arcades running east to west and covered with barrel vaults. There are two rows of confronting arches that flank the central aisle perpendicular to the portal. This central aisle which is wider than the others, has the character of a nave. The central one of the east-west aisles intersects it creating a cross at the centre for orientation. A dome with a conical cap on the outside covers the square unit at the centre of the cross.
Prof. Dr. Ali Uzay Peker-METU
TransAnatolie Tour
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