Ahlat Seljuk Cemetery
Take a trip to the world's largest Turkish-Islamic cemetery from the Middle Ages, located in the Ahlat district of Bitlis
Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
The history of Ahlat can be traced back to the Bronze Age. Due to its strategic location, fertile lands and rich natural resources, Ahlat was ruled by more than 10 different states throughout its history until it was finally conquered by the Ottomans.
This has resulted in intense settlement activities in and around the city. Historical sites like the Madavans Valley Cave Settlements and Rock Church, Harabe Şehir Cave Houses, Old Ahlat Castle, Ottoman Coastal Castle, Çifte Hamam, Küçük Hamam, Zaviye,
Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
Ceramic Kilns, Grand Mosque, Bezirhane, Tombs, Vaults, burial chambers and historical cemeteries are an indication that the city, despite frequent wars and great earthquakes, has a magnificent history.
Ahlat has an important place in the history of Türkiye and the world because it was where the Battle of Manzikert was planned. The Battle of Manzikert allowed for the gradual Turkification of Anatolia.
The armies of Alparslan, the ruler of the Great Seljuk Empire, opened the gates of Anatolia to the Turks by defeating the armies of the Eastern Roman Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes in 1071.
Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
Ahlat is famous for its Turkish cemetery built on an area of 210 thousand square meters. In this cemetery, Medieval tomb typologies from the 12th century to the 16th century can be examined collectively.
The area is known as the Seljuk Square Cemetery and there are more than 9,000 gravestones (some of which are 4 meters in length) and 178 underground burial chambers which the locals call “akıt”.
The tombstones in the Seljuk Square Cemetery are important because they are a synthesis of Central Asian monumental tomb tradition and the Islamic tradition.
An ornament from Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
The monumental tombs built in Ahlat reflect a mixture of Central Asian traditions with the Anatolian cultural heritage and Islamic art. We can call them the Orkhon inscriptions of Anatolia.
Orkhon inscriptions are memorial installations erected by Göktürks in honor of two Turkic princes in the 8th century, in the Orkhon Valley (modern day Mongolia).
Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
Ahlat's prime time was during the Principality of Shah-Armens in the 12th century. It became one of the most popular science, culture and trade centers of its era. It became the third Islamic city named “Kubbetül-İslam” after Balkh and Bukhara.
Seljuk Square Cemetery has gravestones of people who migrated from Balkh, Bukhara, Tabriz, Khorasan, Tbilisi, Samarkand, Tus, Erzurum, Kars, Van, Muş, Gevaş, Erciş, and Bitlis.
This information has been obtained from the buried parts of the inscriptions and it shows that Ahlat was one of the most important cities of the Middle Ages.
Many occupations are listed in these inscriptions, like Kadı, Baş Kadı, Emir, Melik, Hafiz, Müfti, Sheikh, Wrestler, Minter, Locksmith, Broker, Physician, and Accountant. This shows that the tradesmen of the city were very well organized.
Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
The names of 33 gravestone craftsmen have been identified in the inscriptions. We can see in these artist inscriptions that the craftsmen were trained according to the rules of a master-apprentice tradition. Some of these craftsmen also built architectural structures.
Emir Bayındır Kümbeti, Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
Tombstones of Ahlat are made of a red or dark brown volcanic tuff stone (Ahlat stone) which is abundant in the region. The majority of the tombstones in the Seljuk Square Cemetery are made of this stone.
Ahlat stone has a relatively softer texture when it has just been extracted but it hardens when it comes into contact with oxygen. Craftsmen of Ahlat used scraping and embossing techniques in their inscriptions and decorations.
Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
When we look at the inscriptions like information about the person buried in the grave, we can see that there was no consensus on what the content and position of the inscription should be until the end of the 13th century.
Towards the end of the 13th century, and especially beginning with the 14th century, craftsmen started to inscribe on sarcophagi and gravestones following a specific pattern.
The calligraphy of these inscriptions uses Thuluth and Celî scripts. Verses and hadiths were written in Arabic. Poetry and wise words were written in Persian. Ahlat remained a contested territory, especially in the Middle Ages.
Ahlat Seljuk CemeteryThe Directorate General of Cultural Assets and Museums of Türkiye
And it was ruled by the Eastern Roman Empire, the Marwanis, the Seljuks, the Principality of Shah-Armens, the Ayyubid Empire, the Khwarezmian Empire, the Ilkhanids, the Jalayirid Sultanate, the Qara Qoyunlu, the Aq Qoyunlu, the Safavid Empire and the Ottomans.
Click here to read and discover more on the Seljukian legacy.
Ahlat Selçuklu Meydan Mezarlığı ve Eski Ahlat Kazısı Başkanlığı
