Beçin (also known as Berçin or Peçin) was a historical fort in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

Geography

Beçin is situated on a low hill just south west of a modern village bearing the same name, in Milas ilçe (district center) of

Muğla Province Muğla Province ( tr, , ) is a province of Turkey, at the country's south-western corner, on the Aegean Sea. Its seat is Muğla, about inland, while some of Turkey's largest holiday resorts, such as Bodrum, Ölüdeniz, Marmaris and Fethiye, ...

at . Its distance to Milas is and to

Muğla Muğla () is a city in southwestern Turkey. The city is the center of the District of Menteşe and Muğla Province, which stretches along Turkey's Aegean coast. Muğla's center is situated inland at an altitude of 660 m and lies at a dista ...

is .

History

The site has remains from the Hellenistic period, including a 4th-century temple. A

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

church indicates the settlement continued to exist into the medieval period - though its minor importance is suggested by the small dimensions of the church. According to a contemporary Italian source its name was ''Pezona''.Unesco page
/ref> Towards the end of the 13th century it was captured by the Menteşe Beylik, a principality founded by a Turkmen tribe. Beçin became the capital of the beylik and it expanded rapidly in size. In 1333

Ibn Battuta Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Battutah (, ; 24 February 13041368/1369),; fully: ; Arabic: commonly known as Ibn Battuta, was a Berber Maghrebi scholar and explorer who travelled extensively in the lands of Afro-Eurasia, largely in the Muslim ...

visited Beçin, described it as a newly founded city, and mentioned its houses and mosques. The majority of the surviving monuments originate from the 14th century. In the 15th century the beylik of Menteşe was annexed by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

. An indication of the town's subsequent decay is revealed in

Evliya Çelebi Derviş Mehmed Zillî (25 March 1611 – 1682), known as Evliya Çelebi ( ota, اوليا چلبى), was an Ottoman explorer who travelled through the territory of the Ottoman Empire and neighboring lands over a period of forty years, recording ...

's account of his visit there in the middle of the 17th century: he wrote that the town did not have a

hammam A hammam ( ar, حمّام, translit=ḥammām, tr, hamam) or Turkish bath is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world. It is a prominent feature in the Islamic culture, culture of the Muslim world and ...

, yet excavations have revealed the remains of five hammams. A settlement continued to exist inside the site until the 1980s.

Monuments

The Ahmet Gazi Madrasa, named after the Bey who commissioned it, dates from 1375 according to the Arabic inscription above its entrance. The entrance portal, while retaining the components of a traditional Seljuk-era portal, has details that resemble European Gothic architecture, possibly indicating an influence deriving from the Menteşe Beylik's commercial activities with the Aegean islands, Italy and southern France (the Bey is described as "Sultan of the Coasts" in the inscription). Modern reconstruction work has rebuilt large sections of the entrance façade on each side of its portal. The madrasa has eight chambers and two

iwan An iwan ( fa, ایوان , ar, إيوان , also spelled ivan) is a rectangular hall or space, usually vaulted, walled on three sides, with one end entirely open. The formal gateway to the iwan is called , a Persian term for a portal projectin ...

s, opening directly onto a rectangular central courtyard (the usual portico is not present here). The grave of Ahmet Gazi is located in the main iwan, an adjoining grave may be that of another Menteşe ruler - Shujaeddin Bey.
Kizil Han or Kızılhan ("Red

Khan Khan may refer to: *Khan (inn), from Persian, a caravanserai or resting-place for a travelling caravan *Khan (surname), including a list of people with the name *Khan (title), a royal title for a ruler in Mongol and Turkic languages and used by ...

"), a caravanserai, is a two-story structure and one of two hans surviving in Beçin. It is plain and unimposing, and is partially ruined with its upper floor collapsed.
Buyuk Hammam, (the "large bathhouse"), is one of five hammams that once existed in the town. All are now in ruins. The Buyuk Hammam must have once been one of the town's most imposing structures - though now most of its roof has collapsed. Excavations have revealed its internal rooms and exposed its original floor level, which is paved with marble blocks.

Gallery

File:Becin 5237.jpg, Beçin from below File:Becin 5238.jpg, Beçin from below File:Becin 5264.jpg, Beçin Kızıl Han File:Becin 5321.jpg, Beçin Ahmed Gazi medrese File:Becin 5263.jpg, Beçin Ahmed Gazi medrese File:Becin 5280.jpg, Beçin Ahmed Gazi Medrese entrance File:Becin 5281.jpg, Beçin Ahmed Gazi Medrese Eyvan File:Becin 5291.jpg, Beçin Ahmed Gazi Medrese banner File:Becin 5290.jpg, Beçin Orhan Bey mosque File:Becin 5303.jpg, Beçin Orhan Bey Mosque detail File:Becin 5322.jpg, Beçin Castle from distance File:Becin 5246.jpg, Beçin Castle File:Becin 5339.jpg, Beçin Big Bath File:Becin 5335.jpg, Beçin Big bath

World Heritage Site status

The medieval city (both the fort and the village) was added to the tentative list in the cultural category of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

on April 13, 2012. Buildings such as ''Kızıl Han, Kara Paşa Han'' and ''Emir Courtyard'', the ''Orman Lodge'', the ''New Church'' and the ''Byzantine Chapel'' are among the archaeological remains. According to the Ministry of Culture, Beçin reflects the architecture of the beylik (mainly 14th century) era and the characteristics of the early Turkish settlements.Ministry of Culture page
/ref>

External links

References

{{Tentative list of World Heritage Sites in Turkey Milas World Heritage Tentative List for Turkey Menteshe Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey