Zazadin Hanı

Zazadin Han is an Anatolian Seljuk caravanserai standing near Tömek, about 22 kilometres northeast of Konya and some 5 kilometres off the Konya to Aksaray road. It is presented as the largest caravanserai the Seljuks built around Konya. Its cut stone walls, rising suddenly in the middle of the steppe, show at a glance how important the caravan roads across this plain once were. Who built the han and when is known from the two inscriptions over its gates. According to the Governorship of Konya, the inscription on the gate of the covered section says this part was finished in 1235 to 1236 under Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad I. The inscription on the courtyard gate records that the courtyard was completed in 1236 to 1237 under Gıyaseddin Keyhüsrev II. Both inscriptions name the Seljuk emir Sadeddin Köpek as the founder. Since Köpek is known to have been a decorative painter and an architect as well, he is likely to have designed the han himself. The building was first called Sadeddin Han, and over time local speech turned the name into Zazadin Han. The han was built on a rectangular plot running east to west, in two masses, a summer section with a courtyard and a closed winter section. The outer walls are supported by polygonal, square and cylindrical buttresses and corner towers that rise to the full height of the facade, giving the building the look of a fortress. Many reused stones were built into the walls, and these pieces from Roman and Byzantine buildings can still be picked out among the blocks today. The dense masons' marks in the masonry also catch an attentive eye. The main portal is on the south facade and was designed as a rectangular block rising above the line of the facade. Alternating courses of stones in two colours give the portal the most elegant look of the whole han. Small colonnettes with carved rope-twist shafts stand on both sides of the pointed arched niche. After the gate, a barrel vaulted iwan leads into the courtyard. The south, east and north sides of the courtyard are lined with arcades and vaulted rooms. Above the entrance iwan is a small prayer room covered with a star vault, reached by a single flight of stone stairs in a corner of the courtyard. Another stone stair on the north side connects the courtyard to the roof of the han. According to the sources, the courtyard is surrounded by 24 rooms of various sizes along with a bath, a granary, storerooms and stables. The winter section is the most impressive interior of the han. Its central nave, kept wider and higher, joins side aisles covered with pointed barrel vaults. The dome at the centre of the nave was covered from outside with a transparent cap during the repairs, and light filters in through this opening. Excavations in 1996, in which Selçuk University also took part, uncovered hexagonal floor bricks in this section. Whether the tile fragments found in the same excavation belonged to the building is still debated. After standing in ruins for many years, the han underwent a thorough restoration in 2017. Following the restoration it was leased out through a tender of the Regional Directorate of Foundations, and its rooms were furnished with objects reflecting the period before it opened to visitors. For this reason visiting conditions and entry arrangements are set by the operator; check before you go whether the han is open and what the current conditions are. The building is also used from time to time for film shoots and cultural events. The han is reached by private car on the road from Konya towards Aksaray, turning off at the Tömek junction. There is almost no shade on the steppe, so in summer it is more comfortable to come in the morning or late afternoon. The setting sun paints the light brown and white cut stones in a warm tone, and the row of towers on the outer walls photographs best at that hour. Walking once around the outside of the han is a good start for seeing how the buttresses and reused stones are arranged. Kızören Sinkhole and the Obruk Han lie further east on the same road, so the two stops fit easily into one day.