The Outer Crown gate (Taç Kapı) of the Seljuk caravanserai of Sarı Han (Türkiye). A new proposal for restoration
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17561/aytm.v32.9289Keywords:
Crown gate, architectonic restoration, Seljuks, Islamic architectureAbstract
You can download a full-quality PDF version from the following link:
AyTM-v32-13-9289.pdf
In this article, we present a new proposal for the restoration of the outer Crown gate of the Sarı Han caravanserai, in which we question the one carried out more than three decades ago, and which has established the image of this monument, in our opinion, erroneous. To support our proposal, we have placed the façade in question in the context of other contemporary and similar productions, delving into their commonalities and reflecting on the characteristics of the common archetype. We have also addressed the still unresolved issue of chronology, offering a reasoned suggestion. Finally, we have provided our own interpretation of the epigraphy on the supposed foundation stone. All the graphic material is new and has been taken care of in detail, paying special attention to its descriptive and didactic value, and maintaining a high level of rigour.
Downloads
References
ACIÉN ALMANSA, Manuel (1987): “Madīnat al-Zahrā’ en el urbanismo musulmán”, Cuadernos de Madīnat al-Zahrā’, 1, pp. 11-26.
ACIÉN ALMANSA, Manuel; VALLEJO TRIANO, Antonio (1998): “Urbanismo y Estado islámico: de Corduba a Qurṭuba-Madīnat al-Zahrā’”, en P. Cressier y M. García-Arenal (eds.), Genèse de la ville islamique en al-Andalus et au Maghreb occidental. Madrid, pp. 107-136.
ASLANAPA, Oktay (1989): Türk Sanatı. Estambul: Remzi Kitabevi.
BAKIRER, Ömür (1971): “Ürgüp’ün Damsa Köyü’ndeki Taşkın Paşa Camii’nin Ahşap Mihrabı”, Belleten, 35, pp. 367-378.
BERCHEM, Max van (1917): Matériaux pour un Corpus Inscriptionum Arabicarum. 3ª partie. Asie Mineure. Vol. 1. Siwas, Diwrigi. El Cairo : L’Institut français d’archéologie orientale.
BLESSING, Patricia (2014): Rebuilding Anatolia after the Mongol Conquest. Islamic Architecture in the Lands of Rūm, 1240-1330. Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate.
BONNER, Jay (2017): Islamic Geometric Patterns. Their Historical Development and Traditional Methods of Construction. Nueva York: Springer Nature.
BOZER, Rüstem (2007): “Eğirdir Han”, en Hakkı Acun (ed.), Anadolu Selçuklu Dönemi Kervansarayları. Ankara, pp. 237-253.
BOZER, Rüstem (2009): “Eğirdir Hanı Kazı Çalışmalarının Ortaçağ Türk Sanatına Katkıları”, Ortaçağ-Türk Dönemi Kazı Sonuçları ve Sanat tarihi Araştirmaları Sempozyumu (17-19 Ekim 2007, Izmir) Bildiriler. Esmirna, pp. 65-75.
BRANNING, Katherine: turkishhan.org
BULUT, Mustafa (2019): “Anadolu Selçuklu kapılarında kavsara kemerleri”. Türk Islâm Medeniyeti Akademik Araştırmalar Dergisi, 14(28), pp. 429-440.
CALVO CAPILLA, Susana (2011): “El arte de los reinos taifas: tradición y ruptura”, Anales de Historia del Arte, Volumen Extraordinario 2, pp. 69-92. https://dx.doi.org/10.5209/rev_ANHA.2011.37482
CARRILLO CALDERERO, Alicia (2009): Compendio de los Muqarnas: Génesis y Evolución (siglos XI-XV). Córdoba: Universidad de Córdoba.
CRANE, Howard (1993): “Notes on Saldjūq Architectural Patronage in Thirteenth Century Anatolia”, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 36(1), pp. 1-57.
DENKTAŞ, Mustafa (2007): “Karatay Hanı”, en Hakkı Acun (ed.), Anadolu Selçuklu Dönemi Kervansarayları. Ankara, pp. 359-379.
DURAN, Remzi (2001): Selçuklu devri Konya yapı kitâbeleri (Inşa ve Ta’mir). Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu.
DUYMAZ, A. Şevki (2007): “Susuz Han”, en Hakkı Acun (ed.), Anadolu Selçuklu Dönemi Kervansarayları. Ankara, pp. 273-285.
ERDMANN, Kurt (1961): Das Anatolische Karavansaray des 13. Jahrjunderts, I Text, II Abbildungen. Berlín: Verlag Gebr. Mann.
GARCÍA GRANADOS, Juan Antonio (2014): “Zócalos andalusíes. La decoración geométrica”. Conferencia en el Museo de Almería, 26 de noviembre de 2014. https://www.academia.edu/11008789/Zócalos_andalusíes_La_decoración_geométrica
HUART, Clément (1895): Épigraphie arabe d’Asie Mineure. París: Paul Lemaire.
IŞIK, Mustafa (2018): “Camilerin imarı bağlamında Bünyan Ulu Cami portali”, en Fikret Karaman (ed.), Uluslararası Cami Sempozyumu, 8-9 octubre 2018 Malatya, 2. Ankara, pp. 603-617.
KARAÇAĞ, Abdullah (2007): “Avanos Sarı Han”, en Hakkı Acun (ed.), Anadolu Selçuklu Dönemi Kervansarayları. Ankara, pp. 211-235.
KURU, Alev Çakmaroğlu (2015): “Orta Çağ Türk Mimarisinde Ok-Yay Motifleri ve Ikonografisi”, 2. Uluslararası Avrasya Türk Sanatları Kongresi / 2. International Congress of Eurasian Turkish Arts, pp. 251-268.
KUTLU, Ibrahim (2012): “Aksaray Zinciriye Medresesi”, Dini Araştırmalar, 15(41), pp. 197-216.
MÁRQUEZ BUENO, Samuel; GURRIARÁN DAZA, Pedro; MARTÍNEZ NÚÑEZ, María Antonia (2021): Las portadas monumentales de la arquitectura andalusí y mudéjar. I. Épocas omeya y taifa (ss. VIII-XI). Madrid: La Ergástula.
MÁRQUEZ BUENO, Samuel; GURRIARÁN DAZA, Pedro; MARTÍNEZ NÚÑEZ, María Antonia (2024a): Las portadas monumentales de la arquitectura andalusí y mudéjar. II. Dinastías africanas (ss. XII-XII). Madrid: La Ergástula.
MÁRQUEZ BUENO, Samuel; GURRIARÁN DAZA, Pedro; MARTÍNEZ NÚÑEZ, María Antonia (2024b): “Puertas de Corona (Taç Kapı) silŷūqíes: un camino de ida y vuelta entre Konya y Sultanhanı (Turquía), a la luz de la arqueología de la arquitectura y de la epigrafía”, Arqueología y Territorio Medieval, 31, e8769. https://doi.org/10.17561/aytm.v31.8769
MASSAIU, Maurizio (2018): The Representation of Power in the Art and Architecture of the Kingdom of Sicily during the Norman Period (1130-1189 AD) (tesis doctoral). Universidad de Córdoba.
MECIT, Songül (2014): The Rum Seljuqs. Evolution of a Dynasty. Nueva York: Routledge.
ÖZBEK, Yıldıray (2007): “Tuzhisar Sultan Hanı”, en Hakkı Acun (ed.), Anadolu Selçuklu Dönemi Kervansarayları. Ankara, pp. 175-193.
ÖZGÜÇ, Tahsin; AKOK, Mahmut (1956): “Sarı Han”, Belleten, 20. Ankara, pp. 379-383.
ÖZGÜÇ, Tahsin; AKOK, Mahmut (1957): “Ağzikara Han”, Yillık Araştırmalar Dergisi, 1. Ankara, pp. 93-104.
PRIETO VIVES, Antonio; GÓMEZ-MORENO, Manuel (1921): El lazo. Decoración geométrica musulmana, tomo I. Madrid: Centro de Estudios Históricos.
RCEA = COMBE, Étienne; SAUVAGET, Jean; WIET, Gaston (1931-1991): Répertoire Chronologique d’Épigraphie Arabe (18 tomos). El Cairo: L’Institut français d’archéologie orientale.
RODRÍGUEZ ZAHAR, León (2025): Arte Islámico, evocación del Paraíso. Doctrina, lenguaje y temas iconográficos. Granada: Universidad de Granada.
ROTT, Hans (1908): Kleinasiatische Denkmäler aus Pisiden, Pamphylien, Kappadokien und Lykien. Leipzig: Dieterich’sche Verlags-Buchhandlung Theodor Weicher.
ŞAMAN DOĞAN, Nermin; METIN KUŞÇU, Hatice (2020): “Sivas Buruciye Medresesi (1271) Ön Yüz Düzeninde Orantı ve Modüler Sistem Arayişı Üzerine Bir Deneme”, Selçuk Üniversitesi Selçuklu Araştırmaları Dergisi, 2022(13), pp. 27-78.
SCHNEIDER, Gert (1980): Geometrische Bauornamente der Seldschuken in Kleinasien. Wiesbaden: Reichert Verlag.
TABBA, Yasser (2021): The Production of Meaning in Islamic Architecture and Ornament. Edimburgo: Edinburgh University Press.
ÜNAL, Rahmi Hüseyin (1982): Osmanlı oncesi Anadolu-Türk mimarisinde taçkapılar. Izmir: Ege Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Yayınları.
YILMAZ, Leyla; TUZCU, Kemal (2010): Antalya’da Türk Dönemi Kitabeleri. Harlem: SOTA.
Additional Files
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Samuel Márquez Bueno, Pedro Gurriarán Daza, María Antonia Martínez Núñez

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The moment the article is accepted by the magazine, the author or authors must fill out a specific form where the copyright conditions of the magazine will be stated, approved by the University of Jaén.
The authors will retain the copyright and will concede to the magazine the rights for the first publication, with the work registered under the Creative Commons license that allows third parties the use of the publication as long as they mention the author and the publication in this magazine.
The authors can reach other independent contractual agreements for the non exclusive distribution of the version of the article published in this magazine (i.e include it in an institutional repository or publish it in a book) as long as they clearly indicate that the work was primarily published by this magazine.















