Sultan Han in Aksaray is the most monumental example of the Anatolian-Seljuk inns. Sultan Han, which is on the Konya-Aksaray road, is 94 km from Konya, 40 km from Aksaray, 4 km from the main road on the south, in the district of Sultanhani.
Sultan Han is 118 m tall and 37 m wide. Its facade is 50 meters with the towers in the corner. It is the biggest Seljukian inn with its 4500 m2 area. It was built by Recep Alaeddin Keykubad in 1229. In the inscription on the entrance, the sultan was introduced with the sentences of “The Great Sultan, the Supreme Prince, the lord of the Arab and Persian sultans, the sultan of the towns of Allah, the lord of the towns of Allah, protecting the servants of God, the glory of religion and the world, the father of conquests, the burial of the order of the believers”.
– Hire Turkish Tour Guide to Visit Sultan Han in Aksaray –
The architect of the building is Muhammad of Damascus. The founder of Sultan Han I. Alaeddin Keykubad was a sultan who built at least thirty-four monumental buildings and created the richest period of the Seljuks. It is known that the Sultan is interested in various branches of art and has a say in design. Muhammed, the architect of Sultan Han served as the chief architect of the palace. During the Seljuk period, very intensive commercial relations were established with Italy, Egypt, Syria, Iran, Iraq and Crimea.
Sultanhan was located in the center of the main roads connecting the ports of Antalya and Alanya to Konya-Aksaray-Kayseri-Sivas. From Aksaray, one road would go to Iran and Georgia via Erzincan-Erzurum. Another road deviating from Sivas to the southeast would reach Baghdad and Basra via Malatya-Diyarbakir-Mardin-Mosul. Carpets, rugs, wool, leather, silk weaving, dried fruit, timber, pitch, and alum from various centers of Anatolia were sent to western and eastern countries. Luxurious fabric, weaving, thread, and weapon from the West; luxury fabric and weaving, spices, linen, and sugar were bought from the east.
– Hire Turkish Tour Guide to Visit Sultan Han in Aksaray –
The building is completely built with cut stone. The walls and buttresses are filled with rubble stones. White and black marble is used in the niches on both sides of the crown door and above the door. There are large rooms with cradle vaults on the left for cars and animals on the right. The square in the middle of the square is entered through a staircase from the outside to the Kiosk mosque. At the end of the courtyard, there is a section which is reserved for animals and objects, is covered with a vault. Sultan Han is a common stop that we make in my tours. Sultan Han is located perfectly in between Konya and Cappadocia regions and it is a good spot to have a refreshment break.
Sultan Han Guided Tour
You can write to me to learn more about Sultan Han or you can hire a professional licensed to visit Sultan Han. See you soon in Sultan Han, Hasan Gülday
