History

Çifte Kümbet (Double Cupola)

his cupola, located at the end of Sivas Street in Kayseri, was built in 1247-1248 by the daughters of Adile Hatun, the wife of Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat I and the daughter of the Ayyubid ruler Melik Adil. There is a five-line inscription on the entrance door of the tomb.

The meaning of this inscription is as follows: “This place, Ayyuboğlu Melik Adil Abu Bakr—may Allah lighten their graves and make their souls and scents fragrant. His daughter is the source of luck and blessings, the angel of angels, the lady of the world and the hereafter, the owner of superior qualities, the Zubeyde of her time, the master of women in the world, the face of Islam and Muslims, the protector of religion and the world, the God-fearing, the morally good, and the felicitous. May Allah guide them to their goals and make them look good. 645 (1247-1248) ordered.”

The tomb is set on a high square pedestal of cut stone and features an octagonal plan. The cupola is covered with a dome on the inside and a pyramidal cone on the outside. Additionally, the Sura Baqara from the Qur’an, written in sülüs script, is inscribed on the walls. The outer faces of the octagon are enclosed in round arches with a loophole window above each one. The entrance door is framed in a rectangular border that extends to the top of the walls. The portal niche, adorned with mukarnas, is surrounded by a wide border of geometric star transitions. The entrance itself is pointed and features mukarnas and a round-arched gate, with an inscription placed above it. Inside, the vault is quite plain, with a crypt located beneath it.

Where is it?

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