Mardin

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The last, but the most impressive stop of the trip is the fabulous city of Mardin.

Before we entered the city, we went to one of the most important monasteries of the Assyrians, the Saffron monastery. Situated on a small hill 4-5 kilometers from the city, it takes its name from the saffron flowers and most certainly deserves to be called "the pearl of Mardin" with its
magnificent and fascinating appearance. The monastery is still used today as a temple and school by the Assyrians.

From the monastery we visited the City. The old stone houses and narrow streets which makes Mardin like a labyrinth gives the old city a mystic atmosphere. Another important place of the Syriacs (and our next stop) is the Syriac Orthodox Church of the Forty Martyrs. The Church of the Forty Martyrs holds the historic
manuscript collection of the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate.

A popular product is home made Syriac Wine, so a good reason to visit a Syriac house who sells home made wine. Our tour guide knew a nice lady who was producing and selling wine. We enjoyed of the hospitality of the lady and tasted of her home made wine. As souvenir we bought a bottle, (which is still not opened yet as we save it as a 'collect item' ) and continued the city trip.

From the Orthodox Syriacs we go to the Muslims by visiting the Great Mosque of Mardin. The mosque consists of a rectangular prayer hall aligned east-west, preceded by a courtyard of comparable size to its north. It sits on a terrace built out from a south-facing hillside, with its north wall embedded into neighboring structures. The prayer hall is accessed through the courtyard, which is entered from side portals from on stone-staired alleyways to the east and west.

Last part of the city trip was to go to the hilltop citadel of Mardin. By enjoying a cup of Turkish coffee, good view over Mardin and the Mesopotamian plain we were having some good time with our travel friends. Slowly but sure it was time to say goodbye to our friends. The GAP trip with the tour guide was on its last stage. After the citadel visit it was time for dinner and say goodbye to the group. The group was going back to Gaziantep with the bus. We had to fly to Izmir. As there was also an airport at Mardin, we didn't see the point to travel first to Gaziantep, which is about 5 hours by bus and fly to Izmir from there. And seeing Mardin by night is also very lovely. Our tour guide brought us to a hotel where we said goodbye to the group and enjoyed our last evening at Mardin.

When the sun made place for the darkness, the mystic city became more mystic. The narrow streets, had on one view a scary but on another view a romantic look. At the end of the evening both of us were so exhausted of the last days that we immediately fell asleep when we arrived to our hotel.

As there is a time for coming, there is also a time for going. Today our adventure ended. After a breakfast we took a taxi to the airport and took a domestic flight to Izmir, where the parents of Cigdem were waiting for us.

About Mardin:

The name of the city is derived from the Syriac-Aramaic word fortress. Most Syriac Orthodox churches and monasteries in the city were built on ancient Assyrian-Babylonian temple sites and some are still active today. The Syriac Orthodox Saffron Monastery was founded in 439 AD and is one of the oldest monasteries in the world and the only one that is still functioning in southern Turkey. From 1160 until 1932, it was the seat of the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch, until the Patriarchate relocated to the Syrian capital Damascus. The site of the monastery itself is said to have been used as a temple by sun worshipers as long ago as 2000 BC. Mardin is likely the Maride and Marida of the Greeks and Romans. Another important church, Kırklar Kilisesi (Church of the 40 Martyrs), originally built in the name of Behnam and Saro, the two sons of the Assyrian ruler who executed them because they chose to become Christian, dates from 569 AD, and even during its use as a capital by the Artukid Turkish dynasty which ruled Eastern Anatolia and Northern Mesopotamia between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries. The 12th century Sitti Radviyye Madrasa, the oldest of its kind in Anatolia, dates from this period.

The lands of the Artukid dynasty fell to the Mongols sometime between 1235 and 1243, but the Mongols never directly governed the area. The Artukid family ruling Mardin became vassal state of the Mongol Empire. During the battle of Ain Jalut in 1260, the Artuqid ruler revolted against the Mongol rule. Hulegu's general and Chupan's ancestor, Koke-Ilge of the Jalayir, stormed the city and Hulegu appointed the rebel's son, al-Nasir, governor of Mardin. Altough, Hulegu suspected the latter's loyalty for a while, thereafter the Artukids remained loyal unlike nomadic Bedoun and Kurd tribes in the south western frontier. The Mongol Ilkhanids considered them important allies. For this loyalty they shown, Artukids were given more lands in 1298 and 1304. Mardin was later controlled by the Turkic tribes who came from Central Asia Akkoyunlu kingdom. The Kasımiye Madrasa was built by Sultan Kasım, son of the Akkoyunlu Sultan Cihangir, between 1457 and 1502. In 1517, Mardin was conquered by Ottoman Turks. During 1915-1916, Arab, Assyrian/Syriac and Armenian Christians of all denominations were massacred or driven away. After the big conflict in 1916, the Christian survivors fled mostly south to Syria and Iraq. The most common destination was either Al-Kamishli or Al-Hasaka, Syria; there is even a Mardin Club in Detroit, MI today.

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