DIYARBAKIR
Full of heart, soul, and character, Diyarbakır (known as Amida in ancient times) is the largest city in southeastern Turkey and an important Kurdish center. Behind its ancient basalt walls, the old city's twisting alleyways are crammed full of historical buildings and Arab-style mosques. The city dates back many thousands of years, and has been home to Assyrians, Macedonians, Armenians, and then three kingdoms: Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman. Cosmopolitan to its core, many remnants of these great civilizations are fully on display.
Diyarbakır's single most conspicuous feature is its great, six-kilometer circuit of basalt walls, probably originally built during Roman rule, although the present walls date from early Byzantine times (330–500 CE). There were originally four main gates: Harput Kapısı (north), Mardin Kapısı (south), Yenikapı (east) and Urfa Kapısı (west). The most easily accessible stretch of walls is also the most interesting in terms of inscriptions and decoration. Be sure not to miss Nur Burcu , the Yedi Kardeş Burcu, with two Seljuk lion bas-reliefs—only visible from outside the walls—and the bas-reliefs of the Malikşah Burcu. Ascend the walls of the Iç Kale (keep) for panoramic views of the Tigris River. The Iç Kale includes the beautifully restored Church of Saint George (third century CE).
Alternating black-and-white stone banding is a unique characteristic of Diyarbakır's mosques. The most impressive is the Ulu Cami, built in 1091 by Malik Şah, an early Seljuk sultan. Incorporating elements from an earlier Byzantine church on the site, it was extensively restored in 1155 after a fire. Its rectangular plan is Arab in style, rather than Ottoman. The entrance portal, adorned with two medallions figuring a lion and a bull, leads to a huge courtyard. Across the street is the Hasan Paşa Hanı, a sixteenth-century caravanserai (roadside inn), now occupied by carpet shops and souvenir-sellers after extensive restoration in 2006. The Behram Paşa Cami (built in 1572), standing in a residential area deep in the maze of narrow streets, is Diyarbakır's largest mosque. More Persian in style, the Safa Cami (built in 1532) has a highly decorated minaret incorporated in its design.
