The Great Body Dungeons

The Great Body Dungeons

The dungeon is located on the southwest of the walls surrounding the city. Known also as Married Body Dungeons, it is mentioned in the tablets that the dungeon was built in the name of Artuklus Ruler Melik Salih in 1208 according to his plan by the Architect Caferoglu Ibrahim. The dungeon, very similar to Seven Sıblings Dungeons in means of plan and decorations, has a cylindrical plan. It has a glorious view with: double headed eagle, symbol of dominance; winged lion, symbolizing superpower; sfenks teazlings; the tablets, surrounding the dungeon from head to toe; mukarnas decorations. On the two sides of the tablets belt’s middle, where it gets thick, two lion teazling facing each other and symmetrical, can be seen. These are taken into wiped rectangular frame as well. The heads are curvy, bottoms puffy and details are unseen. The dungeon has a years’ long myth. According to the myth; an expert and his workman bet on who can do the most beautiful dungeon. They begin building the Seven Siblings Dungeons and the Great Body Dungeons. The expert, who had built the Seven Sibling Dungeons, and the workman, who had built the Great Body Dungeons, asks to each other, amongst the people, “you or me?” Yet, the expert accepts his workman’s superiority and throws himself down from the walls. The workman, who could not resist this, jumps after the expert. The place, where the expert’s and the workman’s challenge and friendship story had happened, has been called as Ben u Sen, meaning ‘me or you’.

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