The Princes' Route · Stop 12

Amasya Bedesten

Its domes were dismantled, the roof built in their place collapsed, it stood open to the sky for years, and half of it was demolished. Five hundred years later it is still standing.

1483 Hüseyin Ağa, Agha of the Gate Bazaar

The Amasya Bedesten: two large lead-covered domes, stone outer walls with blind arches, market stalls in front — The Amasya Bedesten. *Kültür Portalı (Kültürel Miras Boyutuyla Amasya, Photo 32).*

The building's own inscription

“…the building was commissioned by the benevolent and God-fearing Hüseyin Ağa, son of Abdulmuin. He is known as the Kapı Ağası (Agha of the Gate). May God protect from ruin, for as long as his rule lasts, the realm and sultanate of Bayezid Han, son of Sultan Muhammed Han, ruler of the seas and the lands, sultan son of a sultan. For the sake of his many good deeds and gifts, may God Most High reward him with His forgiveness.”

AH 888 / AD 1483

📜 What do the documents say?

The bedesten was built in 1483 by Hüseyin Ağa, one of the Aghas of the Gate of Bayezid II, to provide income for his foundations.² The same Hüseyin Ağa was also the founder of the Büyük Ağa Madrasa, another stop on this route.

The building has the plan features of the Ottoman bedestens of the Classical period and was built on sloping ground. Along its north–south axis it measures roughly 36.75 × 34.94 metres.¹

Its plan has changed. The bedesten's original form was rectangular; because a large part of it was demolished in 1950, it has a square plan today.¹ So the proportions you see today are not the building's own — they are the proportions the demolition left behind.

Five hundred years in a few lines

This building's story is a story of survival.²

1483 Built by Hüseyin Ağa, Agha of the Gate, to provide income for his foundation.
1668 Badly damaged in an earthquake. For a long time it undergoes no proper repair.
1865 It is included in the building works of Ziya Bey (the poet Ziya Paşa), governor of Amasya. But it is not restored: its lead sheathing is stripped and its domes are demolished, and a roof is built in their place.
… The new roof collapses. For a long time the bedesten struggles on open to the sky; over the years it falls into ruin, and only its outer walls remain sound.
1950s The part nearest the Yeşilırmak is demolished, and an office building (iş hanı) is put up in its place.
1971 Comprehensive restoration by the General Directorate of Foundations. The walls are roofed over; though fewer in number, the bedesten's domes return.

“The old walls, which for almost 500 years have managed to stay standing against all the odds, have come back to life.”²

While you are there, look for

Count the domes. Today's domes came back in 1971 — and there are fewer of them than there were originally.²
Touch the outer walls. The domes went, the roof fell, half the building was demolished; these walls are what stayed standing.²
Look towards the river. Part of the bedesten stood on that side; it was demolished in the 1950s and an office building was put up in its place.²
Notice the slope of the ground. The building sits on sloping ground.¹

Key facts

Built: AH 888 / AD 1483, according to its inscription¹
Commissioned by: Hüseyin Ağa, son of Abdulmuin — Agha of the Gate¹
Purpose: To provide income for his foundations²
Size: About 36.75 × 34.94 m¹
Plan: Originally rectangular; square after the 1950 demolition¹
Last restoration: 1971, General Directorate of Foundations²
Location: 40.651113, 35.831739 — verified against OpenStreetMap
In the book: Kültürel Miras Boyutuyla Amasya, p. 63

📍 Open on the map

Sources

Every factual statement on this page rests on one of the sources below. Titles are given in their original Turkish so that they can be found; quotations from them are our translations.

Gülname Kübra Çelebi, Amasya'da Bulunan Ticaret Yapıları (Ordu: Ordu Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Yüksek Lisans Tezi, 2023), 28. — Translation of the bedesten's inscription, its plan and dimensions.
Amasya Valiliği, Amasya Şehir Rehberi (Amasya: Amasya Valiliği, 2013), 38-39.