Description of the attraction
35 kilometers from Alania, not far from the Alara River (on the first eastern plain) is the Alara Khan caravanserai, or Alar courtyard, an architectural ensemble created in 1232 by order of the Seljuk Sultan Aladdin Keykubat I (as evidenced by the inscription above the portal with numerous words of praise addressed to the Sultan). Not far from here, twenty kilometers away, there is the Sharavsin caravanserai, built in the middle of the 13th century by the son of Sultan Aladdin Keykubat I.
Alara Khan was built in order to protect the caravans that passed along the Great Silk Road. These caravans, following from Alai to Konya and Antalya in the Middle Ages, stopped at this very place. Hotels of this type were located at a distance of a day's journey from each other and were "key points" in the network of roads crossing Anatolia. In the XIII century, the entire chain of caravanserais was fully formed, and Alara Khan was considered the best fortification on the entire southern coast.
Alara Khan was built of rough stone, its area is two thousand square meters. All buildings in the caravanserai are located in a group, in the courtyards of which there were premises for transport - camels. Entering through one of the doors, you can enter the premises intended for overnight stay. There are small rooms on either side of the long corridor. Also on the territory of the Inn there is a bathhouse, mesjit and a spring. The local stones bear the inscriptions of the craftsmen who built this building. Often, all the inscriptions on the ancient buildings of Alania proclaimed Aladdin Keykubat "The ruler of the country of the Persians and Arabs, the sultan of land and two seas," and the Alar inscription also gives him the title "conqueror of the lands of Damascus, Ruman, Frankish and Armenian."
The material from which all the walls of Alara Khan were made, except for the eastern one, was carved stone. Three walls of this ensemble are supported by triangular and quadrangular props. The outer portal, located in the northern part and executed in the form of a low arch, is decorated with convex heads of lions, which were used as candlesticks.
This is the only monument located here related to the Seljuk architecture. Unlike other buildings of this type, there is no courtyard here - it is located outside the caravanserai, outside its outer walls. At the entrance on the left side there is a source, a small mosque, a stone guardhouse, on the right - a hamam. Arched stables were built around the living quarters, surrounding the Khan on three sides. Small windows have been made in the back of the rooms to allow traders to see their animals and communicate with slaves.
You can get to the sleeping quarters, where there is a large courtyard, a mosque and a spring from the courtyard behind the portal. The rooms have openings for light, concealing cradle-shaped arches. Travelers usually dined in the evenings on these pointed arched terraces.
At the entrance to Alara Khan, on both sides there are two small square towers with walls, protected by a canopy. The Great Khan Hall is decorated and also covered with arches.
Several years ago, Alara Khan was renovated, and today it is already open as a shopping center and restaurant. The room where the guards of the inn were located has retained its distinctive features to this day. At the present time, Turkish evenings for visitors and tourists are held in the caravanserai, which has been restored in the traditional Turkish style.
In the north, 800 m from the Inn and nine kilometers from the coastline, there is the Alar Fortress. This unusual fortress is located on a high hill, where the height differences are from 200 to 500 meters. The fortress looks truly powerful. It is divided into two parts - external and internal. To get to the fortress, you need to climb one hundred and twenty steps and walk along a dark long corridor. Here you can stumble upon ruins everywhere. This is due to the fact that it is not open as a museum for tourists to visit, so be careful and careful. Tunnels were carved into the rocks inside the fortress. In these ruins you can see a small palace, a mosque and premises for the employees of the fortress. Those who wish to climb the paths along the walls to the top of the fortress need to stock up on great patience and comfortable shoes, as the ascent can take more than an hour. But, in spite of this, when you rise and see with your own eyes what kind of view opens from there to the surroundings, no trace of fatigue will remain.
