Zinciriye Medrese, Mardin

A School With A Carved Portal, Two Courtyards And A Domed Mosque And Tomb, Built In 1385, With A Terrace Overlooking The Plains Of Mesopotamia Toward Syria. A Beautiful Terrace With A Long View, Close To The Great Mosque Of Mardin · Artuklu, Mardin

Zinciriye Medrese is an Islamic school of 1385 (confirm) on the steep hillside of old Mardin, built in the Artuqid period and also known as the Sultan Isa Medrese (confirm). Its tall carved portal, with deep stone mouldings and a pointed arch, leads into two courtyards surrounded by student cells and arched rooms, and beyond them stand a small domed mosque and a tomb. The honey-coloured limestone is the same stone that makes up the whole town, so the school seems to grow out of the slope. From the roof terrace the view runs over flat roofs and domes to the plain of Mesopotamia, which on a clear day stretches away toward Syria. The building is a short walk from the Great Mosque of Mardin and the bazaar street, and it makes a quiet stop between busier sights. Mardin is steep, with stairs and narrow lanes, and summers are hot, so visitors usually need one to two hours here including the climb up from the main street.

Zinciriye Medrese, a 14th-century Islamic school on the hillside of the old town of Mardin, with a view over the Mesopotamian plain; coordinates approximate, Artuklu, Mardin, Turkiye

The medrese is normally open daily from about 08:00 to 17:00 or 18:00, with longer hours in summer and shorter ones in winter (confirm). A ticket office or attendant may sit at the door, and the terrace and the tomb room can close for repairs or at prayer times. The mosque inside is used for worship, so visits pause during the call to prayer and the Friday midday prayer. The bazaar shops nearby open about 09:00 to 19:00 and close earlier on Sunday. In Ramadan and on holidays the hours change, so confirm before a special trip.

Zinciriye Medrese, Mardin on Spottos · Explore more places on Spottos