Transportation to Divriği eased

SİVAS - Anatolia News Agency

AA Photo

Officials are hoping that ongoing construction will solve the problem of a lack of transportation to Sivas’ Divriği district, which is home to significant historical sites like the Divriği Great Mosque and the Darüşşifa (Hospital).

Road construction to Divriği in the Central Anatolian province has continued and a road linking Divriği to Arapgir in the eastern province of Malatya will most probably be finished this summer, Sivas Gov. Ali Kolat told Anatolia news agency.

“Transportation to Divriği is becoming easier,” he said. “Its railway was also renewed completely. We are planning to start railcar transportation; talks about it continue. Thanks to the railcar, the five-hour train journey to Divriği will take two to two-and-a-half hours.”

Kolat said the Deliktaş Tunnel, located on the Sivas-Tencer-Kangal road, was under construction. The work is almost complete, and the opening will be celebrated with a ceremony attended by Turkey’s prime minister, he said, adding that the tunnel would shorten travel time between Divriği and Malatya.
The mayor said expropriation work around the Divriği Great Mosque and Hospital, a UNESCO World Heritage site that has been dubbed the “Alhamra of Anatolia” by some European scientists, was almost completed but added that they took a break for winter to avoid the harsh weather conditions.
“The area will be completely cleaned in summer. The structure will also have a connection with the castle. Works continue for environmental arrangement and restorations,” he said, adding that the Culture and Tourism Ministry had provided much support to the work.

He said restoration work on the Divriği Great Mosque and Hospital had been evaluated during a recent meeting and that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan gave an order to solve the transportation problem in the region.

Divriği Great Mosque and Hospital

Thanks to its Great Mosque and Hospital, castle and historical mansions, Divriği is an important center in terms of history and cultural tourism.

It draws tourists especially to its mosque and hospital and is now expected to become a more popular tourist destination when the transportation problem is solved.

The mosque was built upon the order of Ahmed Shah at the time of the Mengujekids. The inscriptions feature words of praise to the Anatolian Selçuk Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad I. The adjoining hospital was built simultaneously with the mosque under the order of Turan Melek Sultan, daughter of the Mengujekid ruler of Erzincan, Fahreddin Behram Shah.

The exquisite carvings and architecture of both buildings place them among the most important works of architecture in Anatolia and led to their inclusion on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1985. Of particular note are the geometrical and floral reliefs on the main door.

The silhouette of a person praying that appears during afternoon prayer on the Taç Gate of the mosque also astonishes visitors.