Byzantine Hospital (Side)
The Byzantine hospital is a well-preserved secular building from the 6th century in Side , an archaeological site in the Pamphylia region (today Antalya province , Turkey). At that time, Side experienced a late heyday as a bishopric.
The identification of the building as a hospital is not certain, but is supported by two arguments:
- Emperor Justinian ordered the construction of a “house” (hospital) in Pamphylia, consecrated to the doctor saints Kosmas and Damian . The place is not mentioned by Prokopios .
- Later Seljuk hospitals follow a similar blueprint, so that the Byzantine hospital may have served as a model for their construction.
Arif Müfid Mansel is considering various functions of the building as an ergasterion (workshop), pandocheion (inn) or xenodocheion (hospital).
location
The building is located east of the large colonnade street on a side street. Nearby are the ruins of the Bishop's Palace.
description
A two-story building rises on a rectangular floor plan (19.50 mx 16.30 m). In the basement, four parallel, barrel-vaulted rooms are divided into three sections by arches. The individual rooms are connected by doors and provided with windows. The upper floor shows the same distribution. A staircase led to the upper floor, which, like the main entrance, was located in the collapsed western part.
The core of the building consists of ashlar masonry . For the mortar facade, rubble from older ancient buildings was reused. Remnants of mosaic floors show that there was a terrace above the first floor, which however, considering the rainfall in Pamphylia, should have had a roof.
Web links
- Turkish Archaeological News: Byzantine hospital in Side
- Semavi Eyice: A Byzantine Hospital Building at Side?
literature
- Arif Müfid Mansel: The ruins of Side . Walter de Gruyter, Berlin 1963. pp. 170-171.
Coordinates: 36 ° 46 ′ 7.5 ″ N , 31 ° 23 ′ 34.9 ″ E