Guide
The Zeynel Bey tomb is a monumental tomb of the Akkoyunlu period, built for Zeynel Bey, son of the Akkoyunlu ruler Uzun Hasan, and it is the earliest example of the monumental tomb tradition in Anatolia. The inscription above its northern door records that it was built for Zeynel Bey, son of Bahadır Han Hasan Bey, who fell at the battle of Otlukbeli on 11 August 1473. Its architect was Pir Hasan, son of Abdurrahman.
Above the circular burial chamber the main body rises, circular on the outside and octagonal within, with a domed ceiling and a conical cap outside. The cylindrical form is the only one of its kind, and what marks it out is the tile decoration and the inscriptions on it: three bands of tilework, one above another, encircling the body on the outside and spelling out the names Allah, Muhammed and Ali. Know before you go that this building is not where it was built. Because it fell within the area of the Ilısu dam reservoir, the tomb was moved in 2017 and set up two kilometres away in the New Cultural Park area at Hasankeyf.
