Eski Malatya Attractions

The ruins of Eski Malatya 12km/7.5mi north east of modern Malatya lie on the old road to Erzincan and Sivas. The course of the road had to be moved to the west to make way for the Keban reservoir. The village now surrounded by poplars and fruit orchards nestles inside the ruins of old Malatya. Ruins of what was probably a Byzantine wall, an irregular trapezium with four gates, defensive ditches and tower bastions are still preserved and are best seen on the southern side. A little further along the old Sivas road stand two türbe with small cemeteries. The Ulu Cami, which is partly buried, was built in 1247 by Hüsrev on the foundations of an older seventh century mosque. The latter was destroyed by the Byzantines and then rebuilt in 765 by Al-Mansur. To reach the rear of the mosque pass through the galleried inner courtyard and the divan decorated with glazed tiles into the domed prayer room. The Yeni Cami (1307) like the Ulu Cami dates from Seljuk times. In the northeast of the town stands the Mustafa Pasa Hani, a well-preserved Ottoman caravanserai. It was founded by Mustafa Pasa one of the Ottoman Murat IV's generals between 1623 and 1640.