A hill castle, Yılankale is located on a rocky hill overlooking the east bank of the Ceyhan River,[6] and the Bronze and Iron Age site of Sirkeli Höyük, six kilometers west of the town of Ceyhan.[12] The building is locally known as the home of Shahmaran, a mythical creature half woman and half snake.[13][14]
Architecture
The walls, as well as the numerous horseshoe-shaped towers and vaulted chambers, are built with beautifully cut rusticated masonry and are carefully adapted to the coiling outcrop of limestone to create three baileys.[15] The archaeological and historical assessment of this castle published in 1987 (with a scaled plan) describes each unit in detail.[15] In the upper bailey is an Armenian chapel with its apse and north wall preserved.[3] The assumption that the relief of a seated king with two rampant lions in the gatehouse door depicts King Levon I (confirming the conclusion that he was the castle's early 13th-c. founder), was convincingly challenged by both iconographic and archaeological evidence, which shows that the relief portrays either Kings Het'um I (1226–70) or Het'um II (1289–1307).[16] The castle was abandoned during the reign of the Ramadanids in the mid-14th century.[17]
It has been described as the "most perfectly preserved Armenian castle" of the Çukurova (Cilicia) region.[3] The castle is open to the public[1] and was renovated in summer of 2014.[18]
History
In late 19th century, the inhabitants of Yılankale were Nogai immigrants from the Crimean War.[19]
^ abThe Rough Guide to Turkey. London: Rough Guides. 2003. p. 587. Beyond here you'll see an Armenian castle on top of a mountain, 3 km to the south of the main road – the Yılan Kalesi, or "Snake Castle" (always open; &0.50).
^ abcdeEdwards, Robert W. (1982). "Ecclesiastical Architecture in the Fortifications of Armenian Cilicia". Dumbarton Oaks Papers. 36. Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University: 170–171. doi:10.2307/1291466. JSTOR1291466. On the plain of Cilicia between the cities of Adana and Ceyhan stands the most perfectly preserved Armenian castle, Yilan. Because a relief on the gatehouse of the castle has been associated with King Levon I, the site may date from the period of his reign (1 198/99-1219). However, this identification is far from certain, since the relief is badly damaged.
^ abPhillips, Jonathan (1995). "The Latin East, 1098–1291". In Riley-Smith, Jonathan (ed.). The Oxford Illustrated History of the Crusades. Oxford University Press. p. 136. ISBN978-0-19-820435-0. YILAN KALE (Castle of the Snakes). A huge thirteenth-century fortress standing high above the Pyramus river and overlooking the plain of Adana. The castle was a key stronghold for the Armenian rulers who controlled this region, and the remaining structure probably dates from the first half of the thirteenth century.
^ ab"Other historical regions". kultur.gov.tr. Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Archived from the original on 27 October 2014. Yılan Kalesi (Snake Castle): It is located on a hill and champaign between Misis and Ceyhan. The castle, positioned on historical invasion and commerce road which connects Adana, Misis, Payas and Antalya through Gülek Straight, is the first chain of mountain castle chains.
^Pillement, Georges (1974). Unknown Turkey: Anatolia, Cappadocia, the eastern frontiers. Barbara Whelpton (translator). Johnson Publishing. p. 179. ...a medieval fortress, YILAN KALESI, probably built in the reign of Leon II, king of Little Armenia, towards the end of the 12th century near the right bank of the Ceyhan.
^Permanent Delegation of Turkey to UNESCO (15 April 2014). "Ancient City of Korykos". whc.unesco.org. UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Individual Armenian Castles found in the area of Adana, "Yilan Kale" and "Toprakkale, are the most outstanding ones.
^ abEdwards, Robert W. (1987). The Fortifications of Armenian Cilicia: Dumbarton Oaks Studies XXIII. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University. pp. 269–276, 286, pls.274a–286b, 303c. ISBN0-88402-163-7.
^Edwards, Robert W (1984). "On the Supposed Date of Yılan Kalesi". Journal of the Society for Armenian Studies1:23-33.
^"Yilan Kale Gezi̇si̇". adanakultur.gov.tr (in Turkish). Adana Provincial Culture and Tourism Directorate. 7 June 2014.
^Barkley, Henry C. (1891). A Ride through Asia Minor and Armenia. London: William Clowes and Sons Limited. p. 193. We pitched our tent in the village of Yilan Kalé (Snake Castle), belonging to some Nogai Tartars, who settled here just after the Crimean war.
