Eshab-ı Kehf Cave

Eshab-ı Kehf Cave, also known as Ashab-ı Kehf Cave or Seven Sleepers' Cave, (Turkish: Eshab-ı Kehf Mağarası, Ashab-ı Kehf Mağarası or Yedi Uyurlar Mağarası) is a show cave situated to the north of Tarsus, an ilçe (district) in Mersin Province, Turkey. The cave is named after the Persian word اصحاب کهف ("Ashāb-i Kahf") itself from the Arabic "aṣḥāb al kahf", "people of the cave", for Seven Sleepers of Ephesus, a belief in Christian and Islamic tradition.

Eshab-ı Kehf Cave
Eshab-ı Kehf Mağarası
In the cave.
Eshab-ı Kehf Cave
Location of the cave in Turkey.
LocationTarsus, Mersin, Turkey
Coordinates36°57′26″N 34°47′48″E

The cave is about 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) to Tarsus and about 40 kilometres (25 mi) to Mersin. It is at the foothill of a small hill. The cave is small, not comparable to other caves of the province. However, it is a famed to be the cave of the Seven Sleepers. The exact location of the Seven Sleepers' cave is not known, and there are many other places including some in Turkey claiming to be the cave of the Seven Sleepers.[1] Next to the cave, there is a mosque commissioned by the Ottoman sultan Abdülaziz (reigned 1861–1876), and built in 1873. The mosque's tall minaret with three şerefes (balconies) were added later.[2]

The other probable locations of the Seven Sleepers in Turkey are:

References
  1. Mersin Valiliği:Mersin, ISBN 978 605 4196-07-4, pg 101-102
  2. Mersin traveller page (in Turkish)
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