TurkishSHIPYARD
Sultan Alaüddin Keykubat ensured the construction of the shipyard two years after the construction of the Tower (1228) in order to realize his desire to be Sultanül Bahreyn (Sultan of the Two Seas) in the great inscription of Kızılkule. On the entrance gate of the shipyard facing north, there is an inscription written in Seljuk Thuluth. On the right of the inscription, there is a section where the soldiers guarding the shipyard will stay, and on the left, there is a small mosque on the sea side. When we enter the 1.60 m wide and 2.50 m high, we come across one of the five eyes, each 7.70 m wide and 42.30 m long. These eyes are connected to each other from the inside by four small arched eyes. In the past, there was a freshwater well in the third of the five large eyes, but it is currently closed because it is full of sea waste. From the last eye, there is a passage called the devil’s hole by the locals, which opens to the Topane Tower, which is right next to it. It is possible to go to Topane Tower from here.
Look what a foreign writer says about this magnificent work. “This work is the most famous work of Alaiye and the world. I think this shipyard constitutes the only shipyard of the Seljuks. Such a valuable building will enable us to obtain valuable results.” This shipyard also maintained its operation during the Ottoman period. It is known that when the King of Cyprus conquered Antalya in 1361, the then Alaiye Bey sent ships by sea to Antalya Bey Mahmut in 1364 so that he could return to his old days. He even made an agreement with other Turkish Beys and sent the fleet of the Alaiye Beylik to Cyprus. Undoubtedly, this fleet was being built in the shipyard, and again in those days, there were good ship masters in Alaiye. New ships were being built and old ones were being caulked. Today, it is abandoned to solitude, struggling with natural conditions and trying to stand with its old glory. Our idea on this issue is that this beautiful work should be organized by the relevant institutions as soon as possible and turned into a maritime museum, for example.