A late middle age structure in Elazig: Khule Surp Kevork Church restoration proposal

Armenians, who have had an important place in the population and ethnic structure of Elazig province throughout history, have left many cultural and architectural legacies to the city, but over time they have not been able to maintain their presence in the region and their population has decreased almost to extinction. The Khule Surp Kevork Church, one of the legacies left by the Armenians, which is known to be included in the settlement plan of the Khule Vank Monastery, was examined within the scope of this thesis. Within the scope of the thesis, the location, history and architectural features of the church are discussed. The church is located in the Şahinkaya Neighborhood, I. K42-D-09-A-1-D sheet, located within the Degree Archaeological Site, is located on parcel No. 106 of 200 islands. there is a water tank, two pools and two wells in the 74.439 m2 parcel apart from the church structure today. There is one registered pool and fountain located outside the boundaries of the parcel where the structure is located. The church has an important place due to its use as a religious and cultural center and was registered by TKTVYK on 13.02.1986. The church, which is experiencing partial destruction today, has been subjected to natural and human-caused destruction and is facing extinction. In the thesis study, one of the qualitative research techniques; literature search, observation and document analysis were determined as methods. The aim of the thesis is to provide the transfer of the structure to future generations by preparing the renovation, restitution and restoration projects as a result of a detailed examination of the current state of the church. In the preparation of the restitution project, analogic research data, historical images of the structure, residual traces on the structure were taken as a basis. Taking into account the existing traces, a new function proposal with flexible use has been introduced to the structure. The proposal, which was created with a holistic conservation approach, was evaluated in the restoration project by protecting the registered pool and fountain. In the conclusion section of the thesis, it is explained that the church will contribute to creating public protection awareness in the region by ensuring its protection and safe transfer to the future.