Monastery architecture in Mardin province and districts

Tur Abdin Region, which has hosted many civilizations with regards to its location, is a region rich in monasteries and churches of Christian architecture. Tur Abdin Region which was venerated by Assyrians, has monasteries where the teachings of the Christian doctrine and the Assyrian church liturgy maintain today. The monasteries that constitute the subject of our research can be included in the borders of Tur Abdin Region of which center is commonly accepted as Midyat. These immovable cultural assets of Assyrian Orthodox architecture could show that this region had become the center of religion as of the early periods of Christianity. Some of the monasteries built in Mardin Province and its districts could be considered as important cultural heritage sites that still exist today. Even though it is known that some researches on Assyrian religious architecture were conducted, we observe that the monasteries in the region along with the other monastic settlements in the neighboring art regions are not comprehensively evaluated in terms of the plan and architectural features. The monasteries discussed within the scope of our thesis titled "Cistercian Architecture in Mardin Province and its districts", were divided into two groups according to their distances to residential areas and the shape of the structures they incorporate. Right along with the plan and architectural features, monasteries were evaluated in terms of the materials and decoration program used. As a result of the researches conducted, it is observed that Tur Abdin Region, where the monasteries that constitute our research area, is involved in an interaction with neighboring art circles and developed a unique architectural style. We can state that the religious architectural elements in the monasteries examined have taken shape around the Assyrian church tradition and a liturgy accordant with this tradition.