# Koza Han

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Caravanserai in Bursa, Turkey

Koza Han The courtyard of the han, with the mescit (small mosque) at its center Interactive map of the Koza Han area General information Type Caravanserai Architectural style Ottoman Location Bursa, Turkey Coordinates 40°11′3.6″N 29°03′48.7″E / 40.184333°N 29.063528°E / 40.184333; 29.063528 Construction started 1490 Completed 1491 Technical details Material stone, brick Floor count 2 UNESCO World Heritage Site Part of Bursa and Cumalıkızık: the Birth of the Ottoman Empire Criteria Cultural: (i), (ii), (iv), (vi) Reference 1452-001 Inscription 2014 (38th Session)

The **Koza Han** ([Turkish](/source/Turkish_language): *Koza Hanı*, [lit.](/source/Literal_translation) 'inn of the silk cocoon') is a historic [caravanserai](/source/Caravanserai) (*han*) in [Bursa](/source/Bursa), [Turkey](/source/Turkey). It is located in the heart of the city's historic market district.

## History

The entrance portal of the *han*

Bursa, the first capital of the [Ottoman Empire](/source/Ottoman_Empire), was also its center of [silk](/source/Silk) production and trade. Particularly in the 14th to 16th centuries, a large number of commercial structures such as *han*s (caravanserais), [bazaars](/source/Bazaar) (covered markets), and a *[bedesten](/source/Bedesten)* were built in the city center, forming a major zone of economic activity.[1] (At least 13 of these structures have survived today despite numerous earthquakes.[1]) It is here, next to the old [Orhan Gazi Mosque](/source/Orhan_Gazi_Mosque), that Sultan [Bayezid II](/source/Bayezid_II) ordered the construction of the Koza Han in February or March of 1490.[2] The architect was a man named Abdul Ula Bin Pulad Shah,[3] and the building opened in September 1491.[2] Through the *[waqf](/source/Waqf)* system, the revenues of the *han* were earmarked to finance the upkeep of [Bayezid's mosque complex](/source/Bayezid_II_Mosque%2C_Istanbul) in Istanbul.[4][2]

The vaulted corridor around the courtyard of the *han*

As a caravanserai, the *han* provided lodging for foreign merchants, storage for their animals and goods, housing for the workshops of craftsmen, and/or offices for conducting business.[5] The Koza Han was one of the largest and most important examples in Bursa. In the early 16th century the commercial agent of the [Medicis](/source/House_of_Medici) of [Florence](/source/Florence) had his office in this building.[1] It continued to be a center of silk trade throughout its history, with expensive silk shops still present in the building today, although the industry is no longer as prominent as it once was.[3][6][7] In addition to silk textiles, its trade also included the production and sale of silk [cocoons](/source/Pupa) themselves (hence its name).[3][1] The *han* has also undergone numerous restorations and repairs, including in 1630, 1671 and 1784.[3] The small mosque at its center was most recently restored in 1946 and in 2007.[3] [Queen Elizabeth II](/source/Elizabeth_II) visited the *han* in the company of Turkish President [Abdullah Gül](/source/Abdullah_G%C3%BCl) in 2008.[3] Today the *han* also contains cafés and tea gardens.[3]

## Architecture

The *han* is built in alternating layers of brick and stone, which forms part of the decorative visual effect of its exterior.[1][2] Like most typical caravanserais, it has a rectangular floor plan with a large central courtyard measuring 45.9 by 37.5 metres. Around the courtyard runs a two-story gallery that gives access to small vaulted rooms that ring the complex.[2][4] The ground floor contains 50 rooms and the upper floor has 54 rooms.[2] At the center of the courtyard is a small octagonal stone mosque or prayer room (*mescit*) which is raised above the ground on 8 pillars and reached by a marble staircase.[2] The reason for this elevation was to make sure the mosque was not soiled by [pack animals](/source/Pack_animal) which were kept by merchants on the ground floor.[4] Under the mosque, at ground level, is a fountain and washing area for ritual [ablutions](/source/Wudu). The *han* is entered via a monumental stone and brick portal that projects from the rest of the building's façade. The portal is decorated with a spiral moulding along its edges, as well as with geometric patterns made of inset coloured [tile](/source/Tile) on the [spandrels](/source/Spandrel) above the archway.[2]

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:04_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:04_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:04_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:04_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:04_1-4) Köprülü Bağbancı, Özlem (2012). ["Commerce in the Emerging Empire: Formation of the Ottoman Trade Center in Bursa"](https://books.google.com/books?id=QnkWywAACAAJ&pg=PP1). In Gharipour, Mohammad (ed.). *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. Oxford University Press. pp. 97–114. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9789774165290](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9789774165290).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:0_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:0_2-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:0_2-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-:0_2-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-:0_2-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-:0_2-7) Demiralp, Yekta. ["Koza Han"](http://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;isl;tr;mon01;15;en). *Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers*. Retrieved 2020-06-24.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:1_3-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:1_3-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:1_3-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-:1_3-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-:1_3-6) ["Bursa's Ottoman-era Koza Han maintaining 500-year-old draw"](https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/bursas-ottoman-era-koza-han-maintaining-500-year-old-draw-17291). *Hürriyet Daily News*. Retrieved 2020-06-24.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:2_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:2_4-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:2_4-2) ["Koza Hanı | Archnet"](https://archnet.org/sites/2759/). *archnet.org*. Retrieved 2020-06-24.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:02_5-0)** Duranti, Andrea (2012). ["A Caravanserai on the Route to Modernity: The Case of the Valide Han of Istanbul"](https://books.google.com/books?id=44vnCwAAQBAJ&dq=A+Caravanserai+on+the+Route+to+Modernity%3A+The+Case+of+the+Valide+Han+of+Istanbul&pg=PA229). In Gharipour, Mohammad (ed.). *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. Oxford University Press. pp. 229–250. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9789774165290](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9789774165290).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Koza Han | Bursa, Turkey Attractions"](https://www.lonelyplanet.com/turkey/bursa/attractions/koza-han/a/poi-sig/474338/360872). *Lonely Planet*. Retrieved 2020-06-24.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Bursa's Koza Han: A center for silk trade"](https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/bursas-koza-han-a-center-for-silk-trade-19158). *Hürriyet Daily News*. Retrieved 2020-06-24.

## External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Koza Han](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Koza_Han).

- [Kozahan official site](http://www.kozahan.org/) (in Turkish; includes galleries of pictures)

v t e Caravanserais in Turkey Ağzıkara Han Büyük Valide Han Büyük Yeni Han Caravanserai of Zor Ekmekcioğlu Caravanserai Hafsa Sultan Caravanserai Hasan Pasha Han (Diyarbakır) Koza Han Kürkçü Han Öküz Mehmed Pasha Caravanserai Öküz Mehmet Pasha Complex Rüstem Pasha Caravanserai (Edirne) Rüstem Pasha Caravanserai (Ereğli) Rüstem Pasha Caravanserai (Erzurum) Sokollu Mehmet Pasha caravanserai Sultan Han (Aksaray Province) Sultan Han (Kayseri Province) Suluhan Turkey portal Category

v t e Ottoman architecture Historical stages Early Ottoman architecture Classical Ottoman architecture Tulip Period architecture Ottoman Baroque architecture Ottoman architecture in the 19th–20th centuries First national architectural movement (See also: Ottoman decoration) Other regional styles Algeria Bosnia and Herzegovina Cyprus Egypt Palestine Serbia Tunisia Mosques Istanbul Altunizade Mosque Atik Valide Mosque Ayazma Mosque Bayezid II Mosque Beylerbeyi Mosque Büyükdere Kara Mehmet Kethüda Mosque Çinili Mosque Dolmabahçe Mosque Eyüp Sultan Mosque Fatih Mosque Gazi Atik Ali Pasha Mosque Haseki Sultan Mosque Hırka-i Şerif Mosque Laleli Mosque Mahmut Pasha Mosque Mesih Mehmed Pasha Mosque Mihrimah Sultan Mosque (Edirnekapı) Mihrimah Sultan Mosque (Üsküdar) Muradiye Complex Murat Pasha Mosque Nışançı Mehmed Pasha Mosque Nuruosmaniye Mosque Ortaköy Mosque Piyale Pasha Mosque Şehzade Mosque Selimiye Mosque Sokollu Mehmed Pasha Mosque (Azapkapı) Sokollu Mehmed Pasha Mosque (Büyükçekmece) Sokollu Mehmed Pasha Mosque (Kadırga) Sultanahmet Mosque Süleymaniye Mosque Vasat Atik Ali Pasha Mosque Yavuz Selim Mosque Yeni Valide Mosque (Eminönü) Yeni Valide Mosque (Üsküdar) Yıldız Hamidiye Mosque Other cities Ali Pasha Mosque Bajrakli Mosque Bayezid I Mosque Behram Pasha Mosque Bursa Grand Mosque Çapanoğlu Mosque Dzhumaya Mosque Emir Sultan Mosque Esmahan Sultan Mosque Evliya Kasim Pasha Mosque Ferhadija Mosque Ferhat Pasha Mosque (Banja Luka) Ferhat Pasha Mosque (Sarajevo) Fethiye Mosque (Athens) Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque Green Mosque of Bursa (Yeşil Mosque) Green Mosque of İznik Hadum Mosque Haji Özbek Mosque Hüdavendigar Mosque Ibrahim Pasha Mosque İzzet Mehmet Pasha Mosque Juma-Jami Mosque Karađoz Bey Mosque Kasım Pasha Mosque Muradiye Complex (Bursa) Muradiye Mosque (Edirne) Murat Pasha Mosque Old Mosque of Edirne Orhan Gazi Mosque Osman Shah Mosque Selimiye Mosque Sinan Pasha Mosque (Prizren) Sokollu Mehmed Pasha Mosque (Lüleburgaz) Sulayman Pasha Mosque Suleymaniye Mosque Tombul Mosque Tzistarakis Mosque Üç Şerefeli Mosque Veled-i Yaniç Mosque Yakovalı Hasan Paşa Mosque Madrasas Büyük Aga Medrese Caferağa Medrese Medrese of Mehmet Şakir Paşa Rüstem Pasha Medrese Türbes (tombs) Green Tomb (Yeşil Türbe) Tomb of Abdul Hamid I Tomb of Hayreddin Barbarossa Tomb of Turhan Sultan Caravanserais Büyük Han Büyük Valide Han Büyük Yeni Han Hafsa Sultan Caravanserai Kapan Han Khan al-Umdan Khan As'ad Pasha Koza Han Kürkçü Han Öküz Mehmed Pasha Caravanserai Rüstem Pasha Caravanserai (Edirne) Rüstem Pasha Caravanserai (Ereğli) Rüstem Pasha Caravanserai (Erzurum) Sokollu Mehmet Pasha Caravanserai Hospitals Complex of Sultan Bayezid II Bridges Arslanagić Bridge Mostar Bridge Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge Uzunköprü Bridge Fortifications Ajyad Fortress Anadoluhisarı Depedogen Castle of Kars Kilitbahir Castle Rumelihisarı Yedikule Fortress Kalemegdan Yeni-Kale Palaces Azm Palace Beylerbeyi Palace Çırağan Palace Dolmabahçe Palace Eski Saray Grand Serail Hatice Sultan Palace Ishak Pasha Palace Topkapi Palace Yıldız Palace Clock towers Büyük Saat Dolmabahçe Clock Tower Etfal Hospital Clock Tower İzmir Clock Tower İzmit Clock Tower Jaffa Clock Tower Nusretiye Clock Tower Yıldız Clock Tower Fountains Fountain of Ahmed III Fountain of Ahmed III (Üsküdar) Tophane Fountain Sultan Mahmut Fountain Hammams Bayezid II Hamam Bey Hamam Büyük Hamam Cağaloğlu Hamam Čifte Hammam Davud Pasha Hamam Çemberlitaş Hamam Hürrem Sultan Hamam Király Baths Mahmut Pasha Hamam Ömeriye Baths Süleymaniye Hamam Tahtakale Hamam Rudas Baths other monuments Köprülü Library Mihrişah Sultan Complex Nilüfer Hatun Imareti Imaret (Kavala)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Koza Han](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koza_Han) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koza_Han?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.