Sokullu Mehmet Paşa Hammam

Sokollu Mehmed Paşa Hamamı is a historic Turkish bath located in the district of Lüleburgaz, south of Kırklareli. The building, constructed as a double bath, is currently used as the Lüleburgaz District Municipality Council building.

History

The patron of the bath within the Sokollu Mehmed Paşa Complex in Lüleburgaz is Sokollu Mehmed Paşa and the architect is Mimar Sinan. Since the building has no foundation inscription, the inscription above the caravanserai that is part of the complex has been taken as the construction date. According to this inscription, the complex was built in AD 1569/1570, and it is thought that the bath was built in the same years.

The structure, which was used for a time as a warehouse of a transport company and was in a ruined state, was repaired in 2013.

Architecture

Sokollu Mehmed Paşa Hamamı is a rectangular-plan building constructed as a double bath oriented east‑west. The women's section is in the east, the men's section in the west. The bath consists of three parts: a changing room, a cold room, and a hot room. Cut stone was used in the load‑bearing walls; the domes are made of brick and covered with lead.

Men's section

It is located on the western façade of the double bath. The vaulted sections on this façade are covered and used as shops. The entrance is in the vaulted section that is the third in the north‑south row of shops. The square-plan changing room is entered through a low arched entrance door. This space, which is topped by a dome, uses pointed arched ribbed trompes as the transition element to the dome.

From the changing room, a square‑plan warm room is entered through a pointed‑arched door, and in these rooms, which have a dome as a ceiling, pendants are placed as transition elements to the dome. For the illumination of the warm room, 15 round oil‑lamp eyes are placed on two domes.

From the cold room, one passes to the hexagonal‑plan hot room covered with a dome. The illumination of the central part of the hot room is provided by 30 oil‑lamp eyes on its dome and three oil‑lamp eyes placed in each iwan. In addition, one bright lantern is placed on the dome.

The dome of the men's section, which was completely collapsed, was rebuilt with the 2013 repairs.

Women’s Section

It is located on the east façade of the double bath. Architecturally it shows the same features as the men's section. Unlike the men's section, there is a pool in the middle of the cold part, and the steam and shaving areas are located east of the warm part.

On the south façade of the bath there are rectangular‑plan water tank and ash‑storage sections.

Restoration

As stated on the information board in front of the entrance gate, between 18.04.2013 and 18.06.2014, within the “Protection of Cultural and Historical Heritage” project jointly carried out by the Municipality of Lyubimets, Bulgaria and the District Municipality of Lüleburgaz, Kırklareli, Turkey, it was restored and began to be used as the Lüleburgaz District Municipality Council building.