The Karacaoğlu Neighborhood Bathhouse is the ruins of a structure whose exact date of construction is unknown; it is believed to date back to the Roman or Byzantine periods due to its location in the Battalgazi area of the Old City. It is situated on privately owned land registered as parcel 20, block 4874, on Marmara Street in the Karacaoğlu Neighborhood, Melikgazi District, Kayseri Province.
The architectural remains, which extend in an east-west direction, measure approximately 10 × 8 m. The load-bearing walls are constructed of rubble stone. The central space is arranged longitudinally and covered by a vault. Small rooms measuring 2 × 1.5 m, each with arched entrances, are arranged around this space. A thick layer of soot is present on the plaster covering the ceilings of these small rooms. The arrangement of the rooms around the central space, the absence of window openings, and the thick layer of soot suggest that the structure is a bathhouse.
Due to environmental factors, the structure has suffered extensive damage, and a large portion of the front facade’s entrance section has collapsed. Because the rooms are filled with excavation soil and part of the structure has collapsed, the floor plan cannot be fully determined. In illegal excavation pit No. 1, opened 4 m east of the main structure’s remains, the remains of a wall built using the same material were discovered. These wall remains indicate that the structure may have been part of a larger complex or that a building complex may have been constructed in the area.
The building remains were identified by experts from the Museum Directorate. The matter of registering the remains as a cultural asset requiring protection was submitted to the Council via a letter dated February 8, 2019, and numbered 121089, from the Museum Directorate of the Kayseri Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism. The filling of the illegal excavation pits in the area was addressed in a letter dated February 13, 2019, and numbered 131095, from the Kayseri Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism. The letter dated February 13, 2019, and numbered 9581 from the Urban Design Directorate of the Melikgazi Municipality, the Kayseri Governor’s Office Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism’s letter dated February 13, 2019, No. 133843, and the Kayseri Governor’s Office Investment Monitoring and Coordination Directorate’s2019, No. 4033, as well as the rapporteur’s file review report dated April 15, 2019, No. 178699, were reviewed by the Board.
Since the architectural remains possess characteristics falling under Article 6 of Law No. 2863, it was deemed appropriate to register them as an immovable cultural asset requiring protection. The registration form attached to the decision was approved, and the protection area was defined as parcel 20 on plot 4874, where the structure is located. The property was classified as Group I.
In accordance with the Regulation on the Identification and Registration of Immovable Cultural Assets and Sites Requiring Protection, published in the Official Gazette No. 28232 dated March 13, 2012, the notation “Group I Group Immovable Cultural Asset Requiring Protection” by the relevant Land Registry and Cadastre Directorates, and that information and documents regarding the outcome of the proceedings be forwarded to the Board Directorate. It has been ruled that no physical or construction-related activities, including subdivision, consolidation, or zoning applications, may be carried out on the registered property or within the protected area without prior authorization.
According to the Museum Directorate’s report, legal proceedings have been initiated against those who violated Law No. 2863 due to illegal excavations on the building ruins. For this reason, the Regional Council Directorate deemed it unnecessary to initiate new legal proceedings. It was decided that the illegal excavation pits, which were determined not to pose a threat to life or property, would be filled in by local authorities under the supervision of the relevant Museum Directorate after obtaining the approval of judicial authorities.