Cave of Eshab-i Kehf
Eshab-ı Kehf Cave, also known as the Cave of Ashab-ı Kehf or the Cave of the Seven Sleepers, is a show cave located in the north of Tarsus. Mersin Province, a district in Turkey. The cave took its name from the Persian (Ashāb-i Kahf) word itself, from the Arabic word "aṣḥāb al kahf", "cave people" for the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus, a Christian and Islamic belief. The cave is about 14 kilometers from Tarsus and about 40 kilometers from Mersin. It is at the foot of a small hill. The cave is small, it cannot be compared with other caves in the province. However, it is famous for being the cave of the Seven Sleepers. The exact location of the Seven Sleepers cave is not known, and there are many places in Turkey that claim to be the Seven Sleepers cave. Next to the cave, there is a mosque built by the Ottoman Sultan Abdulaziz (1861-1876) and built in 1873. The tall minaret of the mosque with three balconies was added later.
