Gözne Castle
Gözne Castle is a castle ruin in Mersin province. The castle is on the southern slopes of the Taurus Mountains. It is in the south of Gözne town, which is the plateau of Mersin, and is within walking distance of the town. Its distance to Mersin is about 30 kilometers. The surroundings of the castle were arranged. Ruins consists of two buildings with relatively little damage. The rectangular structure in the east has four bastions. The entrance gate is on the west. It is covered with pointed arched vaults. There are five ventilation and light holes. The hexagonal structure in the west has three windows and two doors. The ceiling is divided in two by an arch surrounding the roof. It is understood from the construction technique that this castle was built during the period of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia. It is thought that the castle was one of the small castles built for the purpose of road control and served under the large Çandır Castle in the north. Gözne Castle was built in two parts and these two structures have different hexagonal forms. In this respect, it is considered that it may have a different function than a police station or watchtower. The presence of ornaments on the vaulted stones inside the hexagonal space indicates that this part of the castle may have been used by high-ranking people or administrators.
