Külliye in time: the Ottoman complex in Medgidia between recovery and reinvention

Authors’ Comment

Islamic architecture, over time, has introduced a series of remarkable examples of specific functional structures. One of these is the Külliye, a socio-architectural complex that brings together various functional units, planned and constructed in a single location. At its core, such complexes aimed to accelerate urban development in newly integrated territories and to respond to the needs of the community they served, generating a civic nucleus around which the city would grow.
An example of this urban model can also be found in Dobrogea, in the historic heart of Medgidia – a city with deep roots in the region’s history and a multicultural context shaped by the presence of the Turkish-Tatar community. At present, this community has lost its spiritual and educational core that once defined its identity: the medrese – the Muslim seminary, and the hamam – the Turkish bath. This project recovers that identity and promotes local culture by transforming the site into a community center dedicated to them, reconfiguring the original function of the külliye as a space for gathering, education, reflection, and social cohesion.
The design is built around a central theme: the dialogue between absence and presence. The ruins of the medrese are preserved as visible traces, while the newly formed courtyard becomes an active component of the spatial discourse — the symbolic heart of a new ensemble constructed around the idea of enclosure. The architectural intervention completes the site by reconnecting it to the functional spirit of the külliye, allowing the new construction to carry the weight of absence through its very form.
The site is revealed as a palimpsest of stratified memory, with each layer of history allowed to breathe through the new forms. The project takes advantage of the site’s topographical variation to connect adjacent streets with the level of the historical structures, transforming the terrain into a deliberate architectural gesture. Inspired by how külliye complexes traditionally integrated natural topography, the intervention proposes an urban platform at street level that functions as an upper plaza and entry forecourt to the complex. This platform aligns with the city’s circulation and draws pedestrians in from the street, becoming a new urban terrace overlooking the site. From there, the design creates a fluid transition down to the lower level of the historic ensemble.
The reactivation of the hamam, the only preserved presence on the site, draws back pedestrian flow and reconnects the area to the urban fabric, transforming it into a destination of public interest. The reinterpreted courtyard becomes a new civic space, open to the city and fostering urban cohesion. This spatial reorganization defines the rhythm and orientation of the entire complex, enhancing the visibility and accessibility of the hamam, while establishing a coherent framework for preserving the site’s memory. At a social level, the inclusion of spaces with cultural and community functions completes this new külliye, providing a setting for daily social interaction and ensuring the continuity of the site's public use.
The külliye is reactivated as a living model of cohesion, belonging, and community reconnection. The new intervention extends from the hamam, developing in the form of two architectural rings. The peripheral ring functions as a servant space, also accommodating more intimate areas, while the inner ring acts as a transitional layer that opens up visual and experiential connections to the medrese and hamam, reinforcing their symbolic presence. In this way, the historical object and the new intervention interweave into a coherent, regenerated ensemble that keeps the memory of the place alive and returns to the community a space for urban cohesion.