BINBIRKILISA (Bin bir kılısä, «A Thousand and One Churches»). — Thus are designated the ruins of an ancient Byzantine city in Lycaonia (Asia Minor), characterized by a large number of churches. The desert area on which it stands, at the foot of the Kara Dagh, was first visited by L. de Laborde, then by H. Holtzmann, J. Smirnov, J. W. Crowfoot, J. A. Wilson, W. M. Ramsay, and G. L. Bell, who studied its monuments.
Originally, B. must have been a typical provincial city of the early Byzantine period, and an attempt has been made to identify it with Barata. The abundance of sacred buildings, liturgically oriented, reveals the city as an important religious center.
In fact, about fifty churches have been identified; the oldest date back to the 5th century. These are grouped in the lower city (where 28 were counted); the others stand on the nearby plateau, where, after the Arab invasion at the end of the 7th century, the new fortified city was established. Many of the older churches appear to have been restored in the 9th century, when a new period of relative prosperity began. The typological features of these buildings do not differ from those of nearby cities (e.g., Daouleh). They are constructions in ashlar stone, mostly covered with vaults. A common feature is the adoption of a three-aisled basilican plan, divided by pillars, with a single apse and narthexes flanked by side chambers; barrel vaults are often reinforced by transverse arches. The dimensions of the buildings are generally quite modest, with the exception of one basilica that stands out in this regard.
In addition to basilican structures, there are churches with a single nave and a transept arranged in a Tau cross, cruciform buildings with domes, and some examples of churches with polygonal plans.
The modest nature of the construction is reflected in the decoration, which is poor and sparse; in the monuments of B., the horseshoe arch is sometimes noted, and it is possible to discern Syrian and Armenian architectural influences there.