Abstract:

Tarsus is one of the oldest settlement areas which was established in the eastern part of Çukurova and which has kept its location so far Tarsus revealed to have been a developed city since ancient times by means of historical resources and archeological excavations has been hosting both eastern and western culture besides local Anatolian culture throughout the historical process with its geographical location In the city there are plenty of historical works of art and buildings having the mentioned cultures’ characteristics One of the buildings in Tarsus is a historical bath mentioned as “Old Bath” in resources and a heritage left from Roman Period The bath reconstructed by Ramazanoğulları and restored many times is known as “Şahmeran Bath” by the local people and legends about the Tarsus ruler of that period and the commander of the snakes whose upper part was a human and the lower part was a snake have been told In this study three legends being told in the region about the abovementioned bath and the origin of the mythological creature in the legends and also the influence of these legends on people with the aspect of believing have been mentioned In addition introducing the cultural values of Tarsus both in and around the city and around Turkey more widely the answers of the question how these narratings can be useful to create a culture tourism have been researched Key Words : Şahmeran Şahmeran legends Tarsus Mersin folk culture culture tourism

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