Selçuk District, known for its historical and cultural significance and hosting many civilizations due to its geographical location, natural structure, and geopolitical importance, is located 74 km south of İzmir. In the ancient period, the region, originally named Ephesus, became known as Ayasuluk as settlements shifted to the Ayasuluk location. During the Turkish and Ottoman rule between 1390-1914, it was named Selçuk, then known as Akıncılar between 1922-1943, and reverted to Selçuk again after becoming a municipality in 1943. Selçuk district is home to numerous historical mosques, masjids, aqueducts, cisterns, baths, mausoleums, and soup kitchens, scattered throughout the area.
A study conducted on approximately 150 individuals with diverse demographic backgrounds living in Selçuk to explore the urban memory of Selçuk revealed that historical artifacts are the most reflected urban elements in the minds of people in Selçuk, with 34.2% (Görgenli, Karakuş, Umuroğlu, and Ömüriş, 2013, p.59).
During the reign of the Aydınoğulları Principality, the capital of Selçuk between 1348-1390, intense construction activities were carried out, and magnificent structures such as the İsa Bey Mosque and the İsa Bey Bath were built. The İsa Bey Mosque, built in 1375, with its plan close to a square and dimensions of 51×57 meters, has a similar plan scheme to the plans of the Damascus Umayyad Mosque, Harran, and Diyarbakır Grand Mosques (TC İzmir Valiliği İl Kültür Müdürlüğü, 2001, p.24). The İsa Bey Bath, located west of Ayasuluk Hill and built in 1364 according to its inscription, has well-preserved warm and hot sections and features an advanced plan. The dressing room, warm room, hot room, and furnace sections of the bath, with its niches on the side and a star-shaped marble basin, have survived to the present day, and the two column bases in the dressing room have been erected. The central plan hot section, with vaulted iwans on all four sides and corner chambers, is covered by a large dome (p.43).
