The tomb of Osman Baba

Overview

Teketo is a village in southern Bulgaria. It is located in Haskovo municipality, Haskovo district. The village is located 14 km from Haskovo on the road to the town of Kardzhali, near the village of Trakiets. In the past, the village was called Otman Baba Tekesi, after the Osman Baba Teke located in it - Alevi Bektashi Teke (dervish monastery) with the tomb (mausoleum) of Osman (Otman) Baba. In 1934, this name was changed to Teketo.

In 1985 the village of Teketo had 371 inhabitants.
In the village of Teketo there is a tomb in which the tomb of the Alevi saint Osman Baba (1389 - 1478) is located. It was built around 1507, during the reign of Sultan Bayezid II (1481-1512). The turbe is a heptagonal stone building with a rectangular vestibule. It has a height of 11 m and a dome diameter of 7.2 m and is built of squares (pre-treated blocks) of white sandstone, with a marble portal. According to Evliya Chelebi, in the 17th century the turbe was in the center of a larger cult complex (teke), which is not preserved today.

In 1970 it was declared a cultural monument of local importance, and in 1976 it was restored. In 1993, the interior of the turbe was decorated with murals painted by Alexander Terziev, an amateur artist from Haskovo.

On the feast of Saint Otman Baba, the traditional mae (a kind of fair) is organized near the tekke. But pilgrims from all over the world come to the village of Teketo to pray and make a sacrifice for health, for wishes to come true, for happy moments or for cleansing from past bad cases. Friends, relatives, neighbors who happen to come to the holy place, and other people are invited to the sacrifice. The tradition is not to take anything from the holy place, but only to bring it. All gifts remain for the tekke. That is why the tomb of Otman Baba in the central hall of the tekke is always full of gifts.