Layers of Cultural Heritage: An Analytical Framework for the Darüşşifa (Hospital) of the Sultan Bayezid II Complex

Cultural heritage buildings transmit the social, cultural, and functional characteristics of past societies through the built environment. Among them, Darüşşifa, established as healthcare and healing institutions, reflect the medical understanding and spatial approaches of their period. This study examines the Darüşşifa of the Sultan Bayezid II Complex in Edirne through an analytical framework structured around three interconnected layers of cultural heritage: historical context, functional organization, and spatial configuration. Using a qualitative case-study approach, literature, historical documents, visual sources, architectural plans, and existing-condition data are analyzed to investigate how the original healing function shaped the building’s spatial organization and heritage significance. The framework addresses historical development and position within the complex, the distribution and relationships of healthcare spaces, and spatial hierarchy, circulation, connections, and transitions between open, semi-open, and enclosed spaces. The study argues that heritage significance depends on physical preservation and the legibility and continuity of spatial relationships shaped by original functions.