The Ashab al-Kahf (Seven Sleepers) are the righteous youths described in the Qur'an (Surah al-Kahf) who took refuge in a cave to protect their faith from a pagan ruler's persecution, were made to sleep for years, and then awakened. The Eshab-ı Kehf Complex, built beside the cave on Bencilus hill about 7 km from the Afşin district of Kahramanmaraş, is one of the principal sites of pilgrimage associated with this story. The complex contains structures from the Byzantine (446 CE church), Seljuk (1215-1234, mosque and caravanserai by Nusretüddin Hasan Bey), Dulkadirid (madrasa and women's mosque) and Ottoman periods. It was added to UNESCO's World Heritage Tentative List in 2015. (Sources: TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi 'Ashâbü'l-Kehf'; Kültür Portalı; UNESCO Tentative List No. 6037.)