city, central Turkey. It lies along a tributary of the Kızıl River at an elevation of 3,248 feet (990 metres). It may have been Justinianopolis (Mocissus), which, under the 6th-century Byzantine emperor Justinian, was a major town in the ancient district of Cappadocia. From the 14th to 18th century, Kırşehir was the stronghold of the influential Ahi brotherhood, a religious fraternity developed by the 14th-century leader Ahi Avran out of a medieval craftsmen's guild. The Cacabey Cami, a 12th-century Seljuq observatory converted into a mosque, the Alâeddin Cami (13th century), and the mausoleum of the poet Aşık Paşa are all standing. Kırşehir is linked by road with Ankara (90 miles 【145 km】 northwest) and Nevşehir (46 miles 【74 km】 southeast). Pop. (2000) 88,105.