Problem: Dating, function and founder of the SW entrance in Rabʿ-e Rashidi seems problematic: is it from the 14th CE or the 15th-17th CE? Is its purpose as a fortification gate or a civil entry? The abductive hypothesis of the authors explains this structure as the gate to the fort of Rashidiyya built by the order of Ottoman Jafar Pasha Frenk during the Roman Gap of Tabriz.
Objectivity: Rabʿ-e Rashidi has three periods of occupation during the 14th-17th CE. The recognition of function and dating of their architectural periods are effective on plannings of restoration & tourism.
Methodology: The structure of SW entrance was surveyed, documented and its plan and roleve were drawn by the methods of field archaeology and a quadcopter. Historically, then after, six first-hand resources from the 16th-17th CE on the fort of Rashidiyya and the Roman Gap of Tabriz were studied: History of Osman Paşa (1585) Shajāaʿtnāma (1585) Tabriziyya (1585) Campagne Histories of Sultan Murad III (1587) Histoire des Kourdes (1597) and Aʿlamārā-ye Aʿbbāsī (1632).
Conclusion: The stitching of the SW entrance to the structure of the rampart of Rashidiyya as well as similarity of its building materials and manner with the southern outwork indicate that it was built by the Ottoman Jafar Pasha Frenk during the Roman Gap of Tabriz. Only the brick and mud parts of the rampart are remnants of that quick repairs carried out by the Great Shah Abbas Safavid in the spring of 1610. The simple structure of the vestibule behind the bastions also explains that it had a ceremonial function and a public entrance as well.