Restoration work will begin next year at a Genoese castle, which is on UNESCO’s Temporary World Heritage List, in the Turkish Black Sea province of Düzce, officials have said.Akcakoca Genoese Castle [Credit: abozdemir/duzce]
The Culture and Tourism Ministry commenced a project to renovate and reanimate the original appearance of the ancient castle, which was built by the Genoese people 800 years ago, said Cüneyt Yemenici, the mayor of Akçakoca in Düzce.
“There will be bidding until the first half of 2016 for the restoration project. The tools necessary for the renovation have been determined,” said Yemenici.
Expecting the castle to reopen for touristic purposes in the summer of 2017, Yemenici indicated their communication and collaboration with the Culture and Tourism Ministry would continue.
Turkey’s Cultural and Natural Heritage Preservation Board has refused to declare a plot of land in Istanbul’s Silivri district as a first-degree archaeological site despite the discovery of artifacts from the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine eras. Now, the artifacts face an even greater threat as a wind-power company has indicated that it wants to cover the findings and continue constructing 21 wind turbines.
Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine era tombs were discovered during the construction of a wind power plant in Silivri, but the Cultural and Natural Heritage Preservation Board has not declared the area a first-degree archaeological site [Credit: Hurriyet]
Historical artifacts were discovered during the construction of Silivri Energy A.Ş.’s wind power plant belonging to businessman Abdullah Tivnikli in the village last February.
Among the artifacts were many Hellenistic- and Roman-era tombs and one-meter walls. After the protection board failed to declare the area a first-degree archaeological site, the company reportedly suggested to the board: “We cannot protect the field against treasure hunters. Let’s pour concrete on it and build wind turbines on it.”
The suggestion provoked a heated discussion on the preservation board, with only Dr. Aslıhan Yurtsever Beyazıt speaking out against the proposal. While other members recommended documenting the findings before pouring concrete on the site, Beyazıt demanded examinations at the site, but no investigation has yet been conducted.
On June 15, 2011, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality made amendments to its master plan for the construction of the wind power plant close to Silivri’s Fener, Kurfallı and Akören villages. The amendment was approved by the Istanbul Municipal Council in 2012.
A decision was subsequently made to build 21 52.5 MW turbines on an area of 440,000 square meters. The company started the construction last year, while the archaeological artifacts were found on the land of two turbines at the beginning of this year.
The Istanbul Archaeology Museum was informed about the artifacts, and further excavations by museum officials unearthed valuable architectural remains dating back to the late Byzantine era in the 11th and 12th century A.D.
The presence of many Byzantine-era tombs in the immediate vicinity suggests there could be a monastery in the area, according to officials. “This is a very important development for Thrace and Istanbul archaeology. It should be declared a first-degree archaeological site immediately,” one of the officials said.
“Since brick pieces were not found in the remains of the wall and a roughhewn stone was seen, it might be a Roman-era settlement,” the Istanbul Archaeology Museum said in a statement. “The remains of a structure, which is made up of big block stones, is thought to have been a wall from the Hellenistic era. The area might have been a Hellenistic and Roman settlement because the ceramic pieces around this structure show Hellenistic and Roman-era characteristics. The area might have served as a graveyard in the Byzantine era.”
The 700-year-old arched church in the northwestern province of Bursa’s Mudanya district has been put on sale on the Internet for $1 million, news website T24 has reported.Panagia Pantobasilissa [Credit: ANSA]
The Internet advert on a real estate website said the church’s relief and restitution were approved by the Bursa Council of Monuments. The 13th century church is filed under the top category “building more than 31 years old.”
The real estate agent who placed the ad, Nusret Akyüz, responded angrily to phone calls inquiring about the church.
“We are selling it. We cannot provide information about the owner of the estate. The details are in the ad. Do not make me repeat the same things. You are the 50th person who has called me since yesterday,” said Akyüz.
A document written by a Dr. J. Covel in 1676 states that the church was dedicated to Panagia Pantobasillissa (The Queen of All - Virgin Mary). The church’s dome and bell tower collapsed during an earthquake in 1855 and was restored in 1883.
After Greeks who had lived in the area for centuries emigrated to Trilye in the 20th century in the population exchange between Greece and Turkey, the church passed to private ownership.
This is not the first time news of the sale of historic sites and churches in Turkey has hit headlines.
Previously, an 18th century Greek church in the Central Anatolian province of Kayseri’s Melikgazi district was put onto the market via the Internet in a similar way.
In March, a family living in the Cappadocia region of the Central Anatolian province of Nevşehir’s Derinkuyu district put their house on sale, along with a church and underground passage under the house, for 900,000 Turkish Liras.
The ancient city of Ephesus in western Turkey has been added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List following a vote in Bonn on July 5.Ephesus [Credit: DHA]
The move came just a day after Diyarbakir’s wall and its nearby Hevsel Gardens were added to the list as well.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Permanent Representative of Turkey to UNESCO Hüseyin Avni Botsalı – who headed the Turkish delegation at the session – described the unanimous approval of Ephesus as a great success.
“In fact, we have a great responsibility on our shoulders in terms of cooperation of the international community in this field. We will make significant efforts for the protection of civilizational values and cultural properties,” he added.
Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Ömer Çelik celebrated the development in a series of Twitter posts.
“We have just received the second good news from Germany. Ephesus is now officially on the world heritage [list],” he said.
The minister said Ephesus had always been a key port city, as well as a cultural and commercial center, throughout history.
“A principal city of science, culture and art of its era, Ephesus had been a residential area starting from the pre-historic era and through the Hellenistic, Roman, Eastern Roman periods and also under the Ottoman Empire for about nine millennia without interruption,” he said.
Çelik also said Ephesus, which draws 2 million visitors a year, was a place that the whole world agreed was a site of global cultural heritage.
In a later interview with Anadolu Agency, Çelik noted the threat that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) posed to world heritage in neighboring countries like Syria.
“While a terrorist group called Daesh destroys cities, it is a significant message against this barbarism that Turkey as a Muslim country in the Muslim world managed to put its properties on the world heritage list,” he said, using the Arabic acronym for ISIL.
In May, ISIL militants seized the Roman ruins at the Palmyra World Heritage site in Syria’s Homs Governorate. Last week, members of ISIL destroyed a peerless statue of a lion at the site on the grounds that it is idolatrous, while it has also allegedly conducted executions at the ancient city’s famous theater.
Describing Ephesus, UNESCO said: “The Temple of Artemis, which was considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the World, is situated on the edge of this small town. The city which was situated at the beginning of the Persian Royal Road has survived sufficiently enough to enable us to understand the ancient way of life in Ephesus. It is one of the cities which played an impressive role in the beginnings of Christianity and during the period of its proliferation (St. John Church and the shrine of the Virgin Mary). It contains one of the most spectacular examples of religious architecture of the Seljuk Period.”
Turkey first entered the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1985 with Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia and the Great Mosque and Hospital of Divriği – both in central Turkey – and the historic areas of Istanbul.
The Hittite capital Hattuşa was added to the list in 1986, followed by Mount Nemrut in Adıyaman 1987, and Hierapolis-Pamukkale in Denizli and the ancient city of Xanthos-Letoon between Muğla and Fethiye in 1988.
In 1994, the city of Safranbolu was approved as a world heritage while the archaeological site of Troy was added to the list in 1998. In recent year, Edirne’s Selimiye Mosque and its social complex was added in 2011, as was Konya’s Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük in 2012.
The latest entries in 2014 were Bursa’s Cumalikızık village which witnessed the birth of the Ottoman Empire and İzmir’s ancient city of Pergamon and its multi-layered cultural landscape.
Ankara refused to cooperate with Damascus on returning of ancient artifacts smuggled by the Islamic State (IS) militant group from Syria through Turkey, the head of Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums (DGAM) told Sputnik on Friday.
According to Maamun Abdel Karim, statues, paintings, artifacts and ancient mosaics stolen from Syria have repeatedly been found on sale on the open market in the Turkish city of Gaziantep since the way for stolen in northern Syria ancient values lies through uncontrolled border with Turkey.
"We have appealed to the international community through different organizations so that they would make Turkey help us return these values to Syria. … Turkey has refused to cooperate with us," he said.
The official called on the international community to help Syria not only in returning the values that had already been smuggled to Europe, North America and the Gulf states, but, what is the most important, in ensuring control over the Syrian borders.
The IS militants, controlling large areas across Syria and Iraq, have destroyed numerous ancient historical artifacts and various places of worship, including mosques in addition to Christian churches and other shrines.
In May 2015, the IS captured Syria’s ancient city of Palmyra, a UNESCO World Heritage site, sparking fears it will destroy its ruins.
The ancient city of Ephesus near Selçuk in the Aegean province of İzmir has begun counting down the days until its inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List, with the voting taking place on July 5. Selçuk Mayor Zeynel Bakıcı said they were expecting good news after the vote.
Bakıcı said two different reports regarding Ephesus’ UNESCO candidacy were made by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) at two different times, adding the reports implied they would have a positive result.
Bakıcı said the voting would be held during the 39th World Heritage Committee in Bonn.
“The session will start on July 3 but the agenda is busy. The candidacy of Ephesus is the 38th article of the agenda, the end of the list. It will be voted on July 5 and we are sure that the result will be positive for us,” the mayor said.
He said they would celebrate the result by flying Turkish flags and organizing a celebration program in Selçuk.
Bakıcı said the importance of Ephesus being added to the World Heritage List was perceived very well by local residents, adding, “UNESCO will bring many things to Ephesus. For example, projects on field management will be done immediately. The region will be reorganized. This is what we want.”
He said Ephesus was home to artifacts from the ancient Greek, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman eras. “In broad terms, Ephesus is a wide area including Ayasuluk [Castle], [the ancient temple of] Artemis, [the Basilica of] St. John, Çukuriçi Mound and Pamucak [beach]. The city that we call Ephesus had a population of 200,000 people in the past. Ephesus will be a world heritage [site] with all of its factors,” he said.
The Mosaic of Orpheus, which was unearthed during illegal excavations in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa and smuggled abroad more than 60 years ago, is now back on display in its home, 1,821 years after it was created.After returning from the US, the Mosaic of Orpheus, dated to A.D. 194, was put on display at the Istanbul Archaeology Museum for nearly a year before being returned to Şanlıurfa, and is now back on display in its home, 1,821 years after it was created [Credit: AA]
Şanlıurfa Museum Director Müslüm Ercan said the Şanlıurfa Museum Complex, which opened last month, was home to many precious artifacts. “One of these artifacts is this mosaic,” he added.
He noted that the mythological poet Orpheus’ mosaic was believed to have been created in 194 A.D., and that it was being displayed in a special area in the museum.
In the mythological story, Orpheus goes to Hades to ask for his wife, Eurydice, after she received a fatal bite from a viper. Skilled at the lyre, Orpheus softened the heart of Hades, who gave him permission to take back Eurydice to the world above, provided that he not look back at her until both had exited the underworld.
Orpheus, however, looked back at his wife after he had exited the land of the dead, but before she had also crossed the threshold into the world above. As punishment, Eurydice was immediately taken back into the underworld, this time forever.
“A source of inspiration for many philosophical schools, Orpheus is a figure that decorates the ground of many rock tombs since it is related to the underworld and death. In our mosaics, Orpheus calms wild animals with his lyre and all of the animals gather to listen to his music,” Ercan said.
Found at Dallas Museum of Art
Ercan said they had made attempts to repatriate the mosaic when they discovered that it was on display at the Dallas Museum of Art. “The Culture and Tourism Ministry sent a letter to our museum to examine the issue. Its style was exactly the same as the Şanlıurfa region’s typical Syriac mosaics. With the detailed work of the ministry, the chief public prosecutor’s office and the museum, the mosaic was returned from the U.S. in 2012.”
After returning from the U.S., the mosaic was put on display at the Istanbul Archaeology Museum for nearly a year before being returned to Şanlıurfa.
The Mosaic of Orpheus, dated to A.D. 194, is known as the earliest Edessa – the Hellenistic name for Şanlıurfa – mosaic that archaeologists have yet dated. The mosaic was taken abroad by smugglers after its discovery by J.B. Segal in 1950 in Şanlıurfa.
Ankara Univetsity will recreate a 2,000-year-old Roman harbour in one of the oldest coastal towns in the Aegean region, İzmir’s Urla district, in its original place. The harbour will have boats, catapults, depots and the same equipment used in the Roman era, which will be constructed to resemble their original appearance. When the harbour construction is completed, visitors will be able to take the Roman-era style boats on a tour of the area.
According to a statement made by the university, the project, which is the first of its kind, will be realized in collaboration with the Culture and Tourism Ministry.
Speaking about the project, Ankara University Underwater Archaeology Research and Application Center (ANKÜSAM) founder and Liman Tepe excavations head Professor Hayat Erkanal said, “This project is the first in the world. We will start working to prepare boats and weapons first. The detailed construction will start in a year.”
Erkanal said catapults of the Roman era would also be in the harbour, adding, “There were buildings in the harbour for loading and registration, we will build these buildings. We have found out that there was a small church in the harbour in the late period. But we will build a harbour from the early Roman era. It will be established on land allocated by the Urla Municipality. We will build at least two boats from the early Roman era. The area will be open to tourist visits when the work is finished. We will try to keep this area a living place. Visitors will be able to tour in the Aegean sea on Roman boats.”
Ankara University Rector Professor Erkan İbiş said the project was important for Turkish tourism. He said they will revive every aspect of the Roman harbour.
“We will build the very same Roman harbour here. Tools, boats, loading vehicles are being created just like their original,” he said.
Editor's Note:
The Turkish name "Urla" is derived from the Greek "Vourla" meaning marshlands and the town was cited as such in western sources until the 20th century. Urla is where the ancient city of Klazomenai is located.
With her şalvar, a type of harem pants popular among villagers, and a red yemeni scarf, Hatun Dilci, 72, does not stand out among fellow residents of her village in the southern Turkish city of Adana. What distinguishes her from other women of Dilekkaya village on the outskirts of an ancient citadel, is that the garden of her humble abode is full of Graeco-Roman artifacts ranging from sarcophagi to statues. This is a privilege granted to the elderly woman and her family as two generations of custodians of Anavarza ancient city.
A mother of eight, Dilci is a born-and-bred resident of Dilekkaya, where the ruins of Anavarza or Anazarbus, a city founded by Assyrians that thrived under the Roman empire, are located. Remains of the city's glory days are scarce, with just a small portion of the city walls still standing.
Dilci and her husband have always been keen to preserve the history in their environs, and this led to the discovery of Anavarza's ancient history, for which the couple was duly awarded. They were building a new house in the village in the 1960s when they stumbled upon a mosaic piece at the construction site.
"We notified authorities and they came. The mosaic we found was a 'fish mosaic' - a Roman-era artifact - and they awarded us TL 500. They asked us to build our house in another, place nearby. We started digging in that place to lay the groundwork but again, we discovered another mosaic," Hatun Dilci says.
Spending everything they had on the construction, the family was broke and without a telephone in the village, they had to travel to the city to inform authorities. They decided to do it, and sold two chickens they had to cover travel fees and went to Adana.
"We met the governor and traveled back to the village with him and with officials from a museum in Adana. They examined the mosaic and told us that we had found the Princess Mosaic," she says, referring to a mosaic believed to depict the daughter of a king.
Turkish villager issued permit to display Graeco-Roman artefacts in her garden
This time, authorities offered them more money or an assignment of the family as guards of the ancient city. "We chose guarding the site. They gave my husband a uniform and a gun and a monthly salary," she adds.
Hatun Dilci accompanied her husband in guarding the site and personally guarded the site long after her husband's death 22 years ago. Now, one of her sons looks after the site while Dilci preserves the artifacts in the garden of her house.
They started moving the sarcophagi, statues and numerous artifacts to their garden in a bid to protect them from treasure hunters frequenting the area. Under a special deal, the authorities allowed them to keep the artifacts as a small museum, as the area does not have enough space.
"I gave my life to this ancient city. I have been threatened by smugglers and treasure hunters. They tried to burn down my house and poisoned my livestock. I confronted the villagers damaging the ruins. I did this out of my sacred duty toward the state. I am retired now, but I still volunteer. I am still awake at night guarding against theft," she says.
Hundreds of Turks demanded that the historic Byzantine Greek cathedral of Hagia Sophia be converted into a mosque during a rally in Istanbul on May 24.
People gathered outside Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, in the historical Sultanahmet district, with some carrying signs that read: “Hagia Sophia needs to be reopened as a mosque,” and “Let our lives be sacrificed for Islam.”
The protest was led by many Turkish nongovernmental organizations, including the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (İHH).
Designed as a Christian basilica in the sixth century by Anthemios of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus, Hagia Sophia is now a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Hagia Sophia remained a center of Orthodox Christianity until 1453, when the city was conquered by Ottoman Turks under Sultan Mehmed II, known as the Conqueror of Istanbul. After 916 years of service as a church, he ordered Hagia Sophia to become a “victory mosque,” symbolizing the Muslim conquest. The mosaics of the church were covered with plaster and were successfully restored in the 20th century.
Hagia Sophia was used as a mosque for 482 years. Following the Ottoman Empire’s collapse, it was converted into a museum by republican officials in 1935.
The two-story Germüş Church in the eastern province of Şanlıurfa has survived for centuries. Now, it will become a tourist attraction within the scope of the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) Action Plan.The church is estimated to have been built in the beginning of the 19th century [Credit: AA]
The church is located in the Dağeteği neighborhood on the outskirts of the Germüş Mountains, 10 kilometers away from the city center. But since it does not have an inscription, the exact date of its establishment is unknown.
Estimated to have been built with cut stones in the beginning of the 19th century, the church has three lancet windows at the entrance.
The historic church, which has partly lost some of its features during previous restorations done, is located close to Göbeklitepe, one of the world’s oldest temples located in the city.
Şanlıurfa Regional Tourist Guides Chamber Chairman Kamil Türkmen said that the city had recently gained momentum in tourism. He said that foreign tourists came to the region especially for Göbeklitepe and also visited the Germüş Church.
Türkmen said that Armenians lived in the Germüş village during the Ottoman era and that the area was a protected site.
The neglected interior of the church [Credit: AA]
“The church draws attention mostly from foreign tourists. They come here but the church is not completely ready. This is why it should be restored as soon as possible,” he said.
Culture and Tourism Deputy Director Aydın Arslan said that work had been initiated for the church to promote its tourism, adding, “The surveying, restitution and restoration projects have been finished. The restoration project was included in the GAP Action Plan and will start in the coming days. We will also carry out archaeological work in the area.”
The former village head of the neighborhood, 85-year-old Mansur Özdemir, said that they had been trying to protect the church and structures in the vicinity but treasure hunters had done excavations and damaged the church. He said some Armenian families used to live in the region in the past, and later moved to their relatives in Syria.
Özdemir said that his father told about the stories from the World War I and explained:
“In the final years of the Ottoman state, young people from neighboring villages joined the war and only old people and women remained in the houses. Since the Armenians did not join the war, they continued living here. But the French and Russians took advantage of this and made them massacre people in the neighboring villages. When they heard our soldiers were returning, they left their houses and escaped the village.”
Historical artifacts have been damaged during illegal excavations in the ancient city of Hieropolis Kastabala in the southern Turkish region of Çukurova.View of Hieropolis Kastabala [Credit: WikiCommons]
In Kastabala Hierapolis, which is located 12 kilometers away from the Osmaniye city center, someone taking photographs in the area saw May 13 that many historical artifacts were damaged.
Gendarmerie examinations revealed that an area measuring 50 square meters had been excavated with Caterpillars. Museums officials also reported that historical artifacts were damaged in the ancient city, which is home to columned streets, an amphitheater, basilica, church, bath remains and a fortress.
Excavations in the ancient city have been underway since 2009.
The theater of the ancient city of Magarsus, located in the southern province of Adana’s Karataş district, is getting ready to host culture and art events soon. Excavation work has been continuing in the ancient city for two years.The ancient Greek theatre of Magarsus [Credit: Hurriyet]
Magarsus dates back to the 5th century B.C. and its theater is 2,500 years old. The excavations have unearthed a large section of the theater, which is a typical Hellenistic-era theater.
The sea-view ancient theater, which is 150 meters in length, 30 meters in width and has a capacity of some 3,000 people, will serve culture and art events when the work is completed and the theater will once again open its curtains after 2,500 years.
Adana Culture and Tourism Director Sabri Tari said excavations had been ongoing at many historical sites around Adana in recent years, and for the last two years, a large part of the ancient theater of Magarsus had come to light.
“This year the theater will be completely unearthed, including the stage part, and opened to tourism.
Although the city was magnificent and important enough to print its own money, today only its city walls and theater survive. But when you stroll around the streets of the district, you can find the traces of Magarsus in the gardens and walls of almost every house. The theater, which has been unearthed during excavations, is as big and magnificent as the Ephesus, Side and Aspendos theaters,” Tari said, adding the theater would open very soon. “When the work is done, the theater will regain its heyday, hosting new plays and welcoming audiences. You will close your eyes in its seats and hear the music of a play or an orchestra on the stage. Our next goal is to organize an event in Magarsus in the coming months to promote the ancient theater to the world.”
Magarsus was the religious center of Mallus, which was one of the most important cities of Cilicia, famous for its ancient temples.
At least 10 mosaics, held in the world’s second largest mosaic museum in Turkey’s southern city of Antakya, were seriously damaged during restoration, a local newspaper has reported.
The scandal erupted after local mosaic craftsman Mehmet Daşkapan brought the issue to the attention of a local newspaper in Antakya.
“Valuable pieces from the Roman period have been ruined. They have become caricatures of their former selves. Some are in an especially poor condition and have lost their originality and value,” Daşkapan said.
Among the damaged mosaics are world-famous panels including a mosaic depicting the sacrifice of Isaac and a mosaic of Narcissus, he added.
“The panel that I saw could not have been the original mosaic from the 2nd century A.D. Some of its stones are missing, while others have been misplaced, creating a discordant look,” Daşkapan stated.
Mustafa Bozdemir, the deputy director of the Culture Ministry’s Heritage and Museums department, has issued a written statement, saying an investigation commission has been formed to look into the allegations.
The commission’s initial evaluations have led to the suspension of all restoration work.
“Necessary information will be provided once the commission completes its investigation,” Bozdemir stated.
Daşkapan also underlined the urgency of suspending restoration work in order to protect the remaining artifacts.
“The new museum currently exhibits around 65 percent of its inventory,” he said, particularly expressing his concern for valuable panels such as a mosaic of Oceanus and Tethys, which have not been damaged yet.
A ruined Hagia Sophia dating back to the 12th century in the western border province of Edirne will be renovated as a mosque, despite former statements made about the possibility of restoring it as a museum.The ruined 12th century church of Hagia Sophia dating in the western border province of Edirne is to be 'renovated' as a mosque [Credit: AA]
Following the conversion of two Hagia Sophia into museums, which were initially built as churches and then turned into mosques and, subsequently, museums, the third Hagia Sophia in Edirne’s Enez district will be reconverted into a mosque, according to Foundations General Director Adnan Ertem, despite previous debates on turning it into a museum after reconstruction.
Speaking to state-run Anadolu Agency, Ertem said the Edirne Culture Assets Protection Regional Board approved the reconstruction project of the structure, which he called a “mosque” during the interview.
Ertem said the project would start as soon as possible, adding that the Hagia Sophia has been taken into the Foundations General Directorate’s investment program.
Explaining why it should be re-opened as a mosque, Erdem said the building was a “sanctuary that was consecrated as a mosque.”
“It is a foundation that can be put into service in line with its foundational charter. Thus its function will be preserved,” said Ertem.
Enez’s Hagia Sophia is located inside the ancient city of Ainos and although there are no records, it is thought to date back to the 12th century. It is located along the border with Greece and stationed on top of a hill seen from all around.
The district governor of Enez, Fatih Baysal, said in 2012 the usage of the structure as a mosque or not was a matter to be decided after the renovation.
“But even if it is used as a museum or a mosque, this place really needs to be [opened],” said Baysal.
Enez Mayor Abdullah Bostancı said the structure would have similar properties to the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul.
The main Hagia Sophia, which has been a museum since 1935, was built in the fourth century and converted into a mosque, when Mehmet the Conqueror took Istanbul in 1453.
The Hagia Sophia in Turkey’s western district of İznik, which was initially constructed as a church in the eighth century and turned into a mosque when the city was conquered by the Ottomans in the 14th century, became a museum in the Turkish Republic. The building was later converted into a mosque in November 2011.
Another Hagia Sophia church, located in the Black Sea province of Trabzon, had been a mosque for many years after the conquest of the city and registered as a mosque in its land title. It was then turned into a museum and transferred to the Culture and Tourism Ministry. It was retransferred to the Trabzon Regional Directorate of Foundations through a court decision and reopened for Muslim worship in July 2013.
After the conversion from museum to mosque, 33 historic artifacts from the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman eras in the garden of Trabzon’s Hagia Sophia were moved to the Trabzon Museum in January 2014.
One of the largest monumental arches remaining on Turkish soil is set to become a major tourist attraction in the southern province of Adana.The triumphal arch of Anazarbus before restoration [Credit: WikiCommons]
“Restoration works have been continuing to bring the triumphal arch [of Anavarza (Anazarbus)] to tourism. Most parts of the arch are still strong. The restoration process will begin soon. The monumental city gate, which is a legacy from the ancient world, will regain its original [glory] within a year,” said Çukurova University academic Fatih Gülşen, who is acting as a scientific consultant on excavations in the ancient city of Anavarza.
The arch, now located in the province’s Dilekkaya village, was 22.5 meters wide and 10.5 meters high, with a wall thickness of 5.60 meters, he said.
Gülşen said after their victory against the [[Parthians in the first century BC]], the Romans built the arch in Anavarza, the military camp city of the Roman Empire in the east.
Gülşen said 502 block stones that had fallen from the arch would be placed in their original places.
“The monumental gate, which is an artistic wonder, had three arches,” he said. “Some parts of the western arch collapsed but the main arch in the middle and the one in the east still survive. We finished the drawings of the collapsed and missing blocks. The pieces that fell from the gate have been numbered and have undergone laser scanning. We will put them in their own places during the restoration. The triumphal arch has high-quality workmanship; smooth square lime, marble and granite stones were used in the construction. Tougher and high-quality limestone was used in its curves. It is a huge and unique structure decorated with Corinthian heads, columns, pilasters [rectangular columns] and niches. Because of these features, it is the only one in the region that we call Çukurova today, and one of the few monumental city gates within the borders of Turkey.”
Gülşen said the triumphal arch opened onto a 34-meter-wide, 2,700-meter long, two-lane street.
“The Culture and Tourism Ministry has allocated 1 million Turkish Liras for the excavations and research in the ancient city of Anavarza. The revival of the triumphal arch is one of most important stages of our work here. We are working with a team of 45 people – 10 are technical staff.”
The historic Rumkale (“Roman Castle”), which was home to many civilizations throughout history and an important center for early Christianity, has been undergoing a restoration process for more than two years.Fortress of Rumkale on the river Euphrates, Turkey [Credit: AA]
Rumkale and its vicinity, which straddles the boundary between the southeastern Turkish provinces of Gaziantep’s Nizip and Yavuzeli districts and Şanlıurfa’s Bilecik and Halfeti districts, is home to structures from the Urartu, Babylon, Sumerian, Graeco-Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman eras.
The Apostle John is said to have settled in Rumkale during the Roman era and reproduced copies of the Bible.
The area was occupied by various Byzantine and Armenian warlords during the Middle Ages. The castle served as the seat of an Armenian patriarch in the 12th century.
From 1203 to 1293, it was the residence of the supreme head (Catholicos) of the reunified Armenian Church. In 1293, it was captured by the Mamluks of Egypt, following a protracted siege.
Monastery Restoration
Restoration work is currently continuing in the Barşavma Monastery, which was built in the 13th century and is located in the north side of the castle.
Yavuzeli District governor Ömer Faruk Güngen said Rumkale was a hidden haven and shining star in the southeastern Anatolian region.
Speaking of its importance in nature and faith tourism, Güngen said, “We need to offer Rumkale to tourists. People should know about the ruins and natural beauties here.”
He said facilities would be established in the area for tourists to spend more time in the region, adding, “Our projects will also employ people living here. Our goal is to increase the contribution of Rumkale to the Turkish economy. This place is a hidden haven that people cannot come and see. It has a rich history. More artifacts are found as excavations deepen. Rumkale’s promotion is important to us.”
The head of the excavations, Bora Cem Sevencan, said Rumkale also had importance in terms of art history and a common heritage of humanity. “The area will be a junction point for faith tourism when the work is done,” he said.
Dilci and her husband have always been keen to preserve the history in their environs, and this led to the discovery of Anavarza's ancient history, for which the couple was duly awarded. They were building a new house in the village in the 1960s when they stumbled upon a mosaic piece at the construction site.
