January 2017 in Turkish archaeology

Laodicea on the Lycus
Laodicea on the Lycus

Turkish Archaeological News collects the most important, interesting and inspiring news from Turkish excavation sites. Here's the review for January 2017. Have we missed anything? Let us know by using Contact tab!

January 2, 2017

Hereke Castle to be revived centuries later

Hereke Castle in Kocaeli, in northwest Anatolia near Istanbul, built in the Eastern Roman Empire and then abandoned, is being restored by Körfez Municipality. Source: Daily Sabah

Computer science reimagines Hagia Sophia's acoustics, offers journey back in time

An impressive figure of the architectural beauty hailing from the Byzantine-era, the Hagia Sophia at Istanbul's Sultanahmet Square is still inspiring new studies, like the "Icons of Sound" project from Stanford University. Source: Daily Sabah

Ancient city of Troy to be revived in new museum project

The construction of the museum aiming to revive the ancient city of Troy, next to its relics in the western province of Çanakkale, has entered its final stage. Source: Daily Sabah

January 3, 2017

Sacred agora unearthed in Laodicea

Archaeological excavations in the ancient city of Laodicea, located in the Eskihisar neighborhood in the western province of Denizli and added to the UNESCO World Heritage Temporary list in 2013, are continuing at a 10-meter-long sacred Agora on an area of 35,000 square meters. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

Ancient sauce fermented for workshop guests

The ancient city of Antandros in the western province of Balıkesir’s Edremit district, where excavations have been continuing for 16 years, will open to the world with a project titled “The Route of Aeneas,” which follows the route of the Trojan hero Aeneas from Antandros to Italy. The “garum sauce,” a fish-based sauce of the ancient world used instead of salt, has been now prepared and is kept in a jug. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 4, 2017

Istanbul's Yerebatan Cistern undergoes restoration after 500 years

The historic Yerebatan Cistern, which is Turkey’s third most visited spot in Istanbul’s historic Sultanahmet district, has been undergoing a comprehensive restoration process for the first time after 500 years. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

Mosaics reveal ancient styles in Turkey's southeast

Mosaics carved on rock tombs in the Urfa Castle, that were unearthed last year during excavations in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa, will reveal the region’s antique history with writings, symbols and portraits engraved on them. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 5, 2017

Glass furnace unearthed in Metropolis

An ancient glass furnace has been unearthed during excavations in the ancient city of Metropolis in the Aegean province of İzmir’s Torbalı district. The finds in the furnace show that its ceramics were imported from Athens to the region. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 6, 2017

Historic bastion gets contentious makeover

The Anadolu Hamidiye Bastion, built by the Sultan Abdulhamid II in 1892 to provide security for the Dardanelles, has been given a controversial makeover that has resulted in the desctruction of much the facility’s green area. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 9, 2017

Troy to have its own museum, Hamidiye Bastions restored

The newly established Museum of Troy is planned to open in early 2017, showcasing thousands of artifacts discovered at the site where the legendary Battle of Troy took place. Source: Daily Sabah

January 10, 2017

Hagios Georgios Church to serve tourism

The Hagios Georgios Church, which was built in the northwestern province of Bilecik’s Osmaneli district at the end of 1800s and now lies in ruins, will be converted into a museum after a restoration process. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 11, 2017

Interest grows in İzmir’s oldest settlement

Visitors have been flocking to İzmir’s Yeşilova Mound, a site that proves that settlements in the city date back 8,500 years. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 12, 2017

Mausoleum at Halicarnassus to be restituted

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, also known as the tomb of King Mausolus, located in the western province of Muğla’s Bodrum district and listed as one of the Seven Wonders of the World, is set to be restituted along with works to open the way from Bodrum Harbor to the tomb have been initiated. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

Shipwreck belonging to Russian military discovered in Lake Van

An underwater research team has discovered the shipwreck of a military cargo vessel made by the Russians in 1915 in Lake Van, located in Turkey's eastern Bitlis province, reports said on Thursday. Source: Daily Sabah

January 13, 2017

5,000-year-old prescription found in southeastern Turkey

A medical prescription belonging to the Sumerians has been seized by the Police Department in Diyarbakır. The cuneiform script is considered the to be the oldest medical handbook in the history of medicine. Source: Daily Sabah

Waqf culture displayed in new museum

Established over a 800-square-meter area in Bursa, one of the capital cities of the Ottoman Empire, Waqf Culture Museum will be open to visitors soon. Source: Daily Sabah

January 15, 2017

Çatalhöyük figurines symbolize ‘elderly women, not Cybele’

Two plump woman figurines unearthed in the 9,000-year-old Neolithic settlement of Çatalhöyük represent elderly women, not the Anatolian mother goddess Cybele as was earlier believed, according to an expert. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 17, 2017

Byzantine tombs unearthed in marble city

Some 65 Byzantine-era tombs have been unearthed in the most recent archaeological excavations in the ancient city of Stratonikeia, known as the city of gladiators in the western province of Muğla’s Yatağan district. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

Inns, mosaics found in Şanlıurfa

Archaeological surface survey and cleaning works in the ancient site of Kızılkoyun and the outskirts of a historic castle in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa’s Haleplibahçe district have unearthed 133 inns and five mosaics. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 18, 2017

Trabzon's Hagia Sofia Mosque to be restored

The Hagia Sofia Mosque, located in Turkey's northeastern province of Trabzon, will undergo a new restoration project worth about 2 million Turkish liras. Source: Daily Sabah

January 19, 2017

Ancient Yortan jug returned to Turkey from UK

The Culture, Tourism and Promotional Department of the Turkish Embassy in London has announced that a 4,500-year-old jug, which was taken over to the U.K. nearly 60 years ago, has been returned to Turkey. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 21, 2017

Principal sarcophagus found in ancient city

A sarcophagus, which has been unearthed during archaeological excavations in the ancient city of Aigai in the western province of Manisa, was revealed to have been belonged to a school principal after its pieces were reunited. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 22, 2017

2,700-year-old goddess statue discovered underwater in Turkey

Archaeologists have uncovered a rare ceramic statue of a Cypriot goddess dating back 2,700 years underwater in Turkey's Mediterranean resort town of Marmaris on Saturday. Source: Daily Sabah

January 24, 2017

Expropriation works almost finished for historic theater

A Roman theater, stuck in between shanty towns in the Aegean province of İzmir’s Kadifekale, is being expropriated for nearly 12 million Turkish liras with plans to unearth its fascinating 16,000-person capacity. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

Terror fear hits Troy

The 5,000-year-old ancient city of Troy, in the northwestern Turkish province of Çanakkale, is among the places that suffered from terror attacks over the past year, with the number of visitors decreasing by more than half in 2017 compared to the previous year. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 25, 2017

Zonguldak cave made famous in Hercules' myth draws large crowds

Cehennemağzı Mağaraları in Zonguldak's Ereğli district, fabled to have been used by Greek hero Hercules in his journey to the underworld, has become a great attraction since it opened its doors in 2001 for local and foreign tourists alike. Source: Daily Sabah

Spirit of Mardin's 300-year-old 'leyli night' lives

The 300-year-old "leyli night" tradition, which was almost lost in the dusty pages of history, is being resurrected in Turkey's southeastern Mardin, the "city of religion and languages." Source: Daily Sabah

January 26, 2017

Graves of Mardin’s ancient city to open visitors

A gallery grave, unearthed during archaeological excavations in the ancient city of Dara in the southeastern Turkish province of Mardin eight years ago, will be opened to visitors. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 26, 2017

Turkey opens 3200-year-old cave houses to tourists

Authorities have decided to open cave houses dating back 3,200 years, located in the Seben district of the northwestern Turkish province of Bolu, to tourists in an effort to bolster tourism in the region. Source: Daily Sabah

January 27, 2017

Gladiator games played in Turkey’s south

An ancient city now located in a hilly area in the southwestern province of Isparta was once the site of gladiatorial battles to the death, according to reliefs that were recently found on the site. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

January 30, 2017

Uzuncaburç: A visual feast in winter

The ancient city of Uzuncaburç, one of the most notable tourism attractions in the southern province of Mersin, is a draw for visitors even in the winter months when it acquires an extra beauty under a blanket of snow. Source: Hürriyet Daily News

Jar containing human remains from Hellenistic period found in southwestern Turkey

Construction workers in southwestern Turkey have discovered an ancient jar containing burnt human remains, thought to be from the Hellenistic period, reports said on Monday. Source: Daily Sabah