March 2024 brought many fascinating archaeological discoveries in the area of Turkey. Among the most sensational ones, the researchers announced that they had discovered about 8,600-year-old bread at Çatalhöyük, a Neolithic settlement in central Turkey. Moreover, a 2700-year-old children's cemetery was discovered during ongoing excavations in the ancient city of Tenedos in Bozcaada island. Finally, the archaeologists unearthed the earliest known evidence of body perforation in skeletons dating back 11,000 years at the Boncuklu Tarla excavation site in southeastern Turkey.
Turkish Archaeological News collects the most important, interesting and inspiring news from Turkish excavation sites. Here's the review for March 2024. Have we missed anything? Let us know by using Contact tab!
March 1, 2024
Claros Sanctuary excavations continue
Excavations at Claros Sanctuary have been the longest-running excavations ongoing under Ege University's Archaeology Department, says excavation head Associate Professor Onur Zunal, while shedding light on how Claros emerged as a prophecy center in the past. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
March 2, 2024
Historic Maiden's Tower reopens to visitors
After the completion of the restoration work of the Maiden’s Tower, one of the symbolic buildings of Istanbul, which started in 2021, the historical structure was reopened to visitors on March 1. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
Edirne initiates solar-powered lighting for historic bridges
The historic Bayezid II and Yalnızgöz bridges in the northwestern province of Edirne are now illuminated by a newly installed solar energy system, paving the way for a broader initiative that will see 12 other historic bridges over Tunca and Meriç rivers in the city similarly adorned. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
March 3, 2024
2,700-year-old Children’s Cemetery unearthed in Turkey’s Tenedos
A 2700-year-old children’s cemetery was discovered during ongoing excavations in the ancient city of Tenedos in Bozcaada, southeast of the Dardanelles. Source: Arkeonews
March 5, 2024
Archaeologists have discovered about 8,600-year-old bread at Çatalhöyük, a Neolithic settlement in central Turkey. Source: Arkeonews
An Amazing Discovery in the 1900-year-old Rock Church, a Sand Dollar Fossil
Located in the eastern province of Diyarbakır’s Eğil district, the rock church, the walls of which are decorated with different cross motifs, brought to tourism. The interesting discovery uncovered during the excavations in the church, which is planned to be opened to visitors soon, attracted attention. A fossil of a creature living on the shores of the Pacific Ocean has been found ” Sand Dollar”. Source: Arkeonews
March 8, 2024
Topkapı Palace increases number of works
As the month of Ramadan will begin soon, approximately 600 works of art are on display for visitors in the Chamber of Holy Relics at Topkapı Palace. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
Türkiye's Göbeklitepe hosts over 2.5 million visitors since 2019
The ancient site of Göbeklitepe, described as the "zero point of history," has hosted 2.55 million visitors in southeastern Türkiye since it officially opened to the public in 2019. Source: Daily Sabah
March 11, 2024
Night Museum project starts at Hierapolis
The launch of the "Museum by Night" project, which will bring Türkiye's unique historical sites and rich cultural heritage to visitors in a completely different atmosphere after sunset, was held on March 8 at the Pamukkale Hierapolis ancient city in the western province of Denizli with the participation of officials from the Culture and Tourism Ministry and state protocol. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
March 12, 2024
Archaeologists have unearthed the earliest known evidence of body perforation in skeletons dating back 11,000 years at the Boncuklu Tarla excavation site in southeastern Türkiye. Source: Arkeonews
Archaeologists have unearthed a 3,300-year-old clay tablet depicting a catastrophic foreign invasion of the Hittite Empire in Büklükale, about 100 km from Turkey’s capital Ankara. Source: Arkeonews
New Samsun Museum ready for opening
The New Samsun Museum, which is conceptually rare in the world, being home to the Amisos Treasure, considered the most valuable in Türkiye after the Karun Treasure, as well as a skull with traces of a 5,000-year-old brain surgery, will open tomorrow. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
March 15, 2024
Safranbolu enters ‘calm city’ network Cittaslow
Safranbolu, a district located in Türkiye’s northern province Karabük, renowned for its historic mansions that earned it an inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994, has achieved another milestone by joining the network of calm cities Cittaslow. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
March 16, 2024
The ancient inscription found near Kımıldağı (Kımıl Mount) in Önevler village of Adıyaman’s Gerger district in 2023 will shed light on the history of Commagene. Source: Arkeonews
Work in 30 pct of Aspendos to be finished in four years
Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy has said they plan to complete the excavation and restoration works within four years in 30 percent of the ancient city of Aspendos, only 2 percent of which has been excavated so far. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
March 26, 2024
History lies at bottom of Black Sea
Historical artifacts discovered during the first scientific underwater excavations in the Black Sea, carried out in Kerpe Bay, once again reveal the hidden cultural treasure of the region, known as "Kalpe" in history. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
1500-year-old shipwreck confirmed off Kusadasi coast
A shipwreck dating back to the Early Byzantine Period (5th-6th Century AD), with various amphora intact, has been confirmed lying off Fournoi Island which lies off the coasts of Samos Island and Guzelcamli, near Kusadasi. Source: Voices Newspaper
March 27, 2024
Two fortress settlements and two new open-air temples were discovered during a survey in Tunceli province in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Türkiye. The discovery was made within the scope of the “Iron Age and Hellenistic Age Tunceli Survey” project, which has been carried out within the borders of Tunceli province since 2016. Source: Arkeonews
March 28, 2024
Türkiye's largest skeleton collection in Denizli
Over 6,000 human skeletons collected from 38 excavations in different regions of Türkiye through studies since 2013 have been kept at the Mehmet Akif Ersoy University (MAKÜ) Department of Anthropology. An ancient murder or a cancer patient can be identified in the studies carried out on the bones and fossils by students at the university. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
March 29, 2024
Istanbul Art Museum presents ‘Oh Beautiful Istanbul!’
The Istanbul Art Museum presents the portrait of Fatih Sultan Mehmet, painted by the famous painter Bellini and brought into the city by the Istanbul Municipality in recent years, in an exhibition. "Oh Beautiful Istanbul" (Ah Güzel Istanbul!), the opening exhibition of the Istanbul Art Museum within the body of Istanbul Art in the Haliç (Golden Horn) Shipyard, consists of more than 300 works belonging to 10 collectors. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
