10 Iconic Archaeological Sites In Türkiye You Need To Visit

OT Staff

Troya

Troya (or Troy) is several settlements built on top of one another, dating from the early Bronze Age to the Greco-Roman period. Thanks to Homer’s “Iliad,” it is one of Türkiye’s most famous ancient highlights.

The ruins of Troya | Shutterstock

Yenikapı

Yenikapı is notable for the ongoing excavations on its Byzantine port, first discovered in 2004. Archaeologists have unearthed more than 35,000 objects and 36 ships dating from the seventh to the 11th centuries.

A shipwreck of Yenikapı | Copyright: M. Jones for nauticalarch.org/Website

Çatalhöyük

This is a mounded accretion due to long-term human settlement of a very large Neolithic and Chalcolithic proto-city in southern Anatolia, which existed from approximately 7500 BCE to 5600 BCE.

A find from Çatalhöyük | Shutterstock

Hattuşa

Once the capital of the Hittite Empire in the late Bronze Age, Hattuşa’s ruins lie near modern Boğazkale. The earliest traces of settlement here are from the sixth millennium BCE during the Chalcolithic period.

A rock carving in Hattuşa | Shutterstock

Göbekli Tepe

This site in the Southeastern Anatolia region is famous for its large circular structures that contain massive stone pillars—among the world's oldest known megaliths.

The ruins of Göbekli Tepe | Shutterstock

Perge

Originally an ancient Lycian settlement that later became a Greek city, Perge used to be the capital of the Roman province of Pamphylia Secunda. Its ruins lie 15 kilometres east of Antalya.

The ruins of Perge | Shutterstock

Nemrut Dağı

Mount Nemrut is home to a collection of colossal statues on a remote mountain 2,150 metres high that adorn the temple and tomb of King Antiochus. Archaeological work began in 1953 to uncover its history.

Statue of King Antiochus I of Commagene in Nemrut Dağı | Shutterstock

Efes

Built in the 10th century BCE, this city (also known as Ephesus) was famous in its day for the nearby Temple of Artemis, which has been designated one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

The ruins of Efes | Shutterstock

Didyma

Didyma is home to a Hellenistic temple that was dedicated to Apollo, the main deity. However, the site also has temples dedicated to Artemis, as well as a Greek theatre.

Ruins of the Apollo Temple in Didyma | Shutterstock

Aphrodisias

Aphrodisias was named after Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love. During excavations, the Aphrodite Temple, several buildings, a central public space called an agora, and city baths were revealed.

A ruin of Aphrodisias | Shutterstock

Çatalhöyük In Türkiye: Discovering One Of The World's Oldest Cities

Some of the ruins of Çatalhöyük | Shutterstock
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