Category: Southeast Anatolia Region

The Southeastern Anatolian Region, with its very rich history and cultural heritage as shown in its magnificent historical sites, is well worth visiting. Its history begins around 7,000 B.C. in the New Stone Age. Between 2,000 B.C. and 1,500 B.C. came the Hurris who Were to be followed by the Hittites sometime around 1,200 B.C. […]

HASANKEYF Two guard towers ensured the bridge’s security At Hasankeyf are the ruins of the 12th century capital of the Artukids. The bridge, which once spanned the Dicle and connected the two parts of the city and the ruined palace inside the citadel, evokes the ghosts of a vanished dynasty. Unfortunately Hasankeyf will be submerged […]

MARDIN   From a distance, the golden stone of Mardin’s houses blend into the rock of the hills on which the city is built. On closer inspection, the stone carving and decoration of the houses and public buildings reveals the city as an architectural treasure-chest. Among the jewels are the ancient citadel and several mosques, in […]

SILVAN In Silvan, 77km east of Diyarbakir you should stop at the graceful Ulu Mosque dating from 1185, to admire the fine flowing lines of stone-relief work that outline the pointed arch one of the earliest Neolithic settlements yet discovered, dates from the seventh millennium B.C.

DIYARBAKIR Diyarbakir, known in ancient times as Amida, spreads across a basalt plateau close to the banks of the Dicle River. The black basalt triple walls that encircle the old town give the city a rather ominous appearance. These ramparts, 5.5km in length, with 16 keeps and five gates, inscriptions and bas-reliefs, represent a superb […]

HARRAN   Believed to be the ancient city of the same name mentioned in the Old Testament, Harran is known more now for its unusual beehive dwellings than as the place where Abraham spent several years of his life. The archaeological remains include those of the largest ancient Islamic University, city walls dating from the […]

SANLIURFA On the great plain of High Mesopotamia, Sanliurfa, known in ancient times first as Ur and later as Edessa, proudly exhibits the legacy of all the civilizations that have prospered in this region. In the second millennium B.C.; it was a city of a Hurrite state. Tradition relates that Abraham was born in a […]

ARSAMEIA   At ancient Eskikale (Arsameia of Nymphaios) a magnificent relief depicts Heracles greeting the Commagene King, Mithridates, in the ruins of what scholars believe might have been the Commagene Palace. Opposite this site, separated by the Eski Kahta river are the remains of the Yenikale (New Castle) built by the Mamelouks. Other nearby sights […]

Adiyaman’s Archaeological Museum houses regional finds from the Lower Firat which date from the Neolithic and Chalcolithic ages. Good quality kilims woven in bright colors sell for reasonable prices in the bazaar. Surrounding monuments include the ruins of an Abbasid citadel (restored by the Seljuks) and a 14th century Ulu Mosque. The discovery of oil […]

In the 12th century B.C., Kahramanmaras was the capital of the Hittite state of Gurgum. A massive citadel built in the 2nd century B.C. houses the city’s museum and its good collection of Hittite sculptures. Other sites include the 15th century Ulu Mosque and the Tas Medrese. The ice-cream of Kahramanmaras, thickened with gum arabic […]