Turkey has seen many different cultures and peoples come
and go over the millennia. We know quite a lot about most of them, such
as the Greeks, the Persians, the Romans, the Arabs and the Mongols.
Each left their own mark, physical or otherwise. Perhaps
the most obvious is the legacy of the Arabs who brought Islam to Turkey.
Today over 90% of Turks are Muslim, culturally at least, if not devout.
Armenian cathedral, Aktamar Island, Lake Van |
Church, Diyarbakir |
Göreme |
Today we visited
an incredible site in Göreme in central Anatolia: a network of churches
built in caves during the Roman period when Christianity was the
prevailing religion in the region. The name Göreme means "cannot be
seen" as the churches, monasteries and convents were hidden behind
mounds of soft rock, which have since eroded. The site is in the middle
of an area of strange rock formations nicknamed "fairy chimneys".
Göpekli Tepe (detail) |
These former communities, ancient and more recent, are well documented for their historical significance. Completely unknown until the 1990s, however, is another site of huge archaeological importance: Göpekli Tepe. This is the oldest architectural structure yet discovered in the world, dating from around the 10th millennium BC. That's millennium, not century.
Hasankeyf c. 1800 BC — AD 2015 |
It's wonderful that we are still discovering ancient sites of human development, but we are also losing some. The loss might be through migration or other social phenomena, but sometimes it is a result of decisions taken in the name of modernisation. The town of Hasankeyf is about to be lost forever. It is scheduled to be flooded by an artificial lake on the Euphrates created by a dam just completed but not yet operational. The waters will rise to the level of the top of the minaret of the town's mosque.
The next time I see it will be on a diving holiday.
The next time I see it will be on a diving holiday.
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