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Kerkenes Dağ, located in Central Turkey, was chosen for
the foundation of an Iron Age capital, probably ancient Pteria,
about 600 BC. Inscriptions, graffi ti, architecture and objects
suggest Phrygian origins, although the city was never, perhaps,
part of the Phrygian state. Caught up in the confl ict between
Croesus, King of Lydia and the Persian conqueror Cyrus the
Great in the 540s BC, Kerkenes was looted and burnt, its 7km
circuit of strong stone walls destroyed and the city deserted. Since
1993, international teams of archaeologists and students conduct
annual campaigns of remote sensing and targeted excavation. In
2009 a substantial program of architectural conservation and site
development was initiated at the Cappadocia Gate.
Şahmuratlı Village, nestling at the foot of the mountain, is
home to the expedition. Here an Eco-Center has been established
to promote sustainable rural life on the Anatolian Plateau through
the development of renewable energy, drip irrigated gardens,
building with appropriate materials and marketing village
produce. This combination of research, heritage management
and village development brings together village residents, local
and state offi cials, NGOs, students and academics who work
together for the protection of cultural and environmental assets in
a dynamic rural setting. |
