An ancient city discovered in Eskişehir in Turkey

Nestled in the historic district of Seyitgazi are the remains of the oldest city of Eskişehir.

Shovel by shovel, Küllüoba is revealed with excavations carried out since 1996.

The head of the excavation, Prof. Dr Turan Efe and Associate Professor Dr Murat Türkteki, the head of the Archeology Department of Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University (BŞEU) and the Deputy Head of the Excavation, lead a team of 35 people.

Artifacts that were found during a two month period of excavation suggest that the area is located in the “Great Caravan Trail”. The objects are on display at the ETİ Archaeological Museum in Eskişehir.

Efe explained that the district of Küllüoba is located west of the plains of Sakarya and 15 kilometers northeast of Seyitgazi.

At the foot of the mound, which uninterruptedly includes prehistoric periods from 3,500 BC to the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age in 1,900 BC, there were also Hellenistic settlements.

“We have the impression that the first steps of a development towards urban development in architecture were taken in Küllüoba at this time. The most important example is the appearance of public buildings. The complex of buildings of a size of 31 by 24 meters that we call ‘Complex II’, stands in the middle of the settlement with the large courtyard. This structure probably belongs to the ruler of the colony. As a result of the excavations at Küllüoba, we realized that the cultural and commercial relations between Çukurova and therefore Mesopotamia and Troy (Çanakkale) at the beginning of the Bronze Age III, around 2400-2200 BC. ” he said.

Adding that this transport line is called “Great Caravan Trail”, Efe noted that the ceramic material called “Syrian bottles” is among the finds that have origins in Mesopotamia.

1600 years of uninterrupted colonization

Türkteki also stated that there is a large monumental structure in Küllüoba which has been a settlement for 1,600 years without interruption and that this structure shows that there was a presence of a ruling class and therefore social stratification on the way of urban development. This year’s excavation work focused on the “Lower Settlement”.

He noted that these structures belong to the period of Bronze Age II.

“Our other area of ​​work is the discovery of the settlement’s architecture dating from 2200 BC to 1900 BC which we call the Middle Bronze Age Transition Period. Writing was not invented, it is not possible for us to give the name of a civilization. We call this period culture. There has been a writing in Mesopotamia since 3000 years BC but we cannot give a name to this civilization because the writing n was not used in Anatolia, ”he added.

He also said they were carrying out excavations with a team of 35 people, including 20 students.

“It is fascinating to witness the discovery of a tear box”

Eskişehir deputy director of culture and tourism Şennur Azade said they were happy to find traces of the country’s earlier civilizations.

“Our ministry has offered 90,000 TL ($ 14,000) for the dig this year. We, as the Provincial Command, are supporting as much as we can. tears in the excavations. We are happy to share our past cultures with our people, “he said.