It has been reported that the new season excavations have started in the ancient city of Aizanoi in the Çavdarhisar district of Kütahya.
Governor Ali Çelik, in his statement, reminded that the excavations in the ancient city, which is home to the best preserved Zeus Temple in Anatolia and included in the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List in 2012, were carried out by Kütahya Dumlupınar University (DPU) with the support of the Presidency and the Governorship.
Stating that new findings are expected to be unearthed during the excavations to be carried out this year under the chairmanship of DPU Faculty of Arts and Sciences Department of Archeology Prof. Dr. Gökhan Coşkun, Çelik said:
"This season, intense work is planned in the sectors of Penkalas Stream (Koca Çay), agora (bazaar), propylon, theater and Meter Steunene sanctuary. We have made great progress especially in the Penkalas Project and we are nearing the end. I sincerely hope that this season will again be full of discoveries and open new doors for us about Aizanoi's mysterious past. The passion, knowledge and dedication of our excavation team will undoubtedly make a tremendous contribution to our history this season as well."
Çelik wished success to the excavation team, who worked with great devotion to reveal the secrets of the past.
Aizanoi Ancient City
It is estimated that the city area of Aizanoi, which is 57 kilometers away from the city center of Kütahya and is considered one of the main settlements of the Aizanitis of Phrygia, has been used since 3000 BC.
It is stated that the city, which was under Roman rule in 133 BC and was also the center of the bishopric, lost its importance in the early Byzantine period. The city, which was the base of the Çavdar Tatars in the 13th century and later renamed Çavdarhisar, was discovered by European travelers in 1824.
During the excavations carried out by the German Archaeological Institute in 1970-2011, Anatolia's best-preserved Zeus temple, theatre, stadium, two baths, the world's first stock market, columned street, 5 bridges over Kocaçay, the "Meter Steunene" sanctuary, necropolises, dams and waterways were unearthed. Settlement layers dating back to 3000 BC were found around the temple.
The license of the German Archaeological Institute, which has been working in the ancient city during the summer months for 41 years since 1970, was canceled in 2011 by the decision of the Council of Ministers, and the excavation task was given to Turkish archaeologists.