1500-year-old heritages found in Çanakkale

ÇANAKKALE – Anadolu Agency

Archaeologists have found 1,500-year-old agricultural and carpentry tools in the ancient city of Alexandria Troas in the northwestern province of Çanakkale. 

Iron and bronze ancient tools were found during an excavation that began in 2011, headed by Dr. Erhan Öztepe, an instructor at Ankara University’s archeology department and the head of Alexandria Troas excavations, said a statement from the Çanakkale Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism. 

The Alexandria Troas region is located in Dalyan village of Ezine district. 

Öztepe said it is the most interesting finding of 2018. 

“Iron and bronze agricultural and carpentry tools indicate the economy of the ancient city and farming activities in Alexandria Troas and nearby regions of the Early Byzantine period,” he said. 

“The large storage containers, known as pithos, which were used to contain dry legumes in the Aegean region until the recent past, were also used as graves. But rarely, as it is seen in this year’s excavations, they were used to keep other objects like agricultural tools,” he added. 

Kemal Dokuz, the head of Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, stressed the importance of the ancient site. 

“St. Paul stayed in this city, which is as important as Ephesus to the Christian world. The Culture and Tourism Ministry has spent 1 million Turkish Liras on the Alexandria Troas excavations in the last five years,” he added. 

Alexandria Troas 

Alexandria Troas was established in 311 B.C. and maintained its existence until the 9th century as a large settlement area. There are some features that make the city important, like its location. It has a wall at a height of 8,200 meters. Some parts of these walls survive today and can still be seen. The settlement inside the walls is a 5,000-square-meter area of land. 

The city maintained its importance until the 4th century, and the population of the city was approximately 100,000 at its height, a significant figure in ancient era. When Constantinople became the capital, Alexandria Troas began to lose its importance. Among the most important reasons that interest in the city fell were earthquakes that occurred.