Home of the Hittites awaits visitors

One of Turkey’s most important tourism centers, the Central Anatolian province of Çorum is home to the cultural heritage of one of the first Anatolian civilizations, the Hattis, and the Hittite civilization. 

Hattusha, located in the Boğazkale district, which has been declared a Historic National Park, is a place worth seeing with its six-kilometer walls, monumental gates, 71-meter underground tunnel, a palace in Büyükkale, the 31 temples which have been unearthed so far, the huge granaries found on the Büyükkaya hills and the Yazılıkaya open air temple. 

Hattusha entered the UNESCO World Heritage List on Nov. 28, 1986, for its urban organization, the types of construction work that were preserved, the rich ornamentation of the Lion Gate and the Royal Gate and the ensemble of rock art at Yazılıkaya.

Its cuneiform inscriptions, one of the oldest known forms of writing, entered UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register in 2001. 

The only ancient city on both UNESCO lists, Hattusha is known as the capital where the first written treaty in history, the Treaty of Kadesh, was signed in 1280 B.C. between the Hittites and Egyptians. 


First national excavation site

Another important Hittite center in the city, Alacahöyük, is home to one of the first dams in Anatolia, the Hittite Dam, as well as royal tombs, the Lion Gate sphinx and a public open archaeological excavation site. It is one of the most visited places in the city. 

Besides Hattusha and Alacahöyük, the Çorum Museum, Boğazköy Museum and Alacahöyük Museum display artifacts unearthed from other important excavation sites in the city like Şapinuva, Eskiyapar, Resuloğlu, Hüseyindede and Yörüklü, offering visitors a visual feast. 

In the Boğazköy Museum, it is also possible to see the Boğazköy Sphinx, which was taken to Germany for renovation and returned after 94 years in 2011. 

The Şapinuva ancient site in the Ortaköy district, its granary and the İncesu Canyon, where the Kybele relief is located, are among the other popular tourist attractions in Çorum. 

Officials of the Provincial Culture and Tourism Directorate invite everyone to the city, saying: “Çorum is situated in a key point connecting Central Anatolia to the Black Sea. We welcome history and nature lovers.”