New finds come to light in Alexandria Troas

ÇANAKKALE

Works that have been continuing in the ancient city of Alexandria Troas, located in a region close to the sea in the northwestern province of Çanakkale’s Ezine district, have brought to light two gates of the city’s bazaar, believed to be 2,200 years old.

Professor Erhan Öztepe, the head of the excavations from Ankara University’s Archaeology Department, said that this year they unearthed the northern border of a Hellenistic bazaar in the ancient city.

Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University (ÇOMÜ) Professor Cahit Çağlar Yalçıner and Yunus Can Kurban carried out the geophysical measurements in the area and identified the location of the altar (the religious structure where sacrifices were made) before the excavations.

Öztepe stated that geophysical studies and the areas around the forum will be scanned this year. “The areas unearthed in the excavations and the projects for their protection have been documented and recorded by an architectural team,” he added.

Stating that they most likely found a gate connecting the bazaar structure, Öztepe said: “We are now cleaning the passage to the cryptoporticus that we call the ‘vaulted underground gallery,’ which is a little further to the west of it. We have found another gate there. The place we are digging at the base right now is probably the part of the street that could be a shop. We are going down to the ground. This is really important. If there is a preserved shop here, maybe we will have a chance to find clues about what’s inside. This section will be fully brought to light by the end of this month.”

Öztepe emphasized that the examination of the wall system revealed that the bazaar dates back to the Hellenistic era, which means it is a 2,200-year-old structure.