Professor moves to Turkey for ancient city excavations

KASTAMONU - Anadolu Agency

Excavations are ongoing on the Zımbıllı Hill of the ancient city of Pompeiopolis in Kastamonu. DHA photo

Professor Latife Summerer, who has left her mission at Germany’s Munich University and moved to Turkey, has been heading the excavations in the ancient city of Pompeipolis for seven years. The ancient city is located in the Black Sea province of Kastamonu.

Excavations are ongoing on the Zımbıllı Hill of the ancient city of Pompeiopolis, which is regarded as similar to the Ephesus and Zeugma ancient cities. Summerer left her mission at Munich University two years ago to focus on excavations and began working for the Kastamonu University.

Summerer said that Pompeiopolis was one of the seven cities founded by Roman general Pompeus Magnus in the Pontus and Paphlagonia region. She said that she first came to the region in 2006 upon the invitation of Taşköprü Municipality and there were no ancient remains in the area in those years.
Noting that with geophysical practices, they had determined the city’s plan and places of central buildings, Summerer added: “While carrying out the Pompeiopolis excavations on behalf of the Munich University, we used to come to the city in the summer months. The working period was shorter and we were not able to work properly. But we saw that it would be useful for me to be here for more organized excavation work. Also it would be useful for Kastamonu’s students to carry out excavations in the future. Then we initiated excavations but we want it to continue in the next generations. This is why the new generations should be trained and it is not possible within a short time; it takes long years. This place is the cultural heritage of Taşköprü. We want the Kastamonu University to be more productive in the field of archaeology and restoration. This is why I moved to this university.”

Only scientific excavation in northern Anatolia

Summerer said that the works in Pompeiopolis were the only scientific excavation in northern Anatolia, adding that it was a long-term excavation project.

She said that they were examining the pieces unearthed during the excavations using the best methods, and added, “In the future, this excavation will be shown as a reference point for other findings. This is of course a very important step both for Kastamonu and the northern Anatolian region.”

Summerer added that experts from Gemany, Italy, Poland, Romania, Ukraine and Greece were working for this year’s excavations.

The ancient city of Pompeiopolis was discovered by Pascal T. Fourcade, French consul from 1802 to 1812. It has been claimed by American and European archaeologists that the ancient city is wealthier and larger than the ancient city of Ephesus in İzmir.