Show spotlights Güler's shots of ancient Turkish city

ISTANBUL 

An exhibit of pictures by legendary photographer Ara Güler of has opened to visitors.  

Titled “Aphrodisias,” the exhibition focuses on the Turkish-Armenian photographer's shots of the ancient city of Aphrodisias and its surroundings as well as his original darkroom prints.

Known as “the Eye of Istanbul,” Güler accidentally discovered Aphrodisias over 60 years ago in Turkey's western province of Aydın.

Coming back from an assignment covering a new dam in 1958, Güler and his driver lost their way and ended up in a village where locals used the ancient stones and pillars as props in their daily life, according to the 2003 book, “Photojournalist: The Life of Ara Güler.”

Aphrodisias, the site of an ancient city devoted to Aphrodite, the goddess of love, was added to UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2017. 

The exhibition at Istanbul's Ara Güler Museum will run through September.

Güler worked for world-renowned magazines such as Time and Life in the U.S., the French weekly Paris Match and Der Stern in Germany and traveled around the world from Pakistan to Kenya and from New Guinea to Borneo.

He died of a heart attack last year at age 90.       

Thanks to the marble quarries and a sculptor school located close to the city, Aphrodisias was among the best known sculptor centers in the Roman era. It now hosts history aficionados and art lovers, marveling at its unique sculptures unearthed during excavations.

The ancient city draws attention with its Sebasteion Temple, stadium, ancient theater and bath as well as its museum where rich sculptures are displayed.

The site was included on the world heritage list during the 41st UNESCO World Heritage Committee session in Krakow, Poland in 2017. It is Turkey’s 16th heritage on the UNESCO list and started welcoming its guests earlier this year.

The ancient city is made up mainly of two components: The archaeological site of Aphrodisias and the marble quarries. The temple of Aphrodite dates back to the 3rd century B.C. and the city was built one cen Aphrodisias came from the marble quarries and the art produced by its sculptors. The city streets are arranged around several large civic structures, which include temples, a theater, an agora, and two bath complexes.