Lost city of Germanicia discussed at conference

ADANA - Cihan

Hittitologist Ayşe Ersoy speaks on the lost city of Germanicia at a conference.

Ancient maps indicate the ancient city of Germanicia existed in Turkey’s Kahramanmaraş province, but any remains of the city have not been uncovered so far. According to Hittitologist Ayşe Ersoy, it has been verified that the lost ancient city is really there.

Speaking at an archaeology conference in the southern province of Adana, Ersoy said the ancient city’s exact place had been found during illegal excavations in Kahramanmaraş in 2007. She provided information about the ancient city and its mosaics.

She said the mosaics that had been discovered by chance, led to the unearthing of the 1,500-year-old Germanicia, adding, “Although the city was magnificent enough to print its own money in the ancient Rome, it was destroyed and remained underground because of invasions and fires. Mosaics uncovered
after 1,500 years revealed the ancient city.”

Ersoy said that upon warnings from citizens, the Kahramanmaraş Museum Directorate started excavations there in 2007 and revealed many mosaics and remains of the ancient city in 14 different spots. “These mosaics date back to the late Roman and early Byzantine era. They were decorating the grounds of villas as the symbol of richness and power. They provide information about the social life of the era,” she said.

She said due to the mosaics, they had also gained information about the fauna and flora, as well as its culture. “What makes the mosaics different from others is they decorated the villas in the era,” Ersoy said, adding that work on Germanicia would be collected and made into a book.