133 Rock Tombs Discovered In Şanliurfa

Şanlıurfa Metropolitan Municipality launched efforts to preserve the historical texture of the city, and as a result, 659 houses and offices in Kızılkoyun and Kale Eteği areas were disappropriated and demolished. After the demolition, caves were discovered in the area at the end of efforts by art historians and archaeologists, and rock tombs dating back to early centuries A.C. were unearthed. At the end of studies in these two regions, 133 rock tombs some featuring floor mosaics, were discovered. Şanlıurfa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Nihat Çiftçi stated that they make efforts to bring the region, currently the largest known necropolis of the world, in tourism, and spoke as follows: “We will introduce this site that bears traces of civilizations to tourism as an open air museum. We are now in the final stage of the project, and after completing the lighting and environmental arrangements, both sites will become tourist sites as a necropolis. Our task is to unearth and protect these artefacts here for the future.”