UNESCO
Hierapolis (Pamukkale)
Hierapolis is an ancient spa and pilgrimage city beside the Pamukkale terraces near Denizli; with the travertines it has been a World Heritage Site since 1988.
A journey into the ancient world
In the Footsteps of Ancient Cities
Discover the ancient cities of Turkey and the world: history, visitor information, maps and photos.
- Ancient cities
- 116
- Countries
- 1
- Civilizations
- 15
Featured ancient cities
UNESCO
Sümela Monastery (The Monastery of Virgin Mary)
Panagia Sumela, Theotokos Sumela
Sümela Monastery in Maçka, Trabzon, is a Greek Orthodox complex built into a cliff in the Altındere Valley, known for its icon and frescoes from Alexios III's time.
UNESCO
Historic Areas of Istanbul
Constantinople, Byzantion
Four districts of old Istanbul (Sultanahmet, Süleymaniye, Zeyrek and the land walls) make up this World Heritage site, with Hagia Sophia and the Süleymaniye.
UNESCO
Sardis
Sardis, Sfar-, Sparda
The Lydian capital near Manisa where coinage was invented: the Temple of Artemis, the biggest synagogue of the ancient world and the huge Bin Tepe tumuli. World Heritage since 2025.
Alinda
Alinda, Alexandria ad Latmum, Aleksandria
Alinda is a Carian city on two hills in Karpuzlu, remembered as the capital of Queen Ada and known for its agora, theatre, walls and Carian-type tombs.
UNESCO
Ephesus
Ephesos, Arsinoeia, Arsinoe, Apaša, Ayasuluk, Ufsus
Ephesus is an ancient city beside Selçuk in İzmir, home of the Temple of Artemis, a Seven Wonders monument, and a World Heritage Site since 2015.
UNESCO
Kaymaklı Underground City
Enegüp
Kaymaklı is a multi-level underground city cut into Cappadocian tuff, known for low narrow passages, a church and a stone with 57 holes; a UNESCO property component.
UNESCO
Gordion
Gordium, Vindia, Yassıhöyük
Gordion near Polatlı was Phrygia's royal seat; the 300 m wide Midas Mound holds the oldest known upright timber building. It joined the World Heritage List in 2023.
UNESCO
Troy
Ilium, Troia, Hisarlık
Nine cities stacked on the Hisarlik mound: Troy, in Çanakkale, holds over three thousand years of unbroken settlement and the setting of the Iliad's siege.
Zeugma Archaeological Site
Seleukeia pros to Euphrate, Zuqarri, Apameia
Zeugma at Nizip, Gaziantep, is an ancient Euphrates city with a Roman legion base and rich villas, famed for its mosaics and partly flooded by the Birecik Dam.
Kaunos
Kaunos, Caunus, Kbid, Cano
Across the Dalyan river, 167 rock-cut tombs on Balıklar Mountain line up like temple fronts; silt closed Kaunos's harbour and left the city 8 km from the sea.
Labraunda
Labraunda, Labranda, Lambraunda, Labraynda
A Carian mountain sanctuary above Milas, reached by a paved Sacred Way: a rock split as if by lightning, the double-axe Zeus, and the marble banqueting halls of the Hekatomnid satraps.
Recently added cities
Aşıklı Höyük
Near Aksaray, the first known village of Central Anatolia: the earliest mud-brick architecture, signs of the shift to farming and rebuilt Neolithic houses at the entrance.
Gemiler Island
Lebissos
A small island at the head of Fethiye Bay near Ölüdeniz, with four ruined churches, the basilica-plan Church 3 and a stop on the Early Byzantine pilgrim route.
Karahan Tepe
A Pre-Pottery Neolithic settlement in the Tek Tek Mountains near Şanlıurfa, known for special buildings cut into bedrock, a carved human head and T-shaped pillars.
Clazomenae
Klazomenai, Khyton
One of the twelve Ionian cities of the Gulf of Izmir, beside modern Urla, with the oldest olive-oil workshop yet found in Anatolia and an Archaic city wall.
Kültepe (Kanesh-Karum)
Kaniş, Neşa, Kanesh, Nesha
At the foot of Mount Erciyes near Kayseri, ancient Kanesh: a capital mound and its Karum lower town, hub of the Assyrian merchants and source of thousands of cuneiform tablets.
Harput Castle
Ziata Castellum, Kharpete, Hısn-ı Ziyad, Süt Kalesi
Harput Castle in Elazığ has layers from the Urartians to the Ottomans, with rock-cut cisterns, an Artuqid palace and mosque, and a dug-up Ottoman quarter.