# ArchaeoMap — Full City Index > Detailed per-city data for 310 approved cities on ArchaeoMap. > Intended for AI/LLM consumption. The interactive site lives at https://www.archaeomap.com. Generated: 2026-06-01 Cities: 310 --- # Buenos Aires, Argentina URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/argentina/buenos-aires Founded: 1580 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: -34.6037, -58.3816 ## Description Buenos Aires is the capital of Argentina and one of the largest metropolitan areas in South America. A first Spanish settlement was attempted in 1536 by Pedro de Mendoza but was abandoned within five years amid Querandí resistance and starvation; the city's continuous history begins with Juan de Garay's re-foundation in 1580. Bourbon administrative reform made it the capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776, and the May Revolution of 1810 set the city at the center of South American independence, formalized for the United Provinces in 1816. Federalization in 1880 and massive European immigration through the 1930s, particularly from Italy and Spain, transformed Buenos Aires into a Belle Époque metropolis nicknamed the Paris of the South and the birthplace of tango. The twentieth century saw Peronism rise in 1946 around Juan and Eva Perón, the 1976-1983 military dictatorship and Dirty War, and the 1982 Falklands War with the United Kingdom, before democratic restoration in 1983 and the modern era of a metropolitan region of roughly 15 million. ## Historical Rulers - 1580 AD – 1776 AD: Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru Juan de Garay re-founded the settlement in 1580 after the 1536 Mendoza expedition was abandoned. The town grew slowly as a peripheral port of the Viceroyalty of Peru, sustained by Atlantic contraband trade in defiance of the Lima-centered Spanish trade monopoly. - 1776 AD – 1810 AD: Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata Bourbon reforms split the southern cone from Peru and made Buenos Aires the capital of the new Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776. The city's status as a legal Atlantic port accelerated commerce, population growth, and a creole administrative elite that would later lead independence. - 1810 AD – 1831 AD: United Provinces of the Río de la Plata The May Revolution of 1810 ousted the viceroy and established a local junta in Buenos Aires, opening the independence struggle that culminated in the 1816 declaration at Tucumán. The new United Provinces were dominated by Buenos Aires but were chronically destabilized by civil wars between unitarians and federalists. - 1831 AD – 1853 AD: Argentine Republic Under the federal pact of 1831 the provinces formed a loose Argentine Confederation effectively directed from Buenos Aires by Juan Manuel de Rosas. His authoritarian rule ended with defeat at Caseros in 1852, opening the way for a constitutional reorganization of the country. - 1853 AD – 1880 AD: Argentine Republic The 1853 constitution founded the modern Argentine Republic, though Buenos Aires province seceded until reincorporation in 1860. Decades of conflict over the status of the city between province and nation were resolved in 1880 when Buenos Aires was federalized and detached from its province as the Federal Capital. - 1880 AD – 1930 AD: Argentine Republic As the new Federal Capital Buenos Aires entered a Belle Époque of explosive growth, fueled by massive European immigration that quadrupled the population in a generation. Grand civic projects such as the Teatro Colón and the wide boulevards earned the city its Paris of the South reputation; tango emerged in its port neighborhoods. - 1930 AD – 1946 AD: Argentine Republic The 1930 coup against Hipólito Yrigoyen opened the so-called Infamous Decade of fraudulent elections and conservative restoration centered in Buenos Aires. Military and civilian governments alternated against a backdrop of the Great Depression, import-substituting industrialization, and the 1943 GOU coup that brought Juan Perón to national prominence. - 1946 AD – 1955 AD: Peronist Argentina Juan Domingo Perón won the 1946 election and turned Buenos Aires into the stage of a mass labor-based movement championed by his wife Eva Perón until her death in 1952. State-led industrialization, nationalizations, and welfare expansion transformed the capital before Perón was ousted by the Revolución Libertadora coup of 1955. - 1955 AD – 1976 AD: Post-Peronist political instability Two decades of alternating weak civilian governments and military regimes followed, with Peronism banned for most of the period. Buenos Aires was the stage of repeated coups, the brief return of Perón in 1973, and escalating political violence between left-wing guerrillas and state-aligned death squads. - 1976 AD – 1983 AD: Military Dictatorship — National Reorganization Process The 1976 junta led by Jorge Rafael Videla launched the so-called National Reorganization Process, a state-terror campaign in which thousands were disappeared, with clandestine detention centers operating across Buenos Aires. The regime's failed 1982 Falklands War with the United Kingdom discredited the military and forced a return to elections. - 1983 AD – present: Argentine Republic Raúl Alfonsín's 1983 election restored democratic rule and opened trials of the junta leaders. Buenos Aires has since lived through hyperinflation, the 2001 economic collapse, repeated recoveries, and constitutional autonomy as an autonomous city since 1994, remaining the political, financial, and cultural heart of Argentina. ## Landmarks - Cabildo de Buenos Aires (built 1610 AD) The colonial town hall facing the Plaza de Mayo, with its present Spanish colonial form dating to the early eighteenth century. The Cabildo was the seat of municipal government and the meeting place of the open council that launched the May Revolution of 1810. - Catedral Metropolitana (built 1622 AD) The principal Catholic cathedral of Buenos Aires on the north side of the Plaza de Mayo, first raised in 1622 and rebuilt several times. Its current Neoclassical façade was completed in 1827, and it houses the mausoleum of independence general José de San Martín. - Recoleta Cemetery (built 1822 AD) An elaborate walled cemetery in the Recoleta district, inaugurated in 1822 on the grounds of a former Franciscan convent. Its avenues of mausoleums house generations of Argentine elites, including the tomb of Eva Perón. - Casa Rosada (built 1873 AD) The executive mansion of the Argentine president on the east side of the Plaza de Mayo, occupying the site of the colonial fort founded with the city in 1580. The current pink building took its form between 1873 and the 1890s and is famous for its balcony, from which Juan and Eva Perón addressed mass rallies. - Teatro Colón (built 1908 AD) The principal opera house of Buenos Aires, inaugurated in 1908 after decades of construction. Renowned for its acoustics and Belle Époque interior, it became the symbol of the city's golden age and of its self-image as the Paris of the South. - Obelisco de Buenos Aires (built 1936 AD) A 67-metre monument at the intersection of avenidas Corrientes and 9 de Julio, raised in 1936 to mark the four hundredth anniversary of the first Mendoza foundation of the city. It has become the visual emblem of Buenos Aires and the focal point of major public gatherings. - Avenida 9 de Julio (built 1937 AD) A monumental north-south avenue cut through the center of Buenos Aires, with its first stretch opened in 1937 and later sections completed over the following decades. Often described as one of the widest avenues in the world, it embodies the modernist urban ambition of mid-twentieth-century Argentina. ## Population History - 1580 AD: 500 - 1700 AD: 12,000 - 1776 AD: 24,000 - 1810 AD: 45,000 - 1850 AD: 90,000 - 1880 AD: 290,000 - 1900 AD: 821,000 - 1947 AD: 3,000,000 - 1980 AD: 9,700,000 - 2000 AD: 13,200,000 - 2020 AD: 15,400,000 --- # Artaxata, Armenia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/armenia/artaxata Founded: 176 BC Ended: 500 AD Coordinates: 39.8866, 44.579473 ## Description Artaxata — Artashat in Armenian — was the great Hellenistic capital of the Kingdom of Armenia, founded around 176 BCE by King Artaxias I (Artashes) of the Artaxiad dynasty on the Khor Virap hill above the Araxes river in the southern Ararat plain, some 30 kilometres south of modern Yerevan. According to Armenian tradition Hannibal Barca, in exile from Carthage, assisted Artaxias in laying out the new royal city. Artaxata served as the principal capital of Greater Armenia for almost six centuries, hosting the Artaxiad and Arsacid royal courts and the seat of the Greco-Armenian Hellenistic culture that flourished under successive kings down to the imperial peak of Tigranes II the Great. The city was famously sacked by the Roman general Corbulo in 58 CE during the Roman–Parthian War over Armenia, and rebuilt with subsidies from Nero as Neronia, before being returned to Armenian sovereignty by the Treaty of Rhandeia. Trajan briefly annexed it in 114 CE; Sasanian incursions under Shapur II in the 360s and the broader decline of the Armenian Arsacid kingdom in the 4th century progressively weakened the city. After the deposition of the last Arsacid king in 428 CE the capital function moved north to Dvin, and Artaxata was effectively abandoned by around 500 CE. The hill where the royal citadel stood is today occupied by the Khor Virap monastery, founded in the 7th century atop the dungeon where Saint Gregory the Illuminator was held by King Trdat III before his conversion of Armenia to Christianity in 301 CE. ## Historical Rulers - 176 BC – 114 AD: Kingdom of Armenia (known as "Artashat") Founded around 176 BCE by King Artaxias I of the Artaxiad dynasty as the new royal capital of the Kingdom of Armenia, replacing earlier seats at Armavir and Ervandashat. The new city was laid out across the twelve hills above the Araxes river on the Khor Virap promontory, and according to the historian Plutarch and Armenian tradition the exiled Carthaginian general Hannibal advised Artaxias on its urban plan. Artaxata grew into the principal Hellenistic city of Greater Armenia and the political and cultural seat of successive Artaxiad and early Arsacid kings, including Tigranes II the Great. Corbulo's Roman army sacked the city in 58 CE during the Roman–Parthian War over Armenia, and the city was rebuilt with subsidies from Nero as Neronia before being restored to Armenian sovereignty by the Treaty of Rhandeia in 63 CE. - 114 AD – 117 AD: Roman Empire Trajan's annexation of Armenia in 114 CE brought Artaxata briefly under direct Roman provincial administration as part of the new province of Armenia. Hadrian withdrew Roman forces in 117 CE and restored the kingdom to Arsacid client rule. - 117 AD – 252 AD: Kingdom of Armenia Restored to Armenian Arsacid sovereignty after the Roman withdrawal, Artaxata continued as the principal royal city through the long Arsacid–Roman–Parthian frontier conflict. The conversion of King Trdat III to Christianity by Saint Gregory the Illuminator in 301 CE — the first state adoption of Christianity in history — was traditionally proclaimed at Artaxata. - 252 AD – 298 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Artashat") Shapur I's victorious campaigns of the mid-3rd century brought Armenia and its capital Artaxata under Sasanian suzerainty. Direct Sasanian control lasted until Diocletian's Persian War concluded with the Treaty of Nisibis in 298 CE restoring Roman client status to the Armenian kingdom. - 298 AD – 428 AD: Kingdom of Armenia (known as "Artashat") Diocletian's settlement restored the Armenian Arsacid kingdom under Roman client status from 298 CE. The 387 partition of Armenia between Rome and Sasanian Persia placed Artaxata in the Sasanian eastern half — Persarmenia — though the Arsacid client kings continued to reign from the city until the deposition of the last king Artashes IV in 428 CE. Shapur II's invasions of the 360s damaged the city severely, and the Sasanian shahs increasingly favoured Vagharshapat and the rising new capital of Dvin to the north. - 428 AD – 500 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Artashat") After the deposition of the last Arsacid king of Armenia in 428 CE direct Sasanian administration was established through marzpans governing Persarmenia from Dvin. Artaxata declined sharply during the 5th century as the political functions and population shifted to Dvin, and the old capital was effectively abandoned by around 500 CE. ## Landmarks - Citadel and Royal Palace of Artaxata (built 176 BC) The royal citadel and palace complex of King Artaxias I on the steep limestone outcrop above the Araxes plain, the present-day Khor Virap hill. The fortified upper city served as the seat of the Artaxiad and Arsacid royal courts for over six centuries and was successively rebuilt after Roman and Sasanian assaults. - City Walls of Artaxata (built 176 BC) The monumental fortification circuit laid out by Artaxias I's architects across the twelve hills above the Araxes river, enclosing one of the largest urban areas of the late Hellenistic and Roman east. Stretches of the late antique circuit have been documented in modern excavations of the lower town. - Theatre of Artaxata (built 100 BC) The Hellenistic-style theatre attested by classical sources and partially recovered in excavations, hosting Greek-language tragedies during the late Artaxiad royal court. The city was famed in the ancient world as the easternmost outpost of Hellenistic theatrical culture. - Khor Virap Monastery (built 642 AD) The medieval Armenian Apostolic monastery built atop the ancient royal citadel of Artaxata around the 7th century, on the site of the traditional dungeon — Khor Virap, literally 'deep pit' — where King Trdat III is said to have held Saint Gregory the Illuminator for thirteen years before his miraculous conversion to Christianity in 301 CE. The principal church visible today was rebuilt in 1662 atop earlier medieval foundations and remains one of the most venerated pilgrimage sites of the Armenian Apostolic Church. ## Population History - 176 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 50,000 - 50 BC: 100,000 - 50 AD: 80,000 - 60 AD: 30,000 - 200 AD: 60,000 - 300 AD: 50,000 - 400 AD: 20,000 - 500 AD: 2,000 --- # Dvin, Armenia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/armenia/dvin Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 1236 AD Coordinates: 40.00444, 44.57833 ## Description Dvin was one of the great cities of the medieval Caucasus, occupying a fortified hill in the Ararat plain about 35 kilometres south of modern Yerevan between the present-day villages of Hnaberd and Verin Dvin. The site preserves continuous occupation from the 3rd millennium BCE, when a Bronze Age fortress was established on the hill, through the Urartian, Achaemenid, and Armenian periods. The urban city of Dvin proper was founded in 335 CE by King Khosrov III Kotak of the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia as a new royal residence replacing the declining capital at Artaxata. After the deposition of the last Arsacid king in 428 CE Dvin became the marzpan seat of Sasanian Persarmenia and after 484 the principal seat of the Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church, hosting the celebrated First and Second Councils of Dvin that defined Armenian Miaphysite Christianity against Chalcedonian Byzantine orthodoxy. Under the Arab caliphates from 640 the city became the administrative centre of the Muslim province of Arminiya, growing to perhaps 100,000 inhabitants at its 8th-9th century peak as one of the largest cities of the early Islamic Near East. A devastating earthquake of 893 killed an estimated 70,000 inhabitants. Successive Bagratid Armenian, Shaddadid Kurdish, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Georgian rulers contested the city through the 10th to early 13th centuries — Queen Tamar of Georgia's reign marking its medieval Christian zenith — before Mongol forces stormed and completely destroyed Dvin in 1236, after which the site was permanently abandoned. The ruins were excavated extensively by Soviet-era Armenian archaeologists from 1937 onward, revealing the great Cathedral of Saint Grigor, the catholicosal palace, the citadel and double walls, and one of the most extensive medieval urban fabrics of the Caucasus. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1200 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Dvin Citadel") A Bronze Age fortress occupied the fortified hill that would later become the Dvin citadel, attested archaeologically from the 3rd millennium BCE. The settlement participated in the broader Caucasian Bronze Age cultural networks of the Ararat plain. - 800 BC – 590 BC: Urartu (known as "*Dvin Citadel") During the Urartian kingdom's expansion into the Ararat plain under Argishti I and Sarduri II, the hill at Dvin was incorporated into the Urartian fortified network that also included Erebuni at modern Yerevan. The fortress continued as a regional Urartian outpost until the collapse of the kingdom in the late 7th century BCE. - 550 BC – 331 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Dvin") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Media the Ararat plain was incorporated into the Achaemenid satrapy of Armenia, with the Dvin fortress continuing as a regional outpost under Persian administration. - 331 BC – 428 AD: Kingdom of Armenia Following the Macedonian conquest and the establishment of the Orontid Kingdom of Armenia, Dvin continued as a regional fortress in the Ararat plain. Under King Khosrov III Kotak of the Arsacid dynasty the site was refounded in 335 CE as a new royal residence, replacing the declining capital at Artaxata, and rapidly grew into the principal political and ecclesiastical centre of Greater Armenia until the deposition of the last Arsacid king Artashes IV in 428 CE. - 428 AD – 640 AD: Sasanian Empire After the abolition of the Armenian Arsacid kingdom in 428 CE direct Sasanian administration was established through marzpans governing Persarmenia from Dvin. The city became the seat of the Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church after the relocation from Vagharshapat around 484, hosting the celebrated First Council of Dvin (506) and Second Council of Dvin (554) that defined Armenian Miaphysite Christianity in opposition to the Chalcedonian definition of the Council of Chalcedon (451). - 640 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Dabil") Conquered by Arab forces around 640 during the Muslim conquest of Armenia, Dvin — arabicised as Dabil — was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate. The Armenian Catholicate continued at Dvin under Arab suzerainty. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Dabil") Under Umayyad rule Dvin served as the administrative seat of the new Muslim province of Arminiya, encompassing Armenia, Iberia, and Caucasian Albania. The Armenian Catholicate retained its seat in the city under Arab governors. - 750 AD – 884 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Dabil") Under Abbasid administration Dvin grew into one of the largest cities of the early Islamic world, with population estimates reaching around 100,000 at its 8th–9th century peak. The city served as the Abbasid capital of Arminiya through the long Abbasid period, with successive Bagratid Armenian princes serving as ostikans or governors under nominal caliphal suzerainty. - 884 AD – 1021 AD: Bagratid Armenia Following Ashot I Bagratuni's coronation as king of Armenia in 884 CE, Dvin alternated between Bagratid royal control and Muslim emirate administration under Sajid, Sallarid and Shaddadid governors. A devastating earthquake in 893 killed an estimated 70,000 inhabitants and severely damaged the city, after which Bagratid rule was punctuated by periods of emirate dominance until the Shaddadid Kurdish takeover of 1021. - 1021 AD – 1064 AD: Shaddadid Emirate (known as "Dabil") The Kurdish Shaddadid dynasty of Ganja took firm control of Dvin from around 1021, governing the city as a regional capital of their eastern Transcaucasian emirate through the early and mid 11th century. Shaddadid rule continued until the Seljuk takeover of much of the Caucasus. - 1064 AD – 1124 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Dabil") Alp Arslan's Seljuk forces occupied Dvin in 1064 as part of the broader Seljuk advance into Armenia and the Caucasus that culminated in the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. Dvin was administered through Seljuk-vassal Shaddadid emirs at Ani until the Georgian reconquest of the early 12th century. - 1124 AD – 1236 AD: Kingdom of Georgia David IV of Georgia's reconquest of the southern Caucasus from the Seljuks brought Dvin under Georgian Bagrationi rule from around 1124, briefly contested before the definitive Georgian takeover under George III in 1173 and the long reign of Queen Tamar (1184–1213). Dvin reached a medieval Christian cultural zenith under the Georgian kings until the Mongol conquest of 1236, when Mongol forces stormed and completely destroyed the city, after which the site was permanently abandoned. The Khwarezmian general Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu briefly held the city around 1225 during his retreat from the Mongol pursuit before Georgian forces retook it shortly afterward. ## Landmarks - Citadel of Dvin (built 335 AD) The fortified upper city on the steep hill above the Ararat plain, originally a Bronze Age fortress and rebuilt by Khosrov III in 335 CE as the royal citadel of the new Armenian capital. The citadel walls were successively reinforced under the Sasanians, the Arab caliphs, and the Bagratid, Shaddadid, and Georgian rulers down to the Mongol destruction of 1236. - Double City Walls (built 335 AD) The monumental double fortification circuit enclosing the lower town of Dvin and the citadel, originally constructed under Khosrov III and successively expanded under the Sasanians and the Arabs. The walls enclosed an urban area of around one square kilometre, with substantial sections excavated by Soviet-era archaeologists revealing the gates and tower structure. - Cathedral of Saint Grigor (built 480 AD) The principal cathedral of Dvin and the patriarchal church of the Armenian Catholicos from the late 5th century onward, measuring some 30 by 58 metres at its peak — among the largest churches of the medieval Caucasus. The cathedral hosted the First (506) and Second (554) Councils of Dvin that defined Armenian Miaphysite Christianity and remained the principal seat of the Armenian Apostolic Church through the early Islamic period. Excavated extensively by Soviet-era archaeologists, the foundations and decorated capitals are preserved as one of the principal monuments of the archaeological park. - Catholicosal Palace of Dvin (built 484 AD) The palatial residence of the Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church alongside the Cathedral of Saint Grigor, serving as the seat of the Armenian patriarchate from around 484 through the early Islamic period. The palace foundations have been documented in the Soviet-era excavations alongside the cathedral complex. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 500 - 700 BC: 1,500 - 300 BC: 2,000 - 335 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 30,000 - 700 AD: 50,000 - 850 AD: 100,000 - 894 AD: 30,000 - 1000 AD: 60,000 - 1200 AD: 80,000 - 1236 AD: null --- # Sydney, Australia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/australia/sydney Founded: 1788 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: -33.8688, 151.2093 ## Description Sydney is Australia's largest city and the capital of New South Wales, sitting on one of the world's great natural harbors. The wider Sydney basin was home to the Gadigal people of the Eora nation and neighboring Aboriginal groups for at least 30,000 years before European contact, with some archaeological estimates pushing occupation deeper still; these were hunter-gatherer communities rather than urban settlements. The city itself dates from 26 January 1788, when the British First Fleet under Captain Arthur Phillip established a penal colony at Sydney Cove, a date now commemorated as Australia Day and remembered by many Indigenous Australians as Invasion Day. Convict transportation drove growth until around 1840, after which free immigration and the 1851 gold rush transformed Sydney into a major Victorian-era port. Following Federation in 1901 the city remained a state capital within the new Commonwealth; in 1942 Japanese midget submarines attacked Sydney Harbour during WWII. Modern Sydney is a global multicultural metropolis of roughly 5.4 million, defined by the 1932 Harbour Bridge, Jorn Utzon's 1973 Opera House, and the 2000 Olympic Games. ## Historical Rulers - 1788 AD – 1901 AD: British Empire Founded on 26 January 1788 by Captain Arthur Phillip and the First Fleet as a British penal colony at Sydney Cove. Convict transportation was the engine of growth until around 1840, after which free immigration accelerated. The 1851 New South Wales gold rush brought a population surge and rapid urbanization, and progressive grants of self-government through the second half of the 19th century moved the colony toward responsible parliamentary rule. - 1901 AD – present: British Empire With Federation on 1 January 1901, Sydney became the capital of the state of New South Wales within the new Commonwealth of Australia. The city contributed heavily to WWI and WWII war efforts and experienced a Japanese midget submarine attack on the harbor in 1942. Postwar mass immigration reshaped Sydney into a multicultural metropolis; the Harbour Bridge (1932), Opera House (1973), and 2000 Summer Olympics cemented its status as a global city. ## Landmarks - Government House (built 1845 AD) Gothic Revival vice-regal residence completed in 1845 in the Royal Botanic Garden, serving as the official residence of the Governor of New South Wales and a key locus of colonial-era ceremony. - Queen Victoria Building (built 1898 AD) Romanesque-style shopping arcade completed in 1898 in the heart of the CBD, originally built as a market hall during the depression of the 1890s and now a heritage-listed retail landmark. - Sydney Harbour Bridge (built 1932 AD) Steel through-arch bridge opened in 1932 connecting the CBD to the North Shore across Sydney Harbour. Nicknamed the Coathanger, it was a major Depression-era public works project and remains one of the most recognizable bridges in the world. - Sydney Opera House (built 1973 AD) Multi-venue performing arts centre on Bennelong Point designed by Danish architect Jorn Utzon and completed in 1973 after a protracted construction. Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2007 as a masterpiece of 20th-century architecture. - Sydney Tower (built 1981 AD) 309-metre observation and communications tower completed in 1981, the tallest structure in Sydney and one of the tallest observation towers in the Southern Hemisphere. - Sydney Olympic Park (built 2000 AD) Purpose-built sports and entertainment precinct at Homebush Bay developed for the 2000 Summer Olympic Games, anchored by Stadium Australia and now a major events and residential district. - Barangaroo (built 2015 AD) Major harborfront redevelopment of a former container terminal on the western edge of the CBD, delivered in stages through the 2010s and combining commercial towers, a headland park, and waterfront public space. ## Population History - 1788 AD: 1,500 - 1820 AD: 12,000 - 1851 AD: 54,000 - 1870 AD: 135,000 - 1901 AD: 488,000 - 1939 AD: 1,300,000 - 1970 AD: 2,780,000 - 2000 AD: 4,080,000 - 2020 AD: 5,380,000 --- # Vienna, Austria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/austria/vienna Founded: 15 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 48.2082, 16.3738 ## Description Vienna began as Vindobona, a Roman legionary castrum established on the Danube limes under early imperial rule and serving as a Pannonian frontier town until the 5th century. After Roman collapse and a long sub-Roman contraction, the Babenberg margraves moved their seat here in 1145, and the Habsburgs acquired the city in 1276, making it their dynastic capital and the de facto residence of the Holy Roman Empire. Vienna survived two Ottoman sieges in 1529 and 1683, the latter broken by the Polish-Imperial relief under Jan Sobieski, then flourished under Maria Theresa and Joseph II as the capital of the Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary. Its Belle Époque around 1880-1914 produced Klimt, Schiele, Freud, Mahler, Schoenberg, Wittgenstein and the Vienna Secession, while Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert had earlier made it Europe's musical center. After the dissolution of Austria-Hungary in 1918, the Nazi Anschluss of 1938 and four-power Allied occupation from 1945 to 1955, Vienna emerged as a neutral capital, a UN headquarters city and a UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed in 2001. ## Historical Rulers - 15 AD – 410 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Vindobona") Vindobona was founded as a Roman military castrum on the Danube limes in the early imperial period and grew into a major frontier town of the province of Pannonia. The site hosted Legio X Gemina from the late 1st century and developed a civilian canabae, remaining a Roman administrative and garrison center until the collapse of the Danube frontier in the early 5th century. - 410 AD – 791 AD: Sub-Roman and Migration Period (known as "*Vindobona") After the Roman withdrawal the settlement contracted sharply and urban continuity is thin in the archaeological record, with successive Germanic and Slavic groups including Rugians, Lombards, Avars and Slavs passing through the middle Danube. A small population is presumed to have persisted around the old castrum walls but the period is poorly documented. - 791 AD – 976 AD: Carolingian Empire (known as "*Wien") Charlemagne's campaigns against the Avars from 791 brought the middle Danube back into Frankish control and led to the establishment of the Eastern March as a defensive frontier. The region was reorganized after the Magyar incursions and the Frankish victory at the Lechfeld in 955, preparing the ground for a refounded margraviate. - 976 AD – 1246 AD: Habsburg Monarchy (known as "Wien") The Babenberg dynasty held the Eastern March from 976 and gradually consolidated it into the Duchy of Austria after the Privilegium Minus of 1156. Margrave Heinrich II Jasomirgott moved the dynastic seat to Vienna in 1145, founding the Schottenkloster and giving the town its first role as a capital, and the Babenberg line ended in 1246 with the death of Friedrich II in battle against the Hungarians. - 1246 AD – 1276 AD: Bohemia (known as "Wien") After the extinction of the Babenbergs, King Ottokar II of Bohemia took control of Austria and ruled Vienna as part of his expanding realm. His refusal to do homage to Rudolf I of Habsburg led to the Battle on the Marchfeld in 1278 where he was defeated, but Habsburg control of the city was already secured by the treaty of 1276. - 1276 AD – 1804 AD: Habsburg Monarchy (known as "Wien") Rudolf I established Habsburg rule in 1276 and the dynasty made Vienna its permanent residence, becoming hereditary emperors of the Holy Roman Empire from 1438. The city survived Ottoman sieges in 1529 under Suleiman and 1683 under Kara Mustafa, the latter broken by the relief army of Jan Sobieski and Charles of Lorraine, and was rebuilt as a Baroque imperial capital under Leopold I, Charles VI, Maria Theresa and Joseph II. - 1804 AD – 1867 AD: Habsburg Monarchy (known as "Wien") Francis II proclaimed the hereditary Austrian Empire in 1804 in response to Napoleon's imperial title, and dissolved the Holy Roman Empire in 1806. Vienna hosted the Congress of Vienna in 1814-1815 which redrew post-Napoleonic Europe, and the city became the political center of Metternich's conservative order until the revolutions of 1848. - 1867 AD – 1918 AD: Habsburg Monarchy (known as "Wien") The Ausgleich of 1867 reorganized the empire as the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary with Vienna as its imperial capital. The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw the construction of the Ringstrasse and a cultural Belle Époque around Klimt, Schiele, Freud, Mahler, Schoenberg, Wittgenstein and the Vienna Secession, ending with defeat in the First World War and the empire's dissolution in 1918. - 1918 AD – 1938 AD: Habsburg Monarchy (known as "Wien") After the empire's collapse Vienna became capital of the small First Austrian Republic, and Red Vienna under Social Democratic municipal government built large-scale public housing such as the Karl-Marx-Hof. Civil war in 1934 and the authoritarian Austrofascist Federal State under Dollfuss and Schuschnigg ended the parliamentary republic and persecuted both Social Democrats and Nazis until the Anschluss. - 1938 AD – 1945 AD: Nazi Germany (known as "Wien") German troops entered Austria in March 1938 and the country was incorporated into the Third Reich as Ostmark, with Vienna reduced from a national capital to a regional Gau city. Jewish Vienna, one of Europe's largest Jewish communities, was destroyed through expropriation, expulsion and deportation to the camps, and the city suffered extensive Allied bombing and a Soviet ground assault in April 1945. - 1945 AD – 1955 AD: Allied Occupation of Japan (known as "Wien") From 1945 Vienna was divided into American, British, French and Soviet sectors with a jointly administered inner city, while Austria as a whole was governed under four-power occupation. The Austrian State Treaty signed in the Belvedere on 15 May 1955 restored full sovereignty and committed the country to permanent neutrality, ending the occupation. - 1955 AD – present: Second Austrian Republic (known as "Wien") Since 1955 Vienna has been the federal capital of the neutral Second Austrian Republic, growing into a service-oriented metropolis of nearly two million inhabitants. It hosts a UN headquarters office, the IAEA and OPEC, and its historic center was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001. ## Landmarks - Hoher Markt (built 50 AD) The Hoher Markt occupies the area of the Roman castrum's forum and headquarters building, the oldest known public square in Vienna. Excavated Roman officers' quarters beneath the square are preserved as an archaeological museum. - Stephansdom (built 1147 AD) Saint Stephen's Cathedral was consecrated in 1147 as a Romanesque parish church and was rebuilt in the Gothic style through the 14th and 15th centuries, with the south tower completed in 1433. It became the seat of the Archbishop of Vienna in 1722 and is the symbol of the city, hosting Habsburg coronations, royal weddings and the funerals of Mozart and Vivaldi. - Hofburg (built 1279 AD) The Hofburg began as a 13th-century Babenberg-era castle and grew over six centuries into the principal residence of the Habsburg dynasty and the Holy Roman emperors. It now houses the office of the Austrian federal president, the Spanish Riding School, the Imperial Treasury and the Austrian National Library. - Schönbrunn Palace (built 1696 AD) Schönbrunn was rebuilt from 1696 by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach as the Habsburg summer residence and remodeled under Maria Theresa in the Rococo style. Its 1441 rooms, Baroque gardens, Gloriette and palm house make it one of the most visited Baroque ensembles in Europe and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996. - Belvedere Palace (built 1723 AD) The Upper and Lower Belvedere were built by Lukas von Hildebrandt for Prince Eugene of Savoy and completed around 1723. The complex now houses the Belvedere Museum and its collection of Austrian art, including Gustav Klimt's Kiss, and was the site of the signing of the Austrian State Treaty in 1955. - Ringstrasse (built 1865 AD) The Ringstrasse boulevard replaced the demolished medieval city walls and glacis after 1857 and was inaugurated by Franz Joseph in 1865. Its monumental ensemble of state opera, parliament, city hall, university, Burgtheater and museums became the architectural face of Habsburg Vienna at its imperial peak. - Vienna State Opera (built 1869 AD) The Wiener Staatsoper opened in 1869 as the first major monument of the new Ringstrasse and quickly became one of the world's leading opera houses under directors including Gustav Mahler. Heavily damaged by Allied bombing in 1945, it was rebuilt and reopened in 1955 as a symbol of postwar Austrian recovery. ## Population History - 15 AD: 500 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 300 AD: 10,000 - 410 AD: 3,000 - 700 AD: 500 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1145 AD: 10,000 - 1276 AD: 20,000 - 1500 AD: 25,000 - 1683 AD: 80,000 - 1750 AD: 175,000 - 1800 AD: 230,000 - 1900 AD: 1,700,000 - 1939 AD: 1,900,000 - 1955 AD: 1,650,000 - 2000 AD: 1,550,000 - 2020 AD: 1,950,000 --- # Tiwanaku, Bolivia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/bolivia/tiwanaku Founded: 1500 BC Ended: 1100 AD Coordinates: -16.5547, -68.6736 ## Description Tiwanaku is the ruined capital of the pre-Columbian Tiwanaku civilization, set near the southern shore of Lake Titicaca on the Bolivian Altiplano at roughly 3,850 meters above sea level. Founded as a small lakeside village in the second millennium BCE, it matured into a major urban center by the middle of the first millennium CE and became the political and ceremonial heart of an Andean polity whose influence extended over what is today Bolivia, southern Peru, northern Chile, and northwestern Argentina. Its monumental core — the Akapana stepped pyramid, the Kalasasaya temple, the semi-subterranean Sunken Temple, the Pumapunku complex, and the monolithic Puerta del Sol carved with the iconic staff-bearing Viracocha or Sun-God figure — was built and embellished over centuries, and the site produced some of the largest stone monoliths in the pre-Columbian Americas, including the Bennett and Ponce monoliths. The civilization is also remembered for sophisticated high-altitude agriculture based on raised-field systems known as sukakollos or waru-waru, which used water-filled canals to buffer crops against the severe Altiplano frosts. Prolonged drought conditions from around 1000 CE eroded the agricultural base, and the urban center was abandoned as a political capital by about 1100 CE. The Aymara peoples of the surrounding region continued to regard the ruins as sacred; in Inca tradition Tiwanaku was the legendary place where the creator god Viracocha brought forth humanity, and Inca rulers visited the site as a holy ancestral landscape. Spanish chroniclers documented the ruins in the 16th century, systematic archaeology began in the late 19th century, and Tiwanaku was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000. The site remains central to contemporary Aymara cultural identity and hosts modern ceremonies, including Andean new-year sunrise gatherings each June solstice. The small modern town of Tiwanaku nearby is a separate later settlement and is not a continuation of the ancient city. ## Historical Rulers - 1500 BC – 200 BC: Early Tiwanaku Settlement (known as "*Tiwanaku") Initial occupation of the Tiwanaku basin as a small agricultural and lakeside village on the southern shore of Lake Titicaca. Local Altiplano communities exploit camelid herding, fishing, and early cultivation of altitude-adapted crops such as potatoes and quinoa. No monumental architecture yet; the settlement is one of several comparable villages in the Lake Titicaca basin. - 200 BC – 500 AD: Formative Tiwanaku (known as "*Tiwanaku") Tiwanaku grows from a village into a regional ceremonial center during the Late Formative period. The earliest monumental constructions — including the semi-subterranean Sunken Temple and the first phases of the Kalasasaya platform — date to this era. The site begins to overshadow the rival center of Pukara to the north and consolidates control over the southern Lake Titicaca basin. - 500 AD – 800 AD: Urban Tiwanaku — Phase IV (known as "*Tiwanaku") Tiwanaku matures into a fully urban capital with a dense population, planned ceremonial precincts, and an expanding regional network. The Akapana pyramid is constructed as a massive stepped earthen and stone platform, and Kalasasaya is monumentalized in fine ashlar masonry. The Tiwanaku polity exerts strong cultural and economic influence over the southern Andes through colonies, llama caravans, and shared iconography. - 800 AD – 1000 AD: Tiwanaku Empire — Phase V Peak (known as "*Tiwanaku") Imperial peak of Tiwanaku. The capital reaches its largest extent and densest population, and Tiwanaku iconography — most famously the staff-bearing Viracocha figure carved on the Puerta del Sol — spreads across territory corresponding to modern Bolivia, southern Peru, northern Chile, and northwestern Argentina. Tiwanaku and the contemporary Wari polity to the northwest dominate the central Andes during this Middle Horizon. - 1000 AD – 1100 AD: Tiwanaku Collapse (known as "*Tiwanaku") A prolonged drought from around 1000 CE undermines the raised-field agricultural system that sustained the urban population. Provincial control breaks down, monumental construction ceases, and the urban core is progressively abandoned. By about 1100 CE Tiwanaku has ceased to function as a political capital, though the ruins remain a sacred place in the cultural memory of the surrounding Aymara communities and, later, of the Inca. ## Landmarks - Sunken Temple (built 200 AD) A semi-subterranean rectangular ritual courtyard, its walls lined with tenoned stone heads of varied styles. One of the earliest monumental constructions at Tiwanaku, dating from the Late Formative period and central to the site's early ceremonial life. - Kalasasaya Temple (built 300 AD) A large rectangular stone-walled platform enclosure aligned with solar events, built and rebuilt across several centuries. Kalasasaya frames a sunken inner court and houses major monolithic statues, and it formed the principal ceremonial precinct of the Tiwanaku capital. - Akapana Pyramid (built 600 AD) A massive seven-tiered stepped platform combining earthen fill with finely cut stone retaining walls, dominating the Tiwanaku ceremonial core. Drainage channels carry water down its sides in a structured cascade, suggesting cosmological symbolism linking the pyramid to mountains and rainfall. - Pumapunku (built 700 AD) A separate monumental platform complex southwest of the main core, famous for its precisely cut andesite blocks featuring H-shaped recesses, internal channels, and tight modular joinery. Pumapunku is among the most technically accomplished examples of ashlar masonry in the pre-Columbian Americas. - Bennett Monolith (built 700 AD) The largest known Tiwanaku monolith, standing about 7.3 meters tall and carved from a single block of sandstone. Discovered in the Sunken Temple in 1932 by Wendell Bennett, the statue depicts a richly attired anthropomorphic figure holding ritual objects and is now housed in a dedicated museum near the site. - Ponce Monolith (built 700 AD) A monumental anthropomorphic stone statue, roughly 3 meters tall, standing in the inner courtyard of Kalasasaya. Carved with elaborate iconography of a figure holding a kero drinking vessel and a staff, it is one of the best-preserved monoliths still displayed in situ at Tiwanaku. - Puerta del Sol (built 800 AD) A monolithic gateway carved from a single block of andesite, its lintel bearing the iconic relief of a central staff-bearing figure flanked by winged attendants — usually interpreted as the creator deity Viracocha or a related sun god. The Puerta del Sol is the most widely recognized single artifact of Tiwanaku and a defining image of Andean pre-Columbian art. ## Population History - 1500 BC: 200 - 500 BC: 1,000 - 1 AD: 3,000 - 500 AD: 10,000 - 800 AD: 20,000 - 1000 AD: 15,000 - 1100 AD: null --- # Rio de Janeiro, Brazil URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/brazil/rio-de-janeiro Founded: 1565 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: -22.9068, -43.1729 ## Description Rio de Janeiro sits on Guanabara Bay, long inhabited by Tupinambá (Tupi) peoples before Portuguese explorer Gaspar de Lemos charted the bay on 1 January 1502 and named it Rio de Janeiro under the mistaken belief that it was a river mouth. From 1555 to 1567 French Huguenot colonists held a fortified settlement here known as France Antarctique, prompting Estácio de Sá to found São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro on 1 March 1565 as a Portuguese counter-colony, with the French finally expelled in 1567. The city rose to become capital of the Viceroyalty of Brazil in 1763, then uniquely the capital of the entire Portuguese Empire from 1808 to 1821 after the royal court fled Napoleon's invasion of Iberia — making it the only American-based seat of a European empire. Pedro I declared Brazilian independence in 1822 and Rio served as capital of the Empire of Brazil and successive republics until losing that status to the planned city of Brasília in 1960. Today it is a megacity of roughly thirteen million in the metropolitan region, globally recognized for Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf Mountain, Copacabana and Ipanema, Carnival, and as host of the 2014 FIFA World Cup final and the 2016 Summer Olympics — the first held in South America. ## Historical Rulers - 1565 AD – 1763 AD: Brazil (known as "São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro") Estácio de Sá founded São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro on 1 March 1565 to dislodge the French Huguenot colony of France Antarctique, which was finally expelled in 1567. Under the Portuguese Captaincy system the settlement grew as a sugar, slave-trading and gold-export port serving the Minas Gerais mining boom, while fortifications were repeatedly expanded against French and Dutch raids. - 1763 AD – 1808 AD: Viceroyalty of Brazil In 1763 the Portuguese Crown transferred the colonial capital from Salvador da Bahia to Rio de Janeiro, reflecting the southward shift of economic gravity toward the gold and diamond fields of Minas Gerais. As viceregal seat the city accumulated administrative palaces, churches and military works that still define its historic centre. - 1808 AD – 1822 AD: United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves Fleeing Napoleon's invasion of Iberia in 1807, the Portuguese royal court relocated to Rio de Janeiro in 1808, making it the only city in the Americas to serve as capital of a European empire. The presence of the Braganza court triggered a wave of institution-building — royal library, botanical garden, military academy, bank — and the 1815 elevation of Brazil to co-equal kingdom within the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. - 1822 AD – 1889 AD: Brazil On 7 September 1822 Pedro I declared Brazilian independence and was crowned emperor, with Rio remaining the capital of the new and uniquely American empire. The 19th century saw the city industrialise, receive massive European and slave-trade migration until abolition in 1888, and reshape its waterfront and avenues in the imperial Beaux-Arts style before the monarchy was overthrown in 1889. - 1889 AD – 1930 AD: Brazil Under the Old Republic Rio remained federal capital and the political face of the coffee-and-milk oligarchy that ran Brazil from São Paulo and Minas Gerais. The Pereira Passos reforms of the 1900s drove sweeping Haussmann-style boulevards through the colonial city and produced the Belle Époque landmarks of the centre, including the Theatro Municipal. - 1930 AD – 1945 AD: Vargas Era Getúlio Vargas seized power in the 1930 revolution and governed from Rio, eventually consolidating the authoritarian Estado Novo in 1937. The era industrialised the city, centralised federal bureaucracy and corporatist labour institutions in Rio, and culminated in the construction of monumental works including the Christ the Redeemer statue inaugurated in 1931. - 1945 AD – 1964 AD: Second Brazilian Republic Democratic politics returned after Vargas's fall, and Rio remained the federal capital through the populist governments of Dutra, Vargas's elected return, Kubitschek and Goulart. In 1960 the capital was transferred to the newly built planned city of Brasília, and Rio became capital only of the short-lived state of Guanabara before merging into the state of Rio de Janeiro. - 1964 AD – 1985 AD: Brazil After the 1964 coup a military regime governed Brazil from Brasília for twenty-one years, with Rio de Janeiro losing political weight but absorbing the economic centralisation of the so-called Brazilian Miracle and waves of internal migration that swelled the favelas of the Zona Sul and Zona Norte. - 1985 AD – present: Brazil Re-democratisation in 1985 and the 1988 Constitution returned Brazil to civilian rule. Rio has since reasserted itself as the country's cultural and tourist capital, hosting the 1992 Earth Summit, the 2014 FIFA World Cup final at Maracanã and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games — the first Olympics held in South America — while contending with social inequality and security challenges in its metropolitan region of roughly thirteen million people. ## Landmarks - Outeiro da Glória Church (built 1739 AD) Hilltop Portuguese colonial Baroque church overlooking Guanabara Bay, begun in 1714 and consecrated in 1739. It became the favoured chapel of the Brazilian imperial family and remains one of the best-preserved 18th-century religious buildings in the city. - Paço Imperial (built 1743 AD) Built in the 1740s as the residence of the captains-general and later viceroys of Brazil, the palace on Praça XV served successively as seat of the Portuguese royal court after 1808 and as the working palace of emperors Pedro I and Pedro II. It was on its balcony that Princess Isabel signed the Lei Áurea abolishing slavery in 1888. - Theatro Municipal (built 1909 AD) Belle Époque opera house inaugurated in 1909 on the new Avenida Central, modelled loosely on the Paris Opéra and centrepiece of the Pereira Passos urban reforms. It remains Rio's principal venue for opera, ballet and orchestral music. - Sugarloaf Cable Car (built 1912 AD) Aerial tramway opened in 1912 linking Praia Vermelha to Morro da Urca and on to the granite summit of Pão de Açúcar. It was only the third cable car system in the world and remains an icon of the city's skyline. - Christ the Redeemer (built 1931 AD) Thirty-eight-metre Art Deco statue of Christ designed by Heitor da Silva Costa with French sculptor Paul Landowski, inaugurated atop the 700-metre Corcovado peak on 12 October 1931. Visible across the city, it was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007. - Maracanã Stadium (built 1950 AD) Built for the 1950 FIFA World Cup, the Estádio do Maracanã once held nearly 200,000 spectators for the infamous final lost by Brazil to Uruguay. After successive renovations it hosted the final of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2016 Olympic Games. - Copacabana Beach Promenade (built 1970 AD) Four-kilometre seafront promenade along Avenida Atlântica, redesigned in 1970 by landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx with its now-iconic black-and-white wave-pattern Portuguese mosaic pavement. It anchors the cultural image of Rio's Zona Sul beach district. ## Population History - 1565 AD: 500 - 1600 AD: 3,000 - 1700 AD: 12,000 - 1763 AD: 30,000 - 1808 AD: 60,000 - 1850 AD: 205,000 - 1890 AD: 520,000 - 1930 AD: 1,500,000 - 1960 AD: 3,300,000 - 1980 AD: 5,100,000 - 2000 AD: 5,860,000 - 2020 AD: 6,700,000 --- # Pazardzhik, Bulgaria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/bulgaria/pazardzhik Founded: 1485 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 42.1928, 24.3331 ## Description Pazardzhik — historically Tatar Bazarcık — is a city in southern Bulgaria's Upper Thracian Plain, about 40 km west of Plovdiv on the Maritsa river. The city was founded in 1485 by Crimean Tatar mercenary settlers serving the Ottoman army of Sultan Bayezid II, who established a new market town (bazarcık, 'little bazaar') on the Via Diagonalis between Constantinople and Belgrade, near the disputed site of the older Roman road station of Bessapara. Under four centuries of Ottoman rule Tatar Bazarcık developed as a major commercial junction on the Plovdiv-Sofia road, with a mixed Tatar, Turkish, Bulgarian, and Sephardic Jewish population and the great 17th-century Kurşun (Lead-Roofed) Mosque anchoring its commercial centre. After the 1878 Russian liberation Pazardzhik was included in the autonomous Ottoman tributary province of Eastern Rumelia until the 1885 Bulgarian Unification, then continued as a regional centre through the successive Bulgarian monarchies, the People's Republic, and the present Republic. Modern Pazardzhik is the administrative seat of Pazardzhik Province with roughly 70,000 inhabitants, serving as a regional agricultural, industrial, and transport hub on the Maritsa highway between Plovdiv and Sofia. ## Historical Rulers - 1485 AD – 1878 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Tatar Bazarcık") The town was founded in 1485 by Crimean Tatar mercenary settlers serving the Ottoman army of Sultan Bayezid II on the Via Diagonalis between Constantinople and Belgrade. Tatar Bazarcık developed through four centuries of Ottoman rule as a major commercial junction with a mixed Tatar, Turkish, Bulgarian, and Sephardic Jewish population, endowed with the great 17th-century Kurşun Mosque. The town was liberated by Russian forces in January 1878 during the Russo-Turkish War, ending nearly four centuries of Ottoman rule. - 1878 AD – 1885 AD: Eastern Rumelia After the 1878 Russian liberation and the Treaty of Berlin, Pazardzhik was incorporated into the autonomous Ottoman tributary province of Eastern Rumelia with its capital at Plovdiv. The town continued as a regional commercial centre under Bulgarian Christian autonomy until 18 September 1885, when the Bulgarian Unification merged Eastern Rumelia into the Principality of Bulgaria. - 1885 AD – 1908 AD: Principality of Bulgaria After the 1885 Bulgarian Unification Pazardzhik was incorporated into the Principality of Bulgaria, where it continued as one of the principal towns of southern Bulgaria's Upper Thracian Plain. The town's late-19th-century Bulgarian Revival cathedral and synagogue date from this period until the declaration of full Bulgarian independence on 5 October 1908. - 1908 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Bulgaria Under the independent Kingdom of Bulgaria from 1908 to 1946, Pazardzhik continued as a regional commercial and agricultural centre of the southern Bulgarian Upper Thracian Plain. The town's Sephardic Jewish community of around three thousand survived the Holocaust through the resistance of Bulgarian civic and religious leaders, before Soviet occupation in September 1944 transitioned the country toward the People's Republic. - 1946 AD – 1990 AD: People's Republic of Bulgaria Under the communist People's Republic of Bulgaria Pazardzhik developed as a major regional industrial centre, with extensive textile, food-processing, and machinery industries and substantial prefabricated housing districts on the outskirts of the historic core. The Sephardic Jewish community of the town largely emigrated to Israel after 1948, and the population reached around 80,000 by the late 1980s. - 1990 AD – present: Republic of Bulgaria Following the peaceful end of the People's Republic on 15 November 1990, Pazardzhik has continued as the administrative seat of Pazardzhik Province with roughly 70,000 inhabitants. The city serves as a regional agricultural, industrial, and transport hub on the A1 motorway between Plovdiv and Sofia, with the Kurşun Mosque and the Cathedral of the Holy Virgin among its principal heritage monuments. ## Landmarks - Kurşun Mosque (built 1667 AD) The Kurşun (Lead-Roofed) Mosque is the principal Ottoman congregational mosque of Pazardzhik, built in the mid-17th century and named for the lead sheeting that originally covered its central dome. The single-domed prayer hall with a slender stone minaret remains the principal Ottoman monument of the town, recently restored as a working mosque after a long period as a regional history museum. - Cathedral of the Holy Virgin (built 1837 AD) The Bulgarian Orthodox Cathedral of the Dormition of the Holy Virgin, built in 1837 as the principal church of the town's Bulgarian Christian community during the National Revival. The three-aisled basilica is famous for its monumental carved wooden iconostasis by the master carver Joan Pashkul of Debar, considered one of the finest examples of 19th-century Bulgarian ecclesiastical woodcarving. - Pazardzhik Synagogue (built 1850 AD) The principal Sephardic synagogue of the town's substantial Sephardic Jewish community, built in the mid-19th century during the late Ottoman period. The synagogue served the Pazardzhik Jewish community of about three thousand people until their mass emigration to Israel after 1948, and now stands largely disused but architecturally preserved. ## Population History - 1485 AD: 1,000 - 1500 AD: 3,000 - 1600 AD: 8,000 - 1700 AD: 15,000 - 1800 AD: 20,000 - 1878 AD: 16,000 - 1900 AD: 17,000 - 1946 AD: 30,000 - 1989 AD: 80,000 - 2020 AD: 70,000 --- # Plovdiv, Bulgaria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/bulgaria/plovdiv Founded: 6000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 42.1436, 24.7486 ## Description Plovdiv — ancient Eumolpia and Pulpudeva, Macedonian Philippopolis, Roman Trimontium, Byzantine Philippoupolis, and Ottoman Filibe — is the second-largest city of Bulgaria and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe. Set on six hills astride the Maritsa river in the Upper Thracian Plain about 150 km southeast of Sofia, the site has been continuously occupied from around 6000 BCE, with the Thracian settlement of Eumolpia attested from the 4th millennium BCE at the foot of Nebet Tepe. Philip II of Macedon captured the Thracian Pulpudeva in 342 BCE and refounded it as Philippopolis ('city of Philip'), inaugurating a Greek-speaking urban centre that survived through Hellenistic Thracian, Roman, and Byzantine rule for over a thousand years. Under Roman rule Trimontium ('Three-Hill City') became the capital of the province of Thracia and a major Balkan road junction on the Via Diagonalis between Singidunum and Constantinople, with one of the best-preserved Roman theatres in the Balkans excavated in the city centre in the 1980s. Bulgar Khan Krum's armies captured Philippopolis around 812 CE, after which the city alternated between Bulgarian and Byzantine control through the early medieval period until the Second Bulgarian Empire of the Asen brothers held it from 1185 to its Ottoman conquest in 1364. Under Ottoman rule Filibe served as one of the principal cities of the Rumeli Eyalet, with a substantial Greek, Armenian, Bulgarian, and Sephardic Jewish population and the major Cumaya and Imaret mosques anchoring its long Ottoman skyline. After the 1878 Russian liberation Plovdiv became the capital of the autonomous Ottoman tributary province of Eastern Rumelia for seven years, until the 1885 Bulgarian Unification merged Eastern Rumelia into the Principality of Bulgaria. Modern Plovdiv is a city of roughly 340,000 inhabitants, the European Capital of Culture in 2019, and the site of the partially restored Old Plovdiv historic district with its Bulgarian National Revival houses and Roman monuments. ## Historical Rulers - 6000 BC – 4500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Plovdiv") The earliest occupation of the Plovdiv hills dates to around 6000 BCE during the Karanovo I-V cultural phases of the Upper Thracian Neolithic. Excavations at Nebet Tepe and at the satellite tells of Yasa Tepe and Drenov Tepe have revealed mudbrick houses, painted pottery, and figurines that place Plovdiv at the heart of the early agricultural settlement of the central Balkans. - 4500 BC – 3300 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Plovdiv") Through the Chalcolithic period the Plovdiv hills hosted continuous occupation by copper-using communities of the Karanovo VI-Gumelnița horizon. The settlement grew into a regional centre of the rich Balkan copper metallurgy network, with finds including copper tools, gold objects, and elaborate painted pottery now in the Regional Archaeological Museum of Plovdiv. - 3300 BC – 1200 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Eumolpia") Through the Bronze Age the site grew into the Thracian fortified town of Eumolpia at the foot of Nebet Tepe, attested in later Greek tradition as one of the principal Thracian centres of the Upper Thracian Plain. The settlement participated in the wider Bronze Age trade networks between the Aegean, the Carpathians, and the Black Sea coast. - 1200 BC – 480 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Pulpudeva") Through the Iron Age the site continued as the Thracian fortified town of Pulpudeva, occupied by the Bessi and related Thracian tribes of the Upper Thracian Plain. The settlement was a regional centre of pre-Odrysian Thracian power until the consolidation of the Odrysian Kingdom under King Teres I in the late 5th century BCE. - 480 BC – 342 BC: Odrysian Kingdom (known as "Pulpudeva") Under King Teres I and his successors Pulpudeva was incorporated into the Odrysian Kingdom as one of the principal Thracian centres of the Upper Thracian Plain. The town remained under Odrysian rule until Philip II of Macedon's expansion into Thrace in the late 4th century BCE. - 342 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Philippopolis") Philip II of Macedon captured the Thracian Pulpudeva in 342 BCE and refounded it as Philippopolis ('city of Philip'), planting a Greek-speaking colony of Macedonian veterans and local Thracians around the old Thracian acropolis on Nebet Tepe. The polis passed through the reign of Alexander the Great and the Wars of the Diadochi under Lysimachus until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 72 BC: Odrysian Kingdom (known as "Philippopolis") After the collapse of Lysimachus's Thracian kingdom in 281 BCE and the Galatian invasion, Philippopolis reverted to the orbit of the restored Odrysian Kingdom and other Thracian dynasties of the Upper Thracian Plain. The city remained a major Thracian urban centre with a mixed Greek-Thracian population until Marcus Lucullus's Roman campaign of 72 BCE during the Third Mithridatic War. - 72 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Philippopolis") Marcus Lucullus captured Philippopolis in 72 BCE during the Third Mithridatic War, after which the city was drawn into the Roman provincial system as part of the Thracian client kingdom under the Sapaean dynasty. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Trimontium") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Philippopolis prospered under the restored Thracian client kingdom until Emperor Claudius annexed Thrace as a Roman province in 46 CE. The city was named the metropolis of the new province of Thracia and reached its imperial peak under Trajan and the Antonines, when it was popularly known as Trimontium ('Three-Hill City') and endowed with the great Roman theatre, the 30,000-seat stadium, the forum, and the city walls that survive today as one of the most complete Roman urban ensembles in the Balkans. - 395 AD – 812 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Philippoupolis") Under the Eastern Roman administration Philippoupolis remained a major Balkan city and metropolitan see on the Via Diagonalis between Constantinople and the Danube. The city was sacked by Attila's Huns in 441-442 and survived Avar and Slavic raids through the 6th and 7th centuries, until the Bulgar Khan Krum captured it around 812 CE during his expansion into Byzantine Thrace. - 812 AD – 971 AD: First Bulgarian Empire After Khan Krum's capture in 812, Plovdiv served as one of the principal western fortresses of the First Bulgarian Empire under Khans Omurtag, Boris I, and Tsar Simeon the Great. The city changed hands several times during the long Bulgarian-Byzantine wars of the 9th and 10th centuries until John I Tzimiskes's Byzantine campaign of 971 CE recovered it for the empire. - 971 AD – 1185 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Philippoupolis") After Tzimiskes's reconquest of 971 Plovdiv reverted to Byzantine administration as a key fortress and metropolitan see on the Via Diagonalis between Constantinople and the Danube. The city was contested with the Pechenegs and Cumans through the 11th and 12th centuries until the Asen brothers' Bulgarian revolt of 1185 returned it to Bulgarian control. - 1185 AD – 1364 AD: Second Bulgarian Empire The Asen brothers' revolt of 1185 brought Plovdiv back into the restored Bulgarian state with its capital at Tarnovo. The city was briefly held by Latin Crusaders after 1204 and contested with the Byzantines and Mongols through the 13th and 14th centuries, before being captured by Ottoman forces under Lala Şahin Paşa around 1364. - 1364 AD – 1878 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Filibe") Ottoman forces under Lala Şahin Paşa captured Plovdiv around 1364 and incorporated it as Filibe into the new Rumeli Eyalet, where it served as one of the principal cities of Ottoman Rumelia for over five centuries. The city developed as a major Balkan commercial centre with a substantial Greek, Armenian, Bulgarian, and Sephardic Jewish population, and was endowed with the Cumaya Mosque (1363-1364), the Imaret Mosque (1444), and the great covered bazaar. Russian forces under General Iosif Gurko liberated Filibe on 16 January 1878 during the Russo-Turkish War, ending five centuries of Ottoman rule. - 1878 AD – 1885 AD: Eastern Rumelia After the 1878 Russian liberation and the Treaty of Berlin in July 1878, Plovdiv was made the capital of the autonomous Ottoman tributary province of Eastern Rumelia under the governor-general Aleko Pasha Vogoridi. The province maintained its own parliament, gendarmerie, and finances under nominal Ottoman suzerainty until 18 September 1885, when a Bulgarian nationalist uprising in Plovdiv proclaimed the Unification of Bulgaria with the Principality to the north. - 1885 AD – 1908 AD: Principality of Bulgaria The 1885 Bulgarian Unification merged Eastern Rumelia and Plovdiv into the Principality of Bulgaria under Prince Alexander of Battenberg and his successor Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, an act diplomatically recognised by the great powers after the brief Serbo-Bulgarian War of November 1885. Plovdiv lost its capital status to Sofia but continued as the principal city of southern Bulgaria and a leading regional commercial centre until the declaration of full Bulgarian independence on 5 October 1908. - 1908 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Bulgaria Plovdiv served as the principal city of southern Bulgaria through the independent Kingdom (Tsardom) from 1908 to 1946, supporting Bulgaria's role in the two Balkan Wars and both World Wars. The city's substantial Sephardic Jewish community survived the Holocaust through the resistance of Bulgarian civic and religious leaders during the Second World War, and Soviet occupation in September 1944 transitioned the country toward the People's Republic. - 1946 AD – 1990 AD: People's Republic of Bulgaria Under the communist People's Republic of Bulgaria Plovdiv grew into a major Soviet-aligned industrial centre and the second-largest city of the country, with extensive prefabricated housing districts, the Plovdiv International Fair, and major textile, food-processing, and tobacco industries. The Old Town's Bulgarian National Revival mansion houses were protected as an architectural reserve from 1956 onwards, anchoring the restoration of the historic core. - 1990 AD – present: Republic of Bulgaria Following the peaceful end of the People's Republic on 15 November 1990, Plovdiv has continued as Bulgaria's second-largest city with roughly 340,000 inhabitants. The city was designated European Capital of Culture for 2019 jointly with Matera, undertaking major heritage restoration of the Roman theatre, stadium, and odeon along with the Old Town houses, and now serves as a leading commercial, university, and tourism centre in southern Bulgaria. ## Landmarks - Nebet Tepe (built 4000 BC) The northernmost of Plovdiv's six hills and the oldest occupied site of the city, with continuous habitation from around 6000 BCE through the Thracian, Macedonian, Roman, Byzantine, and Bulgarian periods. The visible surface remains include Bronze Age Thracian foundations, Macedonian-Hellenistic walls of Philippopolis, Roman fortifications, and Byzantine cisterns, forming an open-air archaeological museum at the heart of the Old Town. - Roman Theatre of Philippopolis (built 100 AD) A monumental Roman theatre carved into the southern slope of Taksim Tepe between the early 2nd-century reigns of Trajan and Hadrian, with a seating capacity of approximately 7,000 spectators. Rediscovered after the 1972 landslide and excavated through the 1970s and 80s, the theatre is one of the best-preserved Roman theatres in the Balkans and the principal monument of ancient Trimontium, used today for opera, theatre, and music performances. - Roman Stadium of Philippopolis (built 117 AD) A monumental Roman stadium with a capacity of around 30,000 spectators, built in the early 2nd century CE under Hadrian along the lines of the Greek athletic competition stadia. The northern curve survives in the modern Dzhumaya Square at the foot of the Roman city's main north-south axis, with the rest of the structure still buried beneath the modern pedestrian centre of Plovdiv. - Dzhumaya Mosque (built 1364 AD) The principal Ottoman congregational mosque of Plovdiv, built in 1363-1364 under Sultan Murad I shortly after the Ottoman conquest of the city. The mosque combines a multi-domed prayer hall (nine domes on twelve piers) with characteristic Ottoman-Byzantine masonry banding and is one of the oldest surviving Ottoman mosques in the Balkans. - Plovdiv Old Town Houses (built 1830 AD) The Bulgarian National Revival mansion houses of the Plovdiv Old Town, built mainly between 1820 and 1880 by wealthy Bulgarian, Greek, and Armenian merchant families on the slopes of the three eastern hills. Distinguished by their bow-windowed upper storeys cantilevered over narrow cobbled streets and richly painted interiors, the houses anchor the protected Old Plovdiv architectural reserve declared in 1956. ## Population History - 6000 BC: 200 - 4000 BC: 800 - 2000 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 3,000 - 342 BC: 4,000 - 100 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 25,000 - 300 AD: 40,000 - 500 AD: 35,000 - 812 AD: 20,000 - 1000 AD: 25,000 - 1185 AD: 20,000 - 1364 AD: 15,000 - 1500 AD: 25,000 - 1700 AD: 50,000 - 1878 AD: 33,000 - 1900 AD: 45,000 - 1946 AD: 100,000 - 1989 AD: 350,000 - 2020 AD: 340,000 --- # Sofia, Bulgaria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/bulgaria/sofia Founded: 500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 42.6977, 23.3219 ## Description Sofia — Roman Serdica, Byzantine Triaditsa, medieval Sredets, and modern Sofia — is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria, in the Sofia Valley between the Vitosha and Stara Planina mountain ranges in western central Bulgaria. The site was occupied from the Iron Age by the Thracian Serdi tribe, became part of the Odrysian Kingdom and the Macedonian sphere after Philip II's campaigns in 339 BCE, and was incorporated into the Roman Empire as Serdica after Marcus Licinius Crassus's Thracian campaign in 29 BCE. Trajan made Ulpia Serdica a Roman municipium around 106 CE, and the city reached its imperial peak under the tetrarch and emperor Galerius, who issued the Edict of Serdica in April 311 — the first Roman edict of toleration for Christianity, two years before Constantine's better-known Edict of Milan. Constantine the Great is said to have considered Serdica as the new eastern capital before choosing Constantinople, declaring 'Serdica is my Rome', and the Council of Serdica in 343 CE met here to address the Arian controversy splitting the early Christian church. The Bulgar Khan Krum sacked Serdica in 809 CE and incorporated it into the First Bulgarian Empire as the fortress town of Sredets, until Basil II the Bulgar-Slayer recovered it for Byzantium around 1018. The Asen brothers' revolt in 1185 brought Sredets back into the Second Bulgarian Empire, which held the city until Ottoman forces under the future Bayezid I captured it in 1382 and incorporated it as Sofya into the Ottoman Rumeli Eyalet. Under five centuries of Ottoman rule Sofia served as the seat of the beylerbey of Rumelia and the principal administrative centre of the European provinces, before being liberated by Russian troops on 4 January 1878 during the Russo-Turkish War and made the capital of the new Principality of Bulgaria. Sofia has been the capital of successive Bulgarian states — the Principality (1878-1908), the Kingdom (1908-1946), the People's Republic (1946-1990), and the present Republic since 1990 — growing to about 1.3 million inhabitants today and serving as Bulgaria's principal political, economic, and cultural centre. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 339 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Serdica") The site of modern Sofia was occupied from the Iron Age by the Thracian Serdi tribe, who gave their name to the later Roman city of Serdica. The Serdi were a Thracian people of western central Thrace, attested in Greek and Roman sources as one of the principal tribal groups of the Vitosha highlands until the Macedonian conquest of Philip II in the 340s BCE. - 339 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Serdica") Philip II of Macedon's campaigns into Thrace in the 340s BCE brought the Serdi lands under Macedonian suzerainty, and the site was nominally Macedonian through the reigns of Alexander the Great and the Diadochi general Lysimachus. The settlement passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 29 BC: Odrysian Kingdom (known as "Serdica") After the collapse of Lysimachus's Thracian kingdom and the Galatian invasions, the Serdi lands fell under the orbit of the Odrysian and Triballi Thracian dynasties of southern Thrace, with intermittent Macedonian and Celtic intrusions. The Serdi tribal town remained a modest Thracian settlement until Marcus Licinius Crassus's Roman campaign of 29 BCE brought central Thrace under Roman control. - 29 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Serdica") Marcus Licinius Crassus's Thracian campaign of 29-28 BCE subjugated the Serdi and other tribes of central Thrace and drew them into the Roman provincial system. Under the Roman Republic the settlement was integrated into the new provincial system as a Thracian frontier post until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Serdica") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE Serdica continued as a small Thracian frontier town and was formally raised to a Roman municipium as Ulpia Serdica by the Emperor Trajan around 106 CE. The city reached its imperial peak under the tetrarch and emperor Galerius, who issued the Edict of Serdica in April 311 — the first Roman edict of toleration for Christianity, two years before Constantine's Edict of Milan — and Constantine the Great is said to have considered Serdica as the new eastern capital before choosing Constantinople, declaring 'Serdica is my Rome'. The Council of Serdica in 343 CE met here to address the Arian controversy, and the city remained a major Balkan imperial centre until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 809 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Triaditsa") Under the Eastern Roman administration Serdica — increasingly known by the Greek name Triaditsa — served as a major Thracian fortress city and metropolitan see of the diocese of Dacia. The city survived Hunnic, Gothic, and Avar incursions through the 5th and 6th centuries until Khan Krum's Bulgar armies captured it in 809 CE during a long siege. - 809 AD – 1018 AD: First Bulgarian Empire (known as "Sredets") Khan Krum captured Triaditsa in 809 CE after a siege and the massacre of the Byzantine garrison, incorporating it into the First Bulgarian Empire as the fortress town of Sredets. The city served as one of the principal Bulgarian centres of the empire under Boris I, Simeon the Great, and Samuel, until Emperor Basil II 'the Bulgar-Slayer' recovered it for Byzantium around 1018 in his long reconquest of the First Bulgarian Empire. - 1018 AD – 1185 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Triaditsa") After Basil II's reconquest in 1018 Sredets returned to Byzantine administration as the principal Thracian fortress on the road between Constantinople and the Danube. The city remained a Byzantine provincial centre and a metropolitan see until the Asen brothers' revolt in 1185 brought it back into the restored Bulgarian state. - 1185 AD – 1382 AD: Second Bulgarian Empire (known as "Sredets") The Asen brothers' revolt of 1185 brought Sredets back into the restored Bulgarian state with its capital at Tarnovo, and the city served as one of the principal western fortresses of the Second Bulgarian Empire. The city was contested with the Byzantines, the Latin Empire, and the Serbian Empire through the 13th and 14th centuries, and was finally captured by Ottoman forces under the future sultan Bayezid I in 1382. - 1382 AD – 1878 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Sofya") Ottoman forces captured Sredets in 1382 and incorporated it as Sofya into the Ottoman Rumeli Eyalet, after which it became the seat of the beylerbey of Rumelia and the principal administrative centre of the empire's European provinces. Under five centuries of Ottoman rule Sofia developed as a major Balkan administrative, commercial, and religious centre with a mixed Muslim, Bulgarian Orthodox, Jewish, and Armenian population, and was endowed with the Banya Bashi Mosque (1576) and other monumental Ottoman buildings. The city was liberated by Russian troops on 4 January 1878 during the Russo-Turkish War, ending nearly five hundred years of Ottoman rule. - 1878 AD – 1908 AD: Principality of Bulgaria After the Russian liberation of January 1878 and the Treaty of Berlin in July 1878, Sofia was chosen as the capital of the new autonomous Principality of Bulgaria over the older capital of Tarnovo, due to its central location and strategic position. Under Prince Alexander of Battenberg and then Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the new capital was extensively rebuilt with European-style avenues, public buildings, and the great Alexander Nevsky Cathedral begun in 1882. The Principality declared full independence on 5 October 1908 and was elevated to the Tsardom of Bulgaria. - 1908 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Bulgaria Sofia served as the capital of the independent Kingdom (Tsardom) of Bulgaria from the declaration of independence on 5 October 1908 through the two Balkan Wars and both World Wars. The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral was completed in 1912, and the city grew from roughly 70,000 inhabitants at independence to over 400,000 by the end of the Second World War, surviving Allied bombing campaigns in 1943-44 and the Soviet occupation of September 1944. - 1946 AD – 1990 AD: People's Republic of Bulgaria Sofia was the capital of the communist People's Republic of Bulgaria established on 15 September 1946 after the rigged abolition referendum of the monarchy. Under Todor Zhivkov the city grew into a major Soviet-aligned industrial centre with extensive prefabricated housing districts, public transit, and Stalinist-style architecture in the central administrative quarter, reaching over a million inhabitants by the late 1980s. - 1990 AD – present: Republic of Bulgaria Following the peaceful end of the People's Republic on 15 November 1990, Sofia has continued as the capital of the post-communist Republic of Bulgaria, joining NATO in 2004 and the European Union on 1 January 2007. The city has roughly 1.3 million inhabitants today and serves as Bulgaria's principal political, economic, and cultural centre, with significant investment in heritage restoration, public transit, and the European Union's eastern frontier services. ## Landmarks - Rotunda of Saint George (built 320 AD) A 4th-century CE Roman rotunda built under Constantine the Great as part of an imperial palace and bath complex in the heart of Serdica, possibly used as a baptistery or martyrium before its conversion to a Christian church. The cylindrical brick structure 25 metres high is the oldest preserved building in Sofia and preserves three layers of mediaeval frescoes, including an 11th-century Ascension scene. - Hagia Sophia Church (built 537 AD) An early-Byzantine basilica completed in the 6th century CE under Emperor Justinian I on the site of an earlier 4th-century church and martyrium, situated next to the modern Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. The church gave the modern city its name — Sofia derives from the church's Greek dedication to the Holy Wisdom (Hagia Sophia) — and was converted to a mosque under Ottoman rule before reverting to an Orthodox church in 1900. - Boyana Church (built 1259 AD) A medieval Orthodox church on the slopes of Mount Vitosha in the southern outskirts of Sofia, comprising a 10th-century eastern wing, a 13th-century central narthex, and a 19th-century western addition. The 1259 frescoes commissioned by the local sebastokrator Kaloyan are among the most important pre-Renaissance Bulgarian works of art and led to the church's inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979. - Banya Bashi Mosque (built 1576 AD) An Ottoman imperial mosque built in 1576 by Mimar Sinan for Sultan Murad III on the site of an older bathing complex (banya), from which the mosque takes its name. The single-domed prayer hall with a slender 25-metre minaret is the only remaining functional mosque from the dozens of Ottoman religious buildings of pre-1878 Sofia. - Alexander Nevsky Cathedral (built 1912 AD) A monumental Neo-Byzantine Orthodox cathedral begun in 1882 and completed in 1912, built as a national memorial to the Russian and Bulgarian soldiers who died in the 1877-1878 Russo-Turkish War of Liberation. The cross-domed basilica covering 3,170 square metres with 13 gold-leafed domes seats up to 5,000 worshippers and is one of the largest Eastern Orthodox cathedrals in the world. ## Population History - 500 BC: 2,000 - 100 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 200 AD: 25,000 - 311 AD: 30,000 - 500 AD: 35,000 - 809 AD: 20,000 - 1000 AD: 30,000 - 1200 AD: 25,000 - 1382 AD: 15,000 - 1500 AD: 30,000 - 1700 AD: 50,000 - 1878 AD: 11,000 - 1900 AD: 70,000 - 1946 AD: 435,000 - 1989 AD: 1,141,000 - 2020 AD: 1,300,000 --- # Angkor, Cambodia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/cambodia/angkor Founded: 802 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 13.4125, 103.8667 ## Description Angkor — known in Khmer inscriptions as Yaśodharapura — was the capital of the Khmer Empire from the 9th to the 15th century and is located in present-day Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia. At its 12th-13th century peak under Suryavarman II and Jayavarman VII it was one of the largest pre-industrial urban complexes in the world, with an extensive hydraulic landscape and monumental temple architecture including Angkor Wat and the Bayon. The Siamese Ayutthaya Kingdom sacked the city in 1431 and the Khmer court relocated southward toward Longvek and ultimately Phnom Penh, but the temple landscape itself was never abandoned: Angkor Wat was converted from a Vishnu shrine to a Theravada Buddhist monastery, remaining a continuously active pilgrimage site, and Khmer farming and monastic villages persisted scattered through the temple zone for the next five centuries. European interest grew after Henri Mouhot's posthumously published journals of 1863-1864, and under the French Protectorate the ruins were systematically surveyed and restored by the École française d'Extrême-Orient. The site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992; the Angkor Archaeological Park today covers some 400 km² and contains over 100 active Khmer villages with tens of thousands of permanent residents, while Angkor Wat continues to function as a Theravada Buddhist temple of national religious importance, and the adjacent modern city of Siem Reap — a separate continuous settlement — has grown rapidly as the tourism hub serving the park. ## Historical Rulers - 802 AD – 1431 AD: Khmer Empire (known as "Yaśodharapura") Founded by Jayavarman II as the seat of the Khmer Empire, the capital — known in inscriptions as Yaśodharapura after its 9th-century refoundation under Yasovarman I — served as the imperial center for over six centuries. Under successive Khmer rulers it grew into one of the largest pre-industrial urban complexes in the world, with a vast hydraulic network of barays and canals supporting an extensive agrarian hinterland, and monumental temple architecture including Angkor Wat by Suryavarman II in the 12th century and the Bayon by Jayavarman VII in the late 12th century. In 1431 the Siamese Ayutthaya Kingdom sacked the city, an event traditionally cited as the end of Angkor as a functioning political capital; the Khmer court soon relocated southward toward Phnom Penh. - 1431 AD – 1863 AD: Post-Angkor Khmer Kingdom After the 1431 Ayutthayan sack the Khmer court relocated south to Longvek and ultimately Phnom Penh, and the dense urban core of Yaśodharapura with its hydraulic landscape was largely reclaimed by forest. Angkor Wat, however, was never abandoned — converted from Hindu Vishnu shrine to a Theravada Buddhist monastery during the post-Angkor period, it remained an active pilgrimage site under successive Khmer kings while villages of farmers and monks persisted scattered across the temple landscape. The Khmer Kingdom retained nominal claim through Cambodia's long contraction between Siamese and Vietnamese pressure. - 1863 AD – 1953 AD: French Protectorate Under the French Protectorate established in 1863, Angkor became a primary focus of the École française d'Extrême-Orient, which from 1907 systematically surveyed, mapped, and restored the temple complexes using the anastylosis methodology developed at Borobudur. Henri Mouhot's posthumously published 1863-1864 journals had drawn European attention to the ruins, but the surrounding Khmer countryside continued to support Buddhist villages and active worship at Angkor Wat throughout the colonial period. - 1953 AD – 1975 AD: Khmer Empire Following independence in 1953 Cambodia continued French restoration programs at Angkor under Norodom Sihanouk, and the temples drew increasing international tourism. The 1970 coup and ensuing civil war disrupted archaeological work, and the site became contested during the conflict that brought the Khmer Rouge to power in 1975. - 1975 AD – 1993 AD: Democratic Kampuchea Under the Khmer Rouge regime of 1975-1979 Angkor's monastic communities were dispersed and many surrounding villages destroyed, though the major temples themselves were not systematically targeted. The Vietnamese-backed People's Republic of Kampuchea from 1979 restored Buddhist worship at Angkor Wat, and surviving villages slowly returned to the temple landscape through the 1980s civil conflict before the 1991 Paris Peace Accords. - 1993 AD – present: Kingdom of Cambodia Since the 1993 restoration of the Cambodian monarchy under Norodom Sihanouk, Angkor has functioned as both a UNESCO World Heritage Site — inscribed in 1992 — and a living religious and rural landscape. The Angkor Archaeological Park covers some 400 km² and contains over 100 villages with tens of thousands of permanent residents administered by the APSARA Authority; Angkor Wat remains an active Theravada Buddhist temple of national importance, and the adjacent city of Siem Reap, a separate continuous settlement, has expanded rapidly as the tourism hub serving the park. ## Landmarks - Angkor Wat (built 1113 AD) A massive temple complex built by King Suryavarman II, dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu and later converted to Theravada Buddhist use. It represents the pinnacle of Khmer architectural and artistic achievement, featuring intricate bas-reliefs and stunning architectural design, and is the largest religious monument in the world by land area. - Bayon Temple (built 1190 AD) Located at the heart of Angkor Thom, the Bayon was built under Jayavarman VII as the state temple of his late 12th-century Mahayana Buddhist program. It is famous for its 216 colossal faces — generally interpreted as the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara — carved into 54 towers. ## Population History - 802 AD: 10,000 - 1150 AD: 200,000 - 1430 AD: 50,000 - 1500 AD: 5,000 - 1800 AD: 5,000 - 1900 AD: 15,000 - 1953 AD: 25,000 - 2020 AD: 130,000 --- # Toronto, Canada URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/canada/toronto Founded: 1793 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 43.6532, -79.3832 ## Description Toronto sits on the north shore of Lake Ontario, a region inhabited for millennia by Iroquoian peoples and later by the Mississaugas of the Anishinaabe. French traders operated Fort Rouillé here briefly from 1750 until its destruction during the Seven Years War in 1759. After the British acquired the land through the Toronto Purchase from the Mississaugas in 1787, Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe founded the Town of York in 1793 as the capital of Upper Canada. The town was burned by American forces at the Battle of York in April 1813 during the War of 1812, then rebuilt and renamed Toronto upon its incorporation as a city in 1834, deriving the name from the Mohawk word tkaronto meaning where there are trees standing in water. Following Canadian Confederation in 1867 Toronto grew rapidly as Ontario's capital, absorbing waves of British, European, and global immigration that made it one of the world's most multicultural metropolises, with roughly half of present-day residents born outside Canada. Modern Toronto is the country's largest city and financial center, internationally recognized for the CN Tower, a 553-metre communications tower completed in 1976 that held the title of world's tallest freestanding structure until 2007. ## Historical Rulers - 1793 AD – 1834 AD: Province of Canada (known as "York") Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe founded the Town of York in 1793 as the capital of the newly created Province of Upper Canada, choosing the sheltered harbour on Lake Ontario over Niagara for its defensibility. The settlement was sacked and burned by American forces during the Battle of York in April 1813, then rebuilt over the following two decades. - 1834 AD – 1841 AD: Province of Canada York was incorporated as the City of Toronto on 6 March 1834, reverting to a name derived from the Mohawk word tkaronto. William Lyon Mackenzie was elected the first mayor, and the city continued as the capital of Upper Canada until the union with Lower Canada. - 1841 AD – 1867 AD: Province of Canada The Act of Union 1840 merged Upper and Lower Canada into the single Province of Canada effective 1841. Toronto served as one of the rotating colonial capitals during this period while growing rapidly through Irish Famine immigration and railway expansion. - 1867 AD – 1931 AD: British Empire Canadian Confederation on 1 July 1867 created the Dominion of Canada, with Toronto designated capital of the new Province of Ontario. The city industrialized through the late nineteenth century, expanded its boundaries through annexation, and absorbed large numbers of British and continental European immigrants. - 1931 AD – present: Canada The Statute of Westminster 1931 granted Canada full legislative sovereignty from the United Kingdom. Post-war Toronto grew into Canada's largest metropolitan area and its financial capital, amalgamating with surrounding municipalities in 1998 to form the present unified city, and becoming one of the most multicultural urban centres in the world. ## Landmarks - Fort York (built 1793 AD) Garrison fortification established by John Graves Simcoe in 1793 to defend the harbour and capital of Upper Canada. Largely destroyed by American forces during the Battle of York in 1813 and rebuilt in the years following, the site preserves the largest collection of original War of 1812 buildings in Canada. - St. Lawrence Hall (built 1850 AD) Victorian assembly hall completed in 1850 in Renaissance Revival style, long serving as Toronto's principal venue for public meetings, concerts, and political gatherings during the mid-nineteenth century. - Casa Loma (built 1914 AD) Gothic Revival mansion completed in 1914 for financier Sir Henry Pellatt, designed by architect E. J. Lennox. With around ninety-eight rooms it is the largest private residence ever built in Canada and operates today as a historic house museum. - Royal Ontario Museum (built 1914 AD) Major museum of art, world culture, and natural history opened in 1914, holding one of the largest collections in North America. The original Edwardian building was extended in 2007 by Daniel Libeskind's crystalline Michael Lee-Chin Crystal addition. - Toronto City Hall (built 1965 AD) Modernist seat of municipal government completed in 1965 to a design by Finnish architect Viljo Revell, comprising two curved towers of unequal height embracing a saucer-shaped council chamber. The building and adjoining Nathan Phillips Square became an iconic symbol of post-war Toronto. - CN Tower (built 1976 AD) Communications and observation tower completed in 1976 by Canadian National Railway, standing 553 metres tall. It held the record as the world's tallest freestanding structure for thirty-two years until 2007 and remains the defining feature of Toronto's skyline. - Rogers Centre (built 1989 AD) Multi-purpose stadium opened in 1989 as SkyDome, the first sports venue in the world built with a fully retractable roof. Home to the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team and a landmark of late-twentieth-century engineering. ## Population History - 1793 AD: 500 - 1834 AD: 9,000 - 1850 AD: 31,000 - 1900 AD: 210,000 - 1950 AD: 1,180,000 - 1980 AD: 2,960,000 - 2000 AD: 5,050,000 - 2020 AD: 6,420,000 --- # Rapa Nui, Chile URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/chile/rapa-nui Founded: 1200 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: -27.1127, -109.3497 ## Description Rapa Nui, the remote volcanic island in the southeastern Pacific also known by its colonial-era name Easter Island, was settled by Polynesian voyagers around 1200 CE and became home to one of the most extraordinary megalithic cultures in the world. Organized into competing mata clans, the islanders carved nearly 900 monumental moai statues from the volcanic tuff of Rano Raraku and raised them on stone ahu platforms between roughly 1250 and 1500. By the 16th and 17th centuries, deforestation, soil exhaustion and demographic stress led to widespread moai toppling and the rise of the Tangata Manu Bird Man cult centered at Orongo. Dutch admiral Jacob Roggeveen sighted the island on Easter Sunday 1722, giving rise to its European name; later contact with whalers, Peruvian slave raids of 1862 to 1863 and the smallpox and tuberculosis epidemics that followed reduced the native population to just 111 by 1877. Chile annexed the island in 1888, leasing most of it as a sheep ranch until the mid 20th century. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site as Rapa Nui National Park in 1995, the island today has a population of roughly 7,750 with a strong revival of the Rapa Nui language, ceremonies and political autonomy within Chile. ## Historical Rulers - 1200 AD – 1722 AD: Polynesian Rapa Nui Civilization Polynesian voyagers settled the island around 1200 CE and developed a stratified society organized into competing mata clans. From roughly 1250 to 1500 the islanders quarried and erected hundreds of moai on coastal ahu platforms. Severe deforestation and ecological strain from the 16th century onward triggered famines, inter-clan conflict and statue toppling, and by around 1600 the Tangata Manu Bird Man cult centered at Orongo replaced moai dedication as the dominant ritual system. - 1722 AD – 1888 AD: European Contact and Decline Dutch admiral Jacob Roggeveen sighted the island on Easter Sunday 1722, followed by visits from Felipe González in 1770, James Cook in 1774 and Jean-François de La Pérouse in 1786. Sporadic contact with whalers and missionaries intensified in the 19th century. Peruvian slave raids in 1862 to 1863 abducted roughly 1,500 islanders, and returning survivors brought smallpox and tuberculosis epidemics that, combined with continued depopulation, reduced the native Rapa Nui to only 111 individuals by 1877. - 1888 AD – 1953 AD: Chilean Annexation On 9 September 1888 the Chilean naval officer Policarpo Toro signed an annexation agreement with chief Atamu Tekena, incorporating the island into Chile. From 1895 most of the island was leased to private operators and from 1903 to the Williamson-Balfour Company as a sheep ranch, with the Rapa Nui confined to Hanga Roa under restrictive conditions. The native population slowly recovered while moai and ahu were studied by international expeditions, including the Routledge expedition of 1914 to 1915 and Thor Heyerdahl in 1955 to 1956. - 1953 AD – present: Republic of Chile In 1953 the Chilean state ended the Williamson-Balfour concession and placed the island under direct naval administration, with civilian governance restored after 1966 when Rapa Nui residents were granted full Chilean citizenship. Administered as part of the Valparaíso Region, the island was inscribed as Rapa Nui National Park on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995. Since then the community has pursued cultural revival, language reclamation and increasing political autonomy, with the island designated a special territory of Chile and home to roughly 7,750 inhabitants today. ## Landmarks - Rano Raraku (built 1250 AD) Volcanic tuff crater on the eastern flank of the island that served as the principal moai quarry from roughly 1250 onward. Nearly all of the island's moai were carved here, and hundreds of statues in various states of completion still remain on its inner and outer slopes. - Ahu Tongariki (built 1300 AD) The largest ceremonial platform on Rapa Nui, supporting fifteen moai on the southeastern coast. Built and expanded between roughly 1250 and 1500, it was toppled during the late prehistoric upheavals, swept inland by a tsunami in 1960 and re-erected in a Chilean-Japanese restoration project completed in 1996. - Ahu Akivi (built 1500 AD) Inland ceremonial platform near the western coast carrying seven moai that, unusually, face the sea. Dated to around 1500 and astronomically aligned with the equinox sunset, it was restored in 1960 by William Mulloy and Gonzalo Figueroa. - El Gigante of Rano Raraku (built 1500 AD) The largest moai ever attempted, an unfinished colossus measuring roughly 21 meters and weighing an estimated 145 to 270 tons, still attached to the bedrock inside Rano Raraku quarry. Its abandonment is one of the clearest signs of the late prehistoric crisis in moai production. - Orongo (built 1600 AD) Ceremonial village of low stone houses perched on the rim of Rano Kau crater overlooking the islets of Motu Nui, Motu Iti and Motu Kao Kao. From roughly 1600 it served as the ritual center of the Tangata Manu Bird Man cult, in which clan champions competed annually to retrieve the first sooty tern egg from Motu Nui. - Hanga Roa (built 1888 AD) The only town on the island, consolidated on the western coast after Chilean annexation in 1888 when the Rapa Nui were confined there during the Williamson-Balfour ranching era. Today it concentrates the entire resident population, civic institutions and the Sebastián Englert Anthropological Museum. ## Population History - 1200 AD: 200 - 1400 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 12,000 - 1600 AD: 3,000 - 1722 AD: 3,000 - 1862 AD: 3,000 - 1877 AD: 111 - 1900 AD: 250 - 1950 AD: 770 - 2000 AD: 4,000 - 2017 AD: 7,750 --- # Anyang, China URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/china/anyang Founded: 1300 BC Ended: 1046 BC Coordinates: 36.1167, 114.3122 ## Description Anyang, known in antiquity as Yin, was the last and longest-lasting capital of the Late Shang Dynasty, established by King Pan Geng around 1300 BCE and serving as the royal seat until the Zhou conquest at the Battle of Muye in 1046 BCE. Under King Wu Ding around 1250 BCE it expanded into a sprawling capital with palace and temple complexes, royal cemeteries, bronze casting workshops, and the divinatory archives that produced the oracle bones — turtle plastrons and ox scapulae bearing the earliest mature Chinese writing. The site was identified in 1899 when scholar Wang Yirong recognized oracle bone fragments being sold as dragon bones in traditional Chinese medicine markets, and systematic excavations began in 1928 under Li Chi of the Academia Sinica, marking the first Chinese-led scientific archaeology. In 1976 Zheng Zhenxiang uncovered the undisturbed tomb of Lady Fu Hao, royal consort and warrior-queen of Wu Ding, yielding 1,928 burial objects including 468 bronze artifacts — the only intact Shang royal tomb known. After the Zhou conquest the city was sacked and gradually abandoned, with modern Anyang growing several kilometers away in a different location. The Yin Xu site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2006 and remains foundational to Chinese historical, paleographic, and bronze studies. ## Historical Rulers - 1300 BC – 1250 BC: Late Shang Dynasty (known as "Yin") King Pan Geng moved the Shang capital to this site on the banks of the Huan River around 1300 BCE, founding what would become known as Yin. The early settlement consolidated royal authority and laid out the residential, ritual, and craft quarters that would expand dramatically under his successors. - 1250 BC – 1192 BC: Late Shang Dynasty (known as "Yin") Under King Wu Ding, Yin reached its peak as the political, ritual, and military capital of the Shang empire. Massive palace and temple complexes were built, bronze casting workshops produced ritual vessels of unparalleled sophistication, and the royal divination archives — the oracle bones — recorded queries on warfare, harvests, weather, and ancestral rites. Wu Ding's consort Lady Fu Hao led armies in the field and was later interred at the site in an intact royal tomb. - 1192 BC – 1046 BC: Late Shang Dynasty (known as "Yin") The capital continued to function through the reigns of Wu Ding's successors, with sustained bronze production, oracle bone divination, and elite burial activity in the Xibeigang royal cemetery. Under the final king Di Xin, mounting Zhou pressure culminated in the Battle of Muye in 1046 BCE; the Zhou army defeated the Shang, sacked Yin, and ended the dynasty, after which the city was gradually abandoned. ## Landmarks - Royal Palace and Temple Complex (built 1250 BC) The ceremonial and administrative heart of Yin, comprising rammed-earth palace foundations and ancestral temples laid out on a north-south axis. Excavations have revealed dozens of large foundations used for royal residence, court ritual, and offerings to Shang ancestors. - Oracle Bone Archives (built 1250 BC) The royal divination records of the Shang court, inscribed on turtle plastrons and ox scapulae heated until they cracked, then read by court diviners. Around 150,000 fragments have been recovered since 1899, preserving the earliest mature Chinese writing system and direct documentation of Shang kings, campaigns, rituals, and astronomy. - Bronze Casting Workshops (built 1250 BC) Industrial-scale foundries where Shang craftsmen produced the ritual bronzes — ding cauldrons, gui food vessels, you wine containers, and weapons — that defined elite Shang material culture. Excavated workshop floors have yielded clay piece-moulds, crucibles, and slag attesting to mastery of complex piece-mould casting. - Tomb of Lady Fu Hao (built 1200 BC) The undisturbed burial of Lady Fu Hao, royal consort and warrior-queen of King Wu Ding, discovered in 1976 by archaeologist Zheng Zhenxiang. The tomb yielded 1,928 burial objects including 468 bronze artifacts, jades, ivories, cowrie shells, and the remains of sacrificial attendants, and remains the only intact Shang royal tomb known. - Royal Tombs of Xibeigang (built 1200 BC) The royal cemetery on the north bank of the Huan River, containing eleven large cruciform shaft tombs assigned to Shang kings, together with hundreds of sacrificial pits holding chariots, horses, and human victims. Although looted in antiquity, the tombs preserved the monumental scale of Shang royal funerary ritual. - Chariot Burial Pits (built 1200 BC) Sacrificial pits containing intact chariots with their horse teams and drivers, interred to accompany Shang royalty into the afterlife. They provide the earliest direct evidence of chariot warfare in East Asia and reflect the militarized character of the late Shang elite. ## Population History - 1300 BC: 5,000 - 1250 BC: 30,000 - 1100 BC: 50,000 - 1046 BC: null --- # Beijing, China URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/china/beijing Founded: 1045 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.9042, 116.4074 ## Description Beijing, one of the oldest and most influential cities in China, has served as a capital for multiple dynasties and remains the political and cultural heart of modern China. ## Historical Rulers - 1045 BC – 221 BC: Zhou Dynasty (known as "Ji") Founded as the city of Ji, the seat of the state of Yan under the Western Zhou feudal order. Through the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods it served as Yan's principal northern stronghold until Qin unification. - 221 BC – 220 AD: Qin & Han Dynasties (known as "Ji") Incorporated into the unified Qin empire in 221 BCE and inherited by the Han, Ji functioned as a frontier commandery seat guarding the northern approaches against the Xiongnu and other steppe peoples. The city remained a regional administrative and military hub rather than a national capital. - 220 AD – 618 AD: Period of Disunion (known as "Ji") Through the Three Kingdoms, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties era the city changed hands among rival regimes governing the north China plain. It retained its role as a frontier prefecture overseeing trade and defence along the steppe edge. - 618 AD – 907 AD: Tang Dynasty (known as "Youzhou") Reorganised as Youzhou, the city was a major military command on the Tang northeastern frontier and the staging ground of An Lushan's revolt in 755. After the rebellion it persisted as a semi-autonomous garrison region until the dynasty collapsed. - 907 AD – 1125 AD: Liao Dynasty (known as "Yanjing") Taken by the Khitan Liao following the fall of Tang, the city was elevated as Yanjing (Nanjing, the Liao 'southern capital'), one of the Liao's five capitals. Its conversion into a major Khitan administrative centre marks the city's first sustained role as an imperial capital. - 1125 AD – 1234 AD: Jin Dynasty (known as "Zhongdu") The Jurchen Jin seized the city from the Liao and from 1153 made it their primary capital, renaming it Zhongdu ('central capital'). The city was rebuilt and expanded as the political centre of north China until it was overrun by the Mongols. - 1234 AD – 1368 AD: Yuan Dynasty (known as "Khanbaliq") After the Mongol destruction of Jin Zhongdu, the area remained under Mongol military administration until Kublai Khan founded a new capital, Dadu (Khanbaliq), here in 1271 as the seat of the Yuan dynasty. It became the political centre of the largest contiguous empire in history until the Yuan retreat to Mongolia. - 1368 AD – 1644 AD: Ming Dynasty Initially demoted in favour of Nanjing, the city was rebuilt and renamed Beijing ('northern capital') by the Yongle Emperor, who moved the Ming capital here in 1421. The Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven and Ming-era city walls all date from this period. - 1644 AD – 1912 AD: Qing Dynasty Captured by Manchu forces in 1644, Beijing remained the imperial capital of the Qing throughout the dynasty's expansion and later decline. The city endured the Anglo-French sack of 1860 and the Boxer Rebellion of 1900 before the abdication of the last emperor in 1912. - 1912 AD – 1949 AD: Republic of China (known as "Beiping") Served as the capital of the early Republic until the Nationalist government moved the capital to Nanjing in 1928, at which point the city was renamed Beiping ('northern peace'). It was occupied by Japan from 1937 to 1945 and held by the Nationalists until the Communist takeover. - 1949 AD – present: People's Republic of China Proclaimed the capital of the People's Republic on 1 October 1949 and restored to the name Beijing. Since then it has been comprehensively rebuilt as the political, cultural and increasingly economic centre of modern China. ## Landmarks - Great Wall — Beijing sections (built 1368 AD) While the Great Wall dates back to earlier dynasties, the sections near Beijing (particularly Badaling and Mutianyu) were extensively rebuilt during the Ming Dynasty, creating the iconic stone structure seen today. - Forbidden City (built 1420 AD) Built during the Ming Dynasty, this massive complex of 980 buildings served as the imperial residence for 24 emperors across the Ming and Qing dynasties. Its design represents the pinnacle of Chinese palatial architecture and embodies the concept of the emperor as the Son of Heaven. - Temple of Heaven (built 1420 AD) Built during the same period as the Forbidden City, this complex was where emperors performed rituals and sacrifices to Heaven for good harvests. Its circular Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests features remarkable wooden construction without nails or cement. - Tiananmen Square (built 1651 AD) While Tiananmen Gate dates to the Ming Dynasty, the square itself was vastly expanded after 1949 to create a monumental public space. Now home to the Monument to the People's Heroes, Great Hall of the People, and Mao Zedong Memorial Hall. - Summer Palace (built 1750 AD) Originally built by the Qing Emperor Qianlong, destroyed during the Second Opium War, and rebuilt by Empress Dowager Cixi in 1888. This vast complex combines traditional Chinese gardens with palaces and temples around the artificial Kunming Lake. ## Population History - 900 AD: 40,000 - 936 AD: 60,000 - 1000 AD: 60,000 - 1100 AD: 50,000 - 1123 AD: 48,000 - 1150 AD: 100,000 - 1151 AD: 130,000 - 1200 AD: 130,000 - 1250 AD: 140,000 - 1265 AD: 160,369 - 1270 AD: 401,350 - 1300 AD: 401,000 - 1350 AD: 400,000 - 1400 AD: 150,000 - 1419 AD: 150,000 - 1450 AD: 600,000 - 1492 AD: 669,033 - 1500 AD: 672,000 - 1550 AD: 690,000 - 1575 AD: 706,000 - 1579 AD: 706,861 - 1600 AD: 706,000 - 1650 AD: 470,000 - 1700 AD: 650,000 - 1750 AD: 900,000 - 1800 AD: 1,100,000 - 1821 AD: 1,300,000 - 1825 AD: 1,350,000 - 1845 AD: 1,648,000 - 1850 AD: 1,648,000 - 1861 AD: 1,310,000 - 1875 AD: 900,000 - 1900 AD: 1,100,000 - 1914 AD: 1,000,000 - 1925 AD: 1,266,000 - 1950 AD: 2,031,000 - 1970 AD: 4,800,000 - 1975 AD: 5,200,000 - 2000 AD: 7,362,000 --- # Hangzhou, China URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/china/hangzhou Founded: 222 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 30.2741, 120.1551 ## Description Hangzhou is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in eastern China, located at the head of Hangzhou Bay where the Qiantang River meets the East China Sea about 180 kilometres southwest of Shanghai. The site was formally organised as Yuhang County by the Qin dynasty in 222 BCE, but its decisive growth came after 610 CE when the Sui Emperor Yangdi completed the Grand Canal connecting Hangzhou to the imperial heartland on the Yellow River plain, making the city the southern terminus of the longest continuous waterway in the world. Under the Wuyue Kingdom from 893 the city became a regional capital, and after the Jin invasion of the Northern Song court in 1127 Emperor Gaozong relocated the Song capital here in 1138, renaming the city Lin'an. As Southern Song capital from 1138 to 1276 Hangzhou reached its medieval peak as the most populous, wealthiest, and technologically advanced city in the world, with an estimated one million inhabitants in the late 13th century, sophisticated paper currency, a sprawling commercial economy, and a dense urban fabric stretching from West Lake to the Qiantang shore. Marco Polo, who visited in the 1280s under the Yuan dynasty, described it as Kinsai, 'the greatest city which may be found in the world'. Under the Ming, Qing, Republican, and People's Republic administrations Hangzhou continued as a major commercial, cultural, and tourist centre, with West Lake at its heart attracting poets, painters, and pilgrims for over a millennium. Modern Hangzhou is a metropolitan area of roughly 12 million inhabitants, a major Chinese technology and finance hub home to Alibaba Group, and the West Lake Cultural Landscape was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011. ## Historical Rulers - 222 BC – 220 AD: Qin and Han Dynasties (known as "Yuhang") The Qin Empire established Yuhang County at the site of modern Hangzhou in 222 BCE as part of the Qin administrative consolidation of the southeastern Yue territories. Under the Han Dynasty the area continued as a regional commandery seat, though it remained a relatively peripheral settlement on the Yangtze delta fringe. - 220 AD – 589 AD: Three Kingdoms, Jin, and Northern-Southern Dynasties (known as "Qiantang") Through the Three Kingdoms (220-280), Jin (266-420), and Southern Dynasties (420-589) the city — known variously as Qiantang or Yuhang — grew as a regional centre of the southeastern Yangtze delta under the southern Chinese states. Buddhist monastic foundations expanded around West Lake during the Six Dynasties period. - 589 AD – 893 AD: Sui and Tang Dynasties — Grand Canal terminus Emperor Wendi of the reunifying Sui Dynasty renamed the prefecture Hangzhou in 589. In 610 the Sui Emperor Yangdi completed the Grand Canal, making Hangzhou its southern terminus and transforming the city into the principal entry point for southeastern goods entering the imperial transport system. Under the Tang Dynasty the city continued to grow as one of the most important commercial cities of the southeast. - 893 AD – 978 AD: Wuyue Kingdom (known as "Xifu") During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907-979) the southeastern Wuyue Kingdom made Hangzhou (Xifu) its capital under King Qian Liu and his descendants. The kingdom undertook extensive flood control and West Lake dredging, built the Liuhe Pagoda (970), and patronised Buddhist culture; in 978 King Qian Chu surrendered the kingdom peacefully to the Northern Song. - 978 AD – 1138 AD: Northern Song Dynasty Under the Northern Song the city was administered as Hangzhou Prefecture, with population reaching perhaps 200,000 by the 11th century. The polymath governor Su Shi (Su Dongpo) built the Su Causeway across West Lake in 1090 during his tenure, and the city's commercial and cultural prestige continued to rise even before its elevation to imperial capital status. - 1138 AD – 1276 AD: Southern Song Dynasty — imperial capital Lin'an (known as "Lin'an") After the Jin invasion captured the Northern Song capital Kaifeng in 1127 and forced the Song court southward, Emperor Gaozong formally established his capital at Hangzhou in 1138 and renamed the city Lin'an, 'Temporary Tranquillity'. Under the Southern Song the city became the most populous, wealthiest, and technologically advanced metropolis in the world, with an estimated one million inhabitants at its 13th-century peak, sophisticated paper currency, dense commercial markets, and a sprawling urban fabric described by Marco Polo as 'the greatest city which may be found in the world'. - 1276 AD – 1644 AD: Yuan and Ming Dynasties After the Mongol Yuan dynasty captured Lin'an in 1276 the city was renamed Hangzhou and continued as a major commercial centre of Yuan and then Ming southeast China, though no longer the imperial capital. Under the Ming Dynasty from 1368 it served as the seat of Zhejiang Province and an important hub of silk production and the imperial examination system. - 1644 AD – 1911 AD: Qing Dynasty Under the Qing Dynasty Hangzhou continued as the Zhejiang provincial capital and one of the principal cultural cities of Jiangnan, hosting imperial visits and producing major literary works. The city was devastated during the Taiping Rebellion (1860-1864), with the population reportedly falling from over a million to fewer than 700,000 amid prolonged siege and famine, although it gradually recovered in the late Qing. - 1911 AD – 1949 AD: Republic of China After the Xinhai Revolution Hangzhou was incorporated into the new Republic of China and continued as the provincial capital of Zhejiang. The city was occupied by Japanese forces during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) and was the site of the puppet collaborationist administration of Liang Hongzhi for part of the war. - 1949 AD – present: People's Republic of China Since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 Hangzhou has continued as the capital of Zhejiang Province and grown explosively into one of the largest urban areas in southeastern China, with a metropolitan population of roughly 12 million in the early 2020s. The city is a major Chinese technology and finance hub home to Alibaba Group, and the West Lake Cultural Landscape was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011. ## Landmarks - West Lake (Xi Hu) (built 200 BC) A 6.5 km² freshwater lake on the western edge of the historic city, formed naturally as a coastal lagoon and then progressively engineered into a cultural landscape by the Tang dynasty governor Bai Juyi (Bai Causeway, 824) and the Northern Song governor Su Shi (Su Causeway, 1090). The lake and its surrounding pagodas, temples, and gardens have inspired classical Chinese poetry, painting, and garden design for over a millennium and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Landscape in 2011. - Lingyin Temple (built 326 AD) One of the largest Buddhist temples in China, founded in 326 CE by the Indian monk Huili in the wooded hills west of West Lake. The Feilai Feng grottoes adjoining the temple preserve hundreds of Buddhist rock carvings dating from the 10th-14th centuries, including the famous laughing Maitreya Buddha of about 1000 CE. - Grand Canal Southern Terminus (built 610 AD) The southern terminus of the Grand Canal completed under Sui Emperor Yangdi in 610 CE, connecting Hangzhou northward to Beijing across 1,776 kilometres. The Gongchen Bridge crossing the canal in northern Hangzhou is the canonical zero milestone of the canal's southern section, and the canal corridor through the city has been continuously in commercial use from the Sui dynasty to the present. - Liuhe Pagoda (built 970 AD) The 'Six Harmonies Pagoda' built in 970 under the Wuyue Kingdom on a hill overlooking the Qiantang River, originally intended to subdue the legendary Qiantang River tidal bore. The current 60-metre 12-storey wooden-eaved exterior dates from a Southern Song rebuilding in 1153, and the brick core preserves carved ceiling reliefs and 1899 Qing wooden eaves. - Leifeng Pagoda (built 977 AD) A pagoda on Sunset Hill at the southern shore of West Lake, originally built in 977 under the Wuyue king Qian Chu and famous in Chinese literature as the prison of the white snake spirit Bai Suzhen in the Legend of the White Snake. The original structure collapsed in 1924 and the present pagoda is a 2002 reconstruction over the surviving brick base. ## Population History - 222 BC: 5,000 - 1 AD: 15,000 - 600 AD: 30,000 - 900 AD: 100,000 - 1100 AD: 200,000 - 1250 AD: 1,000,000 - 1400 AD: 500,000 - 1700 AD: 700,000 - 1900 AD: 350,000 - 1950 AD: 600,000 - 2020 AD: 12,000,000 --- # Hong Kong, China URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/china/hong-kong Founded: 1842 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 22.2783, 114.1747 ## Description Hong Kong is a global financial center and Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, situated on the southern coast of China at the mouth of the Pearl River Delta. The region had been inhabited since Neolithic times and contained scattered Han Chinese fishing villages, salt-production sites and a Qing-era military outpost under successive Chinese dynasties from the Qin onward, but Hong Kong as an urban entity dates to 1842, when the Treaty of Nanking ended the First Opium War and ceded Hong Kong Island to Britain. Kowloon was added in 1860 under the Treaty of Beijing and the New Territories were leased for ninety-nine years in 1898, completing the British Crown Colony. Japanese forces captured the colony in December 1941 and occupied it through World War II, after which British administration was restored and Hong Kong was transformed by mainland refugee influxes and rapid industrialization into one of the postwar Asian Tiger economies. The Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984 set the terms for the 1997 handover, when Hong Kong became a Special Administrative Region under the one country, two systems framework, retaining its own legal, financial and customs systems. Today it is a dense vertical city of roughly seven and a half million people, internationally known for its Victoria Harbour skyline, Cantonese culture and cinema, and as a major global finance and logistics hub; large-scale protests in 2019 and 2020 and the subsequent 2020 National Security Law have reshaped its political landscape. ## Historical Rulers - 1842 AD – 1941 AD: British Occupation Hong Kong Island was ceded to the United Kingdom by the Qing Empire under the Treaty of Nanking in 1842, ending the First Opium War, and was formally established as a British Crown Colony. The Kowloon Peninsula was added in 1860 under the Treaty of Beijing after the Second Opium War, and the New Territories were leased for ninety-nine years in 1898 under the Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory. During this period Hong Kong developed into a major entrepot for trade between China and the wider world. - 1941 AD – 1945 AD: Empire of Japan (known as "Honkon") Japanese forces invaded Hong Kong on 8 December 1941 and the British garrison surrendered on Christmas Day after the Battle of Hong Kong. The territory was governed as occupied enemy territory under a Japanese military administration until the surrender of Japan in August 1945. The occupation brought severe food shortages, forced repatriation and a sharp population collapse. - 1945 AD – 1997 AD: British Occupation British administration was restored at the end of World War II and Hong Kong was rapidly rebuilt. Waves of refugees from mainland China after 1949 and continuing industrialization turned the colony into one of the Four Asian Tiger economies and a leading international financial center. The Sino-British Joint Declaration signed in 1984 set out the terms for the eventual transfer of sovereignty to the People's Republic of China. - 1997 AD – present: Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China Sovereignty over Hong Kong was transferred from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China on 1 July 1997, and the territory was reconstituted as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region under the one country, two systems framework, retaining its own legal, financial and customs systems. The Basic Law serves as the territory's constitutional document. Large-scale protests in 2019 and 2020 over proposed extradition legislation and political reform were followed by the imposition of the National Security Law in June 2020, which reshaped the territory's political environment. ## Landmarks - Government House (built 1855 AD) Built in the mid nineteenth century as the official residence of the Governor of Hong Kong, Government House served as the seat of British colonial executive authority until 1997 and is now the official residence of the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The building reflects a mix of colonial and later Japanese-era architectural modifications made during the wartime occupation. - Peak Tram (built 1888 AD) A funicular railway running from Central up to Victoria Peak, the Peak Tram opened in 1888 and is one of the oldest and steepest funicular systems in the world. It originally served the European residences on the upper levels of the Peak and remains both a working transit line and a major tourist attraction. - Star Ferry (built 1888 AD) The Star Ferry began regular passenger crossings of Victoria Harbour between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon in 1888 and remains in operation today. Its distinctive green and white double-deck vessels are an enduring symbol of Hong Kong's harbour identity. - Wong Tai Sin Temple (built 1921 AD) Dedicated to the Taoist deity Wong Tai Sin, the temple at its present site in Kowloon was established in 1921, although the cult itself is older and was brought to Hong Kong from Guangdong. It is one of the most popular and active religious sites in the territory, combining Taoist, Buddhist and Confucian elements. - Bank of China Tower (built 1990 AD) Designed by architect I. M. Pei and completed in 1990, the Bank of China Tower was briefly the tallest building outside the United States and remains one of the most recognizable elements of the Hong Kong skyline. Its faceted triangular geometry was controversial in local feng shui discourse at the time of its construction. - International Commerce Centre (built 2010 AD) Standing at 484 metres on the West Kowloon waterfront, the International Commerce Centre was completed in 2010 and is the tallest building in Hong Kong. It houses offices, the Ritz-Carlton hotel and the sky100 observation deck. - Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (built 2018 AD) Opened in 2018, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is a 55 kilometre system of bridges, artificial islands and an undersea tunnel linking Hong Kong with Macau and the mainland Chinese city of Zhuhai across the Pearl River Delta. It is among the longest sea crossings in the world and is a flagship piece of Greater Bay Area infrastructure. ## Population History - 1842 AD: 7,500 - 1860 AD: 120,000 - 1900 AD: 280,000 - 1930 AD: 850,000 - 1941 AD: 1,640,000 - 1945 AD: 600,000 - 1960 AD: 3,000,000 - 1980 AD: 5,000,000 - 1997 AD: 6,500,000 - 2020 AD: 7,480,000 --- # Xi'an, China URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/china/xian Founded: 1046 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 34.3416, 108.9398 ## Description Xi'an is one of the oldest cities in China and served as the capital of thirteen dynasties, including the Zhou, Qin, Han, and Tang. Known as Chang'an in antiquity, it was the eastern terminus of the Silk Road and one of the largest cities in the ancient world. The historic urban core has shifted within the Wei River valley across millennia — from the Western Zhou capitals of Feng and Hao, to Qin Xianyang north of the Wei, to Han Chang'an northwest of the modern city, to Sui-Tang Daxing/Chang'an on the southern bank (which Ming Xi'an inherits as its surviving palace quarter) — but the dynastic and administrative line is conventionally treated as a single continuous capital tradition. Today it is famous for the Terracotta Army, the surviving Ming-era city walls, and the Great Mosque. ## Historical Rulers - 1046 BC – 771 BC: Western Zhou Dynasty (known as "Hao") The Western Zhou established their royal capital at Haojing (Hao) on the south bank of the Feng River, near later Xi'an. The site functioned as the political and ritual center of the dynasty until nomadic incursions forced the court to flee east in 771 BCE. - 771 BC – 206 BC: Qin State & Qin Empire (known as "Xianyang") After the Zhou retreat, the Qin state rose in the Wei River valley and built its capital at Xianyang, just northwest of modern Xi'an. Qin Shi Huang unified China from here in 221 BCE and built the Terracotta Army nearby before the dynasty collapsed in civil war. - 206 BC – 9 AD: Western Han Dynasty (known as "Chang'an") Liu Bang founded the Han capital of Chang'an just southeast of ruined Xianyang. Chang'an became the largest city in the world under Han rule, a hub of the Silk Road that linked China to Central Asia, Persia, and the Mediterranean. - 9 AD – 220 AD: Xin Dynasty & Eastern Han (known as "Chang'an") Wang Mang briefly usurped the throne and ruled from Chang'an as the Xin Dynasty before being overthrown in 23 CE. The restored Eastern Han moved their main capital east to Luoyang, leaving Chang'an as a secondary regional center that suffered repeated sacking during late Han turmoil. - 220 AD – 386 AD: Three Kingdoms & Jin Dynasty (known as "Chang'an") Chang'an passed through the hands of Cao Wei, the Western Jin, and a succession of short-lived northern regimes during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. The city was repeatedly devastated by warfare and nomadic invasions, and its population fell sharply from its Han-era peak. - 386 AD – 618 AD: Northern Wei & Sui Dynasty (known as "Chang'an") Under the Xianbei Northern Wei and successor northern dynasties, Chang'an was rebuilt as a major garrison and administrative center. The Sui emperor Wen laid out a vast new planned capital, Daxing, just south of the old Han city, providing the template the Tang would inherit. - 618 AD – 907 AD: Tang Dynasty (known as "Chang'an") Peak of Xi'an's glory — Chang'an was the world's most populous city with over one million inhabitants and a cosmopolitan center of trade and culture. Buddhist monks, Sogdian merchants, Persian refugees, and Japanese envoys all converged on its grid of walled wards. - 907 AD – 1127 AD: Five Dynasties and Song (known as "Jingzhao") Following the Tang collapse, the imperial capital moved east and Chang'an was demoted to a provincial prefecture renamed Jingzhao. Much of the vast Tang city was abandoned and the inhabited area shrank to roughly the imperial palace quarter, which became the core of all later cities on the site. - 1127 AD – 1234 AD: Jin Dynasty (known as "Jingzhao") After the Jurchen Jin conquered northern China and drove the Song court south, Jingzhao came under Jin control as a frontier prefecture facing the Tangut Western Xia. The city retained regional military and commercial importance but never recovered its imperial scale. - 1234 AD – 1368 AD: Yuan Dynasty (known as "Fengyuan") Mongol forces took the city in 1234 and reorganized it as Fengyuan Route under the Yuan administration. It served as the seat of the Prince of Anxi, a member of the Yuan royal house, and remained an important node on the overland routes connecting China to Central Asia. - 1368 AD – 1644 AD: Ming Dynasty The Ming renamed the city Xi'an ("Western Peace") and made it the seat of the Shaanxi province and a major frontier garrison. The current city walls were built during the Ming Dynasty on the foundations of the Tang imperial palace enclosure. - 1644 AD – 1912 AD: Qing Dynasty Under the Qing, Xi'an remained the capital of Shaanxi and an important garrison city with a large Manchu banner quarter inside the walls. The city was deeply affected by the Dungan Revolt of 1862-1873 and briefly hosted the empress dowager Cixi and the Guangxu emperor in exile during the Boxer crisis of 1900. - 1912 AD – 1949 AD: Republic of China Republican-era Xi'an was a provincial capital caught between warlord factions, the Nationalist government, and Communist forces based in nearby Yan'an. It became internationally famous in 1936 as the site of the Xi'an Incident, in which Chiang Kai-shek was detained and forced into a united front against Japan. - 1949 AD – present: People's Republic of China Under the People's Republic, Xi'an was developed into a major industrial, aerospace, and university center in inland China. The 1974 discovery of the Terracotta Army transformed it into one of the country's leading tourist destinations and a UNESCO-recognized heritage city. ## Landmarks - Terracotta Army (built 246 BC) Built to accompany Qin Shi Huang in the afterlife, the Terracotta Army consists of over 8,000 life-sized clay soldiers, horses, and chariots buried near the emperor's mausoleum. Discovered in 1974, it is one of the greatest archaeological finds of the 20th century. - Giant Wild Goose Pagoda (built 652 AD) Built under the Tang Dynasty to house Buddhist scriptures brought from India by the monk Xuanzang. Standing 64 metres tall, it is one of the finest examples of Tang-era Buddhist architecture. - Great Mosque of Xi'an (built 742 AD) One of the oldest and most renowned mosques in China, founded during the Tang Dynasty to serve Muslim merchants on the Silk Road. The current complex blends Chinese and Islamic architectural styles and remains an active place of worship. - Xi'an City Wall (built 1370 AD) One of the best-preserved ancient city walls in China, built during the Ming Dynasty on Tang foundations. The wall stretches 13.7 km in a rectangle around the old city, with 98 ramparts and 4 main gates. ## Population History - 200 BC: 250,000 - 1 AD: 400,000 - 700 AD: 1,000,000 - 800 AD: 800,000 - 1000 AD: 200,000 - 1400 AD: 100,000 - 1600 AD: 200,000 - 1800 AD: 300,000 - 1900 AD: 270,000 - 1950 AD: 600,000 - 1975 AD: 1,500,000 - 2000 AD: 5,800,000 - 2025 AD: 13,000,000 --- # Dubrovnik, Croatia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/croatia/dubrovnik Founded: 614 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 42.6411, 18.1106 ## Description Dubrovnik is an Adriatic coastal city founded in the early 7th century CE by Roman and Byzantine refugees fleeing Slavic and Avar raids that destroyed nearby Epidaurum at modern Cavtat. Settled on a small rocky islet eventually joined to the mainland, the town grew under Byzantine protection, passed to Venetian rule in 1205, then emerged in 1358 as the independent Republic of Ragusa — a maritime merchant power known as the Pearl of the Adriatic and a sustained commercial rival of Venice. A catastrophic earthquake in 1667 devastated the city, and the Napoleonic conquest of 1808 abolished the Republic; the city subsequently passed through Austrian, Yugoslav, Axis-occupation, and socialist Yugoslav rule before joining independent Croatia in 1991. The walled Old Town was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 and was shelled during the 1991-1992 siege of the Croatian War of Independence before being meticulously restored. Today Dubrovnik is a small modern city of around 28,000 whose economy is dominated by heritage tourism, amplified by its global media profile as a Game of Thrones filming location for King's Landing. ## Historical Rulers - 614 AD – 1205 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Ragusium") Founded by Roman and Byzantine refugees from Epidaurum after Slavic and Avar invasions, the settlement on the islet of Laus became a Byzantine protectorate administered under the theme system. Over the centuries the town grew into a fortified maritime trading post with increasing de facto autonomy as Byzantine power in the Adriatic waned. - 1205 AD – 1358 AD: Republic of Venice (known as "Ragusa") Following the Fourth Crusade and the collapse of Byzantine authority in the Adriatic, Ragusa came under Venetian suzerainty. Venice imposed governors and tribute but the local commune retained internal institutions, until the Treaty of Zadar in 1358 forced Venice to renounce its claims along the Dalmatian coast. - 1358 AD – 1808 AD: Republic of Ragusa (known as "Ragusa") After the Treaty of Zadar, Dubrovnik emerged as the independent aristocratic merchant Republic of Ragusa, nominally acknowledging Hungarian and later Ottoman overlordship while operating autonomously. Through skilled diplomacy and a far-flung trading network it became the Pearl of the Adriatic, rivaling Venice commercially; the great earthquake of 1667 devastated the city and accelerated its long decline. - 1808 AD – 1815 AD: France (known as "Ragusa") Napoleonic forces occupied the Republic in 1806 and formally abolished it in 1808, incorporating its territory into the Illyrian Provinces of the French Empire. The Senate of Ragusa was dissolved, ending more than four centuries of Ragusan independence. - 1815 AD – 1918 AD: Habsburg Monarchy (known as "Ragusa") The Congress of Vienna assigned the former Ragusan lands to the Habsburg Monarchy, where they were administered as part of the Kingdom of Dalmatia. Italian Ragusa and Croatian Dubrovnik were used in parallel during this period, while the city served as a provincial port within Austria-Hungary until the empire's collapse at the end of World War I. - 1918 AD – 1941 AD: Kingdom of Yugoslavia Following the dissolution of Austria-Hungary, Dubrovnik became part of the new Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, later renamed the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The Croatian name Dubrovnik definitively replaced Ragusa in official use. - 1941 AD – 1945 AD: Axis Occupation After the Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in 1941 Dubrovnik was occupied by Fascist Italy and assigned to the puppet Independent State of Croatia under the Ustaše regime. Italian forces controlled the coast until the Italian armistice in 1943, after which German troops occupied the city until liberation by Yugoslav Partisans in 1944-1945. - 1945 AD – 1991 AD: Socialist Yugoslavia Dubrovnik became part of the Socialist Republic of Croatia within Tito's federal Yugoslavia. The Old Town was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979, and tourism grew rapidly along the Dalmatian coast until the federation began to disintegrate in 1990-1991. - 1991 AD – present: Republic of Croatia After Croatia's declaration of independence in 1991 Dubrovnik was besieged by Yugoslav People's Army and Montenegrin forces from 1991 to 1992, with the Old Town shelled despite its UNESCO status. The city was subsequently restored and has since rebuilt its economy around heritage tourism, further amplified by its global exposure as the Game of Thrones filming location for King's Landing in the 2010s. ## Landmarks - City Walls of Dubrovnik (built 1200 AD) A massive ring of stone fortifications encircling the Old Town, developed from the 12th through the 17th centuries with successive Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance phases. The walls, towers and bastions remain among the best-preserved medieval urban defenses in Europe and are the iconic image of Dubrovnik. - Dominican Monastery (built 1228 AD) A Gothic-Renaissance monastic complex at the eastern end of the Stradun, integrated into the city walls. It houses an important collection of medieval Ragusan painting and a cloister widely considered a masterpiece of Dalmatian architecture. - Franciscan Monastery (built 1317 AD) A Franciscan complex at the western end of the Stradun, containing one of the oldest continuously operating pharmacies in the world, established in 1317. Its late Romanesque cloister and library survived the 1667 earthquake and remain key monuments of medieval Ragusa. - Rector's Palace (built 1435 AD) Seat of the elected Rector who served as the ceremonial head of the Ragusan Republic, the palace combines Gothic and Renaissance elements and was repeatedly rebuilt after fires and earthquakes. It housed the government chambers, the Rector's apartments and the city dungeons, and today serves as a museum of Ragusan civic history. - Onofrio's Fountain (built 1438 AD) A large domed public fountain at the western entrance to the Old Town, built by the Neapolitan engineer Onofrio della Cava as the terminus of an aqueduct bringing water from the Dubrovacka river. It supplied the city's drinking water and remains one of the most recognizable features of the Stradun. - Stradun (built 1468 AD) The main pedestrian thoroughfare bisecting the Old Town between the Pile and Ploce gates, paved with polished limestone after the fires of the 15th century. Lined with uniform post-1667 baroque facades, it functions as the civic and ceremonial spine of Dubrovnik. - Sponza Palace (built 1522 AD) A Gothic-Renaissance public building on Luza Square that served as the customs house, mint, treasury and meeting place of intellectuals during the Republic. One of the few major structures to survive the 1667 earthquake largely intact, it now houses the Dubrovnik State Archives. ## Population History - 614 AD: 500 - 800 AD: 2,000 - 1000 AD: 5,000 - 1205 AD: 5,000 - 1358 AD: 6,000 - 1500 AD: 12,000 - 1667 AD: 5,000 - 1700 AD: 6,000 - 1808 AD: 6,000 - 1900 AD: 7,000 - 1950 AD: 13,000 - 1991 AD: 50,000 - 1995 AD: 30,000 - 2020 AD: 28,000 --- # Havana, Cuba URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/cuba/havana Founded: 1519 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 23.1136, -82.3666 ## Description Havana was first established by Spanish conquistador Pánfilo de Narváez in 1515 on Cuba's south coast and relocated in 1519 to its present north-coast harbor site, where mosquito-borne disease was less severe and the deep natural bay made an ideal anchorage. For nearly three centuries it served as the main assembly port of the Spanish treasure fleet, the Flota de Indias, prompting massive fortifications such as the Morro and La Cabaña castles to repel English, Dutch, and French corsairs. The British briefly captured the city in 1762 during the Seven Years War and returned it to Spain a year later under the Treaty of Paris in exchange for Florida. Cuba remained Spain's most prized American colony until the 1898 Spanish-American War ended Spanish rule, after which a brief US military government gave way to the independent Republic of Cuba in 1902. The 1959 Cuban Revolution led by Fidel Castro overthrew the Batista regime and turned Havana into a Cold War flashpoint through the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of 1961 and the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, followed by decades of US embargo. Old Havana was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982, and the city remains famous worldwide for its colonial plazas, 1950s American vintage cars, and Afro-Cuban musical culture popularized by the Buena Vista Social Club. ## Historical Rulers - 1519 AD – 1762 AD: Spanish Empire Refounded on the north coast in 1519 as San Cristóbal de La Habana, the city became the principal staging port for the Spanish treasure fleet returning from the Americas. Its strategic harbor was guarded by the Castillo del Morro and Castillo de la Punta against repeated pirate raids, and it grew into one of the wealthiest cities of the Spanish Caribbean. - 1762 AD – 1763 AD: British Empire During the Seven Years War a British expedition under Lord Albemarle besieged and captured Havana in August 1762 after taking the Morro fortress. The eleven-month occupation opened the port to free trade and dramatically expanded the slave trade before the city was returned to Spain. - 1763 AD – 1898 AD: Spanish Empire Under the 1763 Treaty of Paris Spain regained Havana in exchange for Florida. Spain responded by building the massive La Cabaña fortress and reinforcing the colonial administration; the city prospered through sugar, tobacco, and slave-based plantation wealth until Cuban independence wars and the 1898 Spanish-American War ended Spanish rule. - 1898 AD – 1902 AD: United States Military Government After Spain's defeat in the Spanish-American War, Cuba was occupied by US forces under a military governor. The administration carried out public health reforms, including yellow fever eradication based on Carlos Finlay's research, before transferring sovereignty to a nominally independent Cuban republic in 1902. - 1902 AD – 1959 AD: Republic of Cuba The pre-revolutionary Republic of Cuba operated under heavy US economic and political influence, formalized for decades by the Platt Amendment. Havana grew into a glamorous tourist destination of casinos, nightclubs, and US organized crime interests, particularly under Fulgencio Batista's regime, while inequality and unrest fueled the revolutionary movement. - 1959 AD – present: Republic of Cuba — Castro era Fidel Castro's revolutionary forces entered Havana in January 1959 and soon established a one-party socialist state aligned with the Soviet Union. The city became the symbolic center of Cold War confrontation through the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion and 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, endured a long US embargo, and continued under Castro, then Raúl Castro from 2008 and Miguel Díaz-Canel from 2018. ## Landmarks - Castillo del Morro (built 1589 AD) Begun in 1589 and completed around 1630 at the entrance to Havana Bay, the Castillo de los Tres Reyes Magos del Morro was designed by Italian engineer Battista Antonelli to defend the city against pirates and rival powers. Its lighthouse and curtain walls became one of the most recognizable silhouettes of the Spanish Caribbean. - Havana Cathedral (built 1748 AD) Construction of the Catedral de San Cristóbal de la Habana began in 1748 under the Jesuits and was completed in 1777 after their expulsion from Spanish territories. Its asymmetric baroque façade overlooking the Plaza de la Catedral is one of the most iconic colonial monuments of the Americas. - La Cabaña Fortress (built 1774 AD) Built between 1763 and 1774 after the British occupation exposed weaknesses in Havana's defenses, the Fortaleza de San Carlos de la Cabaña was at the time the largest Spanish colonial fortress in the New World. It continued as a military prison and ceremonial site, famous for its nightly cannon-firing tradition. - Malecón Seawall (built 1901 AD) Construction of the Malecón seawall and promenade began in 1901 under the early US military government and was extended in stages until the late 1950s, eventually running about eight kilometers along Havana's northern shore. It became the city's signature waterfront and an enduring symbol of Habanero daily life. - Capitolio Nacional (built 1929 AD) Inaugurated in 1929 under President Gerardo Machado, the Capitolio Nacional was modeled on the United States Capitol in Washington and housed the Cuban congress until 1959. After the revolution it served as the Academy of Sciences and was restored in the 2010s to seat the National Assembly once again. - Hotel Nacional de Cuba (built 1930 AD) Opened in 1930 on a cliff above the Malecón, the Hotel Nacional became the favored haunt of celebrities, gangsters, and politicians, hosting the 1946 Havana Conference of US Mafia bosses. Nationalized after the 1959 revolution, it remains an emblem of the city's pre-revolutionary glamour. - Plaza de la Revolución (built 1959 AD) Originally laid out in the 1950s as Plaza Cívica around the José Martí Memorial, the square was renamed Plaza de la Revolución after 1959 and became the stage for mass political rallies by Fidel Castro. Its giant steel mural of Che Guevara on the Ministry of the Interior building is among the most reproduced images of the Cuban Revolution. ## Population History - 1519 AD: 200 - 1600 AD: 5,000 - 1700 AD: 25,000 - 1762 AD: 70,000 - 1800 AD: 50,000 - 1898 AD: 250,000 - 1950 AD: 1,100,000 - 1980 AD: 1,925,000 - 2020 AD: 2,130,000 --- # Larnaca, Cyprus URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/cyprus/larnaca Founded: 1300 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 34.9229, 33.6347 ## Description Larnaca is the third-largest city of Cyprus, occupying the site of ancient Kition on the southern coast of the island in continuous occupation for over thirty-two centuries. Kition was founded around 1300 BCE as a Mycenaean trading colony at the end of the Late Bronze Age, refounded in the eleventh century BCE by Phoenician settlers from Tyre who established the great sanctuary of Astarte at Kathari. The Phoenician kingdom of Kition was one of the principal Cypriot city-kingdoms through the Iron Age and Classical period, ruled by a long Phoenician dynasty whose last king Pumayyaton was executed by Ptolemy I in 312 BCE. Kition was the birthplace of Zeno of Citium around 334 BCE, founder of the Stoic school of philosophy at Athens. The city continued as a Greco-Roman port under Ptolemaic and Roman administration, and as Byzantine Larnax it became associated with the tradition of the second life of Lazarus of Bethany, commemorated in the ninth-century Church of Saint Lazarus that survives in the modern city. Larnaca passed under Lusignan, Venetian, and Ottoman rule through the medieval and early modern centuries, with European consulates clustering at the harbor in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries to make it the principal cosmopolitan port of Ottoman Cyprus. The British colonial administration shifted commercial primacy to Famagusta and Limassol from the late nineteenth century onward, but Larnaca recovered after Cypriot independence in 1960 and especially after the 1974 division of the island, which closed Famagusta and concentrated southern Cypriot port and airport activity at Larnaca. The principal ancient remains of Kition are preserved in the archaeological sites of Area II (Bamboula) and the Phoenician sacred area at Kathari within the modern city. ## Historical Rulers - 1300 BC – 1100 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Kition") Kition was founded around 1300 BCE as a Mycenaean trading colony at the end of the Late Bronze Age, with the earliest temple complex at Kathari constructed in the same period using cyclopean masonry over a copper-working quarter. The settlement participated in the regional collapse of around 1200 BCE but maintained continuity through the transitional twelfth and eleventh centuries that bridge the Bronze and Iron Ages on Cyprus. - 1100 BC – 312 BC: Cypriot City-Kingdoms (known as "Kition") Phoenician settlers from Tyre refounded Kition in the eleventh century BCE and established the great sanctuary of Astarte over the earlier temple at Kathari, beginning a Phoenician dynasty that ruled the city-kingdom for the next seven centuries. Kition was one of the principal Iron Age and Classical Cypriot city-kingdoms, paying tribute successively to the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 707 BCE (appearing in Esarhaddon's 673 BCE tribute list), to Egypt under Amasis II, and to the Achaemenid Empire from 545 BCE, while remaining a major regional center of Phoenician metallurgy and trade. The philosopher Zeno, founder of Stoicism, was born here around 334 BCE. The last Phoenician king Pumayyaton was executed by Ptolemy I in 312 BCE, who razed the sanctuary at Kathari and incorporated the kingdom into his realm. - 312 BC – 58 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Kition") Ptolemaic Egypt absorbed Kition along with the other Cypriot kingdoms in 312 BCE, treating the entire island as a strategic province administered by a strategos based at Salamis and later Paphos. Kition continued as a substantial Hellenistic port and Phoenician cultural center, though demoted from its earlier political status as an autonomous kingdom. - 58 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Kition") Rome annexed Cyprus in 58 BCE under the lex Clodia and incorporated it into the province of Cilicia, later separating it as the senatorial province of Cyprus in 22 BCE. Kition continued as a regional Roman harbor through the imperial centuries without rising to the prominence of Salamis or Paphos. - 395 AD – 1191 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Larnax") Under Eastern Roman administration the city, known increasingly as Larnax (Greek for 'sarcophagus,' from the abundant funerary stonework of the ancient necropolis), became the seat of a bishopric and absorbed the population of nearby Kition following the 7th-century Arab raids that depopulated the older site. Christian tradition holds that Lazarus of Bethany lived his second life at Larnaca and served as the city's first bishop, and the surviving Church of Saint Lazarus was built around 900 CE by emperor Leo VI over his presumed tomb. - 1192 AD – 1489 AD: Kingdom of Cyprus (known as "Salines") Under Lusignan rule Larnaca was known to Western Europeans as Salines after the adjacent salt lake whose harvested salt was a major royal monopoly, and the town served as a secondary port behind Famagusta and Nicosia. The Lusignan administration began the surviving castle on the seafront as a coastal defence post in the 14th century. - 1489 AD – 1571 AD: Republic of Venice (known as "Salines") Venice acquired Cyprus in 1489 through the abdication of Caterina Cornaro and administered Larnaca as a secondary Venetian port through the sixteenth century, continuing the royal salt monopoly and expanding the harbor as Mediterranean trade increased. The Venetian fort on the seafront was rebuilt in 1625, partly on the Lusignan foundations. - 1571 AD – 1878 AD: Ottoman Empire Following the Ottoman conquest of Cyprus in 1570-1571, Larnaca developed into the principal cosmopolitan port of the island as European consulates and merchant houses concentrated at its harbor through the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The Bekir Pasha aqueduct of 1747 brought water from the Tremithos river to the town, and Larnaca surpassed Nicosia and Famagusta in commercial activity for much of the Ottoman period. - 1878 AD – 1960 AD: British Empire Britain administered Cyprus from 1878 under a lease from the Ottoman Empire and formally annexed it in 1914 at the outbreak of the First World War, making the island a Crown Colony in 1925. British policy shifted commercial primacy from Larnaca to Famagusta and Limassol through harbor improvements at the rival ports, and Larnaca contracted to a regional service town through the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. - 1960 AD – 2026 AD: Republic of Cyprus Larnaca joined the new Republic of Cyprus on 16 August 1960 and was rapidly redeveloped after the 1974 Turkish military intervention closed the international airport at Nicosia and the port at Famagusta, transferring both functions to Larnaca. The city now hosts the principal international airport of the Republic of Cyprus, the largest active port on the southern coast, and a population of roughly 85,000. ## Landmarks - Sacred Area of Kition (Kathari) (built 1200 BC) The sacred area of Kition at Kathari preserves a sequence of monumental temples beginning with a Late Bronze Age complex of cyclopean masonry built around 1200 BCE and continuously rebuilt through the Phoenician period as the great sanctuary of Astarte. The site was the religious heart of the Phoenician kingdom of Kition and was deliberately razed by Ptolemy I in 312 BCE after his execution of King Pumayyaton. - Kition-Bamboula Archaeological Site (built 900 BC) The Bamboula archaeological area, immediately west of the modern town, preserves the principal civic and military quarter of ancient Kition with Phoenician harbor installations, shipsheds, and city walls built between the ninth and fourth centuries BCE. The site has been the focus of French and Cypriot excavations since 1976. - Church of Saint Lazarus (built 900 AD) The Church of Saint Lazarus was built around 900 CE by Byzantine Emperor Leo VI over the reputed tomb of Lazarus of Bethany, whom Christian tradition holds to have lived his second life in Larnaca as its first bishop. The triple-domed stone church survives as one of the principal Byzantine ecclesiastical monuments of Cyprus, although the original domes were replaced after Ottoman intervention. - Larnaca Castle (built 1300 AD) The Larnaca seafront castle was begun under Lusignan rule in the fourteenth century as a coastal defence post against Mamluk raids, substantially rebuilt by the Venetians in 1625, and converted by the Ottomans into a fortified prison and arms depot. The structure now houses the Larnaca Medieval Museum at the southern end of the historic Foinikoudes promenade. - Bekir Pasha Aqueduct (built 1747 AD) The Bekir Pasha aqueduct was built in 1747 by the Ottoman governor of Cyprus Ebubekir Pasha to bring water from the Tremithos river to Larnaca over a distance of roughly ten kilometers, ending the chronic water shortages that had constrained the cosmopolitan port. Surviving sections of triple-arched limestone aqueduct remain on the western outskirts of the modern city. ## Population History - 1300 BC: 1,000 - 1000 BC: 1,500 - 700 BC: 4,000 - 400 BC: 6,000 - 100 BC: 5,000 - 200 AD: 5,000 - 500 AD: 4,000 - 800 AD: 2,500 - 1200 AD: 2,500 - 1500 AD: 4,000 - 1700 AD: 6,000 - 1900 AD: 8,000 - 1960 AD: 20,000 - 2000 AD: 50,000 - 2025 AD: 85,000 --- # Prague, Czech Republic URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/czech-republic/prague Founded: 880 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 50.0755, 14.4378 ## Description Prague, the capital of Bohemia on the Vltava River, was founded around 880 CE by Prince Bořivoj I of the Slavic Premyslid dynasty, who built Prague Castle on the hill above the river. It reached its golden age under Charles IV in the 14th century, when as Holy Roman Emperor and Bohemian king he made Prague an imperial capital, founded Charles University in 1348 — the oldest in Central Europe — and built Charles Bridge and St Vitus Cathedral. The early 15th century saw the Hussite Wars sparked by the reformist preacher Jan Hus, and the 1618 Defenestration of Prague triggered the Thirty Years War, ending in the Bohemian Protestant defeat at the Battle of White Mountain in 1620 and three centuries of Habsburg Catholic rule. In 1918 the city became the capital of Czechoslovakia under Tomáš Masaryk, was occupied by Nazi Germany after the 1938 Munich Agreement — the era of the Heydrich assassination and the Lidice massacre — and lived through the 1968 Prague Spring crushed by Warsaw Pact invasion and the 1989 Velvet Revolution. Since the 1993 Velvet Divorce it has been the capital of the Czech Republic, with its historic centre inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992. ## Historical Rulers - 880 AD – 1198 AD: Bohemia Prince Bořivoj I of the Premyslid dynasty founded Prague Castle around 880, establishing the seat of the Slavic Czech duchy on the left bank of the Vltava. The town grew around the castle and the later Vyšehrad fortress, becoming the political and ecclesiastical centre of Bohemia after its Christianization in the late 9th and 10th centuries. - 1198 AD – 1526 AD: Bohemia Bohemia was elevated to a hereditary kingdom in 1198 under Premyslid king Ottokar I, and after the dynasty died out passed to the House of Luxembourg. Under Charles IV, who was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1355, Prague became an imperial capital — Charles University was founded in 1348, the New Town laid out, and Charles Bridge and St Vitus Cathedral begun. The 15th century was dominated by the Hussite Wars triggered by the burning of the reformer Jan Hus in 1415. - 1526 AD – 1918 AD: Habsburg Monarchy After the death of the last Jagiellonian king in 1526 the Bohemian crown passed to the Austrian Habsburgs under Ferdinand I. The 1618 Defenestration of Prague launched the Thirty Years War; the Protestant Bohemian estates were defeated at the Battle of White Mountain in 1620, opening centuries of Catholic Counter-Reformation, Germanization, and rule from Vienna within the Habsburg Empire and later Austria-Hungary. - 1918 AD – 1939 AD: Czechoslovakia With the collapse of Austria-Hungary at the end of World War I, Prague became the capital of the new Czechoslovak Republic proclaimed in October 1918 under President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. The interwar years made the city one of the most prosperous and democratic capitals of Central Europe until the 1938 Munich Agreement dismembered the country. - 1939 AD – 1945 AD: Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia Nazi Germany occupied the Czech lands in March 1939 and established the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia with Prague as its seat. The era saw the deportation and murder of the city's Jewish community, the 1942 assassination of Reichsprotektor Reinhard Heydrich, the retaliatory massacre at Lidice, and the May 1945 Prague Uprising preceding Soviet liberation. - 1945 AD – 1948 AD: Czechoslovakia After liberation Prague was again the capital of a restored, briefly democratic Czechoslovakia known as the Third Republic. The expulsion of the Sudeten Germans transformed the demographics of the borderlands until the Communist coup of February 1948 ended the post-war pluralism. - 1948 AD – 1989 AD: Czechoslovakia From 1948 Prague was the capital of a Soviet-aligned one-party state. The 1968 Prague Spring reform movement under Alexander Dubček was crushed by a Warsaw Pact invasion in August of that year, ushering in two decades of so-called normalization. The Velvet Revolution of November 1989, centred on Wenceslas Square, brought a peaceful end to Communist rule. - 1989 AD – 1992 AD: Czechoslovakia After the Velvet Revolution the country was reorganized as the Czech and Slovak Federative Republic, with Václav Havel as president and Prague as the federal capital. Negotiations over the asymmetric federation led to the peaceful Velvet Divorce agreed in 1992. - 1993 AD – present: Czech Republic On 1 January 1993 the federation dissolved and Prague became the capital of the independent Czech Republic. The country joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004; the historic centre of Prague had been inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992, and the city is today a major European cultural and economic hub of roughly 1.4 million residents. ## Landmarks - Prague Castle (built 880 AD) Founded around 880 by Prince Bořivoj I on the hill above the Vltava, Prague Castle has been the seat of Bohemian dukes, kings of Bohemia, Holy Roman Emperors, Czechoslovak presidents, and now the presidents of the Czech Republic. It is generally cited as the largest ancient castle complex in the world. - Strahov Monastery (built 1143 AD) A Premonstratensian abbey founded in 1143 on the hill above the Castle district. Its later Baroque library halls are among the most renowned monastic libraries in Europe. - Old Town Square (built 1230 AD) Formalized as the central marketplace of the Old Town in the early 13th century after Prague received its town charter. Surrounded by the Old Town Hall, Týn Church, and St Nicholas Church, it has remained the civic heart of the city for eight centuries. - St Vitus Cathedral (built 1344 AD) The Gothic cathedral within Prague Castle, begun in 1344 under Charles IV and the architect Matthias of Arras. It houses the Bohemian coronation regalia and the tombs of Bohemian kings and Holy Roman Emperors, and was completed only in 1929. - Wenceslas Square (built 1348 AD) Laid out by Charles IV in 1348 as the horse market of the newly founded New Town. It became the principal stage of modern Czech history — site of the 1918 declaration of independence, the 1968 protests against the Warsaw Pact invasion, and the 1989 Velvet Revolution rallies. - Charles Bridge (built 1357 AD) Commissioned by Charles IV in 1357 to replace the older Judith Bridge across the Vltava, linking the Old Town with the Lesser Town below the Castle. Its Baroque saint statues were added in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. - Astronomical Clock (built 1410 AD) Installed on the southern face of the Old Town Hall in 1410, the Prague Orloj is the oldest astronomical clock still in operation. Its hourly procession of the Twelve Apostles was added in the 17th century and restored after wartime damage in 1945. - National Theatre (built 1881 AD) Built by public subscription as a symbol of the 19th-century Czech National Revival and inaugurated in 1881 on the right bank of the Vltava. Destroyed by fire weeks later, it was rebuilt and reopened in 1883 and remains the foremost stage of Czech opera, drama, and ballet. ## Population History - 880 AD: 1,000 - 1200 AD: 5,000 - 1346 AD: 40,000 - 1500 AD: 60,000 - 1620 AD: 80,000 - 1700 AD: 50,000 - 1850 AD: 155,000 - 1900 AD: 440,000 - 1939 AD: 1,000,000 - 1989 AD: 1,210,000 - 2020 AD: 1,380,000 --- # Alexandria, Egypt URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/egypt/alexandria Founded: 331 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 31.2001, 29.9187 ## Description Alexandria was founded in 331 BCE by Alexander the Great on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt, at the site of a small Egyptian fishing village known as Rhakotis. As capital of Ptolemaic Egypt it became one of the greatest cities of the ancient world, hosting the Pharos lighthouse, the Library and Mouseion, and the tomb of Alexander. After Cleopatra's death in 30 BCE it served as the second city of the Roman and then Byzantine empires and an early center of Christianity. The Arab conquest of 642 CE shifted the Egyptian capital to Fustat and Alexandria declined for over a millennium before Muhammad Ali revived it in the early 19th century as Egypt's principal Mediterranean port. Today it is a metropolis of roughly five million people. ## Historical Rulers - 331 BC – 305 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great founded the city in 331 BCE on the site of the Egyptian village of Rhakotis, laid out by the architect Dinocrates as the new Mediterranean capital of his Egyptian conquest. After Alexander's death in 323 BCE Egypt fell to his general Ptolemy son of Lagos, who governed as Macedonian satrap and brought Alexander's body to Alexandria, until he declared himself king in 305 BCE. - 305 BC – 30 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom Ptolemy I Soter established the Ptolemaic dynasty in 305 BCE with Alexandria as its capital. Under the early Ptolemies it grew into the largest Greek-speaking city in the world, home to the Library, the Mouseion, and the Pharos lighthouse, and remained the political and cultural centre of Hellenistic Egypt until Cleopatra VII's defeat by Octavian in 30 BCE. - 30 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After the defeat of Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII by Octavian at Actium in 31 BCE, Egypt was annexed in 30 BCE as a Roman province. Alexandria served as the capital of the new province of Aegyptus under the late Republic for the three years preceding the Augustan Principate. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE Alexandria remained the capital of the imperial province of Aegyptus and the empire's second-largest city after Rome. The city was a key grain port supplying the capital, a major intellectual centre hosting the Library and Mouseion, and an early hub of Christianity as the seat of the Patriarchate of Alexandria. It was the scene of repeated religious and ethnic riots through the imperial period until the division of the Roman Empire in 395. - 395 AD – 642 AD: Byzantine Empire With the division of the Roman Empire in 395 CE, Alexandria passed to the Eastern Roman or Byzantine state. It remained a leading Christian city and patriarchal see, though weakened by sectarian disputes and the Persian Sasanian occupation of 619-629 CE. The Library and Serapeum had already been destroyed, and the city's intellectual prominence faded before the Arab armies arrived. - 642 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Iskandariyya") Alexandria was captured in 642 CE by the Arab general Amr ibn al-As after a long siege, ending Byzantine rule in Egypt. The Rashidun caliphs moved the capital of Egypt inland to the new garrison town of Fustat, and Alexandria's role shrank to that of a regional port and naval base. Its Christian Greek population gradually declined as Arabic and Islam spread. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Iskandariyya") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based in Damascus, Alexandria continued as a provincial Mediterranean port and naval base of the Egyptian province of Misr. The Patriarchate of Alexandria endured, and Coptic and Greek-speaking communities still dominated the city even as Arabic administration was imposed. - 750 AD – 868 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Iskandariyya") The Abbasid revolution shifted the caliphate's centre eastwards to Baghdad and left Alexandria as an even more peripheral port. The city continued to shrink physically as much of the ancient urban fabric was abandoned, though the harbour and naval base remained operative and the patriarchate continued. - 868 AD – 905 AD: Tulunid Dynasty (known as "Iskandariyya") Ahmad ibn Tulun, the Abbasid Turkic governor of Egypt, established de facto independence in 868 and founded the Tulunid dynasty based at his new capital of al-Qata'i north of Fustat. Alexandria served as the Tulunid Mediterranean port and shared in the brief prosperity of an autonomous Egypt before the Abbasid reconquest in 905. - 905 AD – 935 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Iskandariyya") After the fall of the Tulunids, Abbasid central rule was briefly restored over Egypt and Alexandria, though the caliphate's control was weakening across the wider Muslim world. The city continued as a modest Mediterranean port within Egypt's diminished urban network. - 935 AD – 969 AD: Ikhshidid Dynasty (known as "Iskandariyya") Muhammad ibn Tughj al-Ikhshid, another Turkic governor sent from Baghdad, again broke with Abbasid authority and founded the Ikhshidid dynasty over Egypt and Syria. Alexandria served as the dynasty's principal Mediterranean port until the Fatimid conquest in 969. - 969 AD – 1171 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Iskandariyya") The Shia Ismaili Fatimid Caliphate conquered Egypt in 969 CE and founded Cairo as its new capital, leaving Alexandria as a secondary Mediterranean port. The city served Fatimid trade with Italian maritime republics but continued to shrink physically, with much of the ancient urban area falling out of use. - 1171 AD – 1250 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Iskandariyya") Saladin's overthrow of the last Fatimid caliph in 1171 brought Egypt under the Sunni Ayyubid dynasty. Alexandria was refortified and remained an important port for Italian and Provençal merchants trading spices and textiles into Egypt, even as Cairo eclipsed it as the political capital. - 1250 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Iskandariyya") After the Mamluk overthrow of the last Ayyubids in 1250, Alexandria continued as the Mamluk Sultanate's principal Mediterranean port and the Venetian and Genoese gateway to the spice trade. The city suffered the Crusader sack by King Peter I of Cyprus in 1365 and recurring plague, but remained valuable enough that Sultan Qaitbay built a citadel on the ruined foundations of the Pharos in 1477. - 1517 AD – 1798 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Iskandariyya") Following the Ottoman conquest of Mamluk Egypt by Selim I in 1517, Alexandria became a provincial port of the Ottoman Empire. By this period the city had shrunk dramatically, reduced to a few thousand inhabitants clustered on the isthmus that joined the former island of Pharos to the mainland, far smaller than its ancient extent. - 1798 AD – 1801 AD: French Occupation of Egypt Napoleon Bonaparte's expeditionary force landed near Alexandria in July 1798 and captured the city as the opening move of the French invasion of Egypt. The brief occupation produced the scholarly Description de l'Egypte and discoveries such as the Rosetta Stone, but ended in 1801 when British and Ottoman forces compelled the French to withdraw. - 1801 AD – 1805 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Iskandariyya") After the French withdrawal Egypt returned to nominal Ottoman rule. The brief interregnum of competing Ottoman, Mamluk and local factions ended when the Albanian commander Muhammad Ali Pasha was acclaimed wali in Cairo in 1805. - 1805 AD – 1882 AD: Muhammad Ali Dynasty (known as "Iskandariyya") From 1805 Muhammad Ali Pasha and his successors ran Egypt as an effectively autonomous polity within the Ottoman Empire, formalised as the Khedivate of Egypt in 1867. The dynasty rebuilt Alexandria as Egypt's main Mediterranean port, connected it to the Nile by the Mahmudiyya Canal in 1820, and welcomed European merchants. The city's population and cosmopolitan character grew rapidly until the British bombardment of 1882. - 1882 AD – 1922 AD: British Occupation of Egypt Following the bombardment of Alexandria by the Royal Navy and the defeat of the Urabi revolt at Tell el-Kebir, Britain occupied Egypt in 1882. Alexandria remained nominally under Ottoman suzerainty and the khedival dynasty, but in practice was administered as part of the British protectorate. It flourished as a cosmopolitan port with large Greek, Italian, Jewish and Levantine communities. - 1922 AD – 1953 AD: Kingdom of Egypt Egypt was declared a nominally independent kingdom in 1922 under Fuad I and then Farouk I, though British military influence persisted. Alexandria served as the royal summer capital, with the Montaza and Ras el-Tin palaces, and remained the country's leading port and second city. The Free Officers revolution of 1952 effectively began here when King Farouk abdicated and sailed from Alexandria into exile. - 1953 AD – present: Arab Republic of Egypt The Egyptian Republic was proclaimed in 1953 and renamed the Arab Republic of Egypt in 1971. Under Nasser's policies the foreign communities of Alexandria largely departed, and the city was reshaped as an Arab industrial port and naval base. It remains Egypt's second city and principal Mediterranean port, with a metropolitan population of roughly five million and the modern Bibliotheca Alexandrina opened in 2002. ## Landmarks - Pharos of Alexandria (built 280 BC) The lighthouse on the island of Pharos at the entrance to Alexandria's harbor, completed around 280 BCE under Ptolemy II Philadelphus. Standing more than one hundred meters tall, it was counted among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and served as a navigational beacon for over a thousand years. A series of earthquakes between 956 and 1323 CE progressively destroyed the structure. - Library of Alexandria (built 280 BC) The great royal library founded under Ptolemy I Soter and developed by Ptolemy II in the early 3rd century BCE. At its height it is said to have housed several hundred thousand papyrus scrolls and attracted scholars from across the Mediterranean. The Library was damaged in stages over centuries, including during Julius Caesar's intervention in 48 BCE and the destruction of the affiliated Serapeum in 391 CE. - Mouseion of Alexandria (built 280 BC) A research institution attached to the royal palace and the Library, founded under the early Ptolemies around 280 BCE. Dedicated to the Muses, it provided salaried positions for scholars in mathematics, astronomy, medicine, philology and other fields, including figures such as Euclid, Eratosthenes and Hero. It functioned for several centuries before declining in late Roman times. - Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa (built 150 AD) An extensive underground funerary complex cut into the rock in the 2nd century CE, blending Egyptian, Greek and Roman iconography. Spread over three levels and reaching depths of about 35 meters, it is one of the largest and best preserved late Hellenistic and Roman necropoleis in Egypt. The site was rediscovered by accident in 1900. - Pompey's Pillar (built 297 AD) A monumental red granite column nearly 27 meters tall, erected on the site of the Serapeum around 297 CE in honor of the Roman emperor Diocletian. Despite its name, it has no connection to Pompey the Great; the misattribution was made by medieval Crusaders. It is the largest ancient monolithic column still standing in Alexandria. - Citadel of Qaitbay (built 1477 AD) A fortress built between 1477 and 1480 by the Mamluk Sultan Qaitbay on the eastern tip of the former island of Pharos, reusing stone from the ruined ancient lighthouse. It was constructed to defend Alexandria's harbor against the Ottoman threat from the sea and remained a key Egyptian coastal fortification through the Ottoman and Muhammad Ali periods. - Bibliotheca Alexandrina (built 2002 AD) A modern library and cultural complex inaugurated in 2002 on the Alexandria waterfront, near the presumed site of the ancient Library. Built as a UNESCO-backed international project with a disc-shaped roof inscribed in scripts from around the world, it houses millions of books, archives, museums and research institutes, intended as a symbolic revival of the city's classical scholarly tradition. ## Population History - 331 BC: 5,000 - 250 BC: 300,000 - 100 BC: 500,000 - 100 AD: 600,000 - 400 AD: 200,000 - 642 AD: 100,000 - 1000 AD: 50,000 - 1517 AD: 5,000 - 1800 AD: 10,000 - 1850 AD: 150,000 - 1900 AD: 320,000 - 1950 AD: 1,000,000 - 2000 AD: 3,500,000 - 2020 AD: 5,200,000 --- # Cairo, Egypt URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/egypt/cairo Founded: 642 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 30.0444, 31.2357 ## Description Cairo is the modern capital of Egypt and one of the largest metropolitan areas in Africa and the Middle East. Its urban story begins with the foundation of Fustat in 642 CE by the Arab general Amr ibn al-As beside the Roman fortress Babylon of Egypt, after which successive Islamic capitals — al-Askar under the Abbasids in 750, al-Qata'i under the Tulunid governor Ibn Tulun in 868, and finally al-Qahira founded by the Fatimid commander Jawhar al-Siqilli for caliph al-Mu'izz in 969 — coalesced into a single metropolis whose Arabic name al-Qahira, meaning the Victorious, became Cairo in European languages. Saladin built the Citadel on the Mokattam spur around 1176 and made the unified city the Ayyubid capital, after which Mamluk Cairo emerged as the leading city of the Islamic world following the Mongol sack of Baghdad in 1258, with a population that peaked near half a million before the Black Death. After the Ottoman conquest of 1517, Napoleon's brief expedition of 1798 to 1801, and the Muhammad Ali dynasty's modernization that culminated in the Suez Canal opening of 1869, Cairo passed through British protectorate from 1882 to 1922, the Kingdom of Egypt, and the 1952 Free Officers revolution to become the capital of the Arab Republic of Egypt and a megacity of roughly twenty-one million in its metropolitan area. The ancient Egyptian capital Memphis lies on the opposite west bank of the Nile some twenty-five kilometers to the south and represents a much older, separate city rather than a direct predecessor of Cairo proper. ## Historical Rulers - 642 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Fustat") Following the Arab conquest of Egypt, the general Amr ibn al-As founded Fustat in 642 CE beside the Roman fortress Babylon of Egypt as the first Arab garrison capital of the province. The Mosque of Amr, the first mosque on the African continent, was built the same year and anchored the new town. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Fustat") Fustat remained the administrative capital of the Umayyad province of Egypt, governed from Damascus. The town grew steadily into a major regional center of commerce, taxation, and Islamic learning along the east bank of the Nile. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "al-Askar") After the Abbasid revolution the new dynasty founded an adjacent administrative quarter called al-Askar just north of Fustat in 750, and the Tulunid governor Ibn Tulun added a further royal capital, al-Qata'i, in 868 with the great Mosque of Ibn Tulun. Fustat, al-Askar, and al-Qata'i together formed a continuous metropolitan complex during the late Abbasid and autonomous Tulunid and Ikhshidid periods. - 969 AD – 1171 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "al-Qahira") The Fatimid commander Jawhar al-Siqilli conquered Egypt for caliph al-Mu'izz in 969 and founded a new walled palace city to the northeast of Fustat called al-Qahira, the Victorious, which became the Fatimid imperial capital and gave the unified metropolis its enduring name. The al-Azhar Mosque was founded in 970 and grew into one of the most important centers of Islamic learning in the world. - 1171 AD – 1250 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "al-Qahira") Saladin ended the Fatimid caliphate in 1171 and made Cairo the capital of the Sunni Ayyubid sultanate, beginning construction of the Citadel on the Mokattam spur around 1176 and enclosing Fustat and al-Qahira within a single circuit of walls. Cairo flourished as the political, military, and intellectual center of a sultanate that ruled Egypt, Syria, and much of the Levant. - 1250 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "al-Qahira") Under the Bahri and Burji Mamluk sultans Cairo became the political and cultural heart of the Islamic world, especially after the Mongol sack of Baghdad in 1258 displaced the Abbasid caliphate to Cairo as a ceremonial institution. The city reached around half a million inhabitants by the mid fourteenth century before the Black Death of 1348 onward and recurrent plagues sharply reduced its population, even as Mamluk patrons endowed the great mosques, madrasas, and bazaars that still define the historic core. - 1517 AD – 1798 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "al-Qahira") After Selim I defeated the Mamluks in 1517 Cairo became the provincial capital of an Ottoman eyalet of Egypt, governed by a pasha and a council of Mamluk beys who retained much local power. The city remained a major commercial hub on the Red Sea spice routes and the principal way station of the annual hajj caravan from North Africa to Mecca. - 1798 AD – 1801 AD: French Occupation of Egypt Napoleon Bonaparte's expeditionary army occupied Cairo in July 1798 after defeating the Mamluks at the Battle of the Pyramids and held the city until 1801, when a combined Ottoman and British campaign forced the French withdrawal. The accompanying savants of the Institut d'Egypte produced the foundational Description de l'Egypte, inaugurating modern European Egyptology. - 1801 AD – 1882 AD: Muhammad Ali Dynasty Muhammad Ali Pasha consolidated power in 1805 and made Cairo the capital of an autonomous Ottoman khedivate, massacring the Mamluk elite at the Citadel in 1811 and launching ambitious programs of military, industrial, and educational modernization. His successors, especially Khedive Ismail, rebuilt downtown Cairo on a Parisian model and presided over the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, which brought a brief boom of European investment and ended in fiscal collapse. - 1882 AD – 1922 AD: British Occupation of Egypt Britain occupied Egypt in 1882 after the Urabi revolt and ruled through a veiled protectorate, formally declared in 1914, while leaving the khedive and later sultan as nominal sovereign. Cairo expanded rapidly with new tramways, suburbs such as Heliopolis and Garden City, and the Egyptian Museum of 1902 on Tahrir Square, becoming the cosmopolitan administrative center of British imperial influence in the eastern Mediterranean. - 1922 AD – 1953 AD: Kingdom of Egypt Nominal Egyptian independence in 1922 made Cairo the capital of a constitutional kingdom under the Muhammad Ali dynasty, though British troops remained in the Suez Canal Zone and influence over policy persisted. The city grew past two million inhabitants, absorbed waves of rural migration, and became a major center of Arab cinema, journalism, and nationalist politics culminating in the Free Officers revolution of July 1952. - 1953 AD – present: Arab Republic of Egypt Since the abolition of the monarchy in 1953 Cairo has been the capital of the Arab Republic of Egypt under Nasser, Sadat, Mubarak, and their successors, hosting the Arab League headquarters and serving as the political and media center of the Arab world. Massive rural to urban migration has pushed the metropolitan population to roughly twenty-one million, making greater Cairo one of the largest urban agglomerations in Africa and the Middle East, with a new administrative capital under construction to the east. ## Landmarks - Mosque of Amr ibn al-As (built 642 AD) Founded in 642 CE by the conquering general Amr ibn al-As at the heart of Fustat, this is the first mosque built in Egypt and on the African continent. Rebuilt and enlarged many times over the centuries, it remains an active congregational mosque in Old Cairo. - Mosque of Ibn Tulun (built 879 AD) Completed in 879 CE by the autonomous Abbasid governor Ahmad ibn Tulun as the congregational mosque of his new capital al-Qata'i, it is the oldest mosque in Cairo to survive in close to its original form. Its vast hypostyle courtyard and unique spiral minaret are inspired by the Abbasid capital Samarra. - al-Azhar Mosque (built 970 AD) Founded in 970 CE by the Fatimid commander Jawhar al-Siqilli as the chief mosque of the new capital al-Qahira, it became a Shi'a center of learning under the Fatimids and a Sunni one after Saladin. al-Azhar University, attached to the mosque, is among the oldest continuously operating institutions of higher learning in the world. - Citadel of Saladin (built 1176 AD) Begun by Saladin around 1176 on a spur of the Mokattam hills to defend Cairo against Crusader attack, the Citadel served as the seat of government for the Ayyubid, Mamluk, Ottoman, and Muhammad Ali rulers of Egypt for nearly seven centuries. Its successive sultans added palaces, mosques, and military fortifications that still dominate the eastern skyline of the old city. - Sultan Hassan Mosque (built 1361 AD) Built between 1356 and 1363 by the Bahri Mamluk sultan al-Nasir Hasan, this enormous madrasa mosque at the foot of the Citadel is widely regarded as the masterpiece of Mamluk architecture. Its monumental portal and four iwan courtyard housed teaching of all four Sunni legal schools. - Khan el-Khalili (built 1382 AD) Established around 1382 by the Mamluk amir Jaharkas al-Khalili in the heart of Fatimid al-Qahira, this caravanserai and bazaar grew into the principal commercial center of medieval Cairo. It remains one of the largest and most famous traditional markets in the Arab world. - Mosque of Muhammad Ali (built 1848 AD) Commissioned by Muhammad Ali Pasha and built between 1830 and 1848 atop the Citadel in an Ottoman imperial style modeled on the great mosques of Istanbul, this alabaster clad mosque is the dynastic monument of nineteenth century Egypt. Its silhouette is the most recognizable element of the modern Cairo skyline. - Egyptian Museum (built 1902 AD) Opened in 1902 on the north side of Tahrir Square in a purpose built neoclassical building designed by Marcel Dourgnon, the Egyptian Museum has housed the world's largest collection of pharaonic antiquities for over a century, including the treasures of Tutankhamun. Many of its holdings are being transferred to the new Grand Egyptian Museum near the Giza pyramids. ## Population History - 642 AD: 10,000 - 700 AD: 30,000 - 750 AD: 60,000 - 870 AD: 150,000 - 1000 AD: 200,000 - 1100 AD: 300,000 - 1340 AD: 500,000 - 1400 AD: 200,000 - 1500 AD: 250,000 - 1650 AD: 300,000 - 1798 AD: 250,000 - 1900 AD: 600,000 - 1950 AD: 2,400,000 - 2000 AD: 15,000,000 - 2020 AD: 21,000,000 --- # Elkab, Egypt URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/egypt/elkab Founded: 6000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 25.1167, 32.7833 ## Description Elkab, known to the ancient Egyptians as Nekheb, is one of the most important Predynastic and Pharaonic sites of Upper Egypt, situated on the east bank of the Nile at the mouth of the Wadi Hillal some 80 kilometres south of Luxor. The site preserves Epipaleolithic occupation from around 6400 BCE and a continuous sedentary settlement sequence from the Predynastic period through the pharaonic, Graeco-Roman, Coptic, and Islamic eras to the modern village of el-Kab. Nekheb served as the cult centre of the vulture goddess Nekhbet, the patron deity and personification of Upper Egypt, and as the capital of the Third Upper Egyptian Nome through the Early Dynastic and Old Kingdom periods, while its twin city Nekhen at modern Hierakonpolis across the Nile served the parallel cult of Horus. The site is famous for its massive mudbrick enclosure walls of the Late Period, the Greco-Roman Temple of Nekhbet, the painted 18th-Dynasty rock-cut tombs of Paheri, Ahmose son of Ebana, and Setau, and the densely engraved Wadi Hillal petroglyphs documenting boats, animals, and ritual scenes from the Predynastic through Roman periods. Modern el-Kab is a small village of around 3,000 inhabitants adjacent to the archaeological zone, which has been the subject of Royal Museums of Art and History Brussels excavations since 1937 and has yielded major Predynastic, Old Kingdom, and New Kingdom finds. ## Historical Rulers - 6000 BC – 3100 BC: Predynastic Egypt (known as "Nekheb") Continuous Predynastic settlement at Nekheb is attested from the Epipaleolithic and Neolithic phases onward, with Naqada I, II, and III material concentrated along the Nile bank and in the Wadi Hillal. The site developed in parallel with the contemporary cult centre at Nekhen across the river, with elaborate Predynastic cemeteries and the earliest evidence for the cult of the vulture goddess Nekhbet that would define Nekheb's identity for the next three millennia. - 3100 BC – 2686 BC: Early Dynastic Egypt (known as "Nekheb") With the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt around 3100 BCE Nekheb continued as the cult centre of Nekhbet, who together with the Lower Egyptian Wadjet of Buto became one of the Two Ladies guardian goddesses of the pharaoh. The city served as the capital of the Third Upper Egyptian Nome through the First and Second Dynasties. - 2686 BC – 2181 BC: Old Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Nekheb") Through the Old Kingdom Nekheb remained the religious and administrative seat of the Third Upper Egyptian Nome, with royal patronage of the Nekhbet temple from successive Memphite pharaohs. Mastaba tombs of local officials and rock-cut chapels in the Wadi Hillal document the elite of the Old Kingdom community. - 2181 BC – 2055 BC: First Intermediate Period (known as "Nekheb") With the collapse of centralized Old Kingdom authority Nekheb passed under the control of the rising Theban nomarchs of the Eleventh Dynasty, whose campaigns to reunify Upper Egypt brought local autonomy and renewed elite tomb construction at the site. The cult of Nekhbet continued without interruption through the period of fragmentation. - 2055 BC – 1650 BC: Middle Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Nekheb") Under the reunified Middle Kingdom Nekheb continued as a provincial cult centre with Twelfth Dynasty royal patronage of the Nekhbet temple. The site's elite community continued to expand the rock-cut tomb cemetery in the wadi during the Twelfth and Thirteenth Dynasties. - 1650 BC – 1550 BC: Second Intermediate Period (known as "Nekheb") During the political fragmentation caused by Hyksos rule in the Delta, Upper Egypt remained under the Theban Seventeenth Dynasty whose rulers including Seqenenre Tao and Kamose maintained control over the Nekhbet cult centre. Local Nekhebite officials served in the Theban wars of liberation against the Hyksos. - 1550 BC – 1069 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Nekheb") Under the reunified New Kingdom Nekheb reached the peak of its political and religious importance, with major Eighteenth and Nineteenth Dynasty royal patronage of the Nekhbet temple. The celebrated painted rock-cut tombs of Paheri, Ahmose son of Ebana, and Setau in the Wadi Hillal date from this period — Ahmose's autobiographical inscription preserves the most important contemporary account of the wars against the Hyksos and the Egyptian conquest of Nubia. - 1069 BC – 664 BC: Third Intermediate Period (known as "Nekheb") Through the Libyan and Kushite dynasties of the Third Intermediate Period Nekheb continued as a provincial cult centre with renewed monumental construction at the Nekhbet temple under the Twenty-fifth Dynasty Nubian pharaohs. The Kushite kings of Napata patronized the cult of Nekhbet as part of their ideological claim to traditional Egyptian kingship. - 664 BC – 332 BC: Late Period of Egypt (known as "Nekheb") Under the Saite, Persian, and short-lived native Twenty-Eighth through Thirtieth Dynasties Nekheb saw major construction projects including the massive mudbrick enclosure walls that still dominate the site today, reaching some 10 metres in height and enclosing a roughly 545-metre-square temple precinct. The Saite kings of the Twenty-Sixth Dynasty were particularly active patrons of the Nekhbet temple. - 332 BC – 30 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Eileithyiaspolis") Under the Ptolemies the city was Hellenized as Eileithyiaspolis after the Greek identification of Nekhbet with Eileithyia, the Greek goddess of childbirth. The Ptolemies continued the patronage of the Nekhbet temple, with surviving Greek-period architectural elements integrated into the older Late Period precinct. - 30 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Eileithyiaspolis") Following Octavian's victory over Antony and Cleopatra at Actium in 31 BCE, Egypt was annexed in 30 BCE as a Roman province, and Elkab passed under late Republican administration alongside the rest of Aegyptus for the three years preceding the Augustan Principate. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Eileithyiaspolis") After Octavian's annexation of Egypt in 30 BCE Eileithyiaspolis continued as a regional centre of Roman Egypt, with continued operation of the Nekhbet sanctuary and Roman additions to the temple precinct. The cult gradually declined as Christianity spread through Upper Egypt in the later Roman period. - 395 AD – 641 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Nekheb") Under the Eastern Roman empire the cult of Nekhbet was extinguished and a Coptic Christian monastery was established within the older temple enclosure, with surviving Coptic painted plaster and architectural elements documenting the monastic community. The site continued as a small Christian agricultural community through the late Roman period. - 641 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "el-Kab") After the Arab conquest of Egypt the site passed under Rashidun Caliphate administration as part of the new province of Egypt. The Coptic monastery continued in operation under early Islamic tolerance while the surrounding settlement gradually shrank. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "el-Kab") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, el-Kab continued as a small Coptic and Muslim rural community on the east bank of the Nile, with the monastic community gradually contracting through the Umayyad period. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "el-Kab") Under Abbasid rule and the successive Tulunid and Ikhshidid dynasties governing Egypt from Fustat, el-Kab remained a small floodplain village within the wider rural hinterland of Upper Egyptian Esna. The Coptic monastery is no longer attested as a functioning community by the end of this period. - 969 AD – 1171 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "el-Kab") Under the Egypt-based Shia Fatimid Caliphate, el-Kab continued as a small Upper Egyptian agricultural village within the broader rural economy of the Cairo-Aswan corridor. The site by this period was effectively a ruin field with a small inhabited village adjacent to the ancient enclosure walls. - 1171 AD – 1250 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "el-Kab") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty integrated Egypt into a centralized Syrian-Egyptian state, and el-Kab continued as a small village. The Ayyubid period saw little change in the long contraction of the once-major Pharaonic site. - 1250 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "el-Kab") Under the Bahri and Burji Mamluks ruling from Cairo, el-Kab remained a small Nile-side agricultural community within the wider rural economy of Upper Egypt. The ancient enclosure walls and temple ruins continued to be quarried for stone by local builders. - 1517 AD – 1805 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "el-Kab") After the Ottoman conquest of Egypt in 1517 el-Kab continued as an ordinary fellah village within the Ottoman eyalet of Egypt. European travellers and antiquarians from the late 17th century onward began to take note of the surviving monumental enclosure walls and rock-cut tombs in the wadi. - 1805 AD – 1914 AD: Khedivate of Egypt (known as "el-Kab") Under Muhammad Ali Pasha and his successors el-Kab grew slowly as a small agricultural village in the modernizing khedivate. Royal Museums of Art and History Brussels excavations began at the site under James Edward Quibell in 1893 and Somers Clarke from 1905 onward, putting el-Kab on the international Egyptological map alongside the British occupation that began in 1882. - 1914 AD – 1922 AD: Sultanate of Egypt (known as "el-Kab") Under the short-lived British Protectorate Sultanate el-Kab continued as a small Upper Egyptian rural community. Archaeological work at the site was largely interrupted during the First World War. - 1922 AD – 1953 AD: Kingdom of Egypt (known as "el-Kab") Under the independent Kingdom of Egypt the Royal Museums of Art and History Brussels resumed systematic excavations at el-Kab from 1937 under Jean Capart and Henri Frankfort, who established the modern stratigraphic framework for the Predynastic and Pharaonic levels. - 1953 AD – present: Arab Republic of Egypt (known as "el-Kab") Under the modern Arab Republic of Egypt el-Kab has continued as a small Aswan-governorate village of around 3,000 inhabitants adjacent to the protected archaeological zone. Continued Belgian, Egyptian, and other foreign missions have produced major Predynastic discoveries including the 2017 identification of one of the earliest known rock-cut hieroglyphic inscriptions, dated to around 3250 BCE. ## Landmarks - Wadi Hillal Petroglyphs (built 4000 BC) The cliffs of the Wadi Hillal preserve thousands of engraved petroglyphs spanning the Predynastic through Roman periods, depicting boats, hunting scenes, animals, and ritual processions. The 2017 identification of a Predynastic monumental hieroglyphic inscription in the wadi, dated to around 3250 BCE, is among the earliest known rock-cut hieroglyphic texts and a major contribution to the understanding of the origins of Egyptian writing. - Temple of Nekhbet (built 2400 BC) The principal sanctuary of the vulture goddess Nekhbet, the patron deity of Upper Egypt, occupied the centre of the great enclosure at Nekheb. Built and rebuilt by successive Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, New Kingdom, Late Period, and Ptolemaic pharaohs from at least the Fifth Dynasty onward, the temple housed the principal cult image of the goddess and was a destination for royal coronation rituals throughout Egyptian history. - 18th Dynasty Rock-cut Tombs (built 1500 BC) A cluster of painted rock-cut tombs in the cliffs of the Wadi Hillal east of the city includes the celebrated tombs of Paheri, mayor of Nekheb under Thutmose III, and Ahmose son of Ebana, whose autobiographical inscription preserves the principal contemporary account of the wars against the Hyksos and the Egyptian conquest of Nubia in the early Eighteenth Dynasty. The painted scenes inside the tombs are among the most important visual sources for the elite culture of early New Kingdom Upper Egypt. - Mudbrick Enclosure Walls of Nekheb (built 550 BC) The massive Late Period mudbrick enclosure walls of Nekheb are some of the most impressive surviving Egyptian fortification works of any period, enclosing a roughly 545-metre square temple precinct with walls up to 10 metres thick and 11 metres high. Begun in the Saite Twenty-Sixth Dynasty and elaborated under successive Late Period and Ptolemaic dynasties, the walls dwarf most other surviving Egyptian temple enclosures and remain the dominant visible monument on the site today. ## Population History - 6000 BC: 200 - 3500 BC: 1,500 - 3100 BC: 2,500 - 2500 BC: 3,000 - 2000 BC: 2,500 - 1500 BC: 4,000 - 1000 BC: 3,000 - 300 BC: 2,500 - 100 AD: 3,000 - 600 AD: 1,500 - 700 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 300 - 1900 AD: 500 - 2020 AD: 3,000 --- # Luxor, Egypt URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/egypt/luxor Founded: 3200 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 25.7174, 32.6573 ## Description Luxor (ancient Waset, known to the Greeks as Thebes, Thebae in Latin, Diospolis Magna in the Roman period, al-Uqsur "the palaces" in Arabic) is one of Egypt's deepest continuous urban stories. The same Nile-east-bank site hosted the modest Early Dynastic provincial town, the New Kingdom imperial capital that was for a time one of the largest cities in the world, a long Late-Period and Roman contraction, Coptic Christian villages amid the ruins, and from the early Islamic period the Arabic-speaking town of al-Uqsur that grew up among and on top of the surviving Roman castrum and the pharaonic Karnak and Luxor temples. After roughly a millennium as a quiet Upper Egyptian market town under Abbasid, Fatimid, Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman rule, 19th-century European travellers and Egyptologists re-globalized the site; Thomas Cook tourism, the Winter Palace Hotel (1907) and Howard Carter's 1922 discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb across the river made Luxor world-famous. UNESCO inscribed Ancient Thebes with its Necropolis as a World Heritage Site in 1979 and in 2009 the city was elevated to its own Egyptian governorate; today around half a million people live amid and around the New Kingdom temples and the Theban necropolis (Valley of the Kings, Deir el-Bahari, the Ramesseum, Medinet Habu, the Colossi of Memnon). ## Historical Rulers - 3200 BC – 2686 BC: Early Dynastic Egypt (known as "Waset") During Egypt's Early Dynastic Period, Waset was a modest provincial settlement in Upper Egypt along the Nile, far from the political center at Memphis. It served as a local cult site for the god Montu and a regional administrative node. - 2686 BC – 2181 BC: Old Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Waset") Under the Old Kingdom, Waset remained a secondary town overshadowed by the northern capital at Memphis. The city functioned as the capital of the fourth Upper Egyptian nome and grew modestly around its local temples. - 2181 BC – 2055 BC: First Intermediate Period (known as "Waset") After the collapse of centralized Old Kingdom rule, Waset rose to prominence as the seat of the Theban nomarchs. The Eleventh Dynasty rulers based here eventually reunified Egypt, transforming Waset from a provincial town into a royal city. - 2055 BC – 1650 BC: Middle Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Waset") Mentuhotep II's reunification made Waset the royal capital of a restored Egypt. Although the Twelfth Dynasty later moved the administrative center north to Itjtawy, Waset remained a major religious hub and the patron city of Amun, who rose to national prominence in this period. - 1650 BC – 1550 BC: Second Intermediate Period (known as "Waset") While the Hyksos rulers controlled Lower Egypt from Avaris, Waset remained the seat of a rival Theban dynasty (the Seventeenth) that retained authority over Upper Egypt. The conflict between Theban kings and the Hyksos culminated in the campaigns of Seqenenre Tao, Kamose, and Ahmose I, who expelled the Hyksos. - 1550 BC – 1070 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Waset") Waset became the spiritual and ceremonial capital of imperial Egypt under the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Dynasties. Wealth from conquest and tribute funded vast monumental construction at Karnak, Luxor, and the Theban necropolis, and the city housed the burials of the New Kingdom pharaohs in the Valley of the Kings. - 1070 BC – 664 BC: Third Intermediate Period (known as "Waset") With the fragmentation of central authority after the New Kingdom, Waset was effectively governed by the High Priests of Amun, who held political and economic control over Upper Egypt. The city retained immense religious prestige even as royal power shifted to northern dynasties at Tanis and Bubastis. - 664 BC – 332 BC: Late Period of Egypt (known as "Diospolis Magna") Waset passed through Kushite (Twenty-fifth Dynasty), Saite, and Achaemenid Persian administration during the Late Period. It suffered a devastating sack by the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal around 663 BCE, and its political weight steadily declined although Karnak's priesthood remained influential. - 332 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Diospolis Magna") After Alexander the Great's conquest of Egypt, Waset came under Macedonian rule. Alexander's deference to Egyptian religion led to renewed royal attention at Karnak and Luxor, where Greek inscriptions and modest building works were added to existing temples. - 323 BC – 30 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Diospolis Magna") Under the Ptolemies, Diospolis Magna remained an important religious center but its political role faded as Alexandria became Egypt's capital. Theban revolts against Ptolemaic rule in the second century BCE prompted military reprisals that further weakened the city. - 30 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Thebae") Following Octavian's victory over Antony and Cleopatra at Actium in 31 BCE, Egypt was annexed in 30 BCE as a Roman province, and Luxor passed under late Republican administration alongside the rest of Aegyptus for the three years preceding the Augustan Principate. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Thebae") Roman Egypt absorbed Thebae as a provincial town and tourist destination, famous among Greco-Roman visitors for the Colossi of Memnon and the ancient temples. A Roman legionary castrum was installed within the Luxor Temple precinct, and the city's population continued its long decline as the religious and economic focus shifted elsewhere. - 395 AD – 641 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Byzantine rule the site, increasingly referred to by the name Luxor (from Coptic and later Arabic al-Uqsur "the palaces"), saw the conversion of parts of its great temples into churches as Christianity spread through Upper Egypt. The classical-era settlement gradually contracted into smaller Coptic villages amid the ruins. - 641 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "al-Uqsur") After Amr ibn al-As's conquest of Egypt in 641, the site became part of the Rashidun Caliphate's new province of Egypt. The Coptic Christian population persisted as the substantial majority of the local community. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "al-Uqsur") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, Upper Egypt continued under the new Islamic provincial system. A small Arab Muslim community settled among the still-standing Roman castrum and pharaonic temples alongside the Coptic Christian majority. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "al-Uqsur") Under Abbasid rule the settlement around the former Luxor Temple was reorganized as a small Nile-side town in Upper Egypt. The Arabic name al-Uqsur ("the palaces") referred to the still-standing Roman castrum and pharaonic temples that dominated the town center. - 969 AD – 1171 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "al-Uqsur") Under the Fatimids, al-Uqsur functioned as a modest agricultural and trading town in the Qus-Aswan corridor of Upper Egypt. A mosque was built within the courts of the Luxor Temple, and the local population was a mixed Coptic-Muslim community. - 1171 AD – 1250 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "al-Uqsur") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty integrated Upper Egypt into a centralized state; al-Uqsur remained a secondary town in the shadow of Qus, then the regional capital. The town continued to live among and on top of the pharaonic ruins. - 1250 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "al-Uqsur") Under the Bahri and Burji Mamluks, al-Uqsur stayed a small Nile town serving sugarcane and grain agriculture; Qus retained regional primacy. Sufi shrines, including the tomb-mosque associated with Abu al-Hajjaj, became the religious focus of the community living within the Luxor Temple precinct. - 1517 AD – 1867 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "al-Uqsur") After the Ottoman conquest of Egypt by Selim I, al-Uqsur fell under Ottoman provincial rule, later mediated by the Mamluk beys and from the early 19th century by Muhammad Ali's reforming dynasty. European travellers and early Egyptologists from Napoleon's savants (1798-1799) through Champollion and Wilkinson rediscovered the town as the gateway to ancient Thebes. - 1867 AD – 1914 AD: Khedivate of Egypt (known as "al-Uqsur") Under the Khedivate, formally autonomous within the Ottoman Empire, Luxor became a major destination of Nile tourism: Thomas Cook steamers, the Winter Palace Hotel of 1907, and the systematic clearance of houses from the Luxor and Karnak temples transformed the town. From 1882 it was effectively administered under British occupation. - 1914 AD – 1922 AD: Sultanate of Egypt After Britain declared a protectorate at the start of the First World War, Luxor passed under the new Sultanate of Egypt established by Hussein Kamel and continued by Fuad I. The Nile tourism economy was disrupted by the war, but excavation work resumed in the Valley of the Kings in the early 1920s, culminating just at the end of the Sultanate. - 1922 AD – 1953 AD: Kingdom of Egypt Under the independent Kingdom of Egypt, Howard Carter's discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb in the nearby Valley of the Kings in November 1922 made Luxor world-famous and entrenched it as Egypt's premier antiquities town. Nile cruise tourism, hotel development, and the Egyptian Antiquities Service's expanded operations defined the town's interwar character until the 1952 revolution. - 1953 AD – present: Arab Republic of Egypt Following the 1952 revolution and the proclamation of the republic in 1953, Luxor became a governorate-level tourism and heritage center within modern Egypt. UNESCO inscribed Ancient Thebes with its Necropolis as a World Heritage Site in 1979, and in 2009 Luxor was administratively elevated to its own governorate; today the city is one of Egypt's most-visited destinations. ## Landmarks - Karnak Temple Complex (built 2000 BC) Constructed and expanded over 1,500 years by successive pharaohs, the massive temple complex covers over 100 hectares. It features the Great Hypostyle Hall with 134 massive columns, several temples, pylons, obelisks, and sacred lakes dedicated primarily to the god Amun-Ra. - Valley of the Kings (built 1539 BC) Located on the west bank of the Nile opposite Thebes, this valley became the primary burial place for pharaohs and powerful nobles of the New Kingdom. The hidden tombs were an attempt to prevent tomb robbery, replacing the more conspicuous pyramids of earlier periods. - Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut (built 1479 BC) This stunning temple was designed by Hatshepsut's architect Senenmut with innovative terraced design set against spectacular limestone cliffs. It features colonnaded halls, reliefs of Hatshepsut's divine birth, and trading expeditions to Punt. - Luxor Temple (built 1400 BC) Built primarily by Amenhotep III and Ramesses II, this temple was dedicated to divine kingship. During the annual Opet Festival, statues of Amun, Mut, and Khonsu traveled from Karnak to Luxor, symbolizing the renewal of royal power. - Avenue of Sphinxes (built 1400 BC) The 2.7 km processional way of ram-headed and human-headed sphinxes linking Karnak and Luxor temples was originally built under the New Kingdom and expanded by the Ptolemies. Excavated and restored under successive modern campaigns, it was inaugurated as a continuous pedestrian heritage axis in November 2021. - Colossi of Memnon (built 1350 BC) These two 18-meter tall statues originally flanked the entrance to Amenhotep III's mortuary temple, which was destroyed by an earthquake. The northern colossus became famous in Roman times for emitting sounds at dawn due to temperature changes affecting cracks in the stone. - Ramesseum (built 1279 BC) This enormous mortuary temple contained the famous fallen colossus of Ramesses II that inspired Shelley's poem 'Ozymandias.' The complex featured a palace, storehouses, and extensive reliefs depicting Ramesses' military victories, especially the Battle of Kadesh. - Temple of Medinet Habu (built 1186 BC) The massive complex features a fortified gate modeled after Syrian architecture, extensive reliefs depicting Ramesses III's wars against the Sea Peoples, and scenes from religious festivals. The temple remained in use into the Christian era. - Abu al-Hajjaj Mosque (built 1286 AD) A Sufi shrine-mosque built within the first court of the ancient Luxor Temple, commemorating the 13th-century saint Yusuf Abu al-Hajjaj. It is still active today, and its annual mawlid procession with boat floats is widely interpreted as a continuation of the ancient Opet festival. - Winter Palace Hotel (built 1907 AD) A Victorian-era luxury hotel on the east bank, opened in 1907 to serve the Nile tourist trade. It became the social hub of early-20th-century Egyptology and hosted figures such as Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon during the Tutankhamun excavations. - Luxor Museum (built 1975 AD) A purpose-built modern museum on the Corniche, opened in 1975, displaying statues, reliefs and grave goods from Theban sites including the royal cache from the temple of Amenhotep III and material from the tomb of Tutankhamun. ## Population History - 3200 BC: 2,000 - 2500 BC: 5,000 - 2000 BC: 20,000 - 1500 BC: 40,000 - 1350 BC: 65,000 - 1250 BC: 80,000 - 1000 BC: 45,000 - 500 BC: 30,000 - 0 AD: 20,000 - 300 AD: 15,000 - 600 AD: 8,000 - 800 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 4,000 - 1800 AD: 3,000 - 1900 AD: 12,000 - 1950 AD: 40,000 - 1986 AD: 150,000 - 2006 AD: 400,000 - 2020 AD: 500,000 --- # Memphis, Egypt URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/egypt/memphis Founded: 3100 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 29.8456, 31.2502 ## Description Memphis, the first capital of unified Egypt, was a major political, religious, and cultural center for over 3,000 years, renowned for its grand temples and as the home of the god Ptah. After the Arab conquest in 640 CE, the new garrison city of Fustat (founded 642) drew off Memphis's urban population and administrative functions, and over the following centuries its surviving stone monuments were systematically quarried for the construction of medieval Cairo. The site was never fully abandoned, however: the village of Mit Rahina grew up directly atop the ruins, preserving continuous local Egyptian habitation on the ancient capital's footprint through the Umayyad, Abbasid, Fatimid, Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman periods, even as the settlement shrank to a small rural community of a few hundred to a few thousand inhabitants. Modern archaeological work began with Napoleon's 1798 expedition and was continued by figures such as Auguste Mariette and Sir Flinders Petrie in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The ruins around Mit Rahina, together with the adjacent Saqqara necropolis, were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 as 'Memphis and its Necropolis – the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur'. Today Mit Rahina and its immediate satellite villages have a combined population of roughly 30,000 and support an open-air archaeological park with the colossus of Ramesses II as its centerpiece, sustained by agriculture and antiquities tourism within the Greater Cairo region. ## Historical Rulers - 3100 BC – 2686 BC: Early Dynastic Egypt (known as "Inbu-Hedj") Traditionally founded by the legendary king Menes (often identified with Narmer) at the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt, Memphis served as the seat of the earliest pharaonic state. Its original name Inbu-Hedj ('White Walls') referred to the limestone fortifications that protected the new capital at the strategic apex of the Nile Delta. - 2686 BC – 2181 BC: Old Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Men-nefer") During the Old Kingdom, Memphis reached its first great peak as the political and religious heart of Egypt. The pharaohs built monumental pyramid complexes in its western necropolis (Saqqara, Giza, Dahshur), and the cult of the creator god Ptah dominated the city's temples. The administration of a centralized state was managed from here. - 2181 BC – 2055 BC: First Intermediate Period (known as "Men-nefer") With the collapse of centralized Old Kingdom authority, Memphis lost much of its political dominance as rival dynasties in Herakleopolis and Thebes contested control of Egypt. The city retained its religious significance through the temple of Ptah but suffered economic decline. - 2055 BC – 1650 BC: Middle Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Men-nefer") After reunification under the Theban Eleventh Dynasty, the Twelfth Dynasty pharaohs moved the royal residence to Itj-tawy near Memphis, restoring much of the city's administrative importance. Memphis continued as a major economic and religious center even as the political capital sat nearby. - 1650 BC – 1550 BC: Second Intermediate Period (known as "Men-nefer") During this period of fragmentation the Hyksos rulers based at Avaris controlled much of Lower Egypt, and Memphis fell under their influence. The city's status declined as power shifted to the eastern Delta, though its temples continued to function. - 1550 BC – 1070 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Men-nefer") Although Thebes remained the ceremonial capital, Memphis served as the practical administrative center of the New Kingdom empire and as the residence of the crown prince. Major building programs by Thutmosid and Ramesside pharaohs expanded the temple of Ptah, and the city housed key military and bureaucratic institutions overseeing Egypt's Asian and Nubian provinces. - 1070 BC – 664 BC: Third Intermediate Period (known as "Men-nefer") Following the fragmentation of the New Kingdom, Memphis was contested among Libyan dynasties based in the Delta and Kushite kings from Nubia, who incorporated it into their own pharaonic rule. The city was briefly captured by Assyrian armies under Esarhaddon in 671 BCE and again under Ashurbanipal, marking the first major foreign sack of Memphis. - 664 BC – 332 BC: Late Period of Egypt (known as "Men-nefer") Under the Saite Twenty-Sixth Dynasty Memphis was extensively rebuilt, including the great Palace of Apries. The city later fell under two periods of Achaemenid Persian rule (525-404 BCE and 343-332 BCE), serving as a Persian satrapal seat, with brief intervening native dynasties (28th-30th). - 332 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great was received in Memphis in 332 BCE and crowned pharaoh in the temple of Ptah, legitimizing Macedonian rule over Egypt. After his death in Babylon in 323 BCE, his body was reportedly brought to Memphis before being transferred to Alexandria. - 323 BC – 30 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom Under the Ptolemies, Alexandria became the new royal capital and slowly drew political weight away from Memphis. Nevertheless Memphis remained the religious heart of native Egypt, where Ptolemaic kings continued to be crowned in the temple of Ptah, and the cult of the Apis bull flourished, evolving into the syncretic Hellenistic deity Serapis. - 30 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Following Octavian's victory over Antony and Cleopatra at Actium in 31 BCE, Egypt was annexed in 30 BCE as a Roman province, and Memphis passed under late Republican administration alongside the rest of Aegyptus for the three years preceding the Augustan Principate. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire After Octavian's annexation of Egypt in 30 BCE, Memphis was incorporated into the Roman province of Aegyptus. It remained an important provincial city and cult center in the early imperial period, but the rise of Alexandria as the regional metropolis and the spread of Christianity gradually eroded the prestige of its traditional Egyptian temples. - 395 AD – 640 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman (Byzantine) rule, Memphis was a much-diminished town as the population concentrated around new Christian centers. Pagan temples were closed or repurposed, and the city's economic and ritual functions had largely faded by the time of the Arab conquest in 640 CE, when the Arab general Amr ibn al-As defeated Byzantine forces nearby. - 640 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Manf") Following Amr ibn al-As's conquest, the new Arab garrison capital of Fustat was founded in 642 just north of Memphis, rapidly drawing off the remaining urban population, administration, and trade. Memphis (known in Arabic as Manf) collapsed into a small Coptic and Muslim rural community on its ancient mound. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Manf") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, Egypt remained a major province governed from Fustat, and Manf continued as a contracted village beside the abandoned monumental ruins. The temples and palaces stood as a stone quarry increasingly used for new construction downstream. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Manf") Under Abbasid rule and the successive Tulunid and Ikhshidid dynasties governing Egypt from Fustat and al-Askar, Memphis persisted only as a minor agricultural village beside its ruin field. Medieval Arab geographers such as al-Masudi and Ibn Hawqal still recorded the awe-inspiring scale of the surviving monuments, but the inhabited settlement had shrunk to a fraction of its ancient size. - 969 AD – 1171 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Manf") With the Fatimid foundation of Cairo (al-Qahira) in 969 just north of Fustat, the new metropolis became the principal consumer of building stone from Memphis. Limestone casing and dressed blocks from temples, palaces, and pyramid complexes were systematically dismantled and transported across the Nile for Fatimid mosques, walls, and citadel works. - 1171 AD – 1250 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Manf") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty continued and accelerated the systematic quarrying of Memphis stone for Cairo construction, especially during the building of the Citadel of Cairo. The village on the ancient site persisted under local Coptic and Muslim cultivators while the visible ancient city continued to disappear. - 1250 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Mit Rahina") Under the Mamluks ruling from Cairo, the site was thoroughly integrated into the rural agricultural hinterland of the capital. The village of Mit Rahina is attested by this period as a small farming community, while what remained above ground of Memphis's monuments continued to be exploited as a stone quarry for Mamluk mosques and madrasas in Cairo. - 1517 AD – 1805 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Mit Rahina") After the Ottoman conquest of Egypt in 1517, the Memphis site remained an ordinary Nile-side fellah village within the eyalet of Egypt. Mit Rahina appears in Ottoman tax registers as a modest rural community surrounded by palm groves and date plantations, with the ancient mounds of Memphis serving as elevated ground above the floodplain. Napoleon's 1798 expedition produced the first systematic European description and mapping of the Memphis ruins, published in the Description de l'Égypte. - 1805 AD – 1914 AD: Khedivate of Egypt (known as "Mit Rahina") Under Muhammad Ali and his successors the Memphis site became a focus of scientific archaeology: Auguste Mariette's clearance of the Serapeum in the 1850s, and later Sir Flinders Petrie's campaigns of 1908-1913 mapped large portions of the ancient city and recovered major sculptural finds including the colossal statue of Ramesses II now sheltered in an on-site museum. Mit Rahina itself remained a quiet agricultural village within the modernizing khedivate, and the British military occupation from 1882 onward did not significantly alter its rural character. - 1914 AD – 1922 AD: Sultanate of Egypt (known as "Mit Rahina") Under the short-lived British Protectorate Sultanate established in 1914, Mit Rahina continued as a small rural village in the Giza Governorate while wartime conditions and the post-war 1919 revolution played out far to the north in Cairo. Archaeological work at the site was largely interrupted during the First World War. - 1922 AD – 1953 AD: Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Mit Rahina") Under nominally independent monarchical Egypt, the Memphis ruins were placed under formal antiquities protection and Mit Rahina developed as a peri-urban village in the southern outskirts of Greater Cairo. Population gradually rose with national demographic growth, while the surviving Memphis site was increasingly framed as a heritage landscape rather than a quarry. - 1953 AD – present: Arab Republic of Egypt (known as "Mit Rahina") Since the 1952 revolution Mit Rahina has grown rapidly with the expansion of Greater Cairo, reaching a combined population of roughly 30,000 across the village and its satellite hamlets. In 1979 'Memphis and its Necropolis – the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur' was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and an open-air archaeological park centered on the recumbent colossus of Ramesses II and the alabaster sphinx draws steady domestic and international tourism. Continuous habitation on the ancient mound — directly atop the world's first imperial capital — has persisted unbroken from the pharaonic period to the present. ## Landmarks - City Walls (built 3100 BC) The massive white limestone walls that surrounded early Memphis gave the city its first name, Ineb-hedj ('White Walls'). These defensive structures protected the strategic capital at the junction of Upper and Lower Egypt. - Temple of Ptah (built 3000 BC) The Great Temple of Ptah, called Hut-ka-Ptah ('Enclosure of the ka of Ptah') in Egyptian, was the city's central religious structure. Expanded by numerous pharaohs over 3,000 years, it was so renowned that the Greek form of its name (Aigyptos) became the source of the name 'Egypt' itself. - Step Pyramid of Djoser (built 2670 BC) Built around 2670 BCE by the architect Imhotep for the Third Dynasty king Djoser in the western Memphite necropolis at Saqqara, the Step Pyramid is the earliest monumental stone structure in the world and the prototype of all later Egyptian pyramids. Its enclosed funerary complex of stone replicas of perishable cult architecture transformed royal mortuary tradition and inaugurated the Old Kingdom pyramid age. - Kom el-Qal'a (built 2500 BC) The central mound of ancient Memphis, containing architectural remains from multiple periods. This area has yielded numerous artifacts and has been the focus of archaeological exploration since the 19th century. - Pyramid of Unas (built 2350 BC) The pyramid of Unas, last king of the Fifth Dynasty, stands in the Saqqara necropolis 3 km west of Memphis and contains the earliest known inscription of the Pyramid Texts on its internal chamber walls. The texts are the oldest body of religious literature from ancient Egypt and a foundational source for understanding pharaonic theology. - Temple of Apis (built 1400 BC) This complex housed the living Apis bull, believed to be the incarnation of Ptah. When an Apis bull died, it was mummified and buried in the Serapeum at Saqqara. The cult continued through Greek and Roman periods, evolving into the syncretic deity Serapis. - Serapeum of Saqqara (built 1300 BC) A vast subterranean gallery system in the Saqqara necropolis where the sacred Apis bulls of Memphis's Temple of Apis were interred in monumental granite sarcophagi from the New Kingdom through the Ptolemaic period. Inaugurated by Ramesses II's son Khaemwaset and rediscovered by Auguste Mariette in 1851, the Serapeum was a major centre of state cult and pilgrimage. - Colossal Statue of Ramesses II (built 1279 BC) A massive limestone statue of Ramesses II that once stood 13 meters tall at the entrance to the Temple of Ptah. Now laying on its back in a purpose-built museum at the site, this is one of the largest and best-preserved statues from ancient Egypt. - Temple of Hathor (built 1200 BC) A temple dedicated to the cow-headed goddess Hathor, built in the southern part of Memphis. Although less well-preserved than the Temple of Ptah, it served as an important cult center for the worship of this popular deity. - Palace of Apries (built 589 BC) Built by Pharaoh Apries of the 26th Dynasty, this massive mud-brick palace complex featured a large platform still visible today. Its ruins were excavated by Sir Flinders Petrie in the early 20th century. - Monastery of Saint Jeremiah (built 440 AD) A major Coptic monastic complex founded in the fifth century beside the causeway of the pyramid of Unas at Saqqara, in the shadow of the ancient royal necropolis. With churches, refectories and workshops decorated in painted plaster, it was one of the leading Coptic communities of the Memphite region before its abandonment around the tenth century. ## Population History - 3100 BC: 5,000 - 2686 BC: 20,000 - 2500 BC: 40,000 - 1500 BC: 30,000 - 750 BC: 20,000 - 300 BC: 15,000 - 0 AD: 10,000 - 300 AD: 5,000 - 600 AD: 1,000 - 640 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1800 AD: 1,000 - 1900 AD: 3,000 - 1950 AD: 10,000 - 2020 AD: 30,000 --- # Shedet, Egypt URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/egypt/shedet Founded: 4000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 29.3083, 30.8444 ## Description Shedet — later renamed Crocodilopolis by the Greeks, Arsinoë under the Ptolemies, and known today as Medinet el-Faiyum — is a continuously inhabited city at the centre of the Faiyum Oasis depression in middle Egypt. From its prehistoric foundations around 4000 BCE the settlement served as the principal cult centre of the crocodile god Sobek, expanding into a major royal city under the Middle Kingdom pharaohs Senusret II, Senusret III, and Amenemhat III who reshaped the Faiyum through monumental hydraulic works. Under the Ptolemies it was refounded as Arsinoë in honour of Queen Arsinoë II and became one of Hellenistic Egypt's largest provincial cities; Roman Arsinoë remained capital of the Arsinoite nome and is celebrated for the bilingual Greek and demotic papyri recovered from its rubbish mounds. After the Arab conquest of 641-642 the urban centre contracted but never disappeared, persisting as Madinat al-Faiyum, the Arabic-period regional capital of the oasis, through successive Rashidun, Umayyad, Abbasid, Fatimid, Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman administrations. The classical 'Kiman Faris' (Mounds of the Horseman) lie within and immediately around modern Faiyum, and the city today has a population of roughly 315,000, making it Egypt's largest oasis city and the political seat of Faiyum Governorate. ## Historical Rulers - 4000 BC – 3100 BC: Predynastic Egypt During the Predynastic period Shedet emerged as a settlement in the fertile Faiyum depression, where local communities developed agriculture supported by the lake and the Hawara Nile branch. Early religious practice already centered on the crocodile deity Sobek, whose cult would define the city's identity for millennia. - 3100 BC – 2686 BC: Early Dynastic Egypt Following the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under Menes around 3100 BCE, Shedet was incorporated into the centralized pharaonic state as a provincial cult town of Sobek. Its modest scale belied the religious importance of the crocodile cult that would later attract major Middle Kingdom royal patronage. - 2686 BC – 2181 BC: Old Kingdom of Egypt Under the centralized rule of the Old Kingdom pharaohs, Shedet remained a provincial cult center within the unified Egyptian state. Royal administration extended into the Faiyum, integrating local agriculture and the worship of Sobek into the broader religious economy of the kingdom. - 2181 BC – 2055 BC: First Intermediate Period With the collapse of central authority after the Old Kingdom, Egypt fragmented into competing regional powers and Shedet continued as a local cult town. The city's role in this period is poorly documented, but it preserved its religious institutions through the political instability. - 2055 BC – 1650 BC: Middle Kingdom of Egypt The Middle Kingdom, especially under the Twelfth Dynasty pharaohs Senusret II, Senusret III, and Amenemhat III, transformed the Faiyum through major hydraulic works and royal patronage. Shedet became a leading royal and religious center, with extensive building activity devoted to Sobek and close ties to the pharaohs' pyramid complexes nearby. - 1650 BC – 1550 BC: Second Intermediate Period During the political fragmentation caused by Hyksos rule in the Delta, the Faiyum and Shedet fell under shifting authorities while maintaining local religious life. Building activity slowed, but the cult of Sobek persisted through these uncertain decades. - 1550 BC – 1069 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt Under the reunified New Kingdom, Shedet regained importance as a regional cult center, with successive pharaohs contributing to the temple complex of Sobek. The Faiyum's agricultural wealth made the city a steady contributor to the imperial economy. - 1069 BC – 664 BC: Third Intermediate Period As Egypt fragmented into Libyan and Nubian-led dynasties, Shedet continued as a provincial religious town under shifting authorities. Its temples remained active but received less royal investment than during the New Kingdom peak. - 664 BC – 332 BC: Late Period of Egypt Under the Saite, Persian, and short-lived native dynasties of the Late Period, Shedet retained its identity as a Sobek cult center. The city experienced periodic restoration of its temples as successive rulers sought legitimacy through Egyptian religious tradition. - 332 BC – 30 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Crocodilopolis") After Alexander's conquest, the Ptolemies developed the Faiyum extensively and refounded the city as Arsinoë in honor of Queen Arsinoë II, though Greek inhabitants commonly called it Crocodilopolis after its sacred crocodiles. Greek settlers, papyrus archives, and Hellenized administration transformed the city into a major economic and cultural hub of Ptolemaic Egypt. - 30 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Arsinoë") Following Octavian's victory over Antony and Cleopatra at Actium in 31 BCE, Egypt was annexed in 30 BCE as a Roman province, and Shedet passed under late Republican administration alongside the rest of Aegyptus for the three years preceding the Augustan Principate. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Arsinoë") After Octavian's annexation of Egypt in 30 BCE, Arsinoë became the capital of the Arsinoite nome under Roman provincial administration. The city continued to flourish as an agricultural and administrative center, with bilingual Greek and demotic papyri documenting its civic and economic life. - 395 AD – 640 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Arsinoë") Following the division of the Roman Empire, Arsinoë came under Eastern Roman rule and gradually Christianized, with the cult of Sobek declining as churches and monastic communities took root in the Faiyum. The city remained a regional center but suffered from the broader economic strain affecting late Byzantine Egypt. - 640 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Madinat al-Faiyum") After Amr ibn al-As completed the conquest of Egypt in 641-642 the classical city was renamed Madinat al-Faiyum and incorporated into the new Islamic provincial system. The cult of Sobek was extinguished and the great pagan temple complex began to be dismantled or buried beneath rising street levels, but the city itself continued unbroken as the regional capital of the oasis. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Madinat al-Faiyum") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, Madinat al-Faiyum continued as the regional capital of the oasis, governed from the new Egyptian capital at Fustat. Arabic gradually replaced Coptic as the administrative language during this period. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Madinat al-Faiyum") Under Abbasid rule and the successive Tulunid and Ikhshidid dynasties governing Egypt from Fustat, Madinat al-Faiyum remained the principal city of the oasis. The Bahr Yusuf canal system continued to support extensive agriculture in the depression. - 969 AD – 1171 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Madinat al-Faiyum") Under the Fatimids of Cairo, Madinat al-Faiyum became one of the principal provincial cities of the new caliphal capital's hinterland, with significant sugar refining and textile production. The Bahr Yusuf canal was repeatedly renewed and the city housed Fatimid governors administering the surrounding rural districts. - 1171 AD – 1250 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Madinat al-Faiyum") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty integrated the Faiyum into the centralized Egyptian state administered from Cairo, with Madinat al-Faiyum continuing as the oasis capital. The agricultural economy expanded further under Ayyubid hydraulic engineering investments. - 1250 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Madinat al-Faiyum") Under the Bahri and Burji Mamluks, Madinat al-Faiyum remained the principal city of the oasis and a major centre of sugar refining, textiles, and Nile-fed agriculture. The Mamluk period brought new mosques, madrasas, and renovated canal works to the city. - 1517 AD – 1805 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Madinat al-Faiyum") Following Selim I's conquest of Mamluk Egypt in 1517, Madinat al-Faiyum became the seat of the Faiyum Sanjak within the Ottoman eyalet of Egypt. The city contracted during the early Ottoman period and European travellers from the late eighteenth century onward reported a substantial walled city built directly on the ancient mounds. - 1805 AD – 1914 AD: Khedivate of Egypt (known as "Faiyum") Under Muhammad Ali Pasha and his successors the Faiyum agricultural economy was systematically reorganized, with new irrigation works and cash-crop cultivation greatly expanding the population. The city grew rapidly as the administrative and agricultural hub of the oasis, served from the late 19th century by a branch of the Egyptian State Railways, and Bernard Grenfell and Arthur Hunt excavated the ancient Kiman Faris mounds in 1899-1900 under the British military occupation that began in 1882. - 1914 AD – 1922 AD: Sultanate of Egypt (known as "Faiyum") Under the short-lived British Protectorate Sultanate, Faiyum continued as the principal city of its oasis governorate while wartime conditions and the 1919 Egyptian Revolution affected administration. Archaeological work at the Kiman Faris mounds was largely interrupted during the First World War. - 1922 AD – 1953 AD: Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Faiyum") Under the independent Kingdom of Egypt Faiyum continued to grow as the administrative seat of its eponymous Mudiriyya, with modern construction beginning to encroach on the classical Kiman Faris archaeological zone. The University of Michigan and other foreign missions continued papyrus excavations in the oasis through the inter-war period. - 1953 AD – present: Arab Republic of Egypt (known as "Faiyum") Since the 1952 revolution Faiyum has expanded into Egypt's largest oasis city and the political seat of Faiyum Governorate, with a population of roughly 315,000 in the early 2020s. Modern construction has heavily eroded the classical Kiman Faris archaeological zone, although protected pockets and ongoing rescue excavations continue to recover monumental architecture, papyri and Faiyum mummy portraits that document the city's three-millennia transition from Shedet through Arsinoë to modern Madinat al-Faiyum. ## Landmarks - Temple of Sobek (built 1900 BC) Built extensively during the reign of Amenemhat III, expanded by later pharaohs, and integrated into Hellenistic religious practices. - Sacred Lake of Sobek (built 1900 BC) A revered ritual site maintained from the Middle Kingdom through the Roman era, drawing pilgrims and tourists. ## Population History - 4000 BC: 500 - 2000 BC: 10,000 - 300 BC: 20,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 642 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 12,000 - 1500 AD: 8,000 - 1800 AD: 15,000 - 1900 AD: 30,000 - 1950 AD: 80,000 - 2020 AD: 315,000 --- # Aksum, Ethiopia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/ethiopia/aksum Founded: 100 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 14.1331, 38.716 ## Description Aksum was the capital of the Aksumite Kingdom, one of the great civilizations of the ancient world — listed by the 3rd-century prophet Mani alongside Rome, Persia, and China as one of the four great powers of his age. Under King Ezana around 330 CE the kingdom adopted Christianity, making Ethiopia one of the earliest officially Christian states in history. Aksum is renowned for its monumental granite stelae (obelisks) — King Ezana's stele, fallen in the 4th century, was the largest single piece of stone ever quarried and erected by humans (~33 m, ~520 tons). The Cathedral of Our Lady Mary of Zion, founded in the 4th century and rebuilt multiple times, is said in Ethiopian tradition to house the Ark of the Covenant. The political capital function ended around 960 CE with the Zagwe dynasty's relocation south to Lalibela, but Aksum remained the spiritual center of Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity through the Zagwe, Solomonic, Gondar, and modern eras, and is continuously inhabited today as Tigray's religious heart (~78,000 inhabitants). Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980; the Tigray War of 2020-2022 raised serious concerns about damage to the city and its heritage. ## Historical Rulers - 100 AD – 330 AD: Aksumite Kingdom Early Aksumite kingdom rises in the northern Ethiopian highlands, controlling Red Sea trade between the Roman world, Arabia, and India. Aksum mints its own coinage in gold, silver, and bronze — one of the few ancient powers to do so — and emerges as a major trading state. - 330 AD – 960 AD: Aksumite Kingdom King Ezana converts to Christianity around 330 CE, making Aksum one of the earliest Christian states. The kingdom reaches its peak in the 4th-6th centuries, conquering parts of South Arabia and trading with Byzantium, India, and Sri Lanka. From the 7th century onward, the rise of Arab maritime power, climate change, and pressure from Beja and Agaw groups erode Aksumite power; the capital function ends around 960 CE. - 960 AD – 1270 AD: Zagwe Dynasty The Zagwe dynasty rules from Lalibela further south, ending Aksum's role as political capital. Aksum nevertheless remains the spiritual center of Ethiopian Christianity, and emperors continue to be crowned there by tradition. - 1270 AD – 1632 AD: Solomonic Dynasty of Ethiopia The Solomonic dynasty restores a claimed Aksumite-Solomonic royal line. The Ethiopian court is migratory, moving with the emperor across the highlands, but Aksum remains the sacred coronation city and home of the Cathedral of Our Lady Mary of Zion. - 1632 AD – 1769 AD: Ethiopian Empire Emperor Fasilides establishes Gondar as a fixed imperial capital. Aksum continues as the religious heart of Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, drawing pilgrims and emperors for major coronations and festivals. - 1769 AD – 1974 AD: Ethiopian Empire Through the fragmented Era of Princes (Zemene Mesafint), the 19th-century reunification under Tewodros II, Yohannes IV, and Menelik II, and the reign of Haile Selassie, Aksum remains the ceremonial-religious center of the empire. In 1937 Italian occupation forces remove one of the stelae to Rome; it is returned to Aksum in 2005. - 1974 AD – 1991 AD: Ethiopian Empire The Marxist-Leninist Derg regime overthrows Haile Selassie and rules Ethiopia. Aksum lies in the contested Tigray region during the long civil war between the Derg and the Tigray People's Liberation Front and allied groups. - 1991 AD – present: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia After the Derg's fall, Ethiopia is reorganized as a federal republic. Aksum becomes a major heritage and pilgrimage destination within Tigray Region. The Tigray War of 2020-2022 between federal forces and Tigrayan authorities causes significant violence in and around Aksum, raising international concern over civilian casualties and heritage damage at the UNESCO site. ## Landmarks - Tomb of King Bazen (built 1 AD) A rock-hewn pre-Christian Aksumite tomb traditionally ascribed to King Bazen, who reigned around the turn of the 1st century CE. One of the earliest surviving monumental funerary structures of the Aksumite period. - Stelae of Aksum (built 300 AD) A field of monumental granite obelisks erected as royal funerary markers in the 3rd-4th centuries CE. King Ezana's stele — the largest, which fell in antiquity — is the largest single piece of stone ever quarried and erected by humans, standing roughly 33 m tall and weighing around 520 tons. The Obelisk of Aksum, looted by Italian forces in 1937, was returned and re-erected in 2008. - Cathedral of Our Lady Mary of Zion (built 340 AD) Founded by King Ezana in the 4th century after the conversion of Aksum to Christianity, rebuilt by Fasilides in the 17th century and again by Haile Selassie in the 20th. According to Ethiopian Orthodox tradition the church compound houses the Ark of the Covenant, brought to Aksum by Menelik I; access is restricted to a single guardian monk. - Ezana Stone (built 350 AD) A 4th-century granite stele inscribed in three scripts — Greek, Sabaean, and Ge'ez — recording King Ezana's military campaigns and, in its later inscriptions, his conversion to Christianity. A key primary source for the religious transformation of the Aksumite kingdom. - Queen of Sheba's Bath (built 400 AD) A large rock-cut reservoir on the outskirts of Aksum, dating to the Aksumite period and still used as a water source. Local tradition links it to the Queen of Sheba; it remains the focus of the Timkat (Epiphany) celebrations each year. - Dungur Palace (built 500 AD) Remains of a large Aksumite-era stone mansion or palace complex on the western edge of the city, popularly known as the Queen of Sheba's Palace though dating to the 6th century CE — many centuries after her traditional reign. Excavated in the 1960s, it illustrates Aksumite elite architecture with monumental stairways and dozens of rooms. ## Population History - 100 AD: 5,000 - 350 AD: 20,000 - 600 AD: 50,000 - 800 AD: 30,000 - 960 AD: 10,000 - 1200 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 5,000 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 1950 AD: 7,000 - 2000 AD: 45,000 - 2020 AD: 78,000 --- # Lalibela, Ethiopia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/ethiopia/lalibela Founded: 1100 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 12.0303, 39.0471 ## Description Lalibela is famous for its remarkable rock-hewn churches, built during the Zagwe Dynasty as a 'New Jerusalem.' It remains a significant religious pilgrimage site and a living city in Ethiopia today. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 AD – 1270 AD: Zagwe Dynasty (known as "*Roha") Under the Zagwe Dynasty, the settlement then known as Roha rose to prominence as a religious and royal center. King Lalibela commissioned the famous rock-hewn churches here, intending the site to serve as a 'New Jerusalem' for Ethiopian Christian pilgrimage. - 1270 AD – 1974 AD: Solomonic Dynasty After the Zagwe were overthrown by the Solomonic line in 1270, the city remained an important Ethiopian Orthodox pilgrimage destination and was renamed in honor of King Lalibela. It retained its religious significance through centuries of Solomonic and imperial rule, including the modern Ethiopian Empire that lasted until 1974. - 1974 AD – present: Modern Ethiopia Following the fall of the Ethiopian Empire in 1974, Lalibela became part of the modern Ethiopian state. The rock-hewn churches were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978, and the town continues to function as both a living community and a major religious pilgrimage destination. ## Landmarks - Bet Medhane Alem (built 1180 AD) A massive monolithic church resembling a classical building, carved completely from a single volcanic rock. It is believed to be the largest rock-hewn church in the world, showcasing the architectural and spiritual ambitions of King Lalibela. - Bet Giyorgis (built 1200 AD) A masterpiece of medieval Ethiopian architecture, this cruciform church is carved entirely out of a single rock, standing as a testament to the extraordinary craftsmanship of the Zagwe period. Its unique cross-shaped design and intricate details make it the most famous of Lalibela's churches. ## Population History - 1200 AD: 10,000 - 1500 AD: 15,000 - 2020 AD: 50,000 --- # Marseille, France URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/france/marseille Founded: 600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 43.2965, 5.3698 ## Description Marseille is the oldest city in France, founded around 600 BCE by Phocaean Greek refugees from Asia Minor who had fled Persian expansion and established the trading colony of Massalia on a natural harbor of the Mediterranean coast. The Greek city flourished as a major emporium and became a principal channel for the transmission of Hellenic culture to inland Gaul before Julius Caesar besieged and conquered it in 49 BCE for siding with Pompey. Renamed Massilia under Roman rule, the port survived the collapse of the Western Empire better than most Gallic cities and passed successively through Visigothic, Frankish, Carolingian, and Provençal hands, enjoying spells of medieval communal autonomy before being attached to France in 1481. Marseille suffered the catastrophic Great Plague of 1720, gave its name to La Marseillaise after its volunteers carried the anthem to Paris in 1792, and grew into France's premier 19th-century colonial port before the Nazis demolished much of its old city in 1943. Postwar North African immigration, particularly after Algerian independence in 1962, reshaped Marseille into the multicultural Mediterranean metropolis that today stands as France's second-largest city with a metropolitan population approaching two million. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 49 BC: Phocaean Greek Colony (known as "Massalia") Greek colonists from Phocaea in Ionian Asia Minor, fleeing Persian expansion, founded Massalia around 600 BCE on a sheltered calanque of the Mediterranean coast. The colony developed into one of the great Greek trading ports of the western Mediterranean, minting its own coinage, founding daughter colonies along the Provençal and Iberian coasts, and serving as the principal conduit through which Hellenic culture, viticulture, and the Greek alphabet reached inland Celtic Gaul. Massalia allied with the Roman Republic from around 390 BCE and retained extensive trade autonomy for over five centuries. - 49 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Massilia") Massalia backed Pompey in the Roman civil war and was besieged and captured by Julius Caesar's forces in 49 BCE, after which it lost its independent fleet and most of its territorial possessions while retaining nominal civic privileges. The port persisted as a Gallo-Roman city under the late Republic until the Augustan Principate. - 27 BC – 476 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Massilia") Under the Empire from the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE Massilia remained an important Mediterranean commercial port and Gallo-Roman bishopric. The city never suffered the catastrophic urban collapse that befell many inland Gallic centres, persisting through the late Empire to the Western collapse of 476. - 476 AD – 537 AD: Visigothic and Ostrogothic Kingdoms (known as "Massilia") After the deposition of the last Western emperor in 476 the city came under Visigothic control and then passed to the Ostrogothic kingdom of Theoderic the Great in the early 6th century. The port continued to function within the Germanic successor states and maintained its episcopal seat and Mediterranean trading links during a period when most of Gaul was contracting economically. - 537 AD – 751 AD: Frankish Merovingian Kingdom (known as "Massilia") The Ostrogoths ceded Provence to the Frankish Merovingians around 537, bringing Marseille under Frankish rule. Under the Merovingians the port remained an active commercial gateway to the eastern Mediterranean and the early monastic foundation of Saint Victor, established around 415 by John Cassian, grew into one of the most influential abbeys of post-Roman Gaul. - 751 AD – 855 AD: Carolingian Empire Pippin the Short's deposition of the last Merovingian in 751 brought the city into the Carolingian realm, and under Charlemagne and his successors Marseille functioned as a regional Provençal port. Saracen raids and the general contraction of Mediterranean commerce during the 8th and 9th centuries diminished the city's reach, though its harbor and monastic communities endured. - 855 AD – 1246 AD: Kingdom of Provence and Burgundy After the Treaty of Verdun's partitions, Marseille passed to the Kingdom of Provence created in 855 and was subsequently held by the kings of Lower Burgundy and Arles. From the late 12th century the city's leading families and consuls increasingly governed it as a semi-independent commune, expanding maritime trade with the Crusader states and Italian republics until Charles I of Anjou subjugated the commune by force. - 1246 AD – 1481 AD: Kingdom of Naples Charles I of Anjou's acquisition of the County of Provence in 1246 brought Marseille under Angevin rule, and the city served as the principal port of an Angevin domain that at various points encompassed southern Italy, Sicily, and parts of the eastern Mediterranean. The port suffered the Black Death of 1348, repeated political revolts, and a devastating sack by Aragonese forces in 1423 before the line of King René ended without heirs. - 1481 AD – 1940 AD: France Charles V of Maine bequeathed his Provençal inheritance to King Louis XI of France in 1481, formally attaching Marseille to the French crown. Under successive Valois and Bourbon kings the port became France's principal Mediterranean naval and commercial gateway, hosted the great galley arsenal of Louis XIV, and suffered the Great Plague of 1720. Marseille embraced the French Revolution and in 1792 a battalion of volunteers gave its name to La Marseillaise, the future national anthem, before suffering through the Napoleonic Wars and British blockade. Under the Restoration, July Monarchy, Second Empire, and Third Republic the city rebounded as France's principal Mediterranean and colonial port, expanding rapidly with steam shipping and the 1869 opening of the Suez Canal. Heavy immigration from Italy, Armenia, and across the Mediterranean reshaped the population through the late 19th and early 20th centuries until the Second World War. - 1940 AD – 1944 AD: Vichy France and German Occupation After the 1940 armistice Marseille initially fell within the Vichy unoccupied zone before German forces moved into southern France in November 1942. In January 1943 the Wehrmacht and French police carried out the Rafle de Marseille, deporting thousands and dynamiting much of the old quarter behind the Vieux Port, destroying roughly half of the historic city before Allied and Free French troops liberated Marseille in August 1944. - 1944 AD – present: France The Provisional Government and the Fourth Republic proclaimed in 1946 oversaw the reconstruction of the demolished old port quarter and the resumption of colonial shipping through Marseille. Under the Fifth Republic from 1958 the city absorbed massive North African immigration, especially following Algerian independence in 1962, and reinvented itself as a multicultural Mediterranean metropolis. The port shifted from colonial passenger traffic to container shipping at Fos-sur-Mer, and the city was designated European Capital of Culture in 2013 with the inauguration of MuCEM as France's second-largest urban agglomeration. ## Landmarks - Vieux Port (built 600 BC) The natural harbor at the heart of Marseille that has been used continuously since the Phocaean Greek foundation around 600 BCE, making it among the oldest active ports in Europe. The Vieux Port served as the city's commercial lifeline through Greek, Roman, medieval, and early modern periods and remains the symbolic and ceremonial center of Marseille even after large-scale freight traffic shifted to the modern docks of La Joliette and Fos-sur-Mer. - Abbey of Saint Victor (built 415 AD) Early Christian monastic complex founded around 415 by John Cassian on a hillside above the southern shore of the Vieux Port, on the site of earlier Greek and Roman necropolises. Saint Victor became one of the most influential abbeys of post-Roman Gaul, was fortified with massive towers in the 11th and 14th centuries, and survives today as one of the oldest continuously religious sites in France. - Château d'If (built 1531 AD) Fortress built between 1524 and 1531 on the small island of If in the Bay of Marseille on the orders of King Francis I to guard the seaward approaches to the port. Later converted into a state prison that held Huguenots and political dissidents, the château achieved literary immortality as the setting of Alexandre Dumas's novel The Count of Monte Cristo and is today a heavily visited museum site. - Fort Saint-Jean (built 1660 AD) Bastioned fortress at the northern entrance of the Vieux Port completed in 1660 under Louis XIV, partly to defend the harbor and partly to overawe a city with a long tradition of revolt against royal authority. It incorporates the medieval Tower of King René of 1453 and the Romanesque Commandery of the Knights Hospitaller, and since 2013 has been linked to MuCEM by a footbridge as part of the cultural redevelopment of the harbor entrance. - Notre-Dame de la Garde (built 1864 AD) Roman Catholic basilica in Romano-Byzantine style consecrated in 1864 on the highest natural point of Marseille, where a chapel and a 16th-century fort had previously stood. Crowned by a gilded statue of the Madonna and Child known affectionately as la Bonne Mère, the basilica is the spiritual and visual emblem of the city and a long-standing object of devotion for Marseille's sailors and fishermen. - Palais Longchamp (built 1869 AD) Monumental Second Empire palace and water tower complex inaugurated in 1869 to celebrate the arrival of the Canal de Marseille that finally brought a reliable supply of Durance water to the chronically thirsty city. Designed by Henri-Jacques Espérandieu, the palace houses the Museum of Fine Arts and the Natural History Museum behind a colonnaded façade flanking a great cascade fountain. - MuCEM (built 2013 AD) Museum of the Civilizations of Europe and the Mediterranean inaugurated in 2013 when Marseille served as European Capital of Culture, designed by architect Rudy Ricciotti at the entrance of the Vieux Port. Its concrete latticework cube linked by footbridge to the historic Fort Saint-Jean has become the defining contemporary landmark of the regenerated harbor front and a flagship of France's Mediterranean cultural policy. ## Population History - 600 BC: 1,000 - 100 BC: 30,000 - 500 AD: 10,000 - 1000 AD: 10,000 - 1300 AD: 25,000 - 1500 AD: 40,000 - 1720 AD: 75,000 - 1800 AD: 110,000 - 1900 AD: 490,000 - 1950 AD: 660,000 - 2000 AD: 800,000 - 2020 AD: 870,000 --- # Paris, France URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/france/paris Founded: 250 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 48.8566, 2.3522 ## Description Paris is the capital of France, founded as a Celtic Parisii oppidum on the Île de la Cité around the 3rd century BCE. Conquered by Rome in 52 BCE, it became the Gallo-Roman town of Lutetia Parisiorum and was renamed Paris in late antiquity. Clovis I made it the Merovingian Frankish capital around 508 CE, and Hugh Capet's accession in 987 re-established it as the seat of the French monarchy. Medieval Paris grew around Gothic monuments like Notre-Dame, suffered English occupation during the Hundred Years War from 1420 to 1436, and flourished under the Bourbons even after Louis XIV moved the court to Versailles in 1682. The French Revolution of 1789 inaugurated successive republics and empires; Haussmann's renovation from 1853 to 1870 reshaped the city into wide boulevards, and the Eiffel Tower of 1889 crowned the Belle Époque. After the German Occupation from 1940 to 1944, Paris emerged under the Fifth Republic as a global cultural, fashion, and artistic capital with a metropolitan population exceeding twelve million. ## Historical Rulers - 250 BC – 52 BC: Parisii Celtic Tribe (known as "*Parisii oppidum") The Parisii, a Gallic Celtic tribe, established an oppidum on the Île de la Cité in the Seine River around the 3rd century BCE. The settlement served as a trading hub controlling river crossings; its exact contemporary Celtic name is unattested and the Latin Lutetia appears only after Roman conquest. - 52 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Lutetia Parisiorum") Julius Caesar's general Labienus defeated the Parisii in 52 BCE during the Gallic Wars, and Rome refounded the settlement as Lutetia Parisiorum on the Left Bank. Initial Roman urbanisation began under the late Republic before the Augustan Principate. - 27 BC – 360 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Lutetia Parisiorum") Under the Empire Lutetia was developed with a forum, baths, amphitheatre, and grid plan as a regional Gallo-Roman centre. The city was the site where Julian was acclaimed emperor by his troops in 360 CE, marking the transition to the city's late antique role under his successors. - 360 AD – 508 AD: Late Roman Gaul Through the late 4th and 5th centuries the city contracted onto the defensible Île de la Cité and was increasingly called Paris after its founding tribe. Roman authority eroded under barbarian pressure and the city passed through Frankish hands; Sainte Geneviève became its patroness during this transition. - 508 AD – 751 AD: Merovingian Frankish Kingdom Clovis I, first king of the Franks, made Paris his capital around 508 CE after defeating the Visigoths and consolidating Frankish power in northern Gaul. Under the Merovingians the city housed royal residences and major religious foundations including Saint-Germain-des-Prés. - 751 AD – 987 AD: Carolingian Empire After Pippin the Short founded the Carolingian dynasty in 751 and Charlemagne shifted the imperial center to Aachen, Paris became a secondary regional seat. It endured devastating Viking sieges in 845 and 885 to 886, the latter successfully defended by Count Odo, which raised the prestige of the local Robertian dynasty. - 987 AD – 1328 AD: France Hugh Capet's accession in 987 made Paris the permanent seat of the French crown. Philip II Augustus built the original Louvre fortress in 1190 and walled the city, while construction of Notre-Dame Cathedral began in 1163 and Louis IX's Sainte-Chapelle was consecrated in 1248; the University of Paris emerged as a leading center of scholasticism. - 1328 AD – 1589 AD: Valois Kingdom of France Under the Valois dynasty Paris suffered the Black Death of 1348 and the upheavals of the Hundred Years War, falling under English Lancastrian occupation from 1420 until its recovery by Charles VII in 1436. The Renaissance kings reshaped the Louvre into a royal palace and the Wars of Religion culminated in the Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre of 1572. - 1589 AD – 1792 AD: France Henry IV inaugurated the Bourbon era in 1589 and rebuilt the city with the Place des Vosges, Pont Neuf, and other Renaissance projects. Louis XIV moved the royal court to Versailles in 1682, yet Paris remained the administrative, intellectual, and commercial heart of the kingdom through the Enlightenment until the Revolution. - 1792 AD – 1815 AD: France The storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789 launched a revolutionary era centered on Paris, which became capital of the First Republic in 1792. Napoleon Bonaparte declared the First Empire in 1804 and embellished the city with the Arc de Triomphe project, the Madeleine, and major civic works before his final defeat at Waterloo in 1815. - 1815 AD – 1848 AD: France The Bourbon Restoration under Louis XVIII and Charles X was overturned by the July Revolution of 1830, which installed Louis-Philippe as constitutional monarch. Paris industrialized rapidly, the Arc de Triomphe was completed in 1836, and tensions over suffrage and labor culminated in the February Revolution of 1848. - 1848 AD – 1870 AD: France After the brief Second Republic, Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte's 1851 coup founded the Second Empire as Napoleon III. From 1853 to 1870 Prefect Baron Haussmann executed a comprehensive renovation cutting wide boulevards, building modern sewers and parks, and giving Paris its enduring 19th-century aspect; the regime fell with French defeat at Sedan in 1870. - 1870 AD – 1940 AD: France Following the Prussian siege and the Paris Commune of 1871, the Third Republic governed France from Paris for seventy years. The city hosted the 1889 Universal Exposition crowned by the Eiffel Tower, became the global capital of the Belle Époque arts, and endured German bombardment during the First World War. - 1940 AD – 1944 AD: Vichy France Wehrmacht forces entered Paris on 14 June 1940 and the city remained under German occupation while the collaborationist Vichy regime nominally administered the unoccupied zone. Persecution and deportation of Jews accelerated after 1942; Free French and Allied forces liberated the capital in late August 1944 with Hitler's destruction order disobeyed. - 1944 AD – 1958 AD: France Charles de Gaulle's Provisional Government restored French sovereignty from Paris and the Fourth Republic was proclaimed in 1946. The capital led postwar reconstruction and European integration as a founding seat of organizations preceding the European Communities, until the Algerian crisis brought down the regime. - 1958 AD – present: France De Gaulle's 1958 constitution established the Fifth Republic with Paris as its political capital. The city has since seen the May 1968 uprising, the grands projets of presidents Pompidou through Mitterrand, and continued growth as a global metropolis hosting UNESCO, the OECD, and major international cultural institutions. ## Landmarks - Notre-Dame de Paris (built 1163 AD) Gothic cathedral on the Île de la Cité whose construction began under Bishop Maurice de Sully in 1163 and was largely complete by 1345. A masterpiece of French Gothic architecture famed for its flying buttresses, rose windows, and twin western towers, it was severely damaged in the April 2019 fire and is undergoing extensive restoration. - The Louvre (built 1190 AD) Originally a fortress built by Philip II Augustus around 1190 to guard the western approaches of Paris, the Louvre was transformed into a royal palace during the 14th to 17th centuries. After the monarchy departed for Versailles it became the public Musée du Louvre in 1793 and is today one of the world's largest and most visited art museums. - Sainte-Chapelle (built 1248 AD) Royal palatine chapel within the medieval Palais de la Cité, consecrated in 1248 under Louis IX to house the Crown of Thorns and other Passion relics. Its upper chapel is celebrated for some 600 square meters of 13th-century stained glass forming one of the most complete Rayonnant Gothic ensembles in the world. - Arc de Triomphe (built 1836 AD) Monumental triumphal arch at the western end of the Champs-Élysées, commissioned by Napoleon in 1806 to honor the Grande Armée and completed under Louis-Philippe in 1836. It anchors the Place Charles de Gaulle and the Axe Historique and shelters the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from the First World War. - Palais Garnier (built 1875 AD) Beaux-Arts opera house designed by Charles Garnier and inaugurated in 1875 as a centerpiece of Haussmann's renovation. Its lavish marble grand staircase, gilded auditorium, and Chagall ceiling have made it an icon of Second Empire architecture and the principal home of the Paris Opera for over a century. - Eiffel Tower (built 1889 AD) Wrought-iron lattice tower built by Gustave Eiffel's engineering firm as the entrance arch of the 1889 Exposition Universelle marking the centenary of the French Revolution. At 330 meters with its antennas it was the world's tallest structure until 1930 and remains the defining symbol of Paris and a globally recognized icon. - Sacré-Cœur Basilica (built 1914 AD) Roman Catholic basilica of Romano-Byzantine style perched on the summit of Montmartre, structurally completed in 1914 after construction began in 1875 as a national vow following the Franco-Prussian War and the Commune. Its travertine domes dominate the northern Paris skyline and the church was formally consecrated in 1919. ## Population History - 250 BC: 1,000 - 52 BC: 3,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 300 AD: 20,000 - 500 AD: 15,000 - 800 AD: 25,000 - 1000 AD: 30,000 - 1200 AD: 110,000 - 1300 AD: 200,000 - 1400 AD: 150,000 - 1600 AD: 300,000 - 1700 AD: 510,000 - 1800 AD: 550,000 - 1850 AD: 1,050,000 - 1900 AD: 2,700,000 - 1950 AD: 2,850,000 - 2000 AD: 2,150,000 - 2020 AD: 2,150,000 --- # Berlin, Germany URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/germany/berlin Founded: 1237 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 52.52, 13.405 ## Description Berlin originated around 1237 as the twin merchant towns of Cölln and Berlin on opposite banks of the Spree River, formally merged in 1432. Under the Hohenzollerns it grew from a Brandenburg residence into the capital of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1701, flourishing as a center of Enlightenment under Frederick the Great and gaining the Humboldt University in 1810. Bismarck made it the capital of the unified German Empire in 1871, after which it became the cultural powerhouse of the Weimar Republic and then the seat of Nazi Germany, suffering catastrophic destruction in the Battle of Berlin in 1945. Divided between Allied and Soviet sectors and split physically by the Berlin Wall from 1961 to 1989, the city was reunified in 1990 and restored as the capital of Germany in 1991. Today Berlin is a global cultural hub of roughly 3.7 million inhabitants, known for its museums, alternative arts scene, and rich layering of medieval, Prussian, imperial, and Cold War heritage. ## Historical Rulers - 1237 AD – 1417 AD: Margraviate of Brandenburg under the Ascanians and Wittelsbachs The twin towns of Cölln and Berlin emerged on opposite banks of the Spree as Slavic-Germanic trading settlements within the Margraviate of Brandenburg, first documented in chronicles in 1237 and 1244 respectively. Under the Ascanian and later Wittelsbach margraves the towns prospered through Baltic and Hanseatic trade, joining the Hanseatic League in the 14th century. The two towns operated jointly from the late 13th century and were formally united into a single municipality in 1432. - 1417 AD – 1701 AD: German Empire When Sigismund granted the Margraviate to Frederick of Hohenzollern in 1417, Berlin became the seat of a dynasty that would rule for the next five centuries. The Hohenzollerns made Berlin their residence in the 15th century and gradually subordinated the burghers to the electoral court. The Thirty Years War devastated the population, but the Great Elector Frederick William rebuilt the city in the later 17th century, fortifying it and welcoming Huguenot refugees who transformed its economy and culture. - 1701 AD – 1871 AD: German Empire Elector Frederick III crowned himself King in Prussia in 1701, and Berlin became the de facto capital of the new kingdom. Under Frederick the Great it grew into an Enlightenment court drawing thinkers from across Europe, and despite Napoleonic occupation from 1806 to 1808 it rebounded with the Prussian reforms and the founding of the Humboldt University in 1810. Through the 19th century Berlin industrialized rapidly, its population exploding alongside railways, banks, and factories that made it the dominant urban node of the German Confederation. - 1871 AD – 1918 AD: German Empire With the proclamation of the German Empire under Wilhelm I and Chancellor Bismarck in 1871, Berlin became the imperial capital and one of the great European metropolises. Ringed by new boulevards, museums, and tenements, it housed government, court, military command, and a booming industrial workforce. The empire collapsed in November 1918 amid military defeat and revolution, ending the Hohenzollern monarchy. - 1918 AD – 1933 AD: Weimar Republic Berlin served as the capital of the Weimar Republic and became one of the most culturally vibrant cities of the interwar period, a center of Expressionism, Bauhaus, cabaret, cinema, and avant-garde science. Severe political instability, hyperinflation, and the Great Depression undermined the republic, and Berlin was the stage for repeated street battles between communists, social democrats, and the rising Nazi movement. - 1933 AD – 1945 AD: Nazi Germany After Hitler's appointment as chancellor in 1933 Berlin became the capital of the Third Reich and showcased itself to the world during the 1936 Olympic Games even as Jewish residents were persecuted and ultimately deported to extermination camps. Allied bombing from 1940 onward reduced large parts of the city to rubble, and the Battle of Berlin in April and May 1945 ended in Soviet capture and the suicide of Hitler in his bunker. - 1945 AD – 1949 AD: Allied Occupation of Japan Following Germany's unconditional surrender, Berlin was divided into American, British, French, and Soviet sectors administered jointly by the Allied Kommandatura. Tensions between the Western powers and the Soviet Union escalated rapidly, culminating in the Soviet blockade of the western sectors in 1948 and 1949 and the Anglo-American airlift that sustained the city until the blockade was lifted. - 1949 AD – 1990 AD: Divided Berlin With the founding of the Federal Republic and the German Democratic Republic in 1949, West Berlin became a Western enclave deep in East German territory while East Berlin served as the capital of the GDR. The Berlin Wall, erected by the GDR in 1961, hardened the division for 28 years until popular pressure forced its opening on 9 November 1989. The two halves were politically and economically reunited on 3 October 1990. - 1990 AD – present: German Empire Reunified Berlin was confirmed as the capital of the Federal Republic in 1991, and the federal government completed its move from Bonn by 1999. The decades since have seen vast reconstruction around Potsdamer Platz, the restoration of the Reichstag, and the city's emergence as a global hub for culture, technology startups, and creative industries with a metropolitan population of roughly six million. ## Landmarks - Brandenburg Gate (built 1791 AD) Commissioned by Frederick William II and designed by Carl Gotthard Langhans, the Brandenburg Gate is a Neoclassical triumphal arch crowned by the Quadriga. It has served as a symbol of Prussian, German, and reunified national identity, standing for decades within the death strip of the Berlin Wall before becoming the iconic backdrop of the 1989 reopening. - Altes Museum and Museum Island (built 1830 AD) Karl Friedrich Schinkel's Altes Museum, opened in 1830, was the first of five great museums built on Spreeinsel in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The ensemble — now collectively a UNESCO World Heritage Site — houses Prussian and later German national collections of antiquities, Egyptian, Byzantine, and 19th-century European art. - Reichstag (built 1894 AD) Designed by Paul Wallot in a heavy neo-Renaissance style, the Reichstag was completed in 1894 to house the parliament of the German Empire. Gutted by fire in 1933 and shelled in 1945, it stood as a ruin through the Cold War and was rebuilt by Norman Foster with its now-iconic glass dome, reopening in 1999 as the seat of the Bundestag. - Berlin Cathedral (built 1905 AD) The Neo-Renaissance Berliner Dom on Museum Island was completed in 1905 as the principal Protestant court church of the Hohenzollerns, replacing an earlier baroque cathedral on the same site. Severely damaged in World War II, it was reconstructed in the late 20th century and remains one of the largest Protestant churches in Germany. - Berlin Wall (built 1961 AD) Erected by the GDR on 13 August 1961 to halt the flight of citizens to the West, the Berlin Wall ultimately stretched about 155 kilometers around West Berlin with watchtowers, a death strip, and anti-vehicle ditches. It became the defining global symbol of the Cold War before its opening on 9 November 1989; surviving fragments, notably the East Side Gallery, remain among the city's most visited sites. - Fernsehturm (built 1969 AD) Built by the GDR between 1965 and 1969 on Alexanderplatz, the 368-meter Fernsehturm is the tallest structure in Germany and was conceived as a showcase of socialist modernity visible across the divided city. Its spherical observation deck and revolving restaurant remain enduring icons of the Berlin skyline. - Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (built 2005 AD) Designed by Peter Eisenman and inaugurated in 2005 just south of the Brandenburg Gate, the Holocaust Memorial consists of 2,711 concrete stelae of varying heights arranged on a sloping field. An underground Place of Information documents the persecution and murder of European Jewry during the Nazi era. ## Population History - 1237 AD: 1,000 - 1300 AD: 5,000 - 1400 AD: 8,000 - 1500 AD: 12,000 - 1648 AD: 6,000 - 1700 AD: 55,000 - 1800 AD: 170,000 - 1850 AD: 420,000 - 1871 AD: 825,000 - 1900 AD: 1,900,000 - 1939 AD: 4,340,000 - 1945 AD: 2,800,000 - 1989 AD: 3,400,000 - 2000 AD: 3,380,000 - 2020 AD: 3,700,000 --- # Trier, Germany URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/germany/trier Founded: 16 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 49.7567, 6.6414 ## Description Trier is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Germany, located on the Moselle River in the western Rhineland-Palatinate state about 50 kilometres from the Luxembourg border. Founded around 16 BCE under Augustus as Augusta Treverorum on the territory of the Celtic Treveri tribe, it grew rapidly as the capital of the Roman province of Gallia Belgica and was elevated under Diocletian's Tetrarchic reforms to imperial capital status, serving as the residence of Constantius Chlorus, Constantine the Great, Valentinian I, and Gratian during the 3rd-4th centuries. At its 4th-century peak the city housed roughly 80,000 inhabitants and was one of the largest centres of the Western Roman Empire, with monumental Roman architecture including the Porta Nigra, the Imperial Baths, the Basilica of Constantine, and the Roman amphitheatre that survive to the present day. After repeated 5th-century Frankish, Hunnic, and Vandal raids the city contracted sharply but never wholly emptied, persisting as a Merovingian and Carolingian archbishopric and continuing through the medieval Holy Roman Empire under the powerful Electorate of Trier, one of the seven imperial electoral prince-bishoprics. Modern Trier has roughly 110,000 inhabitants and remains the seat of the Catholic Archdiocese of Trier; the 'Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St. Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier' were inscribed jointly as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986 in recognition of the city's exceptional Roman and early Christian heritage. ## Historical Rulers - 16 BC – 270 AD: Roman Empire — Augusta Treverorum (known as "Augusta Treverorum") Founded around 16 BCE under Augustus on the territory of the Celtic Treveri tribe at a crossing of the Moselle River, the city grew rapidly as the capital of the Roman province of Gallia Belgica. Through the early empire it became one of the principal cities of the Roman west, with monumental civic architecture, an amphitheatre, and the Porta Nigra city gate built around 170 CE. - 270 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire — Tetrarchic and imperial capital (known as "Augusta Treverorum") Under Diocletian's Tetrarchic reorganisation Trier was elevated to imperial capital status as one of four Tetrarchic residences. Emperor Constantius Chlorus, his son Constantine the Great, Valentinian I, and Gratian all held court at Trier between 285 and 395, building the Basilica of Constantine, the Imperial Baths, and an enlarged Constantinian palace complex. The 4th-century population reached roughly 80,000 making Trier one of the largest cities of the Western Roman Empire. - 395 AD – 843 AD: Late Roman and Frankish Kingdom After the division of the empire in 395 Trier remained an important late Roman administrative centre under the Praetorian Prefecture of Gaul. The city was sacked by Frankish, Hunnic, and Vandal raiders during the early 5th century and contracted sharply, but never fully emptied. Bishop Maximin and his successors maintained Christian institutions through the Merovingian period, and under Charlemagne's Carolingian Empire from the late 8th century Trier was a major archbishopric and ecclesiastical centre. - 843 AD – 1794 AD: Electorate of Trier — Prince-Archbishopric Following the Treaty of Verdun in 843 the Archbishopric of Trier was incorporated into the Eastern Frankish kingdom and from the 10th century onward developed into a powerful prince-bishopric within the Holy Roman Empire. The Archbishop-Elector of Trier became one of the seven imperial electors who chose the Holy Roman Emperor. The city was repeatedly contested with the Holy Roman Empire, France, and the medieval Counts of Luxembourg, and its surviving Romanesque cathedral, Liebfrauenkirche, and medieval gates date from this long electoral period. - 1794 AD – 1871 AD: France French Revolutionary forces occupied Trier in 1794 and the city was formally annexed to France as part of the Sarre département in 1801, ending the millennium of ecclesiastical electoral rule. After Napoleon's defeat the 1815 Congress of Vienna transferred Trier to the Kingdom of Prussia, under which it became part of the Rhine Province. Karl Marx was born in Trier in 1818. - 1871 AD – present: German Empire Trier was incorporated into the unified German Empire from 1871 and passed through Weimar Republic, Nazi, and Allied occupation administrations during the 20th century. Heavy Allied bombing in December 1944 damaged but did not destroy the historic core, and post-war reconstruction restored the surviving Roman and medieval monuments. Modern Trier has roughly 110,000 inhabitants and the 'Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St. Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier' were inscribed jointly as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986. ## Landmarks - Roman Amphitheatre (built 100 AD) A 2nd-century Roman amphitheatre built into the eastern slopes of the Petrisberg hill, with seating capacity for roughly 20,000 spectators. The cavea and the substructures beneath the arena are largely preserved, including the chambers used to hold animals and gladiators. - Porta Nigra (built 170 AD) The 'Black Gate', a monumental Roman city gate built around 170 CE on the northern circuit of the Augusta Treverorum walls. Constructed of large unmortared sandstone blocks that darkened over the centuries giving the gate its modern name, the Porta Nigra is the largest and best-preserved Roman city gate north of the Alps. It was converted into a church around 1035 and restored to its original Roman appearance by Napoleon in 1804-1815. - Imperial Baths (Kaiserthermen) (built 300 AD) Monumental Roman bath complex begun under Constantius Chlorus around 300 CE on a 250-by-145 metre footprint, intended as one of the great imperial bath establishments of the western empire. Construction was halted before completion and the structure was later converted into a Roman castrum and medieval fortress; the surviving brick apses of the caldarium dominate the southern Trier skyline. - Aula Palatina (Basilica of Constantine) (built 310 AD) The vast Constantinian audience hall completed around 310 CE as part of Constantine the Great's imperial palace complex at Trier. The brick basilica is 67 metres long and 27 metres wide with a single open span, one of the largest surviving Roman interiors in the world. Used as the electoral palace chapel in the Middle Ages and converted into a Protestant church in 1856, it remains in use as the Evangelical Church of the Redeemer. - Trier Cathedral and Liebfrauenkirche (built 340 AD) The Cathedral of Saint Peter, the oldest Christian cathedral in Germany, has stood on the same site since 340 CE when Constantine the Great granted a basilical complex for the Bishop of Trier. The present Romanesque structure dates largely from the 11th-12th centuries with later Gothic and Baroque additions, and the adjoining 13th-century Liebfrauenkirche is one of the earliest Gothic churches in Germany. ## Population History - 16 BC: 3,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 350 AD: 80,000 - 500 AD: 20,000 - 800 AD: 10,000 - 1200 AD: 15,000 - 1500 AD: 8,000 - 1800 AD: 10,000 - 1900 AD: 45,000 - 1950 AD: 75,000 - 2020 AD: 110,000 --- # Aigai, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/aigai Founded: 750 BC Ended: 300 AD Coordinates: 40.4711, 22.3181 ## Description Aigai — modern Vergina — was the first royal capital of the ancient Macedonian Argead dynasty, founded around 750 BCE by Perdiccas I in the foothills of Mount Pieria at the southern edge of the Macedonian plain. According to founding legend Perdiccas was directed by the Oracle of Delphi to establish the city where white-horned goats rest at dawn. Aigai served as the seat of Macedonian royal government and the kingdom's 'national hearth' for over three centuries, hosting royal weddings, festivals and the burial of every Argead king. Even after King Archelaus I transferred the seat of government to Pella around 400 BCE, Aigai retained sacred status as the dynastic burial place and ceremonial centre, and it was in the theatre of Aigai that Philip II was assassinated in 336 BCE during the wedding of his daughter Cleopatra. The city was burned and the palace destroyed by Lucius Aemilius Paullus's Roman army in 168 BCE after the Battle of Pydna, and the site went into gradual decline through the Roman period before being effectively abandoned around 300 CE. Modern Vergina was founded in 1922 as a refugee village following the Greek-Turkish population exchange, and the great Macedonian royal tombs were rediscovered by Manolis Andronikos in 1977 — including the intact tomb of Philip II with its gold larnax bearing the Vergina Sun. Aigai was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996. ## Historical Rulers - 750 BC – 336 BC: Argead Dynasty Founded around 750 BCE by Perdiccas I as the first royal capital of the Argead dynasty of Macedonia. Aigai served as the seat of government, sacred dynastic centre, and royal burial place for the kings of Macedon for over four centuries; even after the transfer of administration to Pella around 400 BCE, the city retained its role as the national hearth and royal necropolis. Philip II was assassinated in the theatre of Aigai in 336 BCE during his daughter's wedding, and Alexander the Great was proclaimed king there. - 336 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire Under Alexander the Great Aigai continued as the ceremonial heart of the Argead realm even as the administrative seat at Pella governed the empire. Philip II's monumental tomb, with its intact contents including the gold larnax bearing the Vergina Sun, dates from the immediate aftermath of his death in 336 BCE. - 323 BC – 168 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Under the Antigonid successors Aigai remained the sacred dynastic site of the Macedonian kingdom, with the monumental palace expanded during the 3rd century BCE and continuing royal burials in the tumuli around the city. The Antigonids maintained Aigai as a ritual centre alongside the political capital at Pella until the Roman destruction. - 168 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Following the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BCE, Lucius Aemilius Paullus's army burned Aigai and destroyed the great Argead-Antigonid palace as a deliberate humiliation of the conquered Macedonian royal house. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 300 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city continued in much reduced form as a small Roman provincial town for another three centuries before being effectively abandoned around 300 CE, after which the site fell into oblivion until the rediscovery of its tombs in 1977. ## Landmarks - Palace of Aigai (built 340 BC) The monumental royal palace of the Argead and Antigonid kings, built under Philip II in the mid-4th century BCE and substantially expanded under his Hellenistic successors. The palace covers approximately 12,500 square metres and features a Doric peristyle courtyard surrounded by symposium halls with elaborate pebble mosaics, andrones, and royal apartments. Destroyed by the Romans in 168 BCE and recently restored to the public in January 2024. - Theatre of Aigai (built 340 BC) The ceremonial theatre of the Argead court, built into the slope adjacent to the royal palace and used for both performances and dynastic ritual. It was in this theatre that Philip II was assassinated by Pausanias of Orestis in 336 BCE during the wedding of his daughter Cleopatra to Alexander I of Epirus. - Tomb of Philip II (built 336 BC) Tomb I of the Great Tumulus, identified as the intact burial of Philip II of Macedon, discovered by Manolis Andronikos in 1977. The tomb contained the king's cremated remains in a gold larnax embossed with the Vergina Sun symbol, alongside a golden oak wreath, ceremonial armour, and painted frescoes including the Abduction of Persephone. - Great Tumulus (built 276 BC) The monumental burial mound covering Philip II's tomb and three additional royal tombs (Philip III Arrhidaeus and Alexander IV among them). The 110-metre-wide tumulus was raised in the early Antigonid period to protect the Argead royal graves from desecration, and remains the principal monument of modern Vergina. ## Population History - 750 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 8,000 - 350 BC: 12,000 - 200 BC: 8,000 - 168 BC: 3,000 - 1 AD: 2,000 - 200 AD: 1,000 - 300 AD: null --- # Akrotiri, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/akrotiri Founded: 5000 BC Ended: 1620 BC Coordinates: 36.3517, 25.4036 ## Description Akrotiri is a Late Bronze Age Cycladic town on the southern coast of the volcanic island of Thera, modern Santorini, in the southern Aegean. Occupation began in the Late Neolithic around 5000 BCE; the settlement grew into one of the most sophisticated urban centers of the Aegean during the Middle and Late Cycladic periods, with strong cultural and trading ties to Minoan Crete. Multi-story townhouses, paved streets, an advanced drainage system, and a celebrated tradition of wall painting — including the Spring Fresco, the Boxing Boys, the Ladies in Blue, and the Miniature Frieze of the West House — survive in extraordinary condition because the city was buried by tens of meters of pumice and ash in the catastrophic Theran (Minoan) eruption around 1620 BCE, a Volcanic Explosivity Index 7 event among the largest in human history. The complete absence of human remains and most portable valuables suggests the inhabitants evacuated in advance, warned by precursor earthquakes. The eruption is often linked to the decline of Minoan civilization on Crete and is one of the candidates behind the Atlantis legend transmitted by Plato. The site was rediscovered in the 1860s and systematically excavated from 1967 by Spyridon Marinatos, who died on-site in 1974; the modern bioclimatic shelter protecting the excavated town reopened to visitors in 2012. Akrotiri is widely nicknamed the "Pompeii of the Aegean". ## Historical Rulers - 5000 BC – 3000 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Akrotiri") Earliest occupation on the southern coast of Thera, a small Late Neolithic farming and fishing community exploiting the island's volcanic soils and Aegean maritime routes. Material culture is consistent with the broader Late Neolithic horizon of the Cyclades and adjacent mainland Greece. - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Akrotiri") The settlement enters the Bronze Age as part of the Early Cycladic cultural province, with marble figurines, obsidian working, and growing seaborne trade across the Aegean. Akrotiri's sheltered harbor and position on routes between Crete, the Cyclades, and mainland Greece encourage steady growth. - 2000 BC – 1700 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Akrotiri") During the Middle Cycladic period Akrotiri develops into a proto-urban town with dense housing, organized streets, and an expanding craft economy. Imported Minoan pottery from Crete becomes increasingly common, foreshadowing the strong Cretan cultural orientation of the following era. - 1700 BC – 1620 BC: Minoan Civilization (known as "*Akrotiri") Akrotiri reaches its peak as a wealthy Late Cycladic port town deeply integrated into the Minoan cultural sphere. Multi-story ashlar and rubble townhouses, lustral basins, advanced drainage and sanitation, Linear A administrative documents, and the famous fresco programs of the West House, Xeste 3, and Building Beta all date to this phase. Severe precursor earthquakes prompt the population to evacuate, and shortly afterward the Theran eruption buries the entire town under deep volcanic ash, sealing it almost intact for posterity. ## Landmarks - Triangular Plaza (built 1700 BC) Central open space at the heart of the excavated town, framed by the West House, Building Delta, and other major structures. The plaza articulated the main street pattern and served as the principal public gathering area of Late Cycladic Akrotiri. - West House (built 1650 BC) Two- to three-story residence on the Triangular Plaza, home to the celebrated Miniature Frieze depicting a maritime expedition with detailed ships, harbors, and townscapes, as well as the frescoes of the Fisherman and the Priestess. Among the best-preserved domestic buildings of the Late Bronze Age Aegean. - Xeste 3 (built 1650 BC) Large, finely built ashlar-faced ceremonial building with a lustral basin on the ground floor and an extensive program of religious frescoes on the upper story, including the Adorants, the Saffron Gatherers, and the seated goddess scene. Widely interpreted as a sanctuary linked to female initiation rites. - Spring Fresco Room (built 1650 BC) Small upper-story room in Complex Delta whose three preserved walls carry the Spring Fresco, an unbroken landscape of volcanic rocks, blooming lilies, and pairs of swallows in flight. The earliest known pure landscape painting in Aegean art. - Building Beta (built 1650 BC) Multi-story townhouse north of the Triangular Plaza that contained the Boxing Boys fresco and the Antelopes fresco, both now in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. Its layout illustrates the typical Akrotiri pattern of ground-floor storage and workshop space beneath painted upper-story living rooms. ## Population History - 5000 BC: 50 - 3000 BC: 500 - 2000 BC: 2,000 - 1700 BC: 3,000 - 1650 BC: 5,000 - 1620 BC: null --- # Amphipolis, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/amphipolis Founded: 500 BC Ended: 800 AD Coordinates: 40.8183, 23.84 ## Description Amphipolis was a major Greek city on the lower Strymon river in central Macedonia, founded in 437 BCE as an Athenian colony on the site of an older Thracian settlement called Ennea Hodoi ('Nine Ways'). The city occupied a strategically critical position controlling the timber, gold, and silver of the Mount Pangaeum mining district and the principal land route between mainland Greece and Thrace, making it one of the most contested possessions of the late 5th-century BCE Greek world. Spartan general Brasidas captured Amphipolis from Athens in 424 BCE — provoking the Athenian historian Thucydides's exile after his failure to relieve the siege — and the city remained outside Athenian control after the Peace of Nicias. Philip II of Macedon seized Amphipolis in 357 BCE and incorporated it into the Argead realm, where it served as one of Alexander the Great's principal naval and military bases for the campaign against Persia. Under Roman rule from 168 BCE Amphipolis was capital of one of the four Macedonian merides and continued as a major late-Roman city with a remarkable group of Christian basilicas. The site was largely abandoned in the 8th century CE following Slavic raids, with its inhabitants relocating to the new coastal settlement of Chrysopolis. The colossal Lion of Amphipolis on the Strymon and the spectacular Kasta Tomb of the late 4th century BCE — the largest known burial mound in Greece, partly excavated since 2012 — are among the principal landmarks. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 437 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Ennea Hodoi") The Thracian settlement of Ennea Hodoi ('Nine Ways') occupied the strategic Strymon crossing in the early Classical period, controlling the principal land route between mainland Greece and Thrace. Athens twice attempted to colonise the site, in 465 BCE under Cimon and again in 437 BCE, the latter attempt succeeding under the general Hagnon. - 437 BC – 357 BC: Hellenic Civilization Hagnon refounded the site in 437 BCE as the Athenian colony of Amphipolis, ringed by the great 7.5-kilometre fortification circuit, controlling the timber, gold, and silver of Mount Pangaeum. The Spartan general Brasidas captured the city in 424 BCE — provoking the exile of the Athenian historian Thucydides who failed to relieve the siege — and fell defending it against Cleon's relief expedition at the Battle of Amphipolis in 422 BCE, after which the Peace of Nicias left Amphipolis as an effectively independent Greek polis, neither Athenian nor Spartan. The autonomous polis controlled the strategic Strymon crossing and the Pangaean mineral wealth of its hinterland through three quarters of a century, repeatedly resisting Athenian and Macedonian pressure until its conquest by Philip II of Macedon in 357 BCE. - 357 BC – 336 BC: Argead Dynasty Philip II of Macedon captured Amphipolis in 357 BCE and incorporated it into the Argead realm, gaining control of the rich Pangaean mines that funded his wars and the foundation of Philippi. The city was the principal Macedonian naval and military base on the northern Aegean coast. - 336 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire Under Alexander the Great Amphipolis served as the main naval base from which the Persian campaign was launched in 334 BCE, and produced three of Alexander's most accomplished admirals — Nearchus, Androsthenes, and Laomedon. The colossal Lion of Amphipolis was probably erected here in the immediate post-Alexandrine period to commemorate Laomedon. - 323 BC – 168 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Under the Antigonid kings Amphipolis continued as one of the principal cities of Macedonia, with the spectacular Kasta Tomb — the largest known burial mound in Greece — built in the late 4th century BCE on the outskirts of the city. The Antigonid period was the height of Amphipolitan wealth and monumental construction. - 168 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Following the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BCE Amphipolis was made the capital of the first of the four Macedonian merides into which Rome divided the conquered kingdom. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city continued as a major urban centre on the Via Egnatia through the Roman imperial period, with imperial-era construction including the gymnasium, the great rotunda church, and substantial reorganisation of the civic core. - 395 AD – 800 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Amphipolis flourished as a late-antique Christian city with at least four monumental basilicas built in the 5th and 6th centuries. Slavic incursions from the late 6th century onwards progressively reduced the city, and the population was finally relocated in the 8th century to the newly founded coastal town of Chrysopolis, after which the ancient site was permanently abandoned. ## Landmarks - City Walls of Amphipolis (built 437 BC) The monumental 7.5-kilometre fortification circuit built under the Athenian founder Hagnon in 437 BCE, surrounding the city on its hill above the Strymon. The walls were reinforced under Philip II and the Romans, and substantial sections including the gateways and bridge survive. - Kasta Tomb (built 325 BC) The monumental burial tumulus on Kasta hill outside Amphipolis, built in the late 4th century BCE and the largest known burial mound in Greece with a 497-metre perimeter retaining wall. Excavated since 2012, the tomb contains three barrel-vaulted chambers with the famous caryatids, sphinxes, and mosaic of the Abduction of Persephone. - Lion of Amphipolis (built 300 BC) A colossal seated marble lion of the late 4th century BCE on a tall podium beside the Strymon, almost certainly a memorial to the Macedonian admiral Laomedon of Mytilene, one of Alexander's friends. The lion was reassembled from fragments by archaeologists in 1937 and stands beside the modern road as one of the most recognisable monuments of Macedonia. - Christian Basilicas of Amphipolis (built 450 AD) A group of at least four monumental late antique basilicas built within the city walls during the 5th and 6th centuries CE, including a large rotunda church. The surviving floor mosaics — including elaborate animal and geometric panels — are among the finest of Late Antique Macedonia. ## Population History - 500 BC: 1,500 - 437 BC: 5,000 - 350 BC: 12,000 - 200 BC: 18,000 - 1 AD: 12,000 - 500 AD: 10,000 - 700 AD: 3,000 - 800 AD: null --- # Antikyra, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/antikyra Founded: 1600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.379, 22.624 ## Description Antikyra is a small port town in the Phocis regional unit of Central Greece, on the northern shore of the Gulf of Corinth about 20 km south of Delphi. The site was occupied from the Mycenaean Late Bronze Age and developed into a Greek polis from the early Iron Age, famous throughout antiquity for the cultivation of the medicinal hellebore (Helleborus) plant used as a treatment for madness — the proverbial Greek expression 'sail to Anticyra' meant a person needed psychiatric help. Antikyra was a member of the Phocian Confederacy and the Amphictyonic League administering Delphi, and was destroyed and rebuilt several times during the four Sacred Wars of the Classical and Hellenistic periods. The city passed under Macedonian, Aetolian, and finally Roman rule after the destruction of Corinth in 146 BCE, and continued as a small Roman and Byzantine port through the medieval period. Under Frankish, Despotate of the Morea, and Ottoman rule from 1460 the settlement persisted as a fishing village on the gulf, and was incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece after independence in 1830. Modern Antikyra is a small town of about 1,500 inhabitants serving as the principal port of the surrounding alumina-mining and agricultural hinterland of southern Phocis. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "*Antikyra") Mycenaean Late Bronze Age occupation of the Antikyra Gulf coastal hill is attested by chamber tombs and pottery finds from the LH IIIA-IIIC periods. The settlement was part of the broader Mycenaean network of Phocian and Boeotian sites around the Gulf of Corinth until the Bronze Age collapse around 1100 BCE. - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Antikyra") Following the Bronze Age collapse the site continued as a small Iron Age coastal community in the Phocian hinterland of Delphi. Through the long Greek dark age the settlement developed the agricultural and maritime base that would support its emergence as an Archaic Greek polis. - 800 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization Antikyra emerged as a self-governing Greek polis in the early Archaic period and joined the Phocian Confederacy and the Amphictyonic League administering Delphi. The city was destroyed by Philip II of Macedon in 346 BCE during the Third Sacred War for its role in the Phocian seizure of Delphi, and was rebuilt as a small commercial port through the late Classical and early Hellenistic periods. - 323 BC – 279 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Following Alexander's death and the Lamian War of 322 BCE, Antigonid Macedonia reasserted control over central Greece including the Phocian poleis around the Gulf of Corinth. Antikyra remained under nominal Antigonid suzerainty as a small commercial port until the Galatian invasion of 279 BCE shifted central Greek political control to the Aetolian League. - 279 BC – 146 BC: Aetolian League After the Aetolian League repulsed the Galatian invasion of 279 BCE the league assumed control of much of central Greece including the Phocian poleis. Antikyra suffered the second of its great Hellenistic destructions in 198 BCE when Titus Quinctius Flamininus and his Roman fleet sacked the town during the Second Macedonian War, before the league's submission to Rome and the incorporation of central Greece into the Roman province of Achaea after 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Lucius Mummius's destruction of Corinth in 146 BCE Antikyra was incorporated into the Roman provincial system as part of the new province of Achaea. Under the Roman Republic the town was rebuilt as a small commercial port on the Gulf of Corinth until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Antikyra continued as a small Roman provincial town and one of the principal Phocian ports of the Gulf of Corinth. The hellebore trade and the proverbial Greek expression 'sail to Anticyra' for psychiatric treatment continued through the imperial period until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman administration Antikyra continued as a small Byzantine port and fishing village on the Gulf of Corinth in the diminished Phocis region. The town survived Avar, Slavic, and Bulgarian raids through the early medieval period and remained an active small port until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1311 AD: Principality of Achaea After the Fourth Crusade central Greece fell to the Frankish Principality of Achaea and its vassal Duchy of Athens. Antikyra continued as a small fishing village under Latin lordship until the Catalan Company conquest of central Greece in 1311. - 1311 AD – 1460 AD: Despotate of the Morea Following the Catalan Company's conquest of the Duchy of Athens in 1311 and the subsequent Byzantine recovery, the Phocian coast eventually passed under the Despotate of the Morea. Antikyra remained a small mountain port community on the Gulf of Corinth until the Ottoman conquest of the Despotate by Mehmed II in 1460. - 1460 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire After Mehmed II's conquest of the Despotate of the Morea in 1460, Antikyra was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire and administered as part of the Sancak of Eğriboz. The settlement persisted as a small fishing village on the Phocian coast under the Greek name Antikyra until the Greek War of Independence brought the territory into the new Greek state in 1832. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Antikyra became part of the new Kingdom of Greece established in 1832, reverting to its ancient name. The town grew modestly as a regional port through the 19th and 20th centuries, with the monarchy continuing — apart from the Second Hellenic Republic and Axis occupation — until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Antikyra has continued as the principal port of the southern Phocian coast within the Hellenic Republic. The town has about 1,500 permanent inhabitants and serves the regional alumina-mining and agricultural hinterland of the Gulf of Corinth. ## Landmarks - Acropolis of Antikyra (built 500 BC) The fortified hilltop acropolis of ancient Antikyra above the modern harbour, occupied from the Archaic Greek period through the late Byzantine era with successive fortification phases. Substantial sections of Classical Greek polygonal masonry and Hellenistic walls survive on the heights above the modern town. - Roman Bath Complex of Antikyra (built 150 AD) A Roman imperial-period bath complex on the harbourside flat below the acropolis, built in the 2nd century CE as part of the small but stable Roman provincial port. Wall foundations, hypocaust pillars, and marble facing fragments survive in the modern town centre. - Church of Saint George of Antikyra (built 1820 AD) A late-Ottoman Greek Orthodox church built around 1820 by the local Antikyriote community, the principal religious building of the modern town. The single-aisled basilica with its bell tower stands on the historic core of the harbourside settlement. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 300 - 800 BC: 800 - 400 BC: 3,000 - 200 BC: 2,000 - 100 AD: 2,500 - 500 AD: 1,500 - 1000 AD: 800 - 1460 AD: 500 - 1800 AD: 600 - 1900 AD: 900 - 1950 AD: 1,200 - 2020 AD: 1,500 --- # Argos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/argos Founded: 5000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.631, 22.7194 ## Description Argos is the principal city of the Argolid plain in the northeastern Peloponnese, occupying the natural amphitheatre between the Larissa and Aspis hills and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, with Late Neolithic occupation attested from around 5000 BCE. Through the Bronze Age it was a major Mycenaean stronghold, and from the Dorian migration onwards emerged as the dominant Dorian polis of the Argolid, briefly hegemonic under King Pheidon in the 7th century BCE before its long rivalry with Sparta defined Peloponnesian politics through the Classical period. Argos destroyed its smaller Argolid neighbours Mycenae and Tiryns around 468–470 BCE and absorbed their territories. Under Roman administration the city flourished as a Hellenistic-Roman cultural centre with a magnificent theatre and Roman bath complex, until it was devastated by the Herulian-Gothic invasion of 267 CE. After Byzantine recovery the city was held by Frankish, Venetian, and Ottoman rulers in turn before joining the new Greek state during the War of Independence. Modern Argos has a municipal population of roughly 22,000 inhabitants and is the seat of the Argos-Mykines municipality. The historic Larissa Castle on its 289-metre acropolis, the ancient theatre carved into the Aspis slope, and the great extra-urban sanctuary of the Argive Heraion remain the principal landmarks. ## Historical Rulers - 5000 BC – 3000 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Argos") Late Neolithic farming community established on the lower slopes of the Aspis hill in the Argolid plain around 5000 BCE. Material culture connects the settlement to the broader Late Neolithic horizon of mainland Greece and the Aegean. - 3000 BC – 1600 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Argos") Continuous Early and Middle Helladic occupation grew the Argive plain settlement into a substantial Bronze Age community alongside the rising centres at Mycenae and Tiryns. The Aspis and Larissa hills carried fortified Early Helladic settlements that anticipated the later polis. - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization Argos developed as a major Mycenaean centre of the Argolid alongside the great palatial states of Mycenae and Tiryns, though it appears to have remained politically secondary to those neighbours. The Larissa and Aspis hilltops were fortified, and substantial Late Helladic chamber-tomb cemeteries surround the modern city. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement Following the Bronze Age collapse, Dorian-speaking populations settled the Argolid and the existing Argive community absorbed them, surviving the regional contraction better than its neighbours. The Iron Age recovery produced the wealthy chamber tombs of the Geometric period, hinting at the rising aristocratic warrior class that would dominate the emerging polis. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization From the 7th century BCE Argos emerged as the dominant Dorian polis of the Argolid, briefly hegemonic over the northeastern Peloponnese under King Pheidon — credited with introducing the silver coinage of Aegina and a standardised weights-and-measures system. Argos progressively absorbed its smaller neighbours, destroying Mycenae and Tiryns around 468-470 BCE and integrating their territories into the Argive state. The long Spartan-Argive rivalry shaped Peloponnesian politics through the Classical period, until Alexander's death and the Diadochi settlement brought the Peloponnese into the Macedonian Hellenistic sphere. - 323 BC – 229 BC: Antigonid Dynasty After Alexander's death in 323 BCE Argos passed under the Antigonid Macedonian hegemony over the Peloponnese, often through pro-Macedonian Argive tyrants supported by the Antigonid kings. The polis retained its civic institutions through the Wars of the Diadochi and the Antigonid Chremonidean and Demetrian wars, until joining the Achaean League under Aratus of Sicyon in 229 BCE. - 229 BC – 146 BC: Achaean League Argos joined the Achaean League under Aratus of Sicyon in 229 BCE, ending its formal independent foreign policy. The polis was integrated into the federated league of Peloponnesian poleis as one of its principal members, until the league was crushed by Rome in the Achaean War of 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Lucius Mummius's sack of Corinth in 146 BCE, Argos passed under Roman authority as part of the province of Achaea. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Imperial-era construction expanded the theatre to a capacity of around 20,000 spectators, added a large Roman bath complex, and rebuilt the central agora as a Roman forum. The city was devastated by the Herulian-Gothic invasion of 267 CE but slowly recovered. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman Empire Argos continued as a regional centre and episcopal see, weathering Slavic incursions in the 6th–7th centuries and Saracen raids in the 9th. The Larissa hill was substantially refortified in successive Byzantine campaigns, providing the foundations of the medieval castle that crowns the site today. - 1204 AD – 1388 AD: Principality of Achaea After the Fourth Crusade Argos was incorporated into the Frankish Principality of Achaea, with the Larissa castle becoming one of the principal Latin strongholds of the Peloponnese. The city was administered by the Enghien family as a Frankish lordship until they sold their rights to Venice in 1388. - 1388 AD – 1463 AD: Republic of Venice The Enghien family sold Argos and Nauplia to Venice in 1388, and Argos became one of the small Venetian colonies of the Aegean Stato da Mar. Venetian rule fortified the Larissa castle further before the Ottoman conquest in 1463. - 1463 AD – 1686 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Mehmed II captured Argos from Venice in 1463 during the First Ottoman-Venetian War. Under Ottoman administration the town became a sancak centre within the Eyalet of Rumelia, with the medieval citadel reused as the principal Ottoman garrison position. - 1686 AD – 1715 AD: Republic of Venice Venetian forces under Francesco Morosini retook Argos during the Morean War of 1684–1699 and incorporated the city into the new Kingdom of the Morea. Venetian rule lasted three decades before the Ottomans reconquered the Peloponnese in 1715. - 1715 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire Restored Ottoman rule continued for a century until the Greek War of Independence broke out in 1821, and Argos was a centre of Greek revolutionary activity through the war, hosting the First National Assembly of the rebels in 1821 and the Fourth National Assembly in 1828-1829. Nominal Ottoman sovereignty over the Peloponnese ended with the 1832 Treaty of Constantinople and the establishment of the Kingdom of Greece. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Argos was incorporated into the newly established Kingdom of Greece in 1832 and continued as a market and administrative centre of the Argolid. The monarchy persisted — apart from the Second Hellenic Republic of 1924–1935 and the Axis occupation of 1941–1944 — until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Argos has continued as the seat of the Argos-Mykines municipality within the regional unit of Argolis. The modern town has approximately 22,000 inhabitants and serves as a commercial centre for the surrounding agricultural plain, anchored by the ancient theatre and the medieval Larissa castle above. ## Landmarks - Argive Heraion (built 700 BC) The great extra-urban sanctuary of Hera some 8 km northeast of Argos, the principal religious centre of the Argolid from the Geometric period onwards. The sanctuary hosted the famous chryselephantine cult statue by Polycleitus and the Heraia athletic festival, and the surviving terraces preserve archaic and classical temples and stoas. - Ancient Theatre of Argos (built 300 BC) Monumental Hellenistic and Roman theatre carved into the slope of the Aspis hill on the eastern side of the city, originally built around 300 BCE and substantially enlarged under Roman administration to a capacity of around 20,000 spectators. One of the largest surviving Greek-Roman theatres in mainland Greece. - Roman Baths of Argos (built 150 AD) A large Roman bath complex of the 2nd century CE in the central agora, built during the imperial-era expansion of the city's monumental zone. The walls survive to over 12 metres in places and represent one of the best-preserved Roman bath structures of mainland Greece. - Larissa Castle (built 600 AD) The medieval citadel atop the 289-metre Larissa hill above Argos, originally fortified in the Mycenaean Bronze Age and successively rebuilt by Byzantine, Frankish, Venetian, and Ottoman garrisons. The surviving polygonal walls, towers, and double enceinte are predominantly Frankish and Venetian work of the 13th–17th centuries overlying earlier foundations. ## Population History - 5000 BC: 200 - 2000 BC: 1,500 - 1300 BC: 5,000 - 700 BC: 8,000 - 400 BC: 30,000 - 100 BC: 20,000 - 200 AD: 25,000 - 300 AD: 5,000 - 600 AD: 4,000 - 1000 AD: 8,000 - 1300 AD: 6,000 - 1600 AD: 5,000 - 1800 AD: 4,000 - 1900 AD: 9,000 - 2020 AD: 22,000 --- # Arta, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/arta Founded: 625 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.165, 20.9875 ## Description Arta — ancient Ambracia, Byzantine Arta — is a city on the Arachthos river in southern Epirus, capital of the modern Arta regional unit and one of the principal historical cities of north-western Greece. The site was founded around 625 BCE as the Corinthian colony of Ambracia under the Cypselid tyrant Gorgos, expelled its tyrant around 580 BCE, and developed as an independent polis controlling the fertile Ambracian Gulf hinterland. King Pyrrhus of Epirus made Ambracia his royal capital around 295 BCE, ruling from here through his celebrated and costly campaigns against Rome in Italy and Sicily that gave the term 'Pyrrhic victory'. After the Roman conquest of Macedonia and Epirus in 167 BCE the city was sacked and progressively depopulated, and Octavian's foundation of the new colony of Nicopolis on the Ambracian Gulf in 31 BCE drew off most of the remaining population. The settlement reduced to a small Roman provincial town and Christian bishopric through late antiquity, but emerged in the 13th century as the brilliant capital of the Despotate of Epirus founded by Michael I Komnenos Doukas after the Fourth Crusade. Under the Komnenos Doukas, Orsini, Albanian, and Tocco rulers Arta flourished as a major Byzantine successor centre of north-western Greece, with the cathedral of the Paregoretissa, the monastery of Saint Theodora, and a series of monumental Byzantine churches built through the 13th and 14th centuries. The Ottoman conquest of 1449 incorporated Arta — under the Turkish name Narda — into the eyalet of Rumelia, where it continued as a substantial Greek-majority town famous for its 17th-century Ottoman bridge across the Arachthos. Arta was finally annexed by the Kingdom of Greece in 1881 under the Convention of Constantinople, and the modern city has roughly 42,000 inhabitants as the seat of the Arta regional unit and the University of Ioannina campus. ## Historical Rulers - 625 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Ambracia") Ambracia was founded around 625 BCE as a Corinthian colony under the Cypselid tyrant Gorgos, son of Cypselus, on the Arachthos river commanding the inland route from the Ambracian Gulf to the Epirote highlands. The city expelled its Corinthian-derived tyrant Periander around 580 BCE and reorganised as an independent democracy within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere, fighting on the Peloponnesian side in the Peloponnesian War (notably at the Battle of Olpae in 426 BCE) and resisting incorporation into the expanding Molossian-Epirote kingdom. Philip II of Macedon briefly captured Ambracia in 338 BCE after the Battle of Chaeronea, but the polis continued as a recognisable independent community until Alexander's death and the early Diadochi settlement brought the Ambracian Gulf into the Molossian-Epirote sphere. - 323 BC – 167 BC: Kingdom of Epirus (known as "Ambracia") After Alexander's death in 323 BCE Ambracia was drawn into the Molossian-Epirote sphere as the Aeacid kings consolidated their power in north-western Greece. Pyrrhus of Epirus made Ambracia his royal capital around 295 BCE, ruling from here through his celebrated and costly campaigns against Rome in Italy and Sicily that gave rise to the term 'Pyrrhic victory'; under the Aeacid kings Ambracia received substantial monumental investment, including the theatre, the agora colonnades, and the temple of Apollo Pythios Soter, and continued as a principal city of the Kingdom of Epirus through the federal Epirote League period after 232 BCE. Roman general Lucius Aemilius Paullus sacked Ambracia after the Third Macedonian War, and the city's independence ended with the Roman destruction of seventy Epirote cities in 167 BCE. - 167 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Ambracia") After the Roman sack of 167 BCE much of Ambracia's monumental sculpture was removed to Rome, and the city was incorporated into the Roman provincial settlement of Macedonia after 146 BCE. The reduced settlement continued as a Roman provincial town through the later Republic, until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE and Octavian's foundation of the new colony of Nicopolis nearby. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Ambracia") Octavian founded the new Roman colony of Nicopolis on the southern shore of the Ambracian Gulf in 31 BCE after the Battle of Actium, and most of the remaining population of Ambracia was forcibly transferred to the new foundation. Reduced to a small Roman provincial town and an early Christian bishopric, Ambracia continued at a much-diminished scale through the Roman imperial centuries until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration the diminished settlement on the Arachthos was incorporated into the theme of Nicopolis and gradually took the medieval Greek name Arta from the local form of the river name. Slavic and Vlach migrations into Epirus during the 7th-10th centuries reshaped the rural population, and the Byzantine town was progressively refortified as a regional centre and episcopal see until the Fourth Crusade's dismemberment of the empire in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1449 AD: Despotate of Epirus Michael I Komnenos Doukas established the Despotate of Epirus in 1205 with Arta as its capital, founding a Byzantine successor state that briefly contested the imperial title with Nicaea. Under the Komnenos Doukas, Orsini, Albanian, and Tocco rulers Arta flourished as a brilliant Byzantine successor capital of north-western Greece, with Michael II and Nikephoros I commissioning the cathedral of the Paregoretissa, the monastery of Saint Theodora, and a series of monumental Byzantine churches through the 13th and 14th centuries. The Tocco family of Cephalonia held Arta from 1416 until the Ottoman conquest in 1449. - 1449 AD – 1881 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Narda") The Ottoman conquest of Arta in 1449 incorporated the city — under the Turkish name Narda — into the eyalet (later vilayet) of Rumelia and subsequently the Sanjak of Yanya. The town continued as a substantial Greek-majority commercial centre of southern Epirus, with around 8,000-10,000 Greek inhabitants alongside small Turkish and Jewish minorities by the late 18th century, and the great 17th-century Ottoman stone bridge across the Arachthos remained the principal regional crossing. Arta was finally annexed by Greece in 1881 under the Convention of Constantinople following the Treaty of Berlin. - 1881 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Following the Convention of Constantinople of 1881, Arta and southern Epirus were annexed to the Kingdom of Greece and the city became the seat of the new Arta Prefecture in north-western Greece. The town continued as a regional commercial centre and provincial seat through the Greek monarchy, with the brief Second Republic of 1924-1935 and the post-war restoration, until the abolition of the monarchy by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Arta has continued as the seat of the Arta regional unit of the Epirus region. The modern city has roughly 42,000 inhabitants and hosts the University of Ioannina's School of Agriculture campus, while the Byzantine monuments and the great Ottoman bridge of Arta remain among the principal heritage attractions of north-western Greece. ## Landmarks - Temple of Apollo Pythios Soter (built 500 BC) The principal cult precinct of Ambracia dedicated to Apollo Pythios Soter (Apollo the Saviour), the protector deity of the polis. The temple foundations preserve substantial Doric column drums and entablature blocks from the late Archaic period, with the surviving Hellenistic phase visible in the modern town centre archaeological area. - Ancient Theatre of Ambracia (built 300 BC) The Hellenistic theatre of Ambracia built during Pyrrhus's reign in the late 4th or early 3rd century BCE within the urban centre of the ancient city. The cavea seating, partially preserved beneath the modern urban fabric, accommodated around 4,000 spectators and hosted the dramatic performances of the Aeacid royal court. - Castle of Arta (built 1250 AD) The medieval citadel of Arta on the northern bend of the Arachthos river, substantially rebuilt by the Komnenos Doukas despots of Epirus on the line of the ancient Hellenistic city walls. The trapezoidal enceinte and its surviving towers and gates anchored the medieval capital, and the castle was further refortified under Ottoman administration. - Monastery of Saint Theodora (built 1270 AD) The 13th-century Byzantine monastery commissioned by Saint Theodora of Arta, wife of Despot Michael II Komnenos Doukas, who retired here as a nun after his death. The katholikon preserves an elegant cross-in-square plan with marble revetments and frescoes, and Theodora's marble sarcophagus survives in the narthex. - Church of the Paregoretissa (built 1290 AD) The cathedral of medieval Arta and the principal monument of the Despotate of Epirus, built around 1290 by Despot Nikephoros I Komnenos Doukas and his wife Anna Palaiologina on a unique five-domed cross-in-square plan. The interior preserves outstanding late-Byzantine mosaics of the Pantocrator and the Apostles in the central dome, and the church is one of the principal monuments of late-Byzantine art outside Constantinople. - Bridge of Arta (built 1612 AD) The great Ottoman stone bridge over the Arachthos river, rebuilt around 1612 on earlier Byzantine and Roman foundations. The four-arched limestone bridge spans roughly 142 metres and is one of the most famous stone bridges of the Balkans, immortalised in the medieval Greek folk ballad 'The Bridge of Arta' that recounts the legendary sacrifice of the master-builder's wife to secure its foundations. ## Population History - 625 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 300 BC: 12,000 - 150 BC: 4,000 - 1 AD: 1,500 - 500 AD: 1,000 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1250 AD: 8,000 - 1500 AD: 7,000 - 1776 AD: 9,000 - 1881 AD: 8,000 - 1950 AD: 18,000 - 2021 AD: 42,000 --- # Athens, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/athens Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.9838, 23.7275 ## Description Athens is the capital of Greece and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities, with a recorded history spanning more than five millennia. It was the heart of Ancient Greece, a powerful civilization whose democratic institutions, philosophy, drama, and visual arts laid foundations for Western culture. The cityscape is still dominated by 5th-century BC landmarks, including the Acropolis crowned by the colonnaded Parthenon temple, alongside Roman, Byzantine, Frankish, and Ottoman layers that survive within a dense modern metropolis. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1400 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Athenai") Neolithic and Early Helladic communities settled the rock of the Acropolis and the surrounding plain, drawn by defensible terrain, springs, and access to the Saronic Gulf. Small farming and herding villages coalesced over time into a fortified hilltop settlement that anchored the future city. - 1400 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "Athenai") During the Late Bronze Age the Acropolis was fortified with massive Cyclopean walls and crowned by a Mycenaean palace, integrating Athens into the network of Aegean palatial centers. Unlike many of its peers, the citadel was not violently destroyed at the end of LH IIIB around 1200 BCE, allowing population continuity through the LH IIIC sub-Mycenaean period until the broader Bronze Age collapse around 1100 BCE. - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Athenai") Following the collapse of the Mycenaean palatial system, Athens contracted but remained inhabited, ruled by hereditary kings and later by aristocratic archons. The community retained traditions of its Bronze Age past while gradually recovering literacy, pottery production, and contacts across the Aegean. - 800 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Athenai") Athens grew into a major city-state under aristocratic rule, then experienced the reforms of Solon and the tyranny of the Peisistratids, before Cleisthenes' reforms of 508 BCE established the foundations of democracy. Athenian-led resistance to the Persian invasions brought victory at Marathon in 490 BCE and the sack of the city in 480 BCE. After the Persian wars Athens led the Delian League and entered its fifth-century golden age, rebuilding the Acropolis and producing the political, philosophical, and artistic achievements associated with figures such as Pericles, Sophocles, Socrates, and Plato. Defeat in the Peloponnesian War in 404 BCE ended Athenian hegemony, and the city's independence ended with Macedonian dominance after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE. - 323 BC – 146 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Athenai") After Alexander's death and the Lamian War of 322 BCE, Athens passed under the control of successive Macedonian and Antigonid powers, retaining nominal autonomy and great cultural prestige as a center of philosophy and rhetoric. Royal benefactors from Pergamon, the Seleucids, and other Hellenistic courts funded monuments and stoas, while the city's military and political weight declined through repeated sieges and the wars between Hellenistic kingdoms. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Athenae") Following Rome's destruction of Corinth in 146 BCE, Athens entered the Roman sphere and was sacked by Sulla in 86 BCE after backing Mithridates. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Athenae") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration as a privileged free city and university town. Emperors such as Hadrian endowed it with new neighborhoods, the completed Temple of Olympian Zeus, an aqueduct, and a library, and Athens remained one of the great intellectual centres of the Roman world until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1205 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Athinai") Athens passed to the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire after the Theodosian partition of 395 CE and gradually lost its prominence as Constantinople eclipsed older centres; in 529 Justinian closed the philosophical schools. The city became a provincial town whose temples were converted to churches — the Parthenon serving as a church of the Virgin Mary — and which suffered periodic Slavic and Saracen raids before recovering modestly in the middle Byzantine period. - 1205 AD – 1458 AD: Duchy of Athens (known as "Setines") After the Fourth Crusade seized Constantinople in 1204, the Burgundian de la Roche family established the Latin Duchy of Athens with the Acropolis as their fortified residence, imposing Latin Catholic institutions atop the Greek Orthodox population. The Catalan Company defeated the de la Roche dukes at the Battle of Halmyros in 1311 and held the duchy for the Crowns of Sicily and later Aragon for nearly eight decades. The Florentine Acciaioli banking dynasty took Athens in 1388 and ruled as the last Latin dukes, patronising building works on the Acropolis while managing Venetian, Byzantine, and Ottoman pressure. The duchy fell to Sultan Mehmed II's Ottoman forces in 1458. - 1458 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Athina") After Sultan Mehmed II's troops took Athens in 1458 the city became an Ottoman provincial center; the Parthenon was converted into a mosque and later a powder magazine. In 1687 Venetian bombardment under Francesco Morosini detonated the magazine and shattered the Parthenon, and Athens passed back and forth between Ottoman and Venetian hands before resuming its decline as a small Ottoman town until the Greek War of Independence. - 1832 AD – 1941 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Athina") Following Greek independence in 1830 and the establishment of the kingdom under the Bavarian Wittelsbach prince Otto, Athens was chosen as the capital in 1834 and rebuilt on a neoclassical plan around the Acropolis. The city grew rapidly with the arrival of monarchy, parliament, university, and — after the 1922 Asia Minor catastrophe — a vast influx of Greek refugees from Anatolia absorbed into new districts such as Nea Smyrni and Nea Ionia. The monarchy was briefly replaced by the Second Hellenic Republic (1924-1935) and then restored under George II, with the Metaxas authoritarian regime (1936-1941) governing from the capital until the Axis invasion. - 1941 AD – 1944 AD: Axis Occupation of Greece (known as "Athina") German, Italian, and Bulgarian forces occupied Greece from April 1941, with Athens administered largely by the Germans and a collaborationist Greek government. The city suffered a catastrophic famine in 1941-1942, active resistance through EAM-ELAS and other groups, and the deportation of most of its Jewish community, before liberation in October 1944. - 1944 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Athina") After liberation the monarchy was restored following the 1946 referendum, and Athens served as the capital throughout the Greek Civil War (1946-1949) and the postwar reconstruction. Rapid rural-to-urban migration produced explosive growth, transforming the city into a sprawling metropolis filling the Attic basin. The April 1967 colonels' coup imposed a seven-year military dictatorship that was discredited after the 1973 Athens Polytechnic uprising and the Cyprus crisis, and the monarchy was abolished by referendum the same year. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Athina") The 1973 abolition of the monarchy and the 1974 referendum confirming the change established the current Hellenic Republic, with Athens as its capital. The city hosted the 2004 Summer Olympics, expanded its infrastructure with a new metro and airport, and remains the political, economic, and cultural center of modern Greece. ## Landmarks - Ancient Agora (built 600 BC) The heart of ancient Athens, where citizens gathered for political, commercial and social activities - Temple of Olympian Zeus (built 515 BC) Colossal temple begun by Peisistratos around 515 BC, abandoned for centuries, briefly resumed by Antiochus IV in 174 BC, and finally completed by Roman Emperor Hadrian in 131 AD - Acropolis (built 450 BC) A citadel on a rocky outcrop containing several ancient buildings of great architectural significance including the Parthenon - Parthenon (built 447 BC) Doric temple that housed the massive gold and ivory statue of Athena, built during the height of Athenian power - Panathenaic Stadium (built 330 BC) Reconstructed in 1896 on the site of an ancient Greek stadium, made entirely of white marble ## Population History - 3000 BC: 500 - 1500 BC: 5,000 - 1200 BC: 4,000 - 800 BC: 8,000 - 500 BC: 60,000 - 430 BC: 155,000 - 400 BC: 100,000 - 100 BC: 75,000 - 150 AD: 100,000 - 500 AD: 30,000 - 1000 AD: 12,000 - 1300 AD: 25,000 - 1370 AD: 30,000 - 1400 AD: 35,000 - 1500 AD: 35,000 - 1578 AD: 36,000 - 1600 AD: 33,000 - 1664 AD: 22,000 - 1669 AD: 9,000 - 1800 AD: 12,000 - 1845 AD: 27,800 - 1850 AD: 30,000 - 1851 AD: 31,125 - 1900 AD: 181,000 - 1925 AD: 571,000 - 1950 AD: 1,300,000 - 1975 AD: 2,700,000 - 2000 AD: 3,200,000 - 2025 AD: 3,200,000 --- # Chalcis, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/chalcis Founded: 1300 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.463, 23.6014 ## Description Chalcis (Greek Χαλκίς, modern Chalkida) is the principal city of the island of Euboea in Central Greece, occupying both shores of the narrow Euripus strait that separates Euboea from the Boeotian mainland and where the tidal current reverses direction up to twelve times a day. Founded in the Mycenaean period and named in the Homeric Catalogue of Ships, Chalcis emerged as one of the most powerful Greek poleis of the Archaic period, sending colonial expeditions that founded Cumae and Naples in Italy, the entire Chalkidiki peninsula in Macedonia, and numerous other settlements across the Mediterranean from the Black Sea to Sicily. The polis takes its name from copper (chalkos) and was a major Archaic metallurgical and commercial centre, controlling rich silver and copper mines in Euboea and the surrounding islands. Chalcis alternated between Athenian and Spartan control through the Peloponnesian War and was held by the Macedonian Antigonid kings as one of the 'Fetters of Greece' — alongside Corinth and Demetrias — that controlled central Greek strategy. The philosopher Aristotle retired to Chalcis and died there in 322 BCE on his mother's family estate after fleeing Athens following the death of Alexander the Great. Under Roman and Byzantine rule the city continued as the principal port and administrative centre of Euboea, surviving Slavic and Saracen raids through the medieval period until the Fourth Crusade brought it under Frankish lordship as the capital of the Triarchy of Negroponte. The Republic of Venice formally annexed Negroponte in 1390 and held the city as the capital of its Aegean Stato da Mar until Mehmed II's Ottoman conquest in 1470, after which Chalcis — now Eğriboz — served as a major Ottoman naval base for nearly four centuries. Modern Chalkida is the capital of Euboea regional unit with about 100,000 inhabitants, connected to the mainland by two bridges across the Euripus strait — the Old Bridge of 1962 and the cable-stayed New Bridge of 1992. ## Historical Rulers - 1300 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "Chalkis") Late Bronze Age occupation of the Chalcis site at the Euripus strait is attested by Mycenaean tholos and chamber tombs and pottery finds. The settlement appears in the Homeric Catalogue of Ships as one of the principal Euboean centres contributing to the Greek expedition against Troy, until the Bronze Age collapse around 1100 BCE. - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Chalkis") Through the Greek Dark Age the site continued as a coastal settlement on the Euripus strait, gradually developing the bronzeworking and commercial base that would carry it into the Archaic polis era. The cult of Apollo and Artemis at the nearby sanctuary of Artemis Amarynthia was already established by the late Iron Age. - 800 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Chalkis") Chalcis emerged as one of the most powerful Archaic Greek poleis, sending colonial expeditions that founded Cumae and Naples in Italy, the entire Chalkidiki peninsula in Macedonia, and numerous other settlements across the Mediterranean. The polis fought the Lelantine War with its neighbour Eretria for control of the fertile Lelantine plain in the 8th-7th centuries BCE, and alternated between Athenian and Spartan alignment through the Classical period. After Philip II's victory at Chaeronea in 338 BCE the city was held as a Macedonian garrison city, until Alexander's death and the Diadochi settlement brought it into the Antigonid orbit. - 323 BC – 146 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Chalkis") After Alexander's death the city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE, and the philosopher Aristotle himself had retired to Chalcis to die there in 322 BCE on his mother's family estate. Under the Antigonid kings of Macedonia Chalcis was one of the three 'Fetters of Greece' — alongside Corinth and Demetrias in Thessaly — that the Antigonid dynasty held as the strategic chain controlling central Greek mobilization. The city was the central command post for the Antigonid fleet in the Aegean, until the Roman declaration of the 'Freedom of the Greeks' by Flamininus at the Isthmian Games of 196 BCE and the final incorporation of central Greece into the Roman province of Macedonia after the Achaean War of 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Mummius's destruction of Corinth in 146 BCE Chalcis was incorporated into the Roman provincial system as a free city of the new province of Achaea. Under the Roman Republic the city continued as the principal port of Euboea until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Chalcis continued as the principal port and administrative centre of Roman Euboea, hosting a small but active community of Roman administrators and merchants. The city remained a Christian bishopric from the second century and a stable Roman provincial centre until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Euripos") Under the Eastern Roman administration the city — increasingly known by the Byzantine name Euripos after its famous strait — continued as the principal Byzantine port and metropolitan see of Euboea. The town survived Slavic, Bulgarian, and Saracen raids through the medieval Byzantine period, with the great basilica of Hagia Paraskevi serving as the principal Christian sanctuary until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1470 AD: Latin Empire (known as "Negroponte") Following the Fourth Crusade Chalcis became the capital of the Triarchy of Negroponte under Lombard Frankish lords, with the strait's name Negroponte ('black bridge') giving the entire island its Italian-language designation. The Republic of Venice gradually extended commercial and political control over Negroponte, formally annexing the island in 1390 as the principal seat of its Aegean Stato da Mar until Mehmed II's Ottoman armies captured the city after a brutal siege in 1470. - 1470 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Eğriboz") Mehmed II's capture of Negroponte on 12 July 1470 was one of the most celebrated Ottoman conquests of the late 15th century, and the city — now Eğriboz in Turkish — became the seat of the Sancak of Eğriboz and a major Ottoman naval base on the Aegean. Under nearly four centuries of Ottoman rule Eğriboz remained an important fortress and port city with mixed Greek Orthodox, Turkish, Jewish, and Albanian populations until the Greek War of Independence (1821-1829) brought the territory into the new Greek state. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Chalkida") Chalkida became part of the new Kingdom of Greece established in 1832, reverting to its modern Greek name. The Old Bridge over the Euripus strait was built in 1962, connecting the city's island and mainland sectors with a swing-bridge mechanism. The monarchy continued — apart from the Second Hellenic Republic and Axis Occupation — until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Chalkida") Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Chalkida has continued as the capital of the Euboea regional unit within the Hellenic Republic. The cable-stayed High Bridge of Chalkida was opened in 1992 to relieve traffic on the Old Bridge, and the modern city has grown to about 100,000 inhabitants centred on regional government, services, and small industry. ## Landmarks - Hagia Paraskevi Basilica (built 500 AD) A 6th-century Byzantine basilica dedicated to Saint Paraskeve, the principal Christian sanctuary of Byzantine and Latin Chalcis. The church was substantially rebuilt under the Lombard Triarchy of Negroponte and the Venetian period with Gothic ribbed vaulting added to the original three-aisled basilica plan, surviving as the principal medieval monument of the modern city. - Karababa Castle (built 1684 AD) An Ottoman bastioned fortress built between 1684 and 1686 on the Boeotian mainland just across the Euripus strait, commanding the northern approach to Chalcis. The pentagonal Ottoman fortification with massive stone bastions is one of the principal surviving Ottoman fortresses of mainland Greece. - Old Bridge of Chalkida (built 1962 AD) The Old Bridge over the Euripus strait at its narrowest point, built in 1962 as a sliding-bridge mechanism to allow shipping through the strait. The 38-metre bridge spans the famous Euripus narrows where the tidal current reverses direction up to twelve times a day — a phenomenon described by Aristotle and still observable from the bridge. - Archaeological Museum of Chalkida (built 1989 AD) The principal regional archaeological museum of Euboea, housing finds from Lefkandi, Eretria, Chalcis, and the wider Euboean island. The collection includes the celebrated Mycenaean centaur figurine from Lefkandi, Geometric and Archaic pottery from the Lelantine plain, and inscriptions documenting the Chalcidian Lelantine War and the city's colonial network. ## Population History - 1300 BC: 1,500 - 800 BC: 4,000 - 500 BC: 12,000 - 200 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 7,000 - 1000 AD: 5,000 - 1204 AD: 6,000 - 1470 AD: 4,000 - 1700 AD: 8,000 - 1900 AD: 12,000 - 1950 AD: 25,000 - 2000 AD: 80,000 - 2020 AD: 100,000 --- # Corinth, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/corinth Founded: 1600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.9375, 22.9356 ## Description Ancient Corinth was one of the most powerful and prosperous city-states in Classical Greece, strategically positioned on the narrow isthmus connecting the Peloponnese to mainland Greece. This exceptional location allowed Corinth to control key land routes between northern and southern Greece while simultaneously dominating maritime trade through its two harbors: Lechaion on the Corinthian Gulf and Kenchreai on the Saronic Gulf. This geographic advantage transformed Corinth into a wealthy commercial powerhouse renowned for its luxury goods, particularly its distinctive bronze wares and unique black-figure pottery. The city was equally famous for its architectural innovations, notably developing the ornate Corinthian column, the most elaborate of the three classical Greek orders. Corinth's prosperity supported magnificent buildings, including the imposing Temple of Apollo and the extensive sanctuary of Asclepius. Though dramatically destroyed by the Romans in 146 BCE, the city was rebuilt as Colonia Laus Iulia Corinthiensis, becoming the capital of Roman Greece and continuing its commercial prominence. Corinth also features prominently in early Christianity, receiving St. Paul's letters and serving as an important early church center. The city's remarkable longevity as a major urban center spans over three millennia, from its Mycenaean origins to the present day. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "Korinthos") Early settlements in the Corinthian plain, with evidence of a significant Mycenaean center, though its specific name from this period is unknown. The strategic location commanding the isthmus was already recognized. - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Korinthos") Following the collapse of Mycenaean civilization around 1100 BCE the Corinthian plateau continued at much-reduced scale as a Submycenaean and Protogeometric community. Through the Greek Dark Age the dispersed settlements on the Acrocorinth approaches gradually coalesced into the proto-polis nucleus that would emerge as the Archaic city under the Bacchiad clan around 800 BCE. - 800 BC – 338 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Korinthos") From the early Archaic period Corinth emerged as one of the leading Greek poleis. The aristocratic Bacchiad clan ruled until Cypselus and his son Periander established a famed tyranny (c. 657-581 BCE) under which Corinth reached its commercial and cultural zenith, founding colonies including Syracuse and Corcyra and undertaking major public works. After the fall of the tyranny the city continued under an oligarchic republic, maintaining its commercial strength, manufacturing distinctive black-figure pottery and bronze wares, developing the Corinthian architectural order, and playing a leading role in the Peloponnesian League until the Macedonian victory at Chaeronea ended the era of independent Greek poleis. - 338 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Korinthos") After his victory at Chaeronea in 338 BCE, Philip II of Macedon convened the League of Corinth in 337 BCE, in which the Greek poleis acknowledged Macedonian hegemony. Under Philip and his son Alexander the Great, Corinth remained a leading polis of mainland Greece while its foreign policy was directed from Pella. - 323 BC – 243 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Korinthos") After Alexander's death and the Wars of the Diadochi, Macedonia and central Greece passed under the Antigonid dynasty. Corinth, with its commanding citadel of Acrocorinth, served as one of the 'fetters of Greece' garrisoned by the Antigonid kings to control the Peloponnese. - 243 BC – 146 BC: Achaean League (known as "Korinthos") Aratus of Sicyon liberated Corinth from the Antigonid garrison in 243 BCE and brought the city into the Achaean League, of which it soon became a leading member and frequent meeting place. The league dominated the Peloponnese as a federal republic until its catastrophic war with Rome in 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic In 146 BCE Lucius Mummius destroyed Corinth as a warning to the Greeks, and the site remained largely uninhabited for a century. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Refounded by Julius Caesar in 44 BCE as Colonia Laus Iulia Corinthiensis, Corinth quickly regained its prominence as a Roman colony and capital of the province of Achaea — a major commercial and administrative hub visited by Saint Paul, who addressed two surviving letters to its Christian community. - 395 AD – 1210 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Korinthos") Following the division of the Roman Empire, Corinth became part of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire. It continued as an important regional center and metropolitan see, though it faced repeated invasions from Goths, Slavs, and Normans, leading to cycles of decline and recovery. - 1210 AD – 1458 AD: Principality of Achaea After the Fourth Crusade Corinth fell to the Frankish Principality of Achaea, with the citadel of Acrocorinth becoming one of the principal Latin fortresses of the Peloponnese. The lordship passed through Frankish, Catalan, Florentine (Acciaiuoli), Venetian, and brief Byzantine hands over the following two and a half centuries before the Ottoman conquest. - 1458 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Gördüs") Corinth was conquered by Sultan Mehmed II in 1458 and became known in Ottoman administration as Gördüs. It remained under Ottoman rule (with a brief Venetian interlude during the Morean War of 1684-1715) until the Greek War of Independence brought it into the new Greek state. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Korinthos") Corinth became part of the newly established Kingdom of Greece in 1832. The town was devastated by an earthquake in 1858, after which the population relocated three kilometres northeast to found New Corinth on the Gulf of Corinth shore, leaving the ancient site as an archaeological zone. The kingdom continued — apart from the Second Hellenic Republic of 1924-1935 and the Axis occupation of 1941-1944 — until the abolition of the monarchy by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Korinthos") Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Corinth has continued as the capital of the regional unit of Corinthia within the Hellenic Republic. The ancient ruins of Old Corinth, including the Temple of Apollo and Acrocorinth, remain a major archaeological site and tourist destination. ## Landmarks - Acrocorinth (built 700 BC) Acrocorinth, rising 575 metres above sea level, has been a fortified stronghold for over 2,500 years, with successive Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Frankish, Venetian and Ottoman builders leaving their marks on its 2-kilometre-long walls. In antiquity it housed the Temple of Aphrodite and the vital Upper Peirene spring. Its commanding views of the Isthmus of Corinth made it a strategic prize throughout history. The massive multi-period defences survive today as one of the most extensive fortified citadels in southern Greece. - Temple of Apollo (built 550 BC) Built around 550–540 BCE, the Temple of Apollo stands as Corinth's most iconic monument and symbol of the city's archaic wealth and piety. Its heavy Doric columns, carved from single limestone blocks and later coated with stucco, reflect the archaic style's bold proportions. Originally featuring 38 columns, only seven remain today, towering over Temple Hill. Surviving the Roman destruction of 146 BCE, it continued to serve religious functions into the Roman period, possibly with new dedications. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 10,000 - 700 BC: 15,000 - 500 BC: 40,000 - 300 BC: 30,000 - 146 BC: 3,000 - 0 AD: 80,000 - 200 AD: 60,000 - 500 AD: 25,000 - 1000 AD: 10,000 - 1300 AD: 8,000 - 1600 AD: 5,000 - 1850 AD: 2,000 - 2000 AD: 30,000 --- # Delos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/delos Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 800 AD Coordinates: 37.3933, 25.2711 ## Description Delos is a small rocky island of 3.4 square kilometres in the central Cyclades, near the larger neighbour Mykonos, that was one of the most important panhellenic sanctuaries of the Greek world. Bronze Age occupation is attested from the 3rd millennium BCE, when according to Thucydides the island was inhabited by Carians later expelled by King Minos of Crete. From the Geometric period Delos rose as a pan-Ionian religious centre devoted to Apollo and Artemis, who were said to have been born here, and from 478 BCE hosted the treasury of the Delian League under Athenian leadership until Pericles moved the funds to Athens in 454 BCE. After complex Hellenistic phases under Athenian, Antigonid and independent administration, Rome made Delos a free port in 166 BCE, and the island briefly became the commercial centre of the Mediterranean and a major slave-trade hub before catastrophic raids by Mithridates VI in 88 and 69 BCE devastated the community. The site continued in much reduced form through the Roman and Byzantine periods before final abandonment around 800 CE. Today Delos is uninhabited apart from a small group of archaeological caretakers and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1600 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Delos") Earliest occupation of the island in the Early Cycladic period around 3000 BCE, with surviving stone huts and Bronze Age burials. Thucydides records the original inhabitants as piratical Carians later expelled by King Minos of Crete, integrating the island into the wider Cycladic and Minoan exchange networks of the Middle Bronze Age. - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "*Delos") Mycenaean integration of Delos through the Late Helladic period, with substantial LH I-III material recovered from the citadel of Mount Kynthos and the precinct of the later Artemision and Heraion. The island participated in the wider Mycenaean palatial-period Aegean trade network until the Bronze Age collapse around 1100 BCE. - 1100 BC – 478 BC: Iron Age Settlement Following the Bronze Age collapse Delos was resettled by Ionian Greeks during the Greek Dark Age, who established the sanctuary of Apollo that would become the principal pan-Ionian religious centre of the Aegean. By the Archaic period the great quadrennial Delia festival drew pilgrims from across the Cyclades and Ionian Asia Minor. - 478 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization From 478 BCE Delos became the symbolic centre and treasury site of the Delian League under Athenian leadership against Persia. Pericles transferred the treasury to Athens in 454 BCE, and the Athenians repeatedly purified the sanctuary by exhuming all the graves on the island in 426 BCE and expelling its inhabitants temporarily in 422 BCE. Direct Athenian administration through cleruchies continued until Alexander's death and the dissolution of the Athenian Empire. - 323 BC – 166 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Antigonid Macedon sponsored Delian independence from Athens around 315 BCE, after which Delos enjoyed nearly a century and a half of nominal autonomy under successive Antigonid, Ptolemaic and Rhodian protection. The island prospered as a pan-Mediterranean religious and commercial centre, with new sanctuaries to foreign gods including Sarapis, Isis, and the Syrian deities added by resident traders. - 166 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Rome declared Delos a free port in 166 BCE and placed it under nominal Athenian control, transforming the island into the leading slave market of the Mediterranean with traffic of tens of thousands of slaves recorded annually. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Mithridates VI's forces sacked the island in 88 BCE — massacring some 20,000 Italian and Roman residents — and a second raid by pirates in 69 BCE accelerated the decline. The sanctuary continued in much reduced form through the Roman imperial period. - 395 AD – 800 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Delos persisted as a tiny Christian community whose remains include a small basilica at the Stadium District. Slavic-Saracen raids in the 7th and 8th centuries and the broader collapse of Aegean trade led to final abandonment of the island around 800 CE, after which Delos was uninhabited apart from occasional fishermen and pirates. ## Landmarks - Sacred Lake (built 700 BC) A circular freshwater lake at the centre of the island, identified in Greek myth as the place where Leto gave birth to Apollo and Artemis under a palm tree. The lake was drained in 1925 to combat malarial mosquitoes, but the curving stone embankment and the famous Terrace of the Lions on its northern shore preserve the sacred topography. - Terrace of the Lions (built 600 BC) A row of marble lions dedicated by the Naxians around 600 BCE, originally numbering nine or twelve and flanking the Sacred Way that led to the Apollo sanctuary. Five lions remain on site today and a sixth was reused at the entrance to the Venetian Arsenal in 1716; the surviving figures are among the most iconic monuments of Archaic Greek sculpture. - Temple of Apollo (built 550 BC) The principal sanctuary of the island, hosting the cult of Apollo born on Delos according to Greek myth. Three successive Apollo temples were built on the site from the 6th to the 4th centuries BCE — the Great Temple, the Athenian Temple of the Athenians, and the Temple of the Delians — forming the sacred core that drew pilgrims from across the Greek world. - Theatre Quarter Houses (built 150 BC) Densely packed quarter of late Hellenistic merchant houses on the slopes below the theatre, dating largely to the free-port boom of the late 2nd and early 1st centuries BCE. The houses preserve remarkable peristyle courtyards and pavement mosaics, including the celebrated House of the Dolphins, House of the Trident, and House of the Masks. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 200 - 1000 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 3,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 150 BC: 25,000 - 88 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 3,000 - 500 AD: 800 - 800 AD: null --- # Delphi, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/delphi Founded: 1600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.4833, 22.5 ## Description Delphi was the most revered sanctuary in ancient Greece, nestled dramatically on the slopes of Mount Parnassus with sweeping views of the Gulf of Corinth. Considered by the Greeks to be the omphalos (navel) of the world, this UNESCO-listed site achieved pan-Hellenic significance through its famous Oracle of Apollo, where the Pythia delivered divine prophecies that influenced major political decisions, colonial expeditions, and military campaigns throughout the ancient Mediterranean. The sanctuary developed from a modest shrine to an elaborate religious complex featuring the Temple of Apollo, the theatre, the stadium, and numerous treasuries built by Greek city-states to house their offerings, all arranged along the Sacred Way ascending the mountainside. Beyond its religious significance Delphi served as a cultural and political centre where representatives from Greek city-states gathered in the Amphictyonic League, one of the earliest political associations in the ancient world. The site also hosted the Pythian Games, second in importance only to the Olympic Games, celebrating athletic and artistic achievements. Delphi's oracle exercised profound influence on Greek civilisation for over a millennium before declining under Roman rule and eventually closing during the Christian era. After Theodosius I's edicts of 391 CE the sanctuary was abandoned, and the medieval village of Kastri grew over the ruins. Kastri was relocated in the 1890s to permit French School excavations, with the modern village of Delphi established slightly to the west and the archaeological site inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "Pytho") The site, originally known as Pytho, was a place of worship for the earth goddess Gaia. Mycenaean settlements in the area indicate its early religious significance, predating the establishment of the Apollonian cult. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Pytho") During this transitional period following the collapse of Mycenaean palace civilization, the cult of Apollo gradually supplanted the worship of Gaia at Pytho. The oracle began to take shape, establishing Delphi's future role as a major religious center. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Amphictyonic League From the early seventh century BCE the sanctuary was administered by the Amphictyonic League, a religious-political confederation of central Greek tribes that managed Delphi's affairs and the Pythian Games. After the First Sacred War (~595-585 BCE) the League secured Delphi's pan-Hellenic independence; the Alcmaeonidae family rebuilt the Temple of Apollo in stone, and city-states constructed treasuries that turned the sanctuary into a monumental complex. Through the Classical period the oracle reached the zenith of its influence and was enriched with monuments commemorating victories in the Persian Wars (Athenian Treasury, Serpent Column). - 323 BC – 279 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Following Alexander's death and the Lamian War of 322 BCE, Antigonid Macedonia reasserted control over central Greece including the Delphic Amphictyony. The sanctuary remained an important pan-Hellenic site under nominal Antigonid suzerainty until the Galatian invasion of 279 BCE. - 279 BC – 146 BC: Aetolian League After the Aetolian League famously repulsed the Galatian invasion of 279 BCE that threatened the sanctuary, the league assumed effective control of Delphi and its Amphictyony, using the prestige of the oracle for political leverage. This Aetolian period saw a substantial expansion of the sanctuary's monumental program before the league's submission to Rome and the eventual incorporation of Greece into the Roman state after the Achaean War. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Lucius Mummius's sack of Corinth in 146 BCE Delphi passed under Roman authority within the province of Achaea. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The sanctuary experienced both plunder (notably by Sulla in 86 BCE) and imperial patronage from Domitian, Hadrian, and Nerva; the oracle's influence gradually waned through the imperial period and was consulted for the last time under Emperor Julian. Theodosius I's edicts of 391 CE closed the pagan temples, ending Delphi's thousand-year history as an active sanctuary. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Kastri") Under Eastern Roman (Byzantine) administration the ruined sanctuary was progressively quarried for local construction and a Christian village called Kastri ('castle' or 'fortified place') grew directly over the temple terraces. Kastri persisted as a small mountain village through Byzantine rule, with houses built among and on top of the ancient stadium, theatre, and temple platforms. - 1204 AD – 1262 AD: Principality of Achaea (known as "Kastri") After the Fourth Crusade Phocis fell to the Frankish Principality of Achaea. The village of Kastri continued atop the ancient ruins as a small fortified settlement under Latin lordship. - 1262 AD – 1460 AD: Despotate of the Morea (known as "Kastri") Following the Byzantine reconquest of much of the Peloponnese, the region of Phocis returned to Byzantine authority within the Despotate of the Morea. Kastri remained a small mountain village on the ancient terraces, increasingly isolated from the wider classical world. - 1460 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Kastri") After Mehmed II's conquest of the Despotate of the Morea in 1460, Kastri was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire and administered as part of the eyalet (later vilayet) of Rumelia. The village persisted as a modest hilltop community while the ancient stones were repurposed in local houses, until the Greek War of Independence (1821-1829) brought the territory into the new Greek state. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Delphoi") Kastri became part of the Kingdom of Greece established in 1832. In 1892 the Greek government, at the request of the French School at Athens, resettled the inhabitants of Kastri to a new site about one kilometre west of the ancient sanctuary so that systematic excavation of the temple terraces could proceed. The relocated community refounded itself as the village of Delphoi, reverting to the ancient name; this transition occurred entirely under the Greek monarchy, which continued (with the brief Second Republic of 1924-1935) until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Delphoi") Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Delphoi has continued as part of the Hellenic Republic. The modern village today has roughly 2,400 permanent residents focused on heritage tourism, while the archaeological sanctuary was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. ## Landmarks - Castalian Spring (built 600 BC) The sacred spring at the foot of the Phaedriades cliffs above Delphi, where pilgrims and the Pythia herself underwent ritual purification before approaching the oracle. The Archaic and Roman-period fountain houses cut into the rock face survive, and the spring continues to flow today from the natural fissure in the cliff. - Temple of Apollo (built 550 BC) The Temple of Apollo at Delphi was the spiritual centre of the ancient Greek world, with the visible 4th-century BCE Doric ruins representing the sixth temple built after previous structures were lost to disasters. The 6-by-15-column temple was richly decorated with painted metopes and triglyphs, and visitors passed the famous maxim 'Know Thyself' before entering. Within the sacred adyton the Pythia delivered her prophecies seated above a fissure emitting natural gases — recent studies suggest ethylene vapour may have induced her trance. For over a millennium the oracle shaped personal lives, political decisions, and ethical thought across the Mediterranean. - Treasury of the Athenians (built 490 BC) Built after Athens' victory at Marathon, the Treasury of the Athenians at Delphi showcased both devotion and civic pride. Made of Parian marble, its compact distyle in antis design housed offerings to Apollo while celebrating Athenian power. Thirty sculpted metopes depict the labours of Heracles and Theseus, paralleling Athens' triumph over Persia. Inscriptions on the building include hymns to Apollo with rare ancient musical notation, and the structure was reconstructed in the early 20th century from its fallen blocks. - Stadium of Delphi (built 450 BC) The ancient stadium on the highest terrace of the sanctuary, used for the athletic events of the Pythian Games every four years. The track measures 178 metres in length, and the surviving stone seating for up to 6,500 spectators was largely funded by the Roman patron Herodes Atticus in the 2nd century CE. - Tholos of Athena Pronaia (built 380 BC) A circular Doric tholos at the sanctuary of Athena Pronaia just southeast of the main Apollo precinct, built around 380 BCE by the architect Theodoros of Phocaea. The peristyle of 20 Doric columns around a central cella combines Doric and Ionic orders in a uniquely Delphic composition, and the three reconstructed columns of the tholos are one of the most photographed monuments of the entire ancient Greek world. - Theatre of Delphi (built 340 BC) The ancient theatre carved into the southern slope of Mount Parnassus just above the Temple of Apollo, with 35 rows of stone seating accommodating roughly 5,000 spectators. The theatre hosted the musical, dramatic, and poetic competitions of the Pythian Games and was substantially rebuilt in the Roman period, with frieze reliefs of the labours of Heracles added in the 2nd century CE. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 300 - 800 BC: 600 - 500 BC: 1,500 - 300 BC: 2,500 - 0 AD: 2,000 - 200 AD: 1,500 - 400 AD: 1,000 - 1000 AD: 300 - 1500 AD: 500 - 1800 AD: 1,000 - 1892 AD: 1,500 - 1950 AD: 1,500 - 2020 AD: 2,400 --- # Dion, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/dion Founded: 500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.167, 22.483 ## Description Dion in Pieria was the principal sacred city of ancient Macedonia, lying on the fertile coastal plain at the eastern foot of Mount Olympus where the Macedonian kings convened the kingdom's most important religious festival in honour of Zeus Olympios. The city is first attested by Thucydides in 424 BCE, and under Archelaus I at the end of the 5th century it became the site of the nine-day Olympia of Dion combining athletic contests, dramatic performances, and royal sacrifices in honour of Zeus and the Muses. Philip II celebrated his victories at Dion and Alexander the Great famously assembled his army and offered great sacrifices here in 334 BCE on the eve of his Asian campaign, while Cassander fortified the city with strong walls and public buildings at the end of the 4th century. After the Aetolian sack of 219 BCE during the Social War the city was immediately rebuilt by Philip V, until the Roman conquest of Macedonia at Pydna in 168 BCE; Octavian refounded it as the Roman colony of Iulia Augusta Diensis around 31 BCE, and the city experienced a second flowering under the 2nd- and 3rd-century emperors who venerated the memory of Alexander. Dion became an early bishopric and several large Christian basilicas were built in the 4th and 5th centuries, but the city was progressively destroyed by major earthquakes and floods and was abandoned by the end of late antiquity. The medieval village of Malathria gradually emerged on the same plain through the Byzantine and Ottoman periods, and was officially renamed Dion in 1961 to recover the ancient name. Systematic archaeological excavation began in 1928 and has continued since 1973 under Dimitrios Pandermalis of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, revealing the sanctuary precincts, the theatre, the odeon, the Hellenistic and Roman city, and the early Christian basilicas. Modern Dion has roughly 1,400 permanent residents alongside the protected Dion Archaeological Park, one of the principal classical sites of northern Greece. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 323 BC: Argead Dynasty Dion is first attested by Thucydides in 424 BCE as a settlement of the Argead kingdom of Macedonia at the foot of Mount Olympus, and under Archelaus I at the end of the 5th century BCE it became the principal religious centre of the kingdom with the institution of the nine-day Olympia of Dion festival of athletic and dramatic contests in honour of Zeus and the Muses. Through the 4th century BCE the Argead kings made Dion their preferred site for royal sacrifices and the celebration of military victories; Philip II repeatedly used the city for triumphal ceremonies, and Alexander the Great assembled his army at Dion and offered great sacrifices to Zeus Olympios in 334 BCE on the eve of his campaign against the Achaemenid Empire. Argead control of Dion continued through the reign of Alexander until his death at Babylon in June 323 BCE. - 323 BC – 168 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Following Alexander's death and the Wars of the Diadochi, Cassander fortified Dion with strong walls and public buildings at the end of the 4th century BCE, and from the formal establishment of the Antigonid dynasty under Antigonus I the city continued as Macedonia's federal sanctuary. The sanctuary, theatre, and stadium of the Olympia of Dion were progressively monumentalised through the Hellenistic period, until Aetolian invaders sacked the city in 219 BCE during the Social War; Philip V of Macedon immediately rebuilt Dion as a matter of dynastic prestige. The city remained the principal sacred centre of the Antigonid kingdom until the Roman victory at the Battle of Pydna in 168 BCE ended the Macedonian monarchy. - 168 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BCE, Dion was incorporated into the Roman provincial settlement of Macedonia, which was formally organised as the province of Macedonia after 146 BCE. The city continued as a regional centre of Pieria through the later Republic, until Octavian's transformation of the political order with the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Octavian refounded Dion as the Roman colony of Iulia Augusta Diensis around 31 BCE, and from the Augustan Principate the city served as the seat of veterans of the Battle of Actium settled in Pieria. Under the 2nd- and 3rd-century emperors who venerated the memory of Alexander the Great, Dion experienced a second flowering with the construction of the Roman odeon, the great baths complex, the House of Dionysos with its exceptional mosaic floors, and the monumental sanctuary of Isis. The city became an early Christian bishopric in the 4th century, and several large basilicas were built before the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1430 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration the city continued briefly as a Christian episcopal see, but a series of major earthquakes and floods through the 5th and 6th centuries progressively destroyed the urban fabric and the surrounding plain became swampy and malarial. By the early medieval centuries the site of ancient Dion was abandoned and the small Byzantine village of Malathria emerged on the wider Pierian plain. Pieria passed briefly to the Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica after 1204 and to Serbian rule in the mid-14th century before being recovered by the late Byzantine state, until the Ottoman conquest of Macedonia following the fall of Thessalonica in 1430. - 1430 AD – 1912 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Malathria") Following the Ottoman conquest of Thessalonica in 1430, the Pierian plain was incorporated into the eyalet of Rumelia and the village of Malathria continued as a small mixed Greek-Muslim agricultural community on the site of the ancient city. The ruins of Dion were progressively quarried for local construction through the long Ottoman centuries, until the Greek annexation of Pieria during the First Balkan War in October 1912. - 1912 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Malathria") Pieria and the village of Malathria were incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece after the Greek capture of Thessaloniki and Katerini in October-November 1912 during the First Balkan War. Scientific archaeological exploration of the ancient city began in 1928, and the village was officially renamed Dion in 1961 to recover the ancient name. The Greek monarchy, with the brief Second Republic of 1924-1935 and the post-war restoration, continued until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Dion has continued as a community of the Pieria regional unit of Central Macedonia. Since 1973 Dimitrios Pandermalis of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki has directed the systematic excavation and restoration of the ancient sanctuary, city, and basilicas, and the Dion Archaeological Park is now one of the principal classical sites of northern Greece alongside the on-site Archaeological Museum that displays the recovered statuary, mosaics, and inscriptions. ## Landmarks - Sanctuary of Demeter (built 500 BC) The earliest cult precinct identified at Dion, dedicated to Demeter and located in the southern part of the ancient city, with continuous use from the late 6th century BCE through the Roman imperial period. The complex preserves the foundations of two small Doric temples and an open-air precinct with stelai dedicated by Macedonian women, providing the principal evidence for non-Olympian cult at Dion. - Sanctuary of Zeus Olympios (built 400 BC) The principal cult precinct of Dion dedicated to Zeus Olympios, the federal sanctuary of the Argead and Antigonid kingdoms of Macedonia, where the kings convened the nine-day Olympia of Dion festival of athletic, musical, and dramatic competitions instituted by Archelaus I at the end of the 5th century BCE. The sanctuary preserves the foundations of the Hellenistic stoa-flanked altar court, with abundant statuary bases and dedicatory inscriptions recording royal Macedonian and Roman imperial offerings. Alexander the Great famously assembled his army and offered great sacrifices here in 334 BCE on the eve of his Asian campaign. - Hellenistic Theatre of Dion (built 250 BC) The mid-Hellenistic theatre of Dion built into the natural slope west of the city walls, used for the dramatic competitions of the Olympia of Dion festival. The unbaked-brick scene building and stone seating preserve the rare construction technique of a fully ground-built theatre, and the cavea seating is estimated to have accommodated around 5,000 spectators. - Sanctuary of Isis (built 50 AD) The Roman imperial-period sanctuary of Isis on the southern edge of the city, built around the natural sacred spring at the southern tip of the urban grid. The complex includes a central temple of Isis Lochia (Isis-as-Tyche of Dion), flanking shrines of Aphrodite Hypolympidia, Eros, and Anubis, and votive statuary recovered in situ; the rising water table preserves the precinct as a partially submerged sanctuary park. - Roman Odeon (built 200 AD) The small Roman odeon of the great bath complex built in the late 2nd or early 3rd century CE for musical and rhetorical performances, with semi-circular marble seating for around 400 spectators integrated into the bath complex. The odeon and the adjacent monumental Roman baths with their hypocaust heating system testify to the city's second flowering under the 2nd- and 3rd-century emperors. - Early Christian Basilica (built 400 AD) The episcopal basilica of Dion at the eastern edge of the city, one of several large early Christian basilicas built within the late-Roman city after Dion became a bishopric in the 4th century CE. The three-aisled basilica preserves substantial mosaic floors and the foundations of an apsidal sanctuary, and represents the final monumental phase of the city before its abandonment in late antiquity. ## Population History - 500 BC: 1,000 - 400 BC: 3,000 - 300 BC: 6,000 - 200 BC: 8,000 - 100 BC: 7,000 - 100 AD: 12,000 - 300 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 5,000 - 800 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 600 - 1800 AD: 800 - 1912 AD: 1,000 - 1961 AD: 1,100 - 2020 AD: 1,400 --- # Dodona, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/dodona Founded: 2000 BC Ended: 392 AD Coordinates: 39.5464, 20.7878 ## Description Dodona was the oldest Hellenic oracle in Greece, set in a high mountain valley of Epirus some 20 kilometres southwest of modern Ioannina. According to Herodotus the sanctuary dated to the 2nd millennium BCE, and Mycenaean material from the 14th–13th centuries BCE confirms Bronze Age cult activity at the site, originally dedicated to a mother goddess and later joined by Zeus Naios as her consort. The oracle operated through the rustling of leaves in a sacred oak tree, interpreted by priests known as the Selloi and by priestesses called peleiades. Initially controlled by the Thesprotian tribe, the sanctuary passed under Molossian authority by the 5th century BCE, and around 290 BCE King Pyrrhus of Epirus elevated Dodona to the religious capital of his kingdom with major construction programmes including the great theatre and bouleuterion. The sanctuary was looted and burned by the Aetolians in 219 BCE, suffered Roman destruction under Aemilius Paullus in 167 BCE, and although partially rebuilt continued in declining form through the Roman imperial period. Emperor Theodosius I closed all pagan sanctuaries in 391–392 CE and ordered the felling of the sacred oak, after which the site was abandoned. The archaeological park preserves the great theatre, the sanctuary of Zeus, the bouleuterion, the stadium, and an early Christian basilica. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1100 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Dodona") Bronze Age cult activity at Dodona is attested by Mycenaean material from the 14th–13th centuries BCE. The sanctuary was originally dedicated to a mother goddess associated with the sacred oak, and later joined in cult by Zeus Naios. - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement Through the Greek Dark Age Dodona continued at much-reduced scale as a tribal sanctuary among the Thesprotian and Molossian populations of north-western Greece. Sub-Mycenaean and Protogeometric cult activity is attested by burnt offerings and bronze dedications until the rise of the Archaic Hellenic polis world. - 800 BC – 370 BC: Hellenic Civilization Through the Archaic and Classical periods Dodona functioned as the principal pan-Hellenic oracle of north-western Greece, second in prestige only to Delphi, drawing consultations from across the Hellenic world. Initially controlled by the Thesprotian tribe of Epirus, the sanctuary passed under Molossian tribal authority by the 5th century BCE; the earliest preserved inscriptions on lead tablets recording oracular consultations date to around 550-500 BCE. The sanctuary remained a tribal Molossian institution until the formal unification of the Kingdom of Epirus around 370 BCE. - 370 BC – 167 BC: Kingdom of Epirus Under the unified Molossian Kingdom of Epirus and especially during the reign of King Pyrrhus (297–272 BCE), Dodona reached its monumental peak. Pyrrhus elevated the sanctuary to the religious capital of his kingdom and commissioned the great theatre, the bouleuterion, and the stadium for the new Naia games. The Aetolians looted and burned the sanctuary in 219 BCE, and Roman general Aemilius Paullus destroyed the Molossian cities in 167 BCE after the Battle of Pydna. - 167 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Aemilius Paullus's destruction Dodona was rebuilt in much reduced form and continued as a Roman provincial oracle through the imperial period. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 392 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Hadrian and the Antonines patronised limited restoration, but the sanctuary never recovered its earlier prestige. Emperor Theodosius I closed all pagan temples in 391–392 CE and ordered the felling of the sacred oak, ending the millennia-old oracle and leading to permanent abandonment of the site. ## Landmarks - Sacred House and Oak Tree (built 400 BC) The small sacred enclosure surrounding the oracular oak tree of Zeus Naios at the heart of the sanctuary. The whispering of the oak leaves, interpreted by the Selloi priests and the peleiades priestesses, formed the principal oracular medium of the cult until Theodosius ordered the tree felled in 392 CE. - Theatre of Dodona (built 290 BC) The monumental theatre commissioned by King Pyrrhus around 290 BCE as part of his elevation of Dodona to royal religious capital. With seating for around 17,000 spectators built into the natural slope, it is one of the largest and best-preserved theatres in mainland Greece. - Bouleuterion of Dodona (built 290 BC) The federal council house of the Molossian and later Epirote League, built under Pyrrhus on the western edge of the sanctuary. The rectangular hall with stone seating served as the political seat of the unified Epirote state alongside the religious functions of the sanctuary. - Stadium of Dodona (built 290 BC) The Hellenistic stadium built under Pyrrhus alongside the theatre and bouleuterion to host the quadrennial Naia games. The 200-metre stadium with stone seating along its northern flank is one of the best-preserved Hellenistic athletic facilities in Epirus. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 100 - 700 BC: 500 - 300 BC: 3,000 - 200 BC: 2,000 - 1 AD: 800 - 300 AD: 400 - 392 AD: null --- # Eleusis, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/eleusis Founded: 1600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.0403, 23.5381 ## Description Eleusis — modern Elefsina — is a town in West Attica at the northeastern shore of the Saronic Gulf, about 18 km northwest of Athens, famous in antiquity as the site of the Eleusinian Mysteries, the most prestigious mystery cult of the Greek and Roman worlds. Bronze Age occupation is attested from around 1600 BCE, with the early sanctuary of Demeter and Persephone developing through the Mycenaean and Geometric periods on a low hill at the base of the modern town. Originally one of the twelve independent communities of Attica, Eleusis was conquered by Athens in legendary times under the kings Erechtheus and Eumolpus and absorbed as an Attic deme, but retained the singular privileges of coining its own money and administering the Mysteries. The Telesterion designed by Ictinus and the great propylaea of the Roman period made the sanctuary one of the largest religious complexes of Classical Greece, drawing initiates from across the Mediterranean for nearly a thousand years until Alaric I's Visigothic raid destroyed the precinct in 396 CE, after which the Theodosian edicts ended the cult. The medieval town continued as a small Byzantine and Ottoman village known as Lepsina, resettled in part by Arvanites, before being reincorporated into the Kingdom of Greece in 1829. Modern Elefsina is the centre of Greece's largest oil-refining district and a regional industrial city of roughly 30,000 inhabitants, designated a European Capital of Culture for 2023. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization Mycenaean settlement on the low hill at the base of the later sanctuary, with the Megaron B sanctuary structure of the 15th-14th centuries BCE underlying the historical Telesterion of Demeter. Prehistoric graves attest substantial Late Helladic occupation from around 1600 BCE, and the earliest cult activity at Eleusis probably begins in this period, recalled in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement Through the Greek Dark Age and Geometric period the cult of Demeter at Eleusis developed into the panhellenic Eleusinian Mysteries. According to legendary tradition, the polis was conquered by Athens under King Erechtheus and Athens annexed Eleusis as an Attic deme, although Eleusis retained the rare privileges of coining its own money and administering the Mysteries independently. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization Eleusis continued as a privileged Attic deme of Athens through the Archaic and Classical periods, with Eleusinian citizens enjoying full Athenian citizenship. The Mysteries reached their peak under Pericles, when the Telesterion was rebuilt by Ictinus into the largest enclosed religious building in Greece, and the cult drew initiates from across the Mediterranean. Eleusis hosted the temporary government of the Thirty Tyrants after their expulsion from Athens in 403 BCE before its reconquest the following year. - 323 BC – 146 BC: Antigonid Dynasty After Alexander's death and the Lamian War Eleusis passed under successive Antigonid Macedonian and brief Achaean League sovereignty. The Mysteries continued without interruption, and Hellenistic kings competed to patronise the sanctuary with new buildings and dedications. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Under Roman rule Eleusis became one of the most internationally important religious sites of the empire, with the Mysteries patronised by Augustus, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius, and Julian the Apostate. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Imperial-era construction added the Greater and Lesser Propylaea — the former modelled on the Athenian Acropolis Propylaia — and a Roman bath complex. The sanctuary suffered a major sack by the Costoboci in 170 CE and was rebuilt under Marcus Aurelius. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Lepsina") Alaric I's Visigothic raid of 396 CE destroyed the sanctuary, and the Theodosian edicts of 391 CE had already banned the Mysteries; the cult site was abandoned. Under Byzantine administration the modest village now known as Lepsina persisted on the site, resettled in part by Arvanites during the medieval period. - 1204 AD – 1458 AD: Duchy of Athens (known as "Lepsina") After the Fourth Crusade Eleusis was incorporated into the Frankish Duchy of Athens, passing successively under the de la Roche, Catalan, and Florentine dukes. The medieval village persisted on the slopes of the abandoned sanctuary as a small agricultural community. - 1458 AD – 1829 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Lepsina") Under Ottoman rule Eleusis was a small Arvanite-Greek village within the Sancak of Eğriboz, with a 1827 population of around 250. The Ottomans heavily quarried the ancient sanctuary for building stone through nearly four centuries of rule. - 1829 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Eleusis was incorporated into the new Greek state in 1829 and reverted to its ancient name. Systematic excavations of the sanctuary began under the Greek Archaeological Society in 1882, and the modern town grew rapidly as an Athenian industrial suburb in the 20th century. The monarchy continued — apart from the Second Hellenic Republic and Axis Occupation — until abolition by the 1973 referendum. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Elefsina") Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Elefsina has continued as the principal town of West Attica regional unit with around 30,000 inhabitants. The city is the centre of Greece's largest oil-refining district and was designated a European Capital of Culture for 2023; the archaeological park of the sanctuary remains one of the principal heritage sites of Attica. ## Landmarks - Telesterion of Eleusis (built 440 BC) The great hypostyle hall of the Eleusinian Mysteries, redesigned by Ictinus under Pericles around 440 BCE to accommodate several thousand initiates. The largest enclosed religious building of Classical Greece, it housed the climactic revelation of the Mysteries until its destruction by Alaric in 396 CE; the surviving foundations and steps remain visible today. - Plouton Sanctuary (built 400 BC) A natural rock-cut cave shrine in the cliff face beside the Telesterion, dedicated to Plouton (Hades) as the chthonic consort of Persephone. The sanctuary marked the mythical site of Persephone's emergence from the underworld each spring and was central to the dramatic structure of the Mysteries. - Lesser Propylaea (built 50 BC) An inner gateway dedicated by the Roman consul Appius Claudius Pulcher around 54 BCE, distinguished by its caryatids in the form of basket-bearing women associated with the Eleusinian procession. One of the two surviving caryatids is in the British Museum and the other in the Eleusis Museum. - Greater Propylaea (built 170 AD) Monumental Roman gateway to the sanctuary commissioned by Marcus Aurelius around 170 CE, modelled on the Mnesiclean Propylaea of the Athenian Acropolis. The portal carried a colossal medallion bust of the emperor and gave access to the inner sacred precincts. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 300 - 700 BC: 1,500 - 400 BC: 4,000 - 100 AD: 5,000 - 400 AD: 1,500 - 1000 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 300 - 1827 AD: 250 - 1900 AD: 2,000 - 1950 AD: 8,000 - 2000 AD: 25,000 - 2021 AD: 30,147 --- # Gla, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/gla Founded: 1300 BC Ended: 1100 BC Coordinates: 38.4833, 23.1822 ## Description Gla was a Mycenaean fortified citadel in north-eastern Boeotia, built on a low limestone outcrop in the drained marshes of Lake Kopaïs and the largest Mycenaean fortress by enclosed area ever excavated in Greece. The Cyclopean walls measure roughly 2.8 kilometres in circuit and enclose around 235,000 square metres of land — approximately ten times the area of the citadels of Mycenae or Tiryns — and were built around 1300 BCE in early Late Helladic IIIB. The fortress was raised in coordination with the great Mycenaean hydraulic drainage system that turned the marshes of Lake Kopaïs into productive farmland through two canals exceeding 50 kilometres in length, jointly engineered with neighbouring Orchomenos and probably under its political authority. Gla preserves an L-shaped palatial complex in the northern sector, an agora with parallel public buildings in the south, and four monumental gates — an unusually high number for a Mycenaean fortress. The agora yielded the celebrated 'Dolphins of Gla' fresco frieze, now displayed in the Archaeological Museum of Thebes. The fortress was destroyed by fire during the wider Mycenaean palatial collapse around 1200-1100 BCE and was never reoccupied, with only scattered Byzantine pottery attesting any later activity on the site. The drainage system of Lake Kopaïs collapsed along with the Mycenaean state and the basin returned to marsh until the 19th-century French and British hydraulic engineering reclamations. ## Historical Rulers - 1300 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "*Gla") Gla was built around 1300 BCE in early Late Helladic IIIB as a massive fortified administrative and agricultural centre on the drained marshes of Lake Kopaïs, almost certainly under the political authority of nearby Mycenaean Orchomenos. The 2.8-kilometre Cyclopean circuit enclosing 235,000 square metres makes it the largest Mycenaean fortress by enclosed area, and the L-shaped palatial melathron, the agora, and the four monumental gates anchored the regional drainage and grain-storage system. The fortress was destroyed by fire during the wider Mycenaean palatial collapse around 1200-1100 BCE and the site was permanently abandoned, with only scattered Byzantine pottery attesting any later activity. ## Landmarks - Cyclopean Walls of Gla (built 1300 BC) The great Mycenaean fortification circuit of Gla, roughly 2.8 kilometres long and enclosing about 235,000 square metres of the limestone outcrop in the drained Kopaïs basin. Built of irregular Cyclopean masonry around three metres thick with four monumental gates (north, west, south, and south-east), the circuit is approximately ten times the enclosed area of the citadels of Mycenae or Tiryns and the largest Mycenaean fortress by area excavated in Greece. - Palatial Melathron (built 1300 BC) The L-shaped palatial administrative complex in the northern sector of the citadel, with small interconnected rooms arranged in groups around inner courtyards. The complex served as the regional administrative seat for the Mycenaean drainage of Lake Kopaïs and the agricultural exploitation of the reclaimed basin, until its destruction by fire around 1200-1100 BCE. - Agora and Dolphins Fresco (built 1300 BC) The southern agora of Gla, a large open precinct flanked by two parallel public storage and assembly buildings. The agora complex yielded the celebrated 'Dolphins of Gla' Late Helladic IIIB fresco frieze, one of the principal surviving examples of Mycenaean marine-style fresco painting, now displayed in the Archaeological Museum of Thebes. ## Population History - 1300 BC: 1,000 - 1200 BC: 1,500 - 1100 BC: null --- # Heraklion, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/heraklion Founded: 1900 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 35.3403, 25.1344 ## Description Heraklion is the capital and largest city of Crete, occupying the north-central Cretan coast some 5 km from the great Minoan palace of Knossos, of which it served as the principal harbour during the Bronze Age. The classical Greek port-town of Heracleium continued through Hellenistic and Roman times under various names, but the modern city was effectively founded in 824 CE by Andalusian Muslim exiles who established the Emirate of Crete with its capital here as Rabd al-Khandaq ('Castle of the Moat'), hellenised to Chandax. After Byzantine reconquest under Nikephoros II Phokas in March 961, the city continued under Byzantine rule until the Fourth Crusade transferred Crete to Venice in 1204. Under nearly five centuries of Venetian rule the city — now known as Candia — became the largest fortified settlement of the eastern Mediterranean, with a 4-kilometre bastion circuit that withstood the longest siege in history (1648–1669) before Ottoman conquest. After Ottoman, autonomous Cretan, and modern Greek phases, Heraklion was incorporated into Greece in 1913 and regained capital status of Crete in 1971. Modern Heraklion has a metropolitan population of around 211,000 and is the seat of the principal archaeological museum of Crete and the gateway to the Minoan palace at Knossos. ## Historical Rulers - 1900 BC – 1450 BC: Minoan Civilization (known as "*Heraklion Harbour") Bronze Age occupation as the principal Minoan harbour serving the great palace of Knossos 5 km inland. Material from the Old and New Palace periods confirms continuous use as a maritime trade station linking Crete to the Cyclades, mainland Greece, Egypt, and the Levant. - 1450 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "*Heraklion Harbour") Following the Mycenaean takeover of Crete around 1450 BCE the Heraklion port continued in much reduced form as a small harbour town within the Knossos territory. Late Helladic IIIC material attests continued occupation through the broader Bronze Age collapse. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Heraklion Harbour") Through the post-palatial Dark Age following the Mycenaean collapse the harbour site continued at much-reduced scale as a small coastal community within the territory of Knossos. Sub-Mycenaean and Protogeometric material attests continuous if sparse occupation through the Cretan Iron Age until the polis-period reorganisation of the late 8th century BCE. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Heracleium") Through the Iron Age and Classical period the harbour town — now called Heracleium — operated as the port of the polis of Knossos within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere. The community remained small throughout antiquity, overshadowed by its inland mother-city, until Alexander's death and the Hellenistic settlement. - 323 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Heracleium") Through the Hellenistic period Crete remained outside direct Antigonid Macedonian control, with the Cretan poleis maintaining their own internal warfare under nominal Antigonid sphere of influence. Knossos continued to operate Heracleium as its harbour town until the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Heracleium") After the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE Crete fell under nominal Roman authority while remaining politically fragmented among the warring Cretan poleis. Quintus Caecilius Metellus completed the Roman conquest of Crete in 67 BCE, integrating the harbour town into the new province of Creta et Cyrenaica, until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Heracleium") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Heracleium continued as a minor Roman port serving the regional administrative capital at Gortyn inland. - 395 AD – 824 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Heracleium") Under the Eastern Roman Empire Heracleium continued as a small Cretan coastal town within the wider Byzantine theme of Crete. The site was depopulated and damaged by Arab raids in the early 9th century before the conquest of the island. - 824 AD – 961 AD: Emirate of Crete (known as "Chandax") Andalusian Muslim exiles under Abu Hafs Umar al-Iqritishi conquered Crete in 824 CE and refounded the harbour town as Rabd al-Khandaq — 'Castle of the Moat' — as the capital of the new Emirate of Crete. Hellenised as Chandax, the fortified city became the principal Mediterranean Muslim naval base for nearly a century and a half, projecting raids across the Aegean. - 961 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Chandax") Nikephoros II Phokas's Byzantine forces stormed Chandax in March 961 after a prolonged siege, ending the Emirate and restoring Crete to imperial rule for nearly two and a half centuries. The Byzantines re-Christianised the city and rebuilt its walls and churches. - 1204 AD – 1669 AD: Republic of Venice (known as "Candia") After the Fourth Crusade Venice purchased Crete from Boniface of Montferrat and the city — now known as Candia — became the seat of the Venetian Duchy of Candia for over four and a half centuries. The Venetians expanded the city dramatically with the great 4-kilometre bastion circuit, the Koules sea fortress, monumental churches, and the cultural production of the Cretan Renaissance that flourished until the Ottoman conquest after the longest siege in history (1648–1669). - 1669 AD – 1898 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Kandiye") Following the Ottoman conquest of 1669 the city — now known in Turkish as Kandiye — became the capital of the new Ottoman Eyalet of Crete. The Venetian fortifications were maintained and the urban core was substantially Islamised, with many churches converted to mosques and new Ottoman public buildings constructed. - 1898 AD – 1913 AD: Cretan State Following the Cretan Revolt and Great Power intervention, Crete became an autonomous principality under nominal Ottoman suzerainty in 1898, with Heraklion as one of its principal cities. The autonomous state was governed by Prince George of Greece and his successors until full incorporation into the Kingdom of Greece in 1913. - 1913 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Heraklion was formally incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece on 1 December 1913 following the First Balkan War. The city expanded rapidly through the 20th century, regained capital status of Crete in 1971, and continued under the monarchy — apart from the Second Hellenic Republic and the Axis occupation — until the 1973 referendum abolished the monarchy. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Since the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Heraklion has continued as the capital of Crete and the largest city on the island with a metropolitan population of around 211,000. The city hosts the principal Archaeological Museum of Crete and is the gateway to the great Minoan palace at Knossos 5 km to the south. ## Landmarks - Venetian Walls of Candia (built 1462 AD) The monumental 4-kilometre bastion fortification system surrounding the old city, begun by Michele Sanmicheli in 1462 and continuously expanded through the 16th and 17th centuries. The walls withstood the 21-year Ottoman siege of 1648–1669 — the longest in history — and remain among the most extensive late-Renaissance fortifications in the Mediterranean. - Koules Fortress (built 1540 AD) The Venetian sea fortress at the entrance to the old harbour of Candia, built in its present form between 1523 and 1540 atop an earlier Byzantine and Arab fortification. The two-storey rectangular fortress with three richly decorated marble Lions of Saint Mark survives as the iconic symbol of the city. - Cathedral of Saint Minas (built 1862 AD) The Orthodox metropolitan cathedral of Heraklion, dedicated to the patron saint of the city, begun in 1862 and consecrated in 1895. One of the largest cathedrals in Greece, with seating for around 8,000 worshippers. - Heraklion Archaeological Museum (built 1937 AD) The principal museum of Minoan civilisation, housing the most important collection of Minoan artefacts in the world including the Phaistos Disc, the Bull-Leaping fresco, and the snake goddesses. The current building was begun in 1937 and substantially redesigned after the 2014 reopening. ## Population History - 1900 BC: 1,000 - 1400 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 1,500 - 1 AD: 2,000 - 500 AD: 3,000 - 900 AD: 25,000 - 1200 AD: 20,000 - 1600 AD: 30,000 - 1700 AD: 25,000 - 1900 AD: 25,000 - 1950 AD: 50,000 - 2000 AD: 130,000 - 2021 AD: 179,302 --- # Ioannina, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/ioannina Founded: 527 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.6637, 20.8522 ## Description Ioannina is the principal city of north-western Greece, capital of the modern Epirus region, dramatically situated on the western shore of Lake Pamvotida beneath the steep wall of the Pindus mountains. The city is traditionally attributed to the foundation of Emperor Justinian I in the 6th century CE, though recent archaeological work has revealed earlier Hellenistic settlement traces on the lake-shore plateau. The name first appears in the records of the Fourth Council of Constantinople in 879 CE with the attendance of Bishop Zacharias of Ioannine, and the city emerged as a major Byzantine successor capital under the Despotate of Epirus after 1204. Following the brief Serbian rule of Stephen Dushan (1356-1380s) and the late-Byzantine Tocco family from 1411, Ioannina surrendered to Sinan Pasha in 1430 and was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire under terms preserving extensive municipal autonomy. The city reached its peak under the Ottoman-Albanian lord Ali Pasha of Tepelena (1788-1822), who made Ioannina the administrative centre of a quasi-independent pashalik dominating north-western Greece and Albania. After his execution by the Ottoman state in 1822 and the long suppression of his lordship, Ioannina remained an Ottoman provincial capital of the Vilayet of Yanya until the Greek victory at the Battle of Bizani in February 1913 incorporated the city into Greece. The historic walled city preserves one of the best-surviving Ottoman-Byzantine urban ensembles in the Balkans, with two Ottoman mosques, the Byzantine fortifications, the Old Synagogue of the long-established Romaniote Jewish community, and the monasteries on the island in Lake Pamvotida. Modern Ioannina has roughly 65,000 inhabitants within a wider municipality of around 114,000, anchored by the University of Ioannina and serving as the principal commercial, administrative, and university centre of Greek Epirus. ## Historical Rulers - 527 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire The city is traditionally attributed to the foundation of Emperor Justinian I (r. 527-565 CE) as part of his Balkan refortification programme, replacing the older lakeside settlement of Euroia destroyed in the Slavic invasions. The name first appears in 879 CE with the attendance of Bishop Zacharias of Ioannine at the Fourth Council of Constantinople, and Emperor Basil II subordinated the local bishopric to the Archbishopric of Ohrid in 1020. Under successive Byzantine emperors the lakeside town developed as a regional fortified centre of the theme of Nicopolis, until the Fourth Crusade's dismemberment of the empire in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1430 AD: Despotate of Epirus After the Fourth Crusade Michael I Komnenos Doukas incorporated Ioannina into the Despotate of Epirus, enlarging and refortifying the city and receiving refugees from fallen Constantinople. Emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos elevated Ioannina to a metropolitan bishopric in 1319 with extensive municipal autonomy, and the city briefly passed under the Serbian Empire of Stephen Dushan from 1356 to the late 14th century before returning to Epirote rule. The Italian Tocco family of Cephalonia held Ioannina from 1411 until Sinan Pasha's bloodless conquest in 1430 ended the late Byzantine successor states of north-western Greece. - 1430 AD – 1913 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Yanya") Sinan Pasha accepted the surrender of Ioannina in 1430 under terms preserving extensive Christian municipal autonomy and exempting the city from the devşirme child-levy. Through the long Ottoman centuries Ioannina — under the Turkish name Yanya — developed as the principal commercial and administrative centre of the Vilayet of Yanya, with a substantial Greek-majority population alongside Muslim and the long-established Romaniote Jewish community. Under Ali Pasha of Tepelena (1788-1822) the city reached its peak as the capital of a quasi-independent pashalik dominating north-western Greece and Albania, with major rebuilding of the fortifications, mosques, and palatial complex on the Its Kale citadel. The Greek victory at the Battle of Bizani on 21 February 1913 during the First Balkan War incorporated Ioannina into the Kingdom of Greece. - 1913 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Following the Battle of Bizani in February 1913, Ioannina was incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece and became the capital of the new Ioannina Prefecture covering most of Greek Epirus. The substantial Romaniote Jewish community of the city was deported and largely destroyed in the Holocaust under the Axis occupation of 1941-1944. The University of Ioannina was founded as an independent institution in 1970, and the Greek monarchy continued until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Ioannina has continued as the capital of the Epirus region and the seat of the Ioannina regional unit. The modern city has roughly 65,000 inhabitants within a wider municipality of around 114,000, anchored by the University of Ioannina and the historic walled city with its Ottoman mosques, the Byzantine castle, the Old Synagogue, and the monasteries on the island in Lake Pamvotida. ## Landmarks - Castle of Ioannina (built 1000 AD) The fortified medieval citadel of Ioannina on the rocky promontory jutting into Lake Pamvotida, with Byzantine fortifications attributed to the 10th and 11th centuries and substantial later rebuilding under the Despotate of Epirus and Ali Pasha. The trapezoidal castle encloses two inner citadels (Its Kale to the southeast and the northeastern Aslan Pasha precinct) and constitutes one of the best-preserved Byzantine-Ottoman walled cities in the Balkans. Ali Pasha extensively modernised the fortifications by 1815 to face Western European artillery. - Monastery of Saint Nicholas Spanos (built 1290 AD) The Byzantine monastery of Saint Nicholas Spanos on the small island in Lake Pamvotida, founded in the late 13th century under the Despotate of Epirus and one of six monasteries on the island. The katholikon preserves a complete cycle of late-Byzantine and post-Byzantine frescoes, and the monastery complex has remained continuously inhabited from the medieval period to the present. - Aslan Pasha Mosque (built 1618 AD) The Ottoman imperial mosque built in 1618 by Aslan Pasha within the northeastern citadel of the castle of Ioannina, replacing the destroyed Byzantine cathedral of Saint John the Baptist. The single-domed prayer hall with its octagonal drum and slender stone minaret is one of the principal surviving Ottoman mosques of Greece, today housing the Municipal Ethnographic Museum of Ioannina. - Its Kale Citadel and Fethiye Mosque (built 1795 AD) The southeastern inner citadel of the castle of Ioannina, comprehensively rebuilt by Ali Pasha of Tepelena from around 1795 as his residential and administrative seat. The complex includes the rebuilt Fethiye Mosque (originally 1430, refounded by Ali Pasha around 1795), Ali Pasha's tomb in the mosque courtyard, the surviving palace foundations, and the powder magazine — now housing the Byzantine Museum of Ioannina. - Old Synagogue of Ioannina (built 1829 AD) The historic Romaniote synagogue of Ioannina (Kahal Kadosh Yashan) built in 1829 within the castle's main enceinte, one of the principal surviving Romaniote synagogues of Greece. The two-storey stone building preserves the Romaniote rite layout with the bimah in the centre and the ark on the southern wall, and continues in liturgical use by the small surviving Romaniote community of Ioannina. ## Population History - 527 AD: 500 - 879 AD: 2,000 - 1200 AD: 4,000 - 1400 AD: 8,000 - 1600 AD: 15,000 - 1788 AD: 25,000 - 1900 AD: 25,000 - 1913 AD: 22,000 - 1950 AD: 35,000 - 2021 AD: 65,000 --- # Kavala, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/kavala Founded: 625 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.9367, 24.4125 ## Description Kavala — ancient Neapolis and medieval Christoupolis — is a port city on the Aegean coast of Greek Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, opposite the island of Thasos and at the southern edge of the rich mining and farming hinterland of Mount Pangaeum. Founded around 625 BCE by Thasian Greek colonists as Neapolis (the 'new city'), the polis served as the principal Aegean port of the inland Thracian polis of Krenides — refounded as Philippi by Philip II in 356 BCE — and as the maritime gateway for the rich gold and silver of the Pangaean mining district. Through the Classical period Neapolis alternated between Achaemenid Persian rule, Athenian Delian League tribute, and Spartan suzerainty before passing under Macedonian rule under Philip II in the 350s BCE. Under Roman rule the city was a key port on the Via Egnatia between the Adriatic and the Bosphorus, and in 49 CE the Apostle Paul disembarked here on his second missionary journey, making Neapolis the first European port where the Christian message was preached. Renamed Christoupolis (City of Christ) in the late 9th century, the city flourished as a Byzantine military and ecclesiastical centre until the Norman sack of 1185, the brief Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica from 1204, and the catastrophic raid of the Catalan Company in 1308. Bayezid I captured the city in 1391, after which Ottoman Kavala — its name probably derived from the Latin caballus through medieval Italian Cavallo — was rebuilt under Suleiman the Magnificent in the 16th century with the great Kavala Aqueduct. Kavala was the birthplace in 1769 of Muhammad Ali Pasha, founder of the modern Egyptian state and the Muhammad Ali Dynasty that ruled Egypt until 1953, who endowed his hometown with the great Imaret complex in 1817. Greek forces took Kavala from the Ottomans in the First Balkan War of 1912 and the city was incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece, becoming a major refugee centre after the 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange and developing through the 20th century into the principal regional centre of Greek Eastern Macedonia and Thrace with about 70,000 inhabitants today. ## Historical Rulers - 625 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Neapolis") Founded around 625 BCE by Thasian Greek colonists as Neapolis ('new city') on the Aegean Thracian coast opposite the island of Thasos, within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the northern Aegean. The polis served as the principal port of the rich Pangaean mining district and the maritime outlet of the inland Thracian polis of Krenides, until the Persian conquest of European Thrace under Darius I around 512 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Neapolis") Darius I incorporated Neapolis and the Aegean Thracian coast into the Achaemenid Empire as a tributary city under the satrapy of Skudra during his Scythian and European campaigns. The polis was liberated by the Greek allied fleet under Spartan command in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 356 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Neapolis") After its liberation from Persian rule Neapolis rejoined the wider Hellenic Aegean polis network and paid tribute to the Athenian-led Delian League, supplying silver from the Pangaean mines. The polis alternated between Spartan and Athenian alignment during the Peloponnesian and Corinthian Wars, witnessing Athenian operations against neighbouring Thasos through the late 5th century BCE, until Philip II of Macedon's seizure of the Krenides gold mines in 356 BCE brought the Pangaean coast under Macedonian control. - 356 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Neapolis") Following Philip II's refoundation of Krenides as Philippi in 356 BCE, Neapolis served as the principal Macedonian Aegean port of the Pangaean district, supplying the great Macedonian shipping for Alexander the Great's eastern campaigns. The polis passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 168 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Neapolis") Under the Antigonid kings of Macedonia Neapolis flourished as the principal Aegean port of the Pangaean mining district and a major commercial hub on the maritime route between Thessaloniki and the Hellespont. The city was incorporated into the Roman provincial system after Lucius Aemilius Paullus's victory at the Battle of Pydna in 168 BCE. - 168 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Neapolis") Following the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BCE Neapolis was incorporated into the new Roman province of Macedonia. The harbour served as the Aegean port of Philippi and the maritime terminus of the new Via Egnatia between the Adriatic and Byzantium, and in 42 BCE Brutus and Cassius's Republican fleet wintered here before the Battle of Philippi against Octavian and Mark Antony. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Neapolis") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE the city continued as a strategic port on the Via Egnatia between the Adriatic and the Bosphorus. The Apostle Paul disembarked at Neapolis in 49 CE on his second missionary journey, making it the first European port at which the Christian message was preached, and the city served as a stopover for early Christian missionaries until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Christoupolis") Under Eastern Roman administration the city was renamed Christoupolis (City of Christ) in the late 9th century and flourished as a Byzantine military and ecclesiastical centre on the Via Egnatia between Thessalonica and Constantinople. The town was a fortified provincial seat with substantial harbour and ecclesiastical institutions until the Norman fleet of William II of Sicily sacked it in 1185 on its way to Thessalonica, after which Byzantine authority lasted only until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1224 AD: Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica (known as "Christoupolis") After the Fourth Crusade Christoupolis was incorporated into the Crusader Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica under Boniface of Montferrat and his successors as part of the kingdom's Aegean dependencies. The town suffered repeated raids and population loss until Theodore Komnenos Doukas of Epirus captured Thessalonica and its hinterland in 1224, ending Latin rule on the Pangaean coast. - 1224 AD – 1391 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Christoupolis") Theodore Komnenos Doukas of Epirus took Christoupolis with Thessalonica in 1224, after which the town passed through the brief Empire of Thessalonica, the Nicaean reconquest of 1246 under John III Doukas Vatatzes, and the restored Palaiologan Byzantine Empire from 1261. Christoupolis suffered the catastrophic raid of the Catalan Company in 1308, recovering only partially through the 14th century until its capture by the Ottoman sultan Bayezid I in 1391. - 1391 AD – 1912 AD: Ottoman Empire Bayezid I captured Christoupolis in 1391 and incorporated the town into the Ottoman state, after which it was rebuilt under Suleiman the Magnificent in the early 16th century with the great Kavala Aqueduct of 1530 and the renewed harbour. The town's name evolved through the Italian Cavallo and the Greek Kavala (perhaps from the Latin caballus, 'horse', or the medieval Italian post-house network) and became one of the principal Aegean ports for the Macedonian tobacco trade in the 19th century. Kavala was the birthplace in 1769 of Muhammad Ali Pasha, founder of the modern Egyptian state, who endowed his hometown with the great Imaret charitable complex in 1817 before its capture by Greek forces in the First Balkan War of 1912. - 1912 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Greek forces took Kavala from the Ottomans on 27 June 1913 during the First Balkan War, and the city was confirmed as Greek by the 1913 Treaty of Bucharest. The 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange brought tens of thousands of Anatolian Greek refugees who established the great tobacco warehouses of the lower town, and the city was occupied by Bulgaria during the Second World War from 1941 to 1944 before liberation by Greek partisans. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Kavala has continued as the principal port and regional centre of Greek Eastern Macedonia and Thrace. The city has roughly 70,000 inhabitants and supports tobacco processing, regional maritime trade, and heritage tourism centred on the Old Town and the great Kavala Aqueduct. ## Landmarks - Castle of Kavala (built 500 AD) The fortified citadel of Kavala on the rocky peninsula above the old harbour, originating in Byzantine fortifications of the 6th-9th centuries and substantially rebuilt under Suleiman the Magnificent in the 16th century after the Ottoman conquest. The surviving Ottoman fortress with its restored ramparts and central keep dominates the Panagia old town and is the most recognisable monument of Kavala. - Kavala Aqueduct (Kamares) (built 1530 AD) A monumental two-storey Ottoman aqueduct built under Suleiman the Magnificent around 1530 to bring water from the surrounding hills into the rebuilt town and citadel. The 280-metre arched stone structure with 60 arches in two tiers is one of the most iconic surviving Ottoman aqueducts in Greek territory and the symbol of Kavala on local coinage and tourism material. - House of Muhammad Ali Pasha (built 1769 AD) The Ottoman konak in which Muhammad Ali Pasha of Egypt was born in 1769 and lived until he left Kavala to join the Ottoman military expedition to Egypt in 1801. Restored as a historic house museum, the building preserves an equestrian statue of Muhammad Ali in its forecourt erected after his death in 1849. - Imaret of Mehmed Ali (built 1817 AD) A monumental Islamic charitable complex (imaret) endowed by Muhammad Ali Pasha of Egypt in his hometown in 1817, comprising a mosque, two madrasas, a soup kitchen, dormitories, and gardens around a series of small domed pavilions. The complex was the largest Ottoman charitable foundation in Macedonia outside Thessalonica and is now restored as a luxury heritage hotel preserving the original courtyards and chambers. ## Population History - 625 BC: 1,500 - 400 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 15,000 - 1185 AD: 5,000 - 1391 AD: 3,000 - 1530 AD: 8,000 - 1700 AD: 15,000 - 1900 AD: 25,000 - 1912 AD: 35,000 - 1923 AD: 55,000 - 1950 AD: 50,000 - 1980 AD: 56,000 - 2020 AD: 70,000 --- # Knossos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/knossos Founded: 7000 BC Ended: 700 AD Coordinates: 35.2978, 25.1631 ## Description Knossos is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and the ceremonial heart of Minoan civilization, the first literate culture of Europe. Continuous Neolithic occupation began at the tell around 7000 BCE; a monumental palatial complex emerged around 1900 BCE, was destroyed by earthquake around 1700 BCE, rebuilt as the famous New Palace, and finally destroyed around 1375 BCE after Mycenaean Greek-speakers took control following the disruption of Minoan civilization that accompanied the Late Bronze Age Thera eruption. The site is the mythological setting of King Minos, the Labyrinth, and the Minotaur, and its archives preserved two scripts — Linear A, still undeciphered, and Linear B, deciphered in 1952 as an early form of Greek. A diminished classical Greek polis and small Roman and early Byzantine settlement persisted on and around the ruins before final abandonment by about 700 CE. Sir Arthur Evans excavated and partially reconstructed the palace from 1900 to 1931, and his concrete restorations of the throne room and bull-leaping frescoes remain controversial but iconic. The modern Cretan urban story is carried by Heraklion, 5 km to the north, treated as a separate entry; Knossos itself is now an archaeological park administered as part of the Cretan cultural heritage estate. ## Historical Rulers - 7000 BC – 5500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Knossos tell") A small Aceramic and later Pottery Neolithic farming community established a tell settlement on the low hill above the Kairatos stream around 7000 BCE, one of the earliest permanent villages in the Aegean. Successive mudbrick houses raised the mound several metres over the next millennium and a half, laying the stratigraphic foundation on which the later palace would stand. - 5500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Knossos tell") Through the Final Neolithic and Chalcolithic the Knossos tell continued to grow with mudbrick houses and the first traces of metal-using craft activity. The community expanded its trading contacts with the rest of Crete and the Cyclades, preparing the demographic and economic basis for the Early Bronze Age proto-urban phase. - 3000 BC – 1450 BC: Minoan Civilization (known as "*Knossos") Through the Prepalatial Early Bronze Age the tell grew into a substantial proto-urban settlement participating in trade networks linking Crete to the Cyclades, mainland Greece, Egypt, and the Levant. The First Palace was constructed around 1900 BCE, organising the settlement around a central court and inaugurating the Minoan palatial economy of redistribution and ritual, with the early hieroglyphic and Linear A administrative scripts. The complex was destroyed around 1700 BCE — probably by earthquake — and rebuilt on a grander scale as the New Palace marking the apogee of Minoan civilisation with multi-storey wings, light-wells, fresco programmes including the bull-leaping scenes, sophisticated drainage, and extensive storage magazines. The surrounding town may have reached more than ten thousand inhabitants, making Knossos the largest urban centre in the Aegean Bronze Age. The New Palace was destroyed around 1450 BCE in the wave of destructions across Minoan Crete that brought the island under Mycenaean Greek-speaking control. - 1450 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization Following destructions across Minoan Crete in the mid-fifteenth century BCE, Knossos came under the control of Mycenaean Greek-speakers who reoccupied the palace, introduced Linear B as the administrative script, and integrated Crete into the wider Mycenaean palatial world. The Linear B tablets from Knossos provide the earliest attested form of the Greek language and confirm the toponym ko-no-so. A final destruction around 1375 BCE ended palatial administration, though squatter occupation continued through the Postpalatial period until the Bronze Age collapse. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement After the Bronze Age collapse, Knossos shrank to a modest village among the ruins of the palace. Iron-working communities of the Subminoan, Protogeometric, and Geometric periods buried their dead in chamber tombs cut into earlier Minoan cemeteries at Fortetsa and the North Cemetery, preserving a continuous local memory between the Bronze Age and the emerging Archaic Greek world. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization Knossos re-emerged as a Cretan polis of modest regional importance within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere, minting its own coinage and rivaling neighboring Gortyn and Lyttos for influence over central Crete. The polis featured in literary traditions as the legendary city of King Minos and the seat of the Labyrinth, while being politically overshadowed by other Cretan and mainland Greek powers, until Alexander's death and the Hellenistic settlement. - 323 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Through the Hellenistic period Crete remained outside direct Antigonid Macedonian control, with the Cretan poleis maintaining their own internal warfare under nominal Antigonid sphere of influence. Knossos continued as one of the principal Cretan poleis contesting Gortyn and Lyttos for hegemony over central Crete, until the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE Crete fell under nominal Roman authority while remaining politically fragmented among the warring Cretan poleis. Quintus Caecilius Metellus completed the Roman conquest of Crete in 67 BCE, and Knossos was refounded as the Colonia Iulia Nobilis Cnosus settled in part with Italian veterans, until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The Roman town occupied ground just north of the old palace mound and featured a basilica, villas with mosaic floors, and a small theater, but never rivaled the provincial capital Gortyn in importance. - 395 AD – 700 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman administration of Crete, Knossos persisted as a minor town and the seat of an early Christian bishopric, with a small basilica built among the ruins. The settlement contracted through the 6th and 7th centuries amid earthquakes, plague, and shifting regional networks, and was effectively abandoned by around 700 CE as population and ecclesiastical authority drifted decisively north to Heraklion on the coast. ## Landmarks - Palace of Knossos (built 1900 BC) The largest Minoan palatial complex on Crete, organized around a central court with multi-story wings, storage magazines, ceremonial halls, and elaborate drainage. First built around 1900 BCE, destroyed and rebuilt around 1700 BCE as the New Palace, and finally destroyed around 1375 BCE. - Royal Road (built 1700 BC) A paved processional way linking the palace to the Little Palace and the town to the northwest, often described as the oldest engineered road in Europe. Flanked by stepped viewing platforms that suggest public ritual or theatrical use. - Stepped Portico and Theatral Area (built 1700 BC) A monumental stepped structure at the northwest entrance of the palace complex, interpreted as a viewing area for processions, dances, or ceremonies arriving along the Royal Road. One of the earliest known purpose-built spectator spaces in the Aegean. - Throne Room (built 1450 BC) A small ground-floor chamber with a gypsum throne flanked by benches and frescoes of griffins, installed in the final Mycenaean phase of the palace. Often interpreted as a ritual rather than purely royal space and reconstructed by Arthur Evans in the early 20th century. - Bull-Leaping Fresco of the Court of the Stone Spout (built 1450 BC) A wall painting from the New Palace showing acrobats vaulting over a charging bull, recovered in fragments and partially restored. The image has become the visual emblem of Minoan civilization and of bull-related ritual at Knossos. - Linear B Tablet Archive (built 1400 BC) A collection of more than three thousand clay tablets baked in the final destruction of the palace, recording Mycenaean palace administration in an early form of Greek. Their decipherment by Michael Ventris in 1952 transformed understanding of Bronze Age Aegean languages and confirmed the Greek identity of the late palace administration. ## Population History - 7000 BC: 50 - 3000 BC: 500 - 1900 BC: 2,000 - 1600 BC: 12,000 - 1450 BC: 10,000 - 1100 BC: 3,000 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 3,000 - 400 AD: 1,500 - 700 AD: null --- # Lindos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/lindos Founded: 1000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.0916, 28.0876 ## Description Lindos is a small village and major archaeological site on the eastern coast of Rhodes, set around an imposing acropolis that crowns a 116-meter sea cliff above two natural harbors and occupies the site of the most prominent of the three pre-synoecism Dorian cities of the island. Tradition records the foundation of Lindos by Dorian settlers under Tlepolemus of Rhodes around the tenth century BCE, and Mycenaean material from the surrounding necropolis attests still earlier occupation. The city joined the Doric Hexapolis of Rhodes, Cos, Knidos, and Halicarnassus and emerged in the Archaic period as the leading commercial polity of Rhodes, ruled in the sixth century BCE by the lawgiver Cleobulus, reckoned one of the Seven Sages of Greece. The federal sanctuary of Athena Lindia on the acropolis attracted dedications from across the Greek world, and the surviving temple was rebuilt in its definitive form around 300 BCE after a fire destroyed the Archaic predecessor. After the synoecism of 408 BCE Lindos lost its independent polity status and became a deme of the new Rhodian Republic, though its sanctuary continued to function and the Lindian Chronicle of 99 BCE preserves the inscribed inventory of its votive offerings. Through the Byzantine centuries the acropolis was refortified against Arab naval raids and continued as an episcopal see, before the Knights Hospitaller rebuilt the fortifications in the fourteenth century as one of their secondary strongholds on Rhodes. Ottoman administration after 1522 left Lindos as a quiet village of stone captains' houses, and the site passed through Italian colonial restoration to incorporation into Greece in 1947. Today the village and its acropolis form a protected archaeological zone, jointly inscribed with the medieval city of Rhodes on the UNESCO tentative list, drawing long-term excavation work by Danish institutions since 1902. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement Dorian settlers, traditionally led by Tlepolemus of Rhodes, established the Iron Age polity of Lindos on the acropolis cliff above the natural harbor in roughly the tenth century BCE. Mycenaean burials and pottery from the surrounding plain show that the site had been occupied during the Late Bronze Age, but the continuous polis of Lindos emerges in the early Iron Age Dorian phase. - 800 BC – 547 BC: Hellenic Civilization Through the Archaic period Lindos became one of the three principal cities of Rhodes alongside Ialyssos and Kameiros and joined the religious-political Doric Hexapolis with the mainland cities of Knidos and Halicarnassus and the island of Cos. The polis prospered through Mediterranean trade and founded colonies including Gela in Sicily around 688 BCE, and in the sixth century was ruled by the lawgiver and poet Cleobulus, counted among the Seven Sages of Greece. - 547 BC – 490 BC: Achaemenid Empire After the Persian general Harpagos brought the southwestern Anatolian coast under Achaemenid control following the conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, Rhodes including Lindos was incorporated into the Persian Empire as a tributary member through the satrapy of Caria. The Lindian aristocracy retained local self-government under Persian suzerainty, and the period saw continued construction at the sanctuary of Athena Lindia. - 490 BC – 408 BC: Hellenic Civilization Following the Greek victories of the Persian Wars Lindos joined the Athenian-led Delian League in 478 BCE and remained an Athenian tributary through most of the fifth century. The polis maintained its independence through the Peloponnesian War until 408 BCE, when Lindos joined Ialyssos and Kameiros in the synoecism that founded the new city of Rhodes. - 408 BC – 42 BC: Rhodian Republic After the synoecism of 408 BCE Lindos lost its independent polis status and became one of the three demes of the unified Rhodian Republic, though it retained its local civic identity and its great federal sanctuary of Athena Lindia continued to function as the religious heart of the new Rhodian state. Around 300 BCE the temple was rebuilt in its definitive Doric form following a fire, and the monumental propylaia and Hellenistic stoa terracing the acropolis took shape over the third and second centuries BCE. The Lindian Chronicle, an extensive inscribed inventory of the sanctuary's votive offerings compiled in 99 BCE, survives as the principal documentary record of the cult. - 42 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under Roman rule Lindos continued as the principal deme and second town of Rhodian territory, with the sanctuary of Athena Lindia receiving Roman dedications and a small Roman temple built on the acropolis around 300 CE. The site remained a regional religious center through the late antique period without major monumental development. - 395 AD – 1309 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Lindos became an episcopal see and the acropolis was fortified against the Arab naval raids of the seventh to ninth centuries, with the medieval Byzantine castle reusing the Hellenistic terraces. The site contracted to a fortified village through the middle Byzantine period as Rhodes shifted its administrative focus toward the northern capital. - 1309 AD – 1522 AD: Knights Hospitaller The Order of Saint John reinforced the Byzantine fortifications of Lindos in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries to make the acropolis a secondary stronghold guarding the eastern coast of Rhodes. The Hospitaller castle walls, gates, and the Church of Saint John within the citadel survive as the principal medieval monuments of the site. - 1522 AD – 1912 AD: Ottoman Empire After Suleiman the Magnificent's 1522 conquest of Rhodes, Lindos became a quiet Ottoman village inhabited largely by Greek sea captains, whose distinctive stone houses with painted interiors line the streets below the acropolis. The site retained its Christian population through the Ottoman centuries and saw little new construction beyond the captains' houses themselves. - 1912 AD – 1947 AD: Kingdom of Italy Following the Italian occupation of the Dodecanese in 1912 Lindos came under Italian colonial administration, and the acropolis was the focus of extensive Italian restoration work alongside the Danish archaeological excavations begun in 1902. Italian intervention rebuilt large portions of the Hellenistic propylaia and the medieval castle in ways later evaluated as historically problematic. - 1947 AD – 1974 AD: Kingdom of Greece Lindos joined the Kingdom of Greece in 1947 with the cession of the Dodecanese, becoming a small municipality of the new Dodecanese Prefecture. The postwar decades saw gradual depopulation alongside the beginnings of seasonal Aegean tourism. - 1974 AD – 2026 AD: Hellenic Republic Within the modern Hellenic Republic Lindos has been administered as a protected traditional settlement and archaeological site, with strict building controls preserving the Ottoman-era captains' houses and the medieval and ancient monuments above the village. The site continues to draw long-term scholarly excavation and substantial seasonal tourism as one of the most visited classical sanctuaries in the Aegean. ## Landmarks - Temple of Athena Lindia (built 300 BC) The Temple of Athena Lindia, a small tetrastyle amphiprostyle Doric structure at the summit of the acropolis, was rebuilt in its surviving form around 300 BCE after a fire destroyed the earlier Archaic temple traditionally founded by Danaos. The sanctuary attracted dedications from across the Greek world including from Egypt's Amasis II, Cyrene, and the kings of Pergamon, and remained the religious heart of Lindos and the wider Rhodian state through the Hellenistic and Roman centuries. - Hellenistic Propylaia and Stoa (built 200 BC) The monumental Hellenistic propylaia of the third century BCE and the long stoa fronting the upper terrace, built around 200 BCE, frame the approach to the Temple of Athena Lindia and represent one of the most ambitious sanctuary-terracing projects of the Hellenistic Aegean. The stoa and propylaia were heavily reconstructed by Italian archaeologists in the 1930s in interventions later considered historically problematic. - Lindian Chronicle (built 99 BC) The Lindian Chronicle is a long marble inscription set up in the sanctuary of Athena Lindia in 99 BCE, recording an inventory of the votive offerings dedicated at the shrine over the preceding centuries together with the divine epiphanies of the goddess. It is the most important documentary source for the cult and one of the principal Hellenistic inscriptions preserving the votive history of a Greek sanctuary. - Castle of Lindos (built 1317 AD) The Castle of Lindos was built by the Knights Hospitaller in the early fourteenth century on the foundations of the earlier Byzantine fortifications, reusing the Hellenistic terraces of the sanctuary as defensive platforms. The medieval walls, the eastern gate, and the small Church of Saint John within the citadel survive as the principal Hospitaller monuments of the site. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 300 - 700 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 2,000 - 300 BC: 3,000 - 100 BC: 2,500 - 200 AD: 2,000 - 500 AD: 1,500 - 800 AD: 800 - 1200 AD: 700 - 1500 AD: 1,500 - 1800 AD: 1,500 - 1950 AD: 800 - 2025 AD: 1,100 --- # Medeon, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/medeon Founded: 1600 BC Ended: 600 AD Coordinates: 38.4083, 22.6444 ## Description Medeon was an ancient Greek city in Phocis between modern Antikyra and Distomo on the northern shore of the Gulf of Corinth, about 15 km south of Delphi. The site is attested from the Mycenaean Late Bronze Age by extensive chamber tomb cemeteries excavated in the 1960s by the French School at Athens that yielded a rich corpus of LH IIIA-IIIC pottery, weapons, and bronze figurines. Through the Greek Iron Age and Classical period Medeon was a small Phocian polis administered within the Amphictyonic League and the Phocian Confederacy, attested by inscriptions and by mention in Strabo as one of the smaller Phocian towns destroyed during the Sacred Wars of the 4th century BCE. Under the Aetolian League and later Roman provincial administration Medeon continued as a small rural community without becoming a significant urban centre, and the site was effectively abandoned by the late Byzantine period in the 7th century CE. The archaeological site is unoccupied today and has not been replaced by any modern settlement carrying the ancient name. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "*Medeon") Mycenaean Late Bronze Age occupation of the Medeon site is attested by extensive chamber tomb cemeteries dated to the Late Helladic IIIA-IIIC periods, excavated by the French School at Athens in the 1960s. The community was part of the broader Mycenaean network of Phocian and Boeotian sites around the Gulf of Corinth until the Bronze Age collapse around 1100 BCE. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Medeon") Following the Bronze Age collapse the site continued as a small Iron Age rural community in the Phocian hinterland of Delphi. Through the long Greek dark age the settlement developed the modest agricultural base that would carry it into the Classical Greek polis system. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Amphictyonic League From the Archaic period Medeon was a small Phocian polis administered within the Amphictyonic League and the Phocian Confederacy. The town is mentioned by Strabo and surviving Phocian inscriptions as one of the smaller Phocian communities destroyed during the Third Sacred War of 356-346 BCE for the Phocian seizure of Delphi. - 323 BC – 279 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Following Alexander's death and the Lamian War of 322 BCE, Antigonid Macedonia reasserted control over central Greece including the small Phocian communities around the Gulf of Corinth. Medeon remained a modest rural settlement under nominal Antigonid suzerainty until the Galatian invasion of 279 BCE. - 279 BC – 146 BC: Aetolian League After the Aetolian League repulsed the Galatian invasion of 279 BCE the league assumed control of much of central Greece including the small Phocian poleis. Medeon continued as a minor rural settlement on the Phocian coast until the league's submission to Rome and the incorporation of central Greece into the Roman province of Achaea after 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Lucius Mummius's destruction of Corinth in 146 BCE Medeon was incorporated into the new Roman province of Achaea. Under the Roman Republic the small rural settlement continued without becoming a significant urban centre until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Medeon continued as a small rural settlement of the Roman province of Achaea in the Phocian hinterland of Delphi. The town never developed beyond village scale and remained a minor agricultural community until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 600 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman administration Medeon continued as a small rural community in the Phocian hinterland through the early Byzantine period. The settlement was effectively abandoned in the early 7th century CE during the broader Slavic and Avar disruptions of central Greece, after which the site never recovered as an urban centre. ## Landmarks - Medeon Mycenaean Cemetery (built 1400 BC) Extensive Late Bronze Age chamber tomb cemetery on the slopes of the Medeon ridge, excavated by the French School at Athens in the 1960s under Claude Vatin. The complex yielded over 200 LH IIIA-IIIC tombs with rich grave goods including Mycenaean painted pottery, bronze weapons, and clay figurines now in the Delphi Archaeological Museum, providing one of the most complete cemetery sequences for the Mycenaean Gulf of Corinth. - Acropolis of Medeon (built 500 BC) The small fortified hilltop acropolis of the Classical Greek polis, occupied from the Archaic period through Late Antique times. Modest sections of Classical and Hellenistic polygonal masonry survive on the heights of the Medeon ridge. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 300 - 700 BC: 500 - 400 BC: 1,500 - 100 BC: 800 - 200 AD: 600 - 500 AD: 300 - 600 AD: null --- # Messene, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/messene Founded: 2000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.175, 21.92 ## Description Ancient Messene is one of the great Hellenistic city foundations of the Peloponnese, occupying the southern slopes of Mount Ithome about 25 km north of Kalamata in southwestern Messenia. Bronze Age occupation of the Ithome acropolis is attested from around 2000 BCE as the Achaean settlement later remembered in epic as the seat of King Aphareus, before the Doric migration and successive Spartan conquests in the First and Second Messenian Wars reduced the Messenian population to helot status for over three centuries. After Sparta's defeat at Leuctra in 371 BCE the Theban general Epaminondas refounded Messene in 369 BCE on a grand scale as the capital of the liberated Messenian federation, surrounding the city with one of the most spectacular fortification circuits of the ancient Greek world — 9 kilometres long with 30 surviving guard towers. The polis continued through the Hellenistic and Roman periods as the principal centre of Messenia, and reduced occupation persisted into the Byzantine and medieval periods. The modern village of Mavromati occupies the upper city today, with the great walls, Asklepieion, Stadium, and Theatre preserved as one of the most extensively excavated Hellenistic urban ensembles in Greece. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1600 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Ithome") Middle Helladic occupation of the Mount Ithome acropolis from around 2000 BCE, the early Achaean settlement remembered in Greek tradition as the seat of the legendary Messenian kings. The fortified upper site overlooked the rich Messenian plain that fed the regional Bronze Age economy. - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "Ithome") Through the Late Helladic period Ithome was integrated into the wider Mycenaean palatial network of Messenia centred on the palace of Nestor at Pylos, with the Mount Ithome acropolis serving as a regional cult and refuge centre. Greek tradition remembered it as the seat of King Aphareus and his sons, and Late Helladic IIIB material attests substantial occupation until the Bronze Age collapse around 1100 BCE. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Ithome") Following the Bronze Age collapse, Dorian-speaking populations settled in Messenia and Ithome continued as a regional centre, attested by Geometric and early Archaic material on the acropolis. The community resisted growing Spartan pressure throughout the early Iron Age before the First Messenian War. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Ithome") Sparta conquered Messenia in the First Messenian War around 730-710 BCE and reduced the Messenians to helot status on the Ithome acropolis; a great Messenian revolt centred on Mount Ithome in the mid-5th century BCE was finally suppressed in 460 BCE, the Messenians were exiled, and the helot status persisted until the Theban liberation of Messenia after the Battle of Leuctra. Epaminondas refounded the city as Messene in 369 BCE as the new Messenian capital below Mount Ithome, liberating the Messenians and surrounding the city with the great 9-kilometre fortification circuit, until Alexander's death and the Diadochi settlement brought the Peloponnese into the Macedonian Hellenistic sphere. - 323 BC – 191 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Through the Hellenistic period Messene continued as a principal Peloponnesian polis within the Antigonid Macedonian hegemony, retaining its civic institutions and the great 9-kilometre fortification circuit raised by Epaminondas. The polis was finally forced into the Achaean League around 191 BCE under Philopoemen, ending its independent foreign policy. - 191 BC – 146 BC: Achaean League Messene was forced into the Achaean League around 191 BCE under Philopoemen, after which its independent foreign policy ended. The polis was integrated into the federated league of Peloponnesian poleis until the Roman dissolution of the league in the Achaean War of 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After the Roman conquest of Greece in 146 BCE Messene was incorporated into the new province of Achaea. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city retained its grand Hellenistic civic core through the Roman imperial period, with restoration work to the Asklepieion and the construction of an early 3rd-century house church among the principal Roman-era monuments. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Messini") Under the Eastern Roman Empire the urban core gradually contracted as the population shifted toward a smaller defensive settlement on the upper city, which became the seat of a bishopric. The Slavic incursions of the 6th–7th centuries and subsequent Saracen raids reshaped the surrounding countryside but the site remained continuously inhabited. - 1204 AD – 1262 AD: Principality of Achaea (known as "Messini") After the Fourth Crusade Messenia passed under the Frankish Principality of Achaea. The upper village continued as a small dependent settlement under Latin lordship until the Byzantine reconquest of the western Peloponnese. - 1262 AD – 1460 AD: Despotate of the Morea (known as "Messini") After the Byzantine reconquest, Messenia returned to imperial authority under the Despotate of the Morea ruled from Mystras. The Mavromati village in the upper city continued as a small mountain settlement through the Palaiologan period. - 1460 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Mavromati") Following the Ottoman conquest of the Despotate of the Morea in 1460, the upper city village known as Mavromati continued as a small Greek mountain community within the Sancak of Morea. The grand Hellenistic ruins around it were extensively quarried for local construction through nearly four centuries of Ottoman rule, until the Greek War of Independence (1821-1829) and the 1832 Treaty of Constantinople transferred Messenia to the new Kingdom of Greece. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Mavromati") Mavromati was incorporated into the newly founded Kingdom of Greece in 1832 and continued as a small Messenian mountain village. Systematic excavation of the ancient city began in the late 19th century and intensified under the Greek Archaeological Society from 1986 onwards. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Mavromati") Following the 1974 referendum abolishing the monarchy, Mavromati has continued as a small mountain village within the regional unit of Messenia, with an active archaeological park managed by the Greek Ministry of Culture. The site won the EU Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Award in 2011. ## Landmarks - City Walls of Messene (built 369 BC) The monumental fortification circuit of 9 kilometres surrounding the Hellenistic city, built immediately after the 369 BCE refoundation by Epaminondas as one of the most ambitious defensive systems of the ancient Greek world. The 30 surviving guard towers and the great Arcadian Gate on the northern approach represent the height of 4th-century BCE Greek military architecture. - Theatre of Messene (built 300 BC) The Hellenistic theatre on the western slope above the Asklepieion, with stone seating for around 5,000 spectators and a wide ceremonial space used for both performances and political assemblies. The theatre is one of the best preserved of any Greek city of comparable size. - Asklepieion of Messene (built 200 BC) The monumental sanctuary of Asklepios at the civic centre of the city, built around a colonnaded peristyle court with a Doric temple, propylaia, ekklesiasterion, and bouleuterion. The complex functioned as both a religious and political centre of Hellenistic Messene. - Stadium of Messene (built 200 BC) A monumental Hellenistic stadium-gymnasium complex in the southern part of the city, with stepped stone seating, a Doric stoa along its western flank, and the unusual feature of a heroon at the southern end terminating the stadium axis. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 500 - 1200 BC: 1,500 - 700 BC: 1,000 - 369 BC: 5,000 - 200 BC: 25,000 - 1 AD: 12,000 - 400 AD: 3,000 - 1000 AD: 800 - 1600 AD: 400 - 2020 AD: 200 --- # Mycenae, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/mycenae Founded: 1700 BC Ended: 150 BC Coordinates: 37.7306, 22.7558 ## Description Mycenae is the Bronze Age citadel and palatial center in the northeastern Peloponnese, about 90 km southwest of Athens, that gave its name to the Mycenaean civilization of Late Helladic Greece. Greek tradition remembered it as the seat of Agamemnon, king of the Achaeans in Homer's Iliad and leader of the expedition against Troy. From the shaft grave era of the 17th–16th centuries BCE through the palatial peak around 1350 BCE, Mycenae was a major center of palace economy and the script later known as Linear B, with administrative archives, monumental architecture, and far-reaching Aegean trade. Its surviving Cyclopean walls — so massive that later Greeks attributed them to the mythical one-eyed Cyclopes — and the Lion Gate of about 1250 BCE remain the iconic images of Mycenaean kingship, alongside the tholos known as the Treasury of Atreus. The palace was destroyed around 1200 BCE in the wider Bronze Age Collapse, and after a long reduced occupation a small classical polis on the site fought at Thermopylae and Plataea before being destroyed by neighboring Argos in 468 BCE; a brief Hellenistic refoundation petered out by the mid-2nd century BCE and the ruins were largely forgotten. The site was described by the 2nd-century CE traveler Pausanias, identified again in the modern era, and famously excavated by Heinrich Schliemann in 1876, who uncovered the gold death mask in Grave Circle A that he announced as the Mask of Agamemnon — in fact a Shaft Grave burial of about 1500 BCE, three centuries older than the Trojan War tradition. Mycenae was inscribed jointly with Tiryns on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. ## Historical Rulers - 1700 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization From an early Middle Helladic agricultural settlement on the low hill, Mycenae developed through the Shaft Grave era (c. 1600–1450 BCE) — when a militarised elite was buried in Grave Circles A and B with gold masks, weapons, and prestige goods showing Minoan, Aegean, and Near Eastern connections — into the fully developed palatial state of the Late Helladic period. A megaron palace on the acropolis, Cyclopean walls, the Lion Gate, tholos tombs including the Treasury of Atreus, and Linear B archives in administrative Greek (the place name attested as mu-ka-na-i) testify to a redistributive palace economy at the head of a network of palatial centres including Tiryns, Pylos, and Thebes. The palace was destroyed by fire around 1200 BCE during the wider Bronze Age Collapse that brought down palatial society across the Aegean. The citadel was partially reoccupied on a much reduced scale through the Postpalatial Late Helladic IIIC, but central administration and Linear B literacy were lost as the elaborate palace economy gave way to small-scale subsistence within the ruined walls. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement Through the Greek Dark Age and into the Geometric period the site survives only as a small village among the ruins. Memory of the Bronze Age citadel is preserved in oral epic tradition that will later be crystallized in the Homeric poems, where Mycenae 'rich in gold' is remembered as the seat of Agamemnon and overlord of the Achaeans. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization A small independent polis within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere, under the shadow of much larger Argos. Despite its modest size, Mycenae sent a contingent of eighty hoplites to Thermopylae in 480 BCE and again fought at Plataea in 479 BCE alongside the allied Greeks against the Persians; resentful of this independent stance, Argos destroyed the city around 468 BCE, dispersed its inhabitants, and reduced it to a dependent Argive settlement. The reduced Argive Mycenae continued as a small dependency through the late Classical period until Alexander's death and the Macedonian Hellenistic settlement of mainland Greece. - 323 BC – 150 BC: Antigonid Dynasty After Alexander's death the Argolid passed under the Antigonid Macedonian hegemony, and Mycenae continued as a small dependent settlement of Argos within the broader Macedonian Hellenistic sphere. Modest classical and Hellenistic buildings — including a temple of Athena and a small theater overlying the Bronze Age tomb of Clytemnestra — were built atop the ruins, but the settlement gradually dwindled through the 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE and was essentially abandoned by about 150 BCE. The 2nd-century CE traveler Pausanias later visited the deserted site and described the Lion Gate, the Treasury of Atreus, and the reputed tombs of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra; Heinrich Schliemann's 1876 excavation uncovered the gold-rich Shaft Graves of Grave Circle A and identified one of the masks as the Mask of Agamemnon, and Mycenae was inscribed jointly with Tiryns on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. ## Landmarks - Grave Circle B (built 1650 BC) Earlier of the two royal shaft grave enclosures at Mycenae, lying just outside the later citadel walls. Twenty-four graves, fourteen of them deep shafts, contain warrior burials of the early Mycenaean elite with bronze weapons, gold and silver vessels, and amber and faience imports. Grave Circle B documents the rise of the Shaft Grave dynasty a generation or two before the better-known Circle A. - Grave Circle A (built 1600 BC) Royal shaft grave enclosure containing six deep graves with nineteen burials, accompanied by the spectacular gold death masks, weapons, and prestige goods uncovered by Heinrich Schliemann in 1876. The gold mask Schliemann announced as the Mask of Agamemnon belongs to this circle and dates from about 1500 BCE — roughly three centuries earlier than the traditional date of the Trojan War — and is in fact the funerary mask of an unknown Shaft Grave-era king. The circle was later enclosed within the expanded Cyclopean walls and integrated into the ceremonial approach to the citadel. - Cyclopean Walls (built 1350 BC) Massive fortification walls built of enormous unworked limestone blocks fitted together without mortar, defining the citadel of Mycenae. Sections survive to over 7 meters in height with original heights estimated at over 12 meters and thicknesses of 5–8 meters. Later Greeks could not believe that ordinary mortals had moved such stones and attributed the construction to the mythical one-eyed Cyclopes, giving Cyclopean masonry its name. - Palace of Mycenae (built 1350 BC) Palatial complex on the summit of the citadel, organized around a megaron — a rectangular hall with central hearth and four columns supporting a clerestory roof — used for royal audiences and ceremonial banquets. The palace housed workshops, storerooms, and the administrative quarters that produced the Linear B tablets, and was decorated with fresco painting in Aegean style. It was destroyed by fire around 1200 BCE. - Cult Center of Mycenae (built 1300 BC) Religious complex on the lower terraces of the citadel including several shrines, frescoed rooms, and a deposit of distinctive painted clay figures and snake imagery. The cult center is one of the richest assemblages of Mycenaean palace religion known, providing rare archaeological evidence for the rituals that lie behind the Linear B references to deities such as Potnia, Poseidon, and an early form of Zeus. - Lion Gate (built 1250 BC) Monumental main entrance to the citadel of Mycenae, framed by two enormous upright limestone jambs and a single lintel block, surmounted by the famous triangular relief of two lionesses or lions flanking a central column over an altar. The Lion Gate is the earliest known monumental sculpture in mainland Greek architecture and the most recognizable image of Mycenaean civilization. - Treasury of Atreus (built 1250 BC) Monumental tholos tomb cut into the hillside outside the citadel, also known as the Tomb of Agamemnon. The corbelled stone dome spans 14.5 meters in diameter and rises to over 13 meters, making it the largest unsupported masonry vault in the ancient world before the Roman period. Greek tradition attributed it to the legendary king Atreus, father of Agamemnon; archaeologically it is the burial monument of a late palatial-era king of Mycenae. ## Population History - 1700 BC: 500 - 1500 BC: 3,000 - 1300 BC: 30,000 - 1200 BC: 10,000 - 1100 BC: 2,000 - 700 BC: 3,000 - 500 BC: 3,000 - 468 BC: 500 - 200 BC: 300 - 150 BC: null --- # Mystras, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/mystras Founded: 1249 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.0747, 22.3667 ## Description Mystras is a fortified medieval hill town in Laconia, in the southeastern Peloponnese, perched on a spur of Mount Taygetos about 5 km west-northwest of the modern town of Sparti and the site of ancient Sparta (a separate entry on this map). It was founded in 1249 by the Frankish prince William II of Villehardouin as the citadel of the Principality of Achaea, but within a generation it became the seat of the Byzantine Despotate of the Morea (1262-1460) and one of the last great centers of late Byzantine culture, scholarship, and church architecture. After its surrender to the Ottomans in 1460 it continued as a regional administrative and silk-producing town through Ottoman and brief Venetian rule, but it was sacked repeatedly during the Greek War of Independence and was effectively abandoned as a hill town after King Otto founded the new town of Sparti on the ancient Spartan site in 1834. Most inhabitants relocated to Sparti, but a portion of the community settled directly at the foot of the Mystras hill and founded the modern village of Mystras (Néos Mystras), which has continued as a small Greek community of roughly 1,000 inhabitants. The medieval hill site itself was emptied of its last permanent residents in the mid-20th century to allow archaeological conservation and was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1989, today managed as an open-air archaeological park preserving Byzantine churches, the despot's palace complex, and the Frankish-Byzantine castle on the summit, immediately above the inhabited modern village. ## Historical Rulers - 1249 AD – 1262 AD: Principality of Achaea The Frankish prince William II of Villehardouin built the castle on the conical hill of Myzithras in 1249 as one of three fortresses (with Maina and Monemvasia) intended to secure the Principality of Achaea's control over Laconia after the Fourth Crusade. After his defeat and capture by the Byzantines at the Battle of Pelagonia (1259), William ceded Mystras together with Monemvasia and Maina as ransom in 1262. - 1262 AD – 1460 AD: Despotate of the Morea From 1262 Mystras became the Byzantine administrative center of the Morea, and from 1349 it served as the capital of the semi-autonomous Despotate of the Morea, usually governed by a junior member of the Palaiologos imperial family. Under despots such as Manuel Kantakouzenos and the Palaiologoi it grew into a cultural and intellectual hub, home to the Neoplatonist philosopher Gemistos Plethon and a flourishing school of late Byzantine fresco painting in its churches and monasteries. In 1449 Constantine XI Palaiologos was crowned the last Byzantine emperor at Mystras before departing for Constantinople; the city was surrendered to Sultan Mehmed II by Despot Demetrios Palaiologos in 1460, seven years after the fall of Constantinople. - 1460 AD – 1687 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Misistra") Under Ottoman rule Mystras (Turkish Misistra) became the seat of a sancak and a regional center of silk production, with a population that included Greeks, Turks, and a substantial Jewish community settled by the Ottomans. The town remained substantially inhabited and several mosques and Ottoman buildings were added alongside the existing Byzantine fabric. - 1687 AD – 1715 AD: Republic of Venice (known as "Misistra") Mystras passed to Venice during the Morean War as part of the 'Kingdom of the Morea' established by the Treaty of Karlowitz (1699). Venetian rule was short-lived and economically disruptive, and the population declined before the Ottomans reconquered the Peloponnese in 1715. - 1715 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Misistra") After the Ottoman reconquest in 1715 Mystras returned to provincial Ottoman administration. The town was sacked by Albanian irregulars during the suppression of the Orlov Revolt in 1770, an event from which it never fully recovered, and it suffered further destruction during the Greek War of Independence beginning in 1821 before the territory was incorporated into the new Kingdom of Greece in 1832. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Mystras became part of the Kingdom of Greece established in 1832. In 1834 King Otto signed the decree founding the modern town of Sparti on the site of ancient Sparta on the valley floor, and most surviving inhabitants of the medieval hill town relocated there. A portion of the community, however, settled directly at the foot of the Mystras hill and founded a small village known as Mystras (later distinguished as Néos Mystras), which continued as the local rural community through the Greek monarchy — including the brief Second Republic of 1924-1935 — while the upper hill town was gradually emptied of its last permanent residents. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum abolishing the monarchy, Mystras continued as a small community in the municipality of Sparti, Laconia, with roughly 1,000 permanent inhabitants. The medieval hill site immediately above the village was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1989 and is managed as an open-air archaeological park, while the village below serves visitors to the late Byzantine churches, palace complex, and Frankish-Byzantine castle. ## Landmarks - Castle of Mystras (built 1249 AD) The hilltop citadel built by William II of Villehardouin in 1249 crowns the conical summit of the Mystras hill and gave the town its strategic dominance over the Eurotas valley. Successively held by Frankish, Byzantine, Ottoman, and Venetian garrisons, it preserves its outer walls, gate complex, and cisterns and is the highest point of the modern archaeological site. - Brontochion Monastery (built 1290 AD) A wealthy monastic complex on the lower slopes of Mystras whose two main churches, the Hagioi Theodoroi (late 13th century) and the Hodegetria or Afentiko (early 14th century), preserve some of the finest late Byzantine fresco cycles in Greece. The monastery accumulated extensive landholdings recorded in surviving chrysobulls of the Palaiologan emperors. - Metropolis of Saint Demetrios (built 1292 AD) The cathedral church of Mystras, traditionally founded around 1292 by Metropolitan Eugenios, is a three-aisled basilica later given an upper-storey cross-in-square superstructure. Its frescoes span the late 13th and 14th centuries and a marble slab in the floor traditionally marks the spot where Constantine XI Palaiologos was crowned in 1449. - Palace of the Despots (built 1300 AD) A multi-phase palace complex begun under the Frankish lords and greatly expanded by the Kantakouzenos and Palaiologos despots between the late 13th and mid-15th centuries. It is the largest surviving secular Byzantine palace and includes a long throne-room wing facing a wide ceremonial plateia, and has been the focus of extensive consolidation works since the early 2000s. - Peribleptos Monastery (built 1350 AD) A 14th-century monastery built partly into the rock face of the hill, whose katholikon preserves one of the most complete fresco programs of the Palaiologan renaissance, including scenes of the Divine Liturgy and the life of the Virgin. The complex is reached by a narrow path along the southern flank of the site. - House of Laskaris (built 1400 AD) One of the best-preserved late Byzantine townhouses in the lower town, traditionally associated with the Laskaris family. Its three-storey arrangement around an inner courtyard is representative of the elite urban architecture of Mystras in the final century of Byzantine rule. - Pantanassa Monastery (built 1428 AD) Founded in 1428 by John Frangopoulos, a high official at the despot's court, the Pantanassa is the latest of the major Byzantine churches at Mystras and combines a cross-in-square Byzantine plan with Gothic detailing in its bell tower and exterior arcades. It is the only building on the site still occupied, by a small community of nuns who maintain the church. ## Population History - 1249 AD: 500 - 1300 AD: 6,000 - 1400 AD: 20,000 - 1460 AD: 15,000 - 1600 AD: 10,000 - 1770 AD: 8,000 - 1821 AD: 3,000 - 1834 AD: 500 - 1924 AD: 700 - 2020 AD: 1,000 --- # Nikopolis, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/nikopolis Founded: 29 BC Ended: 900 AD Coordinates: 39.0083, 20.7333 ## Description Nikopolis — Greek for 'City of Victory' — was a major Roman city in Epirus founded in 29 BCE by Octavian (the future emperor Augustus) to commemorate his decisive naval victory over Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BCE. Located on the isthmus connecting the Ambracian Gulf to the Ionian Sea, about 7 km north of modern Preveza, the city was peopled by forced synoecism of populations transferred from surrounding Epirote, Aetolian, and Acarnanian communities. Nikopolis rapidly grew into the principal city of Epirus, with the Augustus Monument on the hill where the emperor's tent had stood commemorating the victory, alongside a great theatre seating tens of thousands, an odeon, a stadium hosting the new Actia games, and the headquarters of the Roman provincial administration. The philosopher Epictetus taught his celebrated Stoic school here after his expulsion from Rome in 94 CE, and the city flourished as a commercial hub through the imperial period. Repeated raids from Goths in the 4th century and Slavs in the 6th–7th centuries reduced Nikopolis to a fortified Byzantine settlement, which was effectively abandoned around 900 CE as the population shifted to the more defensible coastal town of Preveza. The site preserves one of the most extensive late-Roman and early Byzantine urban ensembles in Greece, with monumental Christian basilicas and the Augustan victory monument as the principal landmarks. UNESCO inscribed the site on the World Heritage Tentative List. ## Historical Rulers - 29 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Nicopolis") Founded in 29 BCE by Octavian as a victory city after the Battle of Actium two years earlier, populated by forced synoecism of surrounding Epirote, Aetolian, and Acarnanian communities. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Nicopolis") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Nikopolis became the principal city of Roman Epirus, hosted the quadrennial Actia games, served as the capital of the new province of Epirus under Trajan around 110 CE, and was home to the famous Stoic school of Epictetus from 94 CE. - 395 AD – 900 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Nikopolis continued as a metropolitan archbishopric and the principal city of late Roman Epirus, with at least six monumental basilicas built between the 5th and 6th centuries. Gothic and Slavic raids progressively reduced the urban population, and the city was effectively abandoned around 900 CE as the residual community shifted to the new coastal town of Preveza. ## Landmarks - Augustus Monument (built 29 BC) The monumental victory memorial built by Octavian on the hill north of Nikopolis, on the site of his pre-battle camp. The monument featured a podium decorated with the bronze rams of captured ships from the Battle of Actium and a long inscription dedicating the victory to Mars and Neptune. - Roman Theatre of Nikopolis (built 20 AD) The monumental theatre of Nikopolis with 77 rows of seating accommodating tens of thousands of spectators, built in the early imperial period and used for the quadrennial Actia games as well as theatrical performances. The cavea built into the natural hillside is one of the largest in the Roman East. - City Walls of Nikopolis (built 50 AD) The monumental Roman fortification circuit and a smaller Byzantine inner enceinte, defining the original 1.4 square kilometre Augustan city and the much-reduced late antique core. The walls preserve substantial stretches of both Roman ashlar masonry and Byzantine rubble work. - Basilica of Doumetios (built 530 AD) A great 6th-century Christian basilica named after its founding bishop, featuring some of the finest early Byzantine floor mosaics in Greece. The mosaics depict a paradise garden with birds, fountains, and elaborate geometric panels, and represent the height of late antique Nikopolitan ecclesiastical art. ## Population History - 29 BC: 10,000 - 100 AD: 80,000 - 300 AD: 60,000 - 500 AD: 30,000 - 700 AD: 8,000 - 900 AD: null --- # Olympia, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/olympia Founded: 1100 BC Ended: 426 AD Coordinates: 37.6383, 21.63 ## Description Olympia was a major panhellenic sanctuary in the western Peloponnese, the home of the Olympic Games and one of the most important religious centres of the ancient Greek world. Located in the valley of the Alpheios River in Elis, the sanctuary developed from an Iron Age cult site dedicated to local divinities into the great precinct of Zeus Olympios from the 8th century BCE, with the first historical Olympic festival traditionally dated to 776 BCE. Every four years for nearly twelve centuries the games drew athletes and spectators from across the Greek-speaking world and beyond, and the sanctuary accumulated monumental architecture including the Temple of Hera, the Temple of Zeus housing Phidias's chryselephantine statue of Zeus — one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World — the Bouleuterion, the Heraion, the Pelopion, and the stadium. After Christian emperors progressively suppressed pagan cults, the games were finally banned by Theodosius I in 393 CE and the temples were closed; Theodosius II ordered the destruction of the temple precinct in 426 CE, and successive earthquakes in the 6th century combined with floods from the Alpheios and Kladeos rivers buried the site under meters of silt. The sanctuary lay forgotten until rediscovered by the British antiquary Richard Chandler in 1766, and systematic German excavations began in 1875 and have continued to the present. The adjacent modern Greek village of Archaia Olympia, founded in the 19th century to serve the archaeological excavations and growing tourism, is a separate post-rediscovery settlement; the archaeological site itself was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1989. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 BC – 776 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Olympia") After the Late Bronze Age collapse a local Iron Age cult site grew in the Alpheios valley dedicated to chthonic and Pelopid heroes alongside an early cult of Zeus. Archaeological deposits from the 11th-9th centuries BCE include bronze tripods and figurines that document votive activity well before the historical founding of the games. - 776 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization Traditionally founded in 776 BCE under Iphitos of Elis, the Olympic Games were held every four years in the sacred precinct (Altis) overseen by the polis of Elis. The fifth-century Temple of Zeus by Libon of Elis housed Phidias's chryselephantine statue, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the sanctuary's prestige drew dedications from Greek city-states, Macedonian kings, and later Hellenistic monarchs across the Mediterranean, until Alexander's death brought the wider Greek world into the Macedonian Hellenistic sphere. - 323 BC – 146 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Through the Hellenistic period Elis and the sanctuary of Olympia passed under the Antigonid Macedonian hegemony over the Peloponnese, with the Eleans retaining ceremonial control of the sanctuary even as the wider polis came under successive Antigonid and Achaean League influence. The Olympic Games continued without interruption every four years, drawing dedications from Hellenistic monarchs across the Mediterranean, until the Roman annexation of Greece in 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Lucius Mummius's sack of Corinth in 146 BCE the Greek world was incorporated into Roman administration, and Olympia continued as a Roman provincial sanctuary. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Sulla looted the precinct in 86 BCE to fund his Mithridatic campaigns, but the games were revived under Augustus and the Roman emperors made significant dedications and restorations; Nero notoriously delayed the games of 67 CE to compete personally and was awarded victories in chariot racing. Theodosius I's edicts of 393 CE banned the Olympic Games and other pagan festivals as part of his suppression of traditional Greek and Roman cult. - 395 AD – 426 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) administration the sanctuary remained closed and was finally destroyed in 426 CE when Theodosius II ordered the demolition of the temple precinct. The great statue of Zeus had already been removed to Constantinople, where it later perished in a fire, and the sanctuary was buried by sixth-century earthquakes and flooding of the Alpheios and Kladeos rivers. ## Landmarks - Temple of Hera (Heraion) (built 590 BC) One of the oldest Doric temples in Greece, built around 590 BCE on the northern edge of the Altis. The temple's wooden columns were gradually replaced with stone over centuries, preserving the transition from archaic timber to monumental stone architecture. The 5th-century Hermes of Praxiteles was discovered in the cella in 1877 and is one of the few classical Greek originals to survive. - Olympic Stadium (built 500 BC) The earthen stadium east of the Altis where the athletic events of the Olympic Games were held. The course is 192.27 metres long, traditionally said to be the distance Heracles covered in one breath, and the stadium could accommodate roughly 45,000 spectators on its sloping embankments. The starting and finish line slabs survive in situ. - Temple of Zeus (built 456 BC) The great Doric temple completed around 456 BCE by the architect Libon of Elis to house Phidias's chryselephantine statue of Zeus enthroned, completed around 435 BCE and counted among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The 13-metre-tall gold-and-ivory statue stood in the cella until the late 4th or early 5th century CE; the temple's foundations and column drums survive in situ alongside the famous pedimental sculptures preserved in the Olympia Museum. - Phidias's Workshop (built 435 BC) The workshop building west of the Temple of Zeus where Phidias assembled the great gold-and-ivory statue of Zeus around 435 BCE. The workshop was later converted into a 5th-century Christian basilica; excavations have recovered ivory chisels, terracotta moulds for drapery, and a cup inscribed 'I belong to Phidias'. - Palaestra and Gymnasium (built 300 BC) Hellenistic athletic training facilities northwest of the sanctuary, built in the 3rd century BCE. The Palaestra is a square colonnaded building used for wrestling and boxing training, while the adjoining Gymnasium provided a covered running track to allow athletes to train regardless of weather. ## Population History - 1100 BC: 100 - 500 BC: 500 - 1 AD: 1,500 - 200 AD: 1,000 - 426 AD: null --- # Orchomenos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/orchomenos Founded: 2800 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.4953, 22.9783 ## Description Orchomenos in north-western Boeotia was one of the principal Mycenaean palatial centres of central Greece, traditionally founded by King Minyas and his Minyan dynasty from coastal Thessaly. The Mycenaean palace and the great beehive tomb known as the Treasury of Minyas mark the 14th-13th century BCE city as a serious rival to neighbouring Thebes and Mycenae, with control of an enormous hydraulic drainage system that turned the marshes of Lake Kopaïs into productive farmland. The palace was destroyed by fire around 1200 BCE during the wider Bronze Age collapse, but the site re-emerged in the early Iron Age as a major Boeotian polis, joining the Boeotian League around 600 BCE and contributing thirty ships to the legendary Trojan War expedition. After siding with Sparta against Thebes in the Corinthian War, Orchomenos was twice sacked by the Theban-led Boeotian League in 364 and 349 BCE, before being rebuilt and re-fortified by Philip II and Alexander the Great after the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BCE in reward for backing the Macedonians against Thebes. The Hellenistic theatre, the great 4th-century fortification walls, and the Temple of Asklepios were built in this period of Macedonian patronage. After incorporation into the Roman world from 146 BCE the town remained small but functional, and the great Byzantine Church of the Panagia of Skripou erected in 873-874 CE under Emperor Basil I marks the site's continuity into the medieval period. Under Frankish, Catalan, Florentine, and Ottoman rule the village continued on the same plain as a small Boeotian agricultural community, and was incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece in 1832. Modern Orchomenos is the seat of the Orchomenos Municipality of Boeotia with roughly 9,400 inhabitants, with the Mycenaean palace, the Treasury of Minyas, and the Byzantine church of Skripou the principal heritage attractions. ## Historical Rulers - 2800 BC – 1600 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Orchomenos") Earliest occupation at Orchomenos in the Early Bronze Age from around 2800 BCE, with characteristic round houses of 2-6 metres diameter excavated on the lower town. Through the Middle Helladic period the settlement grew into a substantial proto-urban centre at the base of Mount Akontion on the northern edge of the Kopaïs basin. - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization Through the Late Helladic period Orchomenos rose to become one of the principal Mycenaean palatial centres of central Greece, traditionally the seat of King Minyas and his Minyan dynasty. The 14th-13th century BCE city built the great beehive tomb known as the Treasury of Minyas, controlled a trading port at Larymna on the Euboean Gulf, and undertook one of the largest hydraulic engineering projects of the Bronze Age in draining the marshes of Lake Kopaïs. The palace was destroyed by fire around 1200 BCE during the wider Mycenaean collapse, and the city contributed thirty ships to the legendary Trojan War expedition according to Homer's Catalogue of Ships. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement Following the Mycenaean collapse the site continued at much-reduced scale through the Greek Dark Age, with Submycenaean and Protogeometric occupation attested in the lower town. By the Geometric period Orchomenos re-emerged as a regional Boeotian centre and the seat of the cult of the Charites (Graces), preparing the ground for its development as a major Archaic polis. - 700 BC – 338 BC: Hellenic Civilization Orchomenos joined the Boeotian League around 600 BCE and struck its own coinage from the mid-6th century, fighting alongside Thebes against Xerxes in the Persian Wars of 480-479 BCE. The long rivalry with Thebes culminated in Orchomenos siding with Sparta during the Corinthian War (395-394 BCE) and being twice sacked by the Theban-led Boeotian League in 364 and 349 BCE. Philip II's victory at the nearby Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BCE ended the era of independent Boeotian poleis. - 338 BC – 323 BC: Argead Dynasty After the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BCE Philip II of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great rebuilt Orchomenos in reward for the city siding with the Macedonians against Thebes during Alexander's accession campaign of 335 BCE. The great 4th-century fortification walls, the theatre, and the Temple of Asklepios date to this Argead reconstruction, until Alexander's death at Babylon in 323 BCE. - 323 BC – 146 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Through the Wars of the Diadochi and the Antigonid period Orchomenos continued as a small Boeotian town within the Macedonian hegemonic sphere of mainland Greece. The Hellenistic theatre remained in use as a venue for the Charitesia festival of musical and poetical competitions, until the Roman dissolution of the Achaean League in 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Orchomenus") After the Roman dissolution of the Achaean League in 146 BCE, Orchomenos was incorporated into the Roman provincial settlement of Macedonia and Achaea. Sulla defeated Mithridates VI's general Archelaus at the Battle of Orchomenos in 86 BCE, a sequel to his victory at Chaeronea, and the town continued at a reduced scale through the late Republic until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Orchomenus") Under the Roman imperial peace Orchomenos remained a small Boeotian town within the Roman province of Achaea. The 4th-century BCE theatre continued in occasional use through the 4th century CE, but the population had contracted substantially by late antiquity, until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1205 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Skripou") Under Eastern Roman administration the small Boeotian village took the name Skripou, derived from a Slavic or Latin form, and continued as a rural settlement on the northern edge of the Kopaïs basin. The great Byzantine Church of the Panagia of Skripou was erected in 873-874 CE under Emperor Basil I by the protospatharios Leon, marking the village's significance as a small middle-Byzantine ecclesiastical centre. - 1205 AD – 1460 AD: Duchy of Athens (known as "Skripou") After the Fourth Crusade Boeotia passed to the Frankish Duchy of Athens under the de la Roche family, then through the Catalan Company from 1311 and the Florentine Acciaioli family from 1388. Skripou continued as a small village on the Kopaïs basin through the long medieval period until the Ottoman conquest of central Greece in 1460. - 1460 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Skripou") Following Mehmed II's conquest of the Duchy of Athens in 1460, Skripou was incorporated into the eyalet (later vilayet) of Rumelia as a small Christian village. The community persisted as a modest agricultural settlement on the edge of the Kopaïs marshes until the Greek War of Independence brought Boeotia into the new Greek state. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Skripou") Skripou became part of the new Kingdom of Greece established in 1832 and continued as a small Boeotian village near the drained Kopaïs basin. Systematic excavation of the ancient site began in the late 19th century and the village was officially renamed Orchomenos in 1916 to recover the ancient name, and the Greek monarchy continued until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Orchomenos has continued as the seat of the modern Orchomenos Municipality of the Boeotia regional unit of Central Greece. The modern town has roughly 9,400 inhabitants within the wider municipality, with the Mycenaean palace, the Treasury of Minyas, the 4th-century BCE theatre, and the Byzantine Church of Skripou the principal heritage attractions. ## Landmarks - Mycenaean Palace of Orchomenos (built 1400 BC) The Mycenaean palatial complex east of the Treasury of Minyas, a three-winged structure with frescoed walls of the 14th-13th centuries BCE. Only partially excavated, the palace foundations attest a major centre of Mycenaean Greek administration rivalling Mycenae and Thebes, destroyed by fire around 1200 BCE during the wider Bronze Age collapse. - Treasury of Minyas (built 1250 BC) The great Mycenaean tholos tomb of Orchomenos built around 1250 BCE, traditionally identified with the legendary King Minyas and one of the greatest burial monuments of the Mycenaean world alongside the Treasury of Atreus at Mycenae. The 30-metre dromos leads to a circular beehive chamber faced in dark grey marble with bronze rosette decorations, and the single limestone lintel block above the doorway is six metres long and weighs several tons. Partially restored by the architect-archaeologist Anastasios Orlandos in the 20th century. - Ancient Theatre of Orchomenos (built 300 BC) The Hellenistic theatre of Orchomenos built around 300 BCE under the Macedonian reconstruction by Philip and Alexander, the principal venue for the Charitesia festival of musical and poetical competitions in honour of the Charites (Graces). The orchestra, cavea, and scaena foundations were discovered in 1972 and the theatre remained in occasional use through the 4th century CE. - Church of the Panagia of Skripou (built 874 AD) The great middle-Byzantine cross-in-square church of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary at Skripou, erected in 873-874 CE under Emperor Basil I by the protospatharios Leon as inscribed on the apse. The church is one of the principal surviving 9th-century monuments of mainland Greece and incorporates substantial reused ancient marble blocks from the Hellenistic theatre and Temple of Asklepios. ## Population History - 2800 BC: 500 - 1500 BC: 8,000 - 1200 BC: 12,000 - 1000 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 6,000 - 338 BC: 8,000 - 100 BC: 4,000 - 200 AD: 3,000 - 800 AD: 1,500 - 1500 AD: 800 - 1832 AD: 1,200 - 1950 AD: 4,000 - 2021 AD: 9,400 --- # Patras, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/patras Founded: 1100 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.2467, 21.7345 ## Description Patras (Greek Πάτρα, ancient Πάτραι) is the third-largest city of Greece and the regional capital of Achaea on the southern shore of the entrance to the Gulf of Patras, opposite the western tip of Aetolia. Founded according to tradition by Achaean refugees from the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1100 BCE as the synoecism of three older Mycenaean settlements — Aroe, Antheia, and Mesatis — named after their legendary unifier Patreus. The polis was one of the twelve cities of the Achaean League along the northern Peloponnese, and gained outsized importance after Augustus refounded it in 31 BCE as the Roman colony of Colonia Augusta Aroe Patrensis for veterans of the Battle of Actium. According to Christian tradition Saint Andrew the Apostle was martyred at Patras around 60 CE on an X-shaped cross that became the modern symbol of the Saltire (Saint Andrew's Cross). Patras continued as a major Byzantine port and metropolitan see, was captured by the Frankish Principality of Achaea after 1205, returned to Byzantine rule under the Despotate of the Morea, and fell to the Ottomans in 1458. The Greek War of Independence began in Patras on 25 March 1821 with Bishop Germanos's proclamation at the Agia Lavra Monastery, and the city was incorporated into the new Greek state in 1830. Modern Patras is a city of about 213,000 inhabitants, the principal western Greek port and ferry terminal to Italy, host of the great Patras Carnival, and the seat of the University of Patras and several other major regional institutions. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Patrai") Patras was founded around 1100 BCE by Achaean refugees from the Mycenaean collapse as the synoecism of three older settlements — Aroe, Antheia, and Mesatis — named after their legendary unifier King Patreus. Through the Greek Dark Age the community developed the agricultural and maritime base that would support its emergence as an Archaic Greek polis on the Gulf of Patras. - 800 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Patrai") From the early Archaic period Patras emerged as one of the twelve cities of the original Achaean League along the northern Peloponnese within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere. The polis alternated between Spartan and Athenian alignment through the Classical period, and was incorporated into the Corinthian League under Philip II in the 330s BCE, until Alexander's death and the Diadochi settlement brought it into the broader Hellenistic order. - 323 BC – 281 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Patrai") Through the Wars of the Diadochi Patras was held in the Antigonid Macedonian sphere over the Peloponnese while the original Achaean League remained dissolved. The polis passed through the Antigonid order until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE and the foundation of the renewed Achaean League. - 281 BC – 146 BC: Achaean League (known as "Patrai") Patras was one of the four founding cities of the renewed Achaean League in 280 BCE, alongside Dyme, Pharae, and Tritaea. The polis served as a principal port of the federation and a major commercial centre on the Gulf of Patras until the league's defeat in the Achaean War of 146 BCE and the subsequent destruction of Corinth. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Patrai") After Mummius's destruction of Corinth in 146 BCE Patras was incorporated into the Roman provincial system. Under the late Republic Patras was reduced in importance until Mark Antony's defeat at the Battle of Actium in 31 BCE drew the city back into prominence as the staging point for the Augustan settlement of the western Greek coast. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Patrae") In 31 BCE Augustus refounded Patras as the Roman colony of Colonia Augusta Aroe Patrensis for veterans of the Battle of Actium, making the city the principal Roman administrative and commercial centre of western Greece. According to Christian tradition Saint Andrew the Apostle was martyred at Patras around 60 CE on an X-shaped cross, founding the cult of Saint Andrew that made the city a major Christian pilgrimage destination. Patras flourished through the imperial peace as the metropolis of Roman Achaea, with a great forum, a Roman odeon, an aqueduct, and the cult of Demeter Panachaia, until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1205 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Patrai") Under the Eastern Roman administration Patras continued as a major Byzantine port and metropolitan see of the Peloponnese. The city famously withstood the great Slavic siege of 805-807 CE with the legendary aid of Saint Andrew, after which the imperial authorities resettled the depopulated countryside and the metropolitan see was elevated to autocephalous status by Emperor Nikephoros I, until the Fourth Crusade's establishment of Frankish lordship in 1205. - 1205 AD – 1429 AD: Principality of Achaea After the Fourth Crusade Patras became one of the principal cities of the Frankish Principality of Achaea, with the city and its archbishopric held as a Latin barony under the Villehardouin and Angevin princes. The Latin Archbishop of Patras emerged as a major regional power, and the great Frankish castle was built on the acropolis hill above the harbour until the Byzantine recovery under the Despotate of the Morea. - 1429 AD – 1458 AD: Despotate of the Morea (known as "Patrai") Constantine Palaiologos — later the last Byzantine emperor Constantine XI — captured Patras for the Despotate of the Morea in 1429 after a long campaign against the Latin archbishops. The city was held as a Despotate stronghold until the Ottoman conquest of the Peloponnese by Mehmed II in 1458. - 1458 AD – 1830 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Balıbadra") Mehmed II's Ottoman armies captured Patras in 1458 along with the rest of the Despotate of the Morea, after which the city — Turkified as Balıbadra — became a kaza centre within the Sancak of the Morea. The Greek War of Independence was traditionally begun by Metropolitan Germanos of Patras's proclamation at the Agia Lavra Monastery on 25 March 1821, and after a long siege the city was incorporated into the new Greek state by the 1830 London Protocol. - 1830 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Patrai") Patras became part of the new Greek state established by the 1830 London Protocol and the 1832 Treaty of Constantinople, reverting to its ancient Greek name. The city grew rapidly as the principal western port of the new kingdom, with major currant export trade in the 19th century, and the monarchy continued — apart from the Second Hellenic Republic and the Axis Occupation — until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Patra") Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Patras has continued as the third-largest city of the Hellenic Republic. The city has about 213,000 inhabitants and is the principal western Greek port with ferry connections to Italy, the host of the great Patras Carnival, and the seat of the University of Patras and several other major regional institutions. ## Landmarks - Roman Odeon of Patras (built 160 AD) A small Roman covered theatre built in the mid-2nd century CE in the centre of the colonia, with a seating capacity of approximately 2,300 spectators and a richly decorated marble scaenae frons. Excavated in the 1890s and restored in the 1950s, the odeon now hosts the Patras International Festival and other cultural events as one of the principal surviving Roman monuments of the western Greek mainland. - Castle of Patras (built 550 AD) The fortified acropolis hill above the harbour, originally fortified by Justinian I in the 6th century CE on the site of the ancient Patrai acropolis and substantially rebuilt by the Frankish Villehardouin princes and the Ottomans. The triangular Byzantine and Frankish-Ottoman castle survives in restored form as the principal medieval monument of the modern city. - Church of Saint Andrew of Patras (built 1908 AD) The great modern basilica of Saint Andrew the Apostle, built between 1908 and 1974 on the site of the apostle's traditional martyrdom in 60 CE, where an ancient church and a Frankish-Ottoman successor previously stood. The cathedral houses the relics of Saint Andrew returned from Italy in 1964 and is one of the largest Orthodox churches in the Balkans, hosting up to 7,000 worshippers. - Rio-Antirrio Bridge (built 2004 AD) The Charilaos Trikoupis Bridge across the mouth of the Gulf of Corinth between Rio (8 km northeast of Patras) and Antirrio in Aetolia, completed in 2004 as one of the world's longest multi-span cable-stayed bridges at 2,883 metres. The bridge replaced the historic Rio-Antirrio ferry crossing and is the principal road link between the western Peloponnese and central Greece. ## Population History - 1100 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 200 BC: 10,000 - 27 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 25,000 - 400 AD: 20,000 - 800 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 15,000 - 1205 AD: 12,000 - 1458 AD: 8,000 - 1700 AD: 15,000 - 1830 AD: 10,000 - 1900 AD: 38,000 - 1950 AD: 80,000 - 2000 AD: 170,000 - 2020 AD: 213,000 --- # Pella, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/pella Founded: 400 BC Ended: 1300 AD Coordinates: 40.7547, 22.5211 ## Description Pella was the new royal capital of ancient Macedon, founded around 400 BCE by King Archelaus I in the Bottiaean plain of Central Macedonia to replace the older royal seat at Aigai. Set originally on a coastal inlet of the Thermaic Gulf — now silted up some 25 km inland — the new capital quickly grew into the largest and richest city of Macedonia, becoming the birthplace of Philip II (382 BCE) and Alexander the Great (356 BCE). Pella flourished as the political and cultural centre of the Argead and Antigonid kings, hosting the philosophical school of Aristotle as Alexander's tutor and producing some of the most celebrated Hellenistic pebble mosaics surviving from the ancient world. After the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BCE the city was sacked, declined gradually as Thessalonica overtook its administrative role, suffered earthquake destruction around 90 BCE, and was reduced to a small Roman provincial town. Late antique and Byzantine occupation persisted in a fortified village atop the ruins, but the site was eventually abandoned during the medieval period. The modern town of Pella was established about a kilometre east of the archaeological zone in the 19th century, and systematic excavations under the Greek Archaeological Service from 1953 onwards have uncovered the great Hellenistic palace, agora, and the famous mosaic houses of Dionysus and Helen of Troy. ## Historical Rulers - 400 BC – 336 BC: Argead Dynasty Founded around 400 BCE by King Archelaus I as the new royal capital of Macedon, replacing the older Argead seat at Aigai. Pella rapidly grew under Archelaus's successors into the largest city of Macedonia and became the birthplace of Philip II in 382 BCE and Alexander the Great in 356 BCE, with the celebrated court culture that drew Aristotle as Alexander's tutor. - 336 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire Under Alexander the Great Pella remained the formal seat of the Macedonian throne even as the king campaigned across Asia. The dynastic court and royal women — including Olympias — continued to reside at the palace, and the city benefited from the wealth flowing back from the eastern conquests. - 323 BC – 168 BC: Antigonid Dynasty After the Wars of the Diadochi the Antigonid kings made Pella their principal residence, presiding over its architectural and cultural peak in the 3rd century BCE under Antigonus II Gonatas and his successors. The mosaic-paved houses, the agora covering 7 hectares, and the great central palace complex all date to this Antigonid golden age. Pella was sacked by Lucius Aemilius Paullus's Roman army after the Battle of Pydna in 168 BCE, ending Macedonian royal occupation. - 168 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Under Roman administration Pella was reduced to a provincial town within the new province of Macedonia, with the capital function transferred to Thessalonica. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. A devastating earthquake around 90 BCE destroyed much of the city, after which a smaller settlement was rebuilt over the ruins. By the late 2nd century CE Lucian could describe Pella as 'now insignificant, with very few inhabitants.' - 395 AD – 1300 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration the diminished site continued as a small fortified Byzantine village built atop the ruins of the Hellenistic capital. The village persisted through the late Roman and middle Byzantine periods before being effectively abandoned during the late medieval era, after which the population centre shifted to the modern town site a kilometre to the east. ## Landmarks - Palace of Pella (built 350 BC) The royal palace complex of the Argead and Antigonid kings on a low hill above the city, with seven monumental peristyle courtyards covering some 60,000 square metres. Built in successive phases from the mid-4th century BCE through the Antigonid period, the palace housed Alexander the Great in his youth and the Antigonid royal court until its destruction at the Roman sack of 168 BCE. - House of Dionysus (built 320 BC) A grand elite residence of the late 4th century BCE preserving the celebrated pebble mosaic of Dionysus riding a panther, considered one of the finest surviving examples of Greek pebble-mosaic art. The house follows the canonical peristyle plan with reception suites arranged around a colonnaded central courtyard. - House of Helen of Troy (built 300 BC) An elite Hellenistic residence preserving multiple monumental pebble mosaics, including the famous Abduction of Helen by Theseus and the Stag Hunt traditionally attributed to Gnosis. The house represents the height of Macedonian aristocratic display at Pella's late 4th-century BCE peak. - Agora of Pella (built 300 BC) The monumental civic centre of Pella, covering approximately 7 hectares and surrounded by colonnaded stoas, workshops, and storage facilities. The agora was the largest public square of any city in Hellenistic Macedonia and served as the principal commercial and ceremonial space. ## Population History - 400 BC: 3,000 - 350 BC: 15,000 - 250 BC: 25,000 - 168 BC: 12,000 - 90 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 3,000 - 400 AD: 1,500 - 800 AD: 800 - 1200 AD: 300 - 1300 AD: null --- # Phaistos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/phaistos Founded: 3600 BC Ended: 200 BC Coordinates: 35.05139, 24.81361 ## Description Phaistos is one of the three great Minoan palace centres of Bronze Age Crete, occupying a ridge above the Mesara plain in south-central Crete some 60 km south of Heraklion and 6 km from the Libyan Sea. Neolithic occupation begins around 3600 BCE, with the first palace constructed around 1900 BCE alongside Knossos and Malia. The Old Palace was destroyed and rebuilt three times across the Middle Minoan period before the New Palace flourished between 1700 and 1450 BCE as one of the most architecturally refined palatial complexes of the Aegean. The site is internationally famous for the Phaistos Disc, a clay disc inscribed with stamped hieroglyphic signs in a still-undeciphered script, discovered in 1908. The palace was destroyed for the final time around 1400 BCE and never rebuilt, after which the site lay almost abandoned through the Late Bronze Age and Dark Age. Phaistos was reoccupied in the 8th century BCE as a Cretan polis that minted its own coinage and contested regional influence with nearby Gortyn for nearly five centuries, until the Gortynians destroyed the city around the end of the 3rd century BCE. The site was then permanently abandoned. The Italian Archaeological School at Athens began systematic excavations under Federico Halbherr in 1900, and Phaistos was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2025. ## Historical Rulers - 3600 BC – 3000 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Phaistos") Earliest occupation on the ridge above the Mesara plain dates to the Late Neolithic around 3600 BCE. A small farming community established itself on the hilltop that would later carry the great Minoan palace, with material culture typical of the broader Cretan Late Neolithic horizon. - 3000 BC – 1450 BC: Minoan Civilization Through the Prepalatial Early Bronze Age the Phaistos hill grew into a substantial proto-urban settlement participating in the rising Minoan cultural network of central and southern Crete. The Old Palace was constructed around 1900 BCE as one of the principal Minoan palatial centres alongside Knossos and Malia, destroyed and rebuilt three times across the Middle Minoan period — most likely by earthquakes — and produced the celebrated Phaistos Disc found in a basement room in 1908. The New Palace, rebuilt around 1700 BCE on a grander scale, marks the architectural and cultural peak of Phaistos with its monumental staircase, refined ashlar masonry, and elegant central court, regarded as one of the most architecturally distinguished Minoan palaces. - 1450 BC – 1400 BC: Mycenaean Civilization Following the destructions across Minoan Crete in the mid-15th century BCE, Phaistos came briefly under Mycenaean Greek-speaking administration along with the rest of the island. The palace was destroyed for the final time around 1400 BCE and not rebuilt, ending palatial occupation at the site. - 1400 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Phaistos") After the final destruction of the Minoan-Mycenaean palace around 1400 BCE the Phaistos hill was largely abandoned for nearly three centuries, with only sparse Sub-Minoan and Protogeometric occupation attested in the ruins. Iron Age reuse of the site remained minimal until the polis-period reoccupation of the late 8th century BCE. - 700 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization After three centuries of near-abandonment Phaistos was reoccupied in the 8th century BCE as a small Cretan polis within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere, minting its own coinage and maintaining alliances with other Cretan cities. The polis contested regional influence with nearby Gortyn through the Archaic and Classical periods, until Alexander's death and the Hellenistic settlement. - 323 BC – 200 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Through the Hellenistic period Crete remained outside direct Antigonid Macedonian control, with the Cretan poleis maintaining their own internal warfare under nominal Antigonid sphere of influence. Phaistos continued contesting regional influence with Gortyn until the Gortynians destroyed the city around the end of the 3rd century BCE, and the site was permanently abandoned after this destruction and has not been inhabited since. ## Landmarks - Palace of Phaistos (built 1900 BC) The principal Minoan palatial complex on the ridge above the Mesara plain, organised around a central court with multi-storey wings, storage magazines, light-wells and the celebrated monumental staircase of the New Palace. Built around 1900 BCE, destroyed and rebuilt multiple times across the Middle Minoan period, and finally destroyed around 1400 BCE. Substantial walls, the central court, and the western façade survive in situ today. - Phaistos Disc Findspot (built 1700 BC) Room 101 of the Old Palace basement where Italian archaeologist Luigi Pernier recovered the famous Phaistos Disc on 3 July 1908. The clay disc is stamped with 241 signs in 45 distinct symbols arranged in a spiral on both faces, in a hieroglyphic script that remains undeciphered. - Monumental Staircase of Phaistos (built 1700 BC) The grand New Palace ceremonial staircase ascending from the propylon entrance to the central court, with steps of fine alabaster slabs and shallow rises optimised for ritual procession. Regarded as one of the finest pieces of Minoan palatial architecture, and structurally innovative for its slightly convex tread surfaces. ## Population History - 3600 BC: 200 - 3000 BC: 1,000 - 1900 BC: 5,000 - 1700 BC: 8,000 - 1450 BC: 12,000 - 1400 BC: 500 - 1000 BC: null - 700 BC: 1,500 - 400 BC: 3,000 - 300 BC: 2,500 - 200 BC: null --- # Philippi, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/philippi Founded: 360 BC Ended: 1540 AD Coordinates: 41.0131, 24.2864 ## Description Philippi was a major ancient city in eastern Macedonia on the plain between Mount Pangaeum and the marshes of the Strymon estuary, about 15 kilometres northwest of modern Kavala. The site was originally founded around 360 BCE as the Thasian colony of Krenides ('Fountains'), but was conquered and refounded by Philip II of Macedon in 356 BCE — the first known instance of a Greek king naming a city after himself — to control the rich gold mines of Mount Pangaeum that funded his wars. After the Roman victory at the Battle of Philippi in 42 BCE between the forces of Octavian and Antony and the Republican assassins of Caesar, Augustus settled Italian veterans here and reorganised the city as the Roman colony of Colonia Augusta Iulia Philippensis on the Via Egnatia. The apostle Paul founded the first Christian community in Europe at Philippi during his second missionary journey around 49–50 CE, addressing his celebrated Epistle to the Philippians to its members. The city flourished as a major Christian centre with monumental basilicas in the 4th–6th centuries before a devastating earthquake around 619 CE began its decline. Successive Slavic, Bulgarian, and Ottoman raids further reduced the settlement, which was finally abandoned by the 16th century when French traveller Pierre Belon found only ruins. The site preserves the Roman forum, theatre, and four early Christian basilicas, and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2016. ## Historical Rulers - 360 BC – 356 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Krenides") The Thasian colony of Krenides ('Fountains') was founded around 360 BCE by settlers from the island of Thasos to exploit the rich gold and silver deposits of Mount Pangaeum and the agricultural plain of the Strymon basin. The colony lasted only four years before Philip II of Macedon conquered the settlement. - 356 BC – 336 BC: Argead Dynasty Philip II of Macedon conquered Krenides in 356 BCE and refounded the city under his own name — the first known instance of a Greek king naming a city after himself. Philippi gave Philip control of the Mount Pangaeum gold mines that produced over 1,000 talents annually, funding his Greek conquests and the foundation of the Macedonian empire. - 336 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire Under Alexander the Great Philippi continued as a major Macedonian centre serving the strategically vital Pangaean mining district and the route between the Aegean coast and the upper Macedonian plain. - 323 BC – 168 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Under the Antigonid kings Philippi continued as one of the principal Macedonian cities, with the Pangaean gold and silver mines continuing to fund the dynasty until the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BCE. - 168 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After the Roman conquest of Macedonia in 168 BCE Philippi was incorporated into the new province as a key station on the Via Egnatia. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The plain of Philippi was the site of the decisive Battle of Philippi in 42 BCE between Octavian and Antony and the Republican forces of Brutus and Cassius, after which Augustus refounded the city as Colonia Augusta Iulia Philippensis and settled Italian veterans here. The apostle Paul founded the first Christian community in Europe at Philippi during his second missionary journey around 49–50 CE, addressing his celebrated Epistle to the Philippians to its members. - 395 AD – 1540 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Philippi flourished as a major Christian centre with four monumental basilicas built between the 4th and 6th centuries — including the great Basilica B with its surviving octagonal church and the Octagon martyrium. A devastating earthquake around 619 CE marked the beginning of decline, and successive Slavic, Bulgarian, and Ottoman incursions reduced the site to a small village before its final abandonment by the early 16th century, when French traveller Pierre Belon found only ruins. ## Landmarks - Hellenistic Theatre of Philippi (built 340 BC) Originally built under Philip II in the mid-4th century BCE into the slope of the acropolis hill, and substantially enlarged in the Roman period to a capacity of around 8,000 spectators. The cavea, orchestra and scaenae frons survive in good condition and are used for annual modern performances. - Roman Forum of Philippi (built 175 AD) The monumental civic centre of the Roman colony, with a paved central square surrounded by colonnaded porticoes, a curia, a tribunal, and two temples on the southern side. The forum reached its present form under Marcus Aurelius in the late 2nd century CE atop earlier Hellenistic foundations. - Octagon Church and Episcopal Complex (built 350 AD) A 4th–5th-century octagonal martyrium church traditionally associated with the apostle Paul's first European baptism site, the conversion of Lydia of Thyatira at the Krenides stream nearby. The church is part of an extensive episcopal complex including baptistery, residences, and a smaller earlier chapel. - Basilica B (built 550 AD) A monumental 6th-century Christian basilica overlooking the Roman forum, planned as one of the largest churches in the Balkans with a domed central bay and surviving column capitals carved in deep relief. The dome collapsed shortly after completion, but the surviving walls remain among the most impressive early Byzantine ruins in Greece. ## Population History - 360 BC: 2,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 100 BC: 12,000 - 100 AD: 20,000 - 500 AD: 25,000 - 700 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1400 AD: 500 - 1540 AD: null --- # Pylos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/pylos Founded: 1600 BC Ended: 1180 BC Coordinates: 37.0264, 21.6953 ## Description Pylos (Mycenaean Greek pu-ro, Homer's 'sandy Pylos' of King Nestor) was a major Late Bronze Age Mycenaean palatial center in southwestern Messenia, on the Ano Englianos hill. Settlement on the hill begins in the Late Helladic period around 1600 BCE; the palace complex traditionally called the Palace of Nestor was built around 1300 BCE and destroyed by fire around 1180 BCE during the Bronze Age Collapse. The fire that destroyed the palace accidentally baked and preserved an archive of roughly 1000 clay tablets written in Linear B, discovered by Carl Blegen in 1939 and deciphered by Michael Ventris in 1952 — the decipherment proved that Mycenaean Greek was an early form of Greek and gave a sudden, contemporaneous window onto the bureaucracy of a Mycenaean kingdom. After the destruction the Ano Englianos site was effectively abandoned; the classical polis of Pylos in the historical period stood at a different location on Navarino Bay near Coryphasium, and the modern town of Pylos lies at the same bay area rather than on Ano Englianos. The Mycenaean palace site is on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1180 BC: Mycenaean Civilization Pre-palatial Mycenaean settlement on the Ano Englianos hill in Messenia grew steadily through the Late Helladic I-II phases, with surrounding tholos tombs reflecting an emerging elite. Around 1300 BCE a monumental palace complex, conventionally called the Palace of Nestor after the Homeric king, was built on the hill and controlled a Mycenaean kingdom covering most of Messenia, organized into provinces and recorded in a Linear B archive that names the city pu-ro. The complex was destroyed by a single major fire around 1180 BCE during the Bronze Age Collapse; the same fire baked and preserved the clay tablets of the archive, and the site was essentially abandoned thereafter. ## Landmarks - Tholos Tombs of Pylos (built 1500 BC) A series of monumental beehive (tholos) tombs in the vicinity of Ano Englianos, including a large tholos immediately adjacent to the palace hill. Built and reused from the Late Helladic II period onward as burial places for the local Mycenaean elite, they reflect the social hierarchy that preceded and underpinned the palatial state. - Palace of Nestor (built 1300 BC) Main Mycenaean palace complex on the Ano Englianos hill, built around 1300 BCE. The complex is organized around a central megaron with a circular hearth flanked by four columns and a throne against one wall, surrounded by storerooms, workshops, propylon and bath suite. Destroyed by fire around 1180 BCE, the foundations and lower courses survived under collapsed debris and were excavated by Carl Blegen from 1939 onward. - Linear B Archive Room (built 1300 BC) Small archive room near the main entrance of the palace where roughly 1000 clay tablets inscribed in Linear B were stored. The unbaked clay tablets were accidentally fired and preserved by the fire that destroyed the palace around 1180 BCE. Discovered by Carl Blegen on the first day of excavation in 1939, the archive was deciphered by Michael Ventris in 1952 and demonstrated that Mycenaean Greek was an early form of Greek. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 500 - 1400 BC: 3,000 - 1300 BC: 5,000 - 1250 BC: 6,000 - 1200 BC: 5,000 - 1180 BC: null --- # Rhodes, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/rhodes Founded: 408 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.4467, 28.2241 ## Description Rhodes is the capital and largest city of the Greek island of the same name, founded in 408 BCE through the synoecism of the three earlier Dorian cities of Lindos, Ialyssos, and Kameiros into a single planned polity at the northern tip of the island. Laid out on a Hippodamian grid, the Hellenistic city became one of the foremost commercial and naval powers of the eastern Mediterranean, famous for the Colossus of Rhodes erected between 304 and 280 BCE to commemorate the Rhodian defeat of Demetrius Poliorcetes and toppled by the earthquake of 226 BCE. After centuries of privileged status as a free Roman ally the city was sacked by Cassius in 42 BCE and fully incorporated into the Roman provincial structure under Vespasian. Through the Byzantine centuries Rhodes remained a regional naval and ecclesiastical center, repeatedly raided by Arab fleets in the seventh and eighth centuries. The Knights Hospitaller captured the island in 1309 and made Rhodes their sovereign base for more than two centuries, building the surviving medieval citadel with the Palace of the Grand Master, the Street of the Knights, and the Inns of the Tongues. Suleiman the Magnificent expelled the Knights after a six-month siege in 1522, and Rhodes remained an Ottoman provincial capital for four centuries during which the Süleyman Mosque and a substantial Muslim quarter took shape within the medieval walls. Italian forces seized the Dodecanese during the Italo-Turkish War of 1912, and after Italian colonial administration and a brief British transitional period the islands were ceded to Greece by the 1947 Treaty of Paris. The medieval old town was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. ## Historical Rulers - 408 BC – 42 BC: Rhodian Republic The city of Rhodes was founded in 408 BCE through the synoecism of Lindos, Ialyssos, and Kameiros into a single Dorian polis at the northern tip of the island, laid out on a Hippodamian grid with three harbors. Through the Hellenistic centuries it became the foremost commercial and naval power of the eastern Mediterranean, defeating the year-long siege of Demetrius Poliorcetes in 305-304 BCE and commemorating the victory with the Colossus erected between 304 and 280 BCE. The Republic governed the expanded mainland Peraea after 188 BCE, lost most of it in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power, and continued as a privileged free ally of Rome until Gaius Cassius Longinus sacked the city in 42 BCE during the Roman civil wars, ending Rhodian political agency. - 42 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire After the Cassian sack of 42 BCE Rhodes recovered partially under Augustus and continued as a nominally free city under Roman protection, hosting Tiberius during his self-imposed exile from 6 BCE to 2 CE. Vespasian formally incorporated Rhodes into the province of Asia in 74 CE, ending the city's residual autonomy, and the city remained a substantial provincial port through the imperial centuries while losing its earlier role as an independent maritime power. - 395 AD – 1309 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Rhodes was an episcopal see and naval base, but the Arab raids of 654 CE and the seventh and eighth centuries devastated the city and removed the fallen pieces of the Colossus that had lain at the harbor entrance since 226 BCE. The middle Byzantine period brought partial recovery as Rhodes became the seat of the theme of the Aegean Sea, though the thirteenth century saw repeated Genoese and Venetian incursions that culminated in the Hospitaller conquest. - 1309 AD – 1522 AD: Knights Hospitaller The Order of Saint John completed its conquest of Rhodes in 1309 after a four-year campaign against the Byzantine and Genoese forces holding the island, and refounded itself there as a sovereign crusading state following the loss of Acre in 1291. Over the following two centuries the Knights rebuilt Rhodes as one of the most heavily fortified medieval cities of Europe, with the Palace of the Grand Master, the Street of the Knights, and the Inns of the Tongues organising the langues that staffed the garrison. The Order resisted a major Ottoman siege in 1480 but surrendered to Suleiman the Magnificent after a six-month siege in 1522 and withdrew to Malta under Charles V's grant of 1530. - 1522 AD – 1912 AD: Ottoman Empire Suleiman the Magnificent incorporated Rhodes into the Ottoman Empire as the seat of the Sanjak of Rhodes within the eyalet of the Cefâlu and later the vilayet of the Archipelago, settling Muslim and Sephardic Jewish populations within the medieval walls while restricting Greek Christians to extramural neighborhoods. The Süleyman Mosque, the Mustafa Pasha Mosque, the Murad Reis Mosque, and several Ottoman bathhouses transformed the medieval citadel into an Ottoman provincial capital. The city declined economically through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as Mediterranean trade reorganised around Smyrna and the rising European steamship lines. - 1912 AD – 1947 AD: Kingdom of Italy Italian forces occupied Rhodes in May 1912 during the Italo-Turkish War, and the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne formally ceded the Dodecanese to Italy as the Possedimenti Italiani dell'Egeo with Rhodes as the administrative capital. Italian colonial planning under Cesare Maria de Vecchi produced extensive modernist reconstruction of the new town, controversial restoration of the Palace of the Grand Master as a residence for the Italian governor and Mussolini, and major archaeological work on the medieval and ancient monuments. German occupation followed Italian capitulation in 1943, and after British administration from 1945 the Dodecanese were ceded to Greece by the 1947 Treaty of Paris. - 1947 AD – 1974 AD: Kingdom of Greece Rhodes joined the Kingdom of Greece in 1947 as the capital of the new Dodecanese Prefecture, ending more than four centuries of foreign rule. The early postwar decades brought emigration to Athens and abroad alongside the gradual reorientation of the city's economy toward Aegean tourism. - 1974 AD – 2026 AD: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum that abolished the monarchy, Rhodes became part of the modern Hellenic Republic as the capital of the South Aegean administrative region. UNESCO inscribed the medieval Old Town as a World Heritage Site in 1988, and Rhodes has developed since the 1980s into one of the principal tourist destinations of the eastern Mediterranean while preserving its layered Hellenistic, Hospitaller, and Ottoman urban fabric. ## Landmarks - Acropolis of Rhodes (Monte Smith) (built 300 BC) The acropolis of ancient Rhodes occupies the low Monte Smith hill west of the medieval old town and preserves the partially restored Temple of Apollo Pythios, a Hellenistic stadium, and a small odeon. The complex represents the religious and civic heart of the Hellenistic polis and is the principal surviving classical monument of the city. - Colossus of Rhodes (built 292 BC) The Colossus of Rhodes was a roughly 33-meter bronze statue of the sun god Helios erected at the harbor of Rhodes between 304 and 280 BCE to commemorate the Rhodian defeat of Demetrius Poliorcetes, designed by the sculptor Chares of Lindos and counted in antiquity as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The statue stood for only about half a century before the earthquake of 226 BCE toppled it at the ankles, and the fallen bronze remained at the harbor until Arab raiders carried it away in 654 CE; no archaeological trace of the structure survives. - Palace of the Grand Master (built 1346 AD) The Palace of the Grand Master was built by the Knights Hospitaller in the mid-fourteenth century on the site of a Byzantine citadel as the residence of the Grand Master of the Order and the administrative heart of Hospitaller Rhodes. Damaged by a gunpowder explosion in 1856 and heavily reconstructed by Italian authorities in 1937-1940 as a summer residence for King Victor Emmanuel III and Mussolini, the building now houses the Rhodes archaeological collection within the UNESCO-listed medieval city. - Street of the Knights (built 1400 AD) The Street of the Knights runs uphill from the medieval commercial quarter to the Palace of the Grand Master and is lined with the Inns of the Tongues, the langue-specific residences of the French, Italian, Spanish, English, German, and Provençal divisions of the Hospitaller Order. Built and remodeled between the late fourteenth and early sixteenth centuries, the street is the best-preserved medieval urban ensemble of its kind in the eastern Mediterranean. - Süleyman Mosque (built 1523 AD) The Süleyman Mosque, the principal Ottoman religious monument of Rhodes, was founded shortly after the 1522 conquest by Suleiman the Magnificent on the site of an earlier Hospitaller church and rebuilt in its current form in 1808. The mosque anchored the Muslim quarter of the Ottoman city within the medieval walls and survives as the principal Ottoman landmark of the UNESCO old town. ## Population History - 408 BC: 5,000 - 300 BC: 30,000 - 100 BC: 50,000 - 100 AD: 25,000 - 400 AD: 15,000 - 700 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 10,000 - 1300 AD: 15,000 - 1500 AD: 20,000 - 1700 AD: 18,000 - 1900 AD: 30,000 - 1950 AD: 28,000 - 2000 AD: 53,000 - 2025 AD: 90,000 --- # Sparta, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/sparta Founded: 1100 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.0736, 22.4285 ## Description Sparta (Lacedaemon) was a unique city-state renowned for its martial society and unmatched military power, rather than architectural grandeur. Located in the Eurotas valley, it organized every aspect of life around discipline and warfare. Governed by a dual kingship, a council of elders (Gerousia), and ephors, Sparta's strength stemmed from the subjugation of Messenia and its helot population. Male citizens endured the agoge training from age seven, while women enjoyed rare freedoms focused on physical fitness. Sparta's military professionalism reached its peak during the Persian Wars and Peloponnesian War, establishing a brief hegemony over Greece. Though it declined after its defeat at Leuctra (371 BCE), Sparta's mystique endures, influencing history and popular culture to this day. After centuries of contraction under Roman and Byzantine rule, the population of the Eurotas valley shifted in the 13th century to the nearby fortified hill town of Mystras, leaving the ancient site largely depopulated. Modern Sparti was refounded on the ancient location in 1834 by decree of King Otto of Greece, deliberately reviving the classical name and laying out a new town over the ruins. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 BC – 900 BC: Iron Age Settlement Following the collapse of Mycenaean civilization, Dorian-speaking groups settled in the Eurotas valley and gradually consolidated four villages — Limnai, Pitana, Mesoa and Kynosoura — into the polis later known as Sparta. The early community retained a tribal and clan-based organisation, with the legendary dual kingship traced to the Agiad and Eurypontid houses emerging during this formative period. - 900 BC – 323 BC: Hellenic Civilization From the late ninth century BCE Sparta crystallized as the militarized Spartan polis, fixing its dual kingship, Gerousia and ephorate under the constitutional reforms attributed to Lycurgus, expanding through the First and Second Messenian Wars to dominate Laconia and Messenia, and turning the conquered population into helots. Classical Sparta led the Greek resistance against Persia at Thermopylae and Plataea (480-479 BCE) and won the Peloponnesian War against Athens (404 BCE), but the rigid citizen system eroded its strength and the defeat by Thebes at Leuctra in 371 BCE ended Spartan supremacy and freed Messenia. Sparta uniquely refused to join Philip II's Corinthian League in 337 BCE and maintained its formal constitutional independence until Alexander's death. - 323 BC – 192 BC: Antigonid Dynasty Through the Hellenistic period Sparta preserved a formal constitutional independence under the dual kingship while progressively falling within the Antigonid Macedonian sphere of influence over the Peloponnese. The brief reform revivals of Agis IV and Cleomenes III ended with the Antigonid victory at Sellasia in 222 BCE, and the resistance of the tyrant Nabis was finally crushed by the Achaean League and Rome, before Sparta was forced into the Achaean League in 192 BCE. - 192 BC – 146 BC: Achaean League Following the defeat of Nabis, Sparta was compelled into the Achaean League under Roman pressure and lost its independent foreign policy. The classical institutions were progressively dismantled and the city was integrated into the federated league of Peloponnesian poleis until the league itself was crushed by Rome in the Achaean War of 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Lucius Mummius's sack of Corinth in 146 BCE the Achaean League was dissolved and Sparta passed under direct Roman authority as part of the province of Macedonia (later Achaea). Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Roman rule the city retained nominal autonomy and became a curiosity of antiquarian tourism, where visitors came to watch the diamastigosis ritual and the revived agoge as cultural spectacles. The city enjoyed modest prosperity in the early Imperial period, gained new public buildings and a theatre, but suffered from raids in the 3rd and 4th centuries CE and slowly contracted as a provincial town of Achaea. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Lacedaemonia") Within the Eastern Roman Empire Sparta continued as the small town of Lacedaemonia, seat of a bishopric and an administrative centre of the theme of the Peloponnese. Slavic incursions from the 6th century onwards reshaped the surrounding countryside, and the city was repeatedly rebuilt on a reduced scale. By the late Byzantine period the population of the Eurotas valley was gravitating away from the ancient site toward more defensible hilltop locations. - 1204 AD – 1262 AD: Principality of Achaea (known as "La Cremonie") After the Fourth Crusade the region fell to the Frankish Principality of Achaea, which built the fortress of Mystras on a nearby spur in 1249. The population of Lacedaemonia progressively abandoned the ancient site in favour of the new fortified town, and the old city — known in Frankish sources as La Cremonie — withered to a small dependent settlement. - 1262 AD – 1460 AD: Despotate of the Morea (known as "La Cremonie") Mystras was returned to Byzantine control in 1262 and became the capital of the Despotate of the Morea, a late Byzantine appanage that flourished as a centre of Palaiologan culture and the last redoubt of Greek civilization before the Ottoman conquest. Civic life remained concentrated at Mystras while the ancient Sparta site continued as ruins amid a small dependent village. - 1460 AD – 1834 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Palaia Sparti") The Despotate of the Morea fell to Sultan Mehmed II in 1460 and the region was absorbed into the Ottoman Empire, with a brief Venetian interlude (1687-1715). Civic life remained centred at Mystras rather than the ruined ancient city, which survived only as a sparsely populated countryside known to Greeks as Palaia Sparti (Old Sparta). The wider Laconian region was administered as part of the sanjak of Morea until the Greek War of Independence (1821-1829) led to the creation of the modern Greek state. - 1834 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Sparti") By a royal decree of King Otto in 1834 a new town was founded directly on the site of ancient Sparta, deliberately reviving the classical name as Sparti and laid out on a neoclassical grid plan over the ruins. The new town became the capital of the regional unit of Laconia within the Kingdom of Greece. Aside from the short-lived Second Hellenic Republic of 1924-1935 the monarchy continued in restored form until the 1967 colonels' coup and the abolition of the monarchy by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Sparti") Following the fall of the military junta and the December 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Greece became the Hellenic Republic. Sparti has continued as a modest agricultural and administrative centre, while systematic archaeological excavations from the late nineteenth century onwards have uncovered the acropolis, the Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia and the Roman-era theatre. ## Landmarks - Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia (built 700 BC) The Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia near the Eurotas River, dedicated to Artemis as 'the Upright' and dating to the 9th century BCE, was central to Spartan religion and youth training. The site gained fame for the diamastigosis, a ritual where boys endured flogging to prove their fitness for citizenship. Under Roman rule it evolved into a public spectacle with a surrounding theatre. Excavations revealed thousands of votive offerings, highlighting Sparta's artistic ties to the broader Mediterranean world. - Menelaion (built 400 BC) The Menelaion, perched on a hill southeast of Sparta, honoured Menelaus and Helen, legendary figures of the Trojan War. Established as a hero cult in the 8th century BCE, the visible structure dates mainly to the 5th century BCE, with later renovations around 300 BCE. Its distinctive Π-shaped design and numerous votive finds highlight its long-lasting significance. The shrine reinforced Spartan claims to mythological prestige, with Pausanias confirming its continued importance in the 2nd century CE. ## Population History - 1100 BC: 8,000 - 500 BC: 40,000 - 400 BC: 35,000 - 300 BC: 25,000 - 200 BC: 15,000 - 0 AD: 20,000 - 300 AD: 15,000 - 600 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 5,000 - 1300 AD: 1,000 - 1700 AD: 500 - 1850 AD: 4,000 - 2000 AD: 16,000 --- # Thebes, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/thebes Founded: 1400 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.3239, 23.3199 ## Description Thebes (modern Thiva) is the largest city of the Boeotian plain in central Greece, sitting on the Cadmean acropolis overlooking the Asopos basin. Mycenaean palatial center in the Late Bronze Age, classical Boeotian polis that broke Spartan supremacy at the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BCE under Epaminondas, the city was destroyed by Alexander the Great in 335 BCE and refounded under Cassander in 316 BCE on a much-reduced scale. Through the Roman and Byzantine periods Thebes recovered as a regional silk-production center, becoming the seat of the Frankish Duchy of Athens and Thebes after 1205 and one of the wealthiest cities of Latin Greece. Under the Ottomans it was known as Egriboz and remained a modest provincial center until incorporation into the new Greek state in 1832; today Thiva is the capital of the Boeotia regional unit with roughly 22,000 inhabitants. ## Historical Rulers - 1400 BC – 1200 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "Thebai") Late Bronze Age palatial center on the Cadmean acropolis, one of the principal Mycenaean palaces of mainland Greece alongside Mycenae, Tiryns, and Pylos. Excavations have uncovered fresco fragments, Linear B archives recording the place name te-qa-i, ivory and lapis lazuli imports, and evidence of destruction by fire around 1200 BCE during the wider Bronze Age Collapse. - 1200 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Thebai") After the palace destruction the Cadmea continued as a reduced settlement through the Submycenaean, Protogeometric, and Geometric periods. Theban oral tradition preserved a rich cycle of myths about Cadmus, Oedipus, and the Seven against Thebes that would be crystallized in early epic and later Athenian tragedy. - 700 BC – 335 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Thebai") Archaic and Classical Thebes emerged as the dominant polis of the Boeotian plain and the head of the Boeotian League. After Medizing during the Persian Wars Thebes nevertheless survived to oppose Athens in the Peloponnesian War and to lead the Greek world after defeating Sparta at the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BCE — a victory engineered by the generals Epaminondas and Pelopidas using the oblique-line tactic and the Sacred Band, ending Spartan hegemony and freeing Messenia. Theban supremacy ended with Epaminondas's death at Mantinea in 362 BCE, and the city was utterly destroyed by Alexander the Great in 335 BCE as a punishment for revolt. - 335 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Thebai") After Alexander's destruction of Thebes in 335 BCE, the Cadmea was held by a Macedonian garrison and the site was largely abandoned, with most surviving Thebans dispersed across the Greek world or settled in cities founded by Alexander further east. The depopulated site remained under direct Macedonian control until Alexander's death in 323 BCE. - 323 BC – 146 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Thebai") Following Alexander's death the depopulated Cadmea continued under Diadochi-era Macedonian garrisons until Cassander refounded Thebes in 316 BCE on a much-reduced scale. The city continued through the Hellenistic period as a minor centre under Antigonid Macedonian and later Boeotian League sovereignty, never regaining its classical importance and eclipsed by other Hellenistic foundations. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Thebae") After the Roman conquest of mainland Greece in 146 BCE, Thebes became a small provincial town within the province of Achaea. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Thebae") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city is mentioned by Strabo and Pausanias as much-reduced but still inhabited, with surviving monuments of the classical sanctuary of Apollo Ismenios and the Theban acropolis. - 395 AD – 1205 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Thiva") Under the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, Thebes gradually recovered as a regional center, becoming the seat of the theme of Hellas in the eighth century and a leading silk-production city in the eleventh-twelfth centuries — second in the empire only to Constantinople for Byzantine silk weaving. The city was sacked by the Normans of Sicily in 1147 but quickly recovered. - 1205 AD – 1460 AD: Duchy of Athens (known as "Estives") After the Fourth Crusade Thebes was incorporated into the Frankish Duchy of Athens (often styled the Duchy of Athens and Thebes) ruled by the Burgundian de la Roche family, with Thebes the wealthier of the two capital cities and the actual seat of the dukes for much of the 13th century. The Catalan Company defeated the de la Roche dukes at the Battle of Halmyros in 1311 and held Thebes alongside Athens for the Crowns of Sicily and Aragon through nearly eight decades. The Florentine Acciaioli family took Thebes along with Athens in 1388 and ruled as the last Latin dukes, with the duchy persisting under Ottoman pressure until 1460 when Thebes finally fell to Sultan Mehmed II two years after the conquest of Athens. - 1460 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "İstefe") Under Ottoman administration Thebes became known as İstefe, a sancak center within the Eyalet of Rumelia and later the Vilayet of Egriboz. The city remained a modest provincial market town through nearly four centuries of Ottoman rule, until the Greek War of Independence brought central Greece into the new Greek state. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Thiva") Thebes became part of the Kingdom of Greece established in 1832 and continued as the chief town of the Boeotian plain. The monarchy continued — apart from the brief Second Hellenic Republic of 1924-1935 and the Axis occupation of 1941-1944 — until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Thiva") Since the abolition of the monarchy, Thiva has continued as the capital of the regional unit of Boeotia within the Hellenic Republic, with roughly 22,000 inhabitants. The modern city sits directly on top of the ancient Cadmea, complicating excavation but preserving deep continuity with its three-and-a-half-thousand-year history. ## Landmarks - Cadmea (built 1400 BC) The acropolis of Thebes, traditionally founded by the legendary Cadmus and crowned by a Mycenaean palace in the Late Bronze Age, has been the urban core of the city across all its successive phases — Mycenaean, Boeotian polis, Hellenistic refoundation, Byzantine theme capital, Frankish ducal seat, Ottoman İstefe, and modern Thiva. - Temple of Apollo Ismenios (built 700 BC) The principal civic sanctuary of classical Thebes, dedicated to Apollo Ismenios on a hill outside the Cadmea. Successive temples on the site (Archaic, Classical Doric, and a fourth-century BCE rebuild) housed tripod dedications and an oracle, and the precinct is described by Pausanias as one of the most magnificent sanctuaries of Boeotia. - Archaeological Museum of Thebes (built 1962 AD) Established to house the rich finds from the Mycenaean palace excavations at the Cadmea, including the cylinder seals from the Mesopotamian-Aegean trade, fresco fragments, and Linear B tablets. The museum was extensively renovated and reopened in 2016 with a new permanent exhibition covering all phases of Boeotian history. ## Population History - 1400 BC: 5,000 - 700 BC: 8,000 - 400 BC: 40,000 - 335 BC: 30,000 - 300 BC: 6,000 - 0 AD: 8,000 - 500 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 10,000 - 1200 AD: 15,000 - 1500 AD: 6,000 - 1800 AD: 4,000 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 2020 AD: 22,000 --- # Thermos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/thermos Founded: 1500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.5594, 21.6681 ## Description Thermos was the principal religious and political sanctuary of ancient Aetolia in west-central Greece, occupying a fertile plateau above the eastern shore of Lake Trichonida in the heart of the Aetolian uplands. The site was settled from the Late Helladic period around 1500 BCE with the long apsidal Mycenaean building known as Megaron A, and continued in use through the Geometric and Archaic periods, when the great Temple of Apollo Thermios was erected around 630-610 BCE as one of the earliest Doric peripteral temples in Greece. From the 4th century BCE Thermos served as the federal sanctuary of the Aetolian League, where the league's assemblies convened and the annual Panaetolika festival was celebrated, while bronze dedicatory statues, fortification walls, and three monumental stoas progressively enriched the precinct through the Hellenistic period. The sanctuary was famously sacked by Philip V of Macedon in 218 BCE during the Social War and was further destroyed by Roman forces in 189 BCE after the league's defeat by Rome, effectively ending its function as an active cult centre. By the 1st century BCE the site was abandoned and graves were dug into the foundations of its former public buildings, and the sanctuary lay largely deserted through the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman periods. A small village under the name Thermo gradually re-emerged in the wider plateau during late Ottoman times, becoming a Greek municipal seat after independence in the 19th century. Systematic archaeological excavation of the ancient sanctuary began in 1897 under Georgios Sotiriadis on behalf of the Archaeological Society at Athens, and the famous Archaic terracotta metopes recovered there are now displayed in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. Modern Thermo is the seat of the Thermo Municipality of Aetolia-Acarnania with roughly 2,000 permanent residents alongside the protected archaeological park of the ancient sanctuary. ## Historical Rulers - 1500 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "*Thermos") Earliest documented occupation at Thermos begins in the Late Helladic IIA period around 1500 BCE with the long apsidal building known as Megaron A on the plateau above Lake Trichonida. Mycenaean pottery imports alongside local Middle Helladic traditions attest the site's integration into the wider Mycenaean exchange network, and Megaron A remained in use through the palatial era and into the early post-palatial period after the 12th-century BCE collapses. - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Thermos") Following the Mycenaean collapse the plateau saw a settlement gap through the early Dark Age, with renewed Geometric-period activity from the 9th century BCE attested by burnt offerings and pottery deposits. Through the Sub-Mycenaean and Protogeometric periods Thermos developed as a small post-collapse community on the Aetolian plateau before the rise of the wider Archaic Hellenic polis world. - 800 BC – 370 BC: Hellenic Civilization Through the Archaic and Classical periods Thermos served as the principal sanctuary of the loose Aetolian tribal koinon within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere of west-central Greece. Around 700 BCE the rectangular Megaron B was built on the site of the later Apollo temple, and around 630-610 BCE the great Doric Temple of Apollo Thermios was raised as one of the earliest fully developed peripteral temples in Greece. The sanctuary continued as the religious centre of the Aetolian tribes until the formal organisation of the Aetolian League in the early 4th century BCE. - 370 BC – 167 BC: Aetolian League From the formal organisation of the Aetolian League around 370 BCE, Thermos became the federal sanctuary and political meeting place of the league, hosting the annual Panaetolika festival and the league's assemblies. Under the league's 3rd-century BCE expansion the sanctuary was monumentalised with stone columns replacing the Archaic wooden ones, three long stoas around the temple precinct, fortification walls with gates and towers, and an enclosed spring fountain. Philip V of Macedon sacked the sanctuary in 218 BCE during the Social War, and Roman forces further destroyed it in 189 BCE after the league's defeat; the formal dissolution of the league by Rome after the Battle of Pydna in 167 BCE ended its political role. - 167 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After the Roman dissolution of the Aetolian League following the Battle of Pydna in 167 BCE, Aetolia was incorporated into the Roman provincial system and the sanctuary at Thermos lost its political function. By the 1st century BCE the site was effectively abandoned and graves were cut into the foundations of the former public buildings, marking the end of its life as an active religious centre. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Thermos") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE the region of Aetolia was incorporated into the Roman province of Achaea, and the long-abandoned sanctuary plateau lay outside the main provincial road network. Only sparse rural occupation continued in the wider Lake Trichonida basin through the Roman imperial centuries, until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Thermos") Under Eastern Roman administration the abandoned sanctuary plateau lay within the theme of Nicopolis covering western Greece, with only scattered rural settlement attested in the Lake Trichonida basin. The ancient temple ruins were progressively quarried for local construction through the Byzantine centuries, until the Fourth Crusade's dismemberment of the empire in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1460 AD: Despotate of Epirus (known as "*Thermos") After the Fourth Crusade Aetolia passed to the Byzantine successor Despotate of Epirus founded by Michael I Komnenos Doukas. The Lake Trichonida basin remained under successive Komnenos Doukas, Orsini, Serbian, and Tocco rulers of the fragmented despotate until the Ottoman conquest of the region in the mid-15th century. - 1460 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "*Thermos") The Ottoman conquest of Aetolia in the 1460s incorporated the Lake Trichonida basin into the eyalet of Rumelia. The plateau of the ancient sanctuary lay deserted while a small mountain village under the Greek name Thermo gradually emerged on the wider plateau through the late Ottoman period, until the Greek War of Independence brought the region into the new Greek state. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Thermo") Thermo became part of the Kingdom of Greece established in 1832 and developed as a small municipal seat in the prefecture of Aetolia-Acarnania. Systematic archaeological excavation of the ancient sanctuary began in 1897 under Georgios Sotiriadis on behalf of the Archaeological Society at Athens, recovering the famous Archaic terracotta metopes now in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. The Greek monarchy continued, with the brief Second Republic of 1924-1935, until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic (known as "Thermo") Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Thermo has continued as the seat of the Thermo Municipality of the Aetolia-Acarnania regional unit. The modern town has roughly 2,000 permanent residents, while the adjacent archaeological park preserves the foundations of the Temple of Apollo Thermios, the Hellenistic stoas, and the fortification circuit of the ancient federal sanctuary. ## Landmarks - Megaron A (built 1500 BC) The long apsidal Mycenaean building on the Thermos plateau, constructed around 1500 BCE in the Late Helladic IIA period as one of the earliest substantial structures on the site. The rounded apsidal end and the associated Mycenaean pottery imports place the building within the wider Mycenaean architectural tradition, and continued occupation through the post-palatial period attests the site's resilience after the 12th-century collapses. - Megaron B (built 700 BC) A rectangular building of around 700 BCE built directly underlying the later Archaic Temple of Apollo, sometimes interpreted as a predecessor cult structure but more recently read as a substantial lean-to or auxiliary building. The foundations of Megaron B remain visible beneath the Archaic temple platform and document the continuity of cult activity on the plateau between the Mycenaean and Archaic phases. - Temple of Apollo Thermios (built 625 BC) The great Doric peripteral temple of Apollo Thermios built around 630-610 BCE on the plateau of the federal Aetolian sanctuary, one of the earliest fully developed Doric temples known in Greece. The 12.13 × 38.23 m temple had mud-brick walls on a stone socle, fifteen wooden columns per long side with five per end, and an innovative tiled terracotta roof; its painted terracotta metopes depicting Perseus, Procne and Philomela, hunters, and a gorgon head are among the earliest surviving examples of Greek architectural relief and are now in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. The wooden columns were progressively replaced with stone in the Hellenistic period, and the temple was repeatedly damaged in the sack by Philip V in 218 BCE and the Roman destruction of 189 BCE. - Hellenistic Sanctuary Complex (built 250 BC) The 3rd-century BCE monumental expansion of the federal sanctuary under the Aetolian League, comprising three long stoas around the temple precinct, fortification walls with gates and towers on the three landward sides, and a stone-lined enclosed fountain pool around the sacred spring. The complex framed the temple and provided assembly and dedication space for the league's annual Panaetolika festival, and substantial sections of stoa foundations, the wall circuit, and the spring enclosure are preserved in the archaeological park. ## Population History - 1500 BC: 200 - 1100 BC: 100 - 700 BC: 200 - 400 BC: 500 - 250 BC: 1,000 - 100 BC: 100 - 1 AD: 50 - 500 AD: 30 - 1500 AD: 100 - 1800 AD: 300 - 1900 AD: 800 - 2000 AD: 1,800 - 2020 AD: 2,000 --- # Thessaloniki, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/thessaloniki Founded: 315 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.6403, 22.9439 ## Description Thessaloniki (Ottoman Selanik) is the second-largest city of modern Greece, founded in 315 BCE by King Cassander of Macedon — who named the new foundation after his wife Thessalonike, half-sister of Alexander the Great — through the synoecism of twenty-six surrounding villages, including the older settlement of Therma. As the principal Macedonian port on the Thermaic Gulf, the city grew through the Roman period into a major provincial capital and waystation on the Via Egnatia, became the second city of the Byzantine Empire after Constantinople, and was held briefly as a Latin kingdom (1204-1246) and a Venetian dependency (1423-1430) before its Ottoman conquest. Under four centuries of Ottoman rule it developed into one of the great cosmopolitan ports of the eastern Mediterranean — Greek, Slavic, Turkish, Albanian, and especially Sephardic Jewish (after the 1492 expulsion from Spain) — until incorporation into the Kingdom of Greece during the First Balkan War in 1912. Today Thessaloniki is the capital of the Central Macedonia region with a population of roughly 316,000 in the urban core and around one million in the metropolitan area, inscribed in part on the UNESCO World Heritage List for its early Christian and Byzantine monuments. ## Historical Rulers - 315 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Thessalonike") Founded in 315 BCE by King Cassander of Macedon as a deliberate synoecism of twenty-six existing settlements on the Thermaic Gulf — including the older town of Therma — and named after his wife Thessalonike, half-sister of Alexander the Great. The city was laid out as the principal Macedonian port and quickly became one of the major urban foundations of the late Argead and early Diadochi era. - 301 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Thessalonike") After the Battle of Ipsus and the wars of the Diadochi, Macedonia and Thessalonike passed to the Antigonid dynasty under Demetrius Poliorcetes and his successors. As the chief Antigonid port the city flourished through the third and second centuries BCE until Macedonia was finally defeated by Rome at the Third Macedonian War (Battle of Pydna, 168 BCE) and the abortive revolt of Andriskos. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Thessalonica") After the suppression of Andriskos in 148 BCE, Macedonia was organized as a Roman province with Thessalonica as its capital. Under the Roman Republic the city was incorporated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Thessalonica") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city sat at the junction of the Via Egnatia and the Aegean and grew into one of the great commercial centers of the Roman East. It received the apostle Paul, who founded one of the earliest Christian communities and addressed two surviving epistles to it, and was monumentalized under the tetrarch Galerius (early fourth century) with the imperial palace, hippodrome, mausoleum (the Rotunda), and triumphal arch that still stand at the heart of the modern city. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Thessalonica") Under the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire Thessalonica was the second city of the empire after Constantinople — a major port, archbishopric, and producer of silk and metalwork, defended by formidable late-Roman walls that survive today. The city was sacked by Slavs in the 7th century, by the Saracens of Leo of Tripoli in 904, and by the Normans of Sicily under William II in 1185, but recovered after each disaster. Its patron saint Demetrios was housed in one of the largest Byzantine churches outside Constantinople. - 1204 AD – 1246 AD: Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica (known as "Salonichi") After the Fourth Crusade Thessalonike became the capital of a short-lived Latin kingdom granted to Boniface of Montferrat, the second-ranking Latin state after the Latin Empire of Constantinople. The kingdom was contested with the Despotate of Epirus, which captured the city in 1224, and finally reincorporated into the Nicaean restoration of the Byzantine Empire under John III Doukas Vatatzes in 1246. - 1246 AD – 1430 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Thessalonica") After the 1246 Nicaean reconquest, Thessalonica remained the second city of the restored Palaiologan Byzantine Empire for nearly two centuries. The fourteenth century brought the Hesychast controversy, the Zealot uprising (1342-1349), and the cultural flowering of late Byzantine theology and art. Repeated Ottoman blockades from the late fourteenth century onwards forced the Byzantines to sell the city to the Republic of Venice in 1423 to keep it out of Ottoman hands, though Venetian rule lasted only seven years before the Ottoman conquest in 1430. - 1430 AD – 1912 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Selanik") Sultan Murad II conquered Thessalonika by storm in 1430 after a long siege, ending nine centuries of nearly continuous Byzantine rule. As Ottoman Selanik the city became the seat of the Sanjak of Selanik and later the Vilayet of Salonica, and after 1492 absorbed a large Sephardic Jewish refugee population from Spain that made it the most populous Jewish city in the world by the early seventeenth century. Selanik was Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's birthplace in 1881 and a major center of late-Ottoman political life until its capture by Greek forces during the First Balkan War in November 1912. - 1912 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Greek forces under Crown Prince Constantine took Thessaloniki on 26 October 1912 during the First Balkan War, and the city was confirmed as part of the Kingdom of Greece by the Treaty of Bucharest in 1913. The Great Fire of 1917 destroyed most of the central city and reshaped the urban plan, the 1922 Asia Minor catastrophe brought a huge influx of Greek Orthodox refugees that fundamentally remade the demography, and the Axis occupation of 1941-1944 led to the deportation and murder of more than 90 per cent of the city's Sephardic Jewish community. The monarchy continued — apart from the Second Hellenic Republic of 1924-1935 — until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Since the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Thessaloniki has been Greece's second city, capital of the Central Macedonia region and a major commercial, university, and port center. UNESCO inscribed its surviving Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman monuments — the Rotunda and Arch of Galerius, the Walls, the Hagios Demetrios and Hagia Sophia basilicas, and the White Tower among them — on the World Heritage List in 1988. ## Landmarks - Arch of Galerius (built 305 AD) A triumphal arch erected by the tetrarch Galerius to commemorate his victory over the Sasanian Persians in 297 CE. The two surviving piers of the original four-piered arch are covered with relief panels showing the campaign, the imperial college of the tetrarchy, and the apotheosis of Galerius — one of the most important surviving monuments of late-Roman imperial art. - Rotunda of Galerius (built 306 AD) A massive circular brick building begun around 306 CE as part of Galerius's tetrarchic palace complex, probably intended as a mausoleum but never used for that purpose. Converted into a Christian church in the late fourth century with a famous program of mosaics depicting Christian martyrs against an architectural fantasy, the Rotunda is one of the oldest Christian churches still standing. - Walls of Thessaloniki (built 390 AD) The late-Roman city walls, rebuilt and expanded under Theodosius I and his successors and repeatedly restored through the Byzantine and Ottoman periods, defined the boundaries of the medieval city. Substantial circuits of the upper city walls and the Trigonion tower survive today, offering some of the best-preserved late-antique and Byzantine fortifications in the eastern Mediterranean. - Hagios Demetrios (built 450 AD) A five-aisled basilica dedicated to the city's patron saint, Demetrios of Thessaloniki, on the supposed site of his martyrdom. Built in the fifth century and repeatedly damaged and rebuilt — most recently after the 1917 fire — the church preserves a celebrated series of pre-Iconoclastic and middle-Byzantine mosaics depicting the saint with his patrons. - White Tower (built 1450 AD) A cylindrical Ottoman tower built in the mid-fifteenth century as part of the rebuilt sea defenses of Selanik, replacing an earlier Byzantine tower on the same site. Used as a prison and place of execution in the nineteenth century — and accordingly known as the 'Red Tower' or 'Tower of Blood' — it was whitewashed during late-Ottoman renovations and has been the icon of Thessaloniki ever since. ## Population History - 315 BC: 10,000 - 100 BC: 30,000 - 100 AD: 50,000 - 400 AD: 100,000 - 904 AD: 60,000 - 1100 AD: 80,000 - 1300 AD: 50,000 - 1430 AD: 40,000 - 1600 AD: 70,000 - 1800 AD: 70,000 - 1912 AD: 160,000 - 1950 AD: 220,000 - 2020 AD: 316,000 --- # Tiryns, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/tiryns Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 470 BC Coordinates: 37.5994, 22.7997 ## Description Tiryns is a Bronze Age Mycenaean citadel in the Argolid of the northeastern Peloponnese, about 10 km north of modern Nafplio and a short distance south of Mycenae. Continuously occupied from the Early Helladic period around 3000 BCE, the site rose to prominence during the Late Helladic palatial era (~1400-1200 BCE) as one of the principal centers of Mycenaean civilization alongside Mycenae and Pylos. Tiryns is best known for its monumental Cyclopean walls, built of limestone blocks so massive that later Greeks attributed their construction to the one-eyed Cyclopes working for the legendary king Proetus, an explanation preserved by Homer and Pausanias. The palatial citadel was destroyed around 1200 BCE during the Bronze Age Collapse, after which the site survived as a reduced settlement through the Greek Dark Age and persisted as a small Archaic polis until it was destroyed by neighboring Argos around 470 BCE; thereafter the urban site was effectively abandoned. Tiryns was rediscovered and first systematically excavated by Heinrich Schliemann in 1876, with work continued by Wilhelm Dörpfeld and, in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, by the German Archaeological Institute. In 1999 the site was jointly inscribed with Mycenae on the UNESCO World Heritage list. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2200 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Tiryns") Earliest occupation of the low limestone ridge later known as the Tiryns acropolis. Early Helladic communities established a fortified settlement here, with notable architecture including the so-called Rundbau, a large circular building dated to the Early Helladic II period that is one of the most monumental structures of its era in the Aegean. - 2200 BC – 1600 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Tiryns") Continuous Middle Helladic occupation of more modest character. The site remains a regional settlement in the Argolid alongside neighboring Lerna and the emerging center at Mycenae, with material culture typical of the mainland Greek Middle Bronze Age. - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization Tiryns reached its peak during the Late Helladic palatial period as one of the major Mycenaean centres of the Argolid. Successive building phases produced the great Cyclopean fortifications, a fully developed palace with central megaron, corbel-vaulted galleries within the walls, and an extensive lower town outside the citadel. The site appears to have operated as a peer or partner of Mycenae and is identified in later Greek tradition as the seat of legendary kings such as Proetus and the hero Heracles. After the destruction of the palace around 1200 BCE during the wider Bronze Age Collapse the citadel was reoccupied at a much reduced scale, with Late Helladic IIIC settlement spreading into parts of the former lower town but the centralised palatial administration and Linear B literacy gone. - 1100 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement Through the Greek Dark Age and the Geometric period Tiryns continues as a small village in the shadow of the more powerful Argos. A modest cult focus develops within the ruins of the former palace, attesting continued local memory of the Bronze Age site. - 700 BC – 470 BC: Hellenic Civilization In the Archaic period Tiryns reemerges as a small independent polis within the Argolid, within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere. According to Herodotus and later sources, Argos destroys Tiryns around 470 BCE and forcibly resettles its population, ending the city's existence as an autonomous community. Only sporadic, non-urban activity follows on the site. ## Landmarks - Tiryns Cyclopean Walls (built 1300 BC) The monumental fortifications of the Mycenaean citadel, built of irregular limestone blocks weighing several tons each and reaching up to about 7 meters in thickness. Their scale astonished later Greeks, who attributed their construction to the Cyclopes working for King Proetus; both Homer and Pausanias describe them as the work of giants. They are among the best preserved Mycenaean defensive walls anywhere in Greece. - Megaron of Tiryns (built 1300 BC) The central palace hall on the upper citadel, with a porch, antechamber, and main room containing a circular hearth flanked by four columns and a throne against the side wall. The Tiryns megaron is one of the canonical examples of Mycenaean palatial architecture, structurally parallel to those at Mycenae and Pylos. - Lower Town of Tiryns (built 1250 BC) An extensive extramural settlement spreading north of the citadel across the Argive plain. Excavations have revealed dense Late Helladic housing, workshops, and storage areas, indicating that the population of the wider Tiryns settlement greatly exceeded that of the fortified acropolis alone. - Corbel-Vaulted Galleries of Tiryns (built 1250 BC) Internal casemate passages built into the thickness of the eastern and southern Cyclopean walls, roofed with characteristic corbel vaults of stepped overhanging blocks. The galleries probably served as storage and defensive shelters and are among the most distinctive engineering features of Mycenaean military architecture. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 200 - 2000 BC: 500 - 1600 BC: 2,000 - 1300 BC: 10,000 - 1200 BC: 3,000 - 1100 BC: 500 - 700 BC: 1,000 - 470 BC: null --- # Volos, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/volos Founded: 1900 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.3664, 22.9469 ## Description Volos is the principal port city of Thessaly in central Greece, built on the head of the Pagasetic Gulf at the eastern foot of Mount Pelion. The Kastro Palaia hill within the modern urban core is the site of Mycenaean Iolcus, one of the principal palatial centres of Mycenaean Thessaly and the legendary departure point of Jason and the Argonauts on their voyage to fetch the Golden Fleece from Colchis. The Late Helladic palace at Kastro Palaia and the great Mycenaean tholos tombs at Kapakli and Dimini date the city's first major flowering to the 16th-12th centuries BCE, and Homer described Iolcus in the Iliad as a 'well-built' and 'spacious' Achaean kingdom. After the Bronze Age collapse Iolcus continued as a minor Classical polis of Magnesia, until Demetrios I Poliorcetes founded the new royal capital of Demetrias around 294 BCE about five kilometres to the south and forcibly resettled the population of Iolcus and the neighbouring towns in his new foundation. By the time of Strabo in the 1st century BCE the place where Iolcus had stood was already noted as abandoned, and Demetrias served as the Antigonid royal capital of Magnesia until the Roman conquest of 148 BCE. The medieval town that emerged on the Kastro Palaia hill carried the name Golos under Byzantine and Ottoman administration, with a Byzantine castle and small Greek-Vlach Christian population, and Thessaly was incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece in 1881 under the Convention of Constantinople. Modern Volos was developed as the principal Greek-administered port of Thessaly from 1841 and rapidly urbanised after 1881, growing into the third-largest port of Greece by the early 20th century. The modern city has roughly 85,000 inhabitants within a wider municipality of around 145,000, with the Mycenaean Iolcus site at Kastro Palaia, the tholos tombs at Kapakli, and the Demetrias archaeological park among the principal heritage attractions. ## Historical Rulers - 1900 BC – 1600 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Iolcus") Earliest substantial occupation at the Kastro Palaia hill in the Middle Helladic period from around 1900 BCE, with stratified Middle Bronze Age deposits attesting a substantial proto-urban centre at the head of the Pagasetic Gulf. The settlement participated in the wider Aegean Bronze Age network through the Middle Helladic period until the Mycenaean palatial era. - 1600 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "Iolcus") Through the Late Helladic period Iolcus rose to become one of the principal Mycenaean palatial centres of Thessaly, with the great palace at the Kastro Palaia hill and the monumental tholos tombs at Kapakli and Dimini attesting an elite culture comparable to Mycenae and Orchomenos. According to later Greek tradition Iolcus was the kingdom of King Pelias and the legendary departure point of Jason and the Argonauts on their voyage to Colchis, and Homer described the city in the Iliad as 'well-built' and 'spacious'. The palace was abandoned around 1100 BCE during the wider Mycenaean collapse. - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Iolcus") Following the Mycenaean collapse Iolcus continued at much-reduced scale as a small Sub-Mycenaean and Protogeometric community on the Pagasetic Gulf through the Greek Dark Age. The post-palatial population maintained a modest harbour settlement on the Kastro Palaia hill until the rise of the Archaic Hellenic polis world. - 800 BC – 352 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Iolcus") Through the Archaic and Classical periods Iolcus continued as a minor Thessalian polis of Magnesia within the wider Hellenic civilization sphere, under the influence of the local Aleuad and Skopadai aristocratic dynasties of Thessaly. The community remained a small Magnesian harbour and never rose to the status of its mainland polis neighbours, until Philip II of Macedon's victory at the Battle of the Crocus Field in 352 BCE incorporated Thessaly and Magnesia into the Argead Macedonian kingdom. - 352 BC – 323 BC: Argead Dynasty (known as "Iolcus") After Philip II's victory at the Battle of the Crocus Field in 352 BCE Magnesia and the polis of Iolcus were incorporated into the Argead Macedonian kingdom. The city continued as a small Magnesian harbour through the reign of Alexander the Great until his death at Babylon in 323 BCE. - 323 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Demetrias") Through the Wars of the Diadochi Magnesia passed to the Antigonid sphere of Macedonia, and around 294 BCE Demetrios I Poliorcetes founded the new royal capital of Demetrias about five kilometres south of Iolcus, forcibly resettling the population of Iolcus and the neighbouring Magnesian towns in his new foundation. Demetrias became one of the three 'fetters of Greece' alongside Corinth and Chalcis through which the Antigonids controlled mainland Greece, until the Roman conquest of Macedonia after the Third Macedonian War in 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Demetrias") After the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE, Demetrias and the abandoned site of ancient Iolcus were incorporated into the new Roman province of Macedonia. Strabo writing in the 1st century BCE noted that the place where Iolcus had stood was already a deserted ruin, while Demetrias continued as a reduced Roman provincial harbour until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Demetrias") Under the Roman imperial peace Demetrias continued as a small provincial harbour of the Roman province of Achaea, while the Kastro Palaia hill of ancient Iolcus remained abandoned. The town declined progressively through the 3rd and 4th centuries CE and was further reduced by Gothic and Hunnic raids, until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1393 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Golos") Under Eastern Roman administration the substantial Roman town of Demetrias declined dramatically through the 6th and 7th centuries and was effectively abandoned, replaced by a small Byzantine fortified harbour on the Kastro Palaia hill under the medieval Greek-Slavic name Golos. The town passed briefly under the Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica after the Fourth Crusade and the Despotate of Epirus through the 13th century, before returning to Byzantine authority within the late Empire until the Ottoman conquest of Thessaly in 1393. - 1393 AD – 1881 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Golos") Following Bayezid I's conquest of Thessaly in 1393, Golos was incorporated into the eyalet of Rumelia and continued as a small Greek-Vlach harbour and Ottoman fortress on the Pagasetic Gulf. Modern Volos was developed as a new Greek-administered commercial port at the foot of the Byzantine castle from 1841 onwards, until the Convention of Constantinople of 1881 transferred Thessaly to the Kingdom of Greece. - 1881 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Following the Convention of Constantinople of 1881, Thessaly and Volos were incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece and the city rapidly urbanised as the principal Greek port of central Greece and the Magnesia regional capital. Volos grew into the third-largest port of Greece by the early 20th century, with major textile, tobacco, and steel industries, while systematic archaeological excavation of Mycenaean Iolcus at Kastro Palaia began in the early 20th century. The Greek monarchy continued until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Volos has continued as the seat of the Magnesia regional unit of the Thessaly region. The modern city has roughly 85,000 inhabitants within a wider municipality of around 145,000, anchored by the port, the University of Thessaly, and major industrial and commercial activity, with the Mycenaean Iolcus site at Kastro Palaia and the Demetrias archaeological park among the principal heritage attractions. ## Landmarks - Mycenaean Palace at Kastro Palaia (built 1500 BC) The Mycenaean palatial complex of Iolcus on the Kastro Palaia hill in the eastern part of modern Volos, built around 1500 BCE in the Late Helladic II period and continuing through the 13th century BCE. The substantial Cyclopean foundations and frescoed remains attest one of the principal Mycenaean palace centres of Thessaly, traditionally identified as the seat of King Pelias and the launching point of the Argonauts in the legend of Jason and the Golden Fleece. The palace was abandoned around 1100 BCE during the broader Mycenaean collapse. - Tholos Tombs of Kapakli (built 1450 BC) Monumental Mycenaean beehive tombs of the 15th-14th centuries BCE excavated at Kapakli in modern Volos, associated with the elite of Mycenaean Iolcus. The chamber tombs preserve substantial gold jewellery, weapons, and luxury imports attesting the wealth and connections of the Iolcian palatial elite, now displayed in the Volos Archaeological Museum. - Demetrias City Walls (built 293 BC) The great Hellenistic fortification circuit of Demetrias built by Demetrios I Poliorcetes around 293 BCE to enclose his new Antigonid royal capital, with a circuit length of around 8 kilometres and substantial gate complexes. The walls and the residential and palatial structures of the new foundation are preserved as one of the principal Hellenistic urban remains of Greece, in the modern Demetrias archaeological park. - Castle of Volos (built 600 AD) The Byzantine castle on the Kastro Palaia hill above modern Volos, built on the foundations of the Mycenaean palace and rebuilt by successive Byzantine, Frankish, and Ottoman authorities. The trapezoidal masonry circuit with later artillery bastions anchored the medieval town of Golos and the early Ottoman fortress, and substantial sections of the walls and gate complex survive within the modern city. ## Population History - 1900 BC: 800 - 1400 BC: 6,000 - 1200 BC: 8,000 - 1000 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 3,000 - 294 BC: 1,000 - 100 BC: 500 - 500 AD: 800 - 1000 AD: 1,200 - 1500 AD: 1,500 - 1881 AD: 5,000 - 1950 AD: 51,000 - 2021 AD: 85,000 --- # Vonitsa, Greece URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/greece/vonitsa Founded: 1000 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.9167, 20.8833 ## Description Vonitsa is a small town on the southern shore of the Ambracian Gulf in Aetolia-Acarnania, north-western Greece, dominated by a substantial medieval castle on the hill above the harbour. The site lies near the ancient Acarnanian polis of Anactorium founded by Corinthian colonists in 630 BCE, but Anactorium itself declined after Augustus's foundation of Nicopolis across the gulf in 31 BCE and the medieval town of Vonitsa emerged as a separate Byzantine fortress and harbour on a different headland. The town developed as a regional Byzantine fortified post through the middle Byzantine period and passed to the Despotate of Epirus after the Fourth Crusade in 1204, becoming the last stronghold of the late Despotate under the Tocco family before its conquest by the Ottomans in 1479 ended the long history of post-Byzantine successor states in north-western Greece. After two centuries of Ottoman rule the town was conquered by the Republic of Venice during the Morean War of 1684-1699 and remained one of Venice's surviving mainland exclaves alongside Preveza and Parga until the fall of the Republic to Napoleon in 1797. Brief French and re-imposed Ottoman authority followed, and the town was incorporated into the new Kingdom of Greece in 1832 under the London Protocol. Vonitsa later played a notable role in modern Greek political history when the insurrection that overthrew King Otto in October 1862 began here before spreading to Athens. The modern town has roughly 4,300 permanent residents as the seat of the Aktio-Vonitsa Municipality, with the surviving Byzantine-Venetian castle on the hillside one of the principal heritage attractions of the southern Ambracian coast. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire The medieval town of Vonitsa emerged in the middle Byzantine period around the year 1000 as a fortified harbour on the southern shore of the Ambracian Gulf, replacing the long-abandoned ancient Acarnanian polis of Anactorium on a different nearby headland. The Byzantine castle on the hill above the harbour was first established during this period as a regional fortified post of the theme of Nicopolis, until the Fourth Crusade's dismemberment of the empire in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1479 AD: Despotate of Epirus After the Fourth Crusade Vonitsa was incorporated into the Despotate of Epirus founded by Michael I Komnenos Doukas, and the castle was substantially rebuilt as a regional stronghold of the despotate. Under the successive Komnenos Doukas, Orsini, and Tocco rulers Vonitsa continued as a small fortified town and harbour through the fragmented late despotate, and after the loss of Arta to the Ottomans in 1449 became the last stronghold of the long-fading Despotate of Epirus. Leonardo III Tocco surrendered Vonitsa to the Ottomans in 1479, ending the final Byzantine successor state of north-western Greece. - 1479 AD – 1684 AD: Ottoman Empire After the surrender of Leonardo III Tocco in 1479, Vonitsa was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire as part of the Sanjak of Karli-Eli (Aetolia-Acarnania) within the eyalet of Rumelia. The town continued as a small Ottoman provincial harbour and the castle was progressively re-garrisoned, until the Venetian conquest during the Morean War in 1684. - 1684 AD – 1797 AD: Republic of Venice Vonitsa was conquered by the Republic of Venice in 1684 during the Morean War (1684-1699) and remained one of Venice's surviving mainland exclaves alongside Preveza and Parga even after the loss of the Morea to the Ottomans in 1715. The Venetian administration substantially refortified the castle on the hill in the late 17th and 18th centuries with bastions and gun platforms designed to face Ottoman artillery, and Vonitsa served as one of the Serenissima's strategic anchorages on the Ambracian Gulf until Napoleon's invasion of Venice and the Treaty of Campo Formio in 1797 ended the Republic. - 1797 AD – 1832 AD: Ottoman Empire After the fall of Venice in 1797, Vonitsa passed briefly through French Revolutionary control and was then taken by Ali Pasha of Tepelena on behalf of the Ottoman Empire in 1798. The town remained under Ottoman authority within the Vilayet of Yanya through the Greek War of Independence, and was incorporated into the new Kingdom of Greece in 1832 under the London Protocol after the Russo-Ottoman Treaty of Constantinople. - 1832 AD – 1973 AD: Kingdom of Greece Vonitsa was incorporated into the new Kingdom of Greece in 1832 and became a small municipal seat of the prefecture of Aetolia-Acarnania. The insurrection that later overthrew King Otto began at Vonitsa on 18 October 1862 before spreading to Athens, and the town continued as a quiet harbour through the long Greek monarchy until its abolition by referendum in 1973. - 1973 AD – present: Hellenic Republic Following the 1974 referendum confirming the abolition of the monarchy, Vonitsa has continued as the seat of the Aktio-Vonitsa Municipality of the Aetolia-Acarnania regional unit. The modern town has roughly 4,300 permanent residents, with the surviving Byzantine-Venetian castle and the small harbour anchoring the historic core. ## Landmarks - Castle of Vonitsa (built 1000 AD) The medieval fortress on the hill above the harbour of Vonitsa, with Byzantine origins around the year 1000 and substantial later phases under the Despotate of Epirus, the Ottomans, and especially the Republic of Venice. The trapezoidal Venetian enceinte of the late 17th and 18th centuries with its bastions and gun platforms is one of the principal surviving Venetian fortifications on the Greek mainland, and the castle commands sweeping views over the southern Ambracian Gulf. - Venetian Bastions of Vonitsa Castle (built 1685 AD) The Venetian artillery bastions added to the Byzantine castle of Vonitsa in the late 17th and 18th centuries during Venice's possession of the town between 1684 and 1797. The angular pentagonal bastions with embrasures for cannon transformed the medieval Byzantine castle into an early-modern artillery fortress, and the surviving Venetian inscriptions and lion of Saint Mark reliefs anchor the castle's identity as one of the principal Venetian remains on the Greek mainland. - Pantokratoras Monastery (built 1715 AD) A small post-Byzantine monastery of the Transfiguration of Christ Pantokrator on the wooded hillside near Vonitsa, founded in the early 18th century under Venetian rule. The single-naved katholikon preserves later post-Byzantine frescoes and a carved wooden iconostasis, and the monastery has been continuously inhabited from its foundation to the present. ## Population History - 1000 AD: 500 - 1200 AD: 1,500 - 1400 AD: 2,500 - 1479 AD: 2,000 - 1684 AD: 1,500 - 1797 AD: 2,500 - 1900 AD: 3,000 - 1950 AD: 3,500 - 2021 AD: 4,264 --- # Tikal, Guatemala URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/guatemala/tikal Founded: 1000 BC Ended: 900 AD Coordinates: 17.222, -89.6237 ## Description Tikal — known in Classic Maya glyphic inscriptions as Yax Mutal — is one of the largest and most powerful city-states of the Classic Maya civilization, located in the dense rainforest of the Petén lowlands in northern Guatemala. First settled by Middle Preclassic farmers around 1000 BCE, it grew into a monumental ceremonial center during the Late Preclassic and reached its political and architectural apogee during the Classic Period, roughly 250 to 900 CE. Tikal was the principal rival of Calakmul, suffering a devastating defeat by the Calakmul–Caracol alliance in 562 CE, followed by a long political hiatus, then a spectacular resurgence under king Jasaw Chan K'awiil I, who avenged the city by defeating Calakmul in 695 CE. The city was abandoned during the Classic Maya collapse around 900 CE and was gradually reclaimed by the jungle. After centuries of obscurity, the ruins were first reported to the wider world by Modesto Méndez in 1848, systematically documented by Alfred Maudslay in 1881, and excavated on a large scale by the University of Pennsylvania between 1956 and 1970. Tikal National Park was established by Guatemala in 1955 and inscribed by UNESCO as a mixed cultural and natural World Heritage Site in 1979. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 400 BC: Middle Preclassic Maya Settlement (known as "*Tikal") Earliest occupation of the Tikal plateau by Middle Preclassic Maya villagers practicing maize agriculture in the Petén rainforest. The Classic-period glyphic name Yax Mutal is not yet attested for this phase; the modern toponym Tikal is used as a placeholder for the unknown contemporary name. - 400 BC – 250 AD: Late Preclassic Maya Center (known as "*Tikal") Tikal develops into a major Late Preclassic ceremonial center. The first monumental architecture rises on the North Acropolis and in the Lost World pyramid complex, and the site participates in the wider Maya Preclassic civilization centered on giants such as El Mirador. Toward the end of this phase Tikal weathers the broader Late Preclassic collapse better than many neighbors and emerges as a leading Classic-period polity. - 250 AD – 562 AD: Early Classic Maya Kingdom of Yax Mutal (known as "Yax Mutal") Tikal — known in its own inscriptions as Yax Mutal — becomes one of the dominant Classic Maya city-states. In 378 CE a figure associated with the central Mexican metropolis of Teotihuacan, Siyaj K'ak', arrives at Tikal and installs a new royal dynasty, deeply reshaping its art and politics. Tikal projects power across the Petén until it is crushed in 562 CE by a Star War mounted by Caracol, almost certainly under the overlordship of the rival superpower Calakmul. - 562 AD – 682 AD: Tikal Hiatus under Calakmul Pressure (known as "Yax Mutal") Following the 562 CE defeat Tikal enters its so-called Hiatus, a 120-year period during which monumental construction and dated stelae nearly cease at the site. Calakmul and its allies dominate the central Maya lowlands. Tikal survives as a polity but is politically eclipsed. - 682 AD – 869 AD: Late Classic Resurgence under Jasaw Chan K'awiil and Successors (known as "Yax Mutal") King Jasaw Chan K'awiil I, who acceded in 682 CE, breaks the Hiatus and in 695 CE defeats Calakmul's king Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk', restoring Tikal as the preeminent Classic Maya power. He and his successors — most notably Yik'in Chan K'awiil — sponsor the great twin-pyramid program and the towering temples that define the modern silhouette of the site, including Temples I, II, IV, and V. - 869 AD – 900 AD: Terminal Classic Decline and Abandonment (known as "Yax Mutal") The last firmly dated monument at Tikal, Stela 11, is erected in 869 CE. Within a generation the royal court, scribal tradition, and monumental construction cease. Population drains away as part of the broader Classic Maya collapse across the southern lowlands, and Tikal is essentially abandoned by 900 CE. ## Landmarks - Lost World Pyramid Complex — Mundo Perdido (built 700 BC) Large architectural group southwest of the Great Plaza, founded in the Middle Preclassic around 700 BCE and expanded through the Classic period. Its central radial pyramid functioned as part of an astronomical E-Group used to track solstices and equinoxes, and the complex is one of the earliest monumental cores of Tikal. - North Acropolis (built 350 BC) Massive multi-layered royal funerary complex on the north side of the Great Plaza, built up from around 350 BCE and continuously remodeled into the Late Classic period. It contains stacked tombs of generations of Tikal kings and is the principal stratigraphic record of the city's dynastic history. - Great Plaza (built 150 BC) Central ceremonial space of Tikal, paved in successive layers of plaster from the Late Preclassic onward and flanked by Temples I and II, the North Acropolis, and the Central Acropolis. Most of the site's principal carved stelae and altars were erected here, recording the dynastic history of Yax Mutal. - Temple II — Temple of the Masks (built 700 AD) Pyramid temple on the western side of the Great Plaza, roughly 38 meters tall, facing Temple I across the ceremonial space. Built around 700 CE during the reign of Jasaw Chan K'awiil I and traditionally associated with his queen, Lady Twelve Macaw. - Temple I — Temple of the Great Jaguar (built 732 AD) Steep nine-tiered limestone pyramid rising about 47 meters on the eastern side of the Great Plaza, completed around 732 CE and serving as the funerary monument of king Jasaw Chan K'awiil I, whose richly furnished tomb was discovered deep inside its core. The roofcomb originally carried a sculpted portrait of the enthroned king. - Temple IV (built 741 AD) Towering pyramid commissioned under king Yik'in Chan K'awiil around 741 CE on the western edge of the site. At roughly 70 meters tall it is one of the tallest pre-Columbian structures in the Americas; its summit rises above the rainforest canopy and offers a panoramic view of the other great pyramids of Tikal. - Temple V (built 750 AD) Steep funerary pyramid about 57 meters tall, built in the mid-eighth century CE just south of the Great Plaza. Its narrow temple chamber and pronounced inward batter give it one of the most dramatic profiles at the site. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 500 - 400 BC: 3,000 - 1 AD: 10,000 - 300 AD: 30,000 - 500 AD: 50,000 - 700 AD: 60,000 - 800 AD: 50,000 - 870 AD: 20,000 - 900 AD: null --- # Copán, Honduras URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/honduras/copan Founded: 426 AD Ended: 900 AD Coordinates: 14.84, -89.1419 ## Description Copán was a Classic Maya royal capital in the fertile Copán Valley of western Honduras, near the modern Guatemalan border. Although the valley had been settled since roughly 1000 BCE in the Middle Preclassic, the city's recorded dynastic history began in 426 CE when K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' arrived from the central Maya lowlands, apparently under Tikal influence, and founded a ruling line that produced sixteen kings over nearly four centuries. Copán became famous for the densest concentration of carved stelae and altars in the Maya world, the Hieroglyphic Stairway with its 1,755 glyphs forming the longest known Maya inscription, and a layered Acropolis whose buried Rosalila temple preserves a Late Classic shrine almost intact beneath later construction. The polity's prestige was shaken in 738 CE when its thirteenth ruler, Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil, known as 18 Rabbit, was captured and decapitated by K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat of Quirigua; later kings rebuilt monuments and commissioned the Hieroglyphic Stairway in an attempt at dynastic recovery, but the last dated monument, Altar L, was carved in 822 CE, and the site was abandoned during the wider Classic Maya collapse around 900 CE. The ruins were swallowed by jungle for nearly a millennium until John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood visited in 1839, whose published account and Catherwood's iconic drawings introduced the city to a global audience, followed by Alfred Maudslay's pioneering scientific expedition in 1885 and continuous Honduran and international archaeological work since; Copán was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980. ## Historical Rulers - 426 AD – 553 AD: Copán Dynasty under Tikal Influence (known as "Oxwitik") K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' founded the Copán royal dynasty in 426 CE, arriving from the central Maya lowlands with apparent backing from Tikal. His early successors consolidated the lineage, established the core Acropolis, and tied Copán's elite culture to the broader Tikal-influenced Classic Maya world. - 553 AD – 738 AD: Copán Dynasty Independent Phase (known as "Oxwitik") Through the sixth and seventh centuries the Copán dynasty expanded the Acropolis, raised the Rosalila temple, and rebuilt Temple 22, asserting an independent royal identity. Under rulers such as K'inich K'an Bahlam I, Smoke Imix, and Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil, the city reached its political and artistic peak and dominated the southeastern Maya region. - 738 AD – 822 AD: Copán Dynasty Post-Decapitation Recovery (known as "Oxwitik") In 738 CE the thirteenth king, Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil — known as 18 Rabbit — was captured and beheaded by K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat of Quirigua, a catastrophic blow to Copán prestige. His successors, especially K'ak' Joplaj Chan K'awiil and K'ak' Yipyaj Chan K'awiil, attempted dynastic recovery by commissioning the Hieroglyphic Stairway and rebuilding monumental complexes. - 822 AD – 900 AD: Terminal Classic Decline (known as "Oxwitik") The last dated monument, Altar L, was carved in 822 CE under the unfinished reign of Ukit Took'. Construction ceased, the royal court collapsed, and rural population dispersed as the wider Classic Maya collapse engulfed the southern lowlands. By around 900 CE the dynastic city was effectively abandoned. ## Landmarks - Copán Acropolis (built 450 AD) The Acropolis is a tall, layered complex of palaces, temples, and royal tombs built up over four centuries by successive rulers; its sectioned profile, exposed by the Copán River's natural cut, reveals the stratified architectural history of the entire dynasty. - Rosalila Temple (built 600 AD) A vividly painted Late Classic shrine completed around 600 CE under Smoke Imix, dedicated to the dynastic founder K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo'. Rather than being demolished, Rosalila was carefully buried intact within later construction, leaving its stuccoed facades and polychrome decoration extraordinarily well preserved. - Temple 22 (built 715 AD) A richly carved throne and ceremonial complex on the Acropolis, dedicated under K'ak' Nab K'awiil and associated with the legacy of K'inich K'an Bahlam I, featuring elaborate cosmological iconography and a doorway framed as a sacred mountain. - Stela A (built 731 AD) Erected in 731 CE by Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil — 18 Rabbit — Stela A stands in the Great Plaza and is celebrated for its deep-relief portraiture and a hieroglyphic text invoking the four great Maya capitals, projecting Copán's political claims at the height of its prestige. - Ball Court (built 738 AD) The final, third version of the Copán ball court was completed in 738 CE under 18 Rabbit, just before his death, and is considered one of the most architecturally refined Maya ball courts, with stone macaw-head markers along its sloping benches. - Hieroglyphic Stairway (built 755 AD) Commissioned by K'ak' Yipyaj Chan K'awiil and dedicated around 755 CE, the Hieroglyphic Stairway climbs the side of Temple 26 with about 1,755 carved glyphs that recount the deeds of the Copán dynasty, forming the longest known hieroglyphic inscription in the Maya world. - Temple 16 (built 776 AD) The final Late Classic pyramid raised at the heart of the Acropolis, Temple 16 enshrines the buried Rosalila temple deep inside its core and served as the principal funerary monument linking the late dynasty to K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo'. ## Population History - 426 AD: 5,000 - 600 AD: 15,000 - 700 AD: 25,000 - 738 AD: 25,000 - 800 AD: 20,000 - 900 AD: null --- # Reykjavík, Iceland URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iceland/reykjavik Founded: 874 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 64.1466, -21.9426 ## Description Reykjavík, capital of Iceland and the northernmost capital city in the world, is traditionally said to have been founded in 874 CE by the Norwegian Viking Ingólfr Arnarson, the first permanent Norse settler of Iceland according to the Landnámabók. Its name, Old Norse for 'Smoky Bay', refers to the geothermal steam rising from the surrounding hot springs. For most of its history Reykjavík remained a small farming and fishing hamlet within the Icelandic Commonwealth, whose Alþingi parliament was convened from 930 CE at nearby Þingvellir, one of the oldest parliamentary institutions in the world. Iceland came under the Norwegian crown through the Old Covenant of 1262, passed with Norway into the Kalmar Union in 1380, and remained under Danish rule after the Lutheran Reformation of 1550 imposed by Christian III. Urban Reykjavík began in 1786, when Danish royal decree granted it town and trading rights, and it grew steadily as the seat of Home Rule in 1904 and capital of the sovereign Kingdom of Iceland in personal union with Denmark from 1918. During the Second World War the strategically located but neutral island was occupied by British forces in 1940 and by American forces from 1941 until 1947. On 17 June 1944 the Republic of Iceland was proclaimed, with Reykjavík as its capital. In October 1986 the city hosted the Reykjavík Summit between Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev at Höfði house, a turning point in ending the Cold War. The 2008 Icelandic financial crisis severely shook the city before it recovered as a modern Nordic capital of roughly 135,000 residents and a metropolitan area of about 233,000. ## Historical Rulers - 874 AD – 1262 AD: Iceland Traditional founding by the Norwegian Viking Ingólfr Arnarson in 874 CE, as recorded in the Landnámabók. Reykjavík remained a scattered farmstead within the decentralised Icelandic Commonwealth, whose chieftains gathered annually from 930 CE at the Alþingi at Þingvellir, one of the earliest parliamentary assemblies in the world. - 1262 AD – 1380 AD: Norwegian Realm Through the Old Covenant of 1262 the Icelandic chieftains accepted the sovereignty of the Norwegian king, ending the Commonwealth. Reykjavík remained a minor coastal farming settlement under distant royal administration. - 1380 AD – 1523 AD: Kingdom of Sweden Iceland followed Norway into the Kalmar Union of 1380, which united Denmark, Norway and Sweden under a single monarch. Under Danish-led union rule the island and Reykjavík continued as a peripheral fishing and farming hinterland. - 1523 AD – 1814 AD: Kingdom of Sweden After the dissolution of the Kalmar Union, Iceland remained tied to Denmark within the Denmark-Norway dual monarchy. King Christian III imposed the Lutheran Reformation on Iceland in 1550, and in 1786 Danish royal decree granted Reykjavík formal town and trading rights, marking the beginning of its life as an urban centre. - 1814 AD – 1904 AD: Iceland The Treaty of Kiel in 1814 separated Norway from Denmark, but Iceland remained a Danish dependency. Through the nineteenth century Reykjavík grew as the administrative and commercial heart of the island, hosting the restored Alþingi from 1845 and gaining a parliament house in 1881. - 1904 AD – 1918 AD: Iceland In 1904 Iceland was granted Home Rule within the Danish realm, with its government seated in Reykjavík. The city became the unambiguous political capital of the island and rapidly expanded in population and infrastructure. - 1918 AD – 1944 AD: Iceland The Act of Union of 1918 made Iceland a sovereign kingdom in personal union with the Danish crown, with Reykjavík as its capital. During the Second World War the strategically vital but neutral island was occupied first by British forces in 1940 and from 1941 by United States forces, who maintained a presence in Iceland until 1947. - 1944 AD – present: Republic of Iceland On 17 June 1944 Iceland proclaimed itself an independent republic at Þingvellir, with Reykjavík as its capital. The city later hosted the 1986 Reykjavík Summit between Reagan and Gorbachev at Höfði house, weathered the 2008 Icelandic financial crisis, and today serves as a modern Nordic capital and the cultural and economic heart of Iceland. ## Landmarks - Bessastaðir (built 1761 AD) Historic estate on the Álftanes peninsula southwest of Reykjavík, with origins as a medieval chieftain's farm later held by the Danish crown. The current stone manor and church complex date primarily from the 1760s; since 1944 Bessastaðir has served as the official residence of the President of Iceland. - Reykjavík Cathedral (built 1796 AD) Dómkirkjan í Reykjavík, the small Lutheran cathedral on Austurvöllur square, was consecrated in 1796 and is the oldest stone church in the city. It stands beside the Alþingishúsið and has been the principal church of Reykjavík since its consecration. - Alþingishúsið (built 1881 AD) The Parliament House of Iceland, completed in 1881 in dressed Icelandic dolerite. It houses the Alþingi, the legislature whose origins reach back to the assembly founded at Þingvellir in 930 CE, and faces Austurvöllur square in the heart of Reykjavík. - Höfði House (built 1909 AD) A white timber-framed house on the northern shore of Reykjavík, built in 1909 as the residence of the French consul. It became internationally famous as the venue of the 1986 Reykjavík Summit between Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, a meeting widely seen as a turning point in ending the Cold War. - Hallgrímskirkja (built 1986 AD) Lutheran parish church and architectural landmark of Reykjavík, designed by Guðjón Samúelsson with a 74.5-metre tower whose stepped basalt-column form evokes Iceland's volcanic landscape. Begun in 1945 and consecrated in 1986, it is one of the tallest structures in Iceland. - Sun Voyager (built 1990 AD) Sólfar, a stainless-steel sculpture by Jón Gunnar Árnason installed on the Sæbraut waterfront in 1990. Conceived as a dreamboat and an ode to the sun, it has become one of the most recognised modern landmarks of Reykjavík. - Harpa Concert Hall (built 2011 AD) Concert hall and conference centre on the old harbour of Reykjavík, opened in 2011 after construction was famously continued through the 2008 Icelandic financial crisis. Its glass facade of coloured geometric panels, designed with the artist Olafur Eliasson, has become a signature image of modern Reykjavík. ## Population History - 874 AD: 30 - 1000 AD: 100 - 1500 AD: 200 - 1786 AD: 300 - 1850 AD: 1,150 - 1900 AD: 6,700 - 1944 AD: 44,000 - 1980 AD: 87,000 - 2000 AD: 111,000 - 2020 AD: 135,000 --- # Delhi, India URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/india/delhi Founded: 736 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 28.6139, 77.209 ## Description Delhi is one of the world's most layered capitals, known as the City of Cities for the succession of seven historical capitals built within its plain. Archaeological levels of Painted Grey Ware culture indicate occupation from at least the 6th century BCE, and legend ties the site to Indraprastha of the Mahabharata epic, though continuous urban history begins with the Tomar Rajput foundation of Lal Kot around 736. The Chauhans expanded the city before Muhammad of Ghor's victory at the Second Battle of Tarain in 1192 brought it under Qutb ud-Din Aibak, who established the Delhi Sultanate. Successive Sultanate dynasties built new citadels within the Delhi plain, including Siri, Tughlaqabad, Jahanpanah, Firozabad and Shergarh, giving rise to the famous seven cities of Delhi. Babur's victory at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526 inaugurated Mughal rule; Shah Jahan moved the Mughal capital to his new walled city Shahjahanabad in 1648, with the Red Fort and Jama Masjid at its heart. Delhi was sacked by Nader Shah in 1739, who carried off the Peacock Throne, and again devastated by the British after the 1857 Rebellion, when the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled. The British transferred the imperial capital from Calcutta to Delhi in 1911 and built Lutyens' New Delhi by 1931. The 1947 Partition unleashed massive communal violence and refugee resettlement that transformed the city's demography. Today the Delhi National Capital Region is home to roughly 32 million people and ranks as the world's second largest metropolitan area. ## Historical Rulers - 736 AD – 1180 AD: Tomar Rajput Dynasty Anangpal Tomar is traditionally credited with founding Lal Kot around 736, the earliest of the seven historical cities of Delhi and the seed of continuous urban occupation on the Delhi plain. - 1180 AD – 1192 AD: Chauhan Dynasty The Chauhans of Ajmer under Prithviraj III absorbed Delhi and expanded Lal Kot into Qila Rai Pithora. Prithviraj's defeat by Muhammad of Ghor at the Second Battle of Tarain in 1192 ended Rajput rule over the city. - 1192 AD – 1526 AD: Delhi Sultanate Qutb ud-Din Aibak established the Mamluk dynasty, followed by the Khalji, Tughlaq, Sayyid and Lodi houses. The Sultanate built successive new capitals within the Delhi plain, including Siri in 1303, Tughlaqabad in 1321, Jahanpanah in 1326 and Firozabad in 1354, producing several of the seven cities of Delhi. - 1526 AD – 1857 AD: Mughal Empire Babur's victory at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526 inaugurated Mughal rule, briefly interrupted by Sher Shah Suri between 1540 and 1555. Shah Jahan moved the Mughal capital to his new walled city Shahjahanabad in 1648, where he built the Red Fort and Jama Masjid. Nader Shah's sack of 1739 carried away the Peacock Throne, and after the 1857 Rebellion the British exiled the last emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar, ending Mughal authority. - 1857 AD – 1947 AD: British Empire Direct British rule under the Raj followed the 1857 Rebellion. In 1911 George V announced the transfer of the imperial capital from Calcutta to Delhi, and Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker designed New Delhi, inaugurated in 1931 as the new seat of government. - 1947 AD – present: Republic of India Delhi became the capital of independent India on 15 August 1947. Partition triggered mass communal violence and a vast refugee influx from Punjab and Sindh, after which the city grew into a sprawling National Capital Region that today exceeds 32 million inhabitants. ## Landmarks - Qutub Minar (built 1200 AD) A 73-metre tapering sandstone victory tower begun by Qutb ud-Din Aibak in 1199 and completed by Iltutmish, marking the establishment of Muslim rule in Delhi. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993. - Tughlaqabad Fort (built 1321 AD) Massive stone fortress built by Ghiyas ud-Din Tughlaq as the third historical capital of Delhi, its cyclopean walls enclosing the abandoned Tughlaq city. - Humayun's Tomb (built 1572 AD) Garden tomb of the second Mughal emperor commissioned by his widow Bega Begum, the first major Mughal architectural masterpiece and a direct precursor to the Taj Mahal. UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993. - Red Fort (built 1648 AD) Shah Jahan's palace-fortress of red sandstone, the ceremonial centre of Mughal Shahjahanabad and seat of imperial power until 1857. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007. - Jama Masjid (built 1656 AD) The grand congregational mosque of Shahjahanabad, completed under Shah Jahan, with a courtyard capable of holding tens of thousands of worshippers and one of the largest mosques in the Indian subcontinent. - Rashtrapati Bhavan (built 1929 AD) Designed by Edwin Lutyens as the Viceroy's House at the heart of New Delhi and completed in 1929. Since independence it has served as the official residence of the President of India. - India Gate (built 1931 AD) War memorial designed by Lutyens at the eastern end of the Rajpath axis of New Delhi, commemorating Indian soldiers who died in the First World War and the Third Anglo-Afghan War. ## Population History - 736 AD: 5,000 - 1206 AD: 50,000 - 1325 AD: 400,000 - 1648 AD: 400,000 - 1739 AD: 2,000,000 - 1857 AD: 150,000 - 1911 AD: 240,000 - 1947 AD: 700,000 - 1981 AD: 5,700,000 - 2000 AD: 15,500,000 - 2020 AD: 32,000,000 --- # Mumbai, India URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/india/mumbai Founded: 1534 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 18.9582, 72.833 ## Description Mumbai is India's financial and entertainment capital, a megacity of roughly twenty million people built on what were originally seven islands off the Konkan coast inhabited since prehistoric times by Koli fishing communities and ruled in succession by Mauryan, Satavahana, Chalukyan, Rashtrakuta, Silhara and Yadava dynasties before falling to the Gujarat Sultanate in 1348. The consolidated urban story begins in 1534 when the Portuguese acquired the islands and named them Bom Bahia, later anglicized to Bombay. The islands passed to the English Crown in 1661 as part of Catherine of Braganza's dowry to Charles II, were leased to the East India Company in 1668, and were progressively united into a single landmass through reclamation projects such as the Hornby Vellard of 1782. Bombay became the capital of the Bombay Presidency, boomed as a cotton trade hub during the American Civil War, and emerged after Indian independence in 1947 as the country's commercial heart, home to the Bombay Stock Exchange and the Hindi cinema industry known as Bollywood. The city was officially renamed Mumbai in 1995 after the Hindu goddess Mumbadevi, a politically driven reassertion of its pre-colonial Marathi identity. The UNESCO-listed Elephanta Caves lie on an island about ten kilometres offshore. ## Historical Rulers - 1534 AD – 1661 AD: Portuguese Estado da Índia (known as "Bom Bahia") The Portuguese acquired the seven islands from the Gujarat Sultanate by the Treaty of Bassein in 1534 and named them Bom Bahia, meaning good bay, later rendered as Bombaim. They built churches, forts and small trading posts but never developed the islands into a major port, treating them as a secondary outpost of their Estado da Índia centred on Goa. - 1661 AD – 1668 AD: British Empire (known as "Bombay") The islands were ceded to Charles II of England in 1661 as part of the dowry of Catherine of Braganza when she married the English king. The Crown held them directly for seven years, during which the name was anglicized to Bombay, before transferring the islands to commercial administration. - 1668 AD – 1858 AD: British Empire (known as "Bombay") Charles II leased Bombay to the East India Company in 1668 for a nominal annual rent. Under Company rule the islands were fortified, the seat of the western presidency was moved from Surat to Bombay, and land reclamation projects beginning with the Hornby Vellard in 1782 began merging the seven islands into a single landmass. The cotton trade boomed during the American Civil War of the 1860s, transforming Bombay into a wealthy colonial metropolis. - 1858 AD – 1947 AD: British Empire (known as "Bombay") Following the Indian Rebellion of 1857 the Government of India Act 1858 dissolved the East India Company and placed Bombay under direct Crown rule as the capital of the Bombay Presidency. The city expanded as a hub of textile mills, shipping and finance, acquired its monumental Victorian and Indo-Saracenic civic architecture, and became a centre of the Indian independence movement. - 1947 AD – 1995 AD: Republic of India — Bombay (known as "Bombay") On Indian independence in 1947 Bombay became part of the new Republic of India and from 1960 the capital of Maharashtra state. It grew rapidly into the country's commercial and financial capital, home to the Bombay Stock Exchange founded in 1875 and the Hindi cinema industry known as Bollywood. - 1995 AD – present: Republic of India — Mumbai In 1995 the Shiv Sena-led state government officially renamed the city Mumbai after the Hindu goddess Mumbadevi, reasserting its pre-colonial Marathi identity over the colonial Bombay. The metropolis has continued to expand as one of the world's largest urban agglomerations, anchoring India's financial sector, the Bollywood film industry and a major container port. ## Landmarks - Bombay Castle (built 1716 AD) A fortification at the southern tip of Bombay Island built by the East India Company on the site of an earlier Portuguese manor house, anchoring the defence of the colonial port and seat of the Bombay Presidency. - Asiatic Society of Mumbai building (built 1830 AD) A grand Neoclassical town hall in the Fort district, originally housing the Literary Society of Bombay and now home to the Asiatic Society of Mumbai and one of India's most important historical libraries. - Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (built 1887 AD) A vast Victorian Gothic and Indo-Saracenic railway terminus designed by F. W. Stevens for the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, originally named Victoria Terminus and renamed in 1996. It was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2004 as an outstanding example of nineteenth-century colonial railway architecture in India. - Gateway of India (built 1924 AD) A basalt triumphal arch on the Apollo Bunder waterfront designed by George Wittet to commemorate the 1911 landing of King George V and Queen Mary, completed in 1924. It later became the symbolic point of departure for the last British troops leaving India in 1948 and remains the city's most recognized landmark. - Bombay Stock Exchange building (built 1980 AD) The twenty-nine-storey Phiroze Jeejeebhoy Towers in the Dalal Street financial district, completed in 1980 as the headquarters of the Bombay Stock Exchange. The BSE, founded in 1875, is Asia's oldest stock exchange and the building remains the principal landmark of Mumbai's financial centre. - Bandra-Worli Sea Link (built 2009 AD) A cable-stayed bridge across Mahim Bay connecting the western suburb of Bandra with Worli in south Mumbai, opened in 2009 as one of India's largest infrastructure projects and a symbol of the city's modern megacity ambitions. ## Population History - 1534 AD: 10,000 - 1661 AD: 20,000 - 1700 AD: 60,000 - 1750 AD: 80,000 - 1800 AD: 180,000 - 1850 AD: 570,000 - 1900 AD: 780,000 - 1950 AD: 3,000,000 - 1980 AD: 8,200,000 - 2000 AD: 16,400,000 - 2020 AD: 20,400,000 --- # Patna, India URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/india/patna Founded: 490 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 25.6093, 85.1235 ## Description Patna, known in antiquity as Pataliputra, is the capital of Bihar state in northeastern India, situated on the southern bank of the Ganges near its confluences with the Son, Gandak, and Punpun rivers. Traditionally founded around 490 BCE by Ajatashatru of Magadha as a fortified outpost on the Ganges, it grew under his successor Udayin into Pataliputra, the imperial capital from which the Magadha state expanded across northern India. It served as the seat of the Nanda dynasty, then the Mauryan Empire of Chandragupta and Ashoka — when the Greek diplomat Megasthenes described it as the largest city in the known world, with a 14-kilometre timber palisade pierced by sixty-four gates — and later as the capital of the Shunga and Gupta dynasties, during which Sanskrit literature, mathematics, and Buddhist learning reached classical heights. After the Hunnic invasions and Gupta collapse in the 6th century CE the city contracted sharply but was never wholly abandoned, persisting as a smaller riverine settlement through the Pala period and successive Delhi Sultanate raids. In 1541 the Afghan sultan Sher Shah Suri formally refounded the city as Patna on the same site, and under successive Mughal and British administrations it grew as a major Ganges riverport, opium and tobacco entrepôt, and the capital of Bihar Province from 1912. Since Indian independence in 1947 Patna has served as the capital of the modern state of Bihar, with a metropolitan population of around 2.5 million; archaeological remains of ancient Pataliputra survive within and beneath the modern city at Kumhrar, Bhikna Pahari, and other excavated sites. ## Historical Rulers - 490 BC – 322 BC: Magadha Kingdom — Haryanka and Shishunaga dynasties (known as "Pātaliputra") Ajatashatru of the Haryanka dynasty founded a fortified outpost at the confluence of the Ganges and the Son around 490 BCE, which under his son Udayin was developed into Pataliputra and replaced Rajagriha as the Magadha capital. Under the successor Shishunaga and Nanda dynasties the city expanded across the alluvial plain and became the principal political centre of the Ganges valley. - 322 BC – 185 BC: Maurya Empire (known as "Pātaliputra") Chandragupta Maurya seized Pataliputra in 322 BCE and established the Mauryan empire, the first state to unify most of the Indian subcontinent. Under his grandson Ashoka in the mid-3rd century BCE the city reached its imperial peak, with monumental sandstone architecture in the palace at Kumhrar, royal edicts dispatched to provincial pillars across the empire, and a population that Megasthenes and Diodorus describe as the largest in the known world. - 185 BC – 30 BC: Shunga and Kanva dynasties (known as "Pātaliputra") After the assassination of the last Mauryan emperor Brihadratha in 185 BCE, his general Pushyamitra founded the Shunga dynasty with Pataliputra as its capital. The city retained its imperial role through the Shunga and brief Kanva successor periods, though the empire's reach contracted to the central Gangetic plain in the face of Indo-Greek incursions from the northwest. - 30 BC – 320 AD: Post-imperial fragmentation (known as "Pātaliputra") Between the fall of the Kanvas and the rise of the Guptas Pataliputra fell under successive minor dynasties and contested with Indo-Scythian, Kushan, and Shaka powers across the northern plain. The city remained an important urban centre and Buddhist intellectual hub even as imperial unity gave way to a patchwork of regional powers. - 320 AD – 550 AD: Gupta Empire (known as "Pātaliputra") Chandragupta I founded the Gupta dynasty around 320 CE and restored Pataliputra as the capital of a renewed pan-Indian empire. Under Samudragupta and Chandragupta II the city presided over a classical age of Sanskrit poetry and drama, mathematical astronomy at Nalanda and Pataliputra, and the codification of Hindu and Buddhist religious traditions, before Hephthalite (White Hun) invasions broke the empire in the mid-6th century. - 550 AD – 1541 AD: Post-Gupta contraction — Later Guptas, Pala, and Sultanate raids (known as "Pātaliputra") After Gupta collapse Pataliputra contracted sharply but persisted as a smaller riverine settlement on the southern Ganges. It passed under the Later Guptas, Vardhana empire, and Pala dynasty between the 7th and 12th centuries, and from the 13th century onward was repeatedly raided by the Delhi Sultanate. Periodic flooding and dynastic neglect reduced the ancient megapolis to a modest provincial town by the early 16th century. - 1541 AD – 1556 AD: Sur Empire — Sher Shah Suri's refoundation In 1541 the Afghan sultan Sher Shah Suri, who had displaced the early Mughal emperor Humayun, formally refounded the city on the same site as Patna, building new fortifications and improving the Grand Trunk Road that passed through it. Although Sher Shah's empire was short-lived, the refoundation established the city's modern name and urban grid. - 1556 AD – 1764 AD: Mughal Empire Following Humayun's reconquest in 1555 Patna passed to the Mughal Empire and grew into a major Ganges riverport under Akbar, Aurangzeb, and their successors. By the 17th century it was a leading centre of saltpetre, opium, indigo, and silk trade, and hosted East India Company and Dutch VOC factories alongside Mughal provincial administration. - 1764 AD – 1947 AD: British Empire After the Battle of Buxar in 1764 the diwani of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa passed to the British East India Company, and Patna became a key Company administrative and commercial centre. In 1912 it was designated the capital of the newly separated province of Bihar and Orissa, gaining new colonial public buildings, the High Court, Patna University (1917), and the Bihar State Secretariat in the Bankipore neighbourhood. - 1947 AD – present: Republic of India Since Indian independence Patna has continued as the capital of the state of Bihar, with a metropolitan population of around 2.5 million in the early 2020s. The Archaeological Survey of India has conducted ongoing excavations at the Kumhrar Mauryan palace site, Bhikna Pahari, and other locations within the modern city, integrating the ancient Pataliputra archaeological footprint with the inhabited urban fabric. ## Landmarks - Kumhrar Mauryan Palace (built 300 BC) The site of the great Mauryan palace and audience hall, partly excavated since 1912 by Spooner, Altekar, and later Archaeological Survey of India campaigns at Kumhrar in southern Patna. Remains include the eighty-pillared sandstone hall traditionally identified with Chandragupta's or Ashoka's audience chamber, and timber stockade fragments preserved in the waterlogged subsoil that match Megasthenes's description of the city's palisade. - Bhikna Pahari Mauryan and Gupta Mounds (built 300 BC) A cluster of low mounds in southern Patna preserving Mauryan and Gupta-period brick architecture, including monastic and residential complexes excavated since the early 20th century. The site has yielded extensive pottery, terracotta figurines, and inscribed seals documenting daily life across nearly a millennium of urban occupation. - Patna Sahib Gurudwara (built 1780 AD) The Takht Sri Patna Sahib gurudwara built on the birthplace of the tenth Sikh guru, Gobind Singh, born in Patna in 1666. The present structure dates from a late 18th-century reconstruction under Maharaja Ranjit Singh and has been repeatedly enlarged; it is one of the five Takhts, the most sacred seats of authority in Sikhism. - Golghar Granary (built 1786 AD) A hemispherical brick granary built in 1786 by Captain John Garstin of the British East India Company in response to the catastrophic 1770 Bihar famine. Standing 29 metres tall with walls 3.6 metres thick at the base, it was the largest granary structure in colonial India, and a spiral external staircase allows visitors to climb to its summit for panoramic views of the Ganges. - Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Public Library (built 1891 AD) An Indo-Saracenic public library founded in 1891 by the Bihari jurist Khuda Bakhsh Khan to house his collection of roughly 4,000 Arabic, Persian, and Sanskrit manuscripts. The collection has grown to over 21,000 manuscripts and is one of the most important repositories of Islamic and South Asian intellectual heritage in the world. ## Population History - 490 BC: 5,000 - 300 BC: 200,000 - 1 AD: 150,000 - 400 AD: 200,000 - 700 AD: 80,000 - 1000 AD: 30,000 - 1541 AD: 30,000 - 1700 AD: 200,000 - 1900 AD: 130,000 - 1950 AD: 350,000 - 2020 AD: 2,500,000 --- # Jakarta, Indonesia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/indonesia/jakarta Founded: 1527 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: -6.2088, 106.8456 ## Description Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia, situated on the northwest coast of Java at the mouth of the Ciliwung River. Its urban history begins with the pre-colonial Hindu Sundanese port of Sunda Kelapa, attested as a trading harbor of the Sunda Kingdom by the 14th to 15th centuries. In 1527 the city was conquered by the Demak-Cirebon Islamic forces under Fatahillah, who renamed it Jayakarta. In 1619 the Dutch East India Company under Jan Pieterszoon Coen destroyed Jayakarta and built Batavia on its ruins as the capital of the Dutch East Indies, later marked by the 1740 massacre of the Chinese community. After Japanese occupation in 1942 the city's name was reverted to Jakarta, and from Sukarno's proclamation of independence in 1945 it served as the capital of the Republic of Indonesia. Today Jakarta anchors the Jabodetabek metropolitan region of more than thirty million people and is celebrated and notorious in equal measure for its dense urban culture, traffic gridlock, severe flooding, and rapid land subsidence, prompting the government to announce a phased capital transfer to Nusantara in East Kalimantan during 2022 to 2024. ## Historical Rulers - 1527 AD – 1619 AD: Sultanate of Banten (known as "Jayakarta") Fatahillah, commanding combined Demak and Cirebon Islamic forces, captured the Sundanese port of Sunda Kelapa in 1527 and renamed it Jayakarta, meaning 'Victorious Deed.' The city became a vassal port of the rising Sultanate of Banten and a key node in the regional spice and pepper trade until Dutch intervention. - 1619 AD – 1799 AD: Dutch East Indies (known as "Batavia") In 1619 Governor-General Jan Pieterszoon Coen razed Jayakarta and founded the fortified town of Batavia on its ruins, making it the headquarters of the Dutch East India Company in Asia. Batavia grew into a major colonial trading hub, scarred by the 1740 massacre of its Chinese inhabitants and by recurrent epidemics in its swampy lowlands. - 1799 AD – 1942 AD: Dutch East Indies (known as "Batavia") After the bankruptcy of the VOC in 1799, the Dutch state assumed direct control and Batavia became the capital of the colony of the Netherlands East Indies. The 19th and early 20th centuries brought canal works, modern districts such as Weltevreden and Menteng, railways, and a sharply stratified colonial society. - 1942 AD – 1945 AD: Empire of Japan Japanese forces occupied Batavia in March 1942 during World War II and restored the indigenous name Jakarta. The occupation dismantled Dutch colonial structures, mobilized Indonesian nationalists, and set the stage for the independence proclamation made in the city in 1945. - 1945 AD – present: Republic of Indonesia Sukarno and Hatta proclaimed Indonesian independence in Jakarta on 17 August 1945, and the city was internationally recognized as the capital after Dutch withdrawal in 1949. Under Sukarno and Suharto it became a sprawling megacity, the focus of 1998 reformasi protests, and remains the political and economic capital pending the phased transfer of capital functions to Nusantara announced from 2022 onward. ## Landmarks - Sunda Kelapa Harbor (built 1527 AD) The historic port at the mouth of the Ciliwung River that gave the pre-colonial city its name and continued to function as Jayakarta's and later Batavia's outer harbor. It is still used today for traditional pinisi schooners and remains a heritage maritime quarter. - Kota Tua (built 1619 AD) The walled old town founded by the Dutch East India Company in 1619, originally called Oud Batavia. Its surviving 17th to 19th century buildings make it the densest cluster of Dutch colonial architecture in Indonesia. - Fatahillah Square (built 1620 AD) The central public square of VOC-era Batavia, laid out in the 1620s in front of the Stadhuis. Surrounded by colonial Dutch buildings, it now forms the ceremonial heart of the Kota Tua heritage district. - Jakarta Cathedral (built 1901 AD) A Neo-Gothic Roman Catholic cathedral consecrated in 1901, the seat of the Archdiocese of Jakarta. It stands directly opposite Istiqlal Mosque, symbolizing Indonesia's official commitment to interfaith coexistence. - Selamat Datang Monument (built 1962 AD) A bronze statue of a welcoming couple atop a tall pedestal at the centre of the Bundaran HI traffic circle, erected in 1962 for the Asian Games hosted by Jakarta. It marks the symbolic gateway of central Jakarta's main commercial axis along Jalan Thamrin. - National Monument (built 1975 AD) A 132-metre marble obelisk crowned with a gilded flame, commissioned by Sukarno in 1961 and completed in 1975 at the centre of Merdeka Square. It commemorates the Indonesian struggle for independence and is the principal landmark of modern Jakarta. - Istiqlal Mosque (built 1978 AD) The national mosque of Indonesia, inaugurated in 1978 and the largest mosque in Southeast Asia by capacity. Designed by Christian architect Frederik Silaban, its modernist form and location facing Jakarta Cathedral underscore the city's pluralist symbolism. ## Population History - 1527 AD: 5,000 - 1619 AD: 10,000 - 1700 AD: 40,000 - 1800 AD: 115,000 - 1900 AD: 115,000 - 1945 AD: 580,000 - 1980 AD: 6,500,000 - 2000 AD: 8,400,000 - 2020 AD: 10,800,000 --- # Ganzak, Iran URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iran/ganzak Founded: 550 BC Ended: 1300 AD Coordinates: 36.99895, 46.21225 ## Description Ganzak — known to classical authors as Gazaca and to Arabic-Persian medieval sources as Janzeh — was the principal city of ancient Atropatene and a major religious centre of imperial Zoroastrianism, located in the Miandoab plain south of Lake Urmia in modern Malekan County of East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. The site is identified with the ruins at modern Leylan. The toponym derives from a Median word for 'treasury,' and the city was established as an Achaemenid satrapal seat for the province of Media around the mid-6th century BCE. After Alexander's death the Persian satrap Atropates declared the autonomous Kingdom of Atropatene around 323 BCE, with Ganzak as its capital; the kingdom famously withstood Mark Antony's Roman siege of 36 BCE. Under Sasanian rule from 224 CE the city continued as the principal centre of the province of Adurbadagan and as the seat of the great fire temple of Adur Gushnasp, one of the three holiest Zoroastrian fire temples of the empire. Heraclius's eastern campaign of 622 CE sacked Ganzak and destroyed the Adur Gushnasp temple, after which the fire was probably relocated to the nearby mountaintop sanctuary at Shiz (modern Takht-e Soleyman). Following the Arab conquest in 651 CE the city continued as a regional centre under successive caliphates, Sajid, Seljuk, and Ilkhanid administrations, but declined sharply during the Mongol disruption of the 13th century and was effectively abandoned by around 1300. The nearby village of Leylan emerged as its small modern successor. ## Historical Rulers - 550 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire Established under Cyrus the Great as the principal satrapal seat of the Achaemenid province of Media in the early 6th century BCE. The Median-derived name Ganzak — meaning 'treasury' — reflects the city's role as a regional administrative and tax-collection centre of the new empire's northwestern provinces. - 330 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Gazaca") Alexander the Great's conquest of the Achaemenid Empire brought Media briefly under Macedonian control. After Alexander's death in 323 BCE the local satrap Atropates seized the opportunity to assert his independence over the northwestern Median highlands. - 323 BC – 224 AD: Kingdom of Atropatene (known as "Gazaca") Atropates established the autonomous Kingdom of Atropatene with Ganzak as its capital around 323 BCE, founding a long-lived Iranian successor dynasty. The kingdom became a Parthian vassal under Mithridates II of Parthia around 148 BCE but retained its native dynasty and royal seat at Ganzak. The capital famously withstood Mark Antony's Roman siege in 36 BCE during the Parthian Wars. Atropatenian rule ended in 224 CE when Ardashir I of the Sasanian dynasty absorbed the kingdom into the new Sasanian realm. - 224 AD – 651 AD: Sasanian Empire Under the Sasanians Ganzak became the principal centre of the province of Adurbadagan and the seat of the great fire temple of Adur Gushnasp, one of the three holiest royal fire temples of imperial Zoroastrianism, kindled by the Sasanian warrior class. The 591 Battle of Blarathon was fought nearby. Heraclius's Byzantine campaign of 622 CE sacked Ganzak and destroyed the Adur Gushnasp temple in retaliation for Sasanian attacks on Christian sites, after which the sacred fire was probably relocated to the more defensible mountaintop sanctuary of Shiz at modern Takht-e Soleyman. - 651 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Janzeh") Conquered by Arab forces in 651 CE during the final stages of the Muslim conquest of Iran, Ganzak — arabicised as Janzeh — was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate's eastern provinces. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Janzeh") Under Umayyad rule from Damascus, Janzeh continued as a regional centre of Iranian Azerbaijan with substantial surviving Zoroastrian population alongside the new Muslim administration. - 750 AD – 1055 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Janzeh") Under Abbasid administration Janzeh continued as a regional centre of Azerbaijan, with various semi-autonomous Iranian and Turkic dynasties — Sajids, Sallarids, and Rawadids — controlling the city under nominal caliphal suzerainty during the 9th–11th centuries. - 1055 AD – 1220 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Janzeh") Under Seljuk rule Janzeh continued as one of the regional centres of Iranian Azerbaijan, with Tabriz gradually rising to overshadow it as the principal city of the region during the 12th century. - 1220 AD – 1300 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Janzeh") The Mongol invasions of the 1220s and the subsequent establishment of the Ilkhanate centred on Tabriz brought severe disruption to the smaller regional centres of Azerbaijan. Janzeh declined sharply through the Ilkhanid period and was effectively abandoned by around 1300, with the small village of Leylan emerging on the site as its modest successor. ## Landmarks - Citadel of Ganzak (built 300 BC) The fortified upper city of Ganzak, originally built as the Achaemenid satrapal seat and substantially expanded under Atropatene and the Sasanians. The citadel withstood Mark Antony's Roman siege of 36 BCE, demonstrating its strategic significance. - Adur Gushnasp Fire Temple (built 100 BC) The great royal fire temple of Adur Gushnasp at Ganzak, kindled in honour of the Sasanian warrior class and one of the three holiest fire temples of imperial Zoroastrianism. The temple at Ganzak was destroyed during Heraclius's Byzantine campaign of 622 CE, after which the sacred fire was probably relocated to the mountaintop sanctuary of Shiz at modern Takht-e Soleyman. ## Population History - 550 BC: 2,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 50 BC: 12,000 - 300 AD: 25,000 - 600 AD: 30,000 - 622 AD: 10,000 - 800 AD: 15,000 - 1100 AD: 10,000 - 1250 AD: 4,000 - 1300 AD: null --- # Pasargadae, Iran URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iran/pasargadae Founded: 550 BC Ended: 1000 AD Coordinates: 30.1929, 53.1668 ## Description Pasargadae was the first dynastic capital of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, founded around 550 BCE by Cyrus the Great on the plain in Fars where he had defeated the Median king Astyages. Conceived as a royal showcase of palaces, gardens, and ceremonial precincts, it served as the seat of Cyrus and his immediate successors until Darius I shifted the imperial center to Persepolis and Susa around 518 BCE. Pasargadae nevertheless retained its sacred status as the dynastic homeland and burial place of Cyrus; Alexander the Great visited the tomb in 330 BCE and ordered its restoration after finding it plundered. Occupation continued at a much reduced scale through the Seleucid, Parthian, and Sasanian periods, and the site dwindled to a minor religious locus before being effectively abandoned by around 1000 CE under the early Islamic caliphates. The Venetian envoy Josafa Barbaro described the ruins in 1474, mistaking the Tomb of Cyrus for the tomb of the mother of Solomon — a misidentification that survived in local tradition for centuries. Robert Ker Porter sketched the site in 1818, Aurel Stein conducted survey work in 1934, and Pasargadae was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004. ## Historical Rulers - 550 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire Founded by Cyrus the Great around 550 BCE on the site of his victory over the Median king Astyages, Pasargadae served as the first dynastic capital of the Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus, Cambyses II, and briefly Bardiya. Around 518 BCE Darius I shifted the imperial administration to Persepolis and Susa, but Pasargadae retained its sacred status as the dynastic homeland and the site of the royal coronation ritual at the precinct of Cyrus's tomb, continuing as a royal-religious center until the empire's fall to Alexander the Great in 330 BCE. - 330 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire Alexander the Great visited the Tomb of Cyrus in 330 BCE, found it plundered, and ordered the architect Aristobulus to restore it. After Alexander's death the Persis homeland passed to the Seleucids, under whom Pasargadae continued as a minor settlement on the route between Persis and the Iranian plateau, with the local Persian sub-kings of Persis (the Fratarakas) acting as Seleucid vassals. - 141 BC – 224 AD: Parthian Empire Mithradates I's defeat of the Seleucids in 141 BCE brought Persis into the Parthian Arsacid realm. Pasargadae survived as a small provincial settlement in the Persis homeland of the local Persian sub-kings, with its Achaemenid monuments still standing but no longer at the center of imperial life. - 224 AD – 651 AD: Sasanian Empire Under the Sasanians, who rose from the very province of Persis in which Pasargadae sits, the site was partially reused as a minor religious locus. The Tomb of Cyrus was reinterpreted in local memory, and modest building activity continued around the older Achaemenid monuments. - 651 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate Following the Arab conquest of Sasanian Iran and the death of the last Sasanian king Yazdegerd III in 651 CE, Pasargadae came under the Rashidun Caliphate as a small rural locality within the new Islamic province of Fars. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Pasargadae remained a minor rural settlement within the province of Fars. The standing Achaemenid ruins were already being reinterpreted in Islamic-era folk tradition, the Tomb of Cyrus eventually becoming known locally as Mashhad-i Madar-i Sulaiman, the tomb of the mother of Solomon. - 750 AD – 1000 AD: Abbasid Caliphate With the Abbasid revolution of 750 CE Pasargadae passed under Abbasid administration, but loose central authority alternated with local Persianate dynasties (Tahirid, Saffarid, Samanid, Buyid). The site lost its remaining administrative role and dwindled to a cluster of houses around the standing ruins, effectively abandoned by around 1000 CE. ## Landmarks - Tomb of Cyrus (built 540 BC) Free-standing limestone mausoleum of Cyrus the Great, the iconic surviving monument of Pasargadae. A simple gabled chamber sits atop a six-stepped plinth, rising about 11 meters in total. Found plundered by Alexander the Great in 330 BCE and restored on his orders, it was later mistaken in medieval Islamic tradition for the tomb of the mother of Solomon — a misidentification that helped preserve it. - Palace of Cyrus (built 540 BC) Known to archaeologists as Palace P, the residential palace of Cyrus the Great at the heart of the royal precinct. A long columned portico opened onto the surrounding paradise gardens, whose stone water channels survive and are considered among the earliest known formal Persian garden layouts. - Tall-e Takht (built 540 BC) The great stone terrace on the hill north of the palace area, planned under Cyrus as the citadel of Pasargadae. Its massive ashlar masonry, built without mortar in a style closely related to Lydian techniques, was left unfinished at Cyrus's death and later completed in mudbrick under the Achaemenids and reused into the post-Achaemenid period. - Sacred Precinct (built 540 BC) Open-air sanctuary northeast of the palace area, marked by two stepped stone plinths and associated platforms. Generally interpreted as the ceremonial heart of Pasargadae's royal cult, including a fire altar, where Achaemenid kings were said to undergo a coronation ritual in honor of the founder Cyrus. - Audience Hall (built 535 BC) Designated Palace S by excavators, the great audience hall of Cyrus, a rectangular hypostyle structure with two rows of tall stone columns. Surviving column bases and a famous relief fragment of a four-winged genius mark the building's ceremonial character. - Gate House (built 535 BC) Designated Palace R, the monumental gateway to the Pasargadae palace complex. The structure is best known for the so-called Winged Genius relief, a near-life-size figure wearing an elaborate Egyptian-style crown, sometimes interpreted as a guardian spirit of the site or an idealized image of Cyrus. ## Population History - 550 BC: 5,000 - 518 BC: 10,000 - 330 BC: 3,000 - 100 AD: 1,500 - 600 AD: 500 - 1000 AD: null --- # Persepolis, Iran URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iran/persepolis Founded: 518 BC Ended: 330 BC Coordinates: 29.9344, 52.8915 ## Description Persepolis, the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire, was one of the most magnificent cities of the ancient world. Known for its grand palaces, intricate reliefs, and imposing architecture, it symbolized Persian imperial power before being destroyed by Alexander the Great in 330 BCE. Situated on a massive platform partially carved from the mountainside, Persepolis served primarily as a venue for elaborate New Year (Nowruz) celebrations and for receiving tribute from subject nations across the vast Persian Empire. After Alexander's burning of the palace complex, the site was never refounded as a functioning city. Under the Seleucids and Parthians the ruins remained a recognized landmark, and the Sasanians, who built their nearby capital at Istakhr, revered the site as Takht-e Jamshid (Throne of Jamshid), a name preserved in local tradition through the early Islamic period. The complex was extensively documented by European travelers from the 17th century onward, archaeologically investigated by the Oriental Institute of Chicago from 1931, and inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. It is today administered as a heritage park by Iran's Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization. ## Historical Rulers - 518 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Parsa") Founded by Darius I around 518 BCE as the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire, Parsa served as the symbolic seat of Persian kingship and the venue for receiving tribute from subject nations. Successive kings, notably Xerxes I and Artaxerxes I, expanded the terrace complex with monumental palaces, the Apadana, and the Hall of a Hundred Columns. The city was captured and its palaces burned by Alexander the Great in 330 BCE, ending its function as an imperial center. ## Landmarks - Apadana Palace (built 515 BC) A grand hypostyle hall with 72 columns, each 20 meters tall, used for royal audiences. Its famous reliefs depict delegations from 23 subject nations bringing tribute to the Persian king during the New Year festival. - Tachara (built 510 BC) Also known as the Hall of Mirrors due to its highly polished stone surfaces. This palace contained Darius's private chambers and audience halls, with exquisite relief carvings showing the king in various ceremonial scenes. - Treasury (built 510 BC) A fortified complex where the Persian kings stored gold, silver, and valuable items collected as tribute from throughout the empire. According to ancient sources, Alexander removed 120,000 talents of gold from this building. - Royal Tombs (built 480 BC) Rock-cut tombs carved into the cliff face of Kuh-e Rahmat (Mountain of Mercy) behind Persepolis, following the pattern established at Naqsh-e Rustam. The tombs are believed to belong to Artaxerxes II and Artaxerxes III. - Gate of All Nations (built 475 BC) Built by Xerxes I, this massive gateway was guarded by lamassu (human-headed winged bulls) and contained an inscription stating: 'I am Xerxes, the Great King, King of Kings, King of countries containing many kinds of men, King in this great earth far and wide.' - Hadish (built 470 BC) Xerxes's palace was substantially larger than his father's and occupied a prominent position on the platform. Archaeological evidence suggests this was where the fire that destroyed Persepolis began. - Hall of a Hundred Columns (built 470 BC) An immense square hall supported by 100 columns, used for military affairs and as the king's throne room. Its walls were decorated with relief sculptures depicting the royal guard and scenes of royal triumph. ## Population History - 518 BC: 20,000 - 430 BC: 50,000 - 330 BC: null --- # Susa, Iran URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iran/susa Founded: 4200 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 32.1894, 48.2576 ## Description Susa, in modern Khuzestan in southwestern Iran, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited urban sites of the ancient Near East, founded around 4200 BCE and still alive today as the Iranian town of Shush. It was the principal urban centre of the Susiana plain and the long-running capital of Elam through the Old, Middle, and Neo-Elamite periods, until the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal sacked it in a famously thorough campaign in 647 BCE. After Cyrus the Great's conquest in 539 BCE Susa became one of the four royal capitals of the Achaemenid Empire, and Darius I made it his winter administrative capital with the great Apadana audience hall whose glazed-brick frieze of royal archers is now in the Louvre. The city continued under Alexander, the Seleucids as Seleucia on the Eulaeus, the Parthians, and the Sasanians as a major provincial centre and East Syriac bishopric, before being taken by the Muslim Arab conquest around 638 CE and reduced to a small village clustered around the shrine of Daniel after the Mongol and Timurid devastations. The Code of Hammurabi stele, carried off to Susa as Elamite war booty in the 12th century BCE, was rediscovered on the site in 1901 by the French archaeological mission, and the ancient ruins were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015. Modern Shush is today an Iranian district seat of roughly 70,000 inhabitants whose urban fabric sits directly on top of and beside the ancient mounds. ## Historical Rulers - 4200 BC – 3100 BC: Susa I Period (known as "*Susa") Earliest urban occupation of the Susa mound, contemporary with the late Ubaid and emergent Uruk horizons of southern Mesopotamia. The Susa I phase is marked by the great cemetery on the Acropole mound and by elaborate painted pottery, and a small temple platform on the citadel already prefigures the later monumental terraces. - 3100 BC – 2700 BC: Proto-Elamite Civilization (known as "*Susa") Susa becomes one of the principal centers of the Proto-Elamite cultural sphere, in close interaction with Uruk-period Mesopotamia. The site produces an indigenous Proto-Elamite script and an extensive administrative tablet archive, marking one of the earliest experiments in writing outside Mesopotamia. - 2700 BC – 1500 BC: Old Elamite Kingdom Capital of successive Old Elamite dynasties — the kings of Awan, Simashki, and the sukkalmah rulers — who alternately rivaled and submitted to the powers of southern Mesopotamia, from the Akkadian Empire of Sargon and Naram-Sin through the Ur III state of Ur-Nammu and Shulgi. Susa repeatedly changes hands but remains the religious and political heart of Elam. - 1500 BC – 1100 BC: Middle Elamite Kingdom Susa flourishes under the Igihalkid and Shutrukid dynasties of the Middle Elamite period. Kings such as Untash-Napirisha, who built nearby Chogha Zanbil, and Shutruk-Nahhunte make Susa a major imperial capital. Shutruk-Nahhunte's campaigns into Babylonia in the 12th century BCE carry off the Stele of Naram-Sin and the Code of Hammurabi as war trophies, displaying them in the city. - 1100 BC – 647 BC: Neo-Elamite Kingdom (known as "Shushan") After a dark age, Susa re-emerges as the seat of the Neo-Elamite kings, who maneuver between resurgent Assyria and the rising Medes and Persians. Repeated wars with the Neo-Assyrian Empire culminate in disaster when Ashurbanipal of Assyria storms and methodically razes Susa in 647 BCE, deporting its population and looting its temples. - 647 BC – 609 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Shushan") After Ashurbanipal's sack in 647 BCE, Susa is reduced to a fraction of its former size and held within the Assyrian sphere of influence until the collapse of the Neo-Assyrian Empire in 609 BCE. The city is not entirely abandoned, but the urban fabric and royal institutions of Elam are effectively broken. - 609 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Shushan") With the fall of Assyria, Susa and the Susiana plain are drawn into the orbit of the resurgent Neo-Babylonian Empire of Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II. The city recovers as a regional center on the eastern frontier of Babylonia and remains so until the Persian conquest in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 331 BC: Achaemenid Empire After Cyrus the Great's conquest in 539 BCE, Susa becomes one of the four royal capitals of the Achaemenid Empire, alongside Persepolis, Ecbatana, and Babylon. Darius I makes it his principal winter administrative capital, building the Apadana audience hall and a vast palace complex decorated with the glazed-brick frieze of royal archers and lions. Greek embassies described by Herodotus are received at Susa, and the Royal Road runs from here to Sardis. - 331 BC – 312 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great captures Susa in 331 BCE after the Battle of Gaugamela, seizing the immense treasury of Darius III. In 324 BCE he stages the famous mass wedding at Susa, marrying his officers to Persian and Median noblewomen. After his death the city passes through the Wars of the Diadochi until Seleucus I secures the Iranian plateau. - 312 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Seleucia") Under the Seleucids the city is refounded as Seleucia on the Eulaeus and continues as a Greek-style polis with a mixed Greek, Elamite, and Iranian population. It functions as an important administrative center of the satrapy of Susiana and a node on the route between Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau. - 141 BC – 224 AD: Parthian Empire The Parthian Arsacids take Susa from the Seleucids around 141 BCE. Under Parthian rule the city remains an important secondary capital and royal residence, retaining many of its Hellenistic civic institutions; bilingual Greek and Parthian inscriptions and Parthian-era reliefs are characteristic of this phase. - 224 AD – 638 AD: Sasanian Empire Incorporated into the new Sasanian Empire under Ardashir I in the early 3rd century CE. Susa becomes an important provincial center of Khuzestan, known for textile workshops and a major early Christian community, and is the seat of an East Syriac bishopric. Shapur II is said to have destroyed and rebuilt parts of the city in the 4th century in response to a Christian-led revolt. - 638 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Sus") Taken by the Muslim Arab armies during the conquest of Khuzestan around 638 CE under the Rashidun Caliphate, Susa — now usually called Sus or Shush — is incorporated into the new Islamic state. The early Muslim community recognizes the local Tomb of Daniel, which becomes a venerated shrine on the southern edge of the ancient mounds. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Sus") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based in Damascus, Sus is administered as part of the province of Ahwaz in lower Khuzestan. The town continues as a modest Islamic-period settlement clustered around the citadel and the shrine of Daniel. - 750 AD – 934 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Sus") Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad, Sus remains an inhabited but secondary town in Khuzestan, overshadowed by Ahwaz and Tustar. Medieval Arab geographers note the textiles of the region and the pilgrimage to the Tomb of Daniel, which by this period is firmly established as a major Islamic and Jewish shrine. - 934 AD – 1055 AD: Buyid Dynasty (known as "Sus") The Shi'a Buyid emirs take western Iran and Iraq from a weakened Abbasid Caliphate, and Sus passes under Buyid administration as a small town in their Khuzestani province. The shrine of Daniel and the surrounding settlement persist on the southern skirt of the ancient mounds. - 1055 AD – 1194 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Sus") The Great Seljuks under Tughril and his successors absorb Buyid Iran in the mid-11th century, and Sus continues as a minor Khuzestani town under Seljuk and later Iraq Seljuk authority. The region remains agriculturally productive but politically peripheral. - 1194 AD – 1218 AD: Khwarazmian Empire (known as "Sus") After the collapse of the Iraq Seljuks, Khuzestan briefly falls within the expanding Khwarazmian state of the Anushteginid shahs. Sus remains a small town on the edge of the Khwarazmian sphere until the Mongol invasions sweep across Iran. - 1218 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Shush") The Mongol invasions of Iran from 1218 onward severely damage Susa, and under the Ilkhanate the once-major city is reduced to a small, impoverished settlement clustered around the Tomb of Daniel. Most of the lower town and outlying quarters are abandoned in this period, but the community survives on the ruins. - 1335 AD – 1393 AD: Muzaffarid Dynasty (known as "Shush") After the dissolution of Ilkhanid central authority, Khuzestan and Fars pass under the Muzaffarid dynasty centered on Shiraz and Kerman. Shush remains a marginal village on the southern flank of the Muzaffarid realm until Timur's campaigns end the dynasty in 1393. - 1393 AD – 1501 AD: Timurid Empire (known as "Shush") Timur's invasion ends Muzaffarid rule and brings Khuzestan under the Timurid dynasty based in Samarkand and Herat. The earlier 14th-century devastations together with continued Timurid-era turmoil reduce Shush to a tiny village around the shrine of Daniel and the ruined citadel, with a continuous but much-diminished community on the mounds. - 1501 AD – 1736 AD: Safavid Iran (known as "Shush") Under the Safavid dynasty, which establishes Twelver Shia Islam as the state religion of Iran, Shush is a marginal village in the Khuzestan province, overshadowed by Dezful and Shushtar. The Tomb of Daniel remains a noted pilgrimage site, and a small population continues to inhabit the southern skirt of the ancient mounds. - 1736 AD – 1751 AD: Afsharid Dynasty (known as "Shush") After Nader Shah deposes the last Safavid claimants in 1736 and founds the Afsharid dynasty, Khuzestan falls within his short-lived empire. Shush remains a small village among the ancient ruins, briefly subject to Nader's centralizing administration until his assassination in 1747 unravels Afsharid control. - 1751 AD – 1794 AD: Zand Dynasty (known as "Shush") Karim Khan Zand consolidates central and southern Iran from his capital at Shiraz, drawing Khuzestan and Shush within the Zand sphere. The village remains a modest Khuzestani settlement during the comparatively stable Zand decades until the dynasty falls to the Qajars. - 1794 AD – 1925 AD: Qajar Dynasty (known as "Shush") Under the long Qajar dynasty Shush remains a small Khuzestani village of a few hundred to perhaps a thousand inhabitants, set among the ancient ruins. In 1884 the French archaeological mission led by Marcel and Jane Dieulafoy begins systematic excavation of the site, followed from 1897 by Jacques de Morgan, who builds the so-called Shush Castle on the citadel mound as a fortified expedition base. These campaigns put modern Shush on the international archaeological map even as the town itself remains modest. - 1925 AD – 1979 AD: Pahlavi Iran (known as "Shush") Under the Pahlavi monarchy of Reza Shah and Mohammad Reza Shah, Iran's modernization, land reform, and the rise of the Khuzestan oil economy bring road and rail connections to Shush. The town grows from a few thousand inhabitants in the early 20th century into a small district center of tens of thousands by the 1970s, expanding on the plain around the archaeological mounds. The Tomb of Daniel is rebuilt with a tall conical brick spire that becomes the modern landmark of the town. - 1979 AD – present: Islamic Republic of Iran (known as "Shush") After the 1979 revolution Shush becomes the seat of Shush County in Khuzestan Province. The town endures the Iran-Iraq War of 1980-1988, which devastates much of Khuzestan and brings refugees and military traffic to the region. In the post-war decades Shush grows into an Iranian district town of around 70,000 people whose streets and houses sit directly on and beside the ancient mounds; in 2015 the archaeological zone of Susa is inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. ## Landmarks - Acropole Citadel Mound (built 4000 BC) The high western mound of Susa, occupied continuously from the Susa I period onward. Successive temple platforms, palaces, and elite quarters were built and rebuilt on this citadel, which dominated the surrounding Susiana plain and held the principal sanctuaries of Inshushinak, the patron god of Susa. - Apadana of Darius (built 518 BC) Great hypostyle audience hall built by Darius I as the ceremonial heart of his winter capital. The hall measured roughly 109 meters on a side and was supported by 36 fluted stone columns more than 20 meters tall, topped by paired bull and griffin capitals. A foundation charter of Darius, recovered on the site, lists materials and craftsmen drawn from across the empire. - Frieze of the Royal Archers (built 510 BC) Polychrome glazed-brick relief friezes that decorated the courtyards and corridors of Darius's palace at Susa, depicting files of royal guards — the so-called Immortals — along with lions and winged bulls. Reassembled fragments form one of the centerpieces of the ancient Near Eastern collection of the Louvre in Paris. - Achaemenid Royal Palace Residence (built 500 BC) The residential palace complex of the Achaemenid kings, built adjacent to the Apadana on its own terrace. It included a colonnaded courtyard, royal apartments, and service quarters, decorated with carved stone doorjambs and additional glazed-brick reliefs. Continually used and modified by Darius's successors down to Artaxerxes II. - Tomb of Daniel (built 1100 AD) Traditional shrine of the prophet Daniel at the southern edge of the Susa mounds, on the bank of the Shaur river. A venerated tomb at Susa is already attested by medieval Arab geographers such as al-Muqaddasi in the 10th century; by the 12th century, when Benjamin of Tudela visited, it had become a major pilgrimage site for Jews, Christians, and Muslims, and the shrine remained the focal point of religious life at Susa as the surrounding city declined. The current conical-spired brick mausoleum was rebuilt in the modern era and remains the town's defining landmark. - Shush Castle (built 1897 AD) Fortified French archaeological mission base built on the Apadana mound from 1897 onward by Jacques de Morgan, who reused worn bricks from the ancient ruins to construct a castellated headquarters protecting the excavators from raids by local tribes. With its crenellated walls and corner towers the castle has become an iconic silhouette of the Susa archaeological park and is today preserved as part of the UNESCO World Heritage site. ## Population History - 4200 BC: 1,000 - 3100 BC: 5,000 - 2000 BC: 25,000 - 1200 BC: 30,000 - 700 BC: 25,000 - 647 BC: 10,000 - 500 BC: 30,000 - 331 BC: 25,000 - 1 AD: 15,000 - 400 AD: 20,000 - 800 AD: 25,000 - 1218 AD: 30,000 - 1300 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 500 - 1700 AD: 1,000 - 1900 AD: 2,000 - 1950 AD: 10,000 - 1976 AD: 25,000 - 2006 AD: 55,000 - 2020 AD: 70,000 --- # Tabriz, Iran URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iran/tabriz Founded: 226 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.0667, 46.3 ## Description Tabriz, the historic capital of Iranian Azerbaijan, is one of the great trading and cultural cities of the Iranian plateau, built on a high valley between the Sahand volcanic range and the Eynali ridge in northwestern Iran. Documented from the Sasanian period as a small Median town, Tabriz rose to international prominence after the Mongol Ilkhanate chose it as its principal capital in the late 13th century, when under Abaqa Khan, Arghun, and Ghazan Khan it became one of the largest cities in the world and the western terminus of the Silk Road. The city served as capital of the Kara Koyunlu, Aq Qoyunlu, and early Safavid empires between 1375 and 1555 before Tahmasp I moved the Safavid capital eastward to escape Ottoman pressure. Under successive Safavid, Afsharid, Zand, Qajar, and Pahlavi administrations Tabriz remained the principal economic and political centre of northwestern Iran and was repeatedly contested in the Ottoman-Safavid and Russo-Persian wars, while its 19th-century mercantile elite made it the centre of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution of 1905-1911. Modern Tabriz is a metropolitan city of roughly 1.7 million inhabitants, an important Iranian industrial and Azeri-speaking cultural hub, with its UNESCO-listed Historic Bazaar Complex, the iconic Blue Mosque of Jahan Shah, and the Citadel of Tabriz forming the surviving anchors of its great medieval and early modern urban fabric. ## Historical Rulers - 226 AD – 651 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Tauris") Tabriz emerged as a small town in Sasanian Adurbadagan, the heartland of Zoroastrian Iran, during the early Sasanian period under Ardashir I and his successors. The city is mentioned in Pahlavi sources as Tauris and served as a regional centre of the Atropatene region until the Arab conquest in the mid-7th century. - 651 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate Following the Arab conquest of Sasanian Iran the city was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate's new province of Adharbayjan. Local Iranian dehqan landlords retained much of their administrative role under the new caliphal authority while Arabic gradually entered the administrative system. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate Tabriz remained a regional centre of Adharbayjan, serving as a base for Arab campaigns into the Caucasus against the Khazars. A devastating earthquake around 750 levelled much of the town just as the Umayyad dynasty fell. - 750 AD – 950 AD: Abbasid Caliphate Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad, Tabriz was rebuilt by the local Rawwadid governors after the 750 earthquake and grew rapidly through the 9th and 10th centuries as a commercial centre of the silk and trade routes connecting Mesopotamia, the Caucasus, and the Central Asian steppe. The legendary patronage of Caliph Harun al-Rashid's wife Zubayda is associated with one early rebuilding. - 950 AD – 1055 AD: Buyid Dynasty As the Abbasid caliphate weakened Tabriz passed under the suzerainty of the Shia Buyid dynasty of western Iran and the local Rawwadid Kurdish governors who acknowledged Buyid overlordship. The city continued to grow as a regional commercial centre under the Buyid framework until the Seljuk Turkic advance. - 1055 AD – 1220 AD: Seljuk Empire The Great Seljuks under Tughril and his successors absorbed Adharbayjan from the Buyids in the mid-11th century, and Tabriz served as a regional centre of Seljuk Iran. The Seljuks were succeeded by the Eldiguzid atabegs of Azerbaijan based at Tabriz, who governed the region from the late 12th century until the Mongol invasions. - 1220 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate Mongol forces took Tabriz around 1220 during the campaigns of Subutai and Jebe, and the city subsequently became the political heart of the Ilkhanate after Abaqa Khan selected it as his capital in the 1260s. Under Arghun, Ghazan Khan, and Öljaitü the city was massively expanded with new palace and bazaar quarters, becoming for several decades one of the largest cities in the world and the western terminus of the Silk Road. Marco Polo, Rashid al-Din, and Ibn Battuta all describe Ilkhanid Tabriz as a cosmopolitan metropolis at its 13th-14th century peak. - 1335 AD – 1375 AD: Jalayirid Sultanate After the dissolution of the Ilkhanate in 1335 Tabriz passed under the Jalayirid Sultanate established by Hasan Buzurg, who briefly returned the city to capital status. The Jalayirids patronized the celebrated school of Persian miniature painting at Tabriz under Sultan Uways and his successors until they lost the city to the rising Kara Koyunlu Turkmen. - 1375 AD – 1468 AD: Kara Koyunlu The Kara Koyunlu Turkmen confederation under Qara Mehmet and his successors made Tabriz their capital from 1375, ruling much of Azerbaijan, Armenia, and western Iran from the city. Jahan Shah Kara Koyunlu commissioned the iconic Blue Mosque of Tabriz in 1465 as one of the most refined monuments of Persianate Turkmen architecture, just before his defeat and the Kara Koyunlu collapse before the Aq Qoyunlu. - 1468 AD – 1501 AD: Aq Qoyunlu Uzun Hasan's Aq Qoyunlu Turkmen confederation defeated Jahan Shah Kara Koyunlu in 1467 and made Tabriz their capital from 1468. Under Uzun Hasan and his son Yaqub Beg the city flourished as the centre of an empire stretching from eastern Anatolia to Khorasan, until rising Safavid messianic militancy under Shah Ismail I brought the Aq Qoyunlu state down at the Battle of Sharur in 1501. - 1501 AD – 1736 AD: Safavid Iran Shah Ismail I entered Tabriz in 1501 and proclaimed it the capital of his new Safavid Iran, formally establishing Twelver Shia Islam as the state religion. Selim I briefly captured Tabriz after the Battle of Chaldiran in 1514, prompting Tahmasp I to transfer the Safavid capital first to Qazvin in 1555 and later to Isfahan, though Tabriz remained one of the leading commercial and religious cities of Safavid Iran through the long dynasty's life until the 1722 Hotak Afghan invasion that ended the dynasty in 1736. - 1736 AD – 1751 AD: Afsharid Dynasty After Nader Shah deposed the last Safavid claimants in 1736 and founded the Afsharid dynasty, Tabriz served as a regional capital of the new Afsharid state of Iran. Nader Shah's assassination in 1747 fragmented Afsharid authority and Tabriz changed hands among rival claimants before the Zand consolidation in southern Iran. - 1751 AD – 1794 AD: Zand Dynasty Under the Zand dynasty established by Karim Khan with its capital at Shiraz, Tabriz was the principal city of Iran's Azerbaijan province. Local Donboli Kurdish governors administered the city through much of the period, contesting authority with the rising Qajar tribe in northern Iran until the Qajar consolidation at the end of the 18th century. - 1794 AD – 1925 AD: Qajar Dynasty Under the Qajar dynasty Tabriz became the residence of the crown prince and the de facto second capital of Iran, dominating the country's northwestern frontier with the Ottoman and Russian empires. The Russo-Persian wars of the early 19th century brought direct Russian invasions and the punishing 1828 Treaty of Turkmenchay, and Tabriz became the heart of the 1905-1911 Iranian Constitutional Revolution and the centre of Sattar Khan and Bagher Khan's resistance to royalist counter-revolution. - 1925 AD – 1979 AD: Pahlavi Iran Under the Pahlavi monarchy of Reza Shah and Mohammad Reza Shah Tabriz remained one of Iran's principal cities and the political centre of Iranian Azerbaijan. The brief Soviet-backed Azerbaijan People's Government of 1945-1946 was based at Tabriz before Iranian central authority was restored, and the city grew rapidly with industrialization and oil-economy migration through the 1960s and 1970s. - 1979 AD – present: Islamic Republic of Iran Following the 1979 Iranian Revolution Tabriz became the capital of East Azerbaijan Province under the new Islamic Republic. The city has grown into a major Iranian metropolitan area of around 1.7 million people, retaining its role as the principal commercial, industrial, and cultural centre of Iranian Azerbaijan, with its UNESCO-listed Historic Bazaar Complex inscribed in 2010 as the world's largest covered bazaar. ## Landmarks - Maqbarat-ol-Shoara (built 1100 AD) The Mausoleum of the Poets is the burial ground of more than four hundred poets, mystics, and scholars active in Tabriz between the 11th and 20th centuries, including Khaqani Shirvani, Asadi Tusi, Saeb Tabrizi, and the modern Azeri poet Shahriar. The site was rebuilt in 1971 as a brutalist concrete mausoleum after centuries of earthquake damage and is one of the principal pilgrimage sites of Iranian literary culture. - Tabriz Historic Bazaar Complex (built 1200 AD) The covered Tabriz Bazaar grew over more than seven centuries from the Seljuk and Ilkhanid periods into one of the largest interconnected commercial complexes in the Islamic world, with kilometres of brick-vaulted caravanserais, timchas, dalans, and specialized markets organized by trade. Repeatedly rebuilt after earthquakes and fires, including a major reconstruction after the 1780 quake, the bazaar was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010 as an outstanding example of an integrated commercial urban system on the Silk Road. - Citadel of Tabriz (built 1322 AD) The Ark of Tabriz is the surviving central section of the massive Ilkhanid funerary mosque commissioned by the vizier Alishah Jilani around 1322 for the Ilkhan Öljaitü. The brick structure, with its enormous surviving south wall some 26 metres tall, was repurposed as an Ottoman and Qajar military citadel and serves today as a major landmark of central Tabriz. - Blue Mosque of Tabriz (built 1465 AD) Commissioned by the Kara Koyunlu sultan Jahan Shah in 1465 as a major monument of Persianate Turkmen architecture, the Blue Mosque is celebrated for its sumptuous cobalt-blue and turquoise tile mosaic and carved muqarnas portal. The 1780 Tabriz earthquake collapsed most of the building, but the surviving entrance portal and partial walls were carefully reconstructed in the 20th century and the building functions today as a museum-mosque. ## Population History - 226 AD: 2,000 - 500 AD: 5,000 - 800 AD: 10,000 - 1100 AD: 30,000 - 1265 AD: 60,000 - 1300 AD: 200,000 - 1400 AD: 80,000 - 1500 AD: 200,000 - 1600 AD: 150,000 - 1800 AD: 100,000 - 1900 AD: 200,000 - 1950 AD: 300,000 - 1986 AD: 850,000 - 2020 AD: 1,700,000 --- # Tehran, Iran URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iran/tehran Founded: 800 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 35.6892, 51.389 ## Description Tehran is the capital and largest city of Iran, originating as a small village on the northern outskirts of the ancient city of Rhages (Rey, located ~7 km to the south) and first attested in the early medieval period around the 9th century CE. After the Mongol destruction of Rey in 1220, Tehran absorbed refugees and gradually grew into a regional town; Safavid Shah Tahmasp I had it walled in 1554. In 1796 Agha Mohammad Khan, founder of the Qajar dynasty, made Tehran his capital, beginning its rise as the political center of Iran. Under the Pahlavi dynasty (1925-1979) it was extensively modernized with broad avenues, ministries and monuments such as the Azadi Tower, and after the 1979 Islamic Revolution it became the capital of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Today Greater Tehran is one of the most populous metropolitan areas of the Middle East, with roughly 9.4 million inhabitants in the city proper and about 16 million in the metropolitan region. ## Historical Rulers - 800 AD – 945 AD: Abbasid Caliphate Tehran is first attested as a small village on the northern outskirts of the major Abbasid-era city of Rhages (Rey), set among orchards and gardens. It lived entirely in the shadow of Rey, which was one of the great urban centers of the early Islamic east. - 945 AD – 1055 AD: Buyid Dynasty Under the Shia Buyid dynasty Tehran remained a minor agricultural village dependent on nearby Rey, the regional metropolis. Geographers of the period mention Tehran chiefly for its underground dwellings and high-quality fruit. - 1055 AD – 1194 AD: Seljuk Empire Under the Sunni Great Seljuk Empire centered at Isfahan and Hamadan, the Tehran-Rey region was integrated into the major Seljuk political heartland. Tehran continued as a small village while Rey dominated the area politically and economically. - 1194 AD – 1220 AD: Khwarazmian Empire Following the collapse of Seljuk power the Khwarazmian Empire of the Anushtegin dynasty extended over the Iranian plateau including the Tehran-Rey region. The empire's rapid expansion ended catastrophically with the Mongol invasion of 1220. - 1220 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate The Mongol sack of Rey in 1220 effectively ended that city as a major urban center, and many of its surviving inhabitants resettled in Tehran, which grew into a sizeable town under the Ilkhanate. By the end of Mongol rule Tehran had inherited Rey's regional role as the main settlement of the southern Alborz foothills. - 1335 AD – 1395 AD: Jalayirid Sultanate After the dissolution of Ilkhanid authority in 1335, the Tehran-Rey region fell within the nominal sphere of the Mongol-descended Jalayirid Sultanate based at Baghdad and Tabriz, though local Iranian dynasts exercised most direct control. The town continued as a modest settlement of the southern Alborz foothills until Timur's invasions reached the region in the 1380s and the Jalayirid hold on western Iran collapsed. - 1395 AD – 1432 AD: Timurid Empire Following Timur's defeat of the Jalayirids, Tehran was incorporated into the Timurid Empire under Timur and his son Shahrukh. Timurid governors administered the town from regional capitals such as Sultaniyya and Tabriz, with Tehran continuing as a minor settlement in the shadow of the still-prominent neighbouring city of Rey. - 1432 AD – 1468 AD: Kara Koyunlu After Shahrukh's death the Black Sheep Turkmen confederation of Kara Koyunlu under Jahanshah seized western and central Iran, including the Tehran-Rey region, from Timurid governors. Tehran continued as a quiet provincial town of the southern Alborz until the Kara Koyunlu were defeated by their White Sheep rivals Aq Qoyunlu at the Battle of Chapakchur in 1467. - 1468 AD – 1501 AD: Aq Qoyunlu Uzun Hasan's Aq Qoyunlu confederation succeeded the Kara Koyunlu and ruled western and central Iran from Tabriz until Shah Ismail I's Safavid victory at Sharur in 1501 ended their power. Tehran remained a small walled provincial town through the brief Aq Qoyunlu period. - 1501 AD – 1722 AD: Safavid Iran Under the Safavids, Tehran was a fortified provincial town valued for its gardens and strategic position on routes between Qazvin, Isfahan and Khorasan. Shah Tahmasp I had a wall, towers and a bazaar built around the town in 1554, giving Tehran its first proper urban defenses and consolidating its identity as a recognized city rather than a cluster of villages. - 1722 AD – 1750 AD: Afsharid Dynasty Following the Safavid collapse and Nader Shah's rise to power, the Tehran region was incorporated into the Afsharid Empire. Tehran remained a walled provincial town of modest size, but its location near the Caspian provinces and Caucasus campaigns gave it growing military and administrative weight. - 1750 AD – 1796 AD: Zand Dynasty Under the Zand dynasty based at Shiraz, Tehran continued as a provincial town in northern Iran. The Qajar tribal forces under Agha Mohammad Khan gradually consolidated control over northern Iran during the late Zand period, culminating in his proclamation of the Qajar dynasty in 1796. - 1796 AD – 1925 AD: Qajar Dynasty Agha Mohammad Khan, founder of the Qajar dynasty, chose Tehran as his capital in 1796 because of its proximity to the Qajar homeland in Mazandaran and to the strategic Caucasus frontier. Over the 19th century Tehran was transformed into the imperial capital of Iran, with the Golestan Palace complex rebuilt as the royal seat, new walls and gates by Nasir al-Din Shah, the Grand Bazaar expanded, and the first modern institutions, embassies and infrastructure introduced. - 1925 AD – 1979 AD: Pahlavi Iran Under Reza Shah and his son Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, Tehran was aggressively modernized: the Qajar walls were demolished, broad avenues and ministries laid out on a grid, the University of Tehran founded in 1934, and monumental projects such as the Azadi (Shahyad) Tower (1971) and the Niavaran palace complex completed. The city's population grew from a few hundred thousand to several million as it became the political, economic and cultural capital of a rapidly industrializing Iran. - 1979 AD – present: Islamic Republic of Iran Following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Tehran has remained the capital of the Islamic Republic of Iran, hosting the Supreme Leader's office, the presidency, parliament and the major state institutions. Despite the Iran-Iraq War, international sanctions and recurrent unrest, the city has continued to expand into one of the largest metropolitan areas of the Middle East, marked by new landmarks such as the Milad Tower (2007) and a sprawling metro network. ## Landmarks - Grand Bazaar of Tehran (built 1800 AD) Tehran's main covered bazaar has medieval roots in the Safavid town but took on its present sprawling form in the late 18th and 19th centuries, when Qajar Tehran's role as imperial capital fueled rapid commercial growth. It remains one of the largest and economically most influential bazaars in the Middle East. - Golestan Palace (built 1860 AD) Built on the site of an earlier Safavid citadel, Golestan Palace was developed into a vast royal complex by the Qajar shahs, especially under Nasir al-Din Shah around 1860. It served as the seat of the Qajar court, hosted Pahlavi coronations and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2013. - National Museum of Iran (built 1937 AD) Designed by French architect André Godard and opened in 1937 under Reza Shah, the National Museum of Iran houses the country's flagship archaeological collections, including artifacts from Susa, Persepolis and prehistoric sites across the Iranian plateau. - Niavaran Palace Complex (built 1968 AD) The Niavaran Palace, completed in 1968 in the northern foothills of Tehran, served as the primary residence of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi and his family in the final decade of the Pahlavi monarchy. It is now a museum displaying late Pahlavi-era art, furnishings and royal collections. - Azadi Tower (built 1971 AD) Designed by Hossein Amanat and inaugurated in 1971 as the Shahyad Tower to mark the 2500th anniversary of the Persian Empire, this marble-clad monument at the western gateway to Tehran combines Sassanid and modernist motifs. Renamed Azadi (Freedom) Tower after the 1979 revolution, it has become the most recognizable symbol of the city. - Milad Tower (built 2007 AD) Completed in 2007, the Milad Tower is a 435-meter telecommunications and observation tower in western Tehran and one of the tallest freestanding structures in the Middle East. It has become a major landmark of post-revolutionary Tehran, hosting broadcasting facilities, observation decks and event venues. ## Population History - 800 AD: 2,000 - 1200 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 10,000 - 1796 AD: 15,000 - 1850 AD: 80,000 - 1900 AD: 250,000 - 1950 AD: 1,500,000 - 1980 AD: 5,000,000 - 2020 AD: 9,400,000 --- # Akkad, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/akkad Founded: 2334 BC Ended: 2154 BC Coordinates: 33.45, 44.5 ## Description Akkad — also known as Agade — was the capital of the Akkadian Empire, widely regarded as the world's first multi-ethnic empire. Founded by Sargon of Akkad around 2334 BCE, it ruled a domain stretching from the Mediterranean coast and Anatolia to the Persian Gulf for roughly 180 years. Under Sargon and his successors Rimush, Manishtushu, Naram-Sin and Shar-Kali-Sharri the city became the political, military and cultural heart of Mesopotamia; Naram-Sin (peak c. 2255 BCE) was the first Mesopotamian ruler to be deified during his own lifetime. The empire collapsed around 2154 BCE under the combined pressure of Gutian incursions and prolonged drought, and the city itself was abandoned and ultimately lost — its exact location has never been confirmed despite roughly a dozen proposed identifications including Tell Muhammad, Tell Ishan Mizyad and other mounds in the region between modern Baghdad and Babylon. Although the city vanished, the Akkadian language it bequeathed remained the diplomatic lingua franca of the ancient Near East for almost two millennia, used in cuneiform correspondence from Egypt to Elam. ## Historical Rulers - 2334 BC – 2154 BC: Akkadian Empire (known as "Agade") Sargon of Akkad founded the city around 2334 BCE as the capital of a new imperial polity that unified Sumer and Akkad and projected power from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf. Under his successors Rimush, Manishtushu and especially Naram-Sin — who proclaimed himself a living god around 2255 BCE — Agade became the wealthiest and most cosmopolitan city in Mesopotamia. The reign of Shar-Kali-Sharri saw mounting instability, and the empire fell around 2154 BCE under Gutian invasion compounded by a severe regional drought; the city was abandoned and its precise location subsequently lost to history. ## Landmarks - Royal Palace of Sargon (built 2334 BC) The royal residence of Sargon and his dynastic successors, known only from cuneiform inscriptions and later literary tradition. As the site of Akkad has never been securely identified, no archaeological remains of the palace have been excavated. - Temple of Ishtar (built 2300 BC) A principal temple of the city dedicated to Ishtar (Inanna), the patron goddess of Akkad according to inscriptions of Sargon's daughter Enheduanna. Its existence is attested in textual sources but its remains are unlocated. ## Population History - 2334 BC: 5,000 - 2300 BC: 30,000 - 2250 BC: 50,000 - 2154 BC: null --- # Assur, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/assur Founded: 2500 BC Ended: 240 AD Coordinates: 35.4533, 43.2704 ## Description Assur was the first capital and spiritual heart of the Assyrian state, located on the western bank of the Tigris River, occupied from the mid-3rd millennium BCE through the mid-3rd century CE. Serving as a political, religious, and cultural hub through the Old, Middle, and Neo-Assyrian periods, the city was the seat of the cult of the god Ashur and remained the ceremonial centre and royal necropolis of the empire even after later kings moved the political capital to Kalhu, Dur-Sharrukin, and Nineveh. After the Median and Babylonian sack of 612 BCE the site was abandoned for centuries, before a major Parthian-era revival from around 150 BCE saw Assur restored as the capital of Parthian Assuristan with the temple of Ashur and other Assyrian sanctuaries rebuilt — until Shapur I of the Sasanian Empire stormed and destroyed the city around 240 CE, ending its long occupation. The site was rediscovered and systematically excavated by German archaeologists led by Walter Andrae in the early 20th century, and was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2003. ## Historical Rulers - 2500 BC – 2300 BC: Sumerian City-States The earliest occupation at Assur dates to the mid-3rd millennium BCE, when the site functioned as a small Sumerian-influenced settlement on the Tigris with the first attested cult of the local god Ashur. The community had close cultural and trade ties to southern Mesopotamia during the Early Dynastic period. - 2300 BC – 2100 BC: Akkadian Empire Sargon of Akkad and his successors absorbed Assur into the first Mesopotamian empire, with Akkadian administrators governing the city as a northern provincial centre. Assur continued to develop its religious identity around the temple of Ashur during this period. - 2100 BC – 2000 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur After the fall of Akkad, Assur passed within the brief Neo-Sumerian sphere of the Third Dynasty of Ur, governed by an Ur-appointed ensi while continuing as a regional cult and trade centre on the Tigris until the collapse of Ur III around 2000 BCE. - 2000 BC – 1365 BC: Old Assyrian Kingdom Under the Old Assyrian Kingdom, Assur emerged as an independent city-state and a major hub of long-distance trade, most famously through its merchant colonies (karum) in Anatolia such as Kanesh. The city was ruled by a council and a hereditary ruler bearing the title of iššiakkum, and developed the institutional and religious framework that would define later Assyrian civilization. - 1365 BC – 911 BC: Middle Assyrian Empire Beginning with Ashur-uballit I, Assur became the capital of a militarily expansive Middle Assyrian state that asserted itself against Mitanni, Babylonia, and the Hittites. Kings such as Tukulti-Ninurta I and Tiglath-Pileser I undertook major building programs in the city, expanding temples and palaces while consolidating royal ideology centered on the god Ashur. - 911 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire Although later Neo-Assyrian kings moved the political capital to Kalhu, Dur-Sharrukin, and Nineveh, Assur remained the ceremonial and religious heart of the empire and the burial place of its kings. The city continued to host the great Temple of Ashur and major royal investitures until it was stormed and destroyed in 612 BCE by an alliance of Medes and Babylonians, marking the effective end of the Assyrian Empire. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire After the destruction of 612 BCE, Assur lay in ruins within the territory of the Neo-Babylonian Empire that inherited the Assyrian heartland. The site was effectively abandoned and the Temple of Ashur stood as a ruin field on the Tigris bluff. - 539 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE brought the former Assyrian heartland including the ruins of Assur into the Achaemenid Persian Empire. The site remained a depopulated ruin field within the Persian satrapy of Athura, with no significant occupation through the long Achaemenid period. - 330 BC – 312 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's defeat of Darius III at the Battle of Gaugamela in 331 BCE — fought on the plain just north of Assur near Nineveh — brought the region under Macedonian control. The ruins of Assur passed nominally to Alexander and the Diadochi successors until Seleucid authority consolidated over Mesopotamia. - 312 BC – 150 BC: Seleucid Empire Under the Seleucid kings the ruins of Assur lay in the Hellenistic province of Babylonia, with minimal occupation and the site remembered only as the abandoned capital of the long-vanished Assyrian state. Seleucid rule weakened in the 2nd century BCE as the Parthian Arsacids advanced from Iran, setting the stage for the Parthian-era revival of Assur. - 150 BC – 240 AD: Parthian Empire After more than four centuries of abandonment Assur was resettled and substantially rebuilt from around 150 BCE as an important provincial centre of the Parthian-administered region of Assuristan, with a new palace to the south, administrative quarters to the north, and the temple of Ashur and other Assyrian sanctuaries restored. The Parthian-era population continued to identify culturally as Assyrian, leaving inscriptions in Aramaic and Syriac scripts referencing the old Assyrian gods, until Shapur I of the Sasanian Empire stormed and destroyed the city around 240 CE, dispersing the population and ending the long occupation of the site. ## Landmarks - Temple of Ashur (built 2000 BC) The temple of the god Ashur was the spiritual heart of the Assyrian state, occupying the northern bluff of the city above the Tigris. Built and rebuilt by successive kings from the Old Assyrian period onward, it served as the empire's chief sanctuary, the site of royal investitures and burials, and even after the city's political decline remained the focus of cult activity through the Parthian-era revival before its final destruction in the 3rd century CE. - Old Assyrian Palace (built 1900 BC) The Old Palace of Assur, raised on the citadel above the Tigris during the Old Assyrian period, was the residence of the early city's rulers bearing the title iššiakkum. It housed administrative archives related to the long-distance karum trade network reaching as far as Anatolian Kanesh, and was renovated by Middle Assyrian and Neo-Assyrian kings as the ceremonial palace of the imperial heartland. - Royal Tombs of the Assyrian Kings (built 1300 BC) Beneath the Old Palace lay the vaulted royal necropolis where the Middle and Neo-Assyrian kings were interred, including Ashurnasirpal II, Shalmaneser III, and Tiglath-Pileser I. Excavated by Walter Andrae's German mission in the early 20th century, the chambers preserved royal sarcophagi and inscriptions that anchor Assyrian dynastic history. ## Population History - 2500 BC: 1,000 - 2300 BC: 3,000 - 2000 BC: 5,000 - 1900 BC: 10,000 - 1800 BC: 15,000 - 1700 BC: 10,000 - 1600 BC: 10,000 - 1500 BC: 10,000 - 1400 BC: 10,000 - 1300 BC: 15,000 - 1200 BC: 20,000 - 1100 BC: 12,000 - 1000 BC: 12,000 - 612 BC: null - 150 BC: 3,000 - 1 AD: 8,000 - 150 AD: 10,000 - 240 AD: null --- # Babylon, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/babylon Founded: 1894 BC Ended: 1000 AD Coordinates: 32.5364, 44.42 ## Description Babylon, one of the most famous cities of the ancient world, was a major center of Mesopotamian civilization. It was known for its grand architecture, including the Hanging Gardens (one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World), and for being the capital of powerful empires. Located along the Euphrates River in present-day Iraq, Babylon was a center of religion, science, and culture that influenced civilizations across the ancient Near East. After its political decline under the Seleucids and Parthians, the city contracted into a small settlement and was gradually abandoned during the early Islamic period; its ruins were later studied by European travellers and excavated systematically from the 19th century onward, and the site is today a UNESCO World Heritage property administered as an archaeological park near the modern town of Hillah. ## Historical Rulers - 1894 BC – 1595 BC: Old Babylonian Empire (known as "Babili") Founded as the seat of an Amorite dynasty by Sumu-abum around 1894 BCE, Babylon rose from a minor town to the dominant power of southern Mesopotamia under Hammurabi, who unified the region and issued his famous law code. The dynasty ended when the Hittite king Mursili I raided and sacked the city around 1595 BCE, after which the Hittites withdrew northward and left a brief power vacuum before the Kassites consolidated control. - 1595 BC – 1155 BC: Kassite Dynasty (known as "Karanduniash") The Kassites filled the post-Hittite vacuum and ruled Babylonia for some four centuries, renaming the kingdom Karanduniash. They restored the city's temples, maintained diplomatic ties with Egypt and the Hittites as documented in the Amarna letters, and presided over a long period of relative stability until Elamite raids under Shutruk-Nahhunte ended the dynasty around 1155 BCE. - 1155 BC – 1026 BC: Second Dynasty of Isin (known as "Babili") After the Elamite sack ended Kassite rule, a native Babylonian dynasty based at Isin reasserted control. Its most prominent king, Nebuchadnezzar I, defeated Elam and recovered the cult statue of Marduk, restoring Babylon's status as a religious and political centre. - 1026 BC – 911 BC: Post-Kassite Dynasties (known as "Babili") A turbulent century in which short-lived dynasties from the southern Sealand, the Bazi tribe and an Elamite line successively held the throne. Central authority weakened and the city's territory contracted before Assyrian intervention reorganised the region. - 911 BC – 626 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Babili") Babylon was repeatedly drawn into the Assyrian orbit, sometimes ruled directly by Assyrian kings and sometimes through client kings. Sennacherib destroyed the city in 689 BCE after a revolt, but his successor Esarhaddon rebuilt it; the period ended when Nabopolassar drove the Assyrians out and founded an independent kingdom. - 626 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Babili") Under Nabopolassar and especially his son Nebuchadnezzar II, Babylon reached its greatest extent and splendour, with monumental walls, the Ishtar Gate, the rebuilt Etemenanki ziggurat and the palaces traditionally associated with the Hanging Gardens. The empire fell when Cyrus the Great of Persia captured the city in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 331 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Babirus") Incorporated into the Persian Empire as a key royal capital, Babylon retained its temples and administrative importance and was one of the principal residences of the Achaemenid kings. Periodic revolts under Darius I and Xerxes led to reductions in its privileges, but the city remained populous until Alexander's conquest. - 331 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire After defeating the Persians, Alexander entered Babylon peacefully and made it the planned capital of his empire, ordering the restoration of the Esagila temple. He died there in 323 BCE, and his generals divided his realm in the city itself. - 323 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire Under the Seleucids the population and administrative weight gradually shifted to the newly founded Seleucia on the Tigris, and Babylon's economic and political role declined, although its temples continued to function and cuneiform scholarship persisted. - 141 BC – 224 AD: Parthian Empire Conquered by Mithridates I, Babylon survived as a shrunken town within the Parthian realm. The Esagila cult and a small community of cuneiform scribes endured into the first century CE, but the city was overshadowed by Seleucia and the nearby Parthian capital of Ctesiphon. - 224 AD – 651 AD: Sasanian Empire Absorbed into the Sasanian Empire centred on nearby Ctesiphon, Babylon had dwindled to a minor settlement amid the ruins. Its temples were long abandoned and the site played no significant political role, though the region remained agriculturally important. - 651 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Babil") Following the Muslim conquest of Iraq, the area passed under Rashidun rule and the locality became known in Arabic as Babil. The ancient city itself was largely a ruin field, with small villages scattered among the mounds. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Babil") Under the Umayyad Caliphate, the Babylon area lay within the broader Iraqi province administered from Damascus and the newly founded garrison town of Kufa, with the ancient city itself reduced to a ruin field surrounded by small agricultural villages. The site was known to early Arab geographers as Babil but played no political or commercial role of its own. - 750 AD – 1000 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Babil") Following the Abbasid revolution, the locality fell within the agricultural hinterland of the new imperial capital at Baghdad, founded by al-Mansur in 762 CE only about 90 km to the north. By the end of the 10th century the last small inhabited remnants on the ancient site had been abandoned, and Babylon survived only as a ruin known to medieval Arab geographers. ## Landmarks - Esagila (built 1800 BC) The main temple dedicated to Marduk, Babylon's chief god. It housed the statue of Marduk and was the destination of the New Year's festival procession. The temple was repeatedly rebuilt and embellished by various rulers. - Hanging Gardens of Babylon (built 605 BC) Reportedly built by Nebuchadnezzar II for his wife Amytis of Media, these terraced gardens featured an elaborate irrigation system. Though famous in classical accounts, archaeological evidence remains elusive, leading some scholars to suggest they may have been in Nineveh instead. - Palace of Nebuchadnezzar II (built 605 BC) An enormous palace complex covering over 5 hectares, featuring the famous Throne Room and administrative quarters. It was expanded multiple times during Nebuchadnezzar's 43-year reign. - Etemenanki (built 600 BC) A massive seven-tiered ziggurat approximately 91 meters tall, dedicated to Babylon's patron deity Marduk. Rebuilt by Nebuchadnezzar II, it was the centerpiece of the city's religious district. - Bridge over the Euphrates (built 600 BC) A stone bridge connecting the two parts of Babylon across the Euphrates River, featuring wooden drawbridges that could be removed at night for security. It was approximately 123 meters long and 9 meters wide. - Walls of Babylon (built 580 BC) Massive double walls surrounded the city, reportedly wide enough for a four-horse chariot to turn around on top. According to Herodotus, the outer wall was 87 km long, though modern estimates suggest a more modest but still impressive 8-12 km circuit. - Ishtar Gate (built 575 BC) A massive blue-glazed brick gate decorated with dragons, lions and bulls, symbolizing the gods Marduk, Ishtar, and Adad. The Processional Way leading through it was lined with lion reliefs. ## Population History - 1700 BC: 60,000 - 1600 BC: 60,000 - 1200 BC: 75,000 - 1100 BC: 75,000 - 1000 BC: 100,000 - 900 BC: 100,000 - 800 BC: 100,000 - 700 BC: 100,000 - 650 BC: 60,000 - 600 BC: 200,000 - 500 BC: 200,000 - 430 BC: 200,000 - 400 BC: 200,000 - 300 BC: 100,000 - 1000 AD: null --- # Ctesiphon, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/ctesiphon Founded: 129 BC Ended: 900 AD Coordinates: 33.0936, 44.5806 ## Description Ctesiphon was one of the great Mesopotamian metropolises of antiquity, situated on the east bank of the Tigris about 35 km southeast of modern Baghdad. Founded by the Parthians in the late 2nd century BCE under Mithridates I as a winter capital facing the Hellenistic city of Seleucia-on-the-Tigris across the river, it grew into the imperial seat of both the Parthian Empire and the succeeding Sasanian Empire, and by the 6th century CE was among the largest cities in the world. Together with Seleucia, Veh-Ardashir and several adjoining quarters, it formed the metropolitan complex the Arabs later called al-Mada'in — the Cities. As the Sasanian capital it was a recurring target of Roman ambition, sacked or captured by Trajan in 116 CE, by Avidius Cassius and Lucius Verus in 165 CE, by Septimius Severus in 197-198 CE, by Carus in 283 CE and by Galerius in 298 CE, and it was the focus of Heraclius's counterstrike against Khosrow II in 628. After the decisive Arab Muslim victory at al-Qadisiyyah, the general Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas took the city in 637 CE and its population began draining away — first to the new garrison town of Kufa, then irreversibly after Caliph al-Mansur founded Baghdad in 762 CE on the same Tigris a short ride upstream. By the 9th-10th centuries Ctesiphon was effectively abandoned, surviving largely as a quarry for Baghdad's builders. The Taq Kasra, the colossal brick iwan of the Sasanian palace and the largest single-span unreinforced brick vault in the ancient world, still towers over the empty plain; its northern wing partially collapsed in 1888, and the surviving arch has been the subject of Iraqi and international conservation campaigns, with the wider site suffering further neglect and damage during the conflicts of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. ## Historical Rulers - 129 BC – 224 AD: Parthian Empire Established by the Arsacid Parthians, conventionally under Mithridates I in the late 2nd century BCE, as a winter royal residence on the east bank of the Tigris opposite the older Hellenistic capital of Seleucia. Over the following centuries it grew from a fortified royal camp into the principal political seat of the Parthian Empire and a major commercial hub on the trade routes linking the Mediterranean with Iran and Central Asia. It was sacked by the Roman emperors Trajan in 116 CE, by the armies of Lucius Verus under Avidius Cassius in 165 CE, and again by Septimius Severus in 197-198 CE, yet each time was rebuilt and remained the chief winter capital of the Arsacids. - 224 AD – 637 AD: Sasanian Empire After Ardashir I overthrew the last Parthian king at the Battle of Hormozdgan in 224 CE, Ctesiphon became the principal capital of the new Sasanian dynasty and the political, administrative and ceremonial heart of the Iranian world for over four centuries. Ardashir founded the nearby twin city of Veh-Ardashir on the west bank, and successive shahs added palaces, gardens, fire temples and quarters until the agglomeration of Ctesiphon, Seleucia, Veh-Ardashir and adjoining towns formed a sprawling metropolis. The city was again sacked by Roman armies under Carus in 283 CE and Galerius in 298 CE. Under Khosrow I and Khosrow II in the 6th and early 7th centuries it likely reached its demographic peak, and the great vaulted iwan known as Taq Kasra was raised in this era. The long Roman-Sasanian war of the early 7th century culminated in the Byzantine emperor Heraclius's campaign of 627-628, which devastated the Sasanian countryside near the capital and helped trigger the deposition of Khosrow II. - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "al-Mada'in") After the decisive Arab Muslim victory over the Sasanians at the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah in 636, the armies of Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas took Ctesiphon in 637 CE, capturing its treasury and the abandoned palace of Khosrow. The conquerors renamed the metropolitan complex al-Mada'in — 'the Cities' — and kept the old Sasanian capital briefly as an administrative center. The founding of the new garrison town of Kufa on the lower Euphrates in 638 and the subsequent shift of the caliphal seat to Medina and later to Kufa under Ali began a long demographic drain away from the site. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "al-Mada'in") Under the Umayyads, who moved the caliphal seat to Damascus in 661 CE, al-Mada'in continued as an inhabited provincial town but lost its remaining political importance. The Sasanian palaces stood largely abandoned, and the metropolitan population gradually drained toward the new garrison cities of Kufa and Basra, leaving a shrinking urban core around the surviving Christian and Muslim religious institutions of the old capital. - 750 AD – 900 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "al-Mada'in") Under the early Abbasids al-Mada'in remained an inhabited but steadily shrinking provincial town. The decisive blow was the founding of Baghdad by Caliph al-Mansur in 762 CE only a short distance upstream on the Tigris, drawing administration, trade and population away. Through the 9th century the ruins served increasingly as a source of brick and stone for Baghdad's construction, and contemporary geographers describe an emptying landscape of fields and abandoned quarters around the still-standing arch of the old Sasanian palace. By around 900 CE the site had effectively ceased to function as a city. ## Landmarks - Parthian Royal Palace (built 100 BC) Earlier royal residence of the Arsacid Parthian kings, established when Ctesiphon was first developed as a winter capital opposite Seleucia. Its plan and decoration are imperfectly known because of later Sasanian and Islamic rebuilding on the same ground, but it set the precedent for the great vaulted halls developed more spectacularly by the Sasanians. - Taq Kasra — Arch of Ctesiphon (built 540 AD) The monumental brick iwan of the Sasanian royal palace, traditionally associated with Khosrow I in the mid-6th century CE though some scholars argue for an earlier 3rd-century origin. With a clear span of about 25 meters and a crown roughly 35 meters above the ground, it is the largest single-span unreinforced brick vault surviving from the ancient world and the only substantially upstanding element of the imperial Sasanian capital. Its northern flank partially collapsed in 1888, and the surviving arch has been the focus of repeated Iraqi and international conservation campaigns. - White Palace of Khosrow (built 550 AD) The wider palatial complex of the late Sasanian shahs around the Taq Kasra iwan, known in later Arabic tradition as the White Palace — al-Qasr al-Abyad. Audience halls, residential quarters and gardens stretched along the east bank of the Tigris. Most of the complex was robbed for brick after the founding of Baghdad, and its outline is now known mainly from foundations and from medieval Arabic descriptions. - Bazaar of al-Mada'in (built 650 AD) Principal market of the metropolitan complex during the early Islamic period, succeeding the older Sasanian and late-antique commercial quarters. Medieval Arab geographers describe it as a major node on the routes between Iran, Iraq and Syria until its decline after the rise of Baghdad in the later 8th century. - Shrine of Salman al-Farisi (built 700 AD) Funerary shrine traditionally identified as the tomb of Salman al-Farisi, the Persian companion of the Prophet Muhammad who is associated with the early Muslim administration of al-Mada'in. The site, now in the modern town of Salman Pak that occupies part of the ancient metropolitan area, has been venerated since at least the early Islamic centuries and has been rebuilt and expanded many times. ## Population History - 129 BC: 5,000 - 1 AD: 50,000 - 200 AD: 200,000 - 400 AD: 400,000 - 600 AD: 500,000 - 637 AD: 400,000 - 750 AD: 100,000 - 800 AD: 30,000 - 900 AD: null --- # Eridu, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/eridu Founded: 5400 BC Ended: 600 BC Coordinates: 30.8095, 45.991 ## Description Eridu, modern Tell Abu Shahrain in southern Iraq, is considered one of the earliest cities in Mesopotamia and is often associated with the mythological origins of Sumerian civilization. Founded in the Ubaid period beside the marshes near the Persian Gulf, it grew into a major religious center home to the temple of Enki, the Sumerian god of fresh water and wisdom, and the Sumerian King List names it as the first city to receive kingship from the gods. The site's stratigraphy preserves at least eighteen superimposed Enki temples spanning more than four millennia, providing the foundational sequence for the study of Sumerian sacred architecture. After gradual abandonment in the first millennium BCE the site was left to the desert, and was rediscovered through 19th-century surveys and systematically excavated by Iraqi archaeologists in the 1940s. ## Historical Rulers - 5400 BC – 3500 BC: Ubaid Civilization Eridu emerged during the Ubaid period as one of the earliest permanent settlements on the southern Mesopotamian alluvium. Its inhabitants developed irrigation agriculture along the marshes near the Persian Gulf and built successive mud-brick shrines on the site that would become the temple of Enki, establishing the religious and architectural template later inherited by Sumerian cities. - 3500 BC – 2334 BC: Sumerian City-States Through the Uruk period and Early Dynastic phases Eridu was venerated as the oldest of cities and the cultic home of Enki, god of the freshwater abyss. Although it never matched the political weight of Uruk or Ur, its temple precinct was repeatedly rebuilt and expanded — culminating in a stepped ziggurat — and its prestige is reflected in the Sumerian King List, which names Eridu as the first city to receive kingship from the gods. - 2334 BC – 2154 BC: Akkadian Empire Eridu was incorporated into the empire of Sargon of Akkad but retained its purely religious character, as Akkadian and later Naram-Sin recognized the sanctuary as one of the venerable cult centres of the south. The settlement remained small while the temple of Enki continued under imperial patronage. - 2154 BC – 2112 BC: Gutian Dynasty During the chaotic decades after the Akkadian collapse, Eridu fell within the nominal sphere of Gutian overlordship along with the rest of southern Mesopotamia. The temple of Enki continued its diminished cultic activity through this short interlude. - 2112 BC – 2004 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur Ur-Nammu and his son Shulgi incorporated Eridu into the centralized Ur III state and undertook major restoration of the Enki sanctuary, including construction of a stepped ziggurat that survives in the archaeological record. Despite imperial patronage the city remained small as shifting watercourses progressively isolated it from the main river channels. - 2004 BC – 1763 BC: Isin-Larsa Period After the collapse of Ur III, Eridu passed nominally between the rival dynasties of Isin and Larsa that contested southern Mesopotamia. The site was already shrinking as salinization and the retreat of the Persian Gulf coastline undermined its economic base, leaving little more than a sanctuary and a small village around the temple of Enki. - 1763 BC – 1595 BC: Old Babylonian Empire Hammurabi's defeat of Rim-Sin of Larsa in 1763 BCE brought Eridu under Old Babylonian rule. The temple of Enki continued under royal patronage even as the surrounding settlement contracted to a small sanctuary community. - 1595 BC – 1155 BC: Kassite Dynasty Under the Kassite dynasty Eridu remained a minor sanctuary settlement within the broader Babylonian realm. Kassite kings made occasional restoration offerings at the temple of Enki, but the urban site continued its long contraction. - 1155 BC – 1026 BC: Second Dynasty of Isin After the Elamite sack ended Kassite rule, Eridu remained a tiny religious settlement within the realm of the native Babylonian Second Dynasty of Isin. Nebuchadnezzar I's restoration of Babylonian cult institutions extended episodic patronage to the venerable shrine of Enki. - 1026 BC – 911 BC: Post-Kassite Dynasties Through the turbulent post-Kassite century of short-lived Sealand, Bazi, and Elamite dynasties, Eridu persisted as a depopulated sanctuary on the marshland edge. The surrounding region was increasingly affected by Aramaean and Chaldean tribal migrations. - 911 BC – 626 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire Under successive Neo-Assyrian kings who periodically asserted control over southern Mesopotamia, Eridu was a peripheral cult site recognized in royal inscriptions but supporting only a tiny population. The temple precinct continued to be tended even as the surrounding urban fabric vanished. - 626 BC – 600 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire Under Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II's wide-ranging archaizing temple restoration programme, Eridu's sanctuary received episodic attention as one of the symbolically ancient cult centres of Sumer. The site was finally abandoned around the early 6th century BCE as salinization and the continued retreat of the Persian Gulf coastline left the marshland economy unviable. ## Landmarks - Temple of Enki (built 5000 BC) The Temple of Enki, or E-Abzu ('House of the Deep Water'), stood at the heart of Eridu through more than four millennia of continuous worship. Excavations have revealed at least eighteen successive temples built atop one another, with the earliest shrine a simple mud hut that evolved into a grand Ubaid and Sumerian complex. The temple's central role anchored Mesopotamian city planning by setting the precedent of locating religious precincts at the heart of urban settlements. - Ancient Harbor (built 4500 BC) Geological studies confirm that Eridu once had direct access to the Persian Gulf, supporting its prosperity through early maritime trade and reinforcing its association with Enki, god of the watery abyss. The harbor enabled exchanges with distant regions, and although shifting waterways and land changes have obscured the site, it once featured docks, boat repair areas, and storage facilities vital to Eridu's economic life. - Eridu Ziggurat (built 2900 BC) Built atop the older Enki shrines, the Eridu Ziggurat marked the architectural culmination of the city's sacred center and pioneered the stepped temple form. Constructed of mud-brick with reed reinforcement, the ziggurat was surrounded by auxiliary buildings supporting temple activities, and its decline mirrored Eridu's fading political importance even as later repairs testify to lingering religious reverence. ## Population History - 5400 BC: 3,000 - 3700 BC: 6,000 - 3500 BC: 10,000 - 3300 BC: 10,000 - 3000 BC: 10,000 - 2500 BC: 8,000 - 2000 BC: 4,000 - 1500 BC: 2,000 - 1000 BC: 1,000 - 600 BC: null --- # Eshnunna, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/eshnunna Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 1755 BC Coordinates: 33.75, 44.75 ## Description Eshnunna, located in the Diyala river valley northeast of modern Baghdad, was a prominent Sumerian and later Akkadian city-state in ancient Mesopotamia. Strategically positioned on trade routes between Elam, Upper Mesopotamia, and Sumer, Eshnunna flourished during the Early Dynastic period and gained independence again after the fall of the Third Dynasty of Ur, when it emerged as one of the leading Old Babylonian kingdoms. The city is notable for the Laws of Eshnunna, an Akkadian-language legal code that predates the Code of Hammurabi by perhaps two generations. Eshnunna was eventually conquered by Hammurabi of Babylon around 1755 BCE, leading to its decline. The site at modern Tell Asmar was excavated by the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago in the 1930s under Henri Frankfort, producing the celebrated Tell Asmar Hoard of votive statues now central to Early Dynastic Sumerian art history. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2334 BC: Sumerian City-States Founded during the Early Dynastic period as a Sumerian-influenced settlement in the Diyala valley, Eshnunna grew around the temple of the local god Ninazu (later replaced by Tishpak) and developed as a regional cult and trade centre linking southern Sumer with the Iranian plateau to the east. The Early Dynastic city was administered by local ensis and participated in the broader cultural sphere of Sumer, with Sumerian becoming the language of administration and ritual. - 2334 BC – 2154 BC: Akkadian Empire Incorporated into the empire founded by Sargon of Akkad, Eshnunna served as a provincial centre on the eastern frontier governing the Diyala valley and overseeing trade routes into Elam. The city retained its temple institutions while contributing tribute and labour to the imperial centre at Akkad, and Akkadian became the dominant administrative language alongside Sumerian. - 2154 BC – 2112 BC: Gutian Dynasty Following the collapse of Akkadian authority, the Diyala region fell under loose Gutian overlordship from the Zagros highlands during the chaotic decades that followed. Eshnunna retained its temple institutions and local administration through this short interlude before regional power consolidated under the Third Dynasty of Ur. - 2112 BC – 2004 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur Under the centralized Neo-Sumerian state of Ur III, Eshnunna was a provincial seat administered by governors (ensi) loyal to the kings of Ur. The city was integrated into the centralized bala taxation system, contributing manpower, livestock and goods to the imperial economy until the collapse of Ur III around 2004 BCE under combined Amorite and Elamite pressure. - 2004 BC – 1762 BC: Kingdom of Eshnunna After the fall of Ur III, the local rulers Ituria and his son Shu-iliya declared independence and Eshnunna emerged as one of the most powerful Old Babylonian-era kingdoms. Under successive kings including Ipiq-Adad II, Naram-Sin of Eshnunna and Dadusha, the city expanded its control across the Diyala valley and into the middle Tigris region, and produced the Laws of Eshnunna, an Akkadian-language legal code predating the Code of Hammurabi by perhaps two generations. - 1762 BC – 1755 BC: Old Babylonian Empire Hammurabi of Babylon defeated and absorbed the Kingdom of Eshnunna around 1762 BCE during his great wave of conquests, bringing the Diyala valley under Babylonian control. After a local revolt Hammurabi returned around 1755 BCE and reportedly destroyed the city by flooding, after which Eshnunna ceased to function as a major urban centre and was never refounded. ## Landmarks - Abu Temple (built 2700 BC) An ancient temple structure dedicated to the god Abu, reflecting early Sumerian religious practices. The temple is famous for the Tell Asmar Hoard of votive statues recovered here in the 1930s, now displayed in the Iraq Museum and the Oriental Institute Museum. - Temple of Tishpak (built 2000 BC) A central temple complex serving as a focal point for religious ceremonies and community gatherings of the Kingdom of Eshnunna. The temple was dedicated to Tishpak, the patron god of the city, who replaced the earlier Sumerian deity Ninazu as the principal divinity during the Old Babylonian period. - Northern Palace (built 1900 BC) A large palace complex featuring administrative offices, audience halls, and residential quarters of the kings of Eshnunna. The palace yielded substantial Old Babylonian-era tablet archives documenting the kingdom's administration of the Diyala valley. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 2,000 - 2500 BC: 5,000 - 2300 BC: 8,000 - 2100 BC: 10,000 - 2000 BC: 15,000 - 1900 BC: 18,000 - 1800 BC: 20,000 - 1762 BC: 15,000 - 1755 BC: null --- # Girsu, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/girsu Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 2000 BC Coordinates: 31.6167, 46.15 ## Description Girsu, the modern Tello in southern Iraq, was one of the earliest cities of Sumer and served as the religious and political center of the wider Lagash state, which also encompassed the urban centers of Lagash itself and the port of Nina-Sirara. Under the First Dynasty of Lagash and especially the Second Dynasty of Lagash under Gudea (c. 2144-2124 BCE), Girsu produced some of the masterpieces of Sumerian art, including the famous diorite statues of Gudea now in the Louvre, alongside an extensive royal corpus of cylinder inscriptions and temple hymns. The site was eventually absorbed into the centralized Third Dynasty of Ur and declined sharply around 2000 BCE following the collapse of that state. Excavated since the 1870s by successive French missions and reopened under British Museum collaboration in the 2010s, Girsu remains one of the foundational sites for understanding early Mesopotamian urbanism. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2334 BC: Sumerian City-States During the Early Dynastic period, Girsu emerged as the religious capital of the Lagash city-state, governed by local ensi rulers under the patronage of the god Ningirsu. Kings such as Ur-Nanshe, Eannatum, Enmetena, and Uruinimgina expanded the city's temples, canals, and administrative apparatus, leaving cuneiform records of land grants, military campaigns against rival Umma, and early social reforms. - 2334 BC – 2154 BC: Akkadian Empire Following Sargon of Akkad's conquest of Sumer, Girsu was incorporated into the first Mesopotamian empire and administered by Akkadian-appointed governors. The city retained its cultic importance to Ningirsu while contributing tribute and labor to the imperial center, with Akkadian gradually joining Sumerian as a language of administration. - 2154 BC – 2112 BC: Second Lagash Dynasty After the collapse of Akkad and a brief period of Gutian disruption, the Second Dynasty of Lagash under Gudea (c. 2144-2124 BCE) rebuilt the E-ninnu temple and made Girsu a flourishing artistic and religious center. The era produced the famous diorite statues of Gudea, the great cylinder inscriptions celebrating the E-ninnu construction, and an unprecedented quantity of administrative tablets. - 2112 BC – 2000 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur Girsu was absorbed into the centralized Third Dynasty of Ur founded by Ur-Nammu, serving as a provincial administrative hub within the tightly bureaucratized Neo-Sumerian state. The empire's collapse around 2000 BCE precipitated Girsu's long decline as a major urban center. ## Landmarks - E-ninnu (built 2700 BC) The E-ninnu ('House of Fifty') temple complex honored Ningirsu, the patron god of Girsu and the Lagash state. Extensively rebuilt by King Gudea around 2120 BCE, the site included a ziggurat, administrative buildings, workshops, and storerooms. Votive diorite statues such as the famous Gudea figures and cylinder seals detail the temple's elaborate construction rituals, and the E-ninnu served both religious and political functions in reinforcing the divine legitimacy of Lagash's rulers. - Bridge of Girsu (built 2500 BC) Unearthed by British Museum archaeologists in 2017, the Bridge of Girsu dates to about 4,500 years ago. Built of fired bricks with a herringbone pattern and bitumen mortar, the 15-meter-long structure spanned a major canal, and its sophisticated corbelled arch design predates Roman engineering by over two millennia, revealing the remarkable public infrastructure capabilities of early Sumerian civilization. - Stele of the Vultures (built 2450 BC) Commissioned by King Eannatum around 2450 BCE, the Stele of the Vultures commemorates Lagash's victory over Umma. The limestone monument, adorned with vivid battle scenes and a historical inscription, depicts royal leadership, divine favor, and brutal early warfare. Now primarily housed in the Louvre, it stands as a milestone in political propaganda, artistic innovation, and historical record-keeping. - Palace of the Governors (built 2400 BC) The Palace of the Governors served as Girsu's administrative heart, with courtyards, audience halls, and private residences built of mud brick and luxury materials like imported cedar wood. Thousands of clay tablets document the Lagash state's sophisticated management of agriculture, labor, and resources, and the palace was expanded under rulers such as Enmetena and Uruinimgina. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 5,000 - 2400 BC: 40,000 - 2300 BC: 80,000 - 2200 BC: 50,000 - 2100 BC: 80,000 - 2000 BC: null --- # Hatra, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/hatra Founded: 250 BC Ended: 241 AD Coordinates: 35.58806, 42.71833 ## Description Hatra was a major fortified city in northern Mesopotamia, flourishing as a semi-independent Arab kingdom under Parthian influence. Renowned for its formidable defenses, massive walls, and unique blend of Hellenistic, Parthian, and Mesopotamian architectural styles, Hatra became a vital religious, political, and commercial center. Despite multiple Roman attempts to capture it, the city withstood sieges until its destruction by the Sasanian Empire in 241 CE. Today, its well-preserved ruins are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. ## Historical Rulers - 250 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Beit Elaha") Hatra emerged as a small fortified caravan settlement on the northern Mesopotamian steppe under Seleucid rule from around the mid-3rd century BCE. The site grew as a trading station on the routes linking the Tigris valley to Syria and the Arabian frontier, with Hellenistic urban influences shaping its earliest architecture. - 141 BC – 50 BC: Parthian Empire (known as "Beit Elaha") Following the Parthian conquest of Mesopotamia under Mithridates I in 141 BCE, Hatra was incorporated into the Arsacid Empire. The settlement continued as a frontier caravan town under early Parthian administration. - 50 BC – 241 AD: Kingdom of Hatra (known as "Beit Elaha") From the 1st century BCE onward Hatra emerged as a semi-autonomous Arab kingdom (also called Araba or Arabaya) operating within the Parthian sphere, with its rulers styled first as marya 'lord' and from the 170s CE as malka 'king of the Arabs'. The city prospered from caravan trade and its role as a major religious centre, and its formidable double walls allowed it to withstand Roman sieges under Trajan in 117 CE, Septimius Severus in 198 CE, and Caracalla in 216 CE. After the Sasanian rise in 226 CE Hatra resisted incorporation into the new empire and aligned with Rome, drawing Sasanian campaigns; Shapur I together with his father Ardashir I finally besieged and captured the city in 240-241 CE, sacking it and ending its existence as an active urban centre. ## Landmarks - City Walls and Defensive Towers (built 200 BC) Hatra was enclosed by a roughly circular double circuit of mudbrick and stone walls reinforced with more than 160 towers, surrounded by a deep moat that drew water from the wadi system. These fortifications repulsed three major Roman sieges — under Trajan in 117, Septimius Severus in 198, and Caracalla in 216 — and only fell to the protracted Sasanian siege of 240-241 that ended the city. - Great Temple of Hatra (built 100 BC) The sacred temenos at the heart of Hatra enclosing the principal temples of the city, with its massive iwans rising over thirty metres in the centre of the great rectangular precinct. The complex was dedicated primarily to the sun god Shamash alongside the triad of Maren, Marten, and Bar-Maren, and combined Hellenistic columns and entablatures with Parthian vaulted iwans and Mesopotamian iconography in one of the most distinctive religious architectures of the ancient Near East. - Temple of Maran and Marten (built 100 AD) Two smaller but richly decorated sanctuary buildings dedicated to Maren ('Our Lord') and Marten ('Our Lady'), the chief deities of the Hatran triad alongside their son Bar-Maren. The temples preserved fine Parthian-style stucco sculpture and dedicatory inscriptions in Hatran Aramaic, reflecting the city's polytheistic syncretism between Mesopotamian, Aramaean, and Hellenistic traditions. ## Population History - 250 BC: 500 - 100 BC: 3,000 - 0 AD: 10,000 - 150 AD: 15,000 - 200 AD: 12,000 - 241 AD: null --- # Jarmo, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/jarmo Founded: 7100 BC Ended: 5800 BC Coordinates: 35.5667, 44.9167 ## Description Jarmo, known locally as Qal'at Jarmo or Çermo in Kurdish, is one of the earliest known sedentary farming villages in the Near East, located in the foothills of the Zagros mountains in Iraqi Kurdistan at an elevation of around 800 metres above sea level. Occupied from approximately 7100 to 5800 BCE, the site straddles the major transition from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B to the Pottery Neolithic and the early Hassuna culture, with the earliest occupation phases lacking ceramic vessels and the upper levels documenting the local invention or adoption of pottery technology. Jarmo is internationally renowned as the type site of Robert J. Braidwood's pioneering 1948-1955 excavations for the University of Chicago Oriental Institute, which were among the first systematic interdisciplinary investigations of the Neolithic Revolution and produced landmark evidence for the early domestication of einkorn and emmer wheat, barley, lentils, peas, sheep, and goats. The site's mud-brick houses with plastered floors, basket-impressed mortars, ground-stone tools, and Anatolian obsidian imports document a fully sedentary agricultural community at the very beginning of the Near Eastern farming experiment. Jarmo was abandoned around 5800 BCE without later reoccupation, and renewed Iraqi-Kurdish excavations from 2023 onward continue to refine its chronological and cultural sequence. ## Historical Rulers - 7100 BC – 6500 BC: Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Jarmo") The earliest occupation at Jarmo, dating to around 7100 BCE in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B horizon, represents one of the foundational sedentary farming communities of the Near East. Successive mud-brick houses with plastered floors and the earliest domesticated cereals and legumes — einkorn, emmer wheat, barley, lentils, and peas — document the local manifestation of the Neolithic Revolution in the Zagros piedmont without any use of ceramic vessels. - 6500 BC – 5800 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Jarmo") From around 6500 BCE Jarmo entered the Pottery Neolithic horizon with the local adoption of ceramic vessels, transitioning into the early Hassuna cultural sphere of northern Mesopotamia. The community continued to expand its domesticated cereal and animal repertoire, with sheep and goat husbandry becoming central to subsistence, until the site was abandoned around 5800 BCE for reasons that remain debated. ## Landmarks - Mud-Brick Houses with Plastered Floors (built 7100 BC) Successive rectangular mud-brick houses with plastered floors, internal hearths, and small ovens form the principal architectural legacy of Jarmo. The continuous sequence of building levels over more than a millennium documents the long-term stability and gradual elaboration of one of the earliest fully sedentary villages in the Near East, providing key reference data for the architectural development of Pre-Pottery and Pottery Neolithic Mesopotamia. - Early Domesticated Cereal Assemblages (built 7000 BC) Jarmo's deeply stratified plant remains include some of the earliest secure evidence in Mesopotamia for the cultivation of einkorn and emmer wheat, two-row barley, lentils, peas, and bitter vetch, recovered through Braidwood's pioneering interdisciplinary excavations of 1948-1955. The site's botanical assemblage formed a foundational dataset for understanding the early domestication of southwest Asian founder crops. - Anatolian Obsidian Trade Goods (built 7000 BC) The obsidian recovered from Jarmo's lithic assemblage was sourced through compositional analysis to volcanic flows in central and eastern Anatolia, documenting some of the earliest long-distance trade networks in the Near East. The obsidian-blade industry at Jarmo provides key evidence for early specialized procurement and exchange systems linking the Zagros piedmont with the wider Anatolian and Levantine Neolithic worlds. ## Population History - 7100 BC: 200 - 6800 BC: 400 - 6500 BC: 500 - 6200 BC: 400 - 5800 BC: null --- # Lagash, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/lagash Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 2000 BC Coordinates: 31.4068, 46.4043 ## Description Lagash, identified with the archaeological mound of Tell al-Hiba in southern Mesopotamia, was one of the principal cities of Sumer and the namesake capital of the wider Lagash state, a polity that also encompassed the religious center Girsu (Tello) and the port of Nina-Sirara. Under the First Dynasty of Lagash founded by Ur-Nanshe around 2500 BCE, the city rose to prominence, and his grandson Eannatum commemorated victory over rival Umma on the Stele of the Vultures, the oldest surviving historical war monument and now a centerpiece of the Louvre. Lagash was absorbed into the Akkadian Empire under Sargon, then revived during the Gudea era of the Second Lagash Dynasty around 2144-2124 BCE, although by that time political and religious primacy had shifted to Girsu. The city declined under the Third Dynasty of Ur and was abandoned around 2000 BCE. The site lay largely untouched until American excavations directed by Vaughn Crawford between 1968 and 1990 revealed its temples, palaces, and Early Dynastic urban fabric, and renewed Iraqi-led fieldwork has continued in the twenty-first century. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2500 BC: Sumerian City-States Settlement at Tell al-Hiba began in the late Uruk and early Sumerian period, growing through the Early Dynastic phases into one of the urban centers of southern Mesopotamia. Local ensi rulers organized canal building, temple construction, and the agricultural economy that would underpin the later Lagash state. - 2500 BC – 2350 BC: First Lagash Dynasty Around 2500 BCE Ur-Nanshe founded the First Dynasty of Lagash, with the city of Lagash itself serving as the dynastic capital alongside the religious center of Girsu. His grandson Eannatum extended Lagash's territory across much of Sumer and commemorated his decisive victory over neighboring Umma on the Stele of the Vultures, the earliest known historical war monument. Successors including Enmetena and Uruinimgina, whose reform texts are among the earliest surviving social legislation, continued to consolidate the state until it fell to Lugalzagesi of Umma. - 2350 BC – 2154 BC: Akkadian Empire Sargon of Akkad's conquest of Sumer absorbed Lagash into the first Mesopotamian empire, and the city was administered by Akkadian-appointed governors who maintained its temples and canal infrastructure. Lagash continued as a productive provincial center contributing tribute and labor to the imperial capital, with Akkadian gradually supplementing Sumerian in administration. - 2154 BC – 2110 BC: Second Lagash Dynasty After the collapse of the Akkadian Empire and the disruption of the Gutian interlude, the Second Dynasty of Lagash revived the polity under rulers such as Ur-Bau and most famously Gudea, who governed approximately 2144-2124 BCE. Although Gudea ruled from Girsu and rebuilt the Eninnu of Ningirsu there, the wider Lagash state including the city of Lagash enjoyed a notable artistic and economic florescence, producing the diorite Gudea statues now in the Louvre. - 2110 BC – 2000 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur Ur-Nammu and his successors incorporated Lagash into the centralized Third Dynasty of Ur, reducing it to a provincial administrative district within a tightly controlled imperial system. The city continued to function as an economic and cultic node but lost its independent dynastic role, and with the empire's collapse around 2000 BCE Lagash itself was largely abandoned. ## Landmarks - Temple of Ningirsu (built 2500 BC) Known as the Ibgal, the main temple of Lagash was dedicated to Ningirsu, the warrior god who served as the patron deity of the Lagash state. Excavations at Tell al-Hiba revealed a large oval temple complex with thick mud-brick walls, courtyards, and associated workshops, attesting to the city's central religious role during the Early Dynastic period. - Temple of Bau (built 2400 BC) A major sanctuary at Lagash was dedicated to the goddess Bau, the consort of Ningirsu and a healing deity of the Lagash pantheon. Cuneiform records describe extensive land grants and offerings made to her temple, and the precinct served as both a cult center and an important economic institution managing fields, herds, and dependent laborers. - Royal Palace (built 2400 BC) The royal palace of Lagash served as the seat of the city's ensi rulers during the Early Dynastic period, combining residential quarters with administrative offices that managed taxation, irrigation, and military mobilization. Built of mud brick around courtyards, the palace yielded archives of clay tablets documenting the affairs of the Lagash state and the campaigns against rival Umma. - Eninnu Shrine (built 2120 BC) The Eninnu, House of Fifty, was the principal cult complex of Ningirsu and the most celebrated religious project of the Second Lagash Dynasty. While Gudea's monumental Eninnu was built at the polity's religious capital Girsu, a corresponding shrine at the city of Lagash itself maintained the deity's cult locally and shared in the artistic florescence of the era, including the diorite statuary and cylinder inscriptions of Gudea. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 3,000 - 2500 BC: 30,000 - 2350 BC: 40,000 - 2154 BC: 25,000 - 2110 BC: 30,000 - 2000 BC: null --- # Mosul, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/mosul Founded: 637 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.335, 43.119 ## Description Mosul, an ancient city on the western bank of the Tigris River in northern Iraq, has served as a strategic crossroads between the Mediterranean world and the Iranian plateau for over a millennium. Established during the early Islamic conquests opposite the ruins of ancient Nineveh, Mosul grew into a major center of trade, learning, and diverse religious communities. Known for its distinctive architectural style, textiles (muslin is named after the city), and as a melting pot of Arab, Kurdish, Turkmen, Assyrian, and other cultures. ## Historical Rulers - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Al-Mawsil") Following the Arab Muslim conquest of Sasanian Mesopotamia, the Rashidun Caliphate established a garrison and administrative center on the western bank of the Tigris opposite the ruins of Nineveh. The settlement, known as Al-Mawsil ('the linking point'), grew rapidly as a crossing and provincial seat. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Al-Mawsil") Under the Umayyads, Mosul served as the capital of the province of Al-Jazira, governing northern Mesopotamia. The city expanded with mosques, walls, and markets, becoming a key node in the caliphate's trade and military network linking Syria, Iraq, and the Iranian frontier. - 750 AD – 905 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Al-Mawsil") Mosul flourished under the Abbasids as a major center of commerce, scholarship, and craft production, including the fine cotton textile that gave 'muslin' its name. The city remained an important provincial capital even as central caliphal authority began to weaken in the late 9th century. - 905 AD – 990 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Al-Mawsil") The Shia Arab Hamdanid emirs ruled Mosul as a semi-autonomous emirate, patronizing poets and scholars and contesting upper Mesopotamia with the Byzantines. Hamdanid rule in Mosul ended around 990 when the Banu Uqayl Arab tribe, allied with the Hamdanids against the Buyids, eventually succeeded them as emirs of the city. - 990 AD – 1096 AD: Uqaylid Emirate (known as "Al-Mawsil") The Banu Uqayl Arab tribal dynasty, under Abu Adh-Dhawwud Muhammad and his successors, ruled Mosul and the Diyar Rabi'a as a Sunni Arab emirate nominally subject to the Abbasid caliphate. The Uqaylids reached the peak of their power under Sharaf al-Dawla Muslim ibn Quraysh (1061-85), holding off Seljuk encroachment before finally being absorbed into Seljuk overlordship by 1096. - 1096 AD – 1127 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Al-Mawsil") Mosul was incorporated into the Great Seljuk Empire and governed by Turkish atabegs who used the city as a base for campaigns against the Crusader states and rival Muslim powers. Atabeg authority eventually consolidated under Imad al-Din Zengi, founder of the Zengid line. - 1127 AD – 1233 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Al-Mawsil") Under the Zengids, Mosul became the heart of a powerful Sunni atabegate that led the jihad against the Crusaders and unified much of Syria and the Jazira. The city saw major construction including the Great Mosque of al-Nuri, founded by Nur al-Din Zengi. - 1233 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Al-Mawsil") Following the collapse of independent Zengid rule, Mosul came under Ayyubid suzerainty as a tributary emirate. The city retained considerable local autonomy until the Mongol invasions reordered the political map of the Middle East. - 1260 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Al-Mawsil") After the Mongol conquest of Baghdad in 1258, Mosul was absorbed into the Ilkhanate. The city suffered population loss and economic disruption but remained an administrative center on the route linking the Ilkhanid heartland with Anatolia and Syria. - 1335 AD – 1401 AD: Jalayirid Sultanate (known as "Al-Mawsil") With the disintegration of the Ilkhanate, Mosul passed to the Jalayirid Sultanate based in Baghdad and Tabriz. The city continued as a provincial center until it was sacked by Timur's forces during their campaigns through Mesopotamia. - 1401 AD – 1415 AD: Timurid Empire (known as "Al-Mawsil") Following Timur's devastating campaigns, Mosul was briefly held under Timurid authority. Timurid control over Mesopotamia was thin and short-lived, and the city soon fell to rising Turkmen confederations from the east. - 1415 AD – 1468 AD: Kara Koyunlu Mosul passed to the Kara Koyunlu ('Black Sheep') Turkmen confederation that dominated upper Mesopotamia and western Iran through the early 15th century. Under their loose rule the city remained a regional market town and Sunni religious center on the upper Tigris. - 1468 AD – 1508 AD: Aq Qoyunlu Uzun Hasan's Aq Qoyunlu ('White Sheep') Turkmen confederation displaced the Kara Koyunlu in 1468 and consolidated upper Mesopotamia from its capital at Tabriz. Mosul remained a regional market town under Aq Qoyunlu authority until the Safavid expansion under Shah Ismail I in 1508. - 1508 AD – 1534 AD: Safavid Iran Shah Ismail I incorporated Mosul into the Safavid Empire as part of his westward expansion. Safavid rule was brief and contested, ending when Ottoman forces under Suleiman the Magnificent captured the city during the Ottoman-Safavid wars. - 1534 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire Mosul became the seat of the Ottoman eyalet (later vilayet) of Mosul, ruling a multi-ethnic province of Arabs, Kurds, Turkmen, Assyrians, and others. After 1726 the local Jalili family governed the city for nearly a century, defending it from Nader Shah's Persian forces in 1743 and overseeing economic revival before direct Ottoman control was restored in the 19th century. - 1918 AD – 1932 AD: British Mandate of Iraq British forces occupied Mosul at the end of World War I, and the Mosul Vilayet was attached to British-mandated Iraq after the contested 1925 League of Nations decision against Turkish claims. The city's surrounding oilfields became a major factor in the new state's economy. - 1932 AD – 1958 AD: Kingdom of Iraq Under the Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq, Mosul served as the principal city of the country's north and the heart of its oil-producing region. It remained a culturally diverse urban center until the 1958 revolution that overthrew the monarchy. - 1958 AD – present: Republic of Iraq Through the successive republican regimes culminating in Baathist rule under Saddam Hussein, Mosul grew into Iraq's second- or third-largest city and a major industrial and university center. The 2003 US-led invasion and subsequent insurgency destabilized the city, and from June 2014 to July 2017 ISIS occupied Mosul and proclaimed its self-styled caliphate from the Great Mosque of al-Nuri — bringing mass killings, expulsion of Christian and Yazidi communities, and the destruction of museums, shrines, and monuments before the nine-month Battle of Mosul restored Iraqi sovereignty. Reconstruction since 2017 has focused on the devastated Old City and on landmarks such as the Great Mosque of al-Nuri and al-Hadba minaret, with the city continuing to recover demographically and economically while wrestling with the legacy of the occupation. ## Landmarks - Mar Behnam Monastery (built 1170 AD) Located southeast of Mosul, this Syriac Catholic monastery was built in the 12th century and housed important cultural artifacts. Damaged by ISIS during their occupation, it has since been restored. - Great Mosque of al-Nuri (built 1172 AD) Famous for its leaning minaret known as al-Hadba ('the Hunchback'), this mosque was built by Nur al-Din Zengi. It gained additional notoriety as the location where Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared the ISIS 'caliphate' in 2014. The mosque and minaret were destroyed during the Battle of Mosul in 2017 but are being reconstructed with international support. - Al-Hadba Minaret (built 1172 AD) The distinctive leaning minaret of the Great Mosque of al-Nuri, standing 45 meters tall with a noticeable tilt. Its name means 'the Hunchback' in Arabic. Destroyed in 2017 but currently being rebuilt as part of UNESCO reconstruction efforts. - Bash Tapia Castle (built 1538 AD) An Ottoman-era fortress on the western bank of the Tigris River, built to defend the city. It survived as one of the few remaining pieces of Mosul's medieval fortifications until it was severely damaged by ISIS in 2015. - Mosul Old Bridge (built 1869 AD) An iron bridge constructed during the Ottoman period, serving as a vital link between the two halves of the city for nearly 150 years before its destruction during the 2016-17 Battle of Mosul. - Mosul Museum (built 1952 AD) Housed priceless artifacts spanning 3,000 years of Mesopotamian history, including Assyrian, Babylonian, and Islamic treasures. The museum was looted and many artifacts were destroyed by ISIS in 2015. Reconstruction efforts are ongoing. - University of Mosul (built 1967 AD) Founded in 1967, it grew to become one of Iraq's most important universities with a renowned library holding over a million books and manuscripts before its devastation by ISIS, who burned the library and destroyed much of the campus. ## Population History - 637 AD: 8,000 - 700 AD: 25,000 - 752 AD: 40,000 - 1150 AD: 50,000 - 1200 AD: 50,000 - 1250 AD: 45,000 - 1800 AD: 34,000 - 1810 AD: 34,000 - 1837 AD: 40,000 - 1850 AD: 45,000 - 1873 AD: 50,000 - 1900 AD: 60,000 - 1975 AD: 710,000 - 2000 AD: 1,800,000 - 2013 AD: 2,500,000 - 2017 AD: 1,500,000 - 2025 AD: 2,100,000 --- # Nimrud, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/nimrud Founded: 1274 BC Ended: 612 BC Coordinates: 36.0982, 43.3284 ## Description Nimrud, originally known as Kalḫu (Calah in the Bible), was a major capital of the Assyrian Empire located in northern Mesopotamia on the eastern bank of the Tigris. Built up by Shalmaneser I of the Middle Assyrian Empire from around 1274 BCE on the site of an older settlement, it was refounded as the imperial royal capital by Ashurnasirpal II in 879 BCE and became famous for its grand palaces, colossal lamassu statues, and rich cuneiform libraries. Sargon II moved the imperial capital to his new foundation of Dur-Sharrukin in 706 BCE, but Kalhu remained a major provincial centre and royal residence until the city was sacked and burned around 612 BCE by a coalition of Babylonians and Medes during the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. Only minor squatter occupation continued among the ruins through the Hellenistic and later periods; today Nimrud survives as an archaeological site known locally as Namrūd, and its monuments suffered further damage during deliberate destruction by ISIL in 2015. ## Historical Rulers - 1274 BC – 911 BC: Middle Assyrian Empire (known as "Kalḫu") Built up by Shalmaneser I from around 1274 BCE on the site of an older settlement, Kalḫu served as a regional administrative town within the Middle Assyrian heartland along the Tigris. The city remained a secondary settlement through the Bronze Age collapse and the subsequent Assyrian contraction, before the rise of the Neo-Assyrian state under Adad-nirari II around 911 BCE. - 911 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Kalḫu") Ashurnasirpal II refounded Kalḫu as the imperial capital in 879 BCE, building the Northwest Palace and lavish ceremonial complexes that defined Neo-Assyrian royal architecture. The city remained the political and military centre of the empire until Sargon II moved the capital to his new foundation of Dur-Sharrukin in 706 BCE, after which Kalḫu continued as a major provincial centre and part-time royal residence until it was sacked and burned in 612 BCE by the allied Babylonian and Median forces that toppled the Neo-Assyrian state. ## Landmarks - Northwest Palace of Ashurnasirpal II (built 879 BC) A grand palace complex richly decorated with carved stone reliefs depicting military campaigns, religious ceremonies, and scenes of royal life. Many reliefs were excavated and are now housed in museums like the British Museum. - Lamassu Colossal Statues (built 870 BC) Massive winged bulls with human heads, placed at entrances to palaces and temples to ward off evil and demonstrate the might of the king. - Ziggurat of Nimrud (built 860 BC) Archaeological evidence suggests a large ziggurat was begun but never fully completed during the city's later development stages. ## Population History - 1274 BC: 2,000 - 1100 BC: 3,000 - 911 BC: 5,000 - 879 BC: 16,000 - 800 BC: 30,000 - 706 BC: 30,000 - 650 BC: 15,000 - 612 BC: null --- # Nineveh, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/nineveh Founded: 6000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.3582, 43.1528 ## Description Nineveh, capital of the Neo-Assyrian Empire at its zenith, was one of the largest and most powerful cities of the ancient world. Located on the eastern bank of the Tigris river opposite modern Mosul, the urban area covered over 7 square kilometers and was protected by massive 12 km fortification walls with 15 gates. Under Sennacherib (705-681 BCE) and his successors the city was rebuilt on a monumental scale, featuring the 'Palace Without Rival', the royal Library of Ashurbanipal with some 30,000 cuneiform tablets, and an unprecedented aqueduct and canal system bringing water from the mountains 50 km away. In 612 BCE Nineveh was sacked and destroyed by a coalition of Medes, Babylonians and Scythians, ending the Assyrian Empire. After the fall the site never recovered as a major city: small habitation persisted on the mounds under Neo-Babylonian, Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian and Sasanian rule, the Nebi Yunus mound was later occupied by a mosque traditionally identified with the tomb of the prophet Jonah, and 19th-century excavations by Botta, Layard, and Rassam rediscovered the Assyrian palaces and the library. The site (Tell Quyunjiq and Nebi Yunus) is today engulfed by the eastern districts of Mosul; it suffered severe damage during the ISIS occupation (2014-2017) and is administered as an Iraqi archaeological zone. ## Historical Rulers - 6000 BC – 5500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Tell Quyunjiq") The Quyunjiq mound was first occupied during the Hassuna phase of the northern Mesopotamian Late Neolithic, with the earliest settlement attested in the deep sounding levels. The site sat on a strategic crossing of the Tigris and developed as a small farming community linked to the wider Hassuna ceramic horizon of Upper Mesopotamia. - 5500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Tell Quyunjiq") Through the Halaf, Ubaid, and Late Chalcolithic periods Nineveh continued to grow on the Quyunjiq mound, with painted ceramics and gradual emergence as a regional cult and trade centre. The Late Chalcolithic Northern Uruk phase saw the appearance of cylinder seals and administrative tokens, foreshadowing the city's later importance in Assyrian history. - 3000 BC – 2334 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Tell Quyunjiq") Through the Early Bronze Age the settlement on the Quyunjiq mound grew into a substantial regional center with an important cult of Ishtar. The site was integrated into the wider Mesopotamian urban network of the third millennium BCE before the Akkadian Empire absorbed northern Mesopotamia. - 2334 BC – 2100 BC: Akkadian Empire (known as "Ninua") Under Sargon and his successors Nineveh was absorbed into the Akkadian imperial system, with the Temple of Ishtar already an important regional cult center. The city functioned as a provincial urban node serving Akkadian administration of upper Mesopotamia. - 2100 BC – 2000 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur (known as "Ninua") Following the Akkadian collapse Nineveh passed within the Neo-Sumerian Ur III sphere of influence, attested in cuneiform records of the late third millennium BCE. The Temple of Ishtar continued as a major regional cult center under the centralized Ur III administration. - 2000 BC – 1450 BC: Old Assyrian Kingdom (known as "Ninua") After the collapse of Ur III, Nineveh was integrated into the Old Assyrian polity centered on Ashur and is mentioned in royal inscriptions of Shamshi-Adad I, who restored the Ishtar temple. The city retained its religious prominence even as political power shifted southward, persisting through the Old Babylonian period as part of the broader Assyrian sphere. - 1450 BC – 1365 BC: Mitanni (known as "Ninua") During the rise of Mitanni in upper Mesopotamia Nineveh fell under Hurrian-Mitannian overlordship. The famous statue of Ishtar of Nineveh was sent by the Mitanni king Tushratta to Egypt in the Amarna correspondence, attesting the city's continued cultic significance. - 1365 BC – 911 BC: Middle Assyrian Empire (known as "Ninua") After Ashur-uballit I broke Mitanni power, Nineveh became a major Middle Assyrian royal city, repeatedly embellished by kings such as Shalmaneser I and Tiglath-Pileser I. It served alongside Ashur and Kar-Tukulti-Ninurta as one of the empire's principal residences. - 911 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Ninua") Under the early Neo-Assyrian kings from Adad-nirari II onward the empire expanded dramatically, with capitals shifting between Ashur, Kalhu, and Dur-Sharrukin. Sennacherib transferred the capital to Nineveh in 705 BCE and rebuilt it on an unprecedented scale with new walls, the 'Palace Without Rival', extensive canal systems, and royal gardens. Under Sennacherib, Esarhaddon, and Ashurbanipal the city became the political, military, and cultural center of the largest empire the Near East had yet seen, housing the royal library and reaching perhaps 100,000-150,000 inhabitants, until it was stormed and destroyed in 612 BCE by a coalition of Medes, Babylonians, and Scythians. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Ninua") After the catastrophic sack of 612 BCE the great Assyrian capital was incorporated into the Neo-Babylonian Empire alongside the rest of the former Assyrian heartland. Nineveh never recovered as a major city, but small habitation persisted on the Quyunjiq and Nebi Yunus mounds under Neo-Babylonian administration. - 539 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Ninua") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE incorporated upper Mesopotamia into the Achaemenid Persian Empire. The Quyunjiq and Nebi Yunus mounds continued in small-scale occupation under Persian administration, with the site retaining its position astride a regionally important Tigris crossing. - 330 BC – 312 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Ninua") Alexander the Great's defeat of Darius III at Gaugamela in 331 BCE was fought on the plain just north of Nineveh, and the area passed under Macedonian control. After Alexander's death the region was contested in the Wars of the Diadochi until the Seleucids consolidated authority over Mesopotamia. - 312 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Ninua") Under the Seleucid kings Mesopotamia was integrated into the Hellenistic world, and Greek-period settlement is attested on the Nineveh mounds alongside the older indigenous occupation. The Seleucids lost the region to the Parthians under Mithridates I in 141 BCE. - 141 BC – 224 AD: Parthian Empire (known as "Ninua") Under the Parthian Arsacid dynasty upper Mesopotamia remained a Parthian-Roman frontier zone, with the Nineveh mounds occupied at a modest scale alongside the more important city of Hatra to the west. Parthian-period material culture is attested in the late levels of the Quyunjiq mound. - 224 AD – 636 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Ninua") After Ardashir I's overthrow of the Parthians, upper Mesopotamia became part of the Sasanian Empire and the Nineveh region was integrated into the Sasanian province of Asoristan. Scattered Sasanian-era occupation is attested on the mounds, and the Battle of Nineveh in 627 CE saw the Byzantine emperor Heraclius defeat the Sasanians on the plain adjacent to the ancient city. - 636 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Nebi Yunus") After the Arab conquest of Mesopotamia in 636 the area passed under Rashidun caliphal rule, with the opposite west bank of the Tigris developing as the new city of Mosul. A continuous Islamic settlement began to develop on the Nebi Yunus mound around a mosque traditionally identified with the tomb of the prophet Jonah (Yunus). - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Nebi Yunus") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, the Nebi Yunus mound continued as an Islamic quarter of the growing city of Mosul on the opposite bank of the Tigris. The Jonah shrine on the mound developed as a major regional pilgrimage site. - 750 AD – 905 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Nebi Yunus") Under the Abbasid Caliphate based at Baghdad, the Mosul region grew rapidly as a major urban and religious center, and the Nebi Yunus mound was integrated as a contiguous Islamic quarter administered from Mosul. Abbasid central authority weakened over the 9th century as the Hamdanid family established autonomous rule in the region. - 905 AD – 990 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Nebi Yunus") The Hamdanid dynasty took control of Mosul and its region from autonomous Abbasid governors, ruling as a Shi'a Arab power that contested the upper Mesopotamian sphere with the Byzantine Empire to the west. The Nebi Yunus shrine continued as a major regional pilgrimage site under Hamdanid patronage. - 990 AD – 1096 AD: Uqaylid Emirate (known as "Nebi Yunus") After the collapse of Hamdanid power the Banu Uqayl Arab tribal dynasty took control of Mosul and the Jazira, ruling as a Sunni Arab emirate under nominal Abbasid suzerainty. The Nebi Yunus quarter on the eastern Tigris bank continued as a modest religious settlement throughout the Uqaylid century. - 1096 AD – 1127 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Nebi Yunus") The Great Seljuk Empire absorbed the Uqaylid emirate around 1096 and governed Mosul through Turkish atabegs until the Zengid consolidation under Imad al-Din Zengi. The Nebi Yunus quarter continued as a modest religious settlement on the eastern bank. - 1127 AD – 1233 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Nebi Yunus") Imad al-Din Zengi was appointed atabeg of Mosul in 1127 and founded the Zengid dynasty that united Mosul, Aleppo, and much of the Jazira as a major Sunni state opposing the Crusader presence in Syria. The Nebi Yunus shrine remained the principal religious site of the ancient Nineveh footprint throughout the Zengid period. - 1233 AD – 1258 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Nebi Yunus") After Badr al-Din Lu'lu' ended the last Zengid line in Mosul in 1233 the region passed under Ayyubid suzerainty until Hulagu Khan's Mongol invasion of 1258. The Nebi Yunus quarter remained a major regional pilgrimage shrine throughout this short transitional period. - 1258 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Nebi Yunus") Following Hulagu Khan's sack of Baghdad in 1258, upper Mesopotamia was incorporated into the Mongol Ilkhanate based in Iran. The Nebi Yunus shrine continued as a regional pilgrimage site under the Ilkhans, who were initially shamanist and Buddhist before Ghazan's conversion to Islam in 1295. - 1335 AD – 1401 AD: Jalayirid Sultanate (known as "Nebi Yunus") After the dissolution of the Ilkhanate in 1335 the Mosul region passed to the Jalayirid Sultanate based at Baghdad and Tabriz. The Nebi Yunus quarter continued as a modest religious settlement on the eastern Tigris bank under Jalayirid administration until Timur's invasion. - 1401 AD – 1415 AD: Timurid Empire (known as "Nebi Yunus") After Timur's devastating Mesopotamian campaigns the Mosul region passed briefly under Timurid authority in the early 15th century. Timurid control was thin and short-lived, ending with the rise of the Kara Koyunlu Turkmen confederation. - 1415 AD – 1468 AD: Kara Koyunlu (known as "Nebi Yunus") The Kara Koyunlu Turkmen confederation displaced Timurid authority from upper Mesopotamia in 1415 and held the Mosul region through the rest of the 15th century. The Nebi Yunus quarter continued as a modest religious and commercial settlement under their loose rule. - 1468 AD – 1508 AD: Aq Qoyunlu (known as "Nebi Yunus") Uzun Hasan's Aq Qoyunlu Turkmen confederation took control of upper Mesopotamia from the Kara Koyunlu in 1468 and ruled the Mosul region until the Safavid conquest in the early 16th century. The Nebi Yunus shrine continued as the principal religious site of the eastern Mosul mounds. - 1508 AD – 1535 AD: Safavid Iran (known as "Nebi Yunus") Shah Ismail I's conquest brought Mosul into the new Safavid Empire of Iran for a brief period in the early 16th century. Ottoman expansion under Suleiman the Magnificent ended Safavid control in 1535. - 1535 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire Under Ottoman rule the area of ancient Nineveh on the east bank of the Tigris was administered as part of the Mosul Eyalet and later Vilayet, with the Nebi Yunus mosque continuing as a major regional pilgrimage shrine. Botta, Layard, and Rassam's 1840s-1850s excavations on the Quyunjiq mound rediscovered the Assyrian palaces and the royal library and transformed European understanding of the ancient Near East. - 1918 AD – 1932 AD: British Mandate of Iraq British forces took Mosul in late 1918 at the end of the First World War, and the area was administered under the League of Nations Mandate of Mesopotamia until the independence of the Kingdom of Iraq in 1932. The ancient Nineveh mounds remained occupied by the eastern districts of Mosul. - 1932 AD – 1958 AD: Kingdom of Iraq Under the independent Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq, modern Mosul expanded rapidly across the Tigris and engulfed the ancient Nineveh footprint as its eastern districts. The ancient mounds were partially preserved as archaeological reserves while the city grew around them, until the 1958 revolution ended the monarchy. - 1958 AD – present: Republic of Iraq Under the successive Iraqi republics after the 1958 revolution, modern Mosul continued to expand over the ancient Nineveh zone. The Nebi Yunus mosque was destroyed and the Quyunjiq mound damaged during ISIS occupation in 2014-2017, after which Iraqi reconstruction and archaeological campaigns began rehabilitating both the inhabited eastern Mosul and the underlying ancient zones. ## Landmarks - Temple of Ishtar (built 3000 BC) Ancient temple dedicated to the goddess Ishtar (Inanna), rebuilt multiple times throughout Nineveh's history. Archaeological evidence shows over twelve successive rebuilding phases, indicating its continuous importance as a regional cult center across more than three millennia. - Kuyunjik Mound (built 3000 BC) One of two major mounds (along with Nebi Yunus) that comprise ancient Nineveh, rising about 20 meters above the plain. It was the site of most major excavations that uncovered the royal palaces and remains the focus of ongoing archaeological work. - Nebi Yunus Mound (built 800 BC) Contains an arsenal built by Esarhaddon and possibly additional royal buildings on the southern mound. The mound was later occupied by the Mosque of the Prophet Jonah and remained the principal religious focus of the ancient Nineveh footprint through the Islamic period. - Palace of Sennacherib (built 704 BC) Known to the Assyrians as the 'Palace Without Rival', this enormous complex covered over 8 hectares and contained at least 80 rooms decorated with stone reliefs depicting military campaigns, construction projects, and hunting scenes. It served as Sennacherib's principal royal residence after the transfer of the capital to Nineveh in 705 BCE. - City Walls and Gates (built 703 BC) Sennacherib's massive fortification project included a 12-kilometer wall circuit with 15 gates, each named for an Assyrian deity. The walls were up to 25 meters thick at the base and as high as 20 meters, surrounded by a 50-meter wide moat. - Sennacherib's Aqueduct System (built 690 BC) An extensive system of canals, dams, and aqueducts that brought water from the mountains 50 km away to irrigate the gardens and supply the city. The system included the first known use of an aqueduct with an inverted siphon principle, anticipating Roman hydraulic engineering by centuries. - Library of Ashurbanipal (built 647 BC) Established by King Ashurbanipal, who was unusually literate for a ruler of his time, the library contained over 30,000 clay tablet documents covering history, medicine, science, poetry, and religious texts including the Epic of Gilgamesh. Its rediscovery in the 19th century transformed European understanding of ancient Mesopotamian literature and religion. - North Palace of Ashurbanipal (built 645 BC) Built by Ashurbanipal to replace his grandfather's palace, this structure is famous for its lion hunt reliefs, considered masterpieces of Assyrian art. The surviving panels are now housed in the British Museum. - Mosque and Tomb of the Prophet Jonah (built 1359 AD) The medieval mosque atop the Nebi Yunus mound, traditionally identified as the tomb of the Prophet Jonah (Yunus in Islamic tradition). The shrine held religious significance across Sunni, Shi'a, Christian and Jewish communities for centuries before its complete destruction by ISIS in July 2014, with reconstruction underway since 2017. ## Population History - 6000 BC: 2,000 - 2000 BC: 5,000 - 1000 BC: 30,000 - 800 BC: 75,000 - 700 BC: 100,000 - 650 BC: 120,000 - 612 BC: 2,000 - 1 AD: 3,000 - 636 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 15,000 - 1900 AD: 50,000 - 2020 AD: 500,000 --- # Seleucia, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/seleucia Founded: 305 BC Ended: 900 AD Coordinates: 33.0944, 44.5236 ## Description Seleucia on the Tigris was one of the great metropolises of the ancient world, founded by Seleucus I Nicator around 305 BCE on the west bank of the Tigris about 30 km southeast of modern Baghdad. As the eastern capital of the Seleucid Empire and the principal Greek city of Mesopotamia, Seleucia grew through the Hellenistic period into one of the largest cities of antiquity, with Pliny the Elder describing it as having 600,000 inhabitants at its height. After Mithridates I of Parthia captured the city in 141 BCE, Seleucia retained Greek institutions as an autonomous polis under Arsacid suzerainty, even as the new Parthian winter capital of Ctesiphon rose on the opposite east bank. Roman armies sacked the city repeatedly through the imperial period — under Trajan in 116, devastatingly under Avidius Cassius for Lucius Verus in 165 (an event traditionally associated with the outbreak of the Antonine Plague), and again under Septimius Severus in 197 — leaving Seleucia gravely diminished by the early third century. After Ardashir I overthrew the Parthians in 224 CE, the Sasanian founder built the new city of Veh-Ardashir on the site of Seleucia, which became the western half of the Sasanian capital complex later called al-Mada'in ('the Cities') and incorporating Ctesiphon across the river. The Arab conquest of 637 took al-Mada'in intact, but the founding of the garrison cities of Kufa and Basra and finally of Baghdad by Caliph al-Mansur in 762 drained off the metropolitan population, and the site was effectively abandoned by the early tenth century. Italian archaeological excavations at Tell Umar from 1927 to 1989 recovered the Hellenistic theater, the great archive of more than 30,000 clay sealings, and substantial residential quarters that established Seleucia's urban plan as a major Hellenistic foundation in the heart of the older Mesopotamian world. ## Historical Rulers - 305 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire Founded by Seleucus I Nicator around 305 BCE on the west bank of the Tigris as the principal eastern capital of his newly established Seleucid Empire, populated by Greek and Macedonian settlers and by the resettled inhabitants of the older Babylonian capital. After the foundation of Antioch on the Orontes as the western capital in the 240s BCE, Seleucia continued as the second city and the principal Greek metropolis of Mesopotamia, controlling the trade between the Iranian plateau, India, and the Mediterranean. It remained Seleucid until Mithridates I of Parthia captured the city in 141 BCE during the long Seleucid retreat westward. - 141 BC – 224 AD: Parthian Empire After Mithridates I's conquest in 141 BCE, Seleucia retained its Greek polis institutions, council, and bilingual coinage as an autonomous tributary city under loose Arsacid suzerainty, while the Parthian kings made the new winter capital of Ctesiphon on the opposite east bank. The city reached its demographic peak in the 1st century CE, with Pliny the Elder reporting 600,000 inhabitants in his Natural History. Roman emperors sacked the city repeatedly during their Parthian wars — Trajan in 116 CE, Avidius Cassius for Lucius Verus in 165 in an event traditionally associated with the outbreak of the Antonine Plague, and Septimius Severus in 197 — leaving Seleucia gravely diminished by the early 3rd century. - 224 AD – 637 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Veh-Ardashir") After Ardashir I overthrew the last Parthian king Artabanus IV at the Battle of Hormozdgan in 224 CE, the Sasanian founder built a new walled city named Veh-Ardashir ('Good [city of] Ardashir') on the site of Seleucia, which became the western half of the Sasanian capital complex facing Ctesiphon across the Tigris. The city served as a major commercial and Christian patriarchal centre — the East Syrian Catholicos held his seat here from the late 4th century — and was a key node in the metropolitan agglomeration that later medieval Arabic sources called al-Mada'in. The Sasanian capital was again sacked by Roman armies under Carus in 283 and Galerius in 298, and the long Roman-Sasanian war of the early 7th century culminated in the Arab conquest of 637. - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "al-Mada'in") After the Arab Muslim victory at al-Qadisiyyah in 636, the armies of Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas took the Sasanian capital complex of al-Mada'in in 637 CE, including the former Seleucia and Veh-Ardashir on the west bank. The conquerors retained the metropolis briefly as an administrative seat before founding the new garrison town of Kufa on the lower Euphrates in 638, beginning a long demographic drain away from the site. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "al-Mada'in") Under the Umayyads, who moved the caliphal seat to Damascus, the west-bank portion of al-Mada'in continued as a provincial town with East Syrian Christian institutions but lost its remaining political importance. The Sasanian palaces and Hellenistic civic monuments stood largely abandoned, and the metropolitan population progressively drained toward the new garrison cities of Kufa and Basra. - 750 AD – 900 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "al-Mada'in") Under the early Abbasids the west-bank settlement remained an inhabited but steadily shrinking provincial town. The decisive blow came with the founding of Baghdad by Caliph al-Mansur in 762 CE only a short distance upstream on the Tigris, drawing administration, trade and population away, and the ruins served increasingly as a source of brick and stone for the new metropolis. By around 900 CE the site had effectively ceased to function as a city. ## Landmarks - Theater of Seleucia (built 300 BC) A large Hellenistic theater excavated by the Italian mission at Tell Umar in the 1930s, dating to the foundation period of the city and one of the principal Greek civic monuments of Hellenistic Mesopotamia. The theater accommodated several thousand spectators and reflects the determined Greek-Macedonian urban character imposed by Seleucus I in the heart of the older Babylonian heartland. - Tell Umar Heroon (built 250 BC) The principal religious complex of Hellenistic Seleucia identified at the mound of Tell Umar, interpreted by excavators as a heroon-style sanctuary combining Greek and Babylonian cult traditions. The structure incorporated a stepped platform reminiscent of older Mesopotamian ziggurats with Greek architectural elements, embodying the syncretic character of Seleucid royal religion. - Seleucia Archive (built 200 BC) A large public archive building near the agora that yielded more than 30,000 clay sealings (bullae) used to authenticate Seleucid and Parthian-era commercial and administrative documents written on perishable papyrus and parchment. The sealings preserve thousands of impressions of Greek royal and civic seals, providing an unmatched window into the bureaucracy of Hellenistic and early Parthian Mesopotamia. - Walls of Veh-Ardashir (built 230 AD) The massive circular brick walls of the Sasanian city built by Ardashir I on the site of Seleucia from around 230 CE, enclosing the new west-bank quarter of the Sasanian capital. The roughly circular plan anticipated the later round city of Abbasid Baghdad and traces of the circuit still survive on the surface. ## Population History - 305 BC: 10,000 - 250 BC: 60,000 - 141 BC: 100,000 - 1 AD: 200,000 - 100 AD: 300,000 - 165 AD: 150,000 - 224 AD: 80,000 - 400 AD: 120,000 - 600 AD: 150,000 - 637 AD: 100,000 - 762 AD: 30,000 - 900 AD: 3,000 --- # Tell al-Ubaid, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/tell-al-ubaid Founded: 5500 BC Ended: 2300 BC Coordinates: 30.9723, 46.0306 ## Description Tell al-'Ubaid is a small but archaeologically pivotal mound in the Dhi Qar Governorate of southern Iraq, located approximately 7 kilometers west of the ancient city of Ur and 17 kilometers north of Eridu. The site is the type site of the Ubaid period (c. 5500-3800 BCE), the prehistoric culture that laid the foundations of Sumerian civilization across southern Mesopotamia, and lent its name to that defining cultural horizon after Henry Hall's 1919 excavations followed by Leonard Woolley's campaigns in 1923-1924. Most of the mound consists of Ubaid-period strata containing painted ceramics, mud-brick houses, and an extensive cemetery with 94 burials, but its summit preserves a small but exceptionally important Early Dynastic temple dedicated to the mother-goddess Ninhursag, built around 2600 BCE by A'annepada, the son of Mesannepada and second king of the First Dynasty of Ur. The temple is famous for the inscription recording its foundation by A'annepada — one of the earliest dated royal inscriptions — and for its lavish copper-and-bitumen friezes and mosaic columns now in the British Museum, the Iraq Museum, and the University of Pennsylvania Museum. The site was abandoned after the Early Dynastic period, and 2008 surveys documented extensive damage from its use as an Iraqi military command post during the recent conflicts. ## Historical Rulers - 5500 BC – 3800 BC: Ubaid Civilization Tell al-'Ubaid was occupied throughout the Ubaid period as a small village in the southern Mesopotamian alluvial plain, contemporary with the larger neighbouring centres of Eridu and Ur. The community produced the painted greenish pottery that defines the Ubaid sequence, practised irrigated cereal agriculture, and buried its dead in an extensive cemetery on a low hillock immediately south of the settlement. The site lent its name to the Ubaid cultural horizon following its identification as the type site by Henry Hall and Leonard Woolley in the early 20th century. - 3800 BC – 2300 BC: Sumerian City-States Following the end of the Ubaid period the site lay within the rural hinterland of the rising Sumerian centres of Ur and Eridu, with no significant occupation through the Uruk period and most of the Early Dynastic. Around 2600 BCE King A'annepada of the First Dynasty of Ur built a small but richly decorated temple dedicated to the mother-goddess Ninhursag on the highest point of the old Ubaid mound, whose celebrated copper-and-bitumen friezes, mosaic columns, and gold-inlaid bull heads make it one of the finest surviving examples of Sumerian temple decoration. The temple's foundation tablet bearing A'annepada's name is one of the earliest dated royal inscriptions in Mesopotamian history, and the site was abandoned again after the Early Dynastic period. ## Landmarks - Ubaid Cemetery (built 5000 BC) A prehistoric cemetery of 94 burials on a low hillock 60 metres south-southeast of the main mound, mostly dating to the Ubaid period with some Early Dynastic graves. The burials included simple inhumations with painted ceramics, beads, and copper objects, providing one of the earliest substantial cemetery samples for the southern Mesopotamian Ubaid culture and a key reference for the type site's chronology. - Temple of Ninhursag (built 2600 BC) Built by A'annepada, second king of the First Dynasty of Ur (c. 2600 BCE), the small temple dedicated to the mother-goddess Ninhursag sat atop the highest point of the older Ubaid mound. Excavated by Hall and Woolley in 1919-1924, the temple yielded its celebrated copper-and-bitumen friezes depicting milking scenes, mosaic columns, and gold-inlaid bull heads now divided between the British Museum, the Iraq Museum, and the Penn Museum. The temple's foundation tablet, recording its dedication by A'annepada son of Mesannepada, is one of the earliest dated royal inscriptions in Mesopotamian history. ## Population History - 5500 BC: 200 - 4500 BC: 500 - 3800 BC: 300 - 3500 BC: null - 2600 BC: 100 - 2300 BC: null --- # Tell el-Oueili, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/tell-el-oueili Founded: 6500 BC Ended: 3800 BC Coordinates: 31.2431, 45.885 ## Description Tell el-'Oueili is a small prehistoric archaeological mound in the Dhi Qar Governorate of southern Iraq, located approximately 4 kilometers southeast of the later Sumerian city of Larsa. Discovered in 1967 by André Parrot and Robert McC. Adams during a regional survey, the 4-hectare tell preserves the oldest known stratified settlement on the southern Mesopotamian alluvial plain, with occupation beginning in the 7th millennium BCE during what excavators defined as the 'Ubaid 0' phase — a previously unknown horizon predating the classic Ubaid sequence at Eridu. Excavated between 1976 and 1989 by a French mission directed by Jean-Louis Huot, the site revealed mud-brick houses with internal hearths, the earliest known systematically irrigated agricultural fields in southern Iraq, and ceramics spanning the full Ubaid 0 through Ubaid 4 sequence. Tell el-'Oueili is critical for understanding the very origins of Sumerian civilization, demonstrating that the southern alluvium was already settled and producing sophisticated material culture some two millennia before the rise of cities. The site was gradually abandoned around 3800 BCE as the regional centre of gravity shifted to the larger Late Ubaid and emerging Uruk-period towns such as Eridu, Ur, and Uruk. ## Historical Rulers - 6500 BC – 3800 BC: Ubaid Civilization Tell el-'Oueili was occupied continuously through the full Ubaid sequence from c. 6500 to 3800 BCE, beginning with the previously unrecognized 'Ubaid 0' horizon that was first defined at this site. The community subsisted on irrigated cereal agriculture along an early branch of the Euphrates, herded sheep and goats, and produced standardized handmade and later wheel-finished painted ceramics whose stylistic evolution defines the southern Mesopotamian Ubaid sequence. The settlement was abandoned around 3800 BCE as the Late Ubaid transitioned into the Uruk period and the population shifted to larger emerging urban centres on the alluvium. ## Landmarks - Ubaid Mud-Brick Houses (built 6500 BC) Excavations revealed continuous superimposed layers of small rectangular mud-brick houses dating from the Ubaid 0 through Ubaid 4 phases, with internal hearths, plastered floors, and storage pits. The houses provide the earliest direct evidence of permanent village architecture on the southern Mesopotamian alluvial plain and document the gradual elaboration of domestic space across nearly three millennia. - Early Irrigation Field System (built 6000 BC) Soil and pollen analyses around the tell document one of the earliest known systematically irrigated cereal field systems in the world, with traces of small canals carrying Euphrates water to barley and emmer wheat plots. The find pushed back the conventional dating of southern Mesopotamian irrigation agriculture by at least a millennium and underpins the case that the Ubaid alluvial economy laid the foundations for later Sumerian urbanism. ## Population History - 6500 BC: 100 - 5500 BC: 300 - 4500 BC: 500 - 4000 BC: 600 - 3800 BC: null --- # Ur, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/ur Founded: 3800 BC Ended: 500 BC Coordinates: 30.9575, 46.1018 ## Description Ur was one of the earliest and most significant cities of ancient Mesopotamia, thriving as a major Sumerian and later Babylonian center on the lower Euphrates. Famous for the Ziggurat of Ur and as the traditional birthplace of Abraham, the city reached its peak under the Third Dynasty of Ur (Ur III) around 2100 BCE when it served as the capital of a Sumerian empire. Ur declined gradually after the Achaemenid period as the Euphrates shifted course away from the site, and was eventually abandoned by the 4th century BCE. The ruins were rediscovered in the 19th century and systematically excavated by Sir Leonard Woolley between 1922 and 1934, yielding the Royal Cemetery treasures now displayed in major world museums. The site was inscribed as part of the UNESCO 'Ahwar of Southern Iraq' World Heritage property in 2016. ## Historical Rulers - 3800 BC – 3100 BC: Ubaid Civilization (known as "Urim") The earliest settlement at Ur emerged during the late Ubaid period as a small farming and fishing village on the marshy lower Euphrates. Ubaid communities introduced irrigation agriculture, painted pottery traditions, and the temple-centered village layout that would shape later Sumerian urbanism. - 3100 BC – 2334 BC: Sumerian City-States (known as "Urim") Ur grew into one of the major Sumerian city-states alongside Uruk, Eridu, and Lagash, ruled by local lugals and centered on the cult of the moon-god Nanna. The Royal Cemetery, with its elaborate burials of figures such as Queen Puabi, dates to this era and reflects the city's wealth from riverine and Persian Gulf trade. - 2334 BC – 2154 BC: Akkadian Empire (known as "Urim") Sargon of Akkad incorporated Ur into the first multi-city Mesopotamian empire, installing his daughter Enheduanna as En-Priestess of Nanna. Ur retained its religious prestige while losing political independence, and Enheduanna's hymns from this period are among the earliest named authored literature. - 2154 BC – 2112 BC: Gutian Dynasty (known as "Urim") After the collapse of Akkad, southern Mesopotamia entered a period of fragmented rule under Gutian overlordship from the Zagros highlands. Ur retained its temple institutions through this interlude but lost much of its imperial-era importance. - 2112 BC – 2004 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur (known as "Urim") Ur-Nammu founded the Third Dynasty of Ur and made the city the capital of a centralized Sumerian state. This was Ur's political peak: Ur-Nammu and his son Shulgi built the great Ziggurat, promulgated the earliest preserved law code, and ran a bureaucracy documented in tens of thousands of administrative tablets. - 2004 BC – 1763 BC: Isin-Larsa Period (known as "Urim") The Elamite sack of Ur in 2004 BCE ended the Ur III dynasty and captured the last king Ibbi-Sin, an event commemorated in the 'Lamentation over the Destruction of Ur'. The city recovered under the rival dynasties of Isin and Larsa, which restored its temples and trade links but never reclaimed imperial status. - 1763 BC – 1595 BC: Old Babylonian Empire (known as "Urim") Hammurabi of Babylon absorbed Ur when he defeated Rim-Sin of Larsa in 1763 BCE, integrating the city into the Old Babylonian Empire. Ur remained an important religious and commercial center under Babylonian governors, though political power and economic gravity shifted northward toward Babylon. - 1595 BC – 1155 BC: Kassite Dynasty (known as "Urim") Under Kassite rule of Babylonia, Ur continued as a provincial temple city. Kassite kings such as Kurigalzu funded restoration of the Nanna sanctuary and the ziggurat platform, preserving Ur's religious identity even as its political and demographic weight declined. - 1155 BC – 1026 BC: Second Dynasty of Isin (known as "Urim") After the Elamite sack that ended Kassite rule, Ur was incorporated into the native Babylonian Second Dynasty of Isin under kings such as Nebuchadnezzar I. Temple administration continued at reduced scale while Babylonian royal patronage maintained the Nanna sanctuary. - 1026 BC – 911 BC: Post-Kassite Dynasties (known as "Urim") Through the turbulent post-Kassite century of short-lived Sealand, Bazi, and Elamite dynasties, Ur persisted as a sanctuary city under fragmentary southern Mesopotamian authority. Aramaean and Chaldean migrations into the region pressed on the agricultural hinterland until the Neo-Assyrian Empire reasserted southern control. - 911 BC – 626 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Urim") Under successive Neo-Assyrian kings Ur was integrated as a southern provincial city. Assyrian kings recognized the city's ancient sanctity and maintained the temples, but Ur was now a peripheral cult center far from the political heartland in northern Mesopotamia. - 626 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Urim") Under Nabopolassar and especially Nebuchadnezzar II and Nabonidus, Ur experienced a final monumental revival as part of the Neo-Babylonian programme of archaizing temple restoration. Nabonidus rebuilt the ziggurat and the Giparu, reinstalled an En-Priestess of Nanna, and devoted significant attention to reviving the cult of the moon-god. - 539 BC – 500 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Urim") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE brought Ur under Achaemenid Persian rule. The Euphrates was already shifting course away from the city and the religious economy that had sustained it was fading; within a few generations the site was effectively abandoned as habitation drifted toward more viable river channels. ## Landmarks - Royal Cemetery of Ur (built 2600 BC) Excavated by Sir Leonard Woolley in the 1920s and 1930s, the cemetery contained approximately 2,000 burials including 16 'royal tombs' with elaborate grave goods. The famous 'Standard of Ur' and Queen Puabi's headdress were discovered here, providing exceptional evidence for Early Dynastic elite culture. - City Walls (built 2500 BC) Massive mudbrick walls surrounded the city, reinforced during various periods of Ur's history. Archaeological evidence suggests the walls were approximately 8 meters thick and enclosed an area of around 60 hectares at the city's height under the Third Dynasty of Ur. - Ziggurat of Ur (built 2100 BC) Built by King Ur-Nammu and renovated by King Nabonidus, this massive stepped pyramid rose approximately 30 meters high with three levels. The structure was the centerpiece of a larger temple complex dedicated to Nanna, the patron deity of Ur, and is one of the best-preserved ziggurats in Mesopotamia. - Royal Palace of Ur-Nammu (built 2100 BC) Located near the ziggurat complex, this massive palace housed the king and served as the administrative heart of the Ur III Dynasty's empire. The structure featured large courtyards, audience halls, and storage facilities, and the tablet archives recovered here document the centralized bureaucracy of the Neo-Sumerian state. - Giparu (built 2100 BC) This complex served as both residence and temple for the En-Priestess of Nanna, typically a royal daughter appointed to this prestigious position. The building was renovated multiple times, with significant rebuilding under Nabonidus in the Neo-Babylonian period. - E-Nun-Mah (built 2050 BC) Built during the Ur III period, this large complex served as the storage and distribution center for the temple economy. Archaeological evidence shows extensive record-keeping operations within the structure, including the management of agricultural surplus, livestock, and craft production. - E-Dub-Lal-Mah (built 1900 BC) Excavations revealed this Mesopotamian 'school' (é-dub-ba) where scribes learned cuneiform and copied texts. Many mathematical, literary, and administrative tablets were found at this site, providing a unique window into Old Babylonian scribal education. ## Population History - 3800 BC: 1,000 - 2800 BC: 12,000 - 2500 BC: 10,000 - 2400 BC: 10,000 - 2300 BC: 20,000 - 2200 BC: 40,000 - 2100 BC: 100,000 - 2004 BC: 65,000 - 2000 BC: 20,000 - 1900 BC: 10,000 - 500 BC: null --- # Uruk, Iraq URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/iraq/uruk Founded: 4000 BC Ended: 100 AD Coordinates: 31.3242, 45.6372 ## Description Uruk (modern Warka) was one of the world's first major cities and a key center of Sumerian civilization. Located along the Euphrates in southern Mesopotamia, it pioneered cuneiform writing, monumental architecture, organized religion, and centralized administration, and was the largest city on Earth around 2900 BCE when it was encircled by massive walls associated with the legendary Gilgamesh. Uruk's influence spread widely through the 'Uruk Expansion' across the late 4th millennium BCE, and the city produced some of humanity's earliest literature, mathematics, and astronomy. Though political power declined after the Akkadian period, Uruk remained a vital religious and cultural hub for over three millennia, with the Anu Ziggurat and Bit Resh complex monumentally expanded under Seleucid and Parthian rule. The site was finally abandoned in the early centuries CE under Parthian administration as Mesopotamian urban life shifted northward. ## Historical Rulers - 4000 BC – 3500 BC: Ubaid Civilization The earliest urban phase at Uruk saw the gradual coalescence of small Ubaid-era settlements on the Euphrates floodplain into a single walled town. Temple-centered communities organized irrigation, surplus storage, and craft specialization, laying the institutional groundwork for the later Sumerian city. - 3500 BC – 2334 BC: Sumerian City-States Uruk grew explosively into the largest settlement of its time, with monumental temples on the Eanna and Kullaba mounds and a 'Uruk Expansion' of material culture across Syria, Anatolia, and Iran. The Late Uruk and transitional Jemdet Nasr horizon produced the world's earliest proto-cuneiform tablets and large-scale administrative archives, and the Early Dynastic phase saw Uruk ruled by local lugals — including the semi-legendary Gilgamesh of the Sumerian King List — while competing with rival city-states such as Ur, Lagash, and Kish. - 2334 BC – 2154 BC: Akkadian Empire Sargon of Akkad incorporated Uruk into the first territorial empire of Mesopotamia, ending its independence but integrating it into a much wider imperial economy. The city retained its temple institutions while Akkadian governors and royal cult activity coexisted with the older Sumerian establishment. - 2154 BC – 2112 BC: Sumerian City-States After the collapse of Akkad, Uruk re-emerged as an independent city-state under local lugals. Its most famous ruler of this brief revival, Utu-hengal (c. 2120-2112 BCE), led the Sumerian resistance that defeated the last Gutian king Tirigan in battle and ended Gutian overlordship of southern Mesopotamia, before his son-in-law Ur-Nammu inherited the throne and moved the capital to Ur. - 2112 BC – 2004 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur After Ur-Nammu inherited the Sumerian kingship from Utu-hengal of Uruk and founded the Third Dynasty of Ur, Uruk was tied into a tightly bureaucratized centralized state. Under Ur-Nammu and Shulgi the city's temples were renovated as part of a wider Neo-Sumerian religious programme, even as political and demographic weight shifted to the new capital at Ur. - 2004 BC – 1763 BC: Isin-Larsa Period After the Elamite sack of Ur ended the Third Dynasty of Ur, Uruk passed between the rival Amorite kingdoms of Isin and Larsa that contested southern Mesopotamia. The Eanna sanctuary continued under Isin and especially Larsa patronage, and Uruk briefly hosted a local dynasty including Sin-kashid and Anam during the early 19th century BCE before Rim-Sin of Larsa absorbed the city. - 1763 BC – 1595 BC: Old Babylonian Empire Hammurabi of Babylon absorbed Uruk when he defeated Rim-Sin of Larsa in 1763 BCE, integrating the city into the Old Babylonian Empire. Uruk remained an important cult center of Inanna and Anu under Babylonian governors, though political power was now centered in Babylon. - 1595 BC – 1155 BC: Kassite Dynasty Under Kassite kings of Babylon, Uruk continued as a major southern religious center, with temple precincts maintained and rebuilt by royal patronage. The city participated in the Kassite world of literate scribal culture, producing legal, ritual, and literary tablets while its political autonomy remained limited. - 1155 BC – 1026 BC: Second Dynasty of Isin After the Elamite sack ended Kassite rule, Uruk was incorporated into the native Babylonian Second Dynasty of Isin under kings such as Nebuchadnezzar I. Temple administration continued at reduced scale while the Eanna sanctuary retained royal Babylonian patronage. - 1026 BC – 911 BC: Post-Kassite Dynasties Through the turbulent post-Kassite century of short-lived Sealand, Bazi, and Elamite dynasties, Uruk persisted as a major sanctuary city under fragmentary southern Mesopotamian authority. Aramaean and Chaldean migrations into the region pressed on the agricultural hinterland until the Neo-Assyrian Empire reasserted southern control. - 911 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire Under successive Neo-Assyrian kings from Adad-nirari II onward, Uruk was integrated as a southern provincial city of the empire. Sennacherib's destruction of Babylon and the broader Assyrian campaigns in southern Mesopotamia disrupted the region, but Uruk's temple institutions persisted until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire Major temple reconstruction at Eanna and renewed urban investment under Nabopolassar and especially Nebuchadnezzar II restored Uruk to one of the principal religious centers of southern Mesopotamia. The Neo-Babylonian programme of archaizing temple restoration produced extensive cuneiform archives now used to reconstruct the city's late history. - 539 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire After Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE, Uruk became part of the Achaemenid satrapy of Babylonia. The city's temples continued to function and to keep extensive administrative archives, while Persian governors integrated it into the imperial tax and tribute system, and cuneiform scribal culture persisted alongside growing Aramaic administration. - 330 BC – 312 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's defeat of Darius III at Gaugamela in 331 BCE was followed by his peaceful entry into Babylon and the surrender of southern Mesopotamia. Uruk passed nominally to Macedonian control until the Wars of the Diadochi resolved in favor of the Seleucid dynasty. - 312 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire Under the Seleucid kings the Anu Ziggurat and the Bit Resh temple complex were monumentally rebuilt, and Uruk's last cuneiform astronomical and ritual tablets date from this period. The Seleucids ruled Mesopotamia until the Parthian conquest under Mithridates I in 141 BCE. - 141 BC – 100 AD: Parthian Empire Under Parthian Arsacid administration Mesopotamia became a frontier region facing the Roman East, and Uruk continued as a reduced cult and trade settlement. The population gradually drifted to other regional centers and the site was effectively abandoned in the early centuries CE. ## Landmarks - Eanna Temple Complex (built 3800 BC) The Eanna (House of Heaven) complex, dedicated to Inanna (later known as Ishtar), stands among the world's earliest and most influential religious centers, active for nearly 4,000 years. First established around 3800 BCE during the early Uruk period, it expanded to over 9 hectares with at least eighteen construction phases, with the Late Uruk period (3400-3000 BCE) introducing architectural innovations like the Stone Cone Building and the Limestone Temple decorated with colorful clay cone mosaics. Excavations yielded some of humanity's earliest written documents — proto-cuneiform tablets recording the temple's vast economic activities — and remarkable artifacts like the 'Warka Vase', one of the earliest narrative artworks. Eanna functioned not only as a religious hub but as a major economic and political force shaping Uruk's development through the Hellenistic period. - Anu Ziggurat (built 3100 BC) The Anu Ziggurat, dedicated to the sky god Anu, was first built around 3100 BCE and evolved over three millennia. The earliest phase, the White Temple, stood atop a ten-meter-high platform with brilliant whitewashed walls, symbolizing divine presence over Uruk's mud-brick cityscape and setting the model for later Mesopotamian ziggurats. During the Seleucid period (ca. 300 BCE) the ziggurat was massively expanded to about 40 meters tall, incorporating earlier layers within its core, and the surrounding Bit Resh complex included temples, courts, and administrative buildings. The Anu Ziggurat remained active until the city's final decline under Parthian rule. ## Population History - 4000 BC: 3,000 - 3500 BC: 14,000 - 3300 BC: 40,000 - 3000 BC: 40,000 - 2800 BC: 80,000 - 2500 BC: 40,000 - 2400 BC: 30,000 - 2300 BC: 30,000 - 2100 BC: 30,000 - 2000 BC: 30,000 - 1900 BC: 30,000 - 1400 BC: 30,000 - 1360 BC: 25,000 - 1300 BC: 30,000 - 1000 BC: 25,000 - 612 BC: 20,000 - 500 BC: 30,000 - 300 BC: 25,000 - 0 AD: 10,000 - 100 AD: null --- # Megiddo, Israel URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/israel/megiddo Founded: 3500 BC Ended: 350 BC Coordinates: 32.5847, 35.1832 ## Description Tel Megiddo, known in Arabic as Tell el-Mutesellim, commands the narrow pass through the Carmel ridge into the Jezreel Valley and controlled the principal route between the coastal plain and the inland highlands of the ancient Near East. From about 3500 BCE Megiddo grew into one of the foremost Canaanite city-states, mentioned in Egyptian Execration Texts and rendered in cuneiform as Magidda. In 1457 BCE Pharaoh Thutmose III defeated a Canaanite coalition here in the Battle of Megiddo — the earliest battle in human history for which a detailed account survives — and the city passed into the Egyptian Empire. Israelite tradition records its fortification under Solomon in the tenth century BCE per 1 Kings 9:15, though many scholars now attribute the famous six-chambered gate and the so-called Solomon's stables to the ninth-century reign of Ahab of the Kingdom of Israel. The city suffered destructions by Pharaoh Shoshenq around 926 BCE and by Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria in 732 BCE, and in 609 BCE King Josiah of Judah fell at Megiddo to Pharaoh Necho II in a second battle of the same name. After the late Iron Age the site dwindled to a minor Persian-period occupation and was abandoned by about 350 BCE, leaving the tell with 26 superimposed archaeological strata. The Greek transliteration Har Megiddo, meaning Mountain of Megiddo, entered Christian eschatology as Armageddon through Revelation 16:16, fixing the site in Western imagination as the apocalyptic battlefield. In 2005 UNESCO inscribed Megiddo on the World Heritage List together with Hazor and Beersheba under the joint nomination Biblical Tels. ## Historical Rulers - 3500 BC – 1457 BC: Canaanite Civilization From the Early Bronze Age Megiddo emerged as a fortified Canaanite urban centre on the strategic mound overlooking the Jezreel Valley, with monumental temple architecture and substantial mudbrick ramparts. Through the Middle Bronze Age it became one of the most powerful Canaanite city-states in the southern Levant, ringed by massive earthen ramparts and gated fortifications. Egyptian Execration Texts of the Twelfth Dynasty list its ruler among the regional kings whom the pharaohs sought to curse, attesting to the city's prominence on the eve of Egyptian intervention. - 1457 BC – 1150 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt In 1457 BCE Pharaoh Thutmose III defeated a coalition of Canaanite kings led by the ruler of Kadesh at the Battle of Megiddo — the first battle in history for which a detailed campaign account survives, recorded on the walls of the Karnak temple. The city was incorporated into the Egyptian Empire and served for nearly three centuries as a regional administrative centre, attested in the Amarna Letters where its prince Biridiya corresponds with the pharaoh. - 1150 BC – 1010 BC: Canaanite Civilization As Egyptian power receded during the Bronze Age Collapse and the upheavals associated with the Sea Peoples, Megiddo passed back into local Canaanite hands and entered a phase of contraction and rebuilding. The Megiddo VI stratum bears destruction debris and is followed by a smaller, less centralised settlement in continuing Canaanite material tradition that prefigures the Israelite period. - 1010 BC – 930 BC: United Monarchy of Israel Israelite tradition assigns the refortification of Megiddo to King Solomon, who according to 1 Kings 9:15 rebuilt the city alongside Hazor and Gezer as a chariot and administrative base. The associated six-chambered gate and casemate wall belong to this Iron Age IIA horizon, though the precise date within the tenth or early ninth century remains debated among archaeologists. - 930 BC – 732 BC: Kingdom of Israel After the division of the Israelite monarchy, Megiddo became a key fortress of the northern Kingdom of Israel. Pharaoh Shoshenq I — the biblical Shishak — raided the city around 926 BCE and left a victory stele fragment found on the tell, and under King Ahab in the ninth century Megiddo was rebuilt on a grand scale with the great stable complexes, a deep water system, and a royal palace. - 732 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire Tiglath-Pileser III conquered Megiddo in 732 BCE and made it the capital of the Assyrian province of Magiddu, rebuilding the city on an orthogonal Assyrian plan with a governor's residence. In 609 BCE King Josiah of Judah confronted Pharaoh Necho II as the latter marched north to aid the collapsing Assyrian state, and the king of Judah was killed at Megiddo in the second battle to bear the city's name. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire Following the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE the Megiddo region passed under Neo-Babylonian administration. The tell hosted a much-reduced settlement with modest domestic architecture replacing the earlier monumental compounds of the Assyrian provincial capital. - 539 BC – 350 BC: Achaemenid Empire Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE incorporated the southern Levant into the Achaemenid Persian Empire. Megiddo continued as a small Persian-period settlement until habitation on the mound was abandoned by the middle of the fourth century BCE and the centre of regional life shifted to the lower town and to nearby sites in the Jezreel Valley. ## Landmarks - Sacred Compound (built 3000 BC) An Early Bronze Age cultic precinct on the eastern slope of the tell, dominated by a great circular altar of unworked stones some eight to ten metres in diameter and flanked by successive rectangular temples. The compound remained in use across multiple rebuildings and constitutes one of the longest-lived sacred areas in the southern Levant. - Six-Chambered Gate (built 950 BC) A monumental Iron Age IIA city gate with three pairs of guard chambers flanking a central passage, attached to a casemate wall and approached through an outer gatehouse. Long identified with the Solomonic building programme described in 1 Kings 9:15, its precise dating within the tenth or early ninth century BCE remains a central question in biblical archaeology. - Northern Palace (built 900 BC) An Iron Age ashlar palace complex on the northern edge of the tell, built of finely dressed limestone blocks in a hewn-stone tradition that influenced later Phoenician and Israelite royal architecture. The building is associated with the administrative apparatus of the Kingdom of Israel during the ninth century BCE and was destroyed in the Assyrian conquest of 732 BCE. - Royal Stables (built 870 BC) Two large compounds of pillared tripartite buildings, traditionally called Solomon's stables since their excavation by the Chicago Oriental Institute, now most often attributed to the ninth-century reign of Ahab of the Kingdom of Israel. Whether they served as actual horse stables, military storehouses, or marketplaces is still debated, but they remain among the most iconic Iron Age structures in the southern Levant. - Megiddo Water System (built 850 BC) A monumental engineering work consisting of a vertical shaft some 30 metres deep cut through the tell and a horizontal tunnel about 70 metres long driven through bedrock to reach a spring outside the city wall. The system allowed the defenders to draw water from a concealed source during siege and survives largely intact as one of the most impressive Iron Age hydraulic installations in the region. ## Population History - 3500 BC: 1,000 - 2000 BC: 5,000 - 1457 BC: 8,000 - 1010 BC: 5,000 - 930 BC: 7,000 - 732 BC: 3,000 - 350 BC: null --- # Antium, Italy URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/italy/antium Founded: 1000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.4479, 12.6291 ## Description Antium — modern Anzio — is a Tyrrhenian coastal town in Lazio about 57 kilometres south of Rome, occupying a low promontory between two small harbours on the central Italian seaboard. Latial-culture proto-villages emerged on the site from around 1000 BCE, and by the 6th century BCE Antium had grown into the principal stronghold of the Volscian people and a piratical thorn in early Roman expansion. Conquered by Rome in 338 BCE after the Latin War, Antium was refounded as a Roman colony, became a municipium in 317 BCE, and developed into one of the most fashionable seaside resorts of the Roman elite — Cicero, Maecenas, Augustus, Caligula and Nero all owned villas here, and both Caligula and Nero were born in the town. Nero substantially rebuilt the harbour and added a vast 800-metre seafront villa, and the site later yielded the celebrated Apollo Belvedere and Borghese Gladiator sculptures recovered during 18th-century excavations. After the Vandal and Gothic invasions and the long Saracen raids of the 9th century the urban population effectively abandoned Antium for the more defensible nearby town of Nettuno, leaving the site as a depopulated coastal estate of the Papal States. Popes Innocent XII and Clement XI rebuilt the harbour around 1700, and Pope Pius IX formally established the modern municipality of Porto d'Anzio in 1857 — renamed Anzio in 1885. The town developed rapidly as a fashionable seaside resort in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and was the site of the catastrophic Allied amphibious landing of the Battle of Anzio in January–May 1944 during the Second World War. Modern Anzio has approximately 60,000 inhabitants and integrates the visible Roman remains of Nero's villa and harbour into the active urban and tourist fabric. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 338 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Antium") Early Latial-culture proto-villages emerged on the promontory from around 1000 BCE, and by the 6th century BCE the settlement grew into the principal stronghold of the Volscian people. Antium led repeated Volscian wars against Rome through the 5th and 4th centuries BCE as a piratical naval power on the Tyrrhenian coast, until decisive Roman victory at the Battle of Antium in 338 BCE during the Latin War ended Volscian independence. - 338 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After 338 BCE Antium was refounded as a Roman maritime colony and incorporated into the Roman Republic, with the captured Volscian warships' bronze rams (rostra) carried to Rome and mounted on the speaker's platform that took their name. The town became a municipium in 317 BCE and developed through the late Republic into one of the most fashionable elite resort towns of central Italy, with villas owned by Cicero, Maecenas, and Augustus. - 27 BC – 476 AD: Roman Empire Under the Empire Antium reached its peak as an imperial seaside retreat, with the future emperors Caligula (12 CE) and Nero (37 CE) born in the town. Nero established a colony of veterans, rebuilt the harbour, and constructed a vast 800-metre seafront villa complex from which the Apollo Belvedere and Borghese Gladiator sculptures were later recovered. The town gradually declined through the 3rd-century crisis, Vandal and Gothic raids of the 5th century, and the broader collapse of Roman coastal commerce. - 476 AD – 553 AD: Ostrogothic Kingdom Under the Ostrogothic Kingdom Antium continued as a much-reduced coastal community within the broader Gothic administration of Italy from Ravenna. The Gothic Wars of the 530s–550s further damaged the town and its remaining infrastructure. - 553 AD – 750 AD: Byzantine Empire After Belisarius's reconquest of Italy in 553, Antium passed under Byzantine administration as part of the Duchy of Rome within the Exarchate of Ravenna. Saracen pirate raids from the 8th century onwards progressively depopulated the coastal site as inhabitants withdrew to the more defensible inland town of Nettuno. - 750 AD – 1870 AD: Papal States From the end of effective Byzantine rule the site of Antium passed under Papal authority within the Patrimony of Saint Peter, though the urban population had effectively shifted to nearby Nettuno and the ancient port lay near-abandoned for centuries. Popes Innocent XII and Clement XI rebuilt the harbour around 1700, restoring maritime activity on the site. Pope Pius IX formally established the modern municipality of Porto d'Anzio in 1857, renamed Anzio in 1885, ending more than a millennium of demographic discontinuity on the ancient Antium site. - 1870 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Italy (known as "Anzio") After Italian unification Anzio was incorporated into the Kingdom of Italy and developed rapidly as a fashionable Belle Époque seaside resort, served by a new railway from Rome and patronised by the royal family. The town was devastated during the Battle of Anzio in January–May 1944, when Allied amphibious forces landed on the beach and were pinned down by German defenders for four months before the breakout to Rome. - 1946 AD – present: Italian Republic (known as "Anzio") Following the 1946 referendum abolishing the monarchy, Anzio has continued as a coastal commune of the Metropolitan City of Rome with approximately 60,000 inhabitants. The town integrates Nero's villa remains, the ancient harbour ruins, and the Allied military cemetery of the 1944 landing as principal heritage and tourist landmarks alongside its active seaside-resort economy. ## Landmarks - Sanctuary of Fortuna Antias (built 300 BC) The ancient temple complex of the two Fortunae of Antium (Fortunae Antiates), among the most famous oracular sanctuaries of central Italy in the Republican and early Imperial periods. Horace's odes describe the temple's prophetic significance, and the cult statues were transported to Rome under Augustus before the temple complex fell into ruin. - Villa of Nero (built 60 AD) A vast seafront imperial villa complex built by Nero around 60 CE extending some 800 metres along the Antium shore. The villa preserved elaborate marble cladding and statuary, including the celebrated Apollo Belvedere and Borghese Gladiator recovered during 18th-century excavations, and the substantial structural remains are visible today along the modern Anzio seafront. - Roman Harbour of Nero (built 60 AD) The artificial harbour built by Nero around 60 CE on the site of the older Roman colony harbour, with monumental moles, warehouses, and quays serving as the maritime base for the imperial villa and the wider Antium colony. The ruined ancient breakwaters are partially incorporated into the modern Anzio harbour rebuilt by Popes Innocent XII and Clement XI around 1700. - Anzio War Cemetery (built 1945 AD) The Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery established in 1945 holding 1,056 Allied dead from the Battle of Anzio of January–May 1944. The cemetery sits inland from the landing beaches and is one of the principal memorials of the Italian Campaign of the Second World War. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 1 AD: 15,000 - 100 AD: 20,000 - 400 AD: 8,000 - 600 AD: 3,000 - 900 AD: 500 - 1200 AD: 200 - 1700 AD: 800 - 1857 AD: 3,000 - 1900 AD: 8,000 - 1950 AD: 15,000 - 2020 AD: 60,500 --- # Florence, Italy URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/italy/florence Founded: 59 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 43.7696, 11.2558 ## Description Florence, the cradle of the Renaissance, is one of Italy's most historically and culturally significant cities. Known for its influential art, architecture, and political history, it was a major center of trade, finance, and learning throughout the medieval and early modern periods. Home to masterpieces by Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Botticelli, the city continues to attract millions of visitors annually. ## Historical Rulers - 59 BC – 27 AD: Roman Republic (known as "Florentia") Founded as a colony for Roman veterans on the banks of the Arno, Florentia was laid out on the standard Roman castrum grid and served as a regional administrative and commercial node under the late Republic. - 27 AD – 476 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Florentia") Under imperial rule Florentia grew into a prosperous provincial town along the Via Cassia, gaining a forum, amphitheatre and baths as part of the wider urbanization of Roman Tuscia. After the division of the Roman Empire in 395, Florentia remained within the Western half and experienced decline tied to the broader crises of late antiquity, including incursions and population contraction in northern Italy. - 476 AD – 552 AD: Ostrogothic Kingdom (known as "Florentia") Following the fall of the Western Empire, Florentia came under Ostrogothic rule and suffered during the Gothic Wars, with the city being besieged and changing hands between Gothic and Byzantine forces. - 552 AD – 568 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Florentia") After Justinian's reconquest of Italy, Florentia was briefly integrated into the Byzantine exarchate, though the city was diminished and its administrative weight reduced compared to the Roman period. - 568 AD – 774 AD: Kingdom of the Lombards (known as "Florentia") The Lombard invasion incorporated Florentia into the Duchy of Tuscia, where it remained a secondary town overshadowed by Lucca, the regional Lombard capital. - 774 AD – 1197 AD: Carolingian Empire (known as "Florentia") After Charlemagne's conquest of the Lombard kingdom the city was absorbed into Carolingian Tuscany and later into the Margraviate of Tuscany, gradually recovering through the 11th and 12th centuries as commerce along the Arno revived. - 1197 AD – 1532 AD: Republic of Florence (known as "Firenze") Florence emerged as an independent commune and grew into one of Europe's leading banking and textile centers, dominated successively by guild government and the Medici family, and became the principal cradle of the Renaissance in art, science and humanism. - 1532 AD – 1860 AD: Grand Duchy of Tuscany (known as "Firenze") Under the Medici and later Habsburg-Lorraine dukes, Florence served as the capital of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, retaining its cultural prestige while its political and economic weight gradually declined relative to other European capitals. - 1860 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Italy (known as "Firenze") Tuscany was annexed to the new Kingdom of Italy, and Florence briefly served as the national capital between 1865 and 1871 before the role passed to Rome, after which it remained a major cultural and administrative center. - 1946 AD – present: Italian Republic (known as "Firenze") After the post-war referendum abolished the monarchy, Florence has continued as the capital of the Tuscany region within the Italian Republic, functioning as a global heritage and tourism destination centered on its Renaissance core. ## Landmarks - Palazzo Vecchio (built 1299 AD) The town hall of Florence that overlooks the Piazza della Signoria, it has been the seat of Florentine political power for centuries. - Ponte Vecchio (built 1345 AD) Medieval stone bridge noted for having shops built along it, originally occupied by butchers and tanners but now housing luxury jewelers and art dealers. - Basilica of Santa Croce (built 1385 AD) Known as the 'Temple of Italian Glories,' it contains the tombs of Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, and other notable Florentines. - Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (built 1436 AD) The cathedral's dome, designed by Filippo Brunelleschi, was the largest in the world when completed and remains a masterpiece of Renaissance engineering and architecture. - Palazzo Pitti (built 1458 AD) Originally built for the banker Luca Pitti, it later became the chief residence of the ruling families of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and now houses several important museums. - Uffizi Gallery (built 1581 AD) Originally built as offices for Florentine magistrates, the Uffizi now displays works by Botticelli, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, and other masters. - Galleria dell'Accademia (built 1784 AD) Originally a teaching facility, it now houses the original David sculpture by Michelangelo, one of the most recognizable masterpieces of Renaissance art. ## Population History - 59 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 400 AD: 15,000 - 600 AD: 3,000 - 800 AD: 4,000 - 1000 AD: 8,000 - 1198 AD: 15,000 - 1200 AD: 15,000 - 1300 AD: 60,000 - 1347 AD: 55,000 - 1350 AD: 40,000 - 1380 AD: 61,500 - 1400 AD: 61,000 - 1401 AD: 50,000 - 1450 AD: 53,000 - 1470 AD: 54,000 - 1500 AD: 70,000 - 1520 AD: 70,000 - 1550 AD: 59,000 - 1562 AD: 59,216 - 1575 AD: 60,000 - 1600 AD: 65,000 - 1629 AD: 70,000 - 1650 AD: 66,000 - 1688 AD: 66,000 - 1700 AD: 68,000 - 1738 AD: 77,835 - 1750 AD: 74,000 - 1751 AD: 73,951 - 1799 AD: 58,716 - 1800 AD: 61,000 - 1806 AD: 78,093 - 1847 AD: 102,154 - 1850 AD: 107,000 - 1852 AD: 110,714 - 1900 AD: 203,000 - 1950 AD: 384,000 - 1975 AD: 660,000 --- # Herculaneum, Italy URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/italy/herculaneum Founded: 600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.8056, 14.3486 ## Description Herculaneum was a small but exceptionally wealthy Roman seaside town on the Bay of Naples, traditionally said to have been founded by Hercules and built atop earlier Greek, Oscan, and Etruscan settlement layers from around the 7th century BCE; in Greek sources the site appears as Herakleion. After passing through Samnite control it became Roman following Sulla's campaigns of the Social War in 89 BCE and was reorganized as a municipium, attracting senatorial villa owners who built lavish residences along the coast. Smaller than nearby Pompeii — perhaps 5,000 inhabitants against Pompeii's roughly 20,000 — Herculaneum was markedly richer per capita, dense with elite domus, marble cladding, and the great suburban Villa of the Papyri associated with the family of Lucius Calpurnius Piso. On 24-25 August 79 CE (with an alternative October date now debated) the Vesuvian eruption buried the town under roughly 20 meters of superheated pyroclastic surges and flows — far deeper and hotter than Pompeii's ashfall — which carbonized rather than destroyed organic material and so preserved wooden beams and furniture, food, textiles, papyri, and even human DNA in skeletal remains. Some 375 skeletons of refugees were found packed into the boat houses along the ancient shoreline during 1980s-90s excavations. By the high Middle Ages a new village called Resina had grown directly on the consolidated pyroclastic deposit above the buried Roman streetscape, persisting through Norman, Hohenstaufen, Angevin, Aragonese, and Bourbon Kingdom of Naples administrations. The buried town was rediscovered by accident in 1709 by well-diggers under Prince d'Elbeuf, and systematic tunneling began in 1738 under King Charles III of Bourbon, with the Villa of the Papyri and its roughly 1,800 carbonized scrolls of Epicurean philosophy (notably the works of Philodemus) coming to light from the 1750s. Resina was officially renamed Ercolano in 1969 in homage to the ancient city beneath its streets, and the modern municipality of roughly 53,000 inhabitants sits directly above the still mostly-buried Roman town and the open-air Herculaneum Archaeological Park inscribed jointly with Pompeii and Torre Annunziata on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 424 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Herculaneum") The earliest occupation at Herculaneum, on a coastal spur between two streams on the Bay of Naples, dates to about the 7th-6th centuries BCE and reflects a mixed Greek, Oscan, and Etruscan milieu typical of Campania, where Greek colonies such as Cumae and Neapolis interacted with native Italic peoples. Greek tradition attributed the town's foundation to Hercules and referred to it as Herakleion; the original local name is unknown, hence the asterisk on the conventional label. - 424 BC – 89 BC: Samnite League From the late 5th century BCE Herculaneum, like Pompeii and the rest of Campania, fell under the control of the Oscan-speaking Samnites, who descended from the Apennines and absorbed the older coastal communities. The town acquired Samnite-style urban planning and public buildings; Oscan remained the everyday language and inscriptions in Oscan continued into the late Republican period. Herculaneum joined the Italian allies in the Social War against Rome in 91 BCE. - 89 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic In 89 BCE Herculaneum was stormed by the Roman legate Titus Didius acting under Sulla during the closing campaigns of the Social War, and was subsequently reorganized as a Roman municipium with Latin rights. Through the late Republic the town was prized as an elegant retreat by senatorial families on the Bay of Naples, and the great suburban Villa of the Papyri — likely the property of Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, father-in-law of Julius Caesar — took shape in this period, housing the Epicurean philosopher Philodemus of Gadara and his library. - 27 BC – 476 AD: Roman Empire Under Augustus and his successors Herculaneum prospered as a small, fashionable resort town within the Italian core of the empire, with elite domus richly decorated in the Third and Fourth Pompeian Styles, a forum, a theatre, baths, and a College of the Augustales devoted to the imperial cult. The earthquake of 62 CE damaged the town and rebuilding was still in progress when, on 24-25 August 79 CE, Mount Vesuvius erupted, burying Herculaneum under roughly 20 metres of pyroclastic surge and flow material and killing those who remained including the hundreds of refugees later found sheltering in the seafront boat houses. The buried Roman streetscape lay forgotten while the coastal plain above continued under late Roman administration through the final centuries of the Western Empire. - 476 AD – 535 AD: Ostrogothic Kingdom (known as "*Herculaneum") Under Ostrogothic rule of Italy the buried Herculaneum site lay dormant beneath the pyroclastic deposit, with the surrounding Bay of Naples coast administered from Ravenna under Theodoric the Great and his successors. - 535 AD – 1100 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Herculaneum") Belisarius reconquered Italy for the Byzantines in the Gothic War, and the buried Herculaneum site passed into the Byzantine Duchy of Naples. The surface above the buried town gradually reverted to agricultural fields under the long Byzantine-Lombard administration of southern Italy. - 1100 AD – 1266 AD: Kingdom of Sicily (known as "Resina") A small farming and fishing village called Resina grew on the surface above the buried Roman town under the Norman and Hohenstaufen Kingdom of Sicily. The hardened pyroclastic tufo was quarried for local construction, occasionally yielding ancient artefacts whose significance was not yet recognized. - 1266 AD – 1503 AD: Kingdom of Naples (known as "Resina") After the Angevin partition of the Hohenstaufen realm in 1266, Resina continued as a small village in the new mainland Kingdom of Naples under successive Angevin and Aragonese kings. Local awareness of the buried Roman city was preserved in the folk name Ercolano (Herculaneum) for the surrounding district. - 1503 AD – 1707 AD: Spanish Empire (known as "Resina") Under Spanish Habsburg viceregal administration of the Kingdom of Naples, Resina expanded as part of the aristocratic villa belt along the Miglio d'Oro coastal road from Naples to Portici. In 1709 — at the very end of this phase — well-diggers at the Prince d'Elbeuf estate accidentally broke through into the buried Roman theatre. - 1707 AD – 1735 AD: Habsburg Monarchy (known as "Resina") During Austrian Habsburg rule of Naples following the War of the Spanish Succession, the d'Elbeuf tunnel exploration of the buried Herculaneum continued in a piecemeal fashion. Italian Habsburg administration through Vienna lasted barely three decades. - 1735 AD – 1860 AD: Kingdom of Naples (known as "Resina") Under the independent Bourbon Kingdom of Naples from 1735 King Charles III initiated the first systematic tunnelling excavation of the buried city in 1738, recovering frescoes, statues, and the carbonized scrolls of the Villa of the Papyri. The royal collection was housed at the Portici palace and later transferred to the Naples Archaeological Museum. - 1860 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Italy (known as "Resina") Following the Bourbon collapse and the Risorgimento, Resina joined the new Kingdom of Italy in 1861. Under Amedeo Maiuri's directorship the Italian government carried out the first large open-air excavation of Herculaneum from 1927-1958, replacing tunnels with vertical clearing and exposing roughly five hectares of the ancient city beside the modern town. - 1946 AD – present: Italian Republic (known as "Ercolano") Resina was officially renamed Ercolano in 1969 in homage to the ancient city beneath its streets, formalizing the long-popular awareness that the buried Roman town and the modern community shared a single site. The municipality today has roughly 53,000 inhabitants and administers the open-air Herculaneum Archaeological Park, stabilized by the Packard Humanities Institute's Herculaneum Conservation Project since 2001 and inscribed jointly with Pompeii on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. ## Landmarks - Forum (built 50 BC) The civic heart of Herculaneum, laid out in the late Republican period on the standard Roman pattern as a colonnaded public square flanked by administrative and religious buildings. Much of the forum complex remains buried beneath the modern town of Ercolano and is known only from Bourbon-era tunnels and limited modern soundings. - Theatre (built 50 BC) A roofed Roman theatre built in the late 1st century BCE, with seating for an estimated 2,500 spectators. Because it lies entirely under more than 20 meters of consolidated pyroclastic rock beneath modern Ercolano, the theatre has never been opened to the sky; it is still explored, as in the eighteenth century, through Bourbon-era tunnels driven through the volcanic deposit. - Villa of the Papyri (built 40 BC) A vast suburban villa northwest of the town, almost certainly built for Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, the father-in-law of Julius Caesar, and home to the Epicurean philosopher Philodemus of Gadara. The villa preserved a sculpture collection of about 90 bronzes and marbles and, most remarkably, a library of roughly 1,800 carbonized papyrus scrolls — the only intact ancient library to survive from the Greco-Roman world. Since 2023 the Vesuvius Challenge has used X-ray micro-CT scanning and machine learning to virtually unroll and read the previously illegible scrolls. - Boat Houses (built 30 BC) A row of twelve barrel-vaulted chambers cut into the substructure of the seafront terrace, used in normal times to store fishing boats and maritime equipment along the ancient shoreline. During the 79 CE eruption around 375 inhabitants took refuge inside them and were killed instantly by the first pyroclastic surge; their skeletons, excavated from the 1980s onward, are the largest single population sample known from any classical city and have yielded extensive paleo-DNA and isotopic data on the Roman population. - House of the Stags (built 50 AD) A lavish seafront domus of the mid-1st century CE named for two marble sculptural groups of stags being attacked by hunting dogs found in its garden. Its terraced design exploited the cliff above the ancient shoreline, with belvederes overlooking the Bay of Naples, and it preserves elaborate Fourth Style wall paintings and intact wooden architectural elements. - House of the Mosaic Atrium (built 70 AD) An elite residence of the Augustan-Julio-Claudian period rebuilt and redecorated shortly before the eruption, named for the striking black-and-white geometric mosaic that paves its atrium. The house preserves charred wooden roof beams, internal partitions, and a wooden window screen — the kind of organic architectural fittings that survived only because of Herculaneum's deep pyroclastic burial. - College of the Augustales (built 70 AD) The seat of the local Augustales, a college of freedmen dedicated to the imperial cult of the deified Augustus, built on the edge of the forum. Its inner shrine preserves vivid Fourth Style frescoes of Hercules — the city's mythical founder — being received among the gods and other Herculean episodes, linking civic identity, founding myth, and emperor worship. ## Population History - 600 BC: 500 - 400 BC: 2,000 - 89 BC: 3,000 - 50 AD: 5,000 - 79 AD: null - 1100 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 2,000 - 1800 AD: 8,000 - 1900 AD: 20,000 - 1950 AD: 35,000 - 2020 AD: 53,000 --- # Naples, Italy URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/italy/naples Founded: 700 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.8518, 14.2681 ## Description Naples is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the Western world, founded as the Greek colony of Parthenope by settlers from Cumae in the 8th-7th century BCE and refounded around 474 BCE as Neapolis, the New City, which became a leading metropolis of Magna Graecia. After alliance with Rome in 326 BCE and full citizenship in 89 BCE, it flourished as a Roman cultural center where elite Romans including Cicero and Virgil kept villas, and Virgil himself was buried on its outskirts. Following the fall of the Western Empire, Naples became a semi-autonomous Byzantine duchy from the 6th century, was conquered by the Normans in 1137, and rose to capital status under the Angevin and Aragonese kingdoms, then expanded enormously during the Spanish Viceregal era to rank among the largest cities in Europe by the 17th century. As capital of the Bourbon Kingdom of Naples and later the Two Sicilies, the city accumulated palaces, theatres, and arcades before incorporation into the Kingdom of Italy in 1860 following Garibaldi's campaign of the Risorgimento. The city suffered heavy bombing in World War II and was liberated by the popular Four Days of Naples uprising in 1943; today it remains a major Italian port and metropolis in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius, near the buried Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 326 BC: Polis of Neapolis (known as "Parthenope") Greek colonists from nearby Cumae founded the settlement of Parthenope on the islet of Megaride in the 8th-7th century BCE. Around 474 BCE the community was refounded slightly inland as Neapolis, the New City, which grew into a leading polis of Magna Graecia and retained its Greek language and institutions even as Rome rose to dominance in central Italy. - 326 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Neapolis") Neapolis allied with Rome in 326 BCE during the Samnite Wars and was granted full Roman citizenship in 89 BCE, while preserving its Greek character as a center of Hellenic learning. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 476 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Neapolis") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under the Empire it became a fashionable retreat for the Roman elite, with villas of figures such as Cicero and emperors in the Bay of Naples, and the poet Virgil was buried on its outskirts. - 476 AD – 535 AD: Ostrogothic Kingdom (known as "Neapolis") After the deposition of the last western Roman emperor in 476, Naples came under Ostrogothic rule, governed first by Odoacer and then by Theodoric the Great and his successors. The city retained its urban infrastructure and Greek-speaking population during this short Gothic interlude. - 535 AD – 1137 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Neapolis") Belisarius captured Naples for the Byzantine Empire during Justinian's Gothic War in 536, after which the city remained a Byzantine stronghold in southern Italy. From around 661 it operated as the semi-autonomous Duchy of Naples under hereditary dukes, surviving Lombard pressure and Saracen raids while maintaining strong commercial and ecclesiastical ties to Constantinople. - 1137 AD – 1266 AD: Kingdom of Sicily (known as "Napoli") Roger II of Sicily absorbed the Duchy of Naples into the Norman Kingdom of Sicily in 1137, ending its centuries-old autonomy. After the death of William II in 1189 the kingdom passed by marriage to the Hohenstaufen dynasty, under whom Frederick II founded the University of Naples in 1224, the first state-chartered university in Europe. - 1266 AD – 1503 AD: Kingdom of Naples (known as "Napoli") Charles I of Anjou, backed by the papacy, defeated the last Hohenstaufens at Benevento in 1266 and made Naples the capital of his mainland kingdom after losing Sicily in the Vespers of 1282. The Angevin court rebuilt the city as a royal capital, founding Castel Nuovo in 1279 and the great Gothic cathedral, while attracting figures such as Giotto and Boccaccio. Alfonso V of Aragon conquered Naples in 1442, uniting it briefly with Sicily and Sardinia under Aragonese rule, and his successors made the city a centre of Renaissance humanism and rebuilt Castel Nuovo with its famous triumphal arch before the Spanish takeover in 1503. - 1503 AD – 1707 AD: Spanish Empire (known as "Napoli") Following the Italian Wars, Ferdinand II of Aragon incorporated Naples into the Spanish crown in 1503, after which it was governed by Spanish viceroys for two centuries. Massive immigration and royal building programs swelled the city into one of the largest in Europe, reaching roughly 300,000 inhabitants in the early 17th century, despite the upheaval of Masaniello's revolt in 1647 and the plague of 1656. - 1707 AD – 1735 AD: Habsburg Monarchy (known as "Napoli") During the War of the Spanish Succession Austrian forces seized Naples in 1707, and the city was transferred to the Austrian Habsburgs by the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. Vienna ruled through viceroys for nearly three decades, a period of relative stagnation compared to the building boom that followed. - 1735 AD – 1860 AD: Kingdom of Naples (known as "Napoli") Charles of Bourbon, son of Philip V of Spain, captured Naples in 1734 and was recognized as king in 1735, founding an independent Bourbon kingdom that later merged with Sicily into the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies in 1816. The Bourbon era produced the San Carlo opera house in 1737, the royal palaces of Caserta and Capodimonte, and the systematic excavation of Pompeii and Herculaneum, interrupted briefly by the Parthenopean Republic of 1799 and Napoleonic rule from 1806 to 1815. - 1860 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Italy (known as "Napoli") Giuseppe Garibaldi's Expedition of the Thousand entered Naples in September 1860, ending Bourbon rule, and the city was incorporated into the new Kingdom of Italy proclaimed in 1861. Once a royal capital, Naples adjusted to provincial status within unified Italy, expanded along Belle Epoque boulevards, and during World War II endured more than 200 Allied bombing raids before the popular Four Days of Naples uprising of September 1943 expelled the German occupation. - 1946 AD – present: Italian Republic (known as "Napoli") Following the 1946 referendum that abolished the monarchy, Naples became part of the Italian Republic and the regional capital of Campania. Post-war reconstruction, the 1980 Irpinia earthquake, and ongoing restoration of its historic center, inscribed by UNESCO in 1995, have shaped the modern city of roughly 960,000 in a metropolitan area approaching three million, still set against the active volcano of Mount Vesuvius. ## Landmarks - Castel dell'Ovo (built 1140 AD) A seafront fortress built by the Normans on the islet of Megaride, the site of the original Greek settlement of Parthenope. Successive rulers expanded the castle, which takes its name from a legend that the poet Virgil placed a magical egg in its foundations whose breaking would doom the city. - Castel Nuovo (built 1279 AD) A massive five-towered fortress-palace begun by Charles I of Anjou in 1279 to serve as the new royal residence of the Angevin Kingdom of Naples. Alfonso V of Aragon rebuilt it after his conquest of 1442 and added the white marble Triumphal Arch celebrating his entry into the city, an icon of early Italian Renaissance sculpture. - Naples Cathedral (built 1313 AD) The Gothic seat of the Archdiocese of Naples, completed in 1313 under Angevin patronage on the site of earlier early-Christian basilicas. The cathedral is famous for the Chapel of San Gennaro, which houses the relic of the city's patron saint and the recurring liquefaction of his blood, a ritual observed since the Middle Ages. - Royal Palace of Naples (built 1600 AD) Begun in 1600 under the Spanish viceroy on the Piazza del Plebiscito, the Royal Palace served successively as the seat of Spanish viceroys, Bourbon kings, and Italian royalty. Its long facade with niches of the rulers of Naples fronts one of the city's grandest civic spaces. - San Carlo Theatre (built 1737 AD) Commissioned by the Bourbon king Charles VII and inaugurated in 1737, the Teatro di San Carlo is the oldest continuously operating opera house in Europe. Rebuilt after a fire in 1816, it set the standard for 19th-century opera houses across the continent and remains a leading venue of Italian operatic tradition. - Galleria Umberto I (built 1891 AD) A grand iron-and-glass shopping arcade completed in 1891 as part of the post-cholera urban renewal of Naples. Named for King Umberto I, it stands opposite the San Carlo Theatre and remains one of the most ornate Belle Epoque arcades in Italy. ## Population History - 700 BC: 1,000 - 474 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 500 AD: 30,000 - 1000 AD: 30,000 - 1300 AD: 50,000 - 1500 AD: 150,000 - 1600 AD: 280,000 - 1700 AD: 210,000 - 1800 AD: 430,000 - 1900 AD: 563,000 - 1950 AD: 1,010,000 - 2000 AD: 1,010,000 - 2020 AD: 960,000 --- # Ostia Antica, Italy URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/italy/ostia-antica Founded: 620 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.7556, 12.2917 ## Description Ostia Antica is an archaeological zone and inhabited frazione of the comune of Rome, located on the Lazio coast about 25 kilometres southwest of the centre of Rome at the original mouth of the Tiber River. Roman tradition attributed its foundation to King Ancus Marcius around the late 7th century BCE, though the earliest archaeologically attested fortified settlement (castrum) on the site dates to the early 4th century BCE; the city served as Rome's principal commercial port and naval base throughout the Republican and Imperial periods, with a population peaking at perhaps 75,000 in the 2nd century CE under the Antonines. Its monumental fabric — extensive horrea granaries, the Capitolium, the theatre, multi-storey insula apartment blocks, and the unique guild headquarters (scholae) of the Piazzale delle Corporazioni — preserves the most complete Roman urban environment of the Imperial period outside Pompeii and Herculaneum. The harbour silted up and malaria emptied the urban quarters after the 5th century, but settlement on the site never fully ceased; Pope Gregory IV refounded the diminished community as the fortified village of Gregoriopolis around 830 CE in response to Saracen pirate raids, and the borgo around the Tor Boacciana watchtower and the later 15th-century Castello di Giulio II evolved into the modern village of Ostia Antica. The medieval and modern borgo today numbers a few thousand inhabitants directly beside the open archaeological park, which is administered as a parco archeologico under the Italian Ministry of Culture. A separate modern seaside resort of Lido di Ostia developed five kilometres west on the relocated coast and is administered as the Roman municipio of Ostia. ## Historical Rulers - 620 BC – 509 BC: Roman Kingdom (known as "Ostia") Roman tradition attributed the foundation of Ostia to King Ancus Marcius around 620 BCE as Rome's first colony, though archaeology dates the earliest fortified castrum to the early 4th century BCE. The legendary regal foundation made Ostia Rome's gateway to the Tyrrhenian Sea. - 509 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Ostia") Under the Roman Republic Ostia developed as the principal naval base of the Republican fleet during the Punic Wars and the entry point for grain shipments from Sicily, Sardinia, and later North Africa and Egypt that fed the growing capital. The earliest archaeologically attested fortified castrum on the site dates to the early 4th century BCE. - 27 BC – 476 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Ostia") Under Augustus and his Julio-Claudian and Flavian successors Ostia expanded into a major imperial port city, with Claudius initiating and Trajan completing the vast artificial harbour basins of Portus two kilometres to the north. The city reached its urban and demographic peak under Hadrian, the Antonines, and the Severan dynasty with around 75,000 inhabitants in a densely built environment of multi-storey insulae, the monumental Capitolium, theatres, baths, and the Piazzale delle Corporazioni preserving the mosaic emblems of over sixty trading guilds. Its cosmopolitan religious life included synagogues, mithraea, and early Christian house-churches alongside the major civic temples. Through the 3rd-century crisis and the Tetrarchy Ostia gradually contracted as commerce shifted to the newer harbours at Portus and as the Western Empire's economic decline reduced demand. The 5th-century barbarian invasions, malarial epidemics, and the silting of the Tiber mouth accelerated depopulation through the final century of the Western Empire. - 476 AD – 553 AD: Ostrogothic Kingdom (known as "Ostia") After the deposition of the last western emperor in 476, Ostia passed under Ostrogothic rule from Ravenna. Late-antique villas, churches, and a Christian community continued in the reduced urban core during this short Gothic interlude before the Byzantine reconquest. - 553 AD – 830 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Ostia") Under nominal Byzantine and then Papal authority following Justinian's reconquest, Ostia continued at much reduced scale as the seat of a bishopric and a defensive outpost against Lombard incursions. The city's monumental urban fabric was progressively abandoned and quarried for materials, while a small Christian community persisted around the basilica of Saint Augustine and along the reduced waterfront. - 830 AD – 1870 AD: Papal States (known as "Gregoriopolis") In response to a major Saracen pirate raid on the mouth of the Tiber, Pope Gregory IV refounded the diminished community in 830 CE as the fortified village of Gregoriopolis, building walls and watchtowers including the surviving Tor Boacciana. Pope Julius II added the imposing Castello di Giulio II in 1483-1486 as a Tiber-mouth fortress, and the borgo around the castle continued as a small papal village under successive popes until the unification of Italy in 1870. - 1870 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Italy After Italian unification the borgo of Ostia Antica became part of the new Kingdom of Italy and from 1870 onward was the focus of large-scale archaeological excavation under Rodolfo Lanciani, Dante Vaglieri, and Guido Calza, who exposed roughly two-thirds of the buried Roman city. The medieval borgo continued as a small inhabited village alongside the growing archaeological park. - 1946 AD – present: Italian Republic Following the 1946 referendum that abolished the monarchy, Ostia Antica became part of the Italian Republic and was incorporated as a frazione of the comune of Rome (Municipio X). The medieval borgo continues today with a few thousand permanent residents alongside the open archaeological park, while the separate seaside resort of Lido di Ostia developed five kilometres west on the relocated coast. ## Landmarks - Decumanus Maximus and Forum (built 50 BC) The principal east-west thoroughfare of Roman Ostia, leading from the Porta Romana through the city centre to the Porta Marina. The forum at its midpoint preserves the Capitolium (early 2nd century CE), the temple of Roma and Augustus, and the basilica, framing the civic heart of the city. - Theatre of Ostia (built 18 BC) A Roman theatre originally built by Agrippa around 18 BCE and significantly enlarged under Commodus around 196 CE to seat roughly 4,000 spectators. The scaenae frons preserves marble fragments, and the adjoining Piazzale delle Corporazioni preserves the mosaic emblems and inscriptions of more than sixty trading associations active in the imperial port. - Capitolium of Ostia (built 120 AD) A monumental Hadrianic temple to the Capitoline triad dominating the northern side of the forum, completed around 120 CE. The brick podium rises 17 metres above the forum pavement and originally carried a hexastyle Corinthian portico in marble of which fragments remain in situ. - Insula of Diana and Casa di Diana (built 150 AD) A characteristic multi-storey Roman apartment block (insula) of the Antonine period, preserving three full storeys of brick-faced concrete walls with shops on the ground floor and apartments above. The mithraeum installed in the ground-floor courtyard in the late 2nd century preserves the marble relief and inscriptions of the cult of Mithras. - Castello di Giulio II (built 1486 AD) A massive triangular Renaissance fortress designed by Baccio Pontelli and built between 1483 and 1486 by the future Pope Julius II to defend the Tiber mouth against Saracen and Turkish pirate raids. The castle is the centrepiece of the medieval-Renaissance borgo of Ostia Antica and forms the symbolic anchor of the continuously inhabited modern village beside the Roman archaeological park. ## Population History - 620 BC: 1,000 - 200 BC: 8,000 - 1 AD: 30,000 - 150 AD: 75,000 - 400 AD: 30,000 - 700 AD: 2,000 - 1000 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 300 - 1870 AD: 500 - 2020 AD: 3,000 --- # Pompeii, Italy URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/italy/pompeii Founded: 600 BC Ended: 79 AD Coordinates: 40.7494, 14.5006 ## Description Pompeii was a thriving Roman city near modern Naples until it was completely buried by the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. The volcanic ash that destroyed the city also preserved it, creating a remarkable time capsule of Roman life. After its rediscovery in 1748 under Bourbon-era excavations, Pompeii has provided archaeologists with extraordinarily detailed insight into the life of a city during the Roman Empire. The site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997 alongside Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata, and is administered today as the Parco Archeologico di Pompei. With approximately one-third of the city still buried, Pompeii remains one of the most significant and well-preserved archaeological sites in the world, allowing visitors to walk through an ancient Roman city frozen in time. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 343 BC: Iron Age Settlement Pompeii was founded by the Oscans, an Italic people of the Campania region, with significant Etruscan and Greek cultural influence reflecting its position along trade routes between Greek colonies of the Bay of Naples and the inland Italic peoples. The settlement developed at the mouth of the Sarno River as a small but strategically located port. - 343 BC – 80 BC: Samnite League Following the Samnite Wars in the 4th century BCE, Pompeii passed under the control of the Samnite confederation, an Oscan-speaking people of the central Apennines. During this period the city grew substantially, gaining its fortification walls and the urban grid that defined its later Roman layout. After the Social War (91-87 BCE), Pompeii joined the Italic rebellion against Rome. - 80 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Colonia Cornelia Veneria Pompeianorum") After the Social War, the dictator Sulla besieged and subdued Pompeii in 89 BCE, and in 80 BCE the city was refounded as a Roman colony for his veterans under the name Colonia Cornelia Veneria Pompeianorum. Latin replaced Oscan as the public language and the city was integrated into the Roman political and economic system, prospering as a regional center for wine and garum production. - 27 BC – 79 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Colonia Cornelia Veneria Pompeianorum") Under the Principate beginning with Augustus, Pompeii flourished as a prosperous provincial city in the imperial province of Italia. A major earthquake in 62 CE caused widespread damage, and reconstruction was still underway when Mount Vesuvius erupted on 24 August (or possibly October) 79 CE, burying the city under several meters of pumice and ash and killing or displacing its inhabitants. ## Landmarks - Villa of the Mysteries (built 200 BC) Located just outside the city walls, this grand villa combines agricultural production with luxurious living quarters. It is renowned for its remarkable series of frescoes depicting what appears to be an initiation into the Dionysiac Mysteries. The exceptionally well-preserved paintings, with their life-sized figures on a crimson background, provide rare insight into ancient religious practices. - House of the Faun (built 180 BC) Named for a bronze statue of a dancing faun found in the impluvium, this enormous house occupied an entire city block (3,000 square meters). It featured two atria, two peristyles, and exquisite mosaics including the famous Alexander Mosaic. The house demonstrates the wealth and sophistication of Pompeii's elite during the late Republican period. - Forum of Pompeii (built 100 BC) The main public square of Pompeii, surrounded by important buildings including the Temple of Jupiter, the Basilica (law court), and the Macellum (market). This 157 by 38 meter plaza served as the political, religious, and commercial center of the city, exemplifying the standard Roman forum layout that would be replicated throughout the empire. - Amphitheater of Pompeii (built 70 BC) Built around 70 BCE, this is the earliest known permanent Roman amphitheater, predating the Colosseum by nearly 150 years. With a capacity of 20,000 spectators, it could accommodate the entire population of Pompeii. In 59 CE, a notorious riot between Pompeians and visiting Nucerians led Emperor Nero to ban games at the venue for ten years. ## Population History - 600 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 200 BC: 8,000 - 0 AD: 12,000 - 78 AD: 15,000 - 79 AD: null --- # Rome, Italy URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/italy/rome Founded: 753 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.9028, 12.4964 ## Description Rome, Italy's capital, is a sprawling, cosmopolitan city with nearly 3,000 years of globally influential art, architecture and culture on display. Ancient ruins such as the Forum and the Colosseum evoke the power of the former Roman Empire. ## Historical Rulers - 753 BC – 509 BC: Roman Kingdom (known as "Roma") Traditional foundation by Romulus on the Palatine Hill, followed by a line of seven kings of mixed Latin, Sabine, and Etruscan origin. During this period the early city consolidated the surrounding hills, developed religious institutions, and built its first public infrastructure before the monarchy was overthrown. - 509 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Roma") Following the expulsion of the last king, Rome was governed by elected magistrates and the Senate. Through successive wars it grew from a regional Latin power into the dominant Mediterranean state, expanding across Italy, defeating Carthage, and absorbing the Hellenistic east before civil wars ended the Republic. - 27 BC – 476 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Roma") Augustus established a monarchical regime preserving Republican forms, and Rome served as capital of an empire stretching from Britain to Mesopotamia. The city reached its monumental peak in the first two centuries CE before political fragmentation, the division of the empire, and successive sacks reduced its imperial role until the deposition of Romulus Augustulus. - 476 AD – 535 AD: Ostrogothic Kingdom (known as "Roma") After 476 Rome fell under the authority of Odoacer and then Theodoric's Ostrogothic Kingdom, which ruled Italy from Ravenna while preserving much of the Roman administrative and senatorial framework. The city retained its bishop and ceremonial prestige but lost most of its political weight. - 535 AD – 751 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Roma") Justinian's reconquest brought Rome into the Byzantine sphere as part of the Exarchate of Ravenna, though the long Gothic War devastated the city. Subsequent centuries saw demographic collapse, repeated Lombard threats, and growing de facto authority of the popes as imperial control weakened. - 751 AD – 1870 AD: Papal States (known as "Roma") With the end of effective Byzantine rule, Rome became the capital of the Papal States, governed temporally by the popes and supported by Frankish and later European powers. Over more than a millennium it experienced medieval decline, the Avignon papacy and Schism, the Renaissance and Baroque rebuilding, French Revolutionary occupations, and the final loss of temporal power in 1870. - 1870 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Italy (known as "Roma") After Italian troops took the city in 1870, Rome became the capital of the unified Kingdom of Italy. The period saw rapid urban expansion, the creation of new ministerial quarters, the Lateran Treaty with the Vatican in 1929, and the Fascist regime's monumental reshaping of the city before the monarchy was abolished by referendum in 1946. - 1946 AD – present: Italian Republic (known as "Roma") Rome is the capital of the modern Italian Republic, hosting the national government, numerous international institutions, and the independent Vatican City enclave. Postwar reconstruction, mass internal migration, and the growth of service and tourism sectors transformed it into a metropolitan area of several million inhabitants. ## Landmarks - Roman Forum (built 500 BC) The center of Roman public life for centuries, site of triumphal processions, elections, criminal trials, and commercial affairs - Colosseum (built 80 AD) Largest amphitheater ever built, capable of holding 50,000-80,000 spectators - Pantheon (built 126 AD) Architectural marvel with the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome - St. Peter's Basilica (built 1626 AD) Built over the tomb of St. Peter, this Renaissance masterpiece was designed by Bramante, Michelangelo, Maderno, and Bernini - Trevi Fountain (built 1762 AD) Designed by Nicola Salvi, the fountain features Neptune with tritons and seahorses in a dramatic baroque setting ## Population History - 753 BC: 500 - 650 BC: 5,000 - 550 BC: 30,000 - 500 BC: 100,000 - 430 BC: 35,000 - 400 BC: 150,000 - 300 BC: 250,000 - 200 BC: 210,000 - 100 BC: 400,000 - 1 AD: 800,000 - 100 AD: 1,000,000 - 200 AD: 1,200,000 - 300 AD: 1,000,000 - 361 AD: 150,000 - 400 AD: 800,000 - 500 AD: 100,000 - 600 AD: 50,000 - 622 AD: 50,000 - 700 AD: 50,000 - 800 AD: 50,000 - 900 AD: 40,000 - 970 AD: 35,000 - 1000 AD: 35,000 - 1200 AD: 35,000 - 1300 AD: 30,000 - 1377 AD: 17,000 - 1400 AD: 33,000 - 1458 AD: 33,500 - 1500 AD: 38,000 - 1550 AD: 58,000 - 1575 AD: 70,000 - 1600 AD: 102,000 - 1650 AD: 110,000 - 1700 AD: 138,000 - 1750 AD: 146,000 - 1800 AD: 142,000 - 1825 AD: 125,000 - 1850 AD: 158,000 - 1875 AD: 252,000 - 1900 AD: 438,000 - 1925 AD: 758,000 - 1950 AD: 1,900,000 - 1975 AD: 3,300,000 - 2000 AD: 3,700,000 - 2025 AD: 4,300,000 --- # Syracuse, Italy URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/italy/syracuse Founded: 734 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.0755, 15.2866 ## Description Syracuse was founded in 734 BCE by Corinthian Greek colonists on the island of Ortygia on the southeast coast of Sicily and grew into one of the largest and most powerful metropoleis of Magna Graecia and the wider Classical Mediterranean. Under tyrants such as Gelon, Dionysius I, and Hieron II it dominated Sicily, defeated Carthage at Himera in 480 BCE, and famously crushed the Athenian Sicilian Expedition of 415 to 413 BCE. Home of the mathematician Archimedes, Greek Syracuse ended with the Roman sack under Marcellus in 212 BCE, after which it became the capital of the Roman province of Sicilia. The city continued through Byzantine rule — briefly serving as imperial capital under Constans II between 663 and 668 — endured the Arab sack of 878, then passed through Norman conquest in 1086, Hohenstaufen, Aragonese, Spanish, Bourbon, and finally unified Italian rule from 1860. After the catastrophic 1693 Val di Noto earthquake the city was rebuilt in late Sicilian Baroque style around the Ortygia historic core, which together with the Necropolis of Pantalica was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005. ## Historical Rulers - 734 BC – 212 BC: Polis of Syracuse (known as "Syrakousai") Founded in 734 BCE by colonists from Corinth led by the oikist Archias on the island of Ortygia, Syracuse expanded onto the Sicilian mainland and grew into one of the foremost Doric Greek poleis of Magna Graecia. Under the Deinomenid tyranny of Gelon and Hieron I the city defeated Carthage at the Battle of Himera in 480 BCE, after which alternating tyrannical and democratic constitutions governed the polis through the 5th century. In 413 BCE Syracuse decisively destroyed the great Athenian Sicilian Expedition, dealing the Athenian Empire a blow from which it never recovered. Dionysius I from 405 BCE built Syracuse into the largest Greek city of its time with the massive Euryalus fortifications, and after the Corinthian intervention of Timoleon in 344 BCE the city was reorganised under a moderate democracy. Successive rulers Agathocles, Hieron II, and finally Hieronymus alternated Roman alliance with renewed war against Carthage until the Roman siege under Marcellus ended Greek Syracuse in 212 BCE, killing Archimedes during the sack. - 212 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Syracusae") After 212 BCE Syracuse became the seat of the Roman governor of the new province of Sicilia and the largest city on the island, retaining a heavily Greek character. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Syracusae") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Cicero, who prosecuted the corrupt governor Verres in 70 BCE, called it the greatest and most beautiful of all Greek cities. The city remained a major Mediterranean port through the Roman Empire and later became an early Christian center, with extensive catacombs rivaled in size only by those of Rome. - 395 AD – 878 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Syrakousai") After the division of the Roman Empire Syracuse passed to the Eastern Roman, or Byzantine, state, briefly reverting under Ostrogothic and then Vandal influence in the fifth century before being firmly restored by Justinian's reconquest of 535. From 663 to 668 the emperor Constans II made Syracuse the de facto imperial capital, intending to refocus the empire on the central Mediterranean before his assassination there. The city remained the seat of the Byzantine theme of Sicily until the long Aghlabid siege ended in its catastrophic sack in 878. - 878 AD – 909 AD: Aghlabid Dynasty (known as "Saraqusa") After the catastrophic Aghlabid sack of 878 — in which much of the population was killed or enslaved and many monuments destroyed — Syracuse was incorporated into the Muslim emirate of Sicily under the Aghlabid emirs. The city shrank dramatically from its Byzantine importance, and Palermo became the new island capital. - 909 AD – 1086 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Saraqusa") After the Fatimid overthrow of the Aghlabids in 909, Sicily — including Syracuse — passed under Fatimid suzerainty administered through the Kalbid emirs of Palermo. Ortygia remained inhabited as a regional port and agricultural centre within the Arab Sicilian world until the Norman reconquest. - 1086 AD – 1282 AD: Kingdom of Sicily (known as "Siracusa") Norman forces under Roger I de Hauteville captured Syracuse in 1086, integrating it into the emerging Norman Kingdom of Sicily centred on Palermo. The city was reorganised as a Latin Christian bishopric, the former Temple of Athena was re-consecrated as the cathedral, and Norman administration overlaid the Arab and Byzantine fabric of the town. Sicily passed by marriage to the Hohenstaufen dynasty in 1194, and under Frederick II Syracuse received the imposing Castello Maniace at the tip of Ortygia built around 1239. After the fall of the Hohenstaufen the kingdom was held briefly by the Angevin house of Charles I, until Sicilian discontent erupted in the Vespers of 1282. - 1282 AD – 1713 AD: Spanish Empire (known as "Siracusa") After the War of the Sicilian Vespers in 1282 Sicily passed to the Crown of Aragon and then, with the union of Aragon and Castile, to the Spanish Habsburgs, who ruled the island as a viceroyalty for more than four centuries. Syracuse declined as a political center but remained a fortified Spanish port. On 11 January 1693 the Val di Noto earthquake devastated southeast Sicily, leveling much of the city; reconstruction in the following decades shaped Ortygia and the surrounding region in a distinctive late Sicilian Baroque idiom. - 1713 AD – 1860 AD: Kingdom of Sicily (known as "Siracusa") By the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 Sicily was assigned briefly to the House of Savoy, then in 1720 to the Austrian Habsburgs, and from 1735 to the Spanish Bourbons, who united Sicily with Naples as the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Syracuse remained a provincial seat with continued Baroque rebuilding and modest commercial life, occasionally drawn into the upheavals of the Napoleonic wars and nineteenth-century Italian unrest. - 1860 AD – 1946 AD: Kingdom of Italy (known as "Siracusa") Garibaldi's Expedition of the Thousand in 1860 ended Bourbon rule, and Sicily was incorporated into the new Kingdom of Italy proclaimed in 1861. Syracuse became the capital of its own province in unified Italy, expanded onto the mainland beyond Ortygia, developed a modern port and rail links, and suffered Allied bombing and the 1943 Sicilian campaign of the Second World War. - 1946 AD – present: Italian Republic (known as "Siracusa") After the 1946 referendum Syracuse became part of the Italian Republic and the autonomous region of Sicily. The city grew into a regional center of about 120,000 inhabitants, with Ortygia preserved as its historic core. In 2005 UNESCO inscribed Syracuse and the Necropolis of Pantalica as a World Heritage Site, recognizing the continuity of urban life on the same site from Greek antiquity to the present. ## Landmarks - Fountain of Arethusa (built 734 BC) A natural freshwater spring at the southwestern edge of Ortygia that emerges almost beside the sea and supplied the early Greek colony with drinking water. Mythologically identified with the nymph Arethusa who fled from the river god Alpheios beneath the Ionian Sea, it has remained a continuously venerated landmark from prehistoric to modern times. - Temple of Apollo (built 570 BC) Built around 570 BCE on Ortygia, the Temple of Apollo is the oldest known peripteral Doric temple in Sicily and one of the earliest in the Greek world. Its massive monolithic columns, only partly preserved, established the architectural ambition that would mark Syracuse's later monumental program. - Temple of Athena (built 480 BC) Erected on Ortygia after Gelon's victory over Carthage at Himera in 480 BCE, the Doric Temple of Athena dominated the skyline of the island and was famed in antiquity for its gilded shield and lavish dedications. Its colonnade survives encased within the walls of the present Cathedral of Syracuse, making it one of the most striking cases of architectural continuity in the Mediterranean. - Greek Theatre of Syracuse (built 470 BC) Cut into the Temenite hill in the early fifth century BCE and extensively remodeled under Hieron II around 230 BCE, the Greek Theatre is one of the largest of the ancient world, seating roughly 15,000 spectators. It hosted premieres of plays by Aeschylus and remains in use today for an annual festival of classical drama. - Ear of Dionysius (built 400 BC) A 23-meter-high limestone cave in the Latomie del Paradiso quarry, named by Caravaggio in 1608 for its ear-like shape and remarkable acoustics. Tradition holds that the tyrant Dionysius I imprisoned political opponents there and listened to their conversations through the cave's natural amplification. - Cathedral of Syracuse (built 640 AD) Constructed in the seventh century CE on the platform of the ancient Temple of Athena and incorporating its Doric columns into its outer walls, the Cathedral of Syracuse — the Duomo — exemplifies the layered history of Ortygia. Its Baroque facade, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake by Andrea Palma between 1728 and 1753, fronts an interior in which Greek, Byzantine, Norman, and Baroque phases remain visible together. - Castello Maniace (built 1239 AD) Built around 1239 at the southern tip of Ortygia under the emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen, Castello Maniace is a quintessential example of Frederician military architecture, a square plan with corner towers and a monumental Gothic portal. It later served as a Spanish garrison, prison, and is now a museum guarding the entrance to the great harbor. ## Population History - 734 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 30,000 - 415 BC: 250,000 - 212 BC: 150,000 - 1 AD: 50,000 - 400 AD: 30,000 - 700 AD: 20,000 - 878 AD: 15,000 - 1086 AD: 10,000 - 1500 AD: 15,000 - 1700 AD: 17,000 - 1860 AD: 25,000 - 1950 AD: 70,000 - 2020 AD: 120,000 --- # Kyoto, Japan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/japan/kyoto Founded: 711 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 35.0116, 135.7681 ## Description Kyoto served as Japan's imperial capital for over a millennium and remains one of the country's most important cultural and historical cities. It is famous for its temples, shrines, and traditional architecture, blending ancient heritage with modern life. ## Historical Rulers - 711 AD – 1185 AD: Hata Clan Settlement & Heian Period (known as "Heian-kyō") The Yamashiro basin around modern Kyoto was already settled by the immigrant Hata clan in the early 8th century — the Fushimi Inari shrine traces its founding to 711 — when Emperor Kanmu relocated the imperial capital here in 794, naming it Heian-kyō and laying out a court modeled on Tang Chinese urban planning. The Heian era saw the flourishing of aristocratic culture, classical Japanese literature, and Buddhist institutions under the Fujiwara regency. - 1185 AD – 1573 AD: Kamakura Shogunate Political authority shifted to warrior governments based in Kamakura and later back to Kyoto under the Ashikaga shoguns, while the emperor and court remained in the city. Kyoto continued as the cultural and religious heart of Japan, though the Ōnin War (1467–1477) devastated much of the urban fabric. - 1573 AD – 1868 AD: Kamakura Shogunate After Oda Nobunaga ended Ashikaga rule, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and the Tokugawa shoguns oversaw the city's rebuilding and reorganization. Although political power moved to Edo (Tokyo), Kyoto retained its status as the imperial seat and a center of crafts, commerce, and traditional arts. - 1868 AD – present: Empire of Japan — colonial With the Meiji Restoration the emperor moved to Tokyo, and Kyoto was reorganized as a modern prefectural capital. The city industrialized while preserving its historical districts, and after World War II it became a UNESCO-recognized center of Japanese heritage and tourism. ## Landmarks - Fushimi Inari Shrine (built 711 AD) Known for its thousands of vermilion torii gates that create a tunnel-like path up Mount Inari. The shrine is dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice, and attracts millions of visitors annually with its stunning visual spectacle and spiritual significance. - Kinkaku-ji (built 1397 AD) A stunning Zen temple featuring a gold-leaf-covered pavilion set in a meticulously designed Japanese garden. Originally built as a shogun's retirement villa, it was later converted to a temple and is now one of Japan's most recognizable architectural landmarks. ## Population History - 1000 AD: 100,000 - 1600 AD: 250,000 - 2020 AD: 1,460,000 --- # Nara, Japan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/japan/nara Founded: 710 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 34.6851, 135.8048 ## Description Nara is a city in the Kansai region of central Honshū, the capital of Nara Prefecture, located on the eastern fringe of the Nara Basin some 25 kilometres east of Osaka and 35 kilometres south of Kyoto. Founded in 710 CE as Heijō-kyō under Empress Genmei, the city was Japan's first permanent imperial capital and the seat of the Yamato court during the Nara period (710-794), when the consolidated Japanese state adopted a Chinese Tang-model bureaucratic government, codified the first written histories (the Kojiki of 712 and the Nihon Shoki of 720) and the Man'yōshū poetry anthology, and oversaw the official adoption of Buddhism as a state religion. After Emperor Kanmu relocated the capital first to Nagaoka-kyō in 784 and then to Heian-kyō (Kyoto) in 794, the political court left Nara but the city retained its eight great Buddhist temples — Tōdaiji, Kōfukuji, Yakushiji, Daianji, Saidaiji, Hōryūji, Tōshōdaiji, Gangōji — and continued as the religious and ceremonial heart of Japanese Buddhism throughout the subsequent Heian, Kamakura, Muromachi, and Edo periods. The Tōdaiji's Daibutsu (Great Buddha), the world's largest bronze Buddhist statue at 16 metres high, was completed in 752 CE under Emperor Shōmu and remains a focus of pilgrimage and worship. Under modern Japanese administration since the Meiji era Nara has grown into a city of roughly 360,000 inhabitants and a major heritage tourism destination, with eight associated locations inscribed together as the 'Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara' UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998. The Heijō Palace excavation site to the west of the modern centre preserves the original 710-784 imperial precinct and was inscribed alongside the city's temples. ## Historical Rulers - 710 AD – 784 AD: Imperial Japan — Nara period (known as "Heijō-kyō") Empress Genmei moved the imperial capital from Fujiwara-kyō to Heijō-kyō in 710, laying out a new city on a Chinese Tang-model grid plan with the imperial palace at the northern end and broad north-south Suzaku avenue dividing the eastern and western capitals. During the Nara period the consolidated Japanese state codified the first written histories, adopted Buddhism as a state religion, and built the eight great state temples that defined the city. Repeated court factional struggles and Buddhist political interference contributed to Emperor Kanmu's decision to relocate the capital in 784. - 784 AD – 1185 AD: Heian Imperial Court After Emperor Kanmu's relocation of the capital first to Nagaoka-kyō and then to Heian-kyō (Kyoto) in 794, Nara ceased to be the political centre but retained its eight great temples and a large permanent monastic and craft community. The Tōdaiji and Kōfukuji monastic powers (the so-called nanto sōhei warrior monks) intervened repeatedly in Heian-era court politics, and Nara remained the principal religious counterweight to Kyoto's mountain monasteries throughout the period. - 1185 AD – 1603 AD: Kamakura Shogunate Through the Kamakura (1185-1333), Muromachi (1336-1573), and Azuchi-Momoyama (1573-1603) shogunates Nara remained an autonomous monastic city under Kōfukuji and Tōdaiji authority, with the temples acting as effective lords of much of the surrounding Yamato Province. The city's wooden temple architecture suffered repeated fires and was rebuilt at slightly different scales — most famously the Tōdaiji Daibutsu hall was burned in the 1180 Taira raid and rebuilt under Chōgen and Unkei in the Great Buddha style. - 1603 AD – 1868 AD: Tokugawa Shogunate — Edo period Under Tokugawa Ieyasu and his successors Nara was placed under direct shogunate (tenryō) administration as a religious tax-exempt city, with the Nara bugyō (city magistrate) governing affairs alongside the surviving monastic authorities. Edo-period Nara declined economically relative to the new Tokugawa boom cities of Osaka and Edo, but its temples drew steady pilgrimage and the deer of the Kasuga shrine — protected as messengers of the gods — became iconic of the city's landscape. - 1868 AD – 1947 AD: Empire of Japan Following the Meiji Restoration of 1868 Nara was incorporated into the modernised Japanese state as the capital of the newly created Nara Prefecture in 1887. The shinbutsu bunri policies of the early Meiji period broke up some Buddhist-Shinto temple complexes but the major sites — Tōdaiji, Kasuga Taisha, Kōfukuji — were preserved and Nara was developed as a heritage tourism destination served by direct rail links from Osaka and Kyoto from the 1890s onward. - 1947 AD – present: Japan Since the 1947 Constitution Nara has continued as the capital of Nara Prefecture, with a city population of roughly 360,000 in the early 2020s. The Heijō Palace site was the focus of large-scale post-war excavation under the Nara National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, and in 1998 the city's eight temples and the Heijō Palace site were jointly inscribed as the 'Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara' UNESCO World Heritage Site. ## Landmarks - Hōryūji (built 607 AD) A Buddhist temple complex at Ikaruga, twelve kilometres southwest of central Nara, founded by Prince Shōtoku in 607 and substantially rebuilt around 711. The Kondō (main hall), the five-storey pagoda, and the Chūmon central gate of Hōryūji are the oldest surviving wooden buildings in the world and were inscribed as a separate UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993. - Heijō Palace Site (built 710 AD) The 110-hectare imperial palace precinct on the northern edge of ancient Heijō-kyō, comprising the Daigokuden audience hall, the Chōdōin council halls, and the imperial residential quarter. Excavated systematically since the 1950s and partially reconstructed for the 1998 UNESCO inscription, the site preserves the most extensive Nara-period imperial architecture surviving in Japan. - Kōfukuji (built 710 AD) The clan temple of the Fujiwara family, relocated to Nara in 710 at the founding of the new capital. The five-storey pagoda (originally 730, rebuilt 1426) is the second-tallest wooden pagoda in Japan, and the Hokuendō and Tōkondō halls preserve major collections of Nara and Kamakura-period Buddhist sculpture, including masterpieces by Unkei. - Tōdaiji and the Great Buddha (built 752 AD) The great Tōdaiji ('Eastern Great Temple') complex was founded by Emperor Shōmu in 738 and the colossal 16-metre bronze statue of the cosmic Buddha Vairocana — the Daibutsu — was completed and dedicated in 752 CE. The Daibutsu hall (Daibutsuden) is one of the largest wooden buildings in the world, rebuilt at slightly reduced scale after fires in 1180 and 1567. The complex remains the headquarters of the Kegon school of Japanese Buddhism. - Kasuga Taisha (built 768 AD) The principal Shinto shrine of Nara, founded in 768 by the Fujiwara clan as the tutelary shrine of the imperial court at Heijō-kyō. The shrine's vermilion-painted halls in a deer-filled forest, illuminated by thousands of bronze and stone lanterns donated over centuries, are reconstructed every twenty years according to traditional shikinen sengū rites that preserve the original 8th-century design. ## Population History - 710 AD: 80,000 - 760 AD: 150,000 - 800 AD: 50,000 - 1000 AD: 30,000 - 1500 AD: 25,000 - 1800 AD: 25,000 - 1900 AD: 30,000 - 1950 AD: 90,000 - 2020 AD: 360,000 --- # Tokyo, Japan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/japan/tokyo Founded: 1457 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 35.6762, 139.6503 ## Description Tokyo, originally a small fishing village on Edo Bay, became an organized urban settlement in 1457 when the Muromachi-era retainer Ōta Dōkan built Edo Castle on the site. Tokugawa Ieyasu took Edo as his seat in 1590 and made it the de facto political capital of Japan in 1603 when he became Shogun, inaugurating the Edo Period; by the 18th century Edo had grown into one of the world's largest cities, with a population approaching one million, even though the imperial court remained in Kyoto. The Meiji Restoration of 1868 abolished the Tokugawa shogunate, renamed Edo as Tokyo meaning Eastern Capital, and brought the emperor from Kyoto, making the city the formal capital of the new Empire of Japan and the center of rapid Westernization and industrialization. Tokyo was devastated by the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake and again by the American firebombing of March 1945, which killed roughly 100,000 people, and was rebuilt under Allied occupation between 1945 and 1952. Post-war Tokyo became the engine of Japan's economic miracle, hosted the Summer Olympics in 1964 and again in 2020 (held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic), and today anchors the world's largest metropolitan area with roughly 37 million inhabitants. The Asakusa district contains Sensō-ji, a temple complex traditionally founded in 628 or 645 and predating Edo itself, around which the later city grew. ## Historical Rulers - 1457 AD – 1573 AD: Muromachi Shogunate (known as "Edo") Ōta Dōkan, a retainer of the Ōgigayatsu Uesugi clan under the Ashikaga-led Muromachi shogunate, built Edo Castle on a bluff overlooking the marshy mouth of the Sumida River in 1457, formalizing the small fishing village of Edo as a fortified urban settlement. Through the late 15th and 16th centuries the area passed between rival warlords, falling under the control of the Later Hōjō clan based at Odawara during the Sengoku period. - 1573 AD – 1603 AD: Kamakura Shogunate (known as "Edo") After the fall of the Ashikaga shoguns in 1573, Japan was reunified by Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. In 1590 Hideyoshi defeated the Later Hōjō and reassigned their Kantō domain to Tokugawa Ieyasu, who chose modest Edo as his castle base and began the massive land reclamation, canal cutting, and infrastructure works that would transform the town into a capital-scale city. - 1603 AD – 1868 AD: Tokugawa Shogunate (known as "Edo") Tokugawa Ieyasu was appointed Shogun in 1603 and made Edo the seat of the bakufu, opening the Edo Period and a 265-year era of relative peace under the sakoku closed-country policy. The sankin-kōtai system forced regional daimyō to maintain residences in Edo, fueling explosive growth; by the early 18th century Edo had become one of the largest cities in the world, with a population of around one million, even as the imperial court remained in Kyoto. - 1868 AD – 1945 AD: Empire of Japan The Meiji Restoration of 1868 abolished the shogunate, renamed Edo as Tokyo meaning Eastern Capital, and moved the Emperor Meiji from Kyoto into the former Edo Castle, formalizing Tokyo as the capital of the new Empire of Japan. The city was rapidly Westernized with railways, brick buildings, and modern ministries, was leveled by the Great Kantō earthquake of 1923 which killed over 100,000 in the region, and was devastated again by the American firebombing of March 1945, in which a single night of incendiary raids killed roughly 100,000 residents and burned out much of the eastern wards. - 1945 AD – 1952 AD: Allied Occupation of Japan Following Japan's surrender in September 1945, Tokyo became the headquarters of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers under General Douglas MacArthur. The occupation administration directed demilitarization, the drafting of the 1947 postwar constitution, land reform, and the early reconstruction of a city in which large districts had been reduced to ash and the population had collapsed to roughly half its prewar level. - 1952 AD – present: Japan The San Francisco Peace Treaty restored Japanese sovereignty in 1952, and Tokyo became the political and economic center of the postwar state. The city hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics, symbolizing reentry into the international order, drove Japan's high-growth economic miracle, weathered the bursting of the asset bubble after 1990, and hosted the 2020 Summer Olympics, postponed to 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Greater Tokyo today anchors the largest metropolitan area in the world with roughly 37 million inhabitants. ## Landmarks - Yasukuni Shrine (built 1869 AD) A Shinto shrine founded in 1869 by order of Emperor Meiji to commemorate those who died in service of the Empire of Japan, beginning with the Boshin War. Its later enshrinement of Class A war criminals from the Pacific War has made Yasukuni one of the most diplomatically contested religious sites in East Asia. - Imperial Palace (built 1888 AD) The primary residence of the Emperor of Japan, built on the grounds of the former Edo Castle in central Tokyo. The Meiji Palace was completed in 1888 after the emperor's move from Kyoto; destroyed by air raids in 1945, the current main palace buildings were rebuilt and inaugurated in 1968 while retaining the Edo-period stone walls, moats, and gates. - Meiji Shrine (built 1920 AD) A Shinto shrine in the Shibuya forest dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shōken, completed in 1920 eight years after the emperor's death. The original buildings were destroyed in the 1945 air raids and rebuilt in 1958; the surrounding evergreen forest of 100,000 donated trees is one of central Tokyo's largest green spaces. - Imperial Hotel (built 1923 AD) A landmark luxury hotel opposite the Imperial Palace; its second main building, designed by the American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, opened on the day of the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake and famously survived it largely intact. The Wright building was demolished in 1968 and replaced by the current high-rise structure, with the entrance facade preserved at the Meiji-mura open-air museum. - Tokyo Tower (built 1958 AD) A 333-meter lattice communications and observation tower in Minato, completed in 1958 and modeled on the Eiffel Tower. As the tallest structure in Japan from its completion until 2012, it became an enduring symbol of the country's postwar reconstruction and high-growth era. - Sensō-ji (built 1958 AD) A Buddhist temple in Asakusa traditionally founded in 628 or 645, centuries before Edo itself, and Tokyo's oldest temple. The main hall and five-story pagoda were destroyed in the 1945 air raids; the current reinforced-concrete reconstructions were completed in 1958 and the temple remains one of Japan's most visited religious sites. - Tokyo Skytree (built 2012 AD) A 634-meter broadcasting and observation tower in Sumida, completed in 2012 and at the time the tallest tower in the world and second-tallest free-standing structure after the Burj Khalifa. It replaced Tokyo Tower as the primary digital broadcasting transmitter for the Kantō region. ## Population History - 1457 AD: 5,000 - 1603 AD: 150,000 - 1700 AD: 1,000,000 - 1800 AD: 1,100,000 - 1868 AD: 1,000,000 - 1900 AD: 1,500,000 - 1923 AD: 2,300,000 - 1945 AD: 3,500,000 - 1960 AD: 9,700,000 - 1980 AD: 11,620,000 - 2000 AD: 12,100,000 - 2020 AD: 13,960,000 --- # Petra, Jordan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/jordan/petra Founded: 400 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 30.3289, 35.443 ## Description Petra, the rock-cut city of the Nabataeans in southern Jordan, was a major trade and cultural hub of the ancient world. Carved into pink sandstone cliffs and famed for monuments such as Al-Khazneh and Ad Deir, it flourished under Nabataean, Roman, and Byzantine rule as a key node on the incense and spice routes. A devastating earthquake in 363 CE damaged much of the urban fabric, and shifting trade patterns gradually eroded its economic base; by the early medieval period the monumental city had contracted to a small village amid the ruins. Occupation never fully ceased: Crusader-era garrisons used the basin briefly in the 12th century, and from the late medieval period onward the Bedoul Bedouin lived inside the ancient tombs and caves, treating the site as their home. Petra was reintroduced to the wider world by the Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812, and the site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage property in 1985. As part of the conservation effort the Bedoul community was relocated from the ruins to the purpose-built village of Umm Sayhoun just north of the archaeological zone in 1985. The modern town of Wadi Musa, lying roughly three kilometres east of the ruins on the historical edge of the Petra basin, has grown into the administrative, tourism, and residential continuation of Petra; together with Umm Sayhoun and surrounding villages it now houses on the order of thirty thousand people and explicitly identifies itself as the modern continuation of the ancient city. The archaeological core is administered as the Petra Archaeological Park and remains one of Jordan's most significant cultural and tourism landmarks. ## Historical Rulers - 400 BC – 106 AD: Nabataean Kingdom (known as "Raqmu") The Nabataeans, an Arab people who settled the rugged sandstone country of Edom, established Petra (Raqmu) as their capital and the administrative heart of a wealthy caravan kingdom. Controlling the long-distance trade in incense, spices, and bitumen between Arabia, the Levant, and the Mediterranean, they cut elaborate tombs, temples, and water-management systems into the cliffs, turning the basin into a monumental urban centre. - 106 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire In 106 CE the emperor Trajan annexed the Nabataean realm and incorporated Petra into the new province of Arabia Petraea. The city was reorganised along Roman lines with a colonnaded street, baths, and civic buildings, and remained an important regional centre, though trade routes gradually shifted toward Palmyra and the Red Sea ports, slowly diminishing its commercial weight. - 395 AD – 630 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Byzantine rule Petra became the seat of a bishopric, and several of its older structures were converted into churches, including the so-called Petra Church with its preserved mosaic floors and the Byzantine-era papyri. A severe earthquake in 363 CE had already destroyed much of the urban infrastructure, and further seismic events in the sixth century accelerated decline, leaving the city as a much-reduced settlement by the end of the period. - 630 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate Following the Muslim conquest of the Levant, the Petra basin came under Rashidun Caliphate authority. Occupation had already contracted to a small local community amid the ruins as caravan traffic shifted to other corridors. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, the Petra basin remained a remote provincial backwater. The local Christian and Muslim communities persisted at a much-reduced scale around the ruined city. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad, the Petra region was administered as part of Jund Filastin or Jund Dimashq. The site was effectively a sparse pastoral landscape with a small village amid the ruins. - 969 AD – 1100 AD: Fatimid Caliphate The Fatimid Caliphate of Cairo extended its rule over southern Transjordan, holding the Petra region until the First Crusade. The settlement remained at minimal scale as a local community amid the ruins. - 1100 AD – 1188 AD: Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem Following the First Crusade, the Petra region briefly fell within the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Lordship of Oultrejordain. Crusader-era garrisons used the basin's defensible sandstone for fortifications before Saladin's victory at Hattin returned the region to Muslim rule. - 1188 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Wadi Musa") After Saladin's victory at Hattin and the Crusader withdrawal from Transjordan, the Petra basin came under Ayyubid authority based in Cairo and Damascus. A small village clustered around the springs of Wadi Musa east of the ancient centre. - 1260 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Wadi Musa") Under the Mamluk Sultanate the monumental city remained effectively a ruin, but a small village clustered around the springs of Wadi Musa, and pastoral Bedouin tribes used the tombs and caves of the basin as seasonal shelter, maintaining continuous human presence on the site. - 1517 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Wadi Musa") Under Ottoman rule the Petra region was administered as part of the province of Damascus and remained a remote, lightly governed frontier inhabited by Bedouin tribes, especially the Bedoul who lived within the ancient ruins, alongside the agricultural village of Wadi Musa nearby. Johann Ludwig Burckhardt's 1812 visit reintroduced the site to European scholarship and inaugurated a steady stream of Western travellers, but the local community continued to live in and around the ancient city as it had for centuries. - 1918 AD – 1946 AD: Emirate of Transjordan (known as "Wadi Musa") Following the collapse of Ottoman authority and the brief Hashemite Arab administration after the First World War, the Petra region fell within the British Mandate-era Emirate of Transjordan under Emir Abdullah. The Bedoul Bedouin continued to inhabit the ruins while the village of Wadi Musa grew slowly as a local agricultural and administrative centre on the eastern edge of the archaeological basin. - 1946 AD – present: Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (known as "Wadi Musa") Since independence in 1946 Petra has been part of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and has become one of the country's defining cultural and economic assets. The site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1985, and as part of the conservation regime the Bedoul community was resettled from the ruins to the purpose-built village of Umm Sayhoun just north of the archaeological park. The modern town of Wadi Musa, three kilometres east of the ruins, has expanded rapidly around tourism infrastructure and is administered today as the living continuation of the Petra settlement, while the ancient core is managed as the Petra Archaeological Park. ## Landmarks - Al-Khazneh (built 100 BC) Carved into the pink sandstone cliffs, this ornate 40-meter-high façade blends Hellenistic and Nabataean styles. Despite its modern name, it likely served as a royal tomb or ceremonial monument. - Great Temple Complex (built 50 BC) Built using conventional masonry rather than rock-cutting, the Great Temple included a theater, colonnaded streets, and administrative spaces, blending Nabataean and Roman architectural influences. - Ad Deir (built 50 AD) Located atop a mountain and reached by over 800 steps, the Monastery features simpler decoration than the Treasury but grander scale, reflecting the evolution of Petra's monumental style. - Umm Sayhoun Bedoul Village (built 1985 AD) Purpose-built village just north of the Petra archaeological zone, constructed by the Jordanian government to rehouse the Bedoul Bedouin community that had lived inside the ancient tombs and caves of Petra, as part of the UNESCO World Heritage conservation regime. - Petra Visitor Center (built 2000 AD) Main entrance complex on the edge of Wadi Musa marking the gateway to the Petra Archaeological Park, housing ticketing, interpretation, and orientation facilities for the millions of visitors who form the economic backbone of the modern town. ## Population History - 400 BC: 10,000 - 100 BC: 30,000 - 100 AD: 25,000 - 400 AD: 15,000 - 600 AD: 10,000 - 1200 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 200 - 1800 AD: 300 - 1900 AD: 500 - 1950 AD: 2,000 - 1985 AD: 5,000 - 2020 AD: 30,000 --- # Byblos, Lebanon URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/lebanon/byblos Founded: 5000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 34.1165, 35.65 ## Description Byblos (modern Jbeil) stands as one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities, with a history spanning over 7,000 years. Located on the Mediterranean coast of Lebanon, this UNESCO World Heritage site gained its Greek name 'Byblos' because it was through this port that papyrus (biblion) was imported to Greece. The city's Phoenician name, Gebal, yielded the Arabic Jbeil. Rising to prominence around 3000 BCE as a timber exporter, Byblos developed intimate trade relations with Egypt, exchanging Lebanese cedar for papyrus, gold, and other goods. The city's scribes adapted Egyptian hieroglyphics to create the Phoenician alphabet the world's first true alphabet which became the foundation for Greek, Latin, and most Western writing systems. Byblos's strategic harbor made it a crucial maritime trading hub, with its wealth reflected in royal tombs containing precious Egyptian artifacts. Though often dominated by larger empires, including Egyptian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greek, and Roman, Byblos maintained its cultural and commercial significance throughout antiquity. The city's archaeological layers reveal successive civilizations, from Neolithic settlements to Persian-era fortifications to Roman columns, while its modern harbor continues the maritime traditions established millennia ago. ## Historical Rulers - 5000 BC – 3200 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "Gubla") Earliest occupation at the site began as a small Chalcolithic fishing and farming village along the Lebanese coast, with circular and apsidal stone houses, fishhooks, and ground-stone tools attesting to a sedentary Mediterranean community. Burials beneath house floors and the gradual emergence of communal storage reflect an increasingly organized pre-state society. - 3200 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Gubla") During the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age the settlement grew into a fortified town with rectangular stone houses, ramparts, and rich burial assemblages. By the third millennium BCE Gubla had emerged as a major Levantine urban center and the principal partner of Old Kingdom Egypt, exporting cedar and resin in exchange for gold and luxury goods. - 2000 BC – 1550 BC: Middle Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Kupna") During the Middle Bronze Age the city, known in Egyptian records as Kupna (Kebny), remained the foremost Levantine port and a key partner of Middle Kingdom Egypt. Royal-name seals of pharaohs and Egyptian-style burials of local kings illustrate Byblos's status as a semi-autonomous vassal under heavy Egyptian cultural and political influence. - 1550 BC – 1200 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Kupna") Under the Egyptian New Kingdom, Byblos served as a vassal port-kingdom whose local rulers corresponded with the pharaonic court, most famously in the fourteenth-century BCE Amarna Letters of King Rib-Hadda. Cedar shipments, Egyptian-style royal burials, and the development of a proto-alphabetic script defined the city's Late Bronze Age role within the Egyptian sphere. - 1200 BC – 868 BC: Phoenician Kingdom (known as "Gebal") After the Late Bronze Age collapse, Gebal continued as an independent Phoenician city-kingdom ruled by its own dynasty of kings, including Ahiram, whose famous sarcophagus inscription offers one of the earliest examples of the linear Phoenician alphabet. The city retained its role as a maritime trading hub specializing in cedar, purple dye, and craft goods circulated across the Mediterranean. - 868 BC – 609 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Gebal") From the campaigns of Ashurnasirpal II and Shalmaneser III in the ninth century BCE, Gebal was incorporated into the Neo-Assyrian Empire as a tribute-paying vassal. Local Phoenician kings continued to rule under Assyrian oversight, supplying ships, timber, and sailors to imperial expeditions while the city retained its distinct cultural identity. - 609 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Gebal") After the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE and the Assyrian collapse, Gebal passed to the rising Neo-Babylonian Empire and acknowledged the suzerainty of Nebuchadnezzar II and his successors. As one of the Phoenician vassal cities along the Levantine coast, it contributed timber and naval resources to Babylonian campaigns, including the long siege of neighbouring Tyre. - 539 BC – 332 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Gebal") Following Cyrus the Great's defeat of Babylon in 539 BCE, Gebal was absorbed into the Achaemenid Persian Empire as part of the Fifth Satrapy of Eber-Nari. Phoenician cities including Gebal supplied warships and crews for Persian campaigns against the Greeks while local kings ruled under Persian oversight. - 332 BC – 200 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom Following Alexander the Great's conquest of the Levant in 332 BCE and the subsequent Wars of the Diadochi, the city was incorporated into the emerging Ptolemaic Kingdom by the early third century BCE. Under Ptolemaic rule it was Hellenized and became widely known by its Greek name Byblos, derived from its central role in the papyrus trade, acquiring Greek-style civic institutions, coinage, and architecture while preserving its Phoenician religious traditions. - 200 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire In 200 BCE Antiochus III defeated the Ptolemaic forces at the Battle of Panium and annexed Coele-Syria, including Byblos, to the Seleucid Empire. The city continued as a Hellenized Phoenician port under Seleucid administration, integrated into the broader Greco-Syrian world until Pompey's reorganization of the East. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Annexed by Pompey into the Roman province of Syria in 64 BCE, Byblos prospered as a regional town adorned with a colonnaded street, theatre, temples, and baths. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Christianity took root in the early centuries CE and the city became an episcopal seat, though its commercial role was gradually overshadowed by larger neighbors such as Tyre and Beirut. - 395 AD – 636 AD: Byzantine Empire With the division of the Roman Empire in 395 CE Byblos passed to the eastern (Byzantine) administration. It remained a modest Christian bishopric within the province of Phoenicia Maritima until the Arab conquest of the Levant in the seventh century. - 636 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Jbeil") After the Arab conquest of the Levant in 636 CE the city, now called Jbeil, came under the Rashidun Caliphate. Local Christian and Phoenician-descended populations continued to inhabit the town while Arab garrisons and administration were established along the coast. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Jbeil") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Jbeil functioned as a minor coastal town within Jund Dimashq. Mediterranean trade networks gradually reoriented around new Arab-Islamic ports such as Acre and Tyre, leaving Jbeil as a quiet provincial harbour. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Jbeil") With the Abbasid revolution of 750 CE and the shift of caliphal power to Baghdad, Jbeil entered a long provincial period under Abbasid administration. Loose central control alternated with the regional autonomies of Tulunid and Ikhshidid governors based in Egypt. - 969 AD – 1104 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Jbeil") From 969 CE the Egypt-based Shia Fatimid Caliphate extended its rule over the Levantine coast, including Jbeil. The town remained a small but functioning port within the Fatimid commercial network until the arrival of the First Crusade at the end of the eleventh century. - 1104 AD – 1289 AD: County of Tripoli (known as "Gibelet") In 1104 the Crusader fleet, with Genoese support, captured Jbeil; the town was refortified as Gibelet and granted as a hereditary lordship to the Embriaco family of Genoa under the Crusader County of Tripoli. For nearly two centuries Gibelet served as a minor Crusader port and seignory, its castle rebuilt with reused Roman columns above ancient foundations. - 1289 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Jbeil") With the fall of the County of Tripoli to Sultan Qalawun in 1289, Jbeil was incorporated into the Mamluk Sultanate and administered from Tripoli. Reduced to a modest coastal town, it lost its earlier strategic importance while retaining its medieval fortifications. - 1516 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Jbeil") After Selim I's defeat of the Mamluks at Marj Dabiq in 1516, Jbeil was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire and administered as part of the Vilayet of Beirut. For four centuries it remained a quiet fishing and small-trade town largely overshadowed by Beirut to the south. - 1918 AD – 1943 AD: French Mandate of Lebanon (known as "Jbeil") With the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after the First World War, Jbeil came under the French Mandate for Greater Lebanon established by the League of Nations in 1920. Modern infrastructure, the archaeological excavations of Maurice Dunand, and a revived European interest in the site began transforming Byblos into a heritage destination. - 1943 AD – present: Republic of Lebanon Lebanon gained independence in 1943, and Byblos became part of the new republic as a coastal town in the Mount Lebanon Governorate. Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1984, today Jbeil/Byblos is a small modern city north of Beirut known for its archaeological site, Crusader castle, and active modern harbour. ## Landmarks - Temple of the Obelisks (built 1900 BC) The Temple of the Obelisks at Byblos offers rare insights into Bronze Age worship in the Levant. Built around 1900–1600 BCE, it housed over 1,300 small limestone obelisks and thousands of votive offerings, including figurines, jewelry, and weapons. Many artifacts, like the famous 'Smiting God' bronze figure, reflect Byblos’s wealth and trade connections. Likely dedicated to an early form of Reshef or Baal, the temple’s sacred objects were carefully buried when abandoned, preserving one of the richest Bronze Age religious assemblages in the region. - Crusader Castle of Gibelet (built 1104 AD) Built by Crusaders after 1104 CE atop ancient foundations, the Castle of Gibelet exemplifies medieval fortification fused with earlier layers, with Roman columns ingeniously repurposed within its 5-metre-thick walls. Originally constructed by the Genoese Embriaco family, it changed hands between Crusaders, Saladin and the Mamluks. Later Mamluk and Ottoman modifications added further complexity to the structure. The castle's ramparts today offer sweeping views of the Mediterranean and the ancient Byblos site beside it. ## Population History - 5000 BC: 500 - 4000 BC: 1,500 - 3200 BC: 3,000 - 3000 BC: 5,000 - 2000 BC: 15,000 - 1000 BC: 20,000 - 500 BC: 15,000 - 0 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 3,000 - 1900 AD: 4,000 - 2000 AD: 40,000 --- # Sidon, Lebanon URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/lebanon/sidon Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 33.5571, 35.3725 ## Description Sidon was one of the three great Phoenician city-states alongside Tyre and Byblos, a leading Mediterranean port renowned for Tyrian purple dye, glassmaking, and far-reaching maritime trade. Destroyed by the Neo-Assyrian king Esarhaddon in 677 BCE and rebuilt as a tributary, it later contributed its fleet to the Achaemenid Persian invasions of Greece before submitting to Alexander the Great in 332 BCE. Under Roman, Byzantine, Arab Caliphal, Crusader, Mamluk, and Ottoman rule the city remained a significant coastal center, marked by its iconic Crusader-era Sea Castle. Today it survives as Saida, a major coastal city of the Lebanese Republic with a population of roughly 165,000. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1800 BC: Canaanite Civilization Earliest settlement on the site dates to around the fourth millennium BCE, growing into a fortified Canaanite coastal town in the Bronze Age. The name Sidon appears in Egyptian Amarna correspondence and other Near Eastern records of the period. - 1800 BC – 677 BC: Phoenician Kingdom Sidon emerged as one of the foremost Phoenician city-states, rivaling Tyre and Byblos. Its merchants pioneered long-distance Mediterranean trade and the city became famous for purple dye production and glassmaking. - 677 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire King Esarhaddon razed Sidon in 677 BCE after a revolt, deporting its population and rebuilding it as an Assyrian tributary. The city was reorganized under Assyrian provincial administration until the empire's collapse. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire After Assyria's fall Sidon passed under Neo-Babylonian control, continuing as a Phoenician port subject to Babylonian overlordship through the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II and his successors. - 539 BC – 332 BC: Achaemenid Empire Under Persian rule Sidon became the chief Phoenician naval base, supplying ships and crews for the Persian invasions of Greece. A revolt against Artaxerxes III in the mid-fourth century BCE was brutally suppressed. - 332 BC – 200 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom Sidon surrendered to Alexander the Great in 332 BCE and, after the Wars of the Diadochi, was incorporated into the emerging Ptolemaic Kingdom which held Coele-Syria through the third century BCE. Greek civic institutions and coinage were introduced while the city retained its Phoenician maritime identity and continued to mint Sidonian shekels. - 200 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire In 200 BCE Antiochus III defeated the Ptolemaic forces at the Battle of Panium and annexed Coele-Syria, including Sidon, to the Seleucid Empire. The city continued as a leading Phoenician port under Seleucid administration, integrated into the broader Greco-Syrian world until Pompey's reorganization of the East. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Pompey's eastern settlement of 64 BCE brought Sidon into the Roman province of Syria. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city flourished as a provincial port with a noted glassmaking industry and was visited, according to tradition, by both Jesus and the apostle Paul. - 395 AD – 637 AD: Byzantine Empire Sidon remained a coastal city of the Eastern Roman, or Byzantine, world after the division of the empire in 395. It continued as a Christian see and trading port until the Arab conquest of the Levant. - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Saida") Captured during the Muslim conquest of the Levant around 637, Sidon was renamed Saida and incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate. The Christian population largely remained while Arab garrisons established themselves along the coast. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Saida") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Saida functioned as a coastal port within Jund Dimashq and served as a naval station in the early Arab Mediterranean fleet established by Muawiya I. - 750 AD – 970 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Saida") With the Abbasid revolution of 750 CE and the transfer of caliphal power to Baghdad, Saida entered a long provincial period under Abbasid administration, alternating with the regional autonomies of the Tulunid and Ikhshidid governors based in Egypt. - 970 AD – 1110 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Saida") From the late tenth century the Egypt-based Shia Fatimid Caliphate extended its rule over the Levantine coast, including Saida. The town served as a Fatimid port and naval station until its capture by the Crusaders in 1110. - 1110 AD – 1187 AD: Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem (known as "Saida") King Baldwin I of Jerusalem captured Saida in 1110, and the city became the seat of the Lordship of Sidon within the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. It changed hands repeatedly during the wars of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. - 1187 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Saida") Saladin retook Saida in 1187 after the Battle of Hattin and the city was incorporated into the Ayyubid Sultanate. Over the following decades it changed hands several times between Crusaders and Ayyubid forces during the wars of the thirteenth century. - 1260 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Saida") After the Mamluks defeated the Mongols at Ain Jalut in 1260 and inherited the Ayyubid Levant, Saida passed definitively under Mamluk rule following the final fall of the Crusader coast in 1291. The Mamluks dismantled coastal fortifications to discourage further Crusader landings. - 1517 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Saida") Following the Ottoman conquest of the Mamluk Sultanate in 1516 to 1517, Saida became part of the Ottoman Empire and later capital of its own eyalet. Under the Druze emir Fakhr al-Din II the city enjoyed a commercial revival in the seventeenth century. - 1918 AD – 1943 AD: French Mandate of Lebanon (known as "Saida") After the Ottoman defeat in the First World War, Saida came under French Mandate administration as part of the territory that became the State of Greater Lebanon. The city remained a regional coastal center during the mandate period. - 1943 AD – present: Republic of Lebanon (known as "Saida") Saida, the modern name for Sidon, is today a major coastal city of the Lebanese Republic and capital of the South Governorate. It remains an important Mediterranean port with a population of roughly 165,000. ## Landmarks - Eshmoun Temple (built 700 BC) A major Phoenician sanctuary dedicated to the healing god Eshmoun, located in the hills just outside Sidon. The complex was expanded across the Persian and Hellenistic periods and remains one of the best-preserved Phoenician religious sites. - Sidon Necropolis (built 500 BC) A royal Phoenician burial ground that produced some of the most celebrated ancient sarcophagi, including the Alexander Sarcophagus. Most finds are now held in the Istanbul Archaeology Museums, the Beirut National Museum, and the Louvre. - Sidon Sea Castle (built 1228 AD) A Crusader fortress built on a small offshore islet connected to the mainland by a stone causeway. The castle remains the most recognizable monument of the city and was partly rebuilt under the Mamluks after Crusader withdrawal. - Castle of Saint Louis (built 1253 AD) A land fortress built atop an earlier acropolis mound during the stay of King Louis IX of France in the Holy Land. It controlled the southern approach to the medieval town. - Great Mosque of Sidon (built 1291 AD) Converted from a former Crusader church of Saint John shortly after the Mamluk reconquest, the Great Mosque has remained the principal congregational mosque of the old city since the late thirteenth century. - Khan al-Franj (built 1610 AD) An Ottoman-era caravanserai built under the patronage of the Druze emir Fakhr al-Din II to host French and other European merchants trading in silk and other goods. It survives as a major monument of seventeenth-century Saida. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 1,000 - 1500 BC: 10,000 - 800 BC: 30,000 - 332 BC: 30,000 - 100 AD: 20,000 - 600 AD: 15,000 - 1100 AD: 10,000 - 1300 AD: 10,000 - 1900 AD: 10,000 - 2020 AD: 165,000 --- # Tyre, Lebanon URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/lebanon/tyre Founded: 2750 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 33.2703, 35.207 ## Description Tyre (Sour in Arabic) was a majestic Phoenician island-city renowned throughout antiquity for its virtually impregnable defenses and commercial dominance. Originally consisting of a mainland settlement and a fortified island approximately 800 meters offshore, Tyre's unique geography provided exceptional defensive advantages that allowed it to resist numerous sieges, most famously withstanding Nebuchadnezzar II's 13-year blockade. The city gained legendary status for its innovation in creating the coveted 'Tyrian purple' dye, extracted from murex shellfish, which became so synonymous with royalty and wealth that the color itself was named after the city. As a preeminent maritime power, Tyre established a network of colonies including Carthage and controlled trade routes throughout the Mediterranean. The city's defenses were finally overcome in 332 BCE when Alexander the Great constructed an unprecedented causeway connecting the island to the mainland a feat of military engineering that permanently altered Tyre's geography. Though declining from its Phoenician heights, Tyre remained an important center under Roman rule, when it was famed for its silks, glass, and continued dye production. The city holds special significance in religious history, featuring in biblical narratives and later becoming an important early Christian center with a cathedral that rivaled Constantinople's Hagia Sophia. Today, this UNESCO World Heritage site preserves impressive ruins spanning its Phoenician, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Crusader periods, and remains continuously inhabited as the modern Lebanese city of Sour. ## Historical Rulers - 2750 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Şurru") Tyre emerged in the third millennium BCE as a coastal settlement on the eastern Mediterranean shore, with both a mainland component and a fortified offshore island. During this early period the community developed its maritime orientation and trade connections that would later define its identity, while remaining within the broader Canaanite cultural sphere of the Levantine coast. - 2000 BC – 1500 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Şurru") Through the Middle Bronze Age the dual mainland and island settlement consolidated its role as a regional Canaanite port, expanding fortifications on the offshore island and developing the maritime trading networks that would later define Phoenician Tyre. The community participated in the broader MBA Canaanite urban culture of the Levantine coast that included neighbouring Sidon and Byblos. - 1500 BC – 1200 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Şurru") During the Late Bronze Age, Tyre operated within the network of Canaanite city-states under Egyptian New Kingdom hegemony, as attested in the fourteenth-century BCE Amarna correspondence. The city consolidated its dual mainland and island layout, expanded its maritime commerce as a semi-autonomous Egyptian vassal port, and laid the foundations for the Phoenician trading culture that would flourish after the Bronze Age collapse. - 1200 BC – 732 BC: Phoenician Kingdom (known as "Şūr") Following the Late Bronze Age collapse, Tyre rose as a leading Phoenician kingdom under its own dynasty of kings, most famously Hiram I, who allied with Israel and developed long-distance Mediterranean trade. The city pioneered the production of Tyrian purple dye, established colonies including Carthage and Gades, and became a preeminent maritime commercial power across the Mediterranean basin. - 732 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Şūr") Tyre fell under Neo-Assyrian suzerainty as Tiglath-Pileser III and later kings extended Assyrian power over the Levantine coast, exacting tribute while leaving the island core largely autonomous. The city repeatedly resisted full subjugation thanks to its offshore defenses, paying tribute when pressed but retaining its commercial networks until the Assyrian empire collapsed. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Şūr") After the fall of Assyria, Tyre famously withstood a thirteen-year siege by Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon (c. 586-573 BCE), after which it accepted nominal Neo-Babylonian overlordship while the island fortress remained intact. The city continued under Babylonian suzerainty as a tribute-paying Phoenician port until the Achaemenid conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 332 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Şūr") Under Achaemenid Persian rule Tyre retained its local kings and supplied ships and sailors to the imperial fleet, becoming one of the chief naval bases of the Fifth Satrapy of Eber-Nari. The city contributed prominently to Persian campaigns against the Greeks and continued as a major Phoenician trading center until Alexander's arrival in 332 BCE. - 332 BC – 200 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Tyros") In 332 BCE Alexander the Great took Tyre after a seven-month siege by constructing a causeway from the mainland to the island, an engineering feat that permanently altered the city's geography. After the Wars of the Diadochi the city was incorporated into the Ptolemaic Kingdom, which held Coele-Syria through the third century BCE, and Tyre gradually rebuilt as a Hellenized commercial port under Ptolemaic administration. - 200 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Tyros") In 200 BCE Antiochus III defeated the Ptolemaic forces at the Battle of Panium and annexed Coele-Syria, including Tyre, to the Seleucid Empire. The city flourished as a Hellenized port within the Greco-Syrian world, minting its own civic coinage and resuming its role as a major Mediterranean trading center until Pompey's reorganization of the East in 64 BCE. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Tyrus") Pompey's annexation of the Seleucid east in 64 BCE brought Tyre into the Roman province of Syria, where it prospered as a major commercial city renowned for purple dye, silk, and glass production. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Tyrus") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city received the status of a Roman colony and was monumentalized with a hippodrome, aqueducts, colonnaded streets, and a vast necropolis, becoming one of the leading urban centers of the Roman Levant. - 395 AD – 640 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Tyrus") Under the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, Tyre remained an important metropolitan see and commercial port, hosting an early Christian cathedral celebrated in late antique sources. The city continued its trade in dye and luxury textiles and served as a regional administrative center until the Arab conquests of the seventh century. - 640 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Şūr") After the Arab conquest of the Levant around 640 CE, Tyre was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate. The city retained its commercial role as a Mediterranean port while Arab garrisons and administration were established on the coast. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Şūr") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Tyre served as one of the principal naval bases of the early Arab Mediterranean fleet developed by Muawiya I. Its shipyards equipped the campaigns against Byzantine Cyprus and Rhodes while the city remained a key dye-producing port within Jund Dimashq. - 750 AD – 970 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Şūr") With the Abbasid revolution of 750 CE and the shift of caliphal power to Baghdad, Tyre entered a long provincial period under Abbasid administration, alternating with the regional autonomies of Tulunid and Ikhshidid governors based in Egypt. The city retained its commercial life as a Mediterranean port while major political activity drifted east. - 970 AD – 1124 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Şūr") From the late tenth century the Egypt-based Shia Fatimid Caliphate extended its rule over the Levantine coast, including Tyre. The fortified island city remained one of the most important Fatimid Mediterranean ports, holding out against the early Crusader advance until its fall to a combined Crusader-Venetian siege in 1124. - 1124 AD – 1291 AD: Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem (known as "Sur") Tyre was captured in 1124 by a Crusader-Venetian force after a long siege and became one of the most important cities of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. After Saladin's defeat of the Crusader army at Hattin in 1187 Conrad of Montferrat successfully defended the island fortress against the Ayyubid siege of Tyre, and the city served as the de facto Crusader capital until its final fall to the Mamluks in 1291. - 1291 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Sur") After the fall of Acre in 1291, Sultan al-Ashraf Khalil's forces took the abandoned Tyre and the Mamluks systematically dismantled its fortifications to prevent any future Crusader landings. The city was largely depopulated, surviving only as a small fishing village within the Mamluk Sultanate's administration of the Syrian coast. - 1516 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Sur") After Selim I's defeat of the Mamluks at Marj Dabiq in 1516, Tyre passed to the Ottoman Empire and was administered as part of the Vilayet of Sidon and later Beirut. For four centuries it remained a minor coastal town, gradually recovering as the broader region revived under Druze emirs and later Ottoman provincial administration. - 1918 AD – 1943 AD: French Mandate of Lebanon (known as "Sur") With the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after the First World War, Tyre came under the French Mandate for Greater Lebanon established by the League of Nations in 1920. Early modern archaeological excavations and the development of road infrastructure reconnected the long-shrunken town to the wider region. - 1943 AD – present: Republic of Lebanon (known as "Sur") Lebanon gained independence in 1943, and Tyre became part of the new republic as a coastal city in the South Governorate. The modern town of Sour now overlies the ancient site, with the archaeological remains inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1984. ## Landmarks - Temple of Melqart (built 1200 BC) The Temple of Melqart was the religious heart of ancient Tyre, dedicated to the city's patron god later identified with Heracles, with classical sources like Herodotus tracing its origins to around 2750 BCE. Archaeology confirms continuous worship since the Bronze Age, and the temple — famed for its legendary gold and emerald pillars — was rebuilt across Phoenician, Hellenistic and Roman periods. Beyond religion the sanctuary served as a treasury, archive, diplomatic hub and asylum that symbolised Tyre's power and identity. Its influence spread across the Mediterranean through Tyrian colonies like Carthage and Gades. - Al-Bass Archaeological Site (built 100 AD) The Al-Bass Archaeological Complex in Tyre houses one of the best-preserved Roman hippodromes, showcasing Roman entertainment and urban planning at its peak. Built in the 2nd century CE, the 480-meter-long arena could seat 20,000 spectators, featuring a spina, sophisticated drainage, and stone starting gates. A triumphal arch marks the entrance to the nearby necropolis, where hundreds of richly decorated sarcophagi remain. Together, the hippodrome, processional way, and burial grounds offer a rare glimpse into the integrated civic life of Roman Tyre. ## Population History - 2750 BC: 2,000 - 2000 BC: 5,000 - 1500 BC: 10,000 - 1200 BC: 20,000 - 1000 BC: 30,000 - 500 BC: 40,000 - 300 BC: 20,000 - 0 AD: 25,000 - 200 AD: 50,000 - 400 AD: 30,000 - 600 AD: 20,000 - 1000 AD: 15,000 - 1200 AD: 20,000 - 1300 AD: 1,000 - 1700 AD: 3,000 - 1900 AD: 6,000 - 2000 AD: 60,000 --- # Cyrene, Libya URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/libya/cyrene Founded: 631 BC Ended: 700 AD Coordinates: 32.8253, 21.8617 ## Description Cyrene was an ancient Greek and later Roman city in eastern Libya, founded in 631 BCE by colonists from the Aegean island of Thera under the leadership of Battus, reportedly in response to a pronouncement of the Delphic oracle. As the capital of the surrounding region of Cyrenaica and the most important of the five cities of the Libyan Pentapolis, it grew into one of the principal centres of the Hellenistic world and a major hub of Greek learning — the birthplace of the philosopher Aristippus, founder of the Cyrenaic school of hedonist ethics, and of the polymath Eratosthenes, who later at Alexandria calculated the circumference of the Earth. The Battiad founder dynasty ruled until around 440 BCE, when it was overthrown in favour of an oligarchic republic. After Alexander the Great's death the city passed under Ptolemaic Egypt in 322 BCE; it was bequeathed to Rome in 96 BCE and became part of a Roman province from 75 BCE. The 115 CE Kitos War, a violent Jewish revolt across the eastern Mediterranean, devastated the urban fabric and decimated its population, and a catastrophic earthquake in 365 CE inflicted further ruin from which the city never fully recovered. Partial reoccupation under the Vandals and Byzantines was followed by the Arab conquest of Cyrenaica in 643 CE, after which the site was gradually abandoned by around 700 CE. The ruins, dominated by the great Sanctuary of Apollo, the Temple of Zeus, and the Greek theatre, were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982 and placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2016 amid preservation concerns arising from the Libyan civil war. ## Historical Rulers - 631 BC – 322 BC: Polis of Cyrene Founded in 631 BCE by Greek colonists from the island of Thera under the leadership of the oikist Battus, reportedly following a Delphic oracle commanding the Therans to colonise Libya. The settlement on the fertile inland plateau grew rapidly into the principal Greek polis of North Africa, ruled by the Battiad dynasty of eight kings — Battus I through Battus IV, alternating with rulers named Arcesilaus — and founded the satellite cities of Barca, Euesperides, Apollonia, and Taucheira to form the Pentapolis. Around 440 BCE the last Battiad king Arcesilaus IV was overthrown in a civic revolution and the polis thereafter governed itself as an oligarchic republic. The republican period saw the foundation of the Cyrenaic philosophical school under Aristippus and prosperous engagement with Persia, Sparta, and Carthage before the polis submitted peacefully to Alexander the Great in 331 BCE. - 322 BC – 96 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom After Alexander's death in 323 BCE, Cyrene and the rest of Cyrenaica were annexed by Ptolemy I Soter and integrated into the Ptolemaic Kingdom centred on Alexandria. The city retained its Greek civic institutions and continued to flourish as the leading urban centre of the Pentapolis; this is the period of Eratosthenes, who was born at Cyrene around 276 BCE before moving to Alexandria as head of the Library. Ptolemaic rule was occasionally interrupted by local revolts and dynastic disputes, and on the death of Ptolemy Apion in 96 BCE the territory was bequeathed to Rome. - 96 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Bequeathed to Rome in 96 BCE under the testament of Ptolemy Apion, Cyrenaica was at first left as a loose collection of self-governing Greek cities under nominal Roman oversight. Direct Roman administration was imposed in 75-74 BCE when the area was organized as a province, later combined with Crete to form Creta et Cyrenaica. The late republican decades saw piratical disruption of the coast, Pompeian-Caesarian civil-war manoeuvres, and the gradual incorporation of Cyrene's elite into the Roman political and tax system. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan reorganization of 27 BCE the province of Creta et Cyrenaica was confirmed as a senatorial province, and Cyrene entered a long period of prosperity attested by extensive monumentalization — the Trajanic Baths, an expanded forum, a remodelled theatre, and refurbishment of the Sanctuary of Apollo. The catastrophic Kitos War of 115-117 CE, a Jewish revolt sparked in Cyrenaica that spread to Egypt and Cyprus, devastated the city, killing many of its inhabitants and destroying public buildings; Hadrian undertook an extensive reconstruction programme thereafter, settling new colonists from the Roman world. A major earthquake on 21 July 365 CE, felt across the eastern Mediterranean, levelled large parts of Cyrene and triggered a long decline from which the city never fully recovered. - 395 AD – 643 AD: Byzantine Empire After the division of the Roman Empire in 395 CE, Cyrenaica fell under the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) administration as part of the diocese of Egypt. Cyrene contracted sharply, with public buildings stripped for spolia and Christian basilicas rising over earlier pagan sanctuaries. The Vandal expansion from Carthage in the 5th century brought raids and intermittent insecurity, though Cyrenaica was never permanently integrated into the Vandal Kingdom; Justinian's reconquest in the 530s restored Byzantine authority and saw modest refortification under figures such as the local bishop Synesius's successors. By the early 7th century, however, Cyrene was a shrunken episcopal town overshadowed by Apollonia on the coast. - 643 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate The Arab conquest of Cyrenaica in 642-643 CE under Amr ibn al-As brought the region into the Rashidun Caliphate. Administrative and commercial weight shifted decisively to the coastal towns and to Barqa (Barca) to the west, and the inland plateau site of Cyrene continued to depopulate after centuries of earthquake damage and decline. - 661 AD – 700 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under Umayyad administration the already diminished Cyrene was progressively abandoned over the second half of the 7th century as Barqa overtook it as the regional centre. By around 700 CE the city had effectively ceased to function as an urban centre, and the ruins remained largely undisturbed until European travellers rediscovered them in the 18th–19th centuries. Systematic excavation began under the Italian colonial administration in the early 20th century, and the site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. ## Landmarks - Sanctuary of Apollo (built 600 BC) The principal religious complex of Cyrene, laid out from the early 6th century BCE around a sacred spring on the lower terrace of the city. The sanctuary grew over centuries to include the archaic Doric Temple of Apollo, altars, treasuries, and the elaborate Baths of Trajan added in the Roman period. The cult of Apollo Karneios, brought from Thera, was central to Cyrene's foundation identity, and the sanctuary served as the chief civic and panhellenic shrine of the Pentapolis. - Tomb of Battus (built 560 BC) A monumental tomb on the agora of Cyrene traditionally identified as the burial place of Battus I, the Theran oikist who founded the colony in 631 BCE. As founder of the polis Battus received heroic cult honours, and his tomb in the agora — exceptional within an inhabited city centre, where burials were normally prohibited — was the focus of civic rituals down into the Roman period. - Temple of Zeus (built 500 BC) A vast Doric peripteral temple built around 500 BCE on the eastern hill of Cyrene, comparable in scale to the Temple of Zeus at Olympia and one of the largest Doric temples in the Greek world. It was damaged during the Kitos War of 115 CE, restored by Hadrian, and finally destroyed in the earthquake of 365 CE; the toppled column drums and capitals still lie where they fell, partially re-erected by 20th-century excavators. - Greek Theatre (built 400 BC) A Greek theatre cut into the slope below the Sanctuary of Apollo, originally laid out in the late 5th or 4th century BCE. The cavea overlooks the coastal plain toward the Mediterranean and was substantially remodelled in the Roman period, when it was adapted to amphitheatre-style spectacles by reshaping the orchestra. - Acropolis Fortifications (built 300 BC) The acropolis of Cyrene occupied the highest point of the plateau and was enclosed by successive circuits of fortifications, the most substantial of which were laid out in the Hellenistic period under Ptolemaic patronage. The walls combined cut limestone ashlar with towers at intervals and tied the upper citadel to the lower agora and Sanctuary of Apollo terraces. - Roman Forum (built 50 AD) A colonnaded civic square laid out in the mid-1st century CE on the site of the older Hellenistic agora, framed by basilicas, temples, and administrative buildings. The forum served as the political and judicial heart of Roman Cyrene and was extensively remodelled after the Kitos War destructions under Hadrian and the Antonines. - Baths of Trajan (built 98 AD) A monumental bath complex dedicated in 98 CE within the Sanctuary of Apollo precinct under the emperor Trajan, providing the standard sequence of frigidarium, tepidarium, and caldarium together with a palaestra. The baths were heavily damaged in the Kitos War of 115 CE and rebuilt under Hadrian, who commemorated the restoration in a surviving Latin inscription. ## Population History - 631 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 10,000 - 300 BC: 30,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 115 AD: 15,000 - 200 AD: 25,000 - 365 AD: 10,000 - 600 AD: 3,000 - 700 AD: null --- # Leptis Magna, Libya URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/libya/leptis-magna Founded: 1100 BC Ended: 1000 AD Coordinates: 32.6383, 14.2944 ## Description Leptis Magna is an ancient coastal city on the Mediterranean shore of northwestern Libya, founded around 1100 BCE as a Phoenician trading post known as Lpqy and later developed into a major Punic-Carthaginian harbour. Following the fall of Carthage in 146 BCE the city passed through a brief Numidian phase before allying with Rome, and as a Roman provincial city in Africa Proconsularis it became one of the wealthiest grain and olive-oil exporters of the empire. Its golden age came under Septimius Severus, who was born in the city in 145 CE and as emperor (193-211 CE) lavished it with imperial patronage — the Severan Forum, Severan Basilica, monumental Arch of Septimius Severus, and a vast new harbour — pushing the population toward an estimated 80,000-100,000. After the Crisis of the 3rd century and the division of the empire, Leptis declined and was sacked by the Vandals in 455 CE; Justinian's reconquest in 533 restored it briefly as a Byzantine outpost. The Arab conquest of 642-643 CE accelerated its slide into obscurity as administrative weight shifted to Tripoli, and by the 10th century the site was abandoned and progressively buried under windblown sand, a circumstance that preserved its monuments to an exceptional degree. Rediscovered by European travellers in the 18th-19th centuries and extensively excavated under the Italian colonial administration in the early 20th century, Leptis Magna is today regarded as one of the best-preserved Roman cities anywhere; it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982 and placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2016 due to preservation concerns arising from the Libyan civil war. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Phoenician Kingdom (known as "Lpqy") Founded as a Phoenician trading post on the Tripolitanian coast, taking advantage of a sheltered anchorage at the mouth of the Wadi Lebda. The Phoenician name Lpqy is attested on the city's later coinage. The settlement served as a transit point in the Tyrian commercial network linking the Levant with the western Mediterranean. - 800 BC – 146 BC: Ancient Carthage (known as "Lpqy") Absorbed into the expanding sphere of Carthage as Tyre's western influence waned. Under Punic rule Lpqy grew into a substantial harbour town of the Emporia, paying tribute to Carthage and exporting agricultural produce — grain, olive oil, and livestock — from its hinterland. The city retained Punic language, religion, and civic institutions throughout this period. - 146 BC – 46 BC: Kingdom of Numidia (known as "Lpqy") After Rome destroyed Carthage in 146 BCE, Leptis fell under the influence of the Numidian kings of the Massylii dynasty, who had inherited the former Punic Emporia. The city retained considerable internal autonomy and Punic civic traditions as a tribute-paying member of the Numidian sphere. Julius Caesar's defeat of Juba I at Thapsus in 46 BCE annexed Numidia to Rome and ended this phase. - 46 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Following Caesar's annexation of Numidia in 46 BCE Leptis was incorporated into the Roman provincial system and assigned under Augustus to the senatorial province of Africa Proconsularis. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 455 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Latinised as Leptis Magna, the city prospered as one of the great olive-oil and grain exporters of the empire and received colonia status under Trajan, with the Augustan theatre and Hadrianic Baths added during the early imperial phase. Septimius Severus, born in Leptis in 145 CE, lavished his birthplace with unprecedented patronage from 193 onward — the Severan Forum and Basilica, the four-way triumphal arch, the colonnaded street, and a vast new artificial harbour pushed the population toward 80,000–100,000. After the Severan dynasty the city suffered through the 3rd-century crisis, Austuriani raids, and the silting of the Severan harbour, entering a long decline. The Western division of 395 CE accelerated frontier pressure and the contraction of urban fabric, with many public monuments already in disrepair before the Vandal capture of 455. - 455 AD – 533 AD: Vandal Kingdom Sacked by the Vandals in 455 CE during their conquest of Roman North Africa from Carthage. The Vandal kings demolished sections of the city walls to prevent the population from supporting any Roman counter-attack, leaving Leptis exposed to further raids. Urban life persisted at a much reduced scale, with population estimates collapsing to around 30,000. - 533 AD – 643 AD: Byzantine Empire Justinian's general Belisarius reconquered North Africa from the Vandals in 533, bringing Leptis back into the Roman fold as part of the Praetorian Prefecture of Africa. Justinian repaired the walls on a reduced circuit, refortified the harbour quarter, and built or restored several churches. The Byzantine city was a shadow of its Severan peak, increasingly threatened by Berber incursions and the encroaching sand. - 643 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Lebda") The Arab conquest of Tripolitania in 642-643 CE under Amr ibn al-As brought Leptis into the Rashidun Caliphate as Lebda. The diminished Byzantine town retained a small Muslim population, but administrative and commercial weight shifted decisively to nearby Tripoli (Oea). - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Lebda") Under Umayyad administration from Damascus, Lebda continued its slow contraction as Tripoli grew at its expense. The harbour silted up progressively and the population drifted away through the late 7th and early 8th centuries. - 750 AD – 1000 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Lebda") Under the Abbasid Caliphate and successive Aghlabid and Fatimid suzerainty over Ifriqiya, the diminished site of Lebda was progressively buried by windblown sand and effectively abandoned by around the year 1000. The site lay buried and largely forgotten until European travellers visited the ruins in the 17th and 18th centuries, and major systematic excavation came under the Italian colonial administration in the early 20th century. Leptis Magna was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982 and added to the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2016 amid concerns over preservation during the Libyan civil war. ## Landmarks - Old Forum (built 50 BC) The original civic centre of Roman Leptis Magna, laid out on the site of the earlier Punic agora during the late 1st century BCE. The forum was framed by temples to Liber Pater, Hercules, and Rome and Augustus, together with a basilica and curia. It remained in use throughout the city's history, though it was increasingly overshadowed by the later Severan Forum. - Theater of Leptis Magna (built 1 AD) One of the earliest stone theatres in Roman Africa, dedicated in 1-2 CE under Augustus by the local Punic notable Annobal Tapapius Rufus. The cavea is built into a natural slope and is faced with finely cut limestone, while the elaborate scaenae frons was later embellished with marble columns and imperial statuary. A bilingual Latin-Punic dedication still attests the Punic civic identity surviving into the early empire. - Hadrianic Baths (built 137 AD) A monumental bath complex dedicated in 137 CE under the emperor Hadrian, ranking among the largest thermae in Roman Africa. The complex includes a frigidarium, tepidarium, caldarium, palaestra, and an open-air natatio, and is decorated with marble pavements and statuary. Many of the finest sculptures recovered from the baths are now in the Tripoli museum. - Severan Forum (built 200 AD) A vast new civic square built under Septimius Severus around 200 CE as the centrepiece of his birthplace's monumental transformation. The colonnaded forum measured roughly 100 by 60 metres, paved in imported marble and ringed by arcades carrying Medusa-head and Nereid roundels. It was dominated on its short side by the Severan Basilica. - Severan Harbour (built 200 AD) A vast artificial harbour built around 200 CE under Septimius Severus, replacing the silting Punic-era basin at the mouth of the Wadi Lebda. The Severan harbour featured monumental moles, warehouses, a lighthouse, a watchtower, and a temple, and was linked to the Severan Forum by a grand colonnaded street. The harbour itself silted up within decades, a chronic problem that contributed to the city's later economic decline. - Arch of Septimius Severus (built 203 AD) A monumental four-way tetrapylon arch erected in 203 CE at the crossing of the cardo and decumanus to mark a visit of the emperor to his birthplace. The arch is richly carved with reliefs of the imperial family, sacrifices, and triumphal processions; surviving panels are among the masterpieces of Severan dynastic sculpture and are now displayed in the Tripoli museum. - Severan Basilica (built 216 AD) A vast three-aisled judicial basilica adjoining the Severan Forum, begun under Septimius Severus and completed under his son Caracalla in 216 CE. The basilica measures roughly 92 by 40 metres and rose to two storeys of granite and marble columns, with elaborately carved pilasters depicting the labours of Hercules and the deeds of Dionysus — gods particularly associated with the Severan dynasty. It was converted into a Christian church under Justinian in the 6th century. ## Population History - 1100 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 200 BC: 10,000 - 1 AD: 30,000 - 200 AD: 80,000 - 300 AD: 70,000 - 400 AD: 50,000 - 455 AD: 30,000 - 600 AD: 15,000 - 700 AD: 10,000 - 900 AD: 2,000 - 1000 AD: null --- # Timbuktu, Mali URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/mali/timbuktu Founded: 1100 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 16.7666, -3.0026 ## Description Timbuktu, a major center of trade, Islamic scholarship, and culture, was one of the most important cities in medieval Africa. Located on the edge of the Sahara, it was famous for its wealth, universities, and manuscripts, and remains inhabited today despite modern challenges. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 AD – 1325 AD: Tuareg Nomads Founded as a seasonal Tuareg encampment near the Niger River bend, the site grew into a permanent settlement serving trans-Saharan caravan traffic. Tuareg clans controlled the wells and surrounding pastures, while the town developed into a meeting point between desert nomads and Sahelian farmers. - 1325 AD – 1433 AD: Mali Empire Incorporated into the Mali Empire under Mansa Musa following his return from the Hajj, the city was endowed with mosques, madrasas, and patronage that transformed it into a major center of Islamic learning. Trans-Saharan gold and salt trade brought immense wealth, and the Djinguereber Mosque was built during this period. - 1433 AD – 1468 AD: Tuareg Rule As Mali Empire authority weakened, Tuareg confederations reasserted control over the city and its trade routes. The scholarly and commercial life of the city continued, though political conditions were more unstable than under Malian rule. - 1468 AD – 1591 AD: Songhai Empire Conquered by Sunni Ali of the Songhai Empire and later stabilized under Askia Muhammad, Timbuktu reached its intellectual peak with the Sankore University attracting scholars from across the Islamic world. The city's manuscript production, legal scholarship, and trade in gold, salt, and books flourished during this era. - 1591 AD – 1780 AD: Moroccan Saadi Dynasty After the Battle of Tondibi, Moroccan forces sent by Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur seized the city and deported many of its leading scholars, including Ahmad Baba, to Marrakesh. Saadi-appointed pashas and their descendants (the Arma) governed Timbuktu, but trans-Saharan trade declined and the city lost much of its former prominence. - 1780 AD – 1893 AD: Tuareg & Local Rulers As Moroccan authority faded, Tuareg confederations and local Arma elites contested control of the city. Periods of nominal incorporation into the Massina Empire and the Tukulor Empire of El Hadj Umar Tall followed, but the city remained economically marginal compared to its medieval golden age. - 1893 AD – 1960 AD: French Mandate of Syria (known as "Tombouctou") French colonial forces occupied the city in 1893 and incorporated it into French Sudan as part of French West Africa. Colonial administration imposed new infrastructure and governance, and the city was renamed Tombouctou in French usage while remaining a regional administrative center. - 1960 AD – present: Republic of Mali Following Mali's independence in 1960, Timbuktu became part of the new republic and capital of its eponymous region. The city's historic mosques and manuscript libraries were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988, though jihadist occupation in 2012-2013 caused significant damage to shrines and manuscripts before being reversed. ## Landmarks - Sankore Mosque and University (built 1325 AD) Built during the Mali Empire, this mosque also served as one of medieval Africa's most prestigious universities, housing up to 25,000 students and scholars. The distinctive mud-brick structure with wooden support beams features a unique minaret and became the intellectual center of Timbuktu. - Ahmed Baba Institute (built 1970 AD) While the modern institute was established in 1970, it preserves manuscripts dating back to the 13th century. These documents cover subjects from astronomy and mathematics to poetry and Islamic jurisprudence, demonstrating Timbuktu's rich intellectual heritage. ## Population History - 1100 AD: 5,000 - 1350 AD: 25,000 - 1500 AD: 100,000 - 1600 AD: 50,000 - 1800 AD: 15,000 - 1900 AD: 10,000 - 1950 AD: 8,000 - 2000 AD: 30,000 - 2020 AD: 55,000 --- # Calakmul, Mexico URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/mexico/calakmul Founded: 600 BC Ended: 1000 AD Coordinates: 18.1093, -89.8128 ## Description Calakmul is a major Classic Maya city in the dense rainforest of the Petén Basin in southeastern Campeche, Mexico. From the Middle Preclassic onward it grew into one of the largest Maya urban centers, and during the Classic Period it became the seat of the Kaan Dynasty — the Snake Kingdom — and one of the two Maya superpowers, locked for more than a century in a rivalry with Tikal. In 562 CE Calakmul and its allies inflicted a devastating Star War defeat on Tikal, and through a hegemonic network including Caracol and Naranjo the Kaan kings dominated much of the southern lowlands. The reversal came in 695 CE, when Jasaw Chan K'awiil of Tikal defeated King Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk', a turning point reinforced by further losses around 736; the city declined through the Classic Maya collapse and was largely abandoned by 1000 CE. The jungle reclaimed the ruins for nearly a millennium until biologist Cyrus Lundell rediscovered them by air in 1931, and systematic excavations under William Folan and later Ramón Carrasco from the 1980s onward revealed roughly 120 carved stelae and the massive Structure II, the largest Maya pyramid by volume. Calakmul was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2002 and expanded in 2014 as a mixed cultural and natural site that protects the surrounding tropical rainforest. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 250 BC: Middle Preclassic Maya Settlement (known as "*Calakmul") Earliest village-level Maya occupation in the Petén Basin rainforest. The Classic-period glyphic toponyms for the site — Ox Te Tuun and the Kaan emblem — are not yet attested, so the asterisked modern label is used. Monumental construction begins late in this phase. - 250 BC – 250 AD: Late Preclassic Maya Polity (known as "*Calakmul") Rapid urban growth in step with the broader Mirador-Calakmul corridor florescence. Massive Late Preclassic platforms are raised, including the early phases of Structure II and Structure I, establishing Calakmul as one of the largest centers in the Maya lowlands well before the Classic Period. - 250 AD – 561 AD: Early Classic Kaan Dynasty (known as "Kaan") Rise of the Kaan — the Snake Kingdom — whose emblem glyph is recorded in monuments across the Maya region. The dynasty consolidates control over Calakmul and projects influence outward through a network of vassals and allies, setting up the long confrontation with Tikal that will dominate Classic Maya geopolitics. - 561 AD – 695 AD: Classic Calakmul Superpower (known as "Kaan") Peak of Kaan hegemony. In 562 CE a Star War event, fought together with the allied kingdom of Caracol, defeats Tikal and inaugurates Tikal's so-called hiatus. Under kings such as Yuknoom Ch'een II and Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk', Calakmul humbles Palenque, brings Naranjo into the Snake network, and rules a hegemonic alliance stretching across much of the southern lowlands. - 695 AD – 800 AD: Post-Tikal Reversal Decline (known as "Kaan") In 695 CE Jasaw Chan K'awiil of Tikal defeats Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk' and breaks the Kaan hegemony; further blows around 736 CE under Yik'in Chan K'awiil end Calakmul's dominance. The Snake Kingdom's allies drift away, monument-raising continues but at a reduced scale, and the political center of gravity in the lowlands shifts away from the Petén heartland. - 800 AD – 1000 AD: Terminal Classic Decline Calakmul is engulfed by the Classic Maya collapse that depopulates the southern lowlands across the 9th and 10th centuries. Stela dedications cease, the great plazas and palaces are progressively abandoned, and by around 1000 CE only scattered residual occupation remains; the rainforest then reclaims the site for nearly a thousand years. ## Landmarks - Structure II (built 300 BC) Calakmul's principal pyramid and one of the largest pyramids in the Maya world by total volume. Begun in the Late Preclassic around 300 BCE and expanded in successive layers through the Classic Period, the final structure rises about 45 meters and covers a massive footprint, with royal tombs and ornate stucco masks of Kaan rulers buried within its earlier phases. - Structure I (built 200 BC) A second monumental Late Preclassic pyramid on the eastern side of the central plaza, comparable in scale to Structure II in its early phases. Together the two great pyramids frame the ceremonial heart of the site. - Great Acropolis (built 400 AD) Sprawling royal and administrative complex of palaces, courtyards, and elite residences southeast of the central plaza. It served as the political seat of the Kaan kings during the city's Classic-Period peak. - Calakmul Stelae (built 400 AD) Calakmul preserves roughly 120 carved stone stelae, the largest known concentration at any Maya city. Erected throughout the Classic Period in front of pyramids, palaces, and plazas, they record royal accessions, military victories, and period-ending rituals of the Kaan Dynasty. - Calakmul Ball Court (built 500 AD) Classic-Period Mesoamerican ball court located near the central plaza, used for the ritual ballgame that combined sport, political theater, and religious symbolism in Maya royal life. ## Population History - 600 BC: 500 - 250 BC: 3,000 - 250 AD: 15,000 - 561 AD: 50,000 - 695 AD: 50,000 - 800 AD: 30,000 - 900 AD: 10,000 - 1000 AD: null --- # Chichen Itza, Mexico URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/mexico/chichen-itza Founded: 600 BC Ended: 1200 AD Coordinates: 20.6829, -88.5678 ## Description Chichen Itza was one of the most powerful and cosmopolitan cities of pre-Columbian America, located in the northern Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico. This UNESCO World Heritage site and New Seven Wonders of the World represents an extraordinary fusion of Maya and Toltec cultural influences that dominated the region during the Terminal Classic and Early Postclassic periods. The city's name means 'At the mouth of the well of the Itza people,' referring to the sacred cenotes (natural sinkholes) that provided precious water in the region's karstic landscape. Chichen Itza is renowned for its advanced astronomical knowledge, demonstrated in structures like El Castillo (Temple of Kukulcan), where precise architectural alignments create the famous equinox serpent shadow effect. The site features exceptional stone carvings, including the largest ball court in Mesoamerica decorated with scenes of sacrifice, the elaborate Temple of the Warriors surrounded by a thousand columns, and the enigmatic El Caracol observatory. Archaeological evidence indicates Chichen Itza controlled extensive trade networks and religious pilgrimages throughout the Yucatán, with its political influence extending far beyond its urban boundaries. The city was largely abandoned as a political center by around 1200 CE, following the collapse of its regional hegemony, though the sacred cenote continued to attract Maya pilgrims into the colonial period. Spanish conquistadors under Francisco de Montejo encountered the ruined city in the 1530s and briefly established a camp there before being driven out by local Maya resistance. The site was rediscovered for the wider world through 19th-century explorations by John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood, and later by Edward Herbert Thompson, who dredged the Sacred Cenote in the early 1900s. Mexico's INAH manages the archaeological park today, and UNESCO inscribed the site on the World Heritage List in 1988; the modern town of Pisté lies nearby as a separate settlement serving visitors. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 600 AD: Early Maya Foundation During the Late Preclassic period, small Maya farming communities settled around the cenotes of the northern Yucatán plain, drawn by reliable freshwater in an otherwise dry karstic landscape. The earliest occupation at Chichen Itza remained modest in scale, with simple platform architecture and an economy based on milpa agriculture and local exchange. - 600 AD – 800 AD: Maya Classic Period Growth Through the Late Classic period, Chichen Itza developed into a regional Maya center with monumental masonry architecture in the Puuc style, including early versions of structures such as the Nunnery complex and the Akab Dzib. The polity participated in the wider lowland Maya political world while building its own ceremonial core around the sacred cenote. - 800 AD – 900 AD: Terminal Classic Transformation As the southern lowland Maya city-states entered their Classic collapse, Chichen Itza expanded rapidly and absorbed populations and influence from across Mesoamerica. The architectural program shifted toward the hybrid Maya-Toltec style — colonnaded halls, chacmool sculptures, and feathered-serpent iconography — that would define the site's most famous monuments. - 900 AD – 1050 AD: Early Postclassic Dominance Chichen Itza became the dominant political and religious capital of the northern Yucatán, controlling long-distance trade routes that linked the Gulf Coast, central Mexico, and the Caribbean. Major construction including El Castillo, the Great Ball Court, and the Temple of the Warriors was completed in this era, and the cult of Kukulcan drew pilgrims from across the Maya world. - 1050 AD – 1200 AD: Late Postclassic Decline Political authority gradually shifted away from Chichen Itza toward Mayapan and other rising centers, and monumental construction ceased. By the end of this period the city had been largely abandoned as a political capital, though the Sacred Cenote and core ceremonial precinct remained a site of pilgrimage and ritual offering for the surrounding Maya population. ## Landmarks - El Castillo (built 900 AD) El Castillo, the Temple of Kukulcan, stands as the centerpiece of Chichen Itza, rising 30 meters with a 55.5-meter-wide base. Its four stairways and shared summit platform total 365 steps, mirroring the solar year. The structure is famously aligned so that during the equinoxes, shadows form a serpent shape along the northern staircase, linking to a stone serpent head at its base. Inside, an earlier temple houses a red jaguar throne inlaid with jade. The pyramid’s acoustics produce a quetzal bird-like echo from handclaps, and its 52 decorative panels reflect the Maya Calendar Round. El Castillo’s mathematical precision, symbolic meaning, and central location affirmed Chichen Itza’s role as a major religious and astronomical center. - Great Ball Court (built 950 AD) The Great Ball Court of Chichen Itza, measuring 168 by 70 meters, is the largest known ancient Mesoamerican ball court. Its parallel stone walls, 8 meters high, each hold stone rings positioned 7 meters above the ground. Acoustic design allows a whisper to carry clearly from one end to the other. Reliefs along the walls depict the sacred ball game, including scenes of decapitation symbolizing sacrifice and rebirth. Overlooking the court are the Temple of the Bearded Man and the Lower Temple, both decorated with carvings of warriors and conquest scenes. The ball court’s monumental scale and symbolic imagery reinforced Chichen Itza’s religious authority and the cosmic importance of ritual conflict. ## Population History - 600 BC: 1,000 - 0 AD: 3,000 - 400 AD: 10,000 - 700 AD: 25,000 - 900 AD: 50,000 - 1000 AD: 45,000 - 1100 AD: 20,000 - 1200 AD: null --- # Mexico City, Mexico URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/mexico/mexico-city Founded: 1325 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 19.435, -99.1313 ## Description Mexico City was founded as Tenochtitlán in 1325 by the Mexica on a marshy island in Lake Texcoco, growing into the capital of the Aztec Triple Alliance after 1428 and one of the largest cities in the world at its 1519 peak (~250,000), famed for the Templo Mayor, chinampa gardens, and the island causeways. After Hernán Cortés's 80-day siege and the city's fall on 13 August 1521, the Spanish razed the ceremonial core and built their colonial capital, Ciudad de México, directly on top — the urban site was never abandoned. Re-founded formally in 1524 and made capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain in 1535, the city served as the political, ecclesiastical, and commercial heart of Spanish America for three centuries before becoming the capital of independent Mexico in 1821. Today it is one of the largest urban agglomerations in the world, sitting in the high-altitude Valley of Mexico atop the drained bed of Lake Texcoco. The Templo Mayor archaeological zone, uncovered in 1978 beside the Zócalo, anchors the modern city to its Mexica past and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Historic Centre (inscribed 1987). ## Historical Rulers - 1325 AD – 1428 AD: Aztec Empire (known as "Tenochtitlán") After a long migration from the legendary homeland of Aztlán, the Mexica settled on a marshy island in Lake Texcoco where, according to tradition, they saw the prophesied eagle perched on a cactus. As tributaries of the Tepanec of Azcapotzalco, they built up the island settlement with chinampa agriculture and gradually expanded their political and military influence. - 1428 AD – 1521 AD: Aztec Empire (known as "Tenochtitlán") Following the defeat of Azcapotzalco in 1428, Tenochtitlán joined Texcoco and Tlacopan in the Triple Alliance and rapidly became its dominant partner. Under successive tlatoque from Itzcoatl to Moctezuma II, the city expanded the Templo Mayor, integrated Tlatelolco in 1473, and ruled a tribute empire stretching from coast to coast until Hernán Cortés and Tlaxcalan allies besieged and destroyed it in 1521. - 1521 AD – 1821 AD: Spanish Empire — Viceroyalty of New Spain (known as "Ciudad de México") After the fall of Tenochtitlán in August 1521, Hernán Cortés ordered the systematic demolition of the Aztec ceremonial center and oversaw the construction of a Spanish colonial city on the same island site. Re-founded formally in 1524 and made capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain in 1535, Ciudad de México became the political, ecclesiastical, and commercial heart of Spanish America, home to the viceregal court, the Archdiocese, and the Royal and Pontifical University. - 1821 AD – 1864 AD: Brazil (known as "Ciudad de México") Following the Treaty of Córdoba and the entry of the Army of the Three Guarantees in September 1821, Mexico City became the capital of the short-lived First Mexican Empire under Agustín de Iturbide and then of the Federal Republic of Mexico. The city endured the U.S. occupation during the Mexican-American War of 1847-1848 and successive civil conflicts of the Reform era. - 1864 AD – 1867 AD: Second Mexican Empire (known as "Ciudad de México") Under French intervention, Archduke Maximilian of Austria was installed as emperor and ruled from Mexico City, residing at Chapultepec Castle. He commissioned the Paseo de la Emperatriz, today's Paseo de la Reforma, before his regime collapsed and he was executed at Querétaro in 1867. - 1867 AD – 1910 AD: Porfiriato (known as "Ciudad de México") Under the restored Republic and especially the long rule of Porfirio Díaz, Mexico City underwent rapid modernization: railways, drainage works for Lake Texcoco, electric tramways, Beaux-Arts public buildings, and the consolidation of the Federal District as a centralized seat of power. - 1910 AD – 2016 AD: Revolutionary and post-Revolutionary Mexico (known as "Distrito Federal") The Mexican Revolution of 1910-1920 reshaped national politics and the city absorbed massive rural migration through the twentieth century. As the Distrito Federal, Mexico City became one of the world's largest metropolitan areas, hosting the 1968 Olympic Games and surviving the devastating 1985 earthquake. - 2016 AD – present: United Mexican States (known as "Ciudad de México") A 2016 constitutional reform transformed the former Federal District into Ciudad de México, a federal entity with its own constitution and elected head of government on par with Mexican states. The city remains the political, financial, and cultural capital of Mexico and the core of a metropolitan area of roughly 22 million people. ## Landmarks - Templo Mayor (built 1325 AD) A massive pyramid with dual shrines at its summit, the temple underwent seven major expansion phases under successive Mexica emperors. It stood approximately 60 meters tall at its height and was the site of important state ceremonies and sacrificial rituals. Largely demolished by the Spanish after 1521, its excavated foundations beside the Zócalo were rediscovered in 1978 and developed as an archaeological park. - Causeways of Tenochtitlán (built 1350 AD) Three main causeways — southern (Iztapalapa), northern (Tepeyac), and western (Tlacopan) — connected the island city to the mainland. Built of packed earth and stone, they included removable bridge sections for defense and water flow management. - Recinto Sagrado (built 1390 AD) The walled sacred precinct surrounding the Templo Mayor housed numerous religious structures, including the tzompantli skull rack, the Temple of the Sun, the Temple of Quetzalcoatl, and various schools for priests and nobles. - Central Market of Tlatelolco (built 1473 AD) Located in the sister city of Tlatelolco, incorporated into Tenochtitlán in 1473, this vast market accommodated up to 60,000 people daily. Spanish conquistadors reported that every imaginable good was available, with specialized areas for different products and a complex system of merchant regulations. - Palacio de Moctezuma (built 1502 AD) This sprawling palace complex contained over 100 rooms, including royal apartments, council chambers, dining halls, and warehouses. It also featured extensive gardens, zoos with exotic animals, and an aquarium with saltwater fish transported from the coast. - National Palace (built 1522 AD) Originally built by Hernán Cortés on the site of Moctezuma II's New Houses, the National Palace has served as the seat of viceregal, imperial, and republican government. It now houses the federal executive offices and Diego Rivera's monumental murals on the history of Mexico. - Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral (built 1573 AD) The largest cathedral in the Americas, built over more than two centuries (1573-1813) on the north side of the Zócalo, directly atop part of the former Aztec Templo Mayor precinct. It blends Renaissance, Baroque, and Neoclassical styles and serves as the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico. - Chapultepec Castle (built 1785 AD) Begun in 1785 as a viceregal summer residence on Chapultepec hill, the castle later served as a military academy, the imperial residence of Maximilian I, and the presidential residence until 1939. It is now the National Museum of History. - Palacio de Bellas Artes (built 1904 AD) Commissioned during the Porfiriato and completed in 1934, the Palacio de Bellas Artes is Mexico's premier opera house and fine-arts venue, combining an Art Nouveau exterior with an Art Deco interior and housing murals by Rivera, Orozco, Siqueiros, and Tamayo. - Monumento a la Independencia (built 1910 AD) Inaugurated in 1910 for the centenary of Mexican independence, the column on Paseo de la Reforma is topped by a gilded Victory, El Ángel, and has become the symbolic civic monument of the modern city. - Torre Latinoamericana (built 1956 AD) Completed in 1956, the 44-story Torre Latinoamericana was for decades the tallest building in Latin America and is renowned for surviving the 1957 and 1985 earthquakes intact thanks to its pioneering seismic engineering. ## Population History - 1325 AD: 10,000 - 1400 AD: 60,000 - 1450 AD: 150,000 - 1500 AD: 200,000 - 1519 AD: 250,000 - 1521 AD: 30,000 - 1600 AD: 75,000 - 1700 AD: 105,000 - 1800 AD: 130,000 - 1900 AD: 345,000 - 1950 AD: 3,050,000 - 1980 AD: 13,000,000 - 2020 AD: 21,800,000 --- # Palenque, Mexico URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/mexico/palenque Founded: 226 AD Ended: 800 AD Coordinates: 17.4845, -92.046 ## Description Palenque was a major Classic Maya city-state in the foothills of the Chiapas highlands, renowned for its refined architecture, sculptural reliefs, and detailed hieroglyphic inscriptions that document its dynastic history. It reached its political and artistic peak under rulers such as K'inich Janaab' Pakal I (reigned 615-683 CE) and his son K'inich Kan B'alam II, whose monuments include the Temple of the Inscriptions and the Palace complex. Like most lowland Maya centers, Palenque was largely depopulated and abandoned around 800 CE during the Classic Maya collapse, and the surrounding rainforest gradually overtook its monumental core. The ruins were noted by Spanish colonial expeditions in the late 18th century (Antonio del Rio's 1787 survey) and progressively investigated through the 19th and 20th centuries, culminating in Alberto Ruz Lhuillier's 1952 discovery of Pakal's tomb. The site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1987 and is today administered as a Mexican national archaeological park; the modern town of Santo Domingo de Palenque, founded later nearby, is a separate settlement. ## Historical Rulers - 226 AD – 800 AD: Maya Civilization (known as "Lakamha") Palenque, known to its inhabitants as Lakamha ('Big Water'), emerged as a Classic Maya city-state and grew into one of the dominant polities of the western Maya lowlands. Under the B'aakal dynasty, particularly during the long reign of K'inich Janaab' Pakal I and his successors in the 7th-8th centuries, the city produced some of the finest Maya architecture and sculpture. Like neighboring lowland centers, Palenque declined sharply in the late 8th century and was abandoned around 800 CE during the broader Classic Maya collapse. ## Landmarks - Palace Complex (built 600 AD) A massive multi-level structure featuring towers, courtyards, and intricate bas-relief sculptures. The palace demonstrates the advanced architectural and artistic capabilities of the Maya civilization during its classical period. - Temple of the Inscriptions (built 683 AD) A pyramidal temple housing the elaborate burial site of King Pakal, featuring intricate hieroglyphic inscriptions that provide crucial insights into Maya royal history and cosmology. The tomb is considered one of the most important archaeological discoveries of the 20th century. ## Population History - 226 AD: 5,000 - 600 AD: 25,000 - 800 AD: null --- # Teotihuacan, Mexico URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/mexico/teotihuacan Founded: 100 BC Ended: 750 AD Coordinates: 19.6925, -98.8433 ## Description Teotihuacan was one of the largest and most influential urban centers in ancient Mesoamerica, located in the Basin of Mexico about 45 kilometers northeast of modern Mexico City. Known as the 'place where the gods were created' in Nahuatl, Teotihuacan dominated Mesoamerican civilization during the Classic Period. The city is renowned for its monumental architecture, including the Pyramid of the Sun–the third-largest pyramid in the world–the Pyramid of the Moon, and the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, all aligned along the impressive Avenue of the Dead. Covering over 20 square kilometers, Teotihuacan's distinctive grid layout demonstrates advanced urban planning and astronomical precision. At its peak around 450 CE, it housed between 125,000 and 200,000 people from diverse ethnic backgrounds, featuring specialized craft production, extensive trade networks, and a complex social structure. Although its original name and language remain unknown, Teotihuacan's artistic and architectural influence spread across Mesoamerica, sustaining its political, economic, and religious power until its mysterious decline in the 7th–8th centuries. After its collapse, the ruined city remained a place of pilgrimage and inspiration for later Mesoamerican peoples; the Aztecs, encountering the abandoned monuments centuries later, gave the site its Nahuatl name and incorporated it into their cosmology. The archaeological zone was systematically explored from the late 19th century onward and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. ## Historical Rulers - 100 BC – 1 AD: Formative Period (known as "*Teotihuacan") During the late Formative (Patlachique) phase, scattered villages in the Teotihuacan Valley coalesced into a proto-urban settlement, partly driven by the decline of the nearby center of Cuicuilco after the eruption of Xitle. Early monumental construction and the rough outlines of the future ceremonial core began to take shape under emerging local elites whose identity and language are unknown. - 1 AD – 150 AD: Tzacualli Phase (known as "*Teotihuacan") In the Tzacualli phase the city expanded rapidly into a true urban center, with the Pyramid of the Sun and the initial layout of the Avenue of the Dead established along a deliberate astronomical grid. Population concentrated dramatically as surrounding valley villages were largely abandoned, marking Teotihuacan as the dominant settlement of the Basin of Mexico. - 150 AD – 250 AD: Miccaotli Phase (known as "*Teotihuacan") During the Miccaotli phase the urban grid was extended and formalized, and the Ciudadela compound with the Temple of the Feathered Serpent was constructed as a new political and ritual focus. Mass dedicatory burials at the temple suggest a strong, militarized state authority asserting itself over the growing city. - 250 AD – 450 AD: Tlamimilolpa Phase (known as "*Teotihuacan") The Tlamimilolpa phase saw the construction of the city's characteristic apartment compounds, housing a diverse population including enclaves from Oaxaca and the Gulf Coast. Teotihuacan's craft production, obsidian trade, and political influence reached far across Mesoamerica, leaving clear imprints at Maya centers such as Tikal and Kaminaljuyu. - 450 AD – 550 AD: Xolalpan Phase (known as "*Teotihuacan") In the Xolalpan phase Teotihuacan reached its demographic and cultural apogee, with an estimated population well over 100,000 and an unmatched material culture spread through trade and emulation. The arts of mural painting, fine ceramics, and stone sculpture flourished, while the state continued to project influence across central and southern Mesoamerica. - 550 AD – 650 AD: Metepec Phase and Decline (known as "*Teotihuacan") During the Metepec phase the city's population contracted and its long-distance influence waned, against a backdrop of internal stress and possibly environmental pressures. Around the mid-7th century the ceremonial core was deliberately burned and many elite structures were destroyed, an event traditionally interpreted as the collapse of central authority. - 650 AD – 750 AD: Collapse and Abandonment (known as "*Teotihuacan") Following the burning of the civic-ceremonial center, the remaining population dwindled as administrative functions disintegrated and inhabitants drifted to smaller communities in the valley and the wider Basin of Mexico. By the mid-8th century the great city was effectively abandoned as an urban entity, leaving its monuments to be revered by later Mesoamerican peoples. ## Landmarks - Pyramid of the Sun (built 100 AD) The Pyramid of the Sun dominates Teotihuacan, rising 65 meters with a massive base of 220 × 230 meters. Built around 100 CE over a sacred cave, it likely symbolized a portal to the underworld. Once covered in red-painted lime stucco, the pyramid was aligned astronomically with key solar events. Although traditionally linked to the sun god, evidence points to water rituals and dedication to Tlaloc. Offerings and sacrificial remains were embedded during its construction phases. Originally crowned by a temple, it served as a ritual stage visible from the Avenue of the Dead. - Temple of the Feathered Serpent (built 200 AD) The Temple of the Feathered Serpent, centerpiece of the Ciudadela complex, was built around 200 CE as a political and religious hub. Its six-tiered pyramid is adorned with over 200 carved serpent and deity heads, originally brightly painted. Archaeological finds reveal mass human sacrifices of young warriors, reinforcing the temple's role in legitimizing state authority. Beneath the structure, a tunnel with rich offerings symbolizes elite and military power. The temple's striking imagery and sacrificial rituals mark it as a core monument of Teotihuacan's expansionist era. ## Population History - 100 BC: 45,000 - 361 AD: 90,000 - 400 AD: 100,000 - 500 AD: 150,000 - 600 AD: 100,000 - 622 AD: 60,000 - 750 AD: null --- # Casablanca, Morocco URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/morocco/casablanca Founded: 1770 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 33.5731, -7.5898 ## Description Casablanca is Morocco's largest city and economic capital, located on the Atlantic coast. The site was previously occupied by the Berber port of Anfa, a regional trade hub from antiquity through the medieval period under the Berghouata, Almoravid, Almohad, and Marinid powers, until Portuguese forces destroyed it in 1468 and abandoned the ruins in 1505. Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah of the Alaouite Dynasty refounded the settlement in the 1770s as Dar el-Beida, the Arabic for white house, a name later rendered as Casa Blanca by Spanish merchants and standardized as Casablanca. Under the French Protectorate from 1907 to 1956 the city was transformed into a major Atlantic port and a showcase of Art Deco and Mauresque architecture, and in January 1943 it hosted the Casablanca Conference between Roosevelt and Churchill that produced the Allied unconditional surrender doctrine. The 1942 film Casablanca made the city a global cultural reference, though it was actually shot on Hollywood sound stages. Today Casablanca is dominated by the Hassan II Mosque, completed in 1993 and built partly over the Atlantic, and serves as Morocco's financial, industrial, and shipping center with a metropolitan population of around five million. ## Historical Rulers - 1770 AD – 1907 AD: Alaouite Dynasty (known as "Dar el-Beida") Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah refounded the abandoned site of Anfa in the 1770s as Dar el-Beida, building a walled medina, a kasbah, and a small port intended to project Alaouite power along the Atlantic coast. Through the 19th century the port grew under European merchant pressure, exporting wool, grain, and hides, and a Spanish, French, and Jewish trading community developed alongside the Muslim medina. - 1907 AD – 1956 AD: French Protectorate After unrest in 1907 French warships bombarded the port and French forces occupied the city, which became the principal economic center of the French Protectorate established in 1912. Resident-General Lyautey and his urban planners laid out a modern city of broad boulevards, Place Mohammed V, and Art Deco and Mauresque architecture, while an enormous artificial harbor turned Casablanca into one of the busiest ports of the southern Mediterranean. In January 1943 the Anfa Hotel hosted the Casablanca Conference at which Roosevelt and Churchill announced the policy of unconditional surrender for the Axis powers. - 1956 AD – present: Kingdom of Morocco With Moroccan independence in 1956 Casablanca became the kingdom's economic and financial capital, hosting the headquarters of major banks, the Casablanca Stock Exchange, and most national industry. Massive rural migration drove the population past three million by the early 21st century, and the city skyline was reshaped by the Hassan II Mosque, the Twin Center, and the Casablanca Finance City tower, alongside persistent challenges of informal housing and inequality. ## Landmarks - Old Medina of Casablanca (built 1770 AD) The walled old medina was laid out in the late 18th century around Mohammed ben Abdallah's refoundation of Anfa as Dar el-Beida, with gates, a small kasbah, and the Sqala bastion overlooking the harbor. It remains the oldest surviving urban fabric of the modern city and contrasts sharply with the 20th-century French Ville Nouvelle that surrounds it. - Place Mohammed V (built 1922 AD) The monumental central square of the colonial Ville Nouvelle, framed by the Wilaya, the Bank al-Maghrib, the Palace of Justice, the Post Office, and the French Consulate. Designed in the 1920s and 1930s under the supervision of Henri Prost and Joseph Marrast, the ensemble is one of the most coherent examples of Mauresque and Art Deco public architecture in North Africa. - Cathedrale du Sacre-Coeur (built 1930 AD) A Neo-Gothic Roman Catholic church designed by Paul Tournon and completed in 1930 to serve the French colonial population of Casablanca. It was deconsecrated after Moroccan independence and is now used as a cultural and exhibition space, retaining its tall white towers and Art Deco-influenced stained glass. - Mahkama du Pacha (built 1948 AD) A large civic palace in the Habous quarter completed in 1948 to serve as the court and reception hall of the pasha of Casablanca. Its sixty rooms combine traditional Moroccan craftsmanship in carved cedar, stucco, and zellij tilework with a monumental, French-inflected sense of scale. - Hassan II Mosque (built 1993 AD) Commissioned by King Hassan II and inaugurated in 1993, the Hassan II Mosque was designed by Michel Pinseau and built partly on a platform extending over the Atlantic. Its 210-meter minaret is among the tallest religious structures in the world, and the prayer hall accommodates more than twenty thousand worshippers, making it one of the largest mosques on earth. - Casablanca Twin Center (built 1999 AD) A pair of 115-meter mixed-use towers designed by Ricardo Bofill and Elie Mouyal and completed in 1999 at the intersection of the Maarif and Gauthier districts. The complex marked Casablanca's emergence as a modern high-rise business center and remained among the tallest buildings in Morocco for two decades. ## Population History - 1770 AD: 3,000 - 1830 AD: 600 - 1860 AD: 5,000 - 1900 AD: 25,000 - 1920 AD: 110,000 - 1950 AD: 660,000 - 1980 AD: 2,400,000 - 2000 AD: 3,100,000 - 2020 AD: 3,700,000 --- # Marrakesh, Morocco URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/morocco/marrakesh Founded: 1062 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 31.6295, -7.9811 ## Description Marrakesh was founded in 1062 by the Almoravid Berber leader Abu Bakr ibn Umar as a military base on the northern edge of the Haouz plain, and rapidly developed under Yusuf ibn Tashfin into the imperial capital of an empire stretching from Andalusia to the Sahara. Known as the Red City for its distinctive ochre walls and earthen architecture, it was the heart of the Almohad Caliphate from 1147, when the Koutoubia Mosque was raised, and was re-established as an imperial capital under the Saadians in the sixteenth century, who built the Saadian Tombs and the Ben Youssef Madrasa and raised the now-ruined El Badi Palace. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco alongside Fez, Meknes, and Rabat, and its medina — centered on the medieval marketplace of Jemaa el-Fnaa — was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985. Today Marrakesh is a major cultural and tourism center of around one million inhabitants, second in Morocco only to Casablanca for international visitors. ## Historical Rulers - 1062 AD – 1147 AD: Almoravid Dynasty Founded in 1062 by Abu Bakr ibn Umar of the Almoravid Berber confederation as a forward base for campaigns into the Maghreb, the city was rapidly expanded by Yusuf ibn Tashfin into the capital of an empire spanning Morocco and al-Andalus. The Almoravids ringed the city with its first earthen ramparts and built the Almoravid Qubba and the first Ben Youssef Mosque. - 1147 AD – 1269 AD: Almohad Caliphate The Almohads under Abd al-Mu'min captured Marrakesh in 1147, sacking much of the Almoravid fabric and rebuilding the city as their imperial capital. Under Almohad rule Marrakesh reached its medieval peak; the Koutoubia Mosque with its iconic minaret was completed in 1158, and the Kasbah quarter and the Agdal Gardens were laid out south of the medina. - 1269 AD – 1465 AD: Marinid Dynasty The Marinids took Marrakesh in 1269 but shifted the imperial capital north to Fez, reducing Marrakesh to a regional center. The city lost population and political weight during this period, though it remained an important southern hub and a base for control over the High Atlas and the trans-Saharan trade. - 1465 AD – 1554 AD: Wattasid Dynasty Under the Wattasids, who succeeded the Marinids in Fez, Marrakesh slipped further from central control and was effectively a peripheral city in a fragmenting realm. Local Sharifian movements gained strength in the south, and by the early sixteenth century the rising Saadian dynasty contested and then displaced Wattasid authority over the Haouz. - 1554 AD – 1659 AD: Saadian Dynasty The Saadians made Marrakesh their imperial capital from 1554 and used Saharan gold and the spoils of the 1591 conquest of the Songhai Empire to fund a major building program. Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur erected the lavish El Badi Palace, the Ben Youssef Madrasa was refounded, and the Saadian Tombs were laid out as the dynastic necropolis. - 1659 AD – 1912 AD: Alaouite Dynasty The Alaouite sharifs consolidated control over Marrakesh by the mid-seventeenth century. Although Moulay Ismail moved the capital to his new city of Meknes in 1672 and later sultans favored Fez or Rabat, Marrakesh remained one of the imperial cities and the chief southern capital, with later sultans and viziers adding palaces such as the Bahia and Dar Si Said in the nineteenth century. - 1912 AD – 1956 AD: French Protectorate Following the 1912 Treaty of Fez, Morocco became a French protectorate and Marrakesh fell under French administration, though the powerful pasha Thami El Glaoui governed the city and much of the south as a quasi-autonomous lord allied with the colonial regime. The French built the Gueliz quarter as a European new town west of the medina while preserving the historic core. - 1956 AD – present: Kingdom of Morocco With Moroccan independence in 1956 under Sultan — later King — Mohammed V, Marrakesh became one of the principal cities of the modern Kingdom of Morocco under the Alaouite constitutional monarchy. The medina was inscribed by UNESCO in 1985, and over the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries the city grew into a tourism, cultural, and conference hub of about one million inhabitants. ## Landmarks - Jemaa el-Fnaa (built 1100 AD) The great open square at the edge of the medina, in use since at least the Almoravid–Almohad period as a marketplace, public gathering ground, and site of executions. Today famous for its storytellers, musicians, and food stalls, Jemaa el-Fnaa was proclaimed a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2001. - Almoravid Qubba (built 1117 AD) A small domed ablution pavilion built under the Almoravid sultan Ali ibn Yusuf, the Qubba is the only Almoravid-era building still standing in Marrakesh and one of the rare surviving examples of Almoravid architecture anywhere, preserving the early muqarnas and interlaced arch motifs that would shape later Maghrebi style. - Koutoubia Mosque (built 1158 AD) The principal congregational mosque of Marrakesh, completed under the Almohad caliph Abd al-Mu'min in 1158 on the site of an earlier Almoravid mosque. Its 77-meter minaret, contemporary with the Giralda of Seville and the Hassan Tower of Rabat, is the defining landmark of the city skyline and a touchstone of Almohad imperial architecture. - Ben Youssef Madrasa (built 1565 AD) An Islamic college rebuilt in 1565 by the Saadian sultan Abdallah al-Ghalib on the foundations of an earlier Marinid madrasa. With over a hundred student cells around a richly ornamented central courtyard of zellij tilework, carved cedar, and stucco, it was one of the largest madrasas in the Maghreb and a leading center of religious learning until the early twentieth century. - Saadian Tombs (built 1578 AD) The dynastic necropolis of the Saadian sultans, laid out from 1578 within the Kasbah quarter and culminating in the lavishly decorated mausoleum of Ahmad al-Mansur. Walled up by Moulay Ismail after the dynasty's fall, the tombs were forgotten until they were rediscovered in 1917 and restored as one of the finest ensembles of late-Saadian funerary art. - El Badi Palace (built 1593 AD) A vast Saadian palace begun by Ahmad al-Mansur shortly after his victory over the Portuguese at the 1578 Battle of the Three Kings and largely completed by 1593, financed by Saharan gold and ransom payments. Its marble, onyx, and gilded decoration were systematically stripped by Moulay Ismail in the late seventeenth century to embellish Meknes, leaving the monumental ruins seen today. - Bahia Palace (built 1859 AD) A late-Alaouite palace complex begun in 1859 and greatly expanded between 1894 and 1900 by the grand vizier Ba Ahmed ibn Musa. Its courtyards, riads, and painted ceilings represent the high point of nineteenth-century Moroccan palace architecture and the wealth and ambition of the viziers who effectively governed the kingdom in the late nineteenth century. ## Population History - 1062 AD: 5,000 - 1100 AD: 30,000 - 1147 AD: 50,000 - 1200 AD: 150,000 - 1269 AD: 80,000 - 1500 AD: 40,000 - 1600 AD: 70,000 - 1700 AD: 50,000 - 1800 AD: 30,000 - 1900 AD: 50,000 - 1950 AD: 210,000 - 2000 AD: 700,000 - 2020 AD: 1,000,000 --- # Volubilis, Morocco URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/morocco/volubilis Founded: 300 BC Ended: 1755 AD Coordinates: 34.0743, -5.5552 ## Description Volubilis is an ancient city in northern Morocco, on a fertile plain near the modern city of Meknes, famous for its exceptionally well-preserved Roman ruins and mosaics. Founded around the 3rd century BCE as a Berber-Phoenician trading post, it became the principal seat of the client Kingdom of Mauretania under Juba II and his son Ptolemy of Mauretania. After Caligula's assassination of Ptolemy in 40 CE, the kingdom was annexed by Rome and Volubilis served as a major administrative center of the new province of Mauretania Tingitana. The Romans abandoned the city around 285 CE as the imperial frontier contracted under Diocletian, but a Latin-speaking, Berber Christian community survived on the site for centuries. In 788 the exiled Alid prince Idris ibn Abdallah was proclaimed there as Idris I, making Volubilis — now renamed Walila — the first capital of the Idrisid dynasty before his son Idris II founded Fez in 808. The city slowly declined through the medieval period and was finally ruined by the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, whose tremors reached deep into Morocco. Its standing arches, basilica, forum, Capitoline temple, triumphal column and mosaics of Orpheus, Bacchus and the Labors of Hercules earned it inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 40 BC: Berber-Phoenician Trading Post An indigenous Berber settlement on a fertile inland plain develops contacts with Phoenician and Carthaginian traders working the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of North Africa. The site grows into a small but prosperous market town with mixed Libyco-Berber and Punic material culture, and Punic remains the principal written language well into the Roman period. - 40 BC – 40 AD: Kingdom of Mauretania After Rome reorganizes its North African clients, Volubilis becomes one of the chief seats of the client Kingdom of Mauretania under Juba II — a Numidian prince raised in Rome and married to Cleopatra Selene, daughter of Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII — and his son Ptolemy of Mauretania. The royal court blends Hellenistic, Roman and Berber influences, and Volubilis grows into a wealthy oil-producing town. - 40 AD – 285 AD: Roman Mauretania Tingitana Following Caligula's assassination of King Ptolemy in 40 CE and the subsequent revolt of Aedemon, the kingdom is annexed and reorganized into the Roman province of Mauretania Tingitana. Volubilis, which sided with Rome during the revolt, is rewarded with Latin municipal status and becomes one of the most important administrative and commercial centers of the province. The city reaches its peak in the late 2nd and early 3rd centuries CE with monumental construction under Marcus Aurelius, Commodus, Septimius Severus and Caracalla, producing olive oil for export across the western Mediterranean. - 285 AD – 788 AD: Sub-Roman Christian Volubilis Under Diocletian, Rome withdraws its garrisons from most of Mauretania Tingitana and the imperial frontier contracts north to a small strip around Tingis. Volubilis, left outside direct Roman control, continues as a reduced but still functioning Latin-speaking, increasingly Christian town inhabited by a mixed Romano-Berber population. Inscriptions in Latin and use of the Roman calendar survive for centuries after the formal Roman departure, even as the surrounding region falls under Berber tribal authority and, from the late 7th century, the early Arab conquest of the Maghreb. - 788 AD – 974 AD: Idrisid Dynasty (known as "Walila") Idris ibn Abdallah, an Alid refugee fleeing the Abbasid massacre at Fakhkh, is welcomed by the Berber Awraba tribe and proclaimed imam at Walila — the Arabic name for Volubilis — in 788. The town serves as the first capital of the new Idrisid dynasty until his son Idris II founds Fez in 808 and shifts the political center there. Walila remains an Idrisid stronghold and one of the earliest Muslim urban centers in the western Maghreb. - 974 AD – 1755 AD: Almoravid Dynasty (known as "Walila") After the fall of the Idrisids the city loses its political role and is progressively eclipsed by Fez and later Meknes. Through successive Almoravid, Almohad, Marinid, Saadi and Alaouite periods Walila shrinks to a small village reusing the ruins, with stone systematically robbed for new construction, including the imperial building program of Moulay Ismail at Meknes in the late 17th century. The site is finally left in ruins after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, whose shocks toppled many of the surviving Roman structures. ## Landmarks - Forum of Volubilis (built 50 AD) Paved civic square at the heart of the Roman city, laid out in the early 1st century CE and remodeled as the city was promoted to municipium. Surrounded by the basilica, Capitoline temple and a series of honorific statues, it served as the political, judicial and commercial center of Volubilis throughout the Roman period. - House of Orpheus (built 150 AD) Large 2nd-century CE Roman townhouse in the southern quarter, named for its central mosaic showing Orpheus charming the animals with his lyre. The complex also contains a second mosaic of Amphitrite in a chariot drawn by a sea-horse and is one of the most complete domus plans surviving at the site. - House of the Labors of Hercules (built 200 AD) Roman residence north of the decumanus maximus, famous for a polychrome mosaic floor depicting the Twelve Labors of Hercules within medallions. The mosaic is one of the most complete Herculean cycles known from the Roman west. - Basilica of Volubilis (built 217 AD) Large Roman judicial and administrative basilica on the eastern side of the forum, built under the emperor Caracalla in the early 3rd century CE. Its tall Corinthian columns, partially re-erected in the 20th century, are among the most iconic features of the site. - Arch of Caracalla (built 217 AD) Triumphal arch built in 217 CE by the procurator Marcus Aurelius Sebastenus in honor of the emperor Caracalla and his mother Julia Domna, marking the western end of the decumanus maximus. The arch combined a single archway with rich relief sculpture and a bronze chariot group on top, parts of which have been recovered. - Capitoline Temple (built 218 AD) Temple dedicated to the Capitoline triad of Jupiter, Juno and Minerva, rebuilt in monumental form in 218 CE under Macrinus and Diadumenian after the suppression of a revolt. It stood on a raised podium facing the forum, fronted by a flight of steps and a colonnaded altar court. - House of Bacchus (built 250 AD) Late Roman townhouse decorated with elaborate mythological mosaics, including the discovery of the infant Bacchus and scenes of the four seasons. Its surviving floors illustrate the continued prosperity and Mediterranean cultural orientation of Volubilis in the 3rd century CE, on the eve of Roman withdrawal. ## Population History - 300 BC: 1,000 - 1 AD: 5,000 - 200 AD: 20,000 - 285 AD: 10,000 - 600 AD: 5,000 - 788 AD: 3,000 - 900 AD: 5,000 - 1100 AD: 2,000 - 1500 AD: 500 - 1755 AD: null --- # Bagan, Myanmar URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/myanmar/bagan Founded: 849 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 21.1717, 94.8585 ## Description Bagan, historically known as Pagan, was the capital of the Pagan Kingdom on the eastern bank of the Irrawaddy River in central Myanmar. The walled city was formally founded in 849 CE by King Pyinbya, but it was King Anawrahta (r. 1044-1077) who unified Burma under Bagan's rule and adopted Theravada Buddhism as the state religion, launching the great age of temple-building. Over roughly 250 years, more than 10,000 Buddhist temples, pagodas, and monasteries were built across the plain; about 2,200 survive today on an archaeological zone of around 104 km². The Mongol Yuan campaigns of the late 13th century shattered Pagan's political power and the kingdom effectively collapsed by 1297 CE, reducing the former imperial capital to a small religious town — but the temples remained active places of Buddhist worship and a Burmese community persisted in the villages clustered among the ruins, never breaking continuity with the site. Through the Shan, Toungoo and Konbaung successor states, then British Burma, then independent Myanmar, the same plain remained continuously inhabited. The 1975 Bagan earthquake damaged many temples. In 1990 the military junta forcibly relocated the residents of Old Bagan, who had been living within the archaeological zone, to a newly built settlement a few kilometers south now known as New Bagan. Together with the older town of Nyaung-U on the northern edge of the zone, Old Bagan and New Bagan today form a continuously inhabited urban cluster of roughly 100,000 people living among and tending the surviving temples. Military government restorations from the 1990s onward were widely criticized for ahistorical concrete additions; UNESCO nonetheless inscribed Bagan as a World Heritage Site in 2019. The active temples, the resident population, and the unbroken Buddhist religious life mark Bagan as a continuously living city rather than a dead archaeological site. ## Historical Rulers - 849 AD – 1044 AD: Early Pagan Kingdom Traditional accounts credit King Pyinbya with formally walling and founding the city in 849 CE on a site that had seen Pyu and Burman settlement since around the 7th century. The early Pagan polity is a modest agrarian kingdom along the middle Irrawaddy, gradually absorbing surrounding Pyu city-states and competing local rulers. - 1044 AD – 1287 AD: Pagan Kingdom under Anawrahta and successors King Anawrahta (r. 1044-1077) unifies the territory that becomes Burma and adopts Theravada Buddhism as the state religion, drawing on monks and scriptures from Mon Thaton. Under Anawrahta, Kyansittha, Alaungsithu, Narapatisithu and their successors, Bagan becomes the political, economic and religious heart of mainland Southeast Asia, sponsoring the construction of thousands of brick temples, stupas and monasteries across the plain. The kingdom reaches its peak in the 12th and early 13th centuries. - 1287 AD – 1297 AD: Mongol Yuan campaigns and Pagan collapse After Pagan's defiance of Kublai Khan, Yuan Mongol forces campaign in upper Burma in the 1280s; the decisive military and political crisis of 1287 ends central Pagan authority, though scholars debate whether Mongol armies sacked the city itself or whether collapse was driven by internal revolt and the rise of regional Shan-Burman strongmen. By 1297 the last Pagan king is deposed and the capital function is effectively extinguished, even though the site continues as an active religious center inhabited by a much-reduced Burmese community tending the temples. - 1297 AD – 1555 AD: Shan principalities of Upper Burma After the fall of the Pagan dynasty, upper Burma fragments into competing Shan-led successor polities (Myinsaing, Pinya, Sagaing, and especially the Ava kingdom founded in 1364). Bagan is no longer a capital, but the plain and its temples remain under the nominal authority of these successor states. A reduced population stays among the ruins; the major pagodas continue to receive donations and pilgrimages, and Burmese village life persists across the archaeological zone. - 1555 AD – 1752 AD: Toungoo Dynasty Bayinnaung of the Toungoo Dynasty conquers Ava and reunifies Burma in 1555, bringing the Bagan region back under a single Burmese throne. Toungoo and later Restored Toungoo kings sponsor repairs of major Pagan-era pagodas and treat Bagan as a sacred ancestral site of the Burmese monarchy. The plain remains a quiet religious province with small villages clustered near the temples. - 1752 AD – 1885 AD: Konbaung Dynasty The Konbaung Dynasty, founded by Alaungpaya in 1752, governs Burma until the British conquest. Konbaung kings continue to patronize and restore Bagan's pagodas as legitimating sites of Burmese Buddhist kingship; 18th and 19th century murals are added to the interiors of older temples (notably at Sulamani). The villages of Old Bagan and Nyaung-U exist as small market and pilgrimage settlements throughout this period. - 1885 AD – 1948 AD: British Empire Following the Third Anglo-Burmese War, Britain annexes Upper Burma in 1885 and Bagan falls under colonial rule, administered first as part of British India and from 1937 as a separate British colony. The Archaeological Survey begins systematic documentation of the temples; the resident villages continue their daily life among the ruins, and pilgrimage traffic to Shwezigon and Ananda persists. - 1948 AD – present: Union of Burma and Republic of the Union of Myanmar Burma gains independence in 1948 as the Union of Burma, later renamed Myanmar in 1989. The 1975 earthquake severely damages many temples, prompting a long campaign of state-led (and internationally controversial) reconstruction. In 1990 the military junta forcibly relocates the inhabitants of Old Bagan, who had lived within the temple zone for centuries, to a newly constructed settlement a few kilometers south now called New Bagan, in order to clear the archaeological core for tourism. The combined population of Old Bagan, New Bagan and Nyaung-U today totals roughly 100,000, all living within or adjacent to the World Heritage zone inscribed by UNESCO in 2019. ## Landmarks - Shwezigon Pagoda (built 1102 AD) Massive gilded stupa near Nyaung-U begun by King Anawrahta and completed under King Kyansittha around 1102 CE. Built to enshrine relics of the Buddha, the Shwezigon set the paradigm for the classic Burmese bell-shaped stupa and became the prototype for later royal pagodas across mainland Southeast Asia. - Ananda Temple (built 1105 AD) Cruciform temple completed in 1105 CE under King Kyansittha, considered the masterpiece of early Bagan-period architecture. The interior houses four colossal standing Buddhas of the past kalpa facing the cardinal directions, set within a corridor system lit by perforated stone windows. - Thatbyinnyu Temple (built 1144 AD) Two-tiered temple completed around 1144 CE under King Alaungsithu, rising about 61 meters above the plain — the tallest temple at Bagan. Its vertical, multi-storeyed form marks the transition from the earlier horizontal Mon-influenced style to the later soaring Bagan idiom. - Dhammayangyi Temple (built 1170 AD) Largest temple at Bagan by ground footprint, built around 1170 CE during the reign of King Narathu. Famed for the extraordinary precision of its brickwork — joints so tight that, according to tradition, the king executed masons whose work allowed a needle to pass between bricks. The inner ambulatory was sealed in antiquity and the central shrine remains partly inaccessible. - Sulamani Temple (built 1183 AD) Two-storeyed temple built in 1183 CE by King Narapatisithu, known as the Crowning Jewel of Bagan. Its symmetrical plan, refined brick decoration, and well-preserved 18th and 19th century murals over Pagan-era walls make it a key reference for late-period Bagan architecture. - Htilominlo Temple (built 1218 AD) Three-storeyed brick temple completed around 1218 CE under King Htilominlo (Nadaungmya), one of the last great royal foundations before Pagan's 13th century decline. Notable for its elaborate exterior stucco ornament, glazed terracotta plaques, and four seated Buddhas on each of the two main levels. ## Population History - 849 AD: 5,000 - 1044 AD: 30,000 - 1100 AD: 150,000 - 1200 AD: 180,000 - 1287 AD: 100,000 - 1297 AD: 50,000 - 1500 AD: 10,000 - 1800 AD: 5,000 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 1950 AD: 10,000 - 1990 AD: 20,000 - 2020 AD: 100,000 --- # Amsterdam, Netherlands URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/netherlands/amsterdam Founded: 1275 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 52.3676, 4.9041 ## Description Amsterdam originated in the late 12th century as a small fishing settlement on a dam built across the Amstel River, from which it takes its name. Count Floris V of Holland granted the village a toll privilege in 1275, the traditional founding date, and full city rights followed in 1306; the town joined the Hanseatic League in the 14th century and grew into a major trading port. During the Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century Amsterdam became the world's leading commercial and financial center, home to the Dutch East India Company (VOC, 1602), the first modern stock exchange, and painters such as Rembrandt and Vermeer, while the iconic concentric canal ring was excavated between 1612 and the 1660s. After French annexation from 1795 to 1813 the city joined the new Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815; Nazi occupation from 1940 to 1945 brought the deportation of most Dutch Jews, including Anne Frank, who hid in a canal house from 1942 to 1944. Today Amsterdam is the cosmopolitan, liberal capital of the Netherlands with roughly 880,000 inhabitants in the city and about 2.5 million in the metro area, its 17th-century canal ring inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010. ## Historical Rulers - 1275 AD – 1433 AD: Dutch Republic Count Floris V of Holland granted Amsterdam a toll privilege in 1275, the traditional founding act of the town. The settlement received full city rights in 1306 and rose through Baltic and North Sea trade as a Hanseatic port within the County of Holland. - 1433 AD – 1482 AD: Dutch Republic Philip the Good of Burgundy acquired Holland in 1433, integrating Amsterdam into the consolidating Burgundian Low Countries. The city continued to expand its maritime trade under Burgundian dynastic rule. - 1482 AD – 1581 AD: Habsburg Monarchy After Mary of Burgundy's marriage to Maximilian of Habsburg, the Low Countries passed to the Habsburg dynasty and later to the Spanish line under Charles V and Philip II. Amsterdam grew rapidly as a commercial port but was drawn into the religious and political tensions that triggered the Dutch Revolt. - 1581 AD – 1795 AD: Dutch Republic With the Act of Abjuration in 1581 the northern provinces broke from Habsburg Spain to form the United Provinces. Amsterdam became the economic engine of the Dutch Republic and the heart of its 17th-century Golden Age, hosting the Dutch East India Company from 1602, the first modern stock exchange, and a vast canal-ring expansion that turned the city into the world's leading port and financial center. - 1795 AD – 1810 AD: Dutch Republic French revolutionary armies overthrew the Dutch Republic in 1795 and installed the Batavian Republic, a client state of France. In 1806 Napoleon converted it into the Kingdom of Holland under his brother Louis Bonaparte, who designated Amsterdam as the royal capital and took up residence in the former Town Hall on the Dam. - 1810 AD – 1813 AD: France Dissatisfied with his brother's rule, Napoleon annexed the Kingdom of Holland directly into the French Empire in 1810, demoting Amsterdam to a provincial capital. The Continental System and British blockade severely damaged the city's trade until French withdrawal in 1813. - 1813 AD – 1940 AD: Kingdom of the Netherlands After Napoleon's defeat the House of Orange-Nassau returned and the Kingdom of the Netherlands was established in 1813-1815, with Amsterdam designated the constitutional capital. The city industrialized in the 19th century, regained importance as a port with the opening of the North Sea Canal in 1876, and saw renewed cultural prominence through institutions such as the Rijksmuseum. - 1940 AD – 1945 AD: Nazi Germany German forces invaded the neutral Netherlands in May 1940 and occupied Amsterdam for five years. The occupation devastated the city's Jewish community: deportations from the Hollandsche Schouwburg and other assembly points killed roughly three quarters of Dutch Jews, including Anne Frank, who hid with her family in a canal house from 1942 to 1944 before being deported. - 1945 AD – present: Kingdom of the Netherlands Liberation in May 1945 restored Dutch sovereignty under the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Amsterdam rebuilt its economy, expanded as a financial, cultural, and tourist hub, and saw its 17th-century canal ring inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010; today it remains the constitutional capital with about 880,000 inhabitants in the city and roughly 2.5 million across the metropolitan region. ## Landmarks - Oude Kerk (built 1306 AD) The Old Church on the edge of Amsterdam's red-light district is the city's oldest surviving building, consecrated in 1306 around the time Amsterdam received its city rights. It served as the principal parish church of medieval Amsterdam and remains a landmark of the historic core. - Canal Ring (built 1612 AD) The Grachtengordel, the concentric ring of Herengracht, Keizersgracht, and Prinsengracht canals, was laid out from 1612 through the 1660s as a planned urban expansion of Dutch Golden Age Amsterdam. The 17th-century canal district was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010 and defines the city's iconic townscape. - Westerkerk (built 1631 AD) Designed by Hendrick de Keyser and completed in 1631, the Westerkerk is a Renaissance Protestant church on the Prinsengracht whose tall tower, the Westertoren, dominates the western canal ring. The painter Rembrandt van Rijn was buried in the church in 1669. - Anne Frank House (built 1635 AD) The canal house at Prinsengracht 263 was built in 1635 as a merchant's home and warehouse. From 1942 to 1944 the secret annex behind the building sheltered Anne Frank, her family, and four others during the Nazi occupation; the house opened as a museum in 1960 and is one of the most visited memorials of the Holocaust. - Royal Palace of Amsterdam (built 1655 AD) Built between 1648 and 1655 on the Dam square as the new Town Hall of the Dutch Republic, the structure designed by Jacob van Campen was hailed as the eighth wonder of the world at its completion. Louis Bonaparte converted it into a royal palace in 1808, and it now serves as one of the official residences of the Dutch monarch. - Rijksmuseum (built 1885 AD) The Dutch national museum's current building on the Museumplein, designed by Pierre Cuypers, opened in 1885 to house the state art collection. It contains masterpieces of the Dutch Golden Age including Rembrandt's Night Watch and reopened after a major renovation in 2013. - Van Gogh Museum (built 1973 AD) Opened in 1973 in a building designed by Gerrit Rietveld, the Van Gogh Museum on the Museumplein holds the world's largest collection of works by Vincent van Gogh, including paintings, drawings, and letters assembled by the artist's family. ## Population History - 1275 AD: 1,000 - 1300 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 14,000 - 1600 AD: 65,000 - 1650 AD: 175,000 - 1700 AD: 200,000 - 1795 AD: 217,000 - 1850 AD: 225,000 - 1900 AD: 510,000 - 1939 AD: 800,000 - 1945 AD: 770,000 - 1980 AD: 675,000 - 2000 AD: 735,000 - 2020 AD: 880,000 --- # Lagos, Nigeria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/nigeria/lagos Founded: 1400 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 6.4541, 3.3947 ## Description Lagos is Nigeria's largest city and the most populous urban agglomeration in Africa. It originated as an Awori Yoruba settlement on a defensible lagoon island around the 15th century, known in Yoruba as Eko, and became a Yoruba kingdom ruled by an Oba. Portuguese mariners reached the lagoon in 1472 and gave it the name Lagos, meaning lakes in Portuguese. From the 17th to the 19th century the city operated as a major Atlantic slave trade port. British naval forces bombarded the city in 1851 and formally annexed it as a Crown Colony in 1861, after which Lagos served as the colonial capital of Southern Nigeria and, from 1914, of the unified Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. It remained the capital of independent Nigeria from 1960 until 1991, when Abuja replaced it. Today Lagos is one of the fastest-growing megacities in the world, anchoring Nigeria's oil-driven economy, the Nollywood film industry, and West African finance. ## Historical Rulers - 1400 AD – 1861 AD: Awori Yoruba Kingdom of Lagos (known as "Eko") Awori Yoruba settlers established a fishing and trading community on Lagos Island, which grew into a kingdom ruled by an Oba. Following Portuguese contact in 1472 the city became increasingly entangled in Atlantic maritime trade, and from the 17th to the early 19th century it functioned as one of West Africa's principal slave trade ports. British naval forces bombarded the city in the 1851 Reduction of Lagos to suppress the slave trade and depose the reigning Oba. - 1861 AD – 1914 AD: British Empire Oba Dosunmu formally ceded Lagos to the British in 1861, establishing the Lagos Colony. The settlement became the administrative and commercial hub of British activity along the Bight of Benin, was attached to the Gold Coast briefly, and from 1900 served as capital of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate. - 1914 AD – 1960 AD: British Empire After the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorates in 1914, Lagos served as the colonial capital of the unified Nigeria. It expanded rapidly with railway, port, and administrative infrastructure, drawing migrants from across West Africa and becoming the political and economic center of British Nigeria. - 1960 AD – present: Federal Republic of Nigeria Lagos became capital of independent Nigeria in 1960 and remained so until 1991, when the federal capital was transferred to the purpose-built city of Abuja. Despite losing capital status, Lagos has continued to grow into one of the largest and fastest-expanding megacities in the world, anchoring Nigeria's oil economy, the Nollywood film industry, and West African finance. ## Landmarks - Iga Idunganran (built 1450 AD) The official palace of the Oba of Lagos on Lagos Island, traditionally dated to the 15th century. It has served as the royal seat of the Awori Yoruba kingship through pre-colonial, colonial, and modern periods. - Popo Aguda Brazilian Quarter (built 1850 AD) A historic neighborhood on Lagos Island settled from the mid-19th century by Aguda, freed Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Cuban returnees. Its distinctive Brazilian-influenced architecture remains a defining heritage zone of central Lagos. - Holy Cross Cathedral (built 1881 AD) The Roman Catholic cathedral of the Archdiocese of Lagos, founded in 1881 on Lagos Island. It is one of the oldest surviving colonial-era ecclesiastical buildings in the city. - National Museum Lagos (built 1957 AD) Founded in 1957 under the direction of Kenneth Murray in Onikan, Lagos Island, the museum holds major collections of Nigerian antiquities including Nok terracottas, Benin bronzes, and Yoruba sculpture. - Third Mainland Bridge (built 1990 AD) An 11.8 kilometer bridge across the Lagos Lagoon linking Lagos Island to the mainland via Iddo and Oworonshoki. Completed in 1990, it was the longest bridge in Africa for many years and remains a critical artery of the megacity. - Nike Art Gallery (built 2009 AD) A five-story private gallery founded by artist Nike Davies-Okundaye in Lekki, displaying thousands of works by Nigerian and West African artists. It has become one of the largest contemporary art venues in Africa. ## Population History - 1400 AD: 1,000 - 1700 AD: 10,000 - 1851 AD: 30,000 - 1900 AD: 75,000 - 1950 AD: 325,000 - 1980 AD: 2,570,000 - 2000 AD: 7,280,000 - 2020 AD: 14,860,000 --- # Nicosia, North Cyprus URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/north-cyprus/nicosia Founded: 1050 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 35.1761, 33.364 ## Description Nicosia, known in Turkish as Lefkoşa, is the divided capital of Cyprus, occupying the site of the ancient Cypriot city-kingdom of Ledra in the broad central plain of the island known as the Mesaoria. Ledra appears in the 673 BCE tribute list of the Neo-Assyrian king Esarhaddon as one of the ten Cypriot kingdoms that submitted to Assyria, and remained one of the minor Iron Age polities of the island through the Achaemenid period. Under Ptolemaic and Roman administration the city declined into a regional inland town overshadowed by the coastal capitals of Salamis and Paphos. Reorganised in the seventh century after Arab naval raids forced the abandonment of the coastal capital at Salamis, Byzantine Lefkosia emerged as the new administrative center of Cyprus by the tenth century and became the capital of the Lusignan Kingdom of Cyprus in 1192. The Lusignan court built the Cathedral of Saint Sophia and adjacent palaces at the heart of the city, and the Venetians enclosed the urban core in a circular star-shaped fortification of eleven bastions in 1567 that still defines the historic old town. Selim II conquered Nicosia after a 45-day siege in 1570, converting Saint Sophia into the Selimiye Mosque and inaugurating three centuries of Ottoman provincial administration. The city passed under British colonial administration in 1878 and emerged as the capital of the independent Republic of Cyprus in 1960, but the 1974 Turkish military intervention divided the city along the United Nations Buffer Zone that runs through the heart of the walled town. North Nicosia, where the Lusignan, Venetian, and Ottoman monumental core survives, has been the de facto capital of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus since the declaration of independence in 1983. ## Historical Rulers - 1050 BC – 312 BC: Cypriot City-Kingdoms (known as "Ledra") Iron Age Ledra emerged in the Cypro-Geometric period on the central Mesaoria plain of Cyprus as one of the minor Cypriot city-kingdoms, and is first attested in the 673 BCE tribute list of the Neo-Assyrian king Esarhaddon under the name Sillu(a). The kingdom remained a secondary inland polity through successive periods of Assyrian, Egyptian, and Achaemenid suzerainty, never matching the prominence of the coastal centers at Salamis, Kition, or Paphos. - 312 BC – 58 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Ledra") Ptolemy I absorbed Ledra along with the other Cypriot kingdoms in 312 BCE and administered Cyprus as a single province from the coastal capitals. Hellenistic Ledra contracted into a minor inland town as Ptolemaic commercial and administrative activity concentrated at Salamis, Paphos, and Kition. - 58 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Ledra") Rome annexed Cyprus in 58 BCE and Ledra continued as a small regional Roman town during the imperial centuries, retaining a bishopric attested at the Council of Sardica in 343 CE under the bishop Triphyllios. The site saw no major monumental development relative to the coastal centers. - 395 AD – 1191 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Lefkosia") Under Eastern Roman administration the city, increasingly called Lefkosia, slowly rose in importance after the Arab naval raids of the seventh to ninth centuries forced the abandonment of the coastal capital at Salamis and the population shifted inland. By the tenth century Lefkosia had become the principal administrative city of Byzantine Cyprus, and after the 1185 revolt of Isaac Komnenos, the renegade Byzantine prince made it his capital before Richard the Lionheart conquered the island in 1191. - 1192 AD – 1489 AD: Kingdom of Cyprus When Guy of Lusignan acquired Cyprus in 1192 he made Nicosia the capital of the new Crusader kingdom, transforming the inland Byzantine town into a Latin court city over the following century. The Cathedral of Saint Sophia, begun around 1209 and consecrated in 1326, became the coronation church of the Lusignan dynasty alongside the royal palace, the Hospitaller and Templar commanderies, and dozens of Latin and Orthodox churches that filled the medieval walled enclosure. - 1489 AD – 1571 AD: Republic of Venice Venice acquired Cyprus in 1489 through the abdication of Caterina Cornaro and made Nicosia the seat of its Cypriot governor, but the older Lusignan walls were inadequate against gunpowder warfare. Between 1567 and 1570 Venice levelled the medieval walls, reduced the urban area, and built the surviving star-shaped fortification of eleven bastions designed by Giulio Savorgnano, but the new defences were unfinished when the Ottomans besieged the city in 1570. - 1571 AD – 1878 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Lefkoşa") Lala Mustafa Pasha's army captured Nicosia after a 45-day siege ending on 9 September 1570, killing roughly 20,000 of the city's defenders and inhabitants, and Sultan Selim II formally incorporated Cyprus into the Ottoman Empire in 1571 as a new eyalet. The Cathedral of Saint Sophia was converted into the Selimiye Mosque, the Bedesten was opened in the former Church of Saint Nicholas, and Sokollu Mehmet Paşa's son-in-law Mustafa Paşa endowed the Büyük Han caravanserai in 1572 as the principal commercial structure of the Ottoman city. - 1878 AD – 1960 AD: British Empire Britain assumed administration of Cyprus from the Ottoman Empire in 1878 under the Cyprus Convention and formally annexed the island in 1914 at the outbreak of the First World War, making it a Crown Colony in 1925 with Nicosia as the capital. British policy permitted the new city to expand beyond the Venetian walls and laid out the modern grid suburbs, while intercommunal tensions between the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities escalated during the 1955-1959 EOKA campaign against British rule. - 1960 AD – 1974 AD: Republic of Cyprus Nicosia became the capital of the new Republic of Cyprus on 16 August 1960 under the Zürich-London bi-communal constitution, but the constitutional balance collapsed in 1963-1964 intercommunal violence that produced the first Green Line separating Greek and Turkish neighborhoods of the city. The arrangement persisted as a fragile partial division until the Greek-junta-backed coup of 15 July 1974 against President Makarios and the Turkish military intervention of 20 July. - 1974 AD – 2026 AD: Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (known as "Lefkoşa") Following the Turkish military intervention of 20 July 1974 the northern half of Nicosia came under Turkish Cypriot administration, formalised as the Turkish Federated State of Cyprus in 1975 and declared independent as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus on 15 November 1983. The de facto state, recognised diplomatically only by Türkiye, administers North Nicosia (Lefkoşa) as its capital with the historic walled town's Selimiye Mosque, Büyük Han, Bedesten, and most of the Lusignan and Ottoman monuments on its side of the United Nations Buffer Zone. ## Landmarks - Selimiye Mosque (Cathedral of Saint Sophia) (built 1209 AD) Built between 1209 and 1326 as the Latin coronation cathedral of the Lusignan kings of Cyprus, the Cathedral of Saint Sophia of Nicosia is the largest surviving Gothic church in Cyprus, modeled on the cathedrals of northern France. Following the Ottoman capture of Nicosia in 1570 the cathedral was converted into the Selimiye Mosque, with two minarets added to the western facade and the medieval Christian decoration removed; the building remains the principal monument of the walled old town. - Bedesten (built 1300 AD) The Bedesten of Nicosia incorporates the structure of the medieval Latin Church of Saint Nicholas of the English, built in the fourteenth century as the chapel of the Knights Hospitaller commandery and substantially expanded under Venice. Following the Ottoman conquest the building was converted into a covered cloth market and grain storage, and survives in mixed Lusignan-Venetian-Ottoman form next to the Selimiye Mosque. - Venetian Walls of Nicosia (built 1567 AD) The Venetian walls of Nicosia were built between 1567 and 1570 to replace the older Lusignan circuit, reducing the urban area to a roughly circular 4.5-kilometer enclosure of eleven heart-shaped bastions designed by Giulio Savorgnano as one of the most advanced examples of the trace italienne. The walls were unfinished when the Ottomans besieged the city in 1570 and still define the historic old town of Nicosia, with the Green Line buffer zone now running across them. - Büyük Han (built 1572 AD) The Büyük Han is the principal surviving Ottoman caravanserai of Cyprus, built in 1572 by Müezzinzade Ali Pasha shortly after the Ottoman conquest as a commercial hostelry with a central octagonal mescit on a stone platform within the courtyard. The two-story stone building survives in the heart of North Nicosia and now houses craft workshops and small museums. ## Population History - 1050 BC: 500 - 700 BC: 1,500 - 400 BC: 3,000 - 0 AD: 2,500 - 500 AD: 3,000 - 800 AD: 6,000 - 1200 AD: 10,000 - 1400 AD: 18,000 - 1570 AD: 20,000 - 1700 AD: 16,000 - 1900 AD: 22,000 - 1960 AD: 100,000 - 2000 AD: 280,000 - 2025 AD: 330,000 --- # Harappa, Pakistan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/pakistan/harappa Founded: 3300 BC Ended: 1300 BC Coordinates: 30.9024, 72.8258 ## Description Harappa was one of the major cities of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization, known for its well-planned streets, advanced drainage systems, and impressive architecture. Located in present-day Punjab, Pakistan, on the left bank of the former course of the Ravi River, it was a key urban center during the Bronze Age and participated in the vast trade and cultural network linking the Indus Valley with Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf. The city is also famous for its undeciphered script, leaving the original name of the settlement unknown; "Harappa" derives from the nearby modern village. After the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilization around 1300 BCE the site was abandoned and gradually buried; it was rediscovered in the 19th century during British colonial surveys (notably Alexander Cunningham's investigations in the 1850s-1870s) and has since been the subject of continuous archaeological excavation, today managed as a protected heritage site by the Government of Pakistan. ## Historical Rulers - 3300 BC – 1900 BC: Indus Valley Civilization (known as "*Harappa") Harappa emerged as one of the principal urban centers of the Indus Valley (Harappan) Civilization, a Bronze Age culture characterized by planned grid-pattern cities, standardized fired-brick architecture, sophisticated drainage, uniform weights and measures, and a still-undeciphered script. During the Mature Harappan phase (c. 2600-1900 BCE) the city reached its peak, participating in long-distance trade with Mesopotamia, Oman and the Persian Gulf, and functioning as a regional administrative and craft-production hub. - 1900 BC – 1300 BC: Decline of the Indus Valley Civilization (known as "*Harappa") During the Late/Post-Urban Harappan phase the city underwent gradual de-urbanization, with the breakdown of centralized administration, abandonment of standardized weights and seals, and shifts in burial practice visible in the Cemetery H culture. The collapse is attributed to a combination of climatic deterioration (weakening monsoon, aridification) and hydrological change in the Ghaggar-Hakra/Saraswati river system, leading to the dispersal of population eastward and the eventual abandonment of the site by around 1300 BCE. ## Landmarks - Defensive Walls and Gateways (built 2800 BC) Harappa was enclosed by thick mud-brick walls with offset gateways and towers for security, flood protection, and trade control. The walls' scale and complex design reflect one of the Indus Civilization’s most impressive engineering achievements. - Mound AB (built 2700 BC) Mound AB, rising 15 meters, housed public and elite buildings with standardized brickwork, drainage systems, wells, and signs of craft specialization. Administrative seals and measures found here underline Harappa’s sophisticated urban planning and centralized governance. - Granary of Harappa (built 2600 BC) The Granary of Harappa, a massive brick platform divided into 12 units with ventilation ducts, likely stored surplus grain for famine protection and taxation. Built on a raised platform to avoid flooding, it reflects significant administrative coordination, though some scholars suggest alternative functions like a public hall. - Great Bath (built 2500 BC) Harappa featured sophisticated bathing structures similar to Mohenjo-daro’s Great Bath, with a large, bitumen-sealed basin and an advanced drainage system. Likely used for purification rituals, it demonstrates Harappa’s hydraulic engineering and hints at important religious practices. - Cemetery H (built 1900 BC) Cemetery H, dating from 1900–1300 BCE, shows shifts in burial practices from extended bodies to urn burials and cremations, alongside changes in pottery and housing. It provides crucial insights into the cultural transformations during Harappa’s decline. ## Population History - 3300 BC: 5,000 - 2500 BC: 15,000 - 2400 BC: 20,000 - 2300 BC: 20,000 - 2200 BC: 20,000 - 2100 BC: 15,000 - 1301 BC: 10,000 - 1300 BC: null --- # Mohenjo-Daro, Pakistan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/pakistan/mohenjo-daro Founded: 2600 BC Ended: 1700 BC Coordinates: 27.3286, 68.1378 ## Description Mohenjo-Daro was one of the two largest cities of the Indus Valley (Harappan) Civilization, paired in prominence with Harappa some 600 km to the northeast. Located on the right bank of the Indus River in modern Sindh province, Pakistan, it was a Bronze Age metropolis of perhaps 30,000-40,000 inhabitants at its peak, famous for its rigorously planned grid layout, standardized fired-brick architecture, citadel mound with monumental public buildings such as the Great Bath and Great Granary, and an unprecedented covered drainage system reaching individual houses. The undeciphered Indus script means the city's original name is unknown; "Mohenjo-Daro", meaning "Mound of the Dead" in Sindhi, is a modern label. After the climate- and hydrology-driven collapse of the Indus Valley Civilization the site was abandoned by around 1700 BCE and gradually buried. It was rediscovered by R. D. Banerji in 1922 and excavated on a large scale by John Marshall (1922-1931) and later by Mortimer Wheeler (1944-1950); it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980 and is today threatened by salinity, groundwater damage, and pressures from tourism and conservation funding. ## Historical Rulers - 2600 BC – 1900 BC: Indus Valley Civilization (known as "*Mohenjo-Daro") Mohenjo-Daro emerges in the Mature Harappan phase as one of the principal urban centers of the Indus Valley Civilization, alongside Harappa. The city is laid out on a strict grid plan with a fortified citadel mound to the west and a much larger lower city to the east, built almost entirely of standardized fired bricks. Its civic infrastructure — the Great Bath, the Great Granary, a covered drainage network, public wells, and uniform weights and measures — reflects centralized planning and a sophisticated administrative tradition. The city participates in long-distance trade with Mesopotamia, Oman, and the Persian Gulf, and uses the still-undeciphered Indus script on seals and tablets. - 1900 BC – 1700 BC: Decline of the Indus Valley Civilization (known as "*Mohenjo-Daro") During the Late Harappan phase Mohenjo-Daro undergoes rapid de-urbanization. Standardized brick construction, seals, and weights fall out of use; the drainage system silts up; civic architecture is no longer maintained, and parts of the lower city are reoccupied with cruder, encroaching dwellings. The decline is attributed to a combination of weakening monsoon and aridification, repeated Indus flooding, and hydrological shifts in the Ghaggar-Hakra/Saraswati system, which dispersed population eastward. The city is essentially abandoned by around 1700 BCE. ## Landmarks - Citadel Mound (built 2600 BC) The raised western mound of Mohenjo-Daro, built on a massive mud-brick platform some 12 meters high, housed the city's monumental public buildings, including the Great Bath, the Great Granary, and the so-called Assembly Hall. Its elevated, fortified position separated civic and probably ritual functions from the residential lower city. - Great Bath (built 2500 BC) A large rectangular tank on the citadel, roughly 12 by 7 meters and nearly 2.5 meters deep, lined with finely fitted fired bricks and waterproofed with bitumen. Surrounded by a colonnaded portico, with stairs at either end and a drain leading to a corbelled outlet, it is widely interpreted as a public ritual or purification pool — the earliest known public water-tank of its scale anywhere in the world. - Great Granary (built 2500 BC) A large brick structure on the citadel, comprising a podium of parallel rectangular blocks separated by air ducts, originally interpreted by Wheeler as a state granary for storing surplus grain. Although later scholarship has questioned this function and proposed alternatives such as a warehouse or public hall, it remains one of the largest monumental buildings of the Indus Valley Civilization. - Lower City Grid (built 2500 BC) The vast residential lower city, laid out on an orthogonal street grid oriented to the cardinal directions, with broad main avenues subdividing the city into blocks of densely packed houses built of standardized fired brick. Almost every house has private wells and bathing platforms connected to a covered street drainage system — an unmatched level of urban sanitation for the Bronze Age. - Stupa Mound (built 2500 BC) The highest point of the citadel, today crowned by the remains of a Buddhist-era stupa built more than two millennia after the city's abandonment. The underlying Harappan-period structures are buried beneath this much later monument, which marks the visible profile of Mohenjo-Daro on the modern skyline. - Assembly Hall (built 2400 BC) A large pillared hall on the citadel, roughly 27 meters square, with four rows of brick column bases supporting what was likely a flat wooden roof. Its size and central plan suggest a civic or ceremonial gathering space, though, as with other major Mohenjo-Daro buildings, the absence of a deciphered script leaves its exact function uncertain. ## Population History - 2600 BC: 5,000 - 2500 BC: 25,000 - 2400 BC: 35,000 - 2200 BC: 40,000 - 2000 BC: 25,000 - 1900 BC: 10,000 - 1700 BC: null --- # Gaza, Palestine URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/palestine/gaza Founded: 1500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 31.5017, 34.4668 ## Description Gaza — Arabic Ghazzah — is one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities and the principal city of the Gaza Strip on the southeastern Mediterranean coast of Palestine. Late Bronze Age occupation at Tell Harube beneath the modern Old City is attested from around 1500 BCE, with Gaza first appearing in Egyptian records as a fortified administrative post on the coastal road from Egypt to Canaan under Thutmose III. After the collapse of Egyptian control around 1175 BCE the city was settled by the Aegean Sea Peoples and became one of the five cities of the Philistine Pentapolis, retaining its identity through the Neo-Assyrian, Neo-Babylonian, and Achaemenid empires. Alexander the Great captured Gaza after a five-month siege in 332 BCE, and the city flourished as a Hellenistic and Roman commercial entrepôt with the great Marneion temple of the syncretic deity Marnas at its religious heart until Bishop Porphyry of Gaza destroyed it around 402 CE. Gaza was an important Byzantine metropolitan see until the Arab conquest of 637, after which it remained a significant Islamic commercial town and the reputed birthplace of the Sunni jurist al-Shafi'i in 767. Under successive Crusader, Ayyubid, Mamluk, and Ottoman rule the city alternated between prosperity and decline as a frontier town, with the Crusaders catastrophically defeated by Ayyubid and Khwarezmian forces at the Battle of La Forbie near Gaza in 1244 and Napoleon passing through during his 1799 Syrian campaign. Following the British Mandate (1917-1948) and Egyptian administration of the Gaza Strip (1948-1967), Gaza came under Israeli military occupation from the Six-Day War until the Oslo Accords transferred civil administration to the Palestinian National Authority in 1994, with Hamas taking de facto control of the Strip in 2007. The city has been the focus of repeated armed conflicts, most catastrophically in the Israel-Hamas war that began in October 2023, with the United Nations and human-rights organizations describing the resulting destruction and civilian casualties as unprecedented in modern Palestinian history. ## Historical Rulers - 1500 BC – 1175 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt Gaza first appears in the campaign annals of Thutmose III around 1469 BCE as a fortified Egyptian administrative post on the coastal road between Egypt and the Asiatic provinces. Through the Amarna age and the Ramesside period the town served as the seat of an Egyptian governor coordinating the New Kingdom empire in southern Canaan, with a garrison and an Egyptian-built temple of Amun. Egyptian control collapsed during the Bronze Age crisis of the late 12th century BCE and the arrival of the Sea Peoples on the Levantine coast. - 1175 BC – 732 BC: Philistine Pentapolis (known as "Azzah") Following the collapse of Egyptian control, Gaza was settled by Aegean Sea Peoples and became one of the five great cities of the Philistine Pentapolis alongside Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath. Each Philistine city was ruled by its own seren and frequently warred with the neighbouring Israelite tribes and Kingdom of Judah, as recorded in the Samson narratives and other Hebrew Bible accounts. Gaza remained the southernmost Philistine stronghold until Tiglath-Pileser III's campaigns reduced it to Assyrian vassalage in 734 BCE. - 732 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Hazzat") Under Neo-Assyrian rule Gaza served as a vassal tributary city and an important garrison on the road to Egypt, paying annual tribute to Assyrian kings from Tiglath-Pileser III through Ashurbanipal. The city revolted under King Hanunu around 720 BCE but was crushed by Sargon II, and remained a key Assyrian forward base for the conquest of Egypt by Esarhaddon in 671 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Hazzat") After the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE Gaza passed to the Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II, who campaigned through the Philistine coast in 604 BCE. The city continued as a regional commercial centre with its incense and Arabian caravan trade until Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 332 BC: Achaemenid Empire Under Persian rule Gaza was incorporated into the satrapy of Across-the-River (Eber-Nari) and prospered as the principal Mediterranean terminus of the Arabian incense route, with strong Arab and Phoenician merchant communities trading aromatics, slaves, and Indian goods. The city was sufficiently wealthy and important to mount one of the most prolonged sieges of Alexander the Great's eastern campaign. - 332 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great captured Gaza after a five-month siege in 332 BCE in which the Persian eunuch governor Batis held out until the city was finally stormed, the male population massacred and the survivors sold into slavery. Alexander resettled the city with new inhabitants and Hellenized civic institutions before continuing his campaign into Egypt and Asia. - 301 BC – 198 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom After the Battle of Ipsus Gaza fell to the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, which contested the city repeatedly with the Seleucids through the Syrian Wars of the third century BCE. Under Ptolemaic administration the city continued as a major Mediterranean port and caravan terminus, minting its own coinage with civic deities. - 198 BC – 96 BC: Seleucid Empire Antiochus III's victory at the Battle of Panium in 200 BCE transferred the southern Levant including Gaza from Ptolemaic to Seleucid control, with the formal handover completed by 198. The city continued as a Hellenistic polis until it was captured and sacked by the Hasmonean king Alexander Jannaeus after a year-long siege in 96 BCE. - 96 BC – 63 BC: Hasmonean Kingdom Alexander Jannaeus's destruction of Gaza in 96 BCE incorporated the city into the expanding Hasmonean Kingdom of Judaea, though the urban fabric was substantially demolished. Hasmonean control lasted only a generation until Pompey's eastern settlement in 63 BCE detached Gaza from Hasmonean rule and refounded it under Roman protection. - 63 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Pompey's settlement of the East in 63 BCE freed Gaza from Hasmonean rule and attached it to the new Roman province of Syria, and the Roman proconsul Aulus Gabinius refounded the city around 57 BCE on a slightly relocated site known as Gabinian Gaza. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Gaza flourished as one of the largest cities of Roman Palestine, with a celebrated rhetorical school, a great Marneion temple of the syncretic deity Marnas, and a major Mediterranean port. Augustus assigned the city briefly to Herod the Great before reverting it to direct Roman rule, and the city's polis era was reckoned from this Augustan re-establishment. Through the high empire Gaza remained the principal terminus of the Arabian incense trade and a major centre of pagan cult until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 637 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Byzantine rule Gaza was the metropolitan see of Palaestina Prima after the Christianization of the city by Bishop Porphyry of Gaza, who destroyed the great Marneion temple around 402 CE and replaced it with the Eudoxiana basilica. The fifth and sixth centuries saw the great flowering of the rhetorical school of Gaza under Procopius of Gaza and Choricius, and the city remained a leading literary and commercial centre until the Sasanian sack of 614 and the final Arab conquest in 637. - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Ghazzah") Gaza fell to the Arab armies under the general Amr ibn al-As in 637 CE and was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate as part of Jund Filastin. The Arabicized name Ghazzah came into use, and according to Islamic tradition the great-grandfather of the Prophet Muhammad, Hashim ibn Abd Manaf, had died and been buried in the city while on a trading caravan, giving Gaza the additional name Ghazzat Hashim. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Ghazzah") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Gaza prospered as a frontier port and pilgrimage station on the road between Egypt and the Hejaz. The Great Mosque was established on the site of the Eudoxiana basilica, retaining the Byzantine columns and forming the core of the later Great Omari Mosque. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Ghazzah") Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad Gaza remained a significant Mediterranean port within Jund Filastin and the reputed birthplace of the Sunni jurist Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi'i in 767, founder of the Shafi'i school of Islamic jurisprudence. The city retained its commercial role through the Abbasid period and the brief Tulunid and Ikhshidid interludes. - 969 AD – 1100 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Ghazzah") The Fatimids of Cairo took the southern Levant from the Abbasids in 969 and held Gaza for over a century as a regional administrative town. The city declined as the Indian Ocean and Red Sea trade shifted Egyptian commercial focus southward, and was lost to the Crusaders in 1100 in the immediate aftermath of the First Crusade. - 1100 AD – 1187 AD: Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem Gaza fell to the Crusaders in 1100 and was rebuilt as a frontier town of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, with King Baldwin III granting it to the Templars in 1149 along with a substantial castle. The city was the southern bulwark of the kingdom facing Fatimid and later Ayyubid Egypt until Saladin's victory at the Battle of Hattin in 1187 ended Crusader rule. - 1187 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Ghazzah") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty took Gaza after Hattin and restored Islamic administration to the city. The disastrous Crusader-Ayyubid Battle of La Forbie was fought just east of Gaza in 1244, in which an Ayyubid army reinforced by Khwarezmian mercenaries annihilated a combined Crusader and Damascene Ayyubid force, decisively breaking the military power of the Latin states in the Holy Land. - 1260 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Ghazzah") After the Mamluk victory over the Mongols at Ayn Jalut in 1260, Gaza became the seat of one of the major Mamluk provincial governorships of Bilad al-Sham, the Mamlaka of Gaza, with viceregal authority over much of southern Palestine. The Mamluk emirs invested heavily in religious architecture, including the renovation of the Great Omari Mosque and the construction of the Sayyid al-Hashim Mosque, until the Ottoman conquest of 1517. - 1517 AD – 1917 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ghazzah") Selim I incorporated Mamluk Gaza into the Ottoman Empire in 1517, and the city became the centre of the Sancak of Gaza within the Damascus Eyalet, with the Ridwan dynasty serving as hereditary Ottoman governors for much of the 17th century. Napoleon Bonaparte passed through Gaza in February 1799 during his Syrian campaign, briefly occupying the Qasr al-Basha citadel, and the city remained a modest provincial centre until the British capture in November 1917 ended four centuries of Ottoman rule. - 1917 AD – 1948 AD: British Mandate of Palestine After the third Battle of Gaza in November 1917, British forces under General Allenby took the city, and from 1923 Gaza was administered as part of the British Mandate for Palestine under the League of Nations. Through the Mandate period the city grew modestly as a coastal market town and railway junction, with significant tensions between its Arab Muslim majority and small Jewish community contributing to the 1929 and 1936-39 disturbances. - 1948 AD – 1953 AD: Kingdom of Egypt (known as "Ghazzah") Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the Gaza Strip including Gaza City came under Egyptian military administration as a non-annexed protectorate of the Kingdom of Egypt under King Farouk. The All-Palestine Government, a nominally independent Palestinian polity sponsored by the Arab League, was proclaimed in Gaza in September 1948 but exercised no real authority. Gaza's population doubled with the influx of Palestinian refugees displaced from areas that became part of Israel. - 1953 AD – 1967 AD: Arab Republic of Egypt (known as "Ghazzah") Following the 1952 Free Officers revolution and the proclamation of the Egyptian Republic in 1953, Gaza continued under Egyptian military administration as part of Gamal Abdel Nasser's Egypt and then the United Arab Republic. The Israeli Defence Forces occupied the Strip during the 1956 Suez Crisis but withdrew in 1957 under U.S. and Soviet pressure, and Egyptian administration continued until the Six-Day War of June 1967. - 1967 AD – 1994 AD: State of Israel (known as "Ghazzah") After the Six-Day War of June 1967, Gaza came under Israeli military occupation along with the rest of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, the Sinai, and the Golan Heights. The First Intifada erupted in Gaza in December 1987 and lasted until the Oslo Accords, after which Israeli civil administration was progressively withdrawn from the principal Palestinian population centres of the Strip. - 1994 AD – present: Palestinian National Authority (known as "Ghazzah") Following the Oslo Accords Gaza City was transferred to the Palestinian National Authority on 18 May 1994 as the first capital of the new Palestinian self-government, and Israel completed its unilateral disengagement from the entire Gaza Strip in 2005. After Hamas won the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections and took de facto control of the Gaza Strip in June 2007, Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade that has continued ever since, and the city has been the focus of repeated armed conflicts culminating in the catastrophic Israel-Hamas war that began on 7 October 2023 and has produced unprecedented destruction of the city's historic core. ## Landmarks - Anthedon Harbor (built 800 BC) The ancient port of Gaza at Tell Blakhiya on the coast about 3 km north of the Old City, founded in the late Iron Age and serving as Gaza's Mediterranean outlet through the Persian, Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods. Submitted by Palestine to UNESCO's Tentative List in 2012, the site has been heavily damaged by coastal erosion and Israeli military operations. - Church of Saint Porphyrius (built 425 AD) A Byzantine church first built around 425 CE on the burial place of Saint Porphyrius of Gaza, who destroyed the great Marneion temple in 402, and reconstructed in its present Crusader-era form in the twelfth century. It is one of the oldest continuously used churches in the world and the principal Greek Orthodox church of Gaza, before being struck by an Israeli airstrike in October 2023 that killed sheltering civilians. - Great Omari Mosque (built 649 AD) The principal congregational mosque of Gaza, established under the early Umayyads on the site of the Byzantine Eudoxiana basilica that had replaced the great Marneion temple of pagan Gaza. Repeatedly rebuilt by Mamluk and Ottoman patrons and named after the caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab, the mosque incorporated reused Byzantine columns and grew into the iconic monument of the Old City, before being heavily damaged in Israeli airstrikes in December 2023. - Qasr al-Basha (built 1260 AD) A Mamluk-Ottoman fortified palace at the heart of the Old City, traditionally identified with the residence of Mamluk and Ottoman governors of Gaza. Napoleon Bonaparte lodged here briefly during his February 1799 Syrian campaign, and the complex later served as a girls' school and the Pasha's Palace Museum until war damage in 2023-2024. - Sayyid al-Hashim Mosque (built 1262 AD) A Mamluk mosque in the Daraj quarter housing the traditional tomb of Hashim ibn Abd Manaf, great-grandfather of the Prophet Muhammad, who is said to have died and been buried in Gaza on a trading caravan from Mecca. The mosque was rebuilt in its present form by the Mamluks in 1262 and renovated by the Ottoman sultan Abdulmecid I in 1850. ## Population History - 1500 BC: 3,000 - 1175 BC: 5,000 - 800 BC: 10,000 - 500 BC: 8,000 - 300 BC: 12,000 - 100 AD: 25,000 - 500 AD: 18,000 - 637 AD: 12,000 - 1100 AD: 10,000 - 1300 AD: 8,000 - 1500 AD: 5,000 - 1800 AD: 8,000 - 1922 AD: 17,480 - 1948 AD: 35,000 - 1950 AD: 80,000 - 1967 AD: 120,000 - 1997 AD: 353,115 - 2017 AD: 590,481 - 2023 AD: 770,000 --- # Jericho, Palestine URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/palestine/jericho Founded: 9000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 31.8667, 35.45 ## Description Jericho — modern Ariha in Arabic — is one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities, set in a fertile oasis at the northwestern edge of the Dead Sea about 250 metres below sea level in the West Bank of the Jordan Valley. Archaeological excavations at Tell es-Sultan have revealed Pre-Pottery Neolithic occupation reaching back to around 9000 BCE, including the famous Neolithic stone tower and wall that are among the earliest large-scale stone constructions known. After flourishing as a fortified Canaanite town in the Early and Middle Bronze Age, Jericho was destroyed around 1550 BCE and was only sparsely reoccupied through the Late Bronze and Iron Ages, when biblical tradition placed Joshua's destruction of the city. Under the Hasmoneans and Herod the Great a royal winter-palace complex was built south of the ancient tell at Tulul Abu el-Alayiq, exploiting the oasis's celebrated balsam and date plantations, and Byzantine pilgrimage-era prosperity centred on the Christian desert monastic tradition. The Umayyads built the great desert palace of Khirbat al-Mafjar — popularly known as Hisham's Palace — just north of the town in the early 8th century, after which Jericho passed under successive Abbasid, Fatimid, Crusader, Ayyubid, Mamluk, and Ottoman rule, declining to a small village by the late medieval period. The modern Palestinian city of Ariha sits on and adjacent to the ancient tell, was the first West Bank city transferred to Palestinian self-rule under the Oslo Accords in 1994, and today functions as the administrative center of the Jericho Governorate with a population of roughly 25,000. ## Historical Rulers - 9000 BC – 6000 BC: Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Tell es-Sultan") One of the earliest known permanent settlements in human history, occupied through the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A and B periods on the perennial spring of Ein es-Sultan. Inhabitants built mudbrick houses, the famous 8.5-metre stone tower and surrounding wall around 8000 BCE, and practiced early agriculture and animal husbandry. The PPNB community produced the celebrated plastered human skulls now seen as among the earliest examples of monumental portraiture and ancestor cult. - 6000 BC – 5500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Tell es-Sultan") Following the end of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic, occupation at Tell es-Sultan continued through the Pottery Neolithic with phases of intermittent settlement and a general decline in scale. The community produced the earliest ceramics at the site and maintained agricultural use of the spring-fed oasis. - 5500 BC – 3500 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Tell es-Sultan") Through the Chalcolithic period the tell hosted intermittent occupation by copper-using communities engaged in regional trade across the Jordan Valley and southern Levant. The site remained a small village within the broader Ghassulian and successor Chalcolithic horizons of the southern Levant, with no major fortifications. - 3500 BC – 1010 BC: Canaanite Civilization (known as "Yariho") Jericho developed into a fortified Canaanite town during the Early and Middle Bronze Age, with massive earthen ramparts and mudbrick walls enclosing a population of several thousand at the Middle Bronze peak around 1800 BCE. The Middle Bronze city was destroyed in the mid-16th century BCE in events later associated by biblical tradition with the conquest narrative of Joshua, after which the tell was nearly abandoned. Late Bronze Age occupation under nominal Egyptian New Kingdom overlordship was sparse and short-lived, and only modest Iron Age I reoccupation followed during the Israelite tribal period until the establishment of the United Monarchy in the late 11th century BCE. - 1010 BC – 930 BC: United Monarchy of Israel (known as "Yeriho") Under the biblical United Monarchy of David and Solomon, Jericho was a small Israelite settlement on the Jordan Valley frontier, traditionally allotted to the tribe of Benjamin. The biblical book of Joshua locates the famous destruction of Jericho's walls at the start of the Israelite conquest in this period's prehistory, although archaeological evidence at Tell es-Sultan does not corroborate a major destruction at this date. - 930 BC – 586 BC: Kingdom of Judah (known as "Yeriho") After the division of the United Monarchy, Jericho fell within the southern Kingdom of Judah on its eastern Jordan Valley frontier. Iron Age II archaeology shows a modest Judahite settlement on the tell engaged in agriculture and trade through the Jordan Valley until the Babylonian conquest of Judah in 586 BCE. - 586 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Yeriho") After the fall of the Kingdom of Judah, Jericho and the surrounding region came under Neo-Babylonian control. The town remained a minor agricultural settlement on the western edge of the Babylonian empire until Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 332 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Yeriho") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon, Jericho was incorporated into the Achaemenid Persian Empire as part of the satrapy of Eber-Nari. The oasis continued as a small farming settlement known for its dates and balsam plantations, attached to the small Persian province of Yehud. - 332 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Hiericho") Alexander the Great's conquest of the Achaemenid Empire in 332 BCE brought Jericho into the Macedonian sphere, and the city entered Greek geographical writing under the Hellenized name Hiericho. After Alexander's death the city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BCE. - 301 BC – 200 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Hiericho") After Ipsus the southern Levant including Jericho fell to the Ptolemaic Kingdom based in Egypt, which administered the region as part of Coele-Syria. The fertile oasis, prized for its date palms and balsam groves, became a royal estate yielding aromatic resin for the Alexandrian perfume trade. - 200 BC – 167 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Hiericho") Following Antiochus III's victory at the Battle of Panium in 200 BCE, the southern Levant including Jericho passed from the Ptolemies to the Seleucid Empire. Greek civic forms penetrated the local elite under Seleucid patronage until the Maccabean revolt against Antiochus IV's persecutions broke out in 167 BCE. - 167 BC – 63 BC: Hasmonean Kingdom (known as "Hiericho") Under the Hasmonean kings of Judaea, Jericho became one of the principal royal estates of the dynasty, with the first winter palace complex built at Tulul Abu el-Alayiq south of the ancient tell under John Hyrcanus and Alexander Jannaeus in the late second century BCE. The balsam and date plantations of the oasis were the most lucrative single source of royal revenue, and Hasmonean engineering brought water from the Wadi Qelt springs to the palace gardens. Hasmonean rule ended in 63 BCE when Pompey reduced Judaea to a Roman client state. - 63 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Hiericho") Pompey's intervention in 63 BCE drew Judaea and its Jericho oasis into the Roman sphere as a client state under the Hasmoneans. Mark Antony assigned the lucrative Jericho balsam estates to Cleopatra VII of Egypt in 36 BCE, who leased them back to Herod the Great after his installation as Roman client king of Judaea. Under the Roman Republic the oasis was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Hiericho") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE, Herod the Great greatly expanded the winter-palace complex at Tulul Abu el-Alayiq with aqueducts, gardens, swimming pools, and Roman-style bath houses, dying there in 4 BCE. The Jericho oasis remained the most valuable royal balsam estate of the southern Levant under Herod's successors and Roman procurators, with the Gospels placing Jesus's visits to the city in this period. After the First Jewish-Roman War of 66-70 CE Jericho passed under direct Roman provincial administration as part of Judaea and later Syria Palaestina, continuing as an agricultural town in the Jordan Valley through the high and late imperial periods. - 395 AD – 636 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Hiericho") Under Byzantine rule Jericho flourished as a Christian pilgrimage center associated with the baptism of Jesus at the Jordan River and the desert monastic tradition of the Judaean wilderness. Numerous churches and monasteries were established in and around the oasis, including the cliffside Monastery of the Temptation on the Mount of Quarantania and the Monastery of Saint George of Choziba in the Wadi Qelt gorge. The Persian Sasanian invasion of 614 inflicted heavy damage on the monastic complexes before Byzantine recovery and the final Arab conquest in 636. - 636 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Ariha") After the Battle of Yarmouk in 636 and the broader Arab conquest of the Levant, Jericho was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate within the military district of Jund Filastin. The Arabicized name Ariha came into use, and the oasis retained its agricultural significance through the early decades of Islamic rule. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Ariha") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Jericho prospered as part of Jund Filastin and the surrounding agricultural district. Around 743 CE the caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik (or his nephew al-Walid II) built the great desert palace complex of Khirbat al-Mafjar — popularly known as Hisham's Palace — just north of the town, with elaborate stucco and the celebrated 'Tree of Life' mosaic floor. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Ariha") Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad, Jericho declined from its Umayyad prosperity but continued as a small agricultural town in the Jordan Valley. The unfinished Khirbat al-Mafjar palace was damaged by the major regional earthquake of 749 and never completed. - 969 AD – 1099 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Ariha") The Fatimid caliphs of Cairo took the southern Levant from the Abbasids in 969 CE and held Jericho until the arrival of the First Crusade. The oasis continued as a small agricultural settlement until Crusader forces marched on Jericho in 1099 after the capture of Jerusalem. - 1099 AD – 1187 AD: Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem After the First Crusade Jericho was incorporated into the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and administered as agricultural domain producing sugar cane in newly built mills, alongside the older date and balsam crops. Small Latin fortifications and ecclesiastical estates appeared in the area until Saladin's victory at the Battle of Hattin in 1187. - 1187 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Ariha") Saladin's victory at Hattin returned Jericho to Muslim rule under his Ayyubid dynasty. The town continued as an agricultural settlement focused on sugar cane and date production until the Mongol invasion of Syria in 1260 ended Ayyubid power in the southern Levant. - 1260 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Ariha") After the Mamluk victory over the Mongols at Ayn Jalut in 1260, Jericho was incorporated into the Mamluk Sultanate based in Cairo. The town gradually declined to a small village as the regional sugar industry collapsed and trade routes shifted, reaching a low point by the time of the Ottoman conquest of the Levant in 1517. - 1517 AD – 1917 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ariha") Following the Ottoman conquest of the Mamluk realm, Jericho became part of the Ottoman administrative districts governing Palestine for four centuries as a small farming village in the Sancak of Jerusalem. Renewed European interest in archaeology and biblical geography in the nineteenth century brought new attention to Tell es-Sultan, with the first scientific excavations conducted by Charles Warren in 1868 and by the German archaeologists Sellin and Watzinger in 1907-1909. - 1917 AD – 1948 AD: British Mandate of Palestine After the collapse of Ottoman rule in the First World War, Jericho came under British military administration and from 1923 was part of the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine. Major archaeological excavations at Tell es-Sultan by John Garstang in the 1930s and Kathleen Kenyon in the 1950s — straddling the Mandate's end — established the modern chronology of the Neolithic and Bronze Age site. - 1948 AD – 1967 AD: Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (known as "Ariha") Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Jericho came under Jordanian administration as part of the West Bank annexed in 1950. The town expanded significantly as the Aqabat Jabr and Ein es-Sultan refugee camps were established just south of the town to house Palestinians displaced from areas that became part of Israel, raising the population to over seventy thousand by 1961. - 1967 AD – 1994 AD: State of Israel (known as "Ariha") After the Six-Day War of June 1967, Jericho came under Israeli military occupation along with the rest of the West Bank. The two large refugee camps emptied as roughly three-quarters of the population fled across the Jordan, leaving the town much reduced through the next two decades of Israeli administration. - 1994 AD – present: Palestinian National Authority (known as "Ariha") Following the Oslo Accords, Jericho was the first West Bank city transferred to Palestinian self-rule on 13 May 1994 and is administered by the Palestinian National Authority. It functions today as the administrative center of the Jericho Governorate and a major heritage tourism destination focused on Tell es-Sultan, Hisham's Palace, and the Monastery of the Temptation. ## Landmarks - Tell es-Sultan (built 9000 BC) The ancient archaeological mound of Jericho on the western edge of the Jordan Valley, occupied from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic onward and the type site for the early Holocene Levantine Neolithic. Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2023 as one of the earliest permanent human settlements anywhere in the world. - Neolithic Tower of Jericho (built 8000 BC) An 8.5-metre-tall stone tower with an internal staircase of twenty-two steps, built into the western wall of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A settlement around 8000 BCE. One of humanity's earliest large-scale stone constructions, the tower's function — defensive, ceremonial, or astronomical — remains debated among archaeologists. - Herod's Winter Palace at Tulul Abu el-Alayiq (built 30 BC) A monumental winter palace complex built by Herod the Great south of the ancient tell, expanding earlier Hasmonean palaces with three principal wings spanning the Wadi Qelt. The complex included formal gardens, swimming pools, and Roman-style bath houses, and was the site of Herod's death in 4 BCE. - Monastery of the Temptation (built 340 AD) A Greek Orthodox monastery cut into the cliffs of the Mount of Quarantania overlooking Jericho, traditionally identified as the site of Jesus's forty-day temptation by Satan. Founded around 340 CE and rebuilt in 1875 after periods of abandonment, it is one of the most spectacularly sited monasteries in the southern Levant. - Saint George of Choziba Monastery (built 480 AD) A Greek Orthodox cliff-side monastery in the Wadi Qelt gorge between Jerusalem and Jericho, founded in the late fifth century around the cave traditionally identified as the place where the prophet Elijah was fed by ravens. Restored under Justinian and again in the late nineteenth century, it preserves Byzantine and early Islamic-era mosaics. - Hisham's Palace (built 743 AD) An Umayyad desert palace at Khirbat al-Mafjar just north of Jericho, traditionally attributed to the caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik but more probably built under his nephew and successor al-Walid II around 743 CE. The complex is famous for its elaborate carved stucco decoration and the great 'Tree of Life' floor mosaic in the bath hall, before construction was abandoned after the major earthquake of 749 CE. ## Population History - 9000 BC: 500 - 8000 BC: 2,000 - 7000 BC: 3,000 - 5500 BC: 1,500 - 3500 BC: 1,000 - 1800 BC: 5,000 - 1550 BC: 200 - 700 BC: 1,500 - 586 BC: 500 - 100 BC: 3,000 - 1 AD: 5,000 - 500 AD: 6,000 - 800 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: 1,500 - 1500 AD: 500 - 1800 AD: 800 - 1922 AD: 1,029 - 1961 AD: 70,000 - 1970 AD: 6,000 - 1997 AD: 14,744 - 2017 AD: 22,765 - 2020 AD: 25,000 --- # Jerusalem, Palestine URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/palestine/jerusalem Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 31.778, 35.2354 ## Description Jerusalem is one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities and a sacred center for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Archaeological evidence on the southeastern ridge known as the City of David shows urban occupation reaching back to the Early Bronze Age around 3000 BCE, and the city is attested in the 14th-century BCE Amarna letters as Urusalim under a local Canaanite ruler. Across more than five millennia it has been the capital of biblical Israel and Judah, an imperial provincial center under Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Caliphates, Crusaders, Ayyubids, Mamluks, Ottomans, and the British Mandate, and the spiritual home of three world religions. The city's Old City was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1981 and is today a contested city whose final political status remains internationally disputed. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1010 BC: Canaanite Civilization (known as "Urusalim") Early Bronze Age occupation on the Ophel and City of David ridge near the Gihon Spring is documented archaeologically from around 3000 BCE. By the Middle and Late Bronze Age the settlement functioned as a fortified Canaanite city-state and appears in 14th-century BCE Egyptian Amarna correspondence as Urusalim, ruled by a local king named Abdi-Heba who acknowledged Egyptian overlordship. - 1010 BC – 930 BC: United Monarchy of Israel (known as "Yerushalayim") Hebrew Bible tradition places David's capture of the Jebusite stronghold and the establishment of Jerusalem as the capital of the united Israelite monarchy around 1010 BCE. His son Solomon is credited with the construction of the First Temple on the rocky outcrop later known as the Temple Mount, before the united kingdom split into the northern kingdom of Israel and southern kingdom of Judah after Solomon's death. - 930 BC – 586 BC: Kingdom of Judah (known as "Yerushalayim") After the division of the monarchy Jerusalem remained the capital of the southern Kingdom of Judah for roughly three and a half centuries. The city survived the Assyrian campaign of Sennacherib in 701 BCE thanks in part to Hezekiah's fortifications and water tunnel, before it fell when Babylonian forces under Nebuchadnezzar II besieged and destroyed it in 586 BCE. - 586 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Yerushalayim") Nebuchadnezzar II's army razed the First Temple and the royal city in 586 BCE and deported much of the Judahite elite to Babylonia, beginning the period known as the Babylonian Exile. Jerusalem was largely depopulated and administered as a minor outpost on the western edge of the Neo-Babylonian Empire until the empire itself fell to Cyrus the Great. - 539 BC – 332 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Yerushalayim") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE, his edict permitted exiled Judahites to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. The Second Temple was completed around 516 BCE under Persian patronage, and the walls were later refortified under Nehemiah in the mid-fifth century BCE, with Jerusalem serving as the religious center of the small Persian province of Yehud. - 332 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Hierosolyma") Alexander the Great's conquest of the Levant in 332 BCE brought Jerusalem into the Macedonian sphere. After his death the city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Anatolian and Syrian power consolidated under the Hellenistic successor kingdoms. - 301 BC – 200 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Hierosolyma") After the Battle of Ipsus, Jerusalem fell to the Ptolemaic Kingdom based in Egypt, which controlled the southern Levant for the entire third century BCE. Greek language and civic forms penetrated the city's elite under Ptolemaic patronage. - 200 BC – 167 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Hierosolyma") Following Antiochus III's victory at the Battle of Panium in 200 BCE, Jerusalem passed to the Seleucid Empire. Tensions with traditional Jewish religious practice peaked under Antiochus IV Epiphanes, whose desecration of the Second Temple in 167 BCE triggered the Maccabean revolt. - 167 BC – 63 BC: Hasmonean Kingdom (known as "Yerushalayim") The Maccabean revolt under the priestly Hasmonean family expelled Seleucid garrisons and rededicated the Second Temple in 164 BCE, an event commemorated as Hanukkah. The Hasmoneans established an independent Jewish kingdom centered on Jerusalem that expanded to control much of the southern Levant, until the dynasty's internal disputes ended with the Roman general Pompey's capture of Jerusalem in 63 BCE. - 63 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Hierosolyma") Pompey's intervention in 63 BCE ended Hasmonean independence and reduced Judaea to a Roman client state under the high priest Hyrcanus II. In 37 BCE Herod the Great, with Roman senatorial backing, captured Jerusalem and was installed as king of Judaea, beginning the ambitious building programme that would transform the Temple Mount and the royal precinct. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system as a client kingdom until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Hierosolyma") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE the Herodian client kingdom continued, and Herod the Great's monumental expansion of the Temple Mount around 19 BCE created one of the largest sacred precincts of the ancient world. After Herod's death in 4 BCE the city passed under direct Roman prefects and procurators, briefly returning to Herodian client kingship under Agrippa I in 41-44 CE, before the First Jewish-Roman War ended in 70 CE when Titus's legions sacked Jerusalem and destroyed the Second Temple. Following the Bar Kokhba revolt of 132-135 CE the emperor Hadrian rebuilt the city as a Roman colonia named Aelia Capitolina with a grid plan and pagan temples, and barred Jews from entering. Christianity's legalization under Constantine in the early fourth century transformed the city's religious character, with the Church of the Holy Sepulchre founded around 326 CE, until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE consigned Jerusalem to the eastern half. - 395 AD – 638 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Hierosolyma") After the partition of the Roman Empire in 395 CE Jerusalem fell within the Eastern Roman sphere and became one of Christendom's principal pilgrimage centers. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, founded by Constantine and his mother Helena around 326 CE, anchored a network of basilicas, monasteries, and hostels for pilgrims, and the Sasanian Persians briefly sacked the city in 614 CE before Byzantine rule was restored under Heraclius. - 638 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Iliya") The city surrendered to the Rashidun caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab around 638 CE and entered the Islamic world as Iliya, later more commonly known as al-Quds. Christian worship at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre continued under the famous covenant traditionally attributed to Umar. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Iliya") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, Jerusalem became one of the principal sacred cities of the early Islamic world. The Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik built the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount platform in 691 CE, and the al-Aqsa Mosque was completed in the early eighth century under al-Walid. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Al-Quds") Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad, Jerusalem retained its religious importance as the third holiest city of Islam but declined in political significance. The city's sanctuary buildings were repaired after the earthquakes of the late eighth and ninth centuries, and a substantial pilgrimage economy grew up around the Haram al-Sharif. - 969 AD – 1099 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Al-Quds") The Fatimid caliphs of Cairo took Jerusalem from the Abbasids in 969 CE and held the city for most of the next century and a half. The Fatimid caliph al-Hakim ordered the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in 1009, a key trigger for later Crusader mobilization, before the Seljuk Turks briefly occupied the city in the 1070s and 1080s and the Fatimids retook it in 1098. - 1099 AD – 1187 AD: Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem The armies of the First Crusade captured Jerusalem in July 1099 after a brutal siege and massacre of much of its Muslim and Jewish population, and the city became the capital of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was rebuilt in Romanesque style, and Crusader rule ended when Saladin defeated the Latin kingdom at the Battle of Hattin and retook the city in 1187. - 1187 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Al-Quds") Saladin restored Muslim administration and Islamic religious institutions to the city after 1187, and Jewish communities were also permitted to return. Brief Crusader recovery of some territory in the thirteenth century did not include long-term control of the Old City. - 1260 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Al-Quds") After Ayn Jalut in 1260 the Mamluk Sultanate based in Cairo took control of Jerusalem and invested heavily in madrasas, Sufi lodges, public fountains, and renovations of the Haram al-Sharif over the following two and a half centuries. The city remained an important religious center but lost political prominence under successive Mamluk governors. - 1517 AD – 1917 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Al-Quds") Selim I incorporated Jerusalem into the Ottoman Empire in 1517 after the defeat of the Mamluks, and his son Suleiman the Magnificent rebuilt the city walls between 1535 and 1541, giving the Old City the perimeter still visible today. Over four centuries the city remained a modest provincial town whose religious importance attracted growing European, Russian, and American interest in the nineteenth century. - 1917 AD – 1948 AD: British Mandate of Palestine British forces under General Edmund Allenby entered Jerusalem in December 1917, ending Ottoman rule. From 1920 the city served as the administrative capital of the British Mandate for Palestine established under the League of Nations, with tensions between Jewish and Arab communities intensifying through successive waves of immigration and political conflict, culminating in the war that followed the end of the Mandate in May 1948. - 1948 AD – 1967 AD: Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (known as "Al-Quds") The 1948 Arab-Israeli War left Jerusalem partitioned along the 1949 armistice line known as the Green Line, with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan administering East Jerusalem including the walled Old City and its principal holy sites while the newly declared State of Israel controlled West Jerusalem. Jordan formally annexed the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1950, with the eastern sector serving as the second capital of Jordan and the focus of major restoration work at the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque under King Hussein. The two sectors were separated by a fortified no-man's-land and tightly controlled crossings until Israel captured the entire city in the June 1967 Six-Day War. - 1967 AD – present: State of Israel Israel captured East Jerusalem from Jordan in the June 1967 Six-Day War and subsequently extended Israeli law and administration over the eastern sector, a step formalized by the 1980 Basic Law declaring a unified Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Most United Nations member states and international bodies do not recognize Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem and consider it occupied territory, while Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state, and the city's final political status remains one of the core unresolved issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ## Landmarks - City of David (built 3000 BC) The narrow southeastern spur south of today's Old City, between the Kidron and Tyropoeon valleys, holds the earliest urban remains of Jerusalem. Excavations have revealed Early and Middle Bronze Age fortifications, the Gihon Spring water system, and Iron Age structures associated with the biblical kings of Judah. - Temple Mount and Mount Moriah (built 960 BC) The rocky platform north of the original City of David, identified in Jewish tradition with Mount Moriah, was developed as the sacred precinct of the First Temple attributed to Solomon around 960 BCE. The Second Temple stood here from 516 BCE until 70 CE, and the present-day esplanade known to Muslims as the Haram al-Sharif preserves the massive Herodian retaining walls. - Western Wall (built 19 BC) The Western Wall, known in Hebrew as the Kotel, is the exposed western section of the massive retaining wall built by Herod the Great around 19 BCE to enlarge the Temple Mount platform. After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE it became the most important site of Jewish prayer and pilgrimage. - Church of the Holy Sepulchre (built 326 AD) Founded by the emperor Constantine and his mother Helena around 326 CE on a site identified by early Christian tradition as the location of Jesus's crucifixion, burial, and resurrection, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is one of Christianity's holiest shrines. The present complex incorporates layers of Byzantine, Crusader, and later construction shared among several Christian denominations. - Dome of the Rock (built 691 AD) The Dome of the Rock was completed in 691 CE under the Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik on the Temple Mount platform. Its golden dome and Byzantine-influenced octagonal plan enshrine the bedrock outcrop from which, in Islamic tradition, the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven during the Night Journey. - Al-Aqsa Mosque (built 705 AD) Built in its present basilical form by the Umayyad caliph al-Walid around 705 CE on the southern edge of the Haram al-Sharif, the al-Aqsa Mosque is the third-holiest site in Sunni Islam after the sanctuaries of Mecca and Medina. The structure has been rebuilt and restored multiple times after earthquakes and political changes. - Walls of the Old City (built 1538 AD) The present walls enclosing the Old City of Jerusalem were rebuilt between 1535 and 1541 by the Ottoman sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, largely following earlier Roman, Byzantine, and medieval circuits. Roughly four kilometers in length with seven open gates, they define the four traditional quarters of the Old City and are inscribed together with it on the UNESCO World Heritage List. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 1,000 - 1000 BC: 5,000 - 700 BC: 10,000 - 586 BC: 25,000 - 445 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 30,000 - 70 AD: 50,000 - 200 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 40,000 - 800 AD: 25,000 - 1100 AD: 30,000 - 1300 AD: 15,000 - 1550 AD: 16,000 - 1800 AD: 9,000 - 1900 AD: 55,000 - 1948 AD: 165,000 - 1980 AD: 410,000 - 2020 AD: 950,000 --- # Caral, Peru URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/peru/caral Founded: 2600 BC Ended: 1800 BC Coordinates: -10.8919, -77.5208 ## Description Caral is the oldest known city in the Americas and the principal urban center of the Norte Chico — also called Caral-Supe — civilization that flourished in the arid Supe Valley about 180 km north of Lima. Built from roughly 2600 BCE, the site features six monumental platform pyramids, sunken circular plazas, residential complexes and an amphitheater, supporting an estimated peak of around 3000 inhabitants without any evidence of fortifications, warfare or ceramics, making Caral a pioneer of preceramic and apparently peaceful urbanism. Among its most famous finds is a knotted-cord quipu, the earliest known example of this Andean recording device. The city was gradually abandoned between roughly 2000 and 1800 BCE, possibly due to climate shifts and water stress, and lay largely unknown to archaeology for millennia. Systematic excavations by Ruth Shady began in 1994, and the publication of radiocarbon dates in 2001 stunned scholars by pushing the origins of New World urbanism back by more than a thousand years. The Sacred City of Caral-Supe was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2009. ## Historical Rulers - 2600 BC – 2100 BC: Norte Chico Civilization — Early Caral (known as "*Caral") Founding and florescence of Caral as the largest urban center of the Norte Chico civilization. During this phase the great platform mounds — including the Piramide Mayor — were raised and the sunken circular plaza complex was laid out, supporting a population that grew toward its peak. The community remained preceramic and shows no archaeological signs of warfare or defensive works. - 2100 BC – 1800 BC: Norte Chico Civilization — Late Caral (known as "*Caral") Gradual decline and progressive abandonment of Caral. Monumental construction tapered off and population steadily contracted, with the site largely deserted by around 1800 BCE. The causes are not firmly established, but climatic stress and water scarcity in the Supe Valley, together with shifts in regional exchange networks, are among the leading hypotheses. ## Landmarks - Piramide Mayor (built 2600 BC) The largest platform pyramid at Caral and the dominant monument of the site, rising over the central plaza. Built in successive stages from rough stone, adobe and shicra-bag fill, it anchors the ceremonial core of the city. - Piramide de la Galeria (built 2500 BC) A major platform pyramid in the central monumental sector, named for an internal gallery space. It forms part of the ring of mounds enclosing the principal plazas. - Piramide de la Huanca (built 2500 BC) Platform pyramid aligned with a standing huanca stone, suggesting an astronomical or ritual orientation. It is one of the six monumental mounds that define Caral's urban plan. - Residential Sector (built 2500 BC) Clusters of domestic compounds of varying scale and quality, ranging from elite residences near the monumental core to smaller dwellings on the periphery. Their layout reflects a stratified society organized around the ceremonial center. - Caral Quipu (built 2500 BC) A knotted-cord artifact recovered from Caral, regarded as the earliest known example of a quipu. It pushes the origins of this Andean recording device back by roughly two millennia before its well-documented Inca use. - Amphitheater Temple (built 2400 BC) A ceremonial complex centered on a large sunken circular plaza, used for public gatherings and ritual performances. Numerous bone flutes and cornets recovered from its precinct point to music as a central element of communal life. ## Population History - 2600 BC: 500 - 2400 BC: 2,000 - 2200 BC: 3,000 - 2000 BC: 2,500 - 1900 BC: 1,000 - 1800 BC: null --- # Chan Chan, Peru URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/peru/chan-chan Founded: 850 AD Ended: 1470 AD Coordinates: -8.1056, -79.0744 ## Description Chan Chan was the capital of the Chimor Kingdom on the north coast of Peru, near modern Trujillo, and the largest pre-Columbian adobe city in the Americas. Covering some 20 square kilometers at its peak, it is best known for its ten monumental walled royal compounds, the ciudadelas, each apparently built for a new Chimú king and retained as his mortuary palace after death, complete with his mummy and treasures. The city's adobe walls were decorated with relief friezes of fish, sea-birds, and geometric motifs, while a sophisticated network of canals and wells sustained a dense population in a coastal desert. Chan Chan was conquered by the Inca emperor Topa Inca Yupanqui around 1470, after which its capital function ended and much of its population was dispersed. During the Spanish colonial period and later centuries the abandoned compounds were systematically tunneled by huaqueros searching for Chimú gold, while wind and El Niño rains progressively eroded the adobe fabric. The site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1986 and simultaneously placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger. ## Historical Rulers - 850 AD – 1470 AD: Chimor Kingdom Under the Chimú dynasty Chan Chan grew from a modest coastal settlement into the political, administrative, and ceremonial capital of Chimor, the largest state in the Andes before the rise of the Inca. Successive kings constructed their own walled ciudadelas of adobe, which served as palace, treasury, and eventual mausoleum, producing the distinctive cluster of ten royal compounds. The kingdom expanded along much of the Peruvian coast until it was defeated and absorbed by the Inca emperor Topa Inca Yupanqui around 1470, after which Chan Chan was looted and effectively ceased to function as a capital. ## Landmarks - Rivero Ciudadela (built 1100 AD) One of the earlier royal compounds at Chan Chan, organized around enclosed plazas, storerooms, and a burial platform, and surrounded by high adobe walls that separated elite ritual space from the surrounding urban fabric. - Velarde Ciudadela (built 1100 AD) An adobe royal compound from the earlier phase of Chimú urbanism, following the standard ciudadela template of audiencias, courtyards, deep walk-in wells, and a central funerary platform for the king who commissioned it. - Chimu Walk-in Wells and Canals (built 1100 AD) Within and around the ciudadelas the Chimú engineered sunken walk-in wells that reached the high coastal water table, complemented by an extensive network of canals drawing from the Moche and Chicama rivers. This hydraulic infrastructure made it possible to sustain tens of thousands of inhabitants in one of the driest deserts on Earth. - Adobe Relief Friezes (built 1200 AD) The interior and exterior walls of the ciudadelas were decorated with low-relief mud friezes depicting stylized fish, sea-birds, marine waves, and geometric lattices. These motifs reflect the Chimú economy's deep orientation toward the Pacific and have become the visual signature of Chan Chan. - Tschudi Ciudadela (built 1300 AD) One of the largest and best-preserved of Chan Chan's ten royal compounds, named after the 19th-century Swiss explorer Johann Jakob von Tschudi. It encloses ceremonial plazas, audiencias, storerooms, a walk-in well, and a royal burial platform, and has been the principal area of modern conservation and visitor access. - Squier Ciudadela (built 1300 AD) A monumental walled compound named after the American archaeologist Ephraim George Squier, who documented Chan Chan in the 19th century. Like the other ciudadelas it combined the functions of palace, administrative center, and eventual mausoleum for its founding Chimú king. ## Population History - 850 AD: 2,000 - 1000 AD: 15,000 - 1200 AD: 40,000 - 1300 AD: 50,000 - 1400 AD: 40,000 - 1470 AD: null --- # Cuzco, Peru URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/peru/cuzco Founded: 1100 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: -13.532, -71.9675 ## Description Cuzco was the capital of the Inca Empire and a major religious, political, and administrative center in the Andes. After the Spanish conquest in 1533, it remained continuously inhabited, evolving from an Inca capital into a Spanish colonial city and then into the modern Peruvian city of Cusco, preserving overlapping layers of Inca stonework and Spanish baroque architecture. The historic center was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 AD – 1533 AD: Inca Empire Cuzco served as the political, religious, and administrative capital of the Inca Empire, laid out in the form of a puma and centered on the Qorikancha sun temple. From here the Sapa Inca governed an empire stretching across the Andes, and the city functioned as the ceremonial heart of Tawantinsuyu until the Spanish arrival. - 1533 AD – 1821 AD: Spanish Empire Following Francisco Pizarro's conquest, Cuzco was incorporated into the Viceroyalty of Peru. Spanish colonists reused Inca foundations to build churches, convents, and mansions, transforming the city into a major colonial administrative and religious center while indigenous Andean culture persisted alongside Catholic institutions. - 1821 AD – present: Republic of Peru With Peruvian independence Cuzco became a regional capital of the new republic. In the twentieth century it grew into a modern city and the principal gateway to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley, with tourism, heritage conservation, and Quechua cultural identity shaping its contemporary character. ## Landmarks - Qorikancha (built 1200 AD) A magnificent temple dedicated to Inti, the sun god, originally covered in gold sheets. After the Spanish conquest, the temple was partially destroyed and a colonial church was built on its foundations, symbolizing the cultural transformation of Cuzco. - Sacsayhuamán Fortress (built 1450 AD) An impressive architectural marvel featuring enormous stone blocks precisely fitted together without mortar. The fortress played a crucial role in the Inca's defensive strategy and is renowned for its incredible stonework and engineering precision. ## Population History - 1200 AD: 40,000 - 1550 AD: 25,000 - 2020 AD: 430,000 --- # Lima, Peru URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/peru/lima Founded: 1535 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: -12.0464, -77.0428 ## Description Lima is the capital and largest city of Peru, founded by Francisco Pizarro on 18 January 1535 as Ciudad de los Reyes on the banks of the Rimac River. The Lima Valley had long been inhabited by pre-Hispanic cultures including the Lima Culture, which left adobe pyramids such as Huaca Pucllana, and the nearby Pachacamac sanctuary remained one of the most important Andean pilgrimage centers; the modern name derives from the Quechua Limaq, the indigenous name of the Rimac. From 1542 Lima served as the capital of the Viceroyalty of Peru, becoming the political, religious, and intellectual center of Spanish South America, home to the National University of San Marcos founded in 1551, the oldest university in the Americas. The catastrophic earthquake of 1746 destroyed much of the colonial city, prompting a major rebuilding under Viceroy Manso de Velasco. José de San Martín proclaimed Peruvian independence in Lima on 28 July 1821, and the city has remained the national capital ever since, suffering renewed destruction during the Chilean occupation of 1881-1884 in the War of the Pacific. Rapid migration from the Andes during the twentieth century transformed Lima into a megacity of over ten million inhabitants, while its colonial core was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1991. ## Historical Rulers - 1535 AD – 1821 AD: Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru (known as "Ciudad de los Reyes") Francisco Pizarro founded Ciudad de los Reyes on 18 January 1535 as the new capital of Spanish Peru, replacing Jauja for its access to the Pacific coast. From 1542 it served as the seat of the Viceroyalty of Peru, the most powerful Spanish administrative center in South America, hosting the Real Audiencia, the Archbishopric, the Inquisition tribunal, and the University of San Marcos. The colonial city was rebuilt after the devastating earthquake of 1746 and remained the political and economic heart of Spanish South America until the wars of independence. - 1821 AD – present: Republic of Peru José de San Martín entered Lima and proclaimed Peruvian independence on 28 July 1821, and the city has served as the capital of the Republic of Peru ever since. Lima was occupied by Chilean forces from 1881 to 1884 during the War of the Pacific, suffering looting and the destruction of public institutions. From the mid-twentieth century onward, massive Andean migration expanded the metropolitan area into one of the largest cities in the Americas, while the colonial historic center was inscribed by UNESCO in 1991. ## Landmarks - Plaza Mayor (built 1535 AD) Laid out by Francisco Pizarro at the founding of the city in 1535, the Plaza Mayor served as the civic and ceremonial heart of colonial Lima, bordered by the Cathedral, the Archbishop's Palace, the Government Palace, and the Municipal Palace. Independence was proclaimed from this square on 28 July 1821. - Government Palace (built 1535 AD) Built on the site of Francisco Pizarro's original residence next to the Plaza Mayor, the Government Palace has been the seat of executive power in Peru since the colonial era. The present Neo-Plateresque building, dating from 1937-1938, replaced earlier structures repeatedly damaged by fire and earthquake. - Lima Cathedral (built 1535 AD) Begun in 1535 under Pizarro, who laid the first stone, the Cathedral of Lima was consecrated in 1622 and largely rebuilt after the 1746 earthquake, reaching its current form by 1797. It houses the tomb of Francisco Pizarro and serves as the seat of the Archbishop of Lima. - National University of San Marcos (built 1551 AD) Founded by royal decree on 12 May 1551, the National University of San Marcos is the oldest continuously operating university in the Americas. It was the leading center of scholarship in the Viceroyalty of Peru and remains the principal public university of the country. - Convento de San Francisco (built 1673 AD) Completed in 1673 in Spanish Baroque style after earlier structures were lost to earthquakes, the Convent of San Francisco is famed for its yellow-and-white facade, carved cedar cloisters, and extensive underground catacombs that served as the principal burial ground of colonial Lima until the early nineteenth century. - Larco Museum (built 1926 AD) Founded in 1926 by Rafael Larco Hoyle in an eighteenth-century viceregal mansion built atop a pre-Columbian pyramid in the Pueblo Libre district, the Larco Museum houses one of the most comprehensive collections of pre-Hispanic Peruvian art, spanning Cupisnique, Moche, Nasca, Chimu, and Inca cultures. ## Population History - 1535 AD: 70 - 1600 AD: 14,000 - 1700 AD: 37,000 - 1812 AD: 64,000 - 1850 AD: 95,000 - 1900 AD: 104,000 - 1950 AD: 835,000 - 1980 AD: 4,600,000 - 2000 AD: 7,700,000 - 2020 AD: 10,720,000 --- # Machu Picchu, Peru URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/peru/machu-picchu Founded: 1450 AD Ended: 1572 AD Coordinates: -13.1631, -72.545 ## Description Machu Picchu was a 15th-century Inca citadel built high in the Andes Mountains, likely serving as a royal estate of the emperor Pachacuti and a religious-administrative center. Constructed with the Inca's signature ashlar stonework, it integrated temples, residences, and agricultural terraces along a steep ridge above the Urubamba Valley. The site was abandoned around the time of the Spanish conquest and the fall of the last Inca redoubt at Vilcabamba in 1572, after which it lay largely unknown beyond local communities. American historian Hiram Bingham brought Machu Picchu to international attention in 1911, and modern Peru has since administered the site as an archaeological park; UNESCO inscribed it as a World Heritage Site in 1983. ## Historical Rulers - 1450 AD – 1471 AD: Inca Empire Founded under the emperor Pachacuti as a royal estate and ceremonial complex during the Inca Empire's mid-15th-century expansion. The site's temples, plazas, and terraces were laid out using fine ashlar masonry typical of Pachacuti's building programs. - 1471 AD – 1493 AD: Inca Empire Under Pachacuti's successor Túpac Inca Yupanqui, the citadel continued in use as part of the imperial estate network, supported by terraced agriculture and a resident population of attendants, retainers, and ritual specialists. - 1493 AD – 1527 AD: Inca Empire During the reign of Huayna Capac the Inca Empire reached its greatest extent, and Machu Picchu remained an active highland estate integrated into the broader administrative and religious landscape of the Cusco region. - 1527 AD – 1572 AD: Inca Empire The death of Huayna Capac triggered a succession war between Huáscar and Atahualpa, followed by the Spanish conquest under Francisco Pizarro from 1532. As imperial structures collapsed and population declined through warfare and epidemics, Machu Picchu lost its sustaining estate function and was gradually abandoned, with the final fall of the neo-Inca state at Vilcabamba in 1572 marking the end of indigenous control. ## Landmarks - Intihuatana Stone (built 1450 AD) This carved granite ritual stone stands on a raised platform and was likely used as a solar observatory. Its name means 'hitching post of the sun' in Quechua, as it was believed to hold the sun in its place along its annual path in the sky. - Temple of the Sun (built 1450 AD) This semicircular temple contains precisely cut stonework and features a window aligned with the June solstice sunrise. The temple was built around a large boulder and includes a ceremonial chamber that may have been used for royal mummies or offerings. - Agricultural Terraces (built 1450 AD) Over 600 terraces were constructed around the citadel, enabling cultivation of crops at high altitude. The terraces feature sophisticated drainage systems and soil layering techniques that prevent landslides and maximize agricultural productivity. - Sacred Plaza (built 1450 AD) This open plaza connects three important structures: the Principal Temple, the Temple of Three Windows, and the House of the Priest. It served as the main ceremonial area for religious gatherings and public rituals. - Royal Residence (built 1460 AD) The most elaborate residential structure at Machu Picchu, featuring superior stonework, private access to a ceremonial bath, and multiple rooms. Its location and quality indicate it was reserved for the highest-ranking inhabitants, likely the Inca ruler himself during visits. ## Population History - 1450 AD: 200 - 1475 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 750 - 1525 AD: 400 - 1550 AD: 100 - 1572 AD: null --- # Lisbon, Portugal URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/portugal/lisbon Founded: 1200 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.7223, -9.1393 ## Description Lisbon is one of the oldest cities in Western Europe, founded as the Phoenician trading post Ulissipo around 1200 BCE on the Tagus estuary, a name later linked by legend to Odysseus. It became the Roman municipium of Olisipo after 138 BCE, passed under Visigothic rule, and from 711 served as the Moorish city of al-Ushbuna until King Afonso I of Portugal captured it in 1147 with crusader aid. Designated capital of Portugal from 1255, Lisbon became the maritime center of the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, launching the voyages of Henry the Navigator, Vasco da Gama in 1497, and Pedro Alvares Cabral in 1500. The catastrophic 1755 earthquake and tsunami destroyed most of the city and was followed by the Pombaline reconstruction; Napoleonic occupation from 1807 to 1811 drove the royal family to Brazil, the 1910 revolution ended the monarchy, the Estado Novo dictatorship under Salazar lasted from 1932 to 1974, and the Carnation Revolution of 1974 restored democracy. ## Historical Rulers - 1200 BC – 218 BC: Phoenician trading post (known as "Ulissipo") Phoenician merchants established Ulissipo on the sheltered north bank of the Tagus estuary as a trading station, exchanging Mediterranean goods with the local Iberian and Celtic populations. Greek and later Roman legend connected the name to the wanderings of Odysseus. - 218 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Olisipo") Roman forces entered the western Iberian Peninsula during the Second Punic War from 218 BCE; the city was fully incorporated by Decimus Junius Brutus in 138 BCE and granted municipium status as Olisipo Felicitas Iulia under Julius Caesar. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 411 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Olisipo") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. It became an important Atlantic port linking Hispania to Rome through fish-salting, garum production, and grain trade. - 411 AD – 711 AD: Visigothic Kingdom (known as "Olissipo") After the collapse of Roman authority in Hispania the city passed through Alan and Suevic hands before stabilising under the Visigothic Kingdom in the 6th century. The Christianised town retained its Roman urban fabric but declined demographically through the late antique period. - 711 AD – 1147 AD: Umayyad and successor Caliphates (known as "al-Ushbuna") Muslim armies took the city in 711 during the conquest of Iberia and renamed it al-Ushbuna. Under Umayyad, taifa, and Almoravid rule it grew into a prosperous walled port with a fortified citadel on the hilltop, mosques, and a mixed population of Muslims, Mozarab Christians, and Jews. - 1147 AD – 1255 AD: Kingdom of Portugal — early (known as "Lisboa") King Afonso I of Portugal besieged and captured the city in October 1147 with the aid of Northern European crusaders en route to the Second Crusade. The Sé Cathedral was begun immediately on the site of the former main mosque, and the city was repopulated with Christian settlers. - 1255 AD – 1580 AD: Kingdom of Portugal — capital (known as "Lisboa") King Afonso III transferred the royal court from Coimbra to Lisbon in 1255, making it the permanent capital. During the 15th and 16th centuries the city became the command center of the Age of Discovery under Henry the Navigator, dispatching the voyages of Vasco da Gama in 1497 and Pedro Alvares Cabral in 1500 and growing rich on the spice, gold, and slave trades with Africa, India, and Brazil. - 1580 AD – 1640 AD: Spanish Empire (known as "Lisboa") Following the death of King Sebastian at Alcacer Quibir and the ensuing succession crisis, Philip II of Spain claimed the Portuguese crown in 1580. Lisbon remained the seat of a separate Portuguese administration under the Spanish Habsburgs, but trade losses to Dutch and English rivals eroded its commercial dominance. - 1640 AD – 1910 AD: Restored Kingdom of Portugal (known as "Lisboa") The 1640 Restoration War returned the throne to the House of Braganza, with Lisbon resuming its role as imperial capital. On 1 November 1755 a great earthquake and tsunami destroyed most of the city, after which the Marquis of Pombal directed the rebuilding of the downtown on a rational grid; Napoleonic occupation from 1807 to 1811 forced the royal family to Brazil and the court returned in 1821. - 1910 AD – 1926 AD: First Portuguese Republic (known as "Lisboa") The 5 October 1910 revolution in Lisbon overthrew King Manuel II and established the First Portuguese Republic. The period was marked by political instability, frequent government changes, anticlerical legislation, and economic strain following participation in the First World War. - 1926 AD – 1974 AD: Brazil (known as "Lisboa") A military coup in 1926 ended the First Republic and led to the authoritarian Estado Novo regime, dominated from 1932 by Antonio de Oliveira Salazar and after 1968 by Marcelo Caetano. Lisbon remained neutral during the Second World War and served as a wartime hub for refugees and intelligence, while the regime fought costly colonial wars in Africa from 1961. - 1974 AD – present: Modern Portugal (known as "Lisboa") The Carnation Revolution of 25 April 1974 ended the Estado Novo and began Portugal's transition to democracy and decolonisation. Lisbon is the capital of the modern Portuguese Republic, joined the European Communities in 1986, hosted Expo 98, and is the political, financial, and cultural center of a metropolitan area of roughly 2.9 million people. ## Landmarks - São Jorge Castle (built 1000 AD) Hilltop citadel built in its current form by the Moors in the 11th century atop earlier Roman and Visigothic fortifications. Taken by Afonso I in 1147 and used as the royal palace until the 16th century, it dominates the eastern skyline of central Lisbon. - Sé de Lisboa Cathedral (built 1147 AD) Romanesque cathedral begun immediately after the 1147 Reconquista on the site of the former main mosque, with later Gothic and Baroque additions. It is the seat of the Patriarchate of Lisbon and the oldest church in the city. - Jerónimos Monastery (built 1502 AD) Manueline monastery commissioned by King Manuel I in 1502 to commemorate Vasco da Gama's return from India, completed in 1601 and entrusted to the Hieronymite order. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983, it houses the tombs of Vasco da Gama and the poet Luis de Camoes. - Belém Tower (built 1519 AD) Manueline fortified tower built between 1514 and 1519 at the mouth of the Tagus to defend the harbour and serve as a ceremonial gateway for ships departing on voyages of discovery. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 alongside the Jerónimos Monastery. - Praça do Comércio (built 1755 AD) Vast riverfront square laid out by the Marquis of Pombal during the post-earthquake reconstruction on the site of the destroyed Ribeira Royal Palace. Framed by symmetrical arcaded ministries and opening directly onto the Tagus, it is the centerpiece of Pombaline downtown Lisbon. - Padrão dos Descobrimentos (built 1960 AD) Monument to the Discoveries on the Belém waterfront, inaugurated in 1960 to mark the 500th anniversary of the death of Henry the Navigator. Its prow-shaped concrete form carries sculpted figures of 33 leading personalities of the Portuguese Age of Discovery. - 25 de Abril Bridge (built 1966 AD) Suspension bridge across the Tagus opened in 1966 as the Salazar Bridge, linking central Lisbon to Almada on the south bank. Renamed after the Carnation Revolution of 25 April 1974, it remains one of the longest suspension bridges in Europe. ## Population History - 1200 BC: 500 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 25,000 - 1147 AD: 15,000 - 1500 AD: 70,000 - 1700 AD: 165,000 - 1755 AD: 200,000 - 1800 AD: 190,000 - 1900 AD: 360,000 - 1950 AD: 790,000 - 2020 AD: 545,000 --- # Moscow, Russia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/russia/moscow Founded: 800 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 55.7558, 37.6173 ## Description Moscow, first mentioned in chronicles in 1147, rose from a minor Slavic settlement on the Moskva River to become the political and cultural heart of Russia. It served as the capital of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, the Russian Tsardom, and later the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation. The city was sacked and burned multiple times — by the Mongols in 1237, by the Crimean Tatars in 1571, and by retreating Russian forces in 1812 — yet each time rebuilt larger than before. ## Historical Rulers - 800 AD – 1147 AD: Merya and Vyatichi Peoples (known as "Moskva River Settlements") The area around the Moskva River was inhabited by Merya (Finno-Ugric) and Vyatichi (East Slavic) tribes. These settlements formed along river trade routes connecting the Volga basin to the Oka and Dnieper rivers. - 1147 AD – 1263 AD: Vladimir-Suzdal Principality (known as "Moskva") First mentioned in 1147 when Prince Yuri Dolgoruky hosted a feast here. In 1237 Batu Khan's Mongol army sacked and burned the settlement, killing most of its inhabitants. The town was rebuilt under Mongol suzerainty as a tributary outpost. - 1263 AD – 1480 AD: Principality of Moscow (known as "Moskva") Established as a separate principality under Daniel, youngest son of Alexander Nevsky. Moscow gradually absorbed rival principalities and emerged as the dominant power among Russian states, while still paying tribute to the Golden Horde until Ivan III's stand on the Ugra River in 1480. - 1480 AD – 1547 AD: Grand Duchy of Moscow (known as "Moskva") After throwing off Mongol suzerainty, Ivan III unified most of northern Russia under Moscow's rule and proclaimed himself sovereign of all Russia. The Kremlin was rebuilt in red brick by Italian architects during this period. - 1547 AD – 1712 AD: Tsardom of Russia (known as "Moskva") Ivan IV (the Terrible) became the first Tsar in 1547. Moscow served as the capital and grew into one of Europe's largest cities. In 1571 it was sacked by the Crimean Tatars. The city remained capital until Peter the Great moved it to Saint Petersburg in 1712. - 1712 AD – 1917 AD: Russian Empire — secondary capital (known as "Moskva") Though no longer the official capital, Moscow remained Russia's largest city and cultural heart. In 1812, Napoleon occupied it for five weeks; a great fire destroyed three-quarters of the city during the occupation. Moscow was swiftly rebuilt and continued to grow as Russia's commercial center. - 1917 AD – 1991 AD: Soviet Union (known as "Moskva") Lenin moved the capital back to Moscow in 1918. The city became the center of the Soviet state and underwent massive industrialization and expansion. The metro system opened in 1935. During WWII German forces reached within 30km of the city before being repelled. - 1991 AD – present: Russian Federation Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Moscow became the capital of the Russian Federation. It remains the country's political, economic, and cultural center and one of the largest cities in Europe. ## Landmarks - Moscow Kremlin (built 1156 AD) The fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, originally a wooden stockade built by Yuri Dolgoruky in 1156, rebuilt in white limestone in 1367 and red brick in the 1490s by Italian architects. Home to cathedrals, palaces, and the seat of Russian political power for centuries. - Red Square (built 1493 AD) The central square of Moscow adjacent to the Kremlin, used for centuries as a marketplace, place of execution, military parades, and public gatherings. The name derives from the Russian word 'krasnaya', meaning both red and beautiful. - Saint Basil's Cathedral (built 1555 AD) Commissioned by Ivan the Terrible to commemorate his capture of Kazan, the cathedral's multicolored onion domes have become the symbol of Russia. Built between 1555 and 1561 by architects Barma and Postnik Yakovlev. - Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (built 1839 AD) Built to commemorate Russia's victory over Napoleon, consecrated in 1883. Demolished by Stalin in 1931 to make way for a never-built Palace of the Soviets; rebuilt and reconsecrated in 2000. ## Population History - 800 AD: 500 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1147 AD: 8,000 - 1238 AD: 3,000 - 1300 AD: 20,000 - 1400 AD: 40,000 - 1500 AD: 100,000 - 1572 AD: 50,000 - 1600 AD: 100,000 - 1700 AD: 200,000 - 1800 AD: 270,000 - 1813 AD: 100,000 - 1850 AD: 365,000 - 1900 AD: 1,039,000 - 1926 AD: 2,029,000 - 1950 AD: 5,000,000 - 1975 AD: 7,800,000 - 2000 AD: 10,000,000 - 2025 AD: 13,100,000 --- # Saint Petersburg, Russia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/russia/saint-petersburg Founded: 500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 59.9311, 30.3609 ## Description Saint Petersburg was founded by Peter the Great in 1703 as Russia's 'window to Europe' and served as the capital of the Russian Empire for over two centuries. Built on the marshes of the Neva River delta, the city became a showcase of Baroque and Neoclassical architecture. Known as Petrograd during World War I and Leningrad during the Soviet era, it endured a devastating 872-day siege in World War II before being restored as Saint Petersburg in 1991. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 1100 AD: Ingrian and Izhorian Peoples (known as "Neva Delta Settlements") Finno-Ugric tribes, primarily the Ingrians (Izhora) and Votic peoples, inhabited the Neva River delta for centuries. They lived by fishing, hunting, and trade along the river routes connecting the Baltic to the interior of Eurasia. - 1100 AD – 1478 AD: Novgorod Republic (known as "Neva Land") Novgorod expanded into the Neva delta, using it as a vital trade corridor to the Baltic Sea. In 1240, Alexander Nevsky defeated a Swedish invasion force at the mouth of the Izhora River — the Battle of the Neva — defending Novgorodian control of the region. - 1478 AD – 1583 AD: Grand Duchy of Moscow (known as "Izhora Land") When Moscow absorbed Novgorod in 1478, the Neva delta came under Muscovite control. The region remained sparsely settled, valued mainly as a trade and military corridor to the Baltic. - 1583 AD – 1703 AD: Swedish Empire (known as "Nyen") Sweden seized Ingria during the Time of Troubles. In 1611 they built the Nyenskans fortress at the confluence of the Neva and Okhta rivers, with the trading town of Nyen growing beside it. The area flourished as a Swedish outpost until Peter the Great captured it in 1703 during the Great Northern War. - 1703 AD – 1914 AD: Russian Empire (known as "Sankt Peterburg") Peter the Great founded the city on 27 May 1703 on the ruins of Nyenskans, declaring it Russia's 'window to Europe'. It became the imperial capital in 1712, replacing Moscow, and grew into one of Europe's grandest cities. - 1914 AD – 1917 AD: Russian Empire — WWI (known as "Petrograd") Renamed Petrograd in 1914 due to anti-German sentiment. The city became the epicenter of the February and October Revolutions of 1917. - 1917 AD – 1991 AD: Soviet Union (known as "Leningrad") Renamed Leningrad in 1924 after Lenin's death. Capital was moved back to Moscow in 1918. Suffered a catastrophic 872-day siege by German forces (1941–1944) in which over one million civilians perished. - 1991 AD – present: Russian Federation Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the city's original name was restored by referendum in 1991. It remains Russia's second-largest city and a federal subject, serving as a major cultural, scientific, and economic center as well as the country's principal Baltic seaport. ## Landmarks - Peter and Paul Fortress (built 1703 AD) The original fortress founded by Peter the Great on 27 May 1703, marking the birth of the city. Contains the Peter and Paul Cathedral, the burial place of Russian emperors from Peter the Great onward. - Winter Palace (built 1762 AD) The official residence of Russian emperors from 1762 to 1917, designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli in Baroque style. Today houses the State Hermitage Museum, one of the largest and oldest art museums in the world. - Bronze Horseman (built 1782 AD) Equestrian statue of Peter the Great commissioned by Catherine the Great, unveiled in 1782. Became the symbol of Saint Petersburg and inspired Pushkin's famous poem of the same name. - Saint Isaac's Cathedral (built 1818 AD) The largest Russian Orthodox cathedral in the city, built between 1818 and 1858. Its massive gilded dome dominates the city skyline and was used as a secular museum during the Soviet period. ## Population History - 500 BC: 500 - 1100 AD: 1,000 - 1478 AD: 2,000 - 1611 AD: 3,000 - 1725 AD: 75,000 - 1800 AD: 220,000 - 1850 AD: 485,000 - 1900 AD: 1,439,000 - 1917 AD: 2,400,000 - 1939 AD: 3,100,000 - 1944 AD: 600,000 - 1950 AD: 2,900,000 - 1970 AD: 3,950,000 - 2000 AD: 4,700,000 - 2020 AD: 5,400,000 --- # Hegra, Saudi Arabia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/saudi-arabia/hegra Founded: 100 BC Ended: 300 AD Coordinates: 26.7917, 37.9536 ## Description Hegra — known in Arabic as Mada'in Salih (the Cities of Salih) and to the Nabataeans as Hegrā — is an archaeological site in northwestern Saudi Arabia's Medina Province, about 22 kilometres north of the modern oasis town of AlUla. The site rose to prominence in the 1st century BCE as the principal southern city of the Nabataean Kingdom after Petra, controlling the desert caravan route from southern Arabia to the Mediterranean through the Hejaz. Over a century and a half the Nabataeans cut more than 130 monumental rock-cut tomb facades into the sandstone outcrops surrounding the settlement, leaving an inscribed corpus that documents the names and dates of the local elite from 1 BCE to roughly 75 CE. After Trajan's peaceful annexation of the Nabataean Kingdom in 106 CE, Hegra became the southernmost garrisoned outpost of the Roman province of Arabia Petraea, attested by Latin inscriptions of the Legio III Cyrenaica and a refortification of the city walls in the early 3rd century. With the collapse of the Indian Ocean caravan trade in the late 3rd century the city was completely abandoned, and the site remained largely uninhabited apart from an Ottoman fort built in 1744 to protect Hajj pilgrims and the 1907 Hejaz Railway station at the same point. UNESCO inscribed Hegra in 2008 as Saudi Arabia's first World Heritage Site, and the Royal Commission for AlUla has restored the original Nabataean name and developed the area as a major heritage tourism destination. ## Historical Rulers - 100 BC – 106 AD: Nabataean Kingdom Hegra was established as the principal southern stronghold of the Nabataean Kingdom around the turn of the 1st century BCE, controlling the incense and spice caravan route between southern Arabia and Petra. Over the following two centuries Nabataean elite families cut more than 130 monumental rock-cut tomb facades into the surrounding sandstone outcrops, with dated inscriptions ranging from 1 BCE to roughly 75 CE. The city remained the second city of the Nabataean Kingdom after Petra until its peaceful annexation by Trajan in 106 CE. - 106 AD – 300 AD: Roman Empire Following Trajan's annexation of the Nabataean Kingdom in 106 CE, Hegra was incorporated into the new Roman province of Arabia Petraea as its southernmost garrisoned city, marked by Latin inscriptions of the Legio III Cyrenaica and a refortification of the city walls in the early 3rd century. The site continued to function as a caravan station and military outpost until the collapse of the Red Sea and Indian Ocean caravan trade in the late 3rd century, when the city was permanently abandoned. ## Landmarks - Diwan of Hegra (built 1 AD) A rock-cut triclinium dining hall at Jabal Ithlib, used for ceremonial banquets in honor of the Nabataean gods. Cut into the sandstone cliff at the entrance to the narrow Siq al-Ajab gorge, it is associated with cult niches and offering benches that mark the principal religious sanctuary of Nabataean Hegra. - Qasr al-Bint Tombs (built 30 AD) A cluster of more than thirty rock-cut tomb facades carved into the southern flank of the Qasr al-Bint sandstone outcrop in the 1st century CE. Several tombs preserve their dedicatory inscriptions in Nabataean Aramaic, naming the owners and prescribing legal penalties against reuse by other families. - Qasr al-Farid (built 50 AD) Monumental unfinished rock-cut tomb of Lihyan son of Kuza, dated by its dedicatory inscription to between 50 and 75 CE. Carved out of a single freestanding sandstone outcrop on the northeastern edge of the site, the 'Lonely Castle' is the largest and most iconic of Hegra's tomb facades and the symbol of the modern UNESCO site. - Roman City Wall of Hegra (built 200 AD) A roughly 4-kilometer circuit of mudbrick and stone fortifications enclosing the residential core of Hegra, originally laid out under the Nabataeans and substantially refortified under the Roman garrison in the early 3rd century. The Latin inscription of 175-177 CE recording repairs by the Legio III Cyrenaica is one of the southernmost Roman military inscriptions known. ## Population History - 100 BC: 500 - 50 BC: 3,000 - 1 AD: 5,000 - 100 AD: 5,000 - 200 AD: 2,000 - 300 AD: 500 --- # Singapore, Singapore URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/singapore/singapore Founded: 1819 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 1.3521, 103.8198 ## Description Singapore is an island city-state at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. Long before the British arrival, the island hosted Temasek, a trading port mentioned in 14th-century Chinese records and tied successively to the Srivijaya and Majapahit maritime spheres. Modern Singapore was founded on 6 February 1819 by Sir Stamford Raffles of the British East India Company as a free port, ceded outright by the Sultan of Johor in 1824 and absorbed into the Straits Settlements. It fell to Japan on 15 February 1942 in one of Britain's worst military defeats and endured three and a half years as Syonan-to before British return in 1945. After self-government in 1959, a brief merger with Malaysia in 1963, and expulsion to independence on 9 August 1965, Lee Kuan Yew's People's Action Party led the rapid transformation from a small port economy to a global financial, shipping, and technology hub of roughly 5.9 million residents. ## Historical Rulers - 1819 AD – 1867 AD: British Empire Sir Stamford Raffles signed a treaty with the Sultan of Johor on 6 February 1819 establishing a free trading post under the British East India Company. An 1824 treaty ceded the island outright, and from 1826 Singapore was governed as part of the Straits Settlements alongside Penang and Malacca, growing rapidly as the dominant entrepot of Southeast Asia. - 1867 AD – 1942 AD: British Empire Administration of the Straits Settlements transferred from the East India Company and India Office to the Colonial Office in London in 1867, making Singapore a direct Crown Colony. Free-port trade, the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, rubber, and tin propelled the city into the world's leading entrepot and a major British naval base in the interwar period. - 1942 AD – 1945 AD: Empire of Japan — colonial British and Commonwealth forces surrendered to the Imperial Japanese Army on 15 February 1942 after the Battle of Singapore, the largest British capitulation in history. Renamed Syonan-to or 'Light of the South', the city endured three and a half years of occupation marked by the Sook Ching massacres, severe food shortages, and forced-labour drives until Japan's surrender in September 1945. - 1945 AD – 1959 AD: British Empire British Military Administration resumed control in September 1945 and Singapore became a separate Crown Colony in 1946 as the Straits Settlements were dissolved. Gradual constitutional reform through the Rendel Commission and the 1955 and 1958 constitutions expanded local representation and prepared the colony for full internal self-government. - 1959 AD – 1963 AD: Self-Governing State of Singapore After elections in 1959 Lee Kuan Yew's People's Action Party formed the first fully elected government, with Britain retaining only defence and external affairs. The young administration faced acute unemployment, overcrowded shophouse districts, and the rivalry between left-wing trade unions and the PAP leadership while pushing industrialisation through the new Economic Development Board. - 1963 AD – 1965 AD: Federation of Malaysia — State of Singapore Singapore merged with the Federation of Malaya, Sabah, and Sarawak on 16 September 1963 to form Malaysia, ending direct British sovereignty. Ideological clashes over racial policy, the 1964 communal riots, and economic disputes between the federal government in Kuala Lumpur and the PAP state government produced an unworkable union. - 1965 AD – present: Republic of Singapore Expelled from Malaysia on 9 August 1965, Singapore became an independent sovereign republic. Under Lee Kuan Yew and successor PAP governments the city-state pursued export-led industrialisation, mass public housing through the HDB, compulsory savings via the CPF, and bilingual education, transforming what Lee called a journey 'from third world to first' into a global financial, shipping, and technology hub of roughly 5.9 million residents. ## Landmarks - Sri Mariamman Temple (built 1827 AD) The oldest Hindu temple in Singapore, founded in 1827 in the South Indian Dravidian style on South Bridge Road within the Chinatown historic district. It served the Tamil immigrant community from the early colonial port era and remains an active centre of worship and the annual Theemithi fire-walking festival. - Singapore Botanic Gardens (built 1859 AD) Established in 1859 on the edge of the colonial town, the Botanic Gardens hosted the experiments that introduced Pará rubber to Southeast Asia in the late 19th century, helping to launch the regional rubber economy. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015 as a rare tropical urban garden of outstanding cultural and scientific value. - Raffles Hotel (built 1887 AD) Opened in 1887 by the Sarkies brothers and rebuilt in its current colonial Neo-Renaissance form in 1899, Raffles Hotel became an icon of high colonial Singapore and a literary haunt of writers such as Rudyard Kipling and Somerset Maugham. It is also the birthplace of the Singapore Sling cocktail and is gazetted as a national monument. - Merlion (built 1972 AD) Unveiled on 15 September 1972 at the mouth of the Singapore River, the Merlion is an 8.6-metre statue of a lion-headed fish designed by Fraser Brunner. It draws on the legend of Sang Nila Utama spotting a lion at Temasek and on the city's maritime origins, and has become the principal civic symbol of modern Singapore. - Marina Bay Sands (built 2010 AD) Opened in 2010 on reclaimed land at Marina Bay, this integrated resort designed by Moshe Safdie comprises three 55-storey hotel towers crowned by the cantilevered SkyPark, together with a casino, convention centre, theatres, and a luxury shopping mall. Its silhouette has become an instantly recognisable element of the modern city skyline. - Gardens by the Bay (built 2012 AD) Inaugurated in 2012 on reclaimed land beside Marina Bay, this 101-hectare nature park combines the Flower Dome and Cloud Forest conservatories with the Supertree Grove of vertical-garden structures that double as solar collectors and rainwater channels. It is a flagship project of Singapore's 'City in a Garden' urban planning vision. - Jewel Changi Airport (built 2019 AD) Opened in April 2019 at Changi Airport and designed by Moshe Safdie, Jewel is a glass and steel torus-shaped complex of gardens, shops, and attractions centred on the HSBC Rain Vortex, a 40-metre indoor waterfall that is the tallest of its kind in the world. It exemplifies Singapore's strategy of fusing aviation infrastructure with leisure architecture. ## Population History - 1819 AD: 1,000 - 1850 AD: 80,000 - 1900 AD: 228,000 - 1940 AD: 770,000 - 1947 AD: 940,000 - 1965 AD: 1,890,000 - 1980 AD: 2,410,000 - 2000 AD: 4,030,000 - 2020 AD: 5,685,000 --- # Cape Town, South Africa URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/south-africa/cape-town Founded: 1652 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: -33.9249, 18.4241 ## Description Cape Town, known as the Mother City, is the oldest European-founded city in southern Africa and today serves as the legislative capital of the Republic of South Africa. The Cape Peninsula was home to Khoisan peoples — San hunter-gatherers and Khoikhoi pastoralists — for tens of thousands of years before Bartolomeu Dias rounded the Cape in 1488 and Vasco da Gama followed in 1497. Jan van Riebeeck established a Dutch East India Company refreshment station here in 1652, seeding a settler colony built on enslaved labor brought from Southeast Asia, Madagascar and East Africa, whose descendants formed the Cape Malay community. British forces took the colony permanently in 1806, abolished slavery in 1834, and incorporated it into the Union of South Africa in 1910; under apartheid from 1948 onward the city saw forced removals such as the 1968 destruction of District Six, while Nelson Mandela was held on nearby Robben Island from 1964 to 1982 and delivered his first speech as a free man from the City Hall balcony in 1990. Since the democratic transition of 1994, Cape Town has remained a parliamentary capital and a major global tourism destination, with Table Mountain and Robben Island inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in recognition of natural and historical significance. ## Historical Rulers - 1652 AD – 1795 AD: Dutch East Indies (known as "Kaapstad") Jan van Riebeeck landed in Table Bay in April 1652 and founded a refreshment station for VOC ships sailing between Europe and the East Indies. The settlement grew into a slave-holding colony drawing enslaved people from Southeast Asia, Madagascar and East Africa, displacing Khoikhoi pastoralists and laying the foundations of the Cape Malay and Afrikaner communities. - 1795 AD – 1803 AD: British Empire After the French Revolutionary Wars reached the Cape, British forces seized Kaapstad in 1795 following the Battle of Muizenberg to deny the strategic harbor to Napoleonic France. The occupation maintained VOC administrative structures while reorienting trade toward the British Empire. - 1803 AD – 1806 AD: Dutch Republic (known as "Kaapstad") Under the Treaty of Amiens the Cape was returned to the Batavian Republic, the Dutch successor state to the VOC. Governor Jan Willem Janssens introduced administrative reforms, but the renewed Napoleonic Wars cut the experiment short. - 1806 AD – 1910 AD: British Empire Britain retook the Cape at the Battle of Blaauwberg in 1806 and held it permanently. Slavery was abolished in 1834, mineral discoveries in the interior reshaped the colony's economy, and Cape Town served as a base of operations during the Anglo-Boer Wars of 1880-1881 and 1899-1902. - 1910 AD – 1961 AD: Union of South Africa Cape Town became the legislative capital of the new Union of South Africa, a self-governing dominion within the British Empire formed from the former Cape, Natal, Transvaal and Orange River colonies. The National Party's 1948 victory ushered in formal apartheid, with racial segregation laws restructuring the city and its surrounding townships. - 1961 AD – 1994 AD: Republic of South Africa under Apartheid After leaving the Commonwealth in 1961, South Africa intensified apartheid policies. The mixed neighborhood of District Six was declared a whites-only area in 1966 and demolished from 1968, displacing roughly 60,000 residents; political prisoners including Nelson Mandela were held on Robben Island, administered from Cape Town, from 1964 to 1982. - 1994 AD – present: Democratic Republic of South Africa Following Nelson Mandela's election in 1994, Cape Town entered the post-apartheid democratic era while retaining its role as the seat of the National Parliament. The city has since hosted Truth and Reconciliation hearings, expanded as a global tourism hub anchored by Table Mountain National Park and the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, and continues to confront the spatial and economic legacies of apartheid-era planning. ## Landmarks - Castle of Good Hope (built 1666 AD) A pentagonal bastion fort built by the Dutch East India Company between 1666 and 1679 to replace Van Riebeeck's earlier earthen fort. It is the oldest surviving colonial building in South Africa and served as the seat of VOC and later British administration at the Cape. - Slave Lodge (built 1679 AD) Constructed by the VOC to house people enslaved by the Company, the Slave Lodge held thousands of enslaved men, women and children over more than a century. After abolition the building served as government offices and a court; it is now a museum dedicated to the history of slavery and human rights at the Cape. - Victoria and Alfred Waterfront (built 1860 AD) Construction of the harbor basins began in 1860 when Prince Alfred tipped the first stones to inaugurate the breakwater. The working port was redeveloped from 1988 into a mixed-use waterfront precinct that opened in 1990 and is now one of southern Africa's most-visited destinations. - Cape Town City Hall (built 1905 AD) An Edwardian-era civic building completed in 1905 in honey-colored Bath stone, facing the Grand Parade. From its balcony Nelson Mandela delivered his first public speech on 11 February 1990 after his release from prison, addressing tens of thousands of supporters. - Table Mountain Aerial Cableway (built 1929 AD) Opened in October 1929, the cableway carries visitors from Tafelberg Road to the summit of Table Mountain, the flat-topped massif that defines Cape Town's skyline. Table Mountain National Park forms part of the Cape Floral Region UNESCO World Heritage Site. - Robben Island Maximum Security Prison (built 1961 AD) A maximum-security political prison opened in 1961 on the island in Table Bay, administered from Cape Town. Nelson Mandela was held there from 1964 until 1982, along with many other anti-apartheid leaders; the island was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999. - District Six Museum (built 1994 AD) Founded in December 1994 in a former Methodist church on Buitenkant Street, the museum commemorates the inner-city neighborhood of District Six, declared a whites-only area in 1966 and demolished from 1968. Its exhibits center the testimonies of more than 60,000 forcibly removed residents. ## Population History - 1652 AD: 100 - 1700 AD: 1,500 - 1800 AD: 16,000 - 1850 AD: 25,000 - 1900 AD: 100,000 - 1950 AD: 570,000 - 1980 AD: 1,500,000 - 2000 AD: 2,900,000 - 2020 AD: 4,620,000 --- # Seoul, South Korea URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/south-korea/seoul Founded: 1394 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.5665, 126.978 ## Description Seoul is the capital of South Korea and one of the great East Asian capitals. The Han River valley was settled from prehistoric times and hosted the Baekje Kingdom's capital Wiryeseong from around 18 BCE, but that early urban center fell to Goguryeo in 475 CE and the area became a minor town for nearly nine centuries. The continuous history of Seoul as a major capital begins in 1394, when King Taejo of the newly founded Joseon Dynasty moved the Korean capital here and renamed it Hanyang, also called Hanseong, ringing it with the Fortress Wall of Seoul in 1396. It served as capital of Joseon until 1897, then of the short-lived Korean Empire under Gojong, before Japanese annexation in 1910 turned it into colonial Keijō. Liberation in 1945 and the establishment of the Republic of Korea in 1948 made Seoul the capital of South Korea; the Korean War of 1950 to 1953 devastated the city, after which the postwar Miracle on the Han River transformed it into a vast industrial and financial metropolis. Today Seoul anchors a metropolitan area of roughly 25 million people and is the global epicenter of the Korean Wave, including K-pop, K-drama and Korean cuisine, while Changdeokgung Palace was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. ## Historical Rulers - 1394 AD – 1897 AD: Joseon Dynasty (known as "Hanyang") King Taejo, founder of the Joseon Dynasty, relocated the Korean capital to the Han River site in 1394 and renamed it Hanyang, also known as Hanseong. The Fortress Wall of Seoul was completed in 1396 and Gyeongbokgung Palace in 1395, anchoring a Confucian royal capital that endured for over five centuries. - 1897 AD – 1910 AD: Korean Empire (known as "Hanseong") King Gojong proclaimed the Korean Empire in 1897, ending the Joseon order and elevating Hanseong to imperial capital. The brief empire pursued modernization reforms but was steadily eroded by Japanese influence after the 1905 protectorate, culminating in formal annexation in 1910. - 1910 AD – 1945 AD: Empire of Japan (known as "Keijō") After the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty of 1910 the city became Keijō, capital of the Japanese colonial Government-General of Korea. Modern infrastructure, railways and colonial administration reshaped the urban fabric until Japan's defeat in 1945 ended the occupation. - 1945 AD – 1948 AD: United States Army Military Government in Korea Following Japanese surrender in 1945 the southern half of the peninsula came under United States military administration, which governed from Seoul. The name Seoul, from the native Korean word for capital, was formally adopted in 1946 in place of Keijō and Hanseong. - 1948 AD – present: Republic of Korea The Republic of Korea was proclaimed in 1948 with Seoul as its capital. The Korean War of 1950 to 1953 devastated the city, which changed hands four times before being rebuilt during the postwar decades. From the 1960s the Miracle on the Han River turned Seoul into a global megacity and from the 1990s onward into the cultural engine of the Korean Wave. ## Landmarks - Gyeongbokgung Palace (built 1395 AD) The main royal palace of the Joseon Dynasty, built in 1395 by King Taejo at the foot of Bugaksan as the political heart of the new capital. Burned during the Imjin War in 1592 and left in ruins for centuries, it was rebuilt under Heungseon Daewongun in the 1860s and partly demolished under Japanese rule, with major restoration ongoing since the 1990s. - Fortress Wall of Seoul (built 1396 AD) An 18.6 km circuit of stone and earthen walls built in 1396 around the Joseon capital, linking the inner peaks of Bugaksan, Naksan, Namsan and Inwangsan and pierced by four great and four lesser gates. Surviving stretches and reconstructed gates still trace the historic perimeter of the old city. - Sungnyemun (built 1398 AD) Also called Namdaemun, the great southern gate of the fortress wall completed in 1398. Designated South Korea's National Treasure No. 1, it was gutted by arson in 2008 and reopened in 2013 after a meticulous five-year restoration. - Changdeokgung Palace (built 1405 AD) A secondary Joseon palace completed in 1405 east of Gyeongbokgung, famed for its Huwon rear garden integrated into the natural topography. It served as the principal royal residence for much of the Joseon era after the Imjin War and was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. - N Seoul Tower (built 1971 AD) A 236 m communications and observation tower atop Namsan in central Seoul, completed in 1971 and opened to the public in 1980. It has become a defining symbol of the modern city skyline and a popular viewpoint and cultural landmark. - Dongdaemun Design Plaza (built 2014 AD) A neofuturist cultural complex designed by Zaha Hadid and opened in 2014 on the site of a former stadium beside the historic Dongdaemun Gate. It hosts design exhibitions, fashion shows and events and is one of the largest examples of parametric architecture in Asia. - Lotte World Tower (built 2017 AD) A 555 m, 123-storey supertall skyscraper in Jamsil completed in 2017, the tallest building in South Korea and at completion the fifth tallest in the world. It anchors the Lotte World commercial complex south of the Han River. ## Population History - 1394 AD: 50,000 - 1500 AD: 100,000 - 1700 AD: 190,000 - 1800 AD: 190,000 - 1900 AD: 200,000 - 1945 AD: 900,000 - 1955 AD: 1,500,000 - 1980 AD: 8,400,000 - 2000 AD: 9,900,000 - 2020 AD: 9,500,000 --- # Madrid, Spain URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/spain/madrid Founded: 865 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.4168, -3.7038 ## Description Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain, founded in 865 CE as the Andalusi fortress town of Mayrit by Emir Muhammad I of Cordoba and established as a frontier post guarding the northern marches of al-Andalus against the Christian kingdoms of León and Castile. Captured by Alfonso VI of Castile during the Reconquista in 1085 and granted a charter in 1202, the town remained a modest Castilian settlement until Philip II permanently moved the Habsburg court to Madrid in 1561, transforming it into the capital of the Spanish monarchy and the political heart of the global empire. The Habsburg era produced the Plaza Mayor in 1620, while the Bourbon eighteenth century rebuilt the Royal Alcázar after its 1734 fire as the surviving Royal Palace and laid out the Paseo del Prado axis culminating in the 1819 opening of the Prado Museum. Madrid endured the 2 May 1808 uprising against Napoleonic occupation, the brief First Republic of 1873-1874, and a three-year siege of 1936-1939 during the Spanish Civil War before falling to the Nationalists. Under the Franco dictatorship until 1975 the city expanded into a continental metropolis through rural migration, and the post-1975 democratic transition restored the constitutional monarchy under Juan Carlos I and propelled Madrid into its current role as a global cultural and financial capital of roughly 3.3 million inhabitants and 6.7 million in the metropolitan area. ## Historical Rulers - 865 AD – 929 AD: Emirate of Cordoba (known as "Mayrit") Founded in 865 CE by Emir Muhammad I of Cordoba as the fortified frontier town of Mayrit, from the Arabic mağrīṭ derived in turn from a local Romance word meaning 'place of springs.' The town guarded the northern marches of the independent Umayyad Emirate of al-Andalus against the rising Christian kingdoms of León and Castile, with a citadel above the Manzanares river. - 929 AD – 1031 AD: Caliphate of Cordoba (known as "Mayrit") Abd al-Rahman III's elevation of the Cordoban polity to caliphal status in 929 brought Mayrit into the high-classical phase of al-Andalus. The town remained a strategically placed but modest frontier outpost of the Caliphate through the tenth century, with continued raids and counter-raids against the Christian marches. - 1031 AD – 1085 AD: Taifa of Toledo (known as "Mayrit") Following the disintegration of the Cordoban Caliphate in 1031, Mayrit passed under the control of the Taifa kingdom of Toledo under the Dhulnunid dynasty. The Taifa period saw repeated Christian pressure on the central Iberian frontier as Castilian armies extracted tribute and progressively reduced the buffer zone south of the Sierra de Guadarrama. - 1085 AD – 1561 AD: Crown of Castile Alfonso VI of Castile captured the town in 1085 during his conquest of Toledo, incorporating Mayrit into the Crown of Castile under its Christianised name Madrid. The town received a municipal charter in 1202 under Alfonso VIII and slowly developed as a royal hunting seat occasionally favoured by Castilian monarchs, hosting Cortes under Ferdinand IV and Alfonso XI in the fourteenth century. After the 1469 dynastic union with the Crown of Aragon under Ferdinand and Isabella the town remained a secondary royal seat through the early sixteenth century, while the itinerant Habsburg court favoured Valladolid, Toledo, and Burgos. - 1561 AD – 1808 AD: Spanish Empire In 1561 Philip II permanently transferred the Spanish court to Madrid, making it the de facto capital of the global Habsburg monarchy; the court briefly relocated to Valladolid from 1601 to 1606 before returning definitively. The seventeenth century saw the laying out of the Plaza Mayor in 1620 and the flourishing of the Spanish Golden Age centred on the new capital. After the 1700 succession of Philip V the Bourbon dynasty rebuilt Madrid in a more classical idiom, raising the Royal Palace on the site of the Alcázar that had burned in 1734, and Charles III commissioned major civic works including the Paseo del Prado and the Puerta de Alcalá. - 1808 AD – 1813 AD: Napoleonic Spain French forces occupied Madrid in 1808 and Napoleon installed his brother Joseph Bonaparte as king. The 2 May 1808 uprising of the city's population against the French garrison, immortalised in Goya's paintings, sparked the Peninsular War; French rule ended with the Allied victory at Vitoria in 1813 and the retreat of Joseph Bonaparte across the Pyrenees. - 1813 AD – 1898 AD: Spanish Empire Ferdinand VII returned to Madrid in 1814 and restored absolute Bourbon rule, opening the Prado Museum in 1819. The nineteenth century brought the Carlist Wars, the reign of Isabella II ended by the Glorious Revolution of 1868, the brief First Spanish Republic of 1873-1874, and the Bourbon Restoration under Alfonso XII and Alfonso XIII. The era ended with the loss of the last overseas colonies in the 1898 Spanish-American War, marking the practical end of the Spanish Empire as a global imperial polity. - 1898 AD – 1931 AD: Kingdom of Spain Post-imperial Bourbon Spain under Alfonso XIII saw Madrid expand with the Ensanche plan of Carlos María de Castro, the cutting of the Gran Vía boulevard from 1910, and the opening of the city's first metro line in 1919. The dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera from 1923 sought to stabilise the monarchy but the municipal elections of April 1931 prompted the king's departure and the proclamation of the Second Republic from the balcony of the Madrid town hall. - 1931 AD – 1939 AD: Second Spanish Republic Alfonso XIII left Spain in April 1931 and the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed in Madrid under the tricolor flag of red, yellow, and purple. From November 1936 the city endured nearly three years of siege by Nationalist forces during the Spanish Civil War, holding out under the slogan No pasarán until its fall in March 1939 as the last Republican stronghold. - 1939 AD – 1975 AD: Francoist Spain Francisco Franco entered Madrid in 1939 and ruled the Spanish State from the city until his death in November 1975. The capital expanded rapidly during the post-war decades of autarky and the 1960s desarrollismo economic miracle, absorbing rural migrants into vast new working-class districts at Vallecas, Carabanchel, and Usera, and the Movida cultural ferment of the early 1970s anticipated the political opening of the late dictatorship. - 1975 AD – present: Kingdom of Spain On Franco's death in November 1975 Juan Carlos I restored the parliamentary monarchy and oversaw the democratic transition codified in the 1978 Constitution, which confirmed Madrid as capital. Spain joined the European Economic Community in 1986, and under Juan Carlos I and Felipe VI from 2014 the city has grown into a global cultural, financial, and tourist capital of roughly 3.3 million inhabitants and 6.7 million in the metropolitan area. ## Landmarks - Plaza Mayor (built 1620 AD) Grand rectangular arcaded square completed under Philip III in 1620 to the design of Juan Gómez de Mora, the ceremonial and civic heart of Habsburg Madrid used for royal proclamations, autos-da-fé and bullfights. - Puerta del Sol (built 1650 AD) Central public square of medieval origin that took its modern semicircular form between the 17th and 19th centuries. It is the symbolic kilometre zero of Spain's radial road network and the site of the 2 May 1808 clashes against Napoleon's troops. - Royal Palace of Madrid (built 1764 AD) Baroque-classical royal residence completed in 1764 on the site of the medieval Alcázar that burned in 1734. Commissioned by Philip V and designed by Sacchetti and Sabatini, it remains the largest functioning royal palace in Western Europe and the official residence of the Spanish crown. - Plaza de Cibeles (built 1782 AD) Neoclassical square crowned by Ventura Rodríguez's 1782 fountain of the goddess Cybele drawn by lions, framed by the Cibeles Palace, the Bank of Spain and grand 19th-century buildings, and a popular gathering point for civic celebrations. - Prado Museum (built 1819 AD) National art museum housed in Juan de Villanueva's neoclassical building, opened in 1819 as the Royal Museum of Paintings. Its collection drawn from the Spanish royal holdings is among the finest in the world, with masterpieces by Velázquez, Goya, El Greco and Bosch. - Reina Sofía Museum (built 1992 AD) National museum of 20th-century art inaugurated in 1992 in the former San Carlos Hospital, dedicated chiefly to Spanish modern and contemporary art. Its centerpiece is Picasso's Guernica, transferred from the Prado in 1992. - Almudena Cathedral (built 1993 AD) Catholic cathedral facing the Royal Palace, begun in 1879 and finally consecrated by Pope John Paul II in 1993 after more than a century of intermittent construction. Its eclectic neo-Gothic and neoclassical design serves as the seat of the Archdiocese of Madrid. ## Population History - 865 AD: 1,000 - 1085 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 10,000 - 1561 AD: 14,000 - 1600 AD: 80,000 - 1700 AD: 110,000 - 1800 AD: 160,000 - 1900 AD: 540,000 - 1936 AD: 950,000 - 1950 AD: 1,530,000 - 1980 AD: 3,160,000 - 2000 AD: 2,900,000 - 2020 AD: 3,300,000 --- # Numantia, Spain URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/spain/numantia Founded: 600 BC Ended: 500 AD Coordinates: 41.8091, -2.4505 ## Description Numantia was the principal hilltop city of the Celtiberian Arevaci, located on the Cerro de la Muela above the Duero river near modern Garray in Soria province, and is best known as the site of the 134-133 BCE siege by Scipio Aemilianus that ended the Celtiberian Wars and became one of the defining symbols of doomed resistance in Roman historical memory. The town developed as an Iron Age oppidum from the sixth century BCE on a strategically positioned hilltop controlling the upper Duero valley and the road system connecting the central Meseta to the Ebro valley. From 153 BCE Numantia and the neighboring Arevacan towns waged twenty years of sporadic war against Rome, defeating consular armies in 137 BCE under Mancinus and forcing a peace negotiated by the young Tiberius Gracchus before Rome repudiated the treaty. Scipio Aemilianus arrived in 134 BCE with 60,000 soldiers, built a nine-kilometer circumvallation wall around the town with seven supporting camps, and starved the inhabitants into surrender after thirteen months; most of the surviving population chose suicide over enslavement. Scipio razed the town in August 133 BCE, but a small Roman settlement continued on the site through the imperial centuries before final abandonment in late antiquity. The site was rediscovered in 1860, declared a National Monument in 1882, and remains under continuous excavation since 1905. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 133 BC: Celtiberian Civilization The Arevaci, a Celtiberian people of the central Meseta, established an oppidum at the Cerro de la Muela above the Duero by the sixth century BCE, with fortified stone houses, a planned street grid, and a distinctive Celtiberian material culture documented in the surviving archaeological levels. The town minted its own coinage and served as the principal Arevacan center, leading the Celtiberian resistance against Roman expansion from the 153 BCE outbreak of the Numantine Wars. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Scipio Aemilianus's siege of 134-133 BCE ended in the deliberate destruction of Numantia in August 133 BCE, with the surviving population killed, enslaved, or dispersed and the town site reorganised as a small Roman settlement under the new provincial structure. The destruction of Numantia became canonical in Latin literature as a symbol of doomed barbarian resistance and as the high point of Scipio's military career. - 27 BC – 500 AD: Roman Empire Under Augustus and the early empire a modest Roman town was reestablished on the hilltop, with a rectangular planned street grid, a forum, and stone houses superimposed on the levels of the destroyed Celtiberian oppidum. The site continued at reduced size through the imperial centuries and was abandoned in late antiquity as habitation shifted to the surrounding lowland villages. ## Landmarks - Celtiberian Oppidum (built 500 BC) The Celtiberian oppidum of Numantia preserves a planned grid of rectangular stone houses with hearths, granaries, and storage cellars built on terraces along the hilltop, with the surrounding stone wall enclosing roughly 22 hectares. Excavations since 1905 have recovered a substantial corpus of Celtiberian metalwork, ceramics, and the famous Numantine bull-decorated weapons that document the late Iron Age culture of the Arevaci. - Scipio's Circumvallation (built 134 BC) Scipio Aemilianus's nine-kilometer circumvallation wall around Numantia in 134 BCE remains the most extensively documented Roman siege installation of the Republic, with seven supporting camps (Castillejo, Renieblas, Peña Redonda, and others) identified through Adolf Schulten's pioneering 1905-1912 excavations and reconfirmed by modern survey. The siege works are the principal archaeological monument of Republican Roman military engineering in Europe. - Roman Town on the Hilltop (built 25 BC) The small Roman town that succeeded the destroyed Celtiberian oppidum preserves a planned rectangular grid superimposed on the earlier levels, with a modest forum, stone houses, and an aqueduct cistern at the eastern end of the hill. The Roman settlement continued at reduced scale through the imperial centuries before abandonment in late antiquity. ## Population History - 600 BC: 500 - 400 BC: 2,000 - 200 BC: 4,000 - 133 BC: null - 50 BC: 500 - 100 AD: 1,000 - 300 AD: 500 - 500 AD: null --- # Saguntum, Spain URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/spain/saguntum Founded: 500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.68, -0.2737 ## Description Saguntum is a coastal city of Valencia province in eastern Spain, occupying the site of an ancient Iberian Edetani town known in its native script as Arse and to the Romans as Saguntum. The Iberian settlement was established on the hill overseeing the coastal plain by the fifth century BCE and developed by the late third century into a substantial walled town allied with Rome, whose siege and destruction by Hannibal in 219 BCE served as the casus belli of the Second Punic War. After the Roman recapture of 214 BCE the Scipios rebuilt the town and Augustus elevated it to the status of municipium with the addition of a substantial theater, forum, and circus. The site passed through Visigothic and Umayyad rule, the latter renaming it Morvedre after the visible Roman walls (muri veteres), and was recaptured by James I of Aragon in 1238. The town was renamed Sagunto in 1868 to recover its classical identity and now forms the main inland nucleus of a modern municipality whose populated coastal district is Puerto de Sagunto. The Iberian and Roman walls, the Roman theater, and the layered medieval and modern fortifications of the Castle of Sagunto on the acropolis hill preserve a continuous archaeological record spanning twenty-five centuries. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 219 BC: Iberian Civilization (known as "Arse") The Iberians of the Edetani built a walled hilltop settlement at the site in the fifth century BCE under the native name Arse, controlling the lower Palancia valley and the coastal plain north of the future Valencia. The town minted its own coinage in Iberian script from the third century BCE, prospered through trade with Greek and Phoenician coastal stations, and allied itself with Rome in the wake of the Ebro Treaty of 226 BCE that nominally divided Iberia between Carthaginian and Roman spheres. - 219 BC – 214 BC: Ancient Carthage (known as "Arse") Hannibal Barca besieged Saguntum for eight months in 219 BCE and stormed the town, providing the casus belli for the Second Punic War with Rome that erupted in 218 BCE. The Carthaginians garrisoned the captured town for the next five years as the war shifted to Italy, until the Scipio brothers' Iberian campaign recovered it in 214 BCE. - 214 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic The Scipios recovered the ruined town in 214 BCE and Rome rebuilt it as a favored ally, granting Latin rights and rebuilding the walls, forum, and acropolis fortifications over the following two centuries. Saguntum became a model of Roman client-city development in Hispania Citerior and served Cicero and later Roman authors as the standard exemplar of loyal allied virtue. - 27 BC – 415 AD: Roman Empire Augustus elevated Saguntum to the status of municipium of Roman citizens and the imperial city received a substantial theater carved into the hillside, a forum, a circus, and an aqueduct over the following two centuries. The town remained a prosperous regional center of Hispania Tarraconensis through the imperial centuries, with continuous habitation but declining monumental construction in late antiquity. - 415 AD – 714 AD: Visigothic Kingdom The Visigoths absorbed eastern Hispania into their kingdom from the early fifth century, with Saguntum continuing as a small Christian episcopal seat alongside the larger Visigothic centers at Toledo and Valencia. The town's monumental Roman structures were progressively spoliated for the late antique walls that defended the acropolis. - 714 AD – 756 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Murbiter") The Umayyad conquest of Hispania of 711-714 incorporated Saguntum into al-Andalus, with the town renamed in Arabic as Murbiter and later Morvedre, both names derived from the Latin muri veteres ('old walls') in reference to the visible Roman fortifications on the hill. - 756 AD – 929 AD: Emirate of Cordoba (known as "Murbiter") Under the independent Umayyad Emirate of Cordoba established by Abd al-Rahman I in 756, Morvedre continued as a secondary Andalusi settlement of the Valencia region with a substantial Mozarabic Christian community alongside the Muslim population. The hilltop fortifications were reorganised in Islamic form during the ninth century. - 929 AD – 1031 AD: Caliphate of Cordoba (known as "Murbiter") Abd al-Rahman III's elevation of the Cordoban polity to caliphal status in 929 brought Morvedre into the high-classical phase of al-Andalus as a minor town of the Valencia region. The Caliphate fragmented in the fitna of 1009-1031, after which the town passed under the new Taifa system. - 1031 AD – 1238 AD: Taifa of Valencia (known as "Morvedre") After the fall of the Caliphate of Cordoba the town came under the successive Taifa kingdoms of Valencia and Almoravid and Almohad authority through the eleventh and twelfth centuries, contested between Christian and Muslim powers across the long Reconquista of eastern Iberia. - 1238 AD – 1715 AD: Crown of Aragon (known as "Morvedre") James I of Aragon captured Morvedre in 1238 during his conquest of the Kingdom of Valencia, incorporating the town into the Crown of Aragon while preserving a substantial Mudejar Muslim community and one of the larger Jewish quarters of late medieval Valencia. After the 1469 dynastic union with the Crown of Castile under Ferdinand and Isabella the town remained constitutionally part of the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Valencia, with foral institutions intact, until Philip V's Nueva Planta decrees of 1707-1715 abolished those autonomies following the War of the Spanish Succession. - 1715 AD – 1898 AD: Spanish Empire (known as "Morvedre") After the Nueva Planta unification of Spain under the Bourbon dynasty, Morvedre became part of the centralised Spanish Empire as a small town of the Valencia region. The 1868 Glorious Revolution restored its classical name as Sagunto, and General Martínez Campos's 1874 pronunciamiento from the town's railway station inaugurated the Bourbon Restoration under Alfonso XII. The Spanish Empire ended in practical terms with the loss of the last overseas colonies in 1898. - 1898 AD – 1931 AD: Kingdom of Spain (known as "Sagunto") Under post-imperial Bourbon Spain Sagunto remained a provincial town of the Valencia region. Industrialisation arrived in the early twentieth century with the founding of the Altos Hornos del Mediterráneo steelworks at the coastal Puerto de Sagunto in 1917, beginning the demographic and economic divergence of the modern divided municipality. - 1931 AD – 1939 AD: Second Spanish Republic (known as "Sagunto") The Second Spanish Republic governed Sagunto from April 1931 until its defeat by Franco's Nationalist forces in the Spanish Civil War; the town was an important Republican industrial center with the Altos Hornos del Mediterráneo steelworks at Puerto de Sagunto, and suffered significant Civil War bombing damage. - 1939 AD – 1975 AD: Francoist Spain (known as "Sagunto") Under the Franco dictatorship Sagunto expanded substantially as a heavy industrial center built around the Altos Hornos steelworks at the rapidly growing Puerto de Sagunto coastal district. The 1957 Catalan-Valencian floods and the 1980s industrial restructuring shaped the modern divided urban form of the municipality. - 1975 AD – 2026 AD: Kingdom of Spain (known as "Sagunto") Following the Spanish transition to democracy and the 1978 constitution Sagunto became a municipality of the autonomous Valencian Community, with the closure of the Altos Hornos steelworks in 1984 prompting a long economic reorientation toward port and service industries. The Iberian, Roman, and medieval monuments on the hilltop castle complex were designated a Historic-Artistic Site in 1931 and continue to undergo conservation work. ## Landmarks - Iberian Walls of Arse (built 400 BC) Substantial sections of the Iberian fifth-and-fourth-century BCE city wall survive on the lower terraces of the Saguntum acropolis, built in ashlar masonry and originally enclosing the Edetani town that minted coins under the name Arse. The walls were reused and extended by the Romans after the Carthaginian siege of 219 BCE. - Roman Theater of Saguntum (built 50 AD) The Roman theater of Saguntum was carved into the southern slope of the acropolis hill in the first century CE and seated roughly 8,000 spectators. The structure was designated a Spanish national monument in 1896, controversially restored under the 1990s direction of architects Giorgio Grassi and Manuel Portaceli, and remains the principal monumental Roman survival of the site. - Castle of Sagunto (built 1100 AD) The hilltop castle of Sagunto encloses roughly one kilometer of fortifications layered from the Iberian, Roman, Visigothic, Islamic, Aragonese, and modern phases, with most of the surviving Christian construction dating from the eleventh to fifteenth centuries under the Crown of Aragon. The complex preserves the Plaza de Almenara Iberian shrine area, the Roman forum cisterns, and the Christian outer wards built during the Reconquista period. ## Population History - 500 BC: 1,000 - 300 BC: 3,000 - 100 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 400 AD: 5,000 - 700 AD: 3,000 - 1000 AD: 4,000 - 1300 AD: 6,000 - 1500 AD: 5,000 - 1700 AD: 4,000 - 1900 AD: 7,000 - 1960 AD: 25,000 - 2000 AD: 60,000 - 2025 AD: 68,000 --- # Tarraco, Spain URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/spain/tarraco Founded: 600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.1175, 1.2563 ## Description Tarraco, the Roman name of modern Tarragona on the Mediterranean coast of Catalonia, was the principal Roman city of Iberia for over four centuries and the capital of the imperial province of Hispania Tarraconensis. The site began as the Iberian Cessetani town of Kesse on the hilltop above the natural harbor in the sixth century BCE, fortified by the Scipio brothers in 218 BCE as the Roman base of operations in the Second Punic War, and developed through the late Republic into a substantial coastal fortress. Augustus wintered at Tarraco in 26-25 BCE while directing the Cantabrian Wars and refounded the city as Colonia Iulia Urbs Triumphalis Tarraco, beginning a century of monumental construction that produced the surviving walls, forum, amphitheater, circus, and aqueduct. The city was an early Christian episcopal seat and was raided by the Franks around 260 CE before partial recovery under the late Western Empire. Visigothic Tarraco continued as a regional capital until the Umayyad conquest of 714 CE, after which the city was progressively depopulated and stood largely abandoned by the mid-tenth century. Repopulation under the Counts of Barcelona from 1117 gradually rebuilt the medieval town, which now sits atop and within the surviving Roman fabric. The Archaeological Ensemble of Tárraco was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 218 BC: Iberian Civilization (known as "Kesse") The Iberian Cessetani founded a hilltop settlement above the natural harbor by the sixth century BCE under the native name Kesse or Kosse, with cyclopean walls of the lower town dating from the fifth and fourth centuries BCE that were later incorporated into the Roman fortifications. The town minted Iberian-script coinage in the third century BCE and conducted regular trade with the Greek colony of Emporion to the north. - 218 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic The Scipio brothers landed at Tarraco in 218 BCE during the Second Punic War and fortified the hilltop as the Roman base for operations in Hispania Citerior, joining the lower Iberian town to a new upper-town military enclosure with the surviving megalithic Roman walls. Through the second and first centuries BCE Tarraco served as the principal Roman city of Iberia, the capital of Hispania Citerior, and the winter quarters of governors campaigning against the Celtiberian and Lusitanian peoples. Julius Caesar elevated the town to colonial status as Colonia Iulia Urbs Triumphalis Tarraco in 45 BCE following his victory at Munda. - 27 BC – 415 AD: Roman Empire Augustus wintered at Tarraco in 26-25 BCE while directing the closing campaigns of the Cantabrian Wars, after which the new province of Hispania Tarraconensis was constituted with Tarraco as its capital. The first and second centuries CE saw extensive monumental construction including the provincial forum, the amphitheater, the circus, the suburban Pont del Diable aqueduct, and the great Augustan temple complex on the acropolis. The city declined through the later imperial centuries and was raided by Frankish incursions around 260 CE, but remained the principal city of northeastern Iberia into the fifth century. - 415 AD – 714 AD: Visigothic Kingdom (known as "Tarracona") The Visigoths incorporated Tarraco into their kingdom from the early fifth century, and the city retained its status as the metropolitan see of the province of Tarraconensis through the Visigothic period despite reduced population and limited new construction. The Roman amphitheater hosted the martyrdom of the local saint Fructuosus and was later converted into a Visigothic basilica. - 714 AD – 756 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Tarrakuna") The Umayyad conquest of the Iberian Peninsula reached Tarragona in 714 CE under the army of Musa ibn Nusayr, after which the city, known in Arabic as Tarrakuna, was incorporated into al-Andalus but progressively depopulated as the frontier shifted southward. - 756 AD – 929 AD: Emirate of Cordoba (known as "Tarrakuna") Under the independent Umayyad Emirate of Cordoba established in 756, Tarrakuna continued to depopulate as a border ruin in the contested Marca Hispanica between al-Andalus and the Frankish marches established by Charlemagne. The site was sporadically held and repeatedly raided through the ninth century. - 929 AD – 950 AD: Caliphate of Cordoba (known as "Tarrakuna") Under the Caliphate of Cordoba proclaimed by Abd al-Rahman III in 929, Tarrakuna remained a depopulated frontier ruin in the contested marches. By the mid-tenth century the urban site stood largely abandoned, with the Roman walls and ruined monuments visible across the empty hilltop. - 950 AD – 1117 AD: Abandoned (known as "Tarrakuna") Through the late tenth and eleventh centuries the urban site was effectively abandoned, with only sporadic occupation among the Roman ruins. The bishopric was nominally restored from 1091 but the resident population remained negligible until the Norman Robert Burdet's repopulation effort began in 1129. - 1117 AD – 1715 AD: Crown of Aragon (known as "Tarragona") Ramon Berenguer III of Barcelona captured the abandoned site in 1117 and began the formal repopulation of the city, which was definitively reestablished under the Norman Robert Burdet from 1129 and the restored archbishopric from 1154. The medieval Christian town clustered around the cathedral built between 1171 and 1331 on the former Roman provincial forum and the high town reused the Roman fortifications. After the 1469 dynastic union with the Crown of Castile under Ferdinand and Isabella the city remained constitutionally part of the Principality of Catalonia within the Crown of Aragon, with Catalan foral institutions intact, until Philip V's Nueva Planta decrees of 1715 following the War of the Spanish Succession abolished them. The city was sacked by Anglo-Dutch forces in 1640 during the Reapers' War and again by the Bourbon army in 1707. - 1715 AD – 1898 AD: Spanish Empire (known as "Tarragona") Following the Nueva Planta unification of Spain under the Bourbon dynasty, Tarragona became part of the centralised Spanish Empire. The city was sacked by Napoleonic forces in 1811 during the Peninsular War with the deaths of approximately 4,000 of its inhabitants. Nineteenth-century industrialisation brought the railway to the city in 1865 and the port was substantially expanded, restoring its position as the principal commercial harbor of southern Catalonia. - 1898 AD – 1931 AD: Kingdom of Spain (known as "Tarragona") Under post-imperial Bourbon Spain following the loss of the last overseas colonies in 1898, Tarragona continued to develop as a provincial Catalan port. The early twentieth century brought the first chemical industries to the city and the gradual urbanisation of the coastal plain south of the historic core. - 1931 AD – 1939 AD: Second Spanish Republic (known as "Tarragona") The Second Spanish Republic governed Tarragona from April 1931 until the city fell to Franco's Nationalist forces in January 1939 at the end of the Catalan Offensive. The Civil War years saw heavy bombing by Italian aircraft and persistent Republican defence of the Catalan coast. - 1939 AD – 1975 AD: Francoist Spain (known as "Tarragona") Under Franco the city expanded into a major industrial port through the construction of a petrochemical complex on the coastal plain from the 1960s, transforming the demographic structure of the region through internal migration from Andalusia and Extremadura. - 1975 AD – 2026 AD: Kingdom of Spain (known as "Tarragona") Following the Spanish transition to democracy and the 1979 Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia, Tarragona became the capital of its eponymous province within the restored Generalitat. The Archaeological Ensemble of Tárraco was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000, recognising the survival of the Roman provincial capital within the modern city. ## Landmarks - Walls of Tarraco (built 200 BC) The walls of Tarraco are the oldest surviving Roman defensive circuit outside Italy, built in three principal phases between the late third and early second centuries BCE on cyclopean Iberian foundations. The surviving 1.1 kilometers of wall enclose the upper town and incorporate the Iberian-era Torreón de Minerva, the oldest extant Roman tower in Iberia. - Pont del Diable Aqueduct (built 50 AD) The Pont del Diable (Devil's Bridge) aqueduct in the Francolí valley north of the city carried water to Tarraco over a 217-meter two-tiered arched bridge built under the early imperial reorganisation of the provincial water supply. The structure survives intact and is one of the best-preserved Roman aqueducts of Iberia. - Provincial Forum and Circus (built 73 AD) Vespasian's reorganisation of the provincial capital in 73 CE produced the great Provincial Forum on the upper town terrace and the Circus built into the connecting hillside, capable of seating roughly 25,000 spectators. The Provincial Forum housed the imperial cult and the assembly of the Concilium Provinciae Hispaniae Tarraconensis, and survives in fragmentary form beneath the medieval cathedral and the modern street grid. - Roman Amphitheater of Tarraco (built 100 AD) The amphitheater of Tarraco was built on the coastal plain in the early second century CE with capacity for roughly 14,000 spectators and a partly seaward orientation rare among Roman amphitheaters. The structure hosted the 259 CE martyrdom of bishop Fructuosus and his deacons Augurius and Eulogius, after which it was converted into a Visigothic basilica and later a Romanesque church. - Cathedral of Tarragona (built 1171 AD) The Cathedral of Tarragona was built between 1171 and 1331 on the site of the former Roman provincial forum and a preceding Umayyad mosque, in transitional Romanesque-Gothic form with one of the finest medieval cloisters in Catalonia. The cathedral served as the principal Christian monument of the restored archbishopric of the Tarraconensis. ## Population History - 600 BC: 1,500 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 15,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 300 AD: 25,000 - 500 AD: 12,000 - 800 AD: 3,000 - 1000 AD: 200 - 1200 AD: 2,000 - 1500 AD: 5,000 - 1700 AD: 6,000 - 1900 AD: 23,000 - 1960 AD: 50,000 - 2000 AD: 115,000 - 2025 AD: 140,000 --- # Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/sri-lanka/anuradhapura Founded: 437 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 8.3489, 80.4114 ## Description Anuradhapura is one of the great ancient capitals of South Asia and the religious heart of Sinhalese Buddhism, located on the dry-zone plain of Sri Lanka's North Central Province. Founded around 437 BCE by King Pandukabhaya, it served as the capital of successive Sinhalese kingdoms for over a millennium until 1017 CE — one of the longest continuous capital tenures in world history. Under King Devanampiya Tissa in the 3rd century BCE the city adopted Buddhism with the arrival of the Indian missionary Mahinda and a cutting of the Bodhi Tree under which the Buddha had attained enlightenment was planted in the royal Mahamewna gardens; that tree, the Sri Maha Bodhi, remains alive on the same spot today and is the oldest documented tree in the world. At its 5th-century peak under King Mahasena Anuradhapura is estimated to have housed several tens of thousands of inhabitants and supported a vast hydraulic system of reservoirs (tanks) and canals irrigating the surrounding rice plain. After repeated South Indian Chola raids the Sinhalese court abandoned Anuradhapura as the political capital in 1017 and relocated south to Polonnaruwa, and the city's monumental quarters were progressively reclaimed by jungle. However, the Sri Maha Bodhi sanctuary, the Mirisaveti and Ruwanwelisaya stupas, and the surrounding monastic communities never fully ceased operation; reduced bhikkhu communities and Sinhalese pilgrimage maintained the sacred precinct through Polonnaruwa, Dambadeniya, Kandyan, and Portuguese-Dutch-British colonial eras. Under British administration from 1873 a new colonial administrative town was laid out about a kilometre east of the ancient sacred city around the Nuwara Wewa tank, and since Sri Lankan independence in 1948 modern Anuradhapura has grown into a city of roughly 63,000 inhabitants while the adjacent Sacred City forms one of the principal UNESCO World Heritage sites of South Asia, inscribed in 1982. ## Historical Rulers - 437 BC – 250 BC: Anuradhapura Kingdom (known as "Anurādhapura") Traditionally founded by King Pandukabhaya around 437 BCE on the site of an earlier village, Anuradhapura emerged as the capital of the early Sinhalese kingdoms descended from the legendary Vijaya. Under successive rulers the city established a formal urban plan with separate quarters for different communities, monasteries, and craft workshops on the dry-zone plain of north-central Sri Lanka. - 250 BC – 433 AD: Anuradhapura Kingdom (known as "Anurādhapura") King Devanampiya Tissa formally accepted Buddhism around 247 BCE following the missionary visit of the Indian monk Mahinda, son of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka. A cutting of the Bodhi Tree of Bodh Gaya was planted at Anuradhapura as the Sri Maha Bodhi, and successive kings — Dutugamunu, Vattagamani, and others — built the great stupas of Ruwanwelisaya, Thuparamaya, Mirisaveti, and Abhayagiri, transforming the city into the principal centre of Theravada Buddhism in South Asia. - 433 AD – 691 AD: Anuradhapura Kingdom (known as "Anurādhapura") Under the Lambakanna and Moriya dynasties the city reached its physical peak, with the construction of the colossal Jetavanaramaya stupa under Mahasena in the late 3rd century, the codification of the Mahavamsa chronicle in the 5th century, and the extension of the hydraulic system of tanks and canals across the dry-zone plain. The city's population is estimated at the high tens of thousands by the 5th-6th centuries. - 691 AD – 1017 AD: Anuradhapura Kingdom (known as "Anurādhapura") Repeated South Indian Chola raids beginning in the 9th century gradually eroded Anuradhapura's security. After Rajaraja Chola's invasion in 993 and Rajendra Chola's full conquest in 1017, the Sinhalese court relocated south to Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura ceased to be the political capital, although it remained a major Sinhalese cultural and religious centre for several decades after. - 1017 AD – 1815 AD: Polonnaruwa, Dambadeniya, and Kandyan kingdoms — reduced sacred city (known as "Anurādhapura") Through the Polonnaruwa (1056-1232), Dambadeniya, Yapahuwa, Kurunegala, Gampola, Kotte, and Kandyan periods the monumental Anuradhapura urban quarters were progressively reclaimed by jungle, but the Sri Maha Bodhi sanctuary, the great stupas, and the surrounding bhikkhu communities never fully ceased operation. Successive Sinhalese kings undertook periodic restoration campaigns at the sacred precinct and the site continued to draw Theravada Buddhist pilgrims throughout the medieval and early modern periods. - 1815 AD – 1948 AD: British Empire After the British annexation of the Kandyan Kingdom in 1815 the Anuradhapura district came under colonial administration, and from 1873 a new administrative and commercial town was laid out about a kilometre east of the ancient sacred precinct around the Nuwara Wewa reservoir. Archaeological clearance of the buried monumental quarters began under H. C. P. Bell's Archaeological Survey of Ceylon in the 1890s, gradually exposing the great stupas and monasteries. - 1948 AD – present: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Since Sri Lankan independence Anuradhapura has continued as the capital of the North Central Province and a principal centre of Theravada Buddhist pilgrimage, with a city population of roughly 63,000 in the early 2020s. The Sacred City, comprising the Sri Maha Bodhi enclosure, the Ruwanwelisaya and Jetavanaramaya stupas, and the Abhayagiri and Mahavihara monastic complexes, was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982, administered alongside the inhabited new town. ## Landmarks - Anuradhapura Hydraulic System (built 300 BC) An extensive network of artificial reservoirs (tanks) — including Tissa Wewa, Basawakkulama, Nuwara Wewa, and Nachchaduwa Wewa — and connecting canals built progressively from the Pandukabhaya era onward to irrigate the rice plain around the city. The Anuradhapura tank system is among the oldest large-scale hydraulic civilisations in the world and continues to support agriculture in the modern province. - Sri Maha Bodhi (built 288 BC) A sapling cut from the Bodhi Tree at Bodh Gaya in India under which the Buddha attained enlightenment, brought to Anuradhapura by the nun Sanghamitta around 288 BCE and planted in the Mahamewna royal garden under King Devanampiya Tissa. The tree has been continuously cared for and worshipped on the same spot ever since, making it the oldest historically documented living tree in the world and one of the most sacred sites in Theravada Buddhism. - Ruwanwelisaya Stupa (built 140 BC) A colossal hemispherical white stupa built under King Dutugamunu in the late 2nd century BCE to enshrine relics of the Buddha, the centrepiece of the Mahavihara monastic complex. Restored under successive Sinhalese kings and again in the 19th and 20th centuries, Ruwanwelisaya rises about 92 metres above the plain and remains a focus of pilgrimage and Vesak celebrations. - Abhayagiri Vihara (built 89 BC) Founded around 89 BCE by King Vattagamani Abhaya, the Abhayagiri monastery developed as the principal centre of the rival Mahayana-influenced Dhammaruci sect of Sri Lankan Buddhism and became a major international centre of learning visited by the Chinese pilgrim Faxian around 410 CE. Its surviving stupa, refectory, and monastery foundations cover several hundred hectares north of the Mahavihara core. - Jetavanaramaya Stupa (built 300 AD) Built under King Mahasena in the early 4th century CE, the Jetavanaramaya was the world's tallest stupa at its original height of around 122 metres and remains the largest brick structure ever built, with an estimated 93 million bricks. Restored extensively in the 20th century, it dominates the eastern monastic complex of the Sacred City. ## Population History - 437 BC: 3,000 - 200 BC: 20,000 - 1 AD: 40,000 - 500 AD: 80,000 - 900 AD: 50,000 - 1017 AD: 15,000 - 1200 AD: 2,000 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1873 AD: 2,000 - 1950 AD: 15,000 - 2020 AD: 63,000 --- # Stockholm, Sweden URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/sweden/stockholm Founded: 1252 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 59.3293, 18.0686 ## Description Stockholm is the capital of Sweden, first mentioned in writing in 1252 in a letter by Regent Birger Jarl, who is traditionally credited with founding the city on the small island of Stadsholmen — today's Gamla Stan, the old town. Built where Lake Mälaren meets the Baltic, the settlement grew into a Hanseatic-influenced merchant town in the medieval period and was the stage of the 1520 Stockholm Bloodbath, when Christian II of Denmark executed scores of Swedish nobles. Gustav Vasa's revolt broke Sweden from the Kalmar Union in 1523 and made Stockholm the capital of an independent kingdom that became the Swedish Empire in the 17th century, dominating the Baltic; the warship Vasa, sunk on its maiden voyage in 1628, was raised in 1961 and is now the centerpiece of the Vasa Museum. After the empire's collapse in the Great Northern War, Stockholm passed through the Age of Liberty, the Gustavian era, and 19th-century industrialization. Since 1901 the city has hosted the Nobel Prize ceremonies, and in the 20th century it became the showcase of the modern Swedish social democratic welfare state — neutral in both World Wars and today a metropolis of roughly 2.4 million in its greater region. ## Historical Rulers - 1252 AD – 1397 AD: Kingdom of Sweden Stockholm appears in written record in 1252, in a letter sealed by Regent Birger Jarl, who is traditionally credited with founding the town on the island of Stadsholmen to control the mouth of Lake Mälaren. Through the 13th and 14th centuries it grew into a fortified merchant town with strong German Hanseatic influence, becoming Sweden's most important trading and administrative center. - 1397 AD – 1523 AD: Kingdom of Sweden Under the Kalmar Union proclaimed in 1397 by Queen Margaret, Sweden was joined in personal union with Denmark and Norway. Stockholm remained Sweden's leading town but became a flashpoint of resistance to Danish dominance; in 1520 the Stockholm Bloodbath, ordered by Christian II of Denmark after his coronation as king of Sweden, saw dozens of Swedish nobles and burghers executed in the main square — an event that ignited the revolt led by the young noble Gustav Vasa. - 1523 AD – 1721 AD: Kingdom of Sweden Gustav Vasa's victory in 1523 ended the Kalmar Union and established a hereditary Swedish monarchy with Stockholm as its capital. In the 17th century under Gustavus Adolphus, Christina, and later Charles XI and Charles XII, Sweden became a great power dominating the Baltic; the city was rebuilt with stone palaces, churches, and naval works, and the warship Vasa sank in its harbor in 1628 on its maiden voyage. The Great Northern War ended in 1721 with the Treaty of Nystad, stripping Sweden of most of its eastern empire. - 1721 AD – 1809 AD: Kingdom of Sweden After the empire's collapse Sweden entered the Age of Liberty, with a strong Riksdag and limited royal power, followed from 1772 by the Gustavian era of enlightened absolutism under Gustav III, who reshaped Stockholm with neoclassical building, the Royal Opera, and a flourishing court culture. The period ended after Gustav IV Adolf's deposition in 1809 following the loss of Finland to Russia. - 1809 AD – present: Kingdom of Sweden The 1809 Instrument of Government established a constitutional monarchy that, with reforms, endures today; the loss of Finland the same year reoriented Sweden westward. Stockholm industrialized rapidly in the late 19th century and from 1901 hosted the annual Nobel Prize ceremonies. Sweden remained neutral in both World Wars, and in the 20th century the city became the administrative heart of a comprehensive social democratic welfare state and a major Nordic metropolis. ## Landmarks - Riddarholm Church (built 1280 AD) Late 13th-century Gothic church on the islet of Riddarholmen, originally a Franciscan friary and for centuries the principal burial church of Swedish monarchs. - Storkyrkan (built 1306 AD) Stockholm Cathedral in Gamla Stan, first documented in 1279 and consecrated in 1306; the traditional site of Swedish royal coronations and weddings, housing the medieval wooden sculpture of Saint George and the Dragon. - Drottningholm Palace (built 1681 AD) Baroque royal summer residence on Lovön west of central Stockholm, designed by Nicodemus Tessin the Elder for Queen Hedvig Eleonora; inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1991 and today the private home of the Swedish royal family. - Royal Palace of Stockholm (built 1754 AD) Vast Baroque royal palace in Gamla Stan, completed in 1754 to replace the medieval Tre Kronor castle that burned in 1697; the official residence of the Swedish monarch and one of the largest functioning palaces in Europe. - Skansen (built 1891 AD) Open-air museum and zoo on Djurgården founded by Artur Hazelius in 1891, the first of its kind in the world, gathering traditional buildings from across Sweden to preserve pre-industrial rural life. - Stockholm City Hall (built 1923 AD) National Romantic brick landmark on Kungsholmen by architect Ragnar Östberg, inaugurated in 1923; seat of the Stockholm municipal council and venue of the annual Nobel Prize banquet in its Blue Hall and Golden Hall. - Vasa Museum (built 1990 AD) Maritime museum on Djurgården built around the salvaged warship Vasa, which sank on its maiden voyage in Stockholm harbor in 1628 and was raised almost intact in 1961; opened to the public in 1990 and the most visited museum in Scandinavia. ## Population History - 1252 AD: 1,000 - 1400 AD: 6,000 - 1600 AD: 10,000 - 1700 AD: 50,000 - 1800 AD: 75,000 - 1900 AD: 300,000 - 1950 AD: 745,000 - 2000 AD: 750,000 - 2020 AD: 980,000 --- # Aleppo, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/aleppo Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.2021, 37.1343 ## Description Aleppo (Halab in Arabic) is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, situated at the crossroads of major trade routes linking the Mediterranean, Anatolia, and Mesopotamia. The site has been occupied from the Early Bronze Age, served as the capital of the Amorite Kingdom of Yamhad in the early second millennium BCE, and was successively contested by the Hittite, Mitanni, Aramean, Neo-Assyrian, Achaemenid, Seleucid, Roman, and Byzantine powers. Under successive Islamic caliphates and dynasties it became one of the great trading cities of the medieval Levant, reaching its height under the Hamdanids in the tenth century and under Ayyubid and Mamluk rule. Today Aleppo is Syria's second city and a major commercial and industrial centre with a population of around 2.1 million, anchored on the Citadel of Aleppo and the partly-restored UNESCO-listed Old City, though the urban fabric was heavily damaged during the Syrian civil war from 2012 to 2016. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1800 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Halab") Early Bronze Age urban occupation on the citadel hill of Aleppo is attested archaeologically from the third millennium BCE, with the city already serving as a regional Semitic-speaking centre. By the late third millennium Halab was important enough to be mentioned in cuneiform records from Ebla and Mari. - 1800 BC – 1600 BC: Kingdom of Yamhad (known as "Halab") Aleppo served as the capital of the Amorite Kingdom of Yamhad, one of the most powerful states of the Middle Bronze Age Near East, attested extensively in the Mari archives. Under kings such as Yarim-Lim and Hammurabi of Yamhad, the kingdom dominated northern Syria until Hittite expansion under Mursili I brought destruction around 1600 BCE. - 1600 BC – 1500 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Halab") Mursili I's famous raid sacked Yamhad's capital around 1595 BCE, ending the Amorite kingdom, and the Hittite Empire briefly held Aleppo. Hittite control receded over the following century as Hurrian-Mitanni power expanded in upper Mesopotamia. - 1500 BC – 1340 BC: Mitanni (known as "Halab") Under the Hurrian-led Mitanni Empire centered on Washukanni, Aleppo was absorbed into the upper Mesopotamian sphere as a regional cult and administrative town. The city's storm-god temple on the Citadel remained one of the principal cult centres of the Hurrian world. - 1340 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Halab") Suppiluliuma I broke Mitanni power in the mid-fourteenth century BCE and reasserted Hittite control over northern Syria, including Aleppo. The city was made the seat of a Hittite viceroyalty held by a junior branch of the royal house until the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 738 BC: Aramean Kingdom of Bit-Agushi (known as "Halab") Following the Bronze Age collapse, Aleppo became a leading city of the Aramean Kingdom of Bit-Agushi (also known as Arpad after its later capital), which dominated northern Syria during the early Iron Age. Bit-Agushi resisted repeated Neo-Assyrian campaigns until Tiglath-Pileser III conquered the kingdom in 738 BCE. - 738 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Halabu") Tiglath-Pileser III's conquest in 738 BCE incorporated Aleppo into the Neo-Assyrian provincial system as Halabu. The city remained an important regional administrative and commercial centre until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE ended the Assyrian Empire. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Halabu") After the fall of Nineveh, Aleppo passed to the Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabopolassar and his successor Nebuchadnezzar II. The city continued as a regional commercial node within the Babylonian western provinces until Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Halap") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE incorporated Aleppo into the Achaemenid Persian Empire. The city served as a provincial town within the satrapy of Eber-Nari, on the major route between Mesopotamia and the Mediterranean coast. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Beroea") Alexander the Great's campaign brought Aleppo under Macedonian control, and the city was refounded with the Hellenistic name Beroea, which it retained for centuries. After Alexander's death the city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Anatolian power consolidated under the Seleucids after Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 63 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Beroea") Under the Seleucid kings, Beroea was reorganized along Hellenistic urban lines as an inland counterpart to the great coastal Seleucid foundations of Antioch and Seleucia. The city remained a major node on the Seleucid trade and military network until Pompey's settlement of the east in 63 BCE. - 63 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Beroea") Pompey's settlement of the east in 63 BCE brought Beroea under Roman authority as part of the new province of Syria. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Beroea") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city prospered as a node on the trade routes between Antioch, the Euphrates, and Mesopotamia, with substantial monumental construction surviving into the late Roman period. - 395 AD – 636 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Beroea") Under Eastern Roman administration Beroea continued as an important regional bishopric and military node on the Persian frontier. The Sasanian armies sacked the city in 540 CE under Khosrow I before Byzantine control was restored, and the Arab conquest of Syria ended Byzantine rule in 636 CE. - 636 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Halab") Aleppo was taken by the Rashidun Caliphate in 636 CE under Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah following the decisive Battle of Yarmouk. The city quickly reverted to its older Semitic name Halab and entered the Islamic world as a regional administrative centre of Bilad al-Sham. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Halab") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, Aleppo grew steadily as a regional centre on the trade route between the Syrian capital and the Euphrates. The Umayyad period saw the construction of the original Great Mosque of Aleppo on the site of a former Byzantine cathedral. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Halab") Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad, Aleppo remained an important provincial commercial centre, though increasingly distant from imperial attention as the caliphate weakened. The city briefly fell to the Tulunids and later to autonomous Hamdanid governors before independent Hamdanid rule was formalized. - 944 AD – 1080 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Halab") Sayf al-Dawla established the Hamdanid Emirate of Aleppo in 944 CE, making the city one of the leading cultural and political centres of the Islamic world for several decades. Under his court flourished the poet al-Mutanabbi and the philosopher al-Farabi, before the dynasty gave way to the Mirdasid emirate and ultimately the Seljuks. - 1080 AD – 1128 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Halab") The Seljuks captured Aleppo in 1080 and ruled the city through a local emir, marking the western limit of Great Seljuk authority. Aleppo became one of the principal Sunni Muslim strongholds facing the new Crusader states established along the Levantine coast after 1099. - 1128 AD – 1183 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Halab") Imad al-Din Zengi and his son Nur al-Din made Aleppo a central capital of their dynasty, leading the Sunni Muslim counter-crusade against the Latin states. Under Nur al-Din the city's madrasas and Sufi institutions were greatly expanded, transforming Aleppo into a leading centre of Sunni orthodoxy. - 1183 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Halab") Saladin took Aleppo in 1183 and incorporated it into the Ayyubid Sultanate, where it became the seat of a major branch of the Ayyubid family. Under the Ayyubid emir az-Zahir Ghazi the Citadel of Aleppo was rebuilt to its largely surviving medieval form, until the Mongol sack of 1260 ended Ayyubid rule. - 1260 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Halab") After the Mongol sack of 1260 and the Mamluk victory at Ayn Jalut the same year, Aleppo was incorporated into the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt and Syria. It became the seat of one of the principal Mamluk provinces and recovered as a major commercial entrepot despite further Mongol and Timurid incursions, most destructively Timur's sack of 1400. - 1516 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Halep") Selim I's victory at Marj Dabiq in 1516 brought Aleppo into the Ottoman Empire, where it became the capital of the eyalet (later vilayet) of Aleppo. For much of the early modern period it was the empire's third city after Istanbul and Cairo and a key terminus of the caravan trade between the Mediterranean, Iran, and India. - 1918 AD – 1920 AD: Arab Kingdom of Syria (known as "Halab") After the Ottoman withdrawal in 1918 Aleppo passed under the short-lived Arab Kingdom of Syria of Faisal I, who claimed sovereignty over Greater Syria from his capital at Damascus. The kingdom was dissolved after French forces defeated the Syrian army at the Battle of Maysalun in July 1920. - 1920 AD – 1946 AD: French Mandate of Syria (known as "Halab") After the dissolution of Faisal I's Arab Kingdom of Syria, Aleppo was incorporated into the French Mandate of Syria established by the League of Nations at the 1920 San Remo conference. Under the Mandate the city lost much of its trade hinterland to the new border with Turkish Cilicia, but became a major centre of the Syrian nationalist movement. - 1946 AD – 2024 AD: Syrian Arab Republic (known as "Halab") Syria gained full independence in 1946 and Aleppo continued as the country's second city and a major commercial and industrial centre under successive Ba'athist governments. From 2012 to 2016 the Battle of Aleppo during the Syrian civil war devastated much of the eastern half of the city, including substantial damage to the UNESCO-listed Old City, before the government recaptured it in late 2016. Aleppo remained under Assad-government control until the fall of the regime in December 2024. - 2024 AD – present: Syrian Transitional Government (known as "Halab") Following the HTS-led offensive that captured Aleppo on 30 November 2024 and Damascus on 8 December 2024, the city passed under the new Syrian Transitional Government. Reconstruction of war-damaged neighbourhoods and the UNESCO-listed Old City continues under the new administration. ## Landmarks - Great Umayyad Mosque of Aleppo (built 715 AD) Built in the early 8th century, the Great Mosque was famed for its 11th-century minaret and rich blend of Byzantine and Islamic architecture. Damaged several times across its history and most recently in the Syrian civil war, it remains a symbol of Aleppo's heritage. - Citadel of Aleppo (built 950 AD) The Citadel of Aleppo, fortified since the third millennium BCE, crowns a 50-meter-high hill in the city's center. The current structure mainly dates from the 12th-13th centuries under the Ayyubid emir az-Zahir Ghazi and features a grand entrance, mosque ruins, palace remains, and military installations. - Al-Madina Souq (built 1400 AD) Extending over 13 kilometers, Al-Madina Souq housed specialized markets for textiles, spices, soap, and luxury goods carried along the caravan routes. Severely damaged in the 2012-2016 fighting, it is now undergoing restoration as the commercial heart of the Old City. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 3,000 - 2500 BC: 5,000 - 2000 BC: 8,000 - 1800 BC: 10,000 - 1700 BC: 10,000 - 622 AD: 72,000 - 637 AD: 72,000 - 950 AD: 42,000 - 962 AD: 40,000 - 991 AD: 40,000 - 1000 AD: 40,000 - 1046 AD: 35,000 - 1200 AD: 45,000 - 1250 AD: 55,000 - 1300 AD: null - 1350 AD: 70,000 - 1399 AD: 75,000 - 1400 AD: 75,000 - 1450 AD: 70,000 - 1500 AD: 67,000 - 1520 AD: 67,000 - 1530 AD: 57,000 - 1550 AD: 58,000 - 1575 AD: 59,000 - 1600 AD: 61,000 - 1650 AD: 64,000 - 1679 AD: 66,000 - 1700 AD: 67,000 - 1737 AD: 70,000 - 1750 AD: 70,000 - 1790 AD: 70,000 - 1800 AD: 72,000 - 1822 AD: 77,000 - 1840 AD: 75,000 - 1845 AD: 80,000 - 1850 AD: 90,000 - 1856 AD: 99,383 - 1900 AD: 130,000 - 1950 AD: 362,000 - 1975 AD: 740,000 - 2000 AD: 1,937,858 - 2021 AD: 2,098,210 --- # Apamea, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/apamea Founded: 300 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 35.4181, 36.3827 ## Description Apamea was a major Hellenistic and Roman city in western Syria, founded by Seleucus I Nicator around 300 BCE on the right bank of the Orontes River. It grew into a wealthy military, economic, and cultural center, famous for its vast colonnaded street and monumental architecture, and served as a key Seleucid garrison and cavalry base. The city flourished during the Roman and Byzantine periods as a regional capital and Neoplatonic philosophical hub, but declined after successive earthquakes, the Sasanian sack of 573, and the Arab conquest. Under Islamic rule the settlement, now called Afamiyya, contracted onto the fortified citadel mound above the ancient lower city; the catastrophic 1157 earthquake destroyed most of the standing classical fabric but the medieval citadel community endured. That community evolved into the present-day town of Qalaat al-Madiq, perched directly on the medieval-Ayyubid citadel some 2 km from the Hellenistic-Roman lower city, which now forms an adjacent archaeological park. The site passed through Ayyubid, Mamluk, Ottoman, French Mandate, and modern Syrian rule, with Qalaat al-Madiq holding roughly 10-15,000 inhabitants on the eve of the Syrian civil war before significant wartime displacement and looting of the ancient ruins. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire Founded by Seleucus I Nicator as one of the four sister cities of the Seleucid tetrapolis in northern Syria, Apamea served as the empire's main military headquarters, housing war elephants and a large cavalry force. It grew into a wealthy administrative and commercial center on the Orontes before passing to Rome with the rest of Seleucid Syria. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Incorporated into the Roman province of Syria following Pompey's annexation in 64 BCE, Apamea developed into one of the largest cities of the Roman East. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under imperial rule it was rebuilt on a monumental scale after the 115 CE earthquake, gaining its famous colonnaded cardo, and became a renowned center of Neoplatonic philosophy. - 395 AD – 636 AD: Byzantine Empire After the division of the Roman Empire, Apamea remained a major Byzantine ecclesiastical and provincial center in Syria Secunda. The city suffered repeated blows from earthquakes and was sacked by the Sasanian Persians under Khosrow I in 573, which initiated a long decline that continued until the Arab conquest. - 636 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Afamiyya") Following the Arab conquest in 636, the city was renamed Afamiyya and incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate's province of Jund Hims. Urban life had already contracted sharply and shifted onto the fortified citadel above the ancient lower city. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Afamiyya") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, Afamiyya remained a small fortified citadel community within the Syrian province. The ancient lower city continued to decline as urban life concentrated on the citadel mound. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Afamiyya") Under Abbasid administration the citadel community persisted as a modest provincial town within Jund Hims. Continued seismic activity and shifting trade routes further reduced the ancient city to ruins. - 944 AD – 1004 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Afamiyya") Under the Shi'a Hamdanid emirs of Aleppo, Afamiyya was integrated into a Syrian regional state, with the citadel reinforced as a frontier post facing Byzantine raids. Hamdanid rule ended around 1004 when the Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt established suzerainty over Aleppo and its dependencies. - 1004 AD – 1080 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Afamiyya") Following the Fatimid takeover of Aleppo, Afamiyya passed under nominal Fatimid suzerainty, with local Arab dynasties — most notably the Mirdasid emirs based at Aleppo — administering the citadel and the surrounding Orontes valley as Fatimid vassals. Byzantine raids along the Orontes frontier continued through the period. - 1080 AD – 1106 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Afamiyya") Seljuk Turkic forces extended their control over the Orontes valley including Afamiyya from around 1080 as part of their broader conquest of Syria. The citadel was held by Seljuk-aligned governors and local Munqidh-family lords until it fell to the Crusader Principality of Antioch in 1106. - 1106 AD – 1149 AD: Crusader Principality of Antioch (known as "Afamiyya") Crusader forces under Tancred captured Afamiyya in 1106 and incorporated it into the Principality of Antioch. The Crusader garrison held the citadel as a forward fortress on the Antiochene frontier until Nur al-Din Zengi recovered the town in 1149. - 1149 AD – 1183 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Afamiyya") Nur al-Din Zengi recovered Afamiyya from the Crusaders in 1149 and incorporated it into the Zengid Sunni state opposing the Latin presence in Syria. The 1157 earthquake severely damaged the citadel and surrounding settlement. - 1183 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Afamiyya") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty took control of Afamiyya in 1183 as part of the wider Syrian-Egyptian state. The rebuilt citadel of Qalaat al-Madiq became the administrative anchor of the surviving community on the mound about 2 km from the ancient lower city. - 1260 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Qalaat al-Madiq") Under the Mamluk Sultanate the citadel community continued as the principal settlement of the area. The ancient lower city was largely abandoned to ruin while the citadel mound supported a small fortified town that controlled the Orontes valley crossing. - 1517 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Qalaat al-Madiq") Following Selim I's conquest of Mamluk Syria, Qalaat al-Madiq was incorporated into the Ottoman province of Damascus and later Aleppo. The town remained a modest rural center built on and around the medieval citadel, with the ruins of ancient Apamea increasingly noted by European travellers from the 18th century onward. - 1918 AD – 1920 AD: Arab Kingdom of Syria (known as "Qalaat al-Madiq") After the Ottoman withdrawal in 1918 the Orontes valley including Qalaat al-Madiq passed under the short-lived Arab Kingdom of Syria of Faisal I, who claimed sovereignty over Greater Syria from his capital at Damascus. The kingdom was dissolved after French forces defeated the Syrian army at the Battle of Maysalun in July 1920. - 1920 AD – 1946 AD: French Mandate of Syria (known as "Qalaat al-Madiq") After the dissolution of Faisal I's Arab Kingdom of Syria, the region passed under the French Mandate established by the League of Nations at the 1920 San Remo conference. Belgian and French archaeological missions began systematic excavation of the ancient lower city of Apamea in the 1930s while the inhabited town remained centered on the citadel. - 1946 AD – 2024 AD: Syrian Arab Republic (known as "Qalaat al-Madiq") Since Syrian independence in 1946 Qalaat al-Madiq grew into a small town of roughly 10-15,000 inhabitants seated on the medieval citadel mound about 2 km from the Hellenistic-Roman ruins, which form an adjacent protected archaeological zone. The Syrian civil war from 2011 onward brought heavy fighting, large-scale displacement of the population, and extensive illicit looting of the ancient site under successive Ba'athist governments until the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024. - 2024 AD – present: Syrian Transitional Government (known as "Qalaat al-Madiq") Following the HTS-led collapse of the Assad government in December 2024, Qalaat al-Madiq and the adjacent archaeological zone of Apamea passed under the new Syrian Transitional Government. Population recovery and the protection of the looted archaeological site await reconstruction under the new administration. ## Landmarks - Colonnaded Street of Apamea (built 200 AD) Stretching over nearly 2 kilometers, the grand colonnaded street of Apamea featured hundreds of Corinthian columns and wide avenues, serving as the heart of civic, commercial, and ceremonial life. - Citadel of Apamea (built 1150 AD) The medieval citadel of Qalaat al-Madiq, raised on an artificial mound about 2 km from the ancient lower city, was rebuilt and expanded under the Ayyubids and Mamluks following the 1157 earthquake. The fortress and the surrounding walled village continued to be inhabited into the modern era and form the core of the present-day town. ## Population History - 300 BC: 30,000 - 100 BC: 100,000 - 1 AD: 130,000 - 100 AD: 100,000 - 200 AD: 120,000 - 700 AD: 3,000 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1200 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1800 AD: 1,500 - 1900 AD: 2,000 - 1950 AD: 5,000 - 2011 AD: 14,000 - 2020 AD: 5,000 --- # Bosra, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/bosra Founded: 1400 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 32.5174, 36.4823 ## Description Bosra — known in antiquity as Bostra and today as Bosra al-Sham — is an archaeologically significant town in southern Syria's Daraa Governorate, on the Hauran volcanic plateau about 140 km south of Damascus. The site is attested in the 14th-century BCE Amarna letters as Busruna and developed through the Iron Age as an Aramean settlement in the Bashan-Hauran region before passing under successive Neo-Assyrian, Neo-Babylonian, Achaemenid, Macedonian, and Seleucid rule. From the early 1st century BCE Bosra became one of the principal cities of the Nabataean Kingdom, and under the last Nabataean king Rabbel II it served as the royal residence in the 90s CE before the kingdom's peaceful annexation by Trajan in 106 CE. Renamed Nova Trajana Bostra, the city became the capital of the new Roman province of Arabia Petraea and headquarters of the Legio III Cyrenaica, growing into one of the great cities of the Roman East and a Byzantine metropolitan see famous for its monumental cathedral of 512 CE. Bosra was the first major Byzantine city to fall to the Muslim Arabs at the Battle of Bosra in 634 CE, and tradition holds that the young Muhammad met the Christian monk Bahira here on a trading caravan. Under successive Umayyad, Abbasid, Fatimid, Seljuk, Burid, Zengid, Ayyubid, Mamluk, and Ottoman rule the town gradually declined as trade routes shifted away from the Hauran, surviving as a small village clustered inside the great citadel that the Ayyubid sultan al-Adil built around the Roman theater in the early 13th century. UNESCO inscribed the ancient city on the World Heritage List in 1980, and the modern town of roughly thirty thousand inhabitants suffered significant damage during the Syrian civil war (2011-2024) before passing under the Syrian Transitional Government in December 2024. ## Historical Rulers - 1400 BC – 1000 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Busruna") The settlement is attested in the 14th-century BCE Amarna letters as Busruna, a small West-Semitic town on the Bashan-Hauran volcanic plateau within the Egyptian sphere of influence in the southern Levant. Material culture is broadly Canaanite-Amorite, with the town serving as a minor agricultural and pastoral center on the southern fringe of the great Bronze Age trade routes. - 1000 BC – 732 BC: Aramean Kingdom (known as "*Busrana") Through the Iron Age the Hauran fell within the orbit of Aramean polities of southern Syria — most prominently Aram-Damascus — and Bosra developed as a small Aramaic-speaking town on the basalt plateau. Aramaic became the principal spoken and written language of the town for the next thousand years. - 732 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "*Busrana") Tiglath-Pileser III's conquest of Damascus in 732 BCE brought the Hauran under Neo-Assyrian provincial administration. Bosra remained a modest agricultural settlement under Assyrian rule until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "*Busrana") After the collapse of Assyria, the Hauran passed to the Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II. The town continued as an Aramaic-speaking provincial settlement until Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 332 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Busrana") Under Persian rule Bosra was incorporated into the satrapy of Across-the-River (Eber-Nari), which administered the southern Levant from Damascus. The town remained a modest Aramaic-speaking community within the Persian provincial system for two centuries. - 332 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Bostra") After Alexander the Great's conquest of the Achaemenid Empire, the Hauran passed nominally into the Macedonian sphere and entered Greek geographical writing as Bostra. The Wars of the Diadochi left the region's status fluid until the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BCE. - 301 BC – 85 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Bostra") Under loose Seleucid suzerainty after Ipsus, Bostra developed Hellenistic civic forms over its older Aramaic-Semitic urban character. As Seleucid central authority weakened in the 2nd and 1st centuries BCE, the Hauran became contested with the expanding Nabataean Kingdom to the south, which finally took the town under Aretas III around 85 BCE. - 85 BC – 106 AD: Nabataean Kingdom (known as "Bostra") Bostra became one of the principal northern cities of the Nabataean Kingdom and a major caravan emporium linking Petra with Damascus and the Mediterranean. Under the last Nabataean king Rabbel II Soter, the royal residence was shifted from Petra to Bostra around 93 CE, and the city served as the de facto Nabataean capital until the kingdom's peaceful annexation by Trajan in 106 CE. - 106 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Bostra") After Trajan's annexation of the Nabataean Kingdom in 106 CE, Bostra was refounded as Nova Trajana Bostra and made the capital of the new province of Arabia Petraea and the headquarters of the Legio III Cyrenaica. The city flourished through the 2nd and 3rd centuries with monumental Roman building campaigns, including the great theater of Antoninus Pius around 149 CE and the colonnaded street, and was raised by Septimius Severus to the status of a Roman colonia. Bostra remained one of the principal urban centers of the Roman East until the Diocletianic provincial reorganization at the end of the 3rd century reassigned much of its territory. - 395 AD – 634 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Bostra") Under the Christianized Eastern Roman Empire, Bostra was the metropolitan see of the province of Arabia and one of the great Christian cities of the Levant, receiving the monumental basilica-cathedral of Saints Sergius, Bacchus and Leontius in 512 CE. Tradition associates the city with the meeting of the young Muhammad and the Christian monk Bahira on a caravan from Mecca. Sasanian forces sacked Bostra in 614 during Khosrow II's invasion, and after Byzantine recovery the city fell to the Arab armies under Khalid ibn al-Walid at the Battle of Bosra in 634, the first major Byzantine city to fall in the Arab conquest of Syria. - 634 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Busra") After its surrender to Khalid ibn al-Walid in 634, Bosra reverted to its Semitic name Busra and was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate as part of Jund Dimashq. The city retained much of its late-antique fabric and a substantial Christian population alongside the new Arab Muslim administration. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Busra") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Busra prospered as a regional center of Jund Dimashq on the road to the Hejaz. The Mosque of Omar at Busra, traditionally founded under the early Umayyads and rebuilt under Yazid II, is among the oldest surviving mosques in Syria. - 750 AD – 970 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Busra") Under Abbasid rule centered on Baghdad, Busra's importance declined as the political center of the caliphate shifted east. The city remained a modest provincial town in the Hauran and a station on the pilgrimage route to Mecca. - 970 AD – 1075 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Busra") With the Fatimid takeover of Syria in 970, Busra passed under the Shi'a Fatimid Caliphate based at Cairo. The town continued as a minor Hauran settlement on the southern Damascus approaches until Seljuk Turkish forces took Damascus in 1075-1076. - 1075 AD – 1104 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Busra") Under the Seljuk Empire and its Damascus governors, Busra was a frontier town facing the new Crusader principalities. After 1104 the autonomous Burid atabegs of Damascus, nominally Seljuk vassals, took practical control of the town. - 1104 AD – 1154 AD: Burid Emirate (known as "Busra") Under the Burid Emirate of Damascus, Busra became an important frontier strongpoint facing the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem to the south. The Crusaders besieged Busra unsuccessfully in 1147 during the Second Crusade, after which the town remained firmly under Muslim control. - 1154 AD – 1174 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Busra") Nur ad-Din of the Zengid Atabegate took Damascus in 1154, bringing Busra under his unified Syrian state. The town was further fortified as a southern bulwark against the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem until Saladin's takeover of Damascus in 1174. - 1174 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Busra") Under Saladin and his Ayyubid successors, Busra was transformed into a major fortress town: sultan al-Adil and his successors enveloped the Roman theater in a massive concentric citadel between roughly 1202 and 1251, creating one of the most distinctive monuments of medieval Islamic military architecture. The citadel withstood Crusader raids and remained an important Ayyubid garrison until the Mongol invasion of Syria in 1260. - 1260 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Busra") After the Mamluk victory over the Mongols at Ayn Jalut in 1260, Busra was incorporated into the Mamluk Sultanate as a subordinate town within the Damascus province. As the pilgrimage and trade routes shifted away from the Hauran, the town gradually contracted into a small settlement clustered inside the Ayyubid citadel. - 1517 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Busra") Sultan Selim I incorporated Mamluk Syria into the Ottoman Empire in 1517, and Busra became a small village in the Vilayet of Damascus. For four centuries the population remained at a few thousand inhabitants — partly Sunni Muslim, partly Greek Orthodox — living within and around the great citadel until the Ottoman withdrawal at the end of the First World War in 1918. - 1918 AD – 1920 AD: Arab Kingdom of Syria (known as "Busra") After the Ottoman withdrawal, the Hauran including Busra passed nominally under Faisal I's short-lived Arab Kingdom of Syria. The kingdom was dissolved after French forces defeated the Syrian army at the Battle of Maysalun in July 1920. - 1920 AD – 1946 AD: French Mandate of Syria (known as "Busra") Under the French Mandate established by the 1920 San Remo conference, Busra was administered as part of the State of Damascus and later the unified Syrian Republic. French archaeologists began the systematic study and partial clearance of the Roman and Ayyubid monuments during the interwar period. - 1946 AD – 2024 AD: Syrian Arab Republic Busra became part of independent Syria in 1946 and grew through the second half of the 20th century into a modest agricultural town of around thirty thousand inhabitants in Daraa Governorate. UNESCO inscribed the ancient city on the World Heritage List in 1980, and during the Syrian civil war the site was placed on the World Heritage in Danger list in 2013 after sustaining damage from combat between Syrian government forces and opposition factions. The town remained under Assad-government control with intermittent rebel pressure until the fall of the regime in December 2024. - 2024 AD – present: Syrian Transitional Government Following the HTS-led collapse of the Assad government in December 2024, Bosra passed under the new Syrian Transitional Government. The damaged ancient ruins and the reduced modern town await reconstruction under the new administration. ## Landmarks - Nabataean Gate (built 50 AD) Monumental gateway in the eastern wall of Bosra, dated to the late Nabataean period in the mid-1st century CE. Distinguished by its characteristic Nabataean architectural details, it marks the eastern entrance of the city axis and is one of the few surviving Nabataean structures north of Petra. - Roman Theater of Bosra (built 149 AD) Monumental Roman theater built around 149 CE under Antoninus Pius, with a seating capacity of roughly 15,000 and one of the largest and best-preserved scaenae frons in the Roman world. Entombed within the Ayyubid citadel in the 13th century — which paradoxically preserved it intact — the theater is the centerpiece of the UNESCO-inscribed site and the venue of the modern Bosra International Festival. - Cathedral of Saints Sergius, Bacchus and Leontius (built 512 AD) Great early-Byzantine cathedral built in 512-513 CE under archbishop Julian, with an innovative quatrefoil plan inscribed within a square — a prototype that influenced later domed Byzantine churches including Hagia Sophia. Now largely ruined, the cathedral's massive foundations and lateral walls survive at the heart of the medieval town. - Mosque of Omar (built 720 AD) Early-Umayyad congregational mosque in central Bosra, traditionally ascribed to the early Islamic period and rebuilt under the caliph Yazid II around 720 CE. With its reused Roman columns and hypostyle plan, it is among the oldest surviving mosques in Syria and one of the few preserved examples of early-Umayyad religious architecture outside Damascus. - Citadel of Bosra (built 1202 AD) Massive Ayyubid concentric citadel built around the Roman theater between roughly 1202 and 1251 by the sultan al-Adil and his successors, with eight rectangular towers and a moat enveloping the ancient structure. The fortification preserved the Roman theater within its core and is one of the great surviving examples of Ayyubid military architecture in Syria. ## Population History - 1400 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 3,000 - 50 BC: 8,000 - 150 AD: 50,000 - 300 AD: 80,000 - 500 AD: 50,000 - 634 AD: 30,000 - 900 AD: 15,000 - 1200 AD: 10,000 - 1500 AD: 3,000 - 1800 AD: 2,000 - 1950 AD: 5,000 - 2004 AD: 19,683 - 2010 AD: 30,000 - 2020 AD: 30,000 --- # Cyrrhus, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/cyrrhus Founded: 300 BC Ended: 1300 AD Coordinates: 36.7442, 36.9592 ## Description Cyrrhus — known in Arabic as Nebi Huri and locally as Khoros — was a Hellenistic and Roman city in northern Syria some 70 kilometres northwest of Aleppo, founded around 300 BCE by Seleucus I Nicator and named after the Macedonian town of Cyrrhus. Situated on the Sabun Suyu river along the route connecting Antioch and Zeugma to the Euphrates crossings, it served as a strategic regional centre and military base under the Seleucids, Romans, and Byzantines. Cyrrhus reached its peak in the Roman and early Byzantine periods, when it functioned as capital of the Roman administrative region of Cyrrhestice and later as the seat of bishop Theodoret of Cyrrhus, one of the most prolific theological writers of the 5th century. Fortified successively by Justinian and the early caliphs, the city passed through Sasanian, Rashidun, Umayyad, Abbasid, Hamdanid, Byzantine, Crusader, Zengid, Ayyubid and Mamluk hands before being gradually abandoned during the 13th century. The site remains an exceptionally well-preserved archaeological ensemble including a Roman theatre, two Roman bridges still in use, the hilltop citadel, and the distinctive hexagonal Roman tower-tomb later venerated as the Mosque of Prophet Huri. Excavations by the Lebanese–Syrian Archaeological Mission resumed in the early 21st century until interrupted by the Syrian civil war and the subsequent occupation of the surrounding Afrin region. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire Founded around 300 BCE by Seleucus I Nicator as part of the network of new Macedonian foundations consolidating Seleucid control over northern Syria. Named after the Macedonian town of Cyrrhus, the city occupied a strategic position on the Antioch–Zeugma road and served as a regional military and administrative centre throughout the Seleucid period. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Pompey's settlement of the East in 64 BCE brought Cyrrhus under Roman rule as part of the province of Syria. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city flourished as the capital of the Cyrrhestice region and as a base for legions guarding the Euphrates frontier, with the Legio X Fretensis stationed there in the early imperial period. Roman monumental construction included the theatre, the two stone bridges still standing today, and the hexagonal tower-tomb on the southern approach. - 395 AD – 611 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Hagioupolis") Under Eastern Roman administration Cyrrhus became a major Christian episcopal seat — held by the great theologian Theodoret of Cyrrhus in the 5th century — and was renamed Hagioupolis ('Holy City') in honour of the local cult of saints Cosmas and Damian. Justinian I substantially strengthened the city walls and fortifications in the 6th century as a key bulwark against Sasanian incursions. - 611 AD – 628 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Hagioupolis") During Khosrow II's great Roman-Persian war, Sasanian forces overran much of Syria and held Cyrrhus along with the surrounding territories from around 611 to 628 CE. Heraclius's counteroffensive restored Byzantine control with the conclusion of the war, but the city's recovery was brief before the Arab conquest. - 628 AD – 637 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Hagioupolis") Heraclius restored Byzantine rule over Cyrrhus after the Sasanian withdrawal, but imperial control lasted less than a decade before the Rashidun Arab conquest of Syria swept through northern Syria in 637 CE. - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Qurush") Conquered by Arab forces in 637 CE during the Muslim conquest of Syria, the city — now arabicised as Qurush — was incorporated into the Rashidun province of Qinnasrin (Jund Qinnasrin) as a frontier post facing Byzantine Anatolia. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Qurush") Under Umayyad rule from Damascus, Qurush remained a Thughur frontier town within the Aleppo–Antioch defensive system. The fortifications were repaired and re-occupied during the Arab–Byzantine wars of the late 7th and early 8th centuries. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Qurush") Under the Abbasids Qurush continued as a fortified frontier town of the Thughur al-Shamiyya, the Syrian frontier marches facing Byzantine Anatolia. The city was repeatedly contested in the Arab–Byzantine wars of the 9th and early 10th centuries. - 944 AD – 969 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Qurush") With Sayf al-Dawla's establishment of the Hamdanid emirate of Aleppo in 944, Qurush passed under Hamdanid control as part of the frontier facing Byzantium. The town remained Hamdanid until Nikephoros II Phokas's reconquest of northern Syria culminated in the Byzantine recapture of the region. - 969 AD – 1098 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Hagioupolis") Following Nikephoros II Phokas's reconquest of northern Syria in 969, Cyrrhus returned to Byzantine control for the first time in three centuries. The town was held through the late 10th and 11th centuries, with Armenian Christian populations resettled along the frontier, and remained nominally Byzantine until the arrival of the First Crusade. - 1098 AD – 1150 AD: Crusader County of Edessa (known as "Coricie") Captured by the armies of the First Crusade in 1098 and assigned to the Crusader County of Edessa under Baldwin of Boulogne, Cyrrhus — known in Frankish sources as Coricie — became one of the southern strongholds of the county. The town remained under Crusader control until Nur ad-Din Zangi's conquest of the surrounding territories in 1150. - 1150 AD – 1183 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Qurush") Nur ad-Din Zangi captured Cyrrhus from the Crusaders around 1150 as part of the broader Zengid reconquest of the former County of Edessa. The town was integrated into the Zengid Aleppine emirate and held until Saladin's takeover of Aleppo from the last Zengid prince. - 1183 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Qurush") After Saladin's takeover of Aleppo in 1183 Cyrrhus passed under Ayyubid rule as part of the Aleppo emirate. The town continued in reduced form through the late 12th and early 13th centuries before the Mongol invasion of 1260 brought the Ayyubid Aleppine state to an end. - 1260 AD – 1300 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Qurush") After the Mamluk victory over the Mongols at Ayn Jalut in 1260 northern Syria was incorporated into the Mamluk realm. Cyrrhus continued only as a small inhabited site in the early Mamluk period before being effectively abandoned by the end of the 13th century; medieval Arab travellers of the 14th century already describe Qurush as largely in ruins. The hexagonal Roman tower-tomb was preserved as the local maqam of Nabi Huri and remained a venerated cult site through the Ottoman and modern periods. ## Landmarks - Roman Theatre of Cyrrhus (built 100 AD) A large Roman-era theatre built into the slope of the citadel hill, dating to the early imperial period and capable of seating several thousand spectators. One of the best-preserved Roman theatres in northern Syria, the cavea and orchestra survive in substantial part along with elements of the scaenae frons. - Roman Bridges over the Sabun Suyu (built 100 AD) Two well-preserved Roman stone-arch bridges crossing the Sabun Suyu river south of Cyrrhus, dating to the 2nd century CE. Both bridges remain in use today, more than 1800 years after their construction, and represent some of the finest surviving examples of Roman bridge engineering in the Near East. - Hexagonal Tower-Tomb (Mosque of Nabi Huri) (built 200 AD) A monumental hexagonal Roman tower-tomb of the 2nd–3rd century CE on the southern approach to Cyrrhus, standing about 15 metres tall and crowned with a pyramidal roof. In the Islamic period the monument was rededicated as the maqam of the prophet Huri (Uriah of biblical tradition) and remains a venerated local pilgrimage site. - Citadel of Cyrrhus (built 550 AD) The fortified upper city on the summit of the steep hill overlooking the Sabun Suyu, substantially rebuilt by Justinian I in the 6th century atop Hellenistic and Roman foundations. The Justinianic walls and towers were later repaired and reused by the early caliphs and by Crusader, Zengid and Ayyubid garrisons during the medieval period. ## Population History - 300 BC: 3,000 - 100 BC: 10,000 - 200 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 12,000 - 700 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 4,000 - 1150 AD: 3,000 - 1260 AD: 1,000 - 1300 AD: null --- # Damascus, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/damascus Founded: 4300 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 33.5138, 36.2765 ## Description Damascus is one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities, with roots dating back to at least 4300 BCE. Situated by the Barada River, it flourished as a vital oasis linking desert and fertile crescent. Over millennia, it was ruled by Arameans, Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, and Islamic caliphates, reaching a peak as the Umayyad capital in the 7th century CE. Famous for its artisanship in textiles, metalwork, and woodcraft, Damascus was a key hub on the Silk Road and today preserves its rich heritage as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. ## Historical Rulers - 4300 BC – 3200 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "Dimasqu") Chalcolithic occupation emerged on the fertile Ghouta oasis fed by the Barada River, with early agricultural and pastoral communities exploiting the well-watered land at the desert margin. The site already functioned as a natural caravan stop on the routes linking Mesopotamia, the Levant, and Egypt. - 3200 BC – 1000 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Dimasqu") Through the Early, Middle, and Late Bronze Age the site grew into a substantial urban settlement, attested in Egyptian execration texts, Mari archive records, and the fourteenth-century BCE Amarna correspondence under the name Dimasqu. The town fell variously within the spheres of Egyptian New Kingdom hegemony, Mitanni, and the Hittite-Egyptian frontier, retaining its role as a watering point and caravan node throughout. - 1000 BC – 732 BC: Aram-Damascus (known as "Aram-Damascus") Damascus rose as the capital of Aram-Damascus, the most powerful Aramean polity in the southern Levant, repeatedly clashing with neighboring Israel and Judah. Its rulers, including Hazael and Ben-Hadad, projected regional influence until the kingdom was overwhelmed by Assyrian expansion. - 732 BC – 609 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Dimaşqa") Tiglath-Pileser III captured Damascus in 732 BCE, ending Aramean independence and incorporating the city into the Neo-Assyrian Empire as a provincial center of the southern Levant. Damascus served as a regional administrative seat and military waystation throughout the Sargonid period until the Assyrian collapse. - 609 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Dimaşqa") After the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE and the Assyrian collapse, Damascus passed to the rising Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nebuchadnezzar II and his successors. The city remained a regional administrative seat in the western provinces until the Achaemenid conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Dimashqu") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE, Damascus became part of the Achaemenid Empire within the satrapy of Eber-Nari (Beyond the River). The city served as an administrative and military waystation linking the imperial heartland to the Mediterranean coast. - 333 BC – 200 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Damaskos") Alexander the Great's general Parmenion took Damascus in 333 BCE after the Battle of Issus, seizing the Persian treasury stored there. After the Wars of the Diadochi the city was incorporated into the Ptolemaic Kingdom which held Coele-Syria through the third century BCE, and Damascus emerged as a Hellenized commercial center on the inland caravan routes. - 200 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Damaskos") In 200 BCE Antiochus III defeated the Ptolemaic forces at the Battle of Panium and annexed Coele-Syria, including Damascus, to the Seleucid Empire. As Seleucid central authority disintegrated in the first century BCE the city was briefly held by the Nabataean king Aretas III (c. 85-72 BCE) and then by Tigranes II of Armenia (c. 72-69 BCE) before Pompey incorporated it into the Roman province of Syria. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Pompey annexed Damascus in 64 BCE, incorporating it into the Roman province of Syria as one of the cities of the Decapolis. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The Romans reshaped the urban plan with a colonnaded cardo (later the Street called Straight), a temple of Jupiter on the site of an earlier Aramean sanctuary, and city walls that still define the Old City. - 395 AD – 636 AD: Byzantine Empire After the division of the Roman Empire in 395 CE, Damascus remained an important provincial city under Eastern Roman (Byzantine) administration. The temple of Jupiter was converted into the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist, and the city served as a Christian episcopal seat until the Arab conquest. - 636 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Dimashq") Muslim Arab forces under Khalid ibn al-Walid and Abu Ubayda captured Damascus in 636 CE following the Byzantine defeat at the Battle of Yarmouk. The city retained much of its population and administrative apparatus, with the cathedral initially shared between Christians and Muslims. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Dimashq") Mu'awiya I made Damascus the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate in 661 CE, inaugurating the city's golden age as the seat of an empire stretching from Iberia to Central Asia. Caliph al-Walid I commissioned the Great Mosque of Damascus on the former cathedral site, establishing a monumental template for early Islamic architecture. - 750 AD – 970 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Dimashq") The Abbasid revolution of 750 CE shifted the capital eastward to Baghdad, demoting Damascus to a provincial center that suffered population decline and periodic unrest. Loose central control alternated with the regional autonomies of the Tulunid and Ikhshidid governors based in Egypt, while the Umayyad architectural heritage of the city slowly weathered the period of neglect. - 970 AD – 1076 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Dimashq") From the late tenth century the Egypt-based Shia Fatimid Caliphate extended its rule over Syria and southern Levant, including Damascus. Sunni-Shia tensions and Bedouin raids destabilized the city repeatedly, but it remained an important provincial capital within the Fatimid framework until the Seljuk advance. - 1076 AD – 1104 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Dimashq") Atsiz ibn Uvaq captured Damascus for the Great Seljuk Empire in 1076, restoring Sunni orthodoxy and integrating the city into the Turkish-led empire that already dominated Iran and Anatolia. After Atsiz's death the city passed under Tutush I and his sons during the Seljuk succession struggles that accompanied the arrival of the First Crusade. - 1104 AD – 1154 AD: Burid Emirate (known as "Dimashq") On the death of Duqaq ibn Tutush in 1104 the Turkic atabeg Toghtekin founded the Burid dynasty, which ruled Damascus as a semi-independent Sunni emirate during the early Crusader period. Burid Damascus alternated between resistance to and uneasy alliance with the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem until the city was absorbed by the Zengids. - 1154 AD – 1174 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Dimashq") Nur ad-Din of Aleppo took Damascus from the last Burids in 1154 and made it a principal capital of his Zengid atabegate, restoring Sunni revival through madrasa construction and using the city as a mustering ground for war against the Crusader states. After Nur ad-Din's death in 1174 his lieutenant Saladin took the city for himself. - 1174 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Dimashq") Saladin took Damascus in 1174 after the death of Nur ad-Din and made it a principal capital of the Ayyubid sultanate alongside Cairo. The city flourished as a center of Sunni revival, madrasa construction, and military mobilization against the Crusaders until the Mongol invasion. - 1260 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Dimashq") After the Mongol sack of 1260, the Mamluks of Egypt defeated the Mongols at Ain Jalut and incorporated Damascus as the seat of a major na'ib (viceroyalty). Timur (Tamerlane) sacked Damascus in 1400, massacring its population and deporting its artisans to Samarkand, but the city recovered as a key node in Mamluk caravan trade and pilgrimage to Mecca. - 1516 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Şam") Sultan Selim I defeated the Mamluks at Marj Dabiq in 1516 and brought Damascus into the Ottoman Empire, where it served as the capital of the Damascus Eyalet and later the Vilayet of Syria. The city became the principal mustering point for the annual Hajj caravan to Mecca and saw waves of monumental construction, urban expansion, and, in the late period, the arrival of the Hejaz Railway. - 1918 AD – 1920 AD: Arab Kingdom of Syria Following the Arab Revolt and the Ottoman withdrawal in 1918, Faisal I established the short-lived Arab Kingdom of Syria with Damascus as its capital. The kingdom was dissolved after French forces defeated Arab troops at the Battle of Maysalun in July 1920. - 1920 AD – 1946 AD: French Mandate of Syria Under the League of Nations Mandate, France administered Damascus as the capital of the State of Damascus and later of the Syrian Republic within the Mandate framework. The period saw urban modernization alongside repeated nationalist uprisings, most notably the Great Syrian Revolt of 1925-1927. - 1946 AD – 2024 AD: Syrian Arab Republic Syria gained full independence in 1946 with Damascus as its capital, and the city remained the political and administrative center through the United Arab Republic, successive Ba'athist governments, and the prolonged civil war that began in 2011. Government control of the capital persisted until the fall of the Assad government in December 2024. - 2024 AD – present: Syrian Transitional Government Following the collapse of the Assad government in December 2024, a transitional administration took control of Damascus and began reorganizing state institutions. The city remains the political capital and largest urban center of Syria. ## Landmarks - Umayyad Mosque (built 715 AD) Completed around 715 CE under Caliph al-Walid I, built on the site of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist which had replaced a Roman temple to Jupiter. Features a vast courtyard, three distinctive minarets, and some of the most extensive mosaics of early Islamic period. Houses a shrine believed to contain the head of John the Baptist. - Souq al-Hamidiyya (built 1780 AD) A long vaulted passageway rebuilt during the reign of Sultan Abdul Hamid II, covered by a metal roof with distinctive dappled light effect. The eastern end opens to the Umayyad Mosque. The marketplace represents Damascus's craft traditions, offering textiles (including damask fabrics), inlaid woodwork, metalware, and spices. ## Population History - 4300 BC: 500 - 3200 BC: 2,000 - 2000 BC: 8,000 - 1500 BC: 15,000 - 1000 BC: 20,000 - 800 BC: 30,000 - 430 BC: 30,000 - 361 AD: 40,000 - 500 AD: 50,000 - 700 AD: 300,000 - 800 AD: 100,000 - 1150 AD: 57,000 - 1170 AD: 80,000 - 1200 AD: 90,000 - 1300 AD: 64,000 - 1400 AD: 74,000 - 1450 AD: 65,000 - 1500 AD: 60,000 - 1550 AD: 60,000 - 1600 AD: 60,000 - 1650 AD: 65,000 - 1700 AD: 70,000 - 1750 AD: 80,000 - 1800 AD: 90,000 - 1850 AD: 108,599 - 1900 AD: 165,000 - 1950 AD: 415,000 - 1975 AD: 1,100,000 - 2000 AD: 2,000,000 - 2025 AD: 2,800,000 --- # Dura-Europos, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/dura-europos Founded: 303 BC Ended: 257 AD Coordinates: 34.7472, 40.7283 ## Description Dura-Europos was a fortified Hellenistic city on the middle Euphrates, founded around 303 BCE by the Seleucid king Seleucus I Nicator as a military colony named Europos after his Macedonian birthplace; the Aramaic name Dura, meaning fortress, persisted alongside it. Under successive Seleucid, Parthian and Roman control, the city grew into a cosmopolitan frontier town where Greek, Mesopotamian, Palmyrene, Jewish, Christian and Mithraic communities lived side by side, producing one of the richest religious crossroads of the ancient Near East. Its sanctuaries include the famous synagogue of 244 CE with its extensive figurative wall paintings, the Christian house-church of about 232 CE which is the earliest securely dated Christian church, a Mithraeum and the Temple of Bel. In 256-257 CE the Sasanian king Shapur I besieged and stormed the city; the siege works preserve some of the earliest archaeological evidence of chemical warfare, where defenders in counter-mines appear to have been killed by deliberately generated toxic smoke. After the fall the survivors were deported and the site was abandoned forever, its mudbrick city blanketed by Euphrates sand which preserved buildings, paintings and inscriptions in extraordinary condition, earning it the nickname Pompeii of the desert. Rediscovered in 1920 by British troops on patrol, Dura-Europos was excavated from 1928 onward under Franz Cumont, Mikhail Rostovtzeff and Clark Hopkins in joint French and American campaigns. The site is on Syria's UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List and suffered severe looting and bulldozing damage during the Syrian civil war, particularly under ISIS control. ## Historical Rulers - 303 BC – 113 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Europos") Founded around 303 BCE by Seleucus I Nicator as a military colony and caravan station on the middle Euphrates, the city was laid out on a Hippodamian grid and named Europos after Seleucus's Macedonian hometown. It served as a Seleucid garrison and administrative center guarding the river frontier between Syria and Mesopotamia. - 113 BC – 165 AD: Parthian Empire Captured around 113 BCE during the eastward push of Mithridates II, the city became a Parthian provincial center and a key node in the trans-Euphrates caravan trade. Greek civic institutions survived alongside growing Parthian, Palmyrene and Aramaic-speaking populations, and most of the major sanctuaries known from excavation took shape in this era. - 165 AD – 257 AD: Roman Empire Brought under Roman control during Lucius Verus's Parthian campaign of 165 CE, Dura-Europos was reorganized as a heavily garrisoned frontier base on the eastern limes, hosting auxiliary cohorts and the Palace of the Dux Ripae. The Roman period produced the synagogue, Christian house-church and Mithraeum before the city fell to Shapur I's Sasanian army in 256-257 CE and was permanently abandoned. ## Landmarks - City Walls (built 300 BC) Massive mudbrick and stone fortifications laid out at the Seleucid foundation around the plateau above the Euphrates, with a monumental gate complex and towers later reinforced under the Romans. The walls and the Roman siege ramp piled against them are the centerpiece of the archaeological evidence for Shapur I's siege of 256-257 CE. - Temple of Bel (built 50 AD) A sanctuary of the Palmyrene Bel cult in the northwest of the city, built and decorated under Parthian rule and best known for its painted scenes including the tribune of Julius Terentius depicting Roman officers sacrificing to the Palmyrene gods. The frescoes are among the earliest surviving examples of Romano-Parthian religious painting. - Roman military camp (built 165 AD) A walled compound carved out of the northern quarter of the city after the Roman annexation to house the garrison, with barracks, headquarters and a principia. It transformed Dura-Europos from a civilian caravan town into a militarized frontier base on the limes. - Palace of the Dux Ripae (built 211 AD) A large residence and headquarters built in the northeast corner of the city for the Roman commander of the river frontier, overlooking the Euphrates from the edge of the plateau. Its plan combines Roman official architecture with local construction techniques. - Christian house-church (built 232 AD) A private house near the western wall converted around 232 CE into a small Christian meeting place, with a baptistery decorated by wall paintings of biblical scenes including the Good Shepherd and the women at the tomb. It is the earliest securely dated Christian church building known archaeologically. - Mithraeum (built 240 AD) A Mithraic shrine installed for soldiers of the Roman garrison, with painted scenes of Mithras slaying the bull and associated cult imagery. It illustrates the spread of Mithraism along the eastern frontier and the religious life of frontier troops. - Synagogue of Dura-Europos (built 244 AD) A synagogue rebuilt and redecorated around 244 CE whose interior walls were covered with detailed figurative paintings of biblical narratives, an extraordinary departure from later assumptions about strict Jewish aniconism in late antiquity. The frescoes were lifted after excavation and are now preserved in the National Museum of Damascus. ## Population History - 303 BC: 2,000 - 113 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 200 AD: 12,000 - 256 AD: 6,000 - 257 AD: null --- # Ebla, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/ebla Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 1600 BC Coordinates: 35.7933, 36.4958 ## Description Ebla (modern Tell Mardikh) was an ancient Semitic city-state in northwestern Syria that flourished across three major phases between roughly 3000 and 1600 BCE. At its peak in the mid-third millennium it controlled a powerful kingdom extending over much of northern Syria, with extensive diplomatic and commercial ties reaching Mesopotamia, Anatolia, and the Levant; the cuneiform tablets recovered from its royal archive remain a primary source for early Semitic languages and Bronze Age statecraft. The first city (Mardikh IIB1) was destroyed around 2300 BCE during Akkadian campaigns, traditionally attributed to Sargon or Naram-Sin. Ebla was rebuilt and revived in the late third and early second millennia, and again rose as a regional center during the Amorite period (Mardikh IIIA-IIIB) before its final destruction around 1600 BCE, commonly associated with Hittite expansion under Mursili I or with conflicts surrounding the kingdom of Yamhad. The site was effectively abandoned thereafter; it was rediscovered and systematically excavated from 1964 onward by an Italian mission led by Paolo Matthiae, whose work brought the Ebla archives to scholarly attention. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2300 BC: Eblaite Kingdom The first Eblaite Kingdom (Mardikh IIB1) emerged as one of the dominant powers of third-millennium Syria, ruling a wide territorial state from a fortified acropolis. Its administration produced the extensive cuneiform archive of Palace G, documenting trade, treaties, and royal correspondence. The period ended with the violent destruction of the palace around 2300 BCE, traditionally attributed to Akkadian campaigns under Sargon or Naram-Sin. - 2300 BC – 2200 BC: Akkadian Empire Following the destruction of Palace G, Ebla fell within the orbit of the Akkadian Empire as Mesopotamian rulers extended their reach into Syria. The site remained occupied but at a reduced scale, with no comparable centralized palace administration during this interval. - 2200 BC – 1810 BC: Eblaite Kingdom After the collapse of Akkadian power, Ebla was rebuilt and gradually revived through the late third and early second millennia (Mardikh IIB2 and IIIA), with new fortifications, temples, and royal residences constructed under local Amorite-influenced dynasts. The renewed kingdom controlled the region around Tell Mardikh and participated in the broader Middle Bronze Age Syrian political world until the rise of Yamhad reorganized the regional hierarchy. - 1810 BC – 1600 BC: Kingdom of Yamhad During the Middle Bronze Age IIB the revived city of Ebla (Mardikh IIIB) operated as a vassal kingdom within the broader Amorite Kingdom of Yamhad centred on Halab (Aleppo). The local Eblaite kings retained their dynastic identity and continued to build monumental palaces and temples under Yamhad's overlordship until the final destruction of the city around 1600 BCE, commonly associated with Hittite expansion under Hattusili I and Mursili I. ## Landmarks - Temple of Ishtar (built 2500 BC) The Temple of Ishtar, one of the city's principal religious structures, played a central role in the civic and ceremonial life of Ebla. It highlights the continuity of goddess worship traditions across ancient Mesopotamia and Syria. - Royal Palace G (built 2400 BC) Royal Palace G was a massive complex featuring ceremonial halls, private apartments, and archive rooms. The discovery of the archive provided crucial insights into early Semitic languages, international diplomacy, and economic management in the third millennium BCE. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 5,000 - 2500 BC: 30,000 - 2400 BC: 30,000 - 2300 BC: 30,000 - 2250 BC: 30,000 - 1900 BC: 10,000 - 1800 BC: 10,000 - 1700 BC: 10,000 - 1600 BC: null --- # Hama, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/hama Founded: 6500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 35.1318, 36.7578 ## Description Hama, the ancient Hamath, is a major city of central Syria built on both banks of the upper Orontes river in the fertile plain north of Homs. The tell at the heart of the city preserves one of the longest continuous archaeological sequences in inland western Syria, from the Middle Neolithic around 6500 BCE through the Iron Age, and the city has been continuously occupied for over eight millennia. Hama rose to prominence as the capital of the Aramaean Iron Age Kingdom of Hamath from around 1100 BCE until its annexation by Sargon II of Assyria in 720 BCE, and was later refounded as the Hellenistic Epiphaneia under the Seleucids, reverting to the Aramaic form Emath under the Byzantines. After the Arab conquest of 638 the city was successively governed by the Rashidun, Umayyad, Abbasid, Fatimid, Seljuk, Zengid, Ayyubid, Mamluk, Ottoman, French Mandate, and modern Syrian administrations, with a particularly celebrated Ayyubid period under the prince-historian Abu al-Fida (1273-1331). Modern Hama is the fourth-largest Syrian city with a population of around 410,000, famous for its monumental wooden norias water wheels along the Orontes, but the city was devastated by the February 1982 massacre during the Assad government's suppression of a Muslim Brotherhood uprising, in which much of the historic Old City was destroyed and tens of thousands of inhabitants killed. ## Historical Rulers - 6500 BC – 5500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Hama tell") The earliest occupation at the Hama tell began in the Middle Neolithic period, attested in the deep stratigraphic levels of the Carlsberg Foundation's 1931-1938 excavations under Harald Ingholt and P.J. Riis. The site emerged as a small farming and pottery-producing community on the fertile upper Orontes plain. - 5500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Hama tell") Through the Halaf, Ubaid, and Late Chalcolithic phases the tell grew steadily on the Orontes terrace, producing distinctive painted ceramics and developing into a small regional centre. Continuous mudbrick rebuilding raised the mound that would later support the Iron Age citadel. - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Hama tell") During the Early Bronze Age the settlement grew into a substantial regional centre on the upper Orontes, integrated into the broader north Syrian Bronze Age network with cultural ties to Ebla, Mari, and the Mediterranean coast. Material culture documents extensive trade contacts during the late third millennium BCE. - 2000 BC – 1750 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Hama tell") Through the Middle Bronze Age the tell hosted a substantial walled town within the broader Amorite cultural sphere of inland Syria, contemporary with the rise of Yamhad, Qatna, and Mari. The settlement was destroyed by fire around 1750 BCE, traditionally associated with Hyksos-related disruptions in inland Syria. - 1750 BC – 1100 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Hama tell") After the destruction of around 1750 BCE the tell was reoccupied at reduced scale through the Late Bronze Age, contemporary with the Mitanni and Hittite imperial spheres in northern Syria. The diminished settlement persisted through the Bronze Age collapse until Aramaean settlers refounded the city as the capital of Hamath around 1100 BCE. - 1100 BC – 720 BC: Kingdom of Hamath (known as "Hamath") From around 1100 BCE Hama became the capital of the Aramaean Iron Age Kingdom of Hamath under a dynasty whose King Toi is recorded in the Hebrew Bible exchanging gifts with David of Israel. The kingdom joined the great anti-Assyrian coalition at the Battle of Qarqar in 853 BCE and was repeatedly contested with Aram-Damascus and the Neo-Assyrian Empire, until Sargon II defeated and flayed alive the last king Yaubi'di in 720 BCE and annexed Hamath as an Assyrian province. - 720 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Hamath") Following Sargon II's annexation in 720 BCE, Hamath was incorporated into the Neo-Assyrian provincial system as a major centre of inland Syria. The city continued under Neo-Assyrian governors until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE ended the empire. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Hamath") After the fall of Assyria, Hamath passed to the rising Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II, who is said to have defeated Pharaoh Necho II's army near Hamath as part of his Levantine campaigns. The city continued as a Babylonian provincial centre until Cyrus the Great's conquest in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Hamath") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon, Hamath was incorporated into the Achaemenid Persian Empire as part of the satrapy of Across-the-River (Eber-Nari). The city continued as a regional Aramaic-speaking centre under Persian administration. - 333 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Hamath") Alexander the Great's defeat of Darius III at Issus in 333 BCE brought the upper Orontes under Macedonian control. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Seleucid consolidation after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Epiphaneia") Under the Seleucid kings the city was refounded in the 2nd century BCE as Epiphaneia in honour of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, gaining Hellenistic civic institutions while retaining its Aramaic-speaking population. The city served as a regional centre on the inland route between Antioch and Damascus until Pompey's reorganization of the east. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Epiphania") Pompey's annexation of Syria in 64 BCE brought Epiphania under Roman authority as part of the new province of Syria. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Epiphania") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city prospered as a regional centre on the Orontes route and developed an important early Christian community in the late Roman period, becoming the seat of a bishopric. - 395 AD – 638 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Emath") Under the Eastern Roman Empire the city continued as a Christian bishopric on the upper Orontes, and Greek sources began to use the Aramaic form Emath alongside the older Epiphaneia. The Sasanian Persians sacked the city under Khosrow II in 611 before Heraclius restored Byzantine control until the Arab conquest. - 638 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate Arab forces under Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah took Hama in 638 following the Battle of Yarmouk, restoring the city's older Semitic name in its Arabic form. The Christian and Muslim communities lived side by side under the new Rashidun administration of Jund Hims. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate Hama remained a regional centre of Jund Hims. Caliph al-Walid I built or enlarged the city's Great Mosque on the foundations of the converted Christian cathedral around 715 CE. - 750 AD – 970 AD: Abbasid Caliphate Under the Abbasid Caliphate based at Baghdad, Hama lay within the broader Bilad al-Sham provincial system, with local autonomous emirs increasingly governing during the 9th and 10th centuries as Abbasid central authority weakened. The city was contested by Tulunid and Ikhshidid governors from Egypt before falling within the Fatimid sphere. - 970 AD – 1080 AD: Fatimid Caliphate From the late 10th century the Egypt-based Shia Fatimid Caliphate extended its rule over Syria including Hama. The city remained a Fatimid provincial centre on the upper Orontes until the Seljuk Turkic advance in the late 11th century. - 1080 AD – 1127 AD: Seljuk Empire Seljuk forces took Hama from the Fatimids around 1080 and integrated the city into the Great Seljuk realm. Hama continued under Seljuk-appointed emirs through the early Crusader period until the Zengid consolidation. - 1127 AD – 1177 AD: Zengid Atabegate Imad al-Din Zengi and his son Nur al-Din extended Zengid authority over Hama from 1127, making the city one of the principal Sunni Muslim centres opposing the Crusader states. Nur al-Din patronized madrasas, fortifications, and the great congregational mosque of Hama before passing the city to Saladin's Ayyubid succession. - 1177 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty established a cadet branch at Hama under al-Muzaffar Umar from 1177, beginning a remarkable line of Ayyubid princes culminating in the celebrated geographer-historian and prince of Hama Abu al-Fida (r. 1310-1331). The Ayyubid period saw substantial monumental construction along the Orontes, including the elaboration of the famous norias water-wheels that became Hama's defining feature. - 1260 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate After the Mamluk victory at Ain Jalut in 1260 Hama was nominally incorporated into the Mamluk Sultanate, though the Ayyubid prince Abu al-Fida continued to govern as a Mamluk vassal until his death in 1331. After Abu al-Fida's son the city was administered directly by Mamluk-appointed governors, with continued investment in the Orontes hydraulic works and major Mamluk-period mosques and madrasas. - 1516 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Selim I incorporated Hama into the Ottoman Empire in 1516 after the Battle of Marj Dabiq. The city became the seat of the Hama Sanjak within the Eyalet of Damascus and later the Vilayet of Syria, persisting through the early modern period as a regional commercial centre of the Aleppo-Damascus axis with its distinctive norias continuing to lift Orontes water for irrigation. - 1918 AD – 1920 AD: Arab Kingdom of Syria After the Ottoman withdrawal in 1918 Hama passed under the short-lived Arab Kingdom of Syria of Faisal I, who claimed sovereignty over Greater Syria from his capital at Damascus. The kingdom was dissolved after French forces defeated the Syrian army at the Battle of Maysalun in July 1920. - 1920 AD – 1946 AD: French Mandate of Syria After the dissolution of the Arab Kingdom of Syria, Hama was incorporated into the French Mandate of Syria established at the 1920 San Remo conference. The city continued as a provincial centre of the State of Damascus and later of the Syrian Republic within the Mandate framework. - 1946 AD – 2024 AD: Syrian Arab Republic Since Syrian independence in 1946 Hama has continued as the fourth-largest city of Syria and the principal town of the upper Orontes. The city was the centre of a major Muslim Brotherhood uprising in February 1982 that was suppressed by the Assad government in the Hama massacre, in which much of the historic Old City was destroyed and tens of thousands of inhabitants killed, an event that shaped Syrian politics until the eventual fall of the Assad regime in December 2024. - 2024 AD – present: Syrian Transitional Government Following the HTS-led collapse of the Assad government in December 2024, Hama passed under the new Syrian Transitional Government. The city's population continues to live with the legacy of the 1982 massacre and the wider civil war while reconstruction and political transition proceed. ## Landmarks - Citadel of Hama (built 1100 BC) The Hama citadel mound rises about 40 metres above the modern city and preserves the deeply stratified levels of the Iron Age Hamathite kingdom, the Hellenistic Epiphaneia, and the medieval Islamic city. Repeatedly fortified through the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods, the upper citadel was largely demolished in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to provide building stone for the expanding lower town, and the surviving mound is today a public park. - Great Mosque of Hama (built 715 AD) The Great Umayyad Mosque of Hama was built in the early 8th century by Caliph al-Walid I on the converted site of a Byzantine cathedral that itself reused a Roman pagan temple, with its courtyard featuring a small treasury kiosk on columns very similar to that of the Great Mosque of Damascus. The mosque was largely destroyed in the February 1982 massacre and has since been substantially rebuilt. - Norias of Hama (built 1100 AD) The wooden water wheels of Hama are massive vertical norias up to 20 metres in diameter that lift water from the Orontes river into elevated aqueducts for irrigation and urban supply. The earliest surviving wheels date to the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods and the system has been continuously maintained since at least the 11th century, making the norias the defining landmark of Hama and an outstanding example of medieval Islamic hydraulic engineering. - Azem Palace of Hama (built 1742 AD) The Beit Azem of Hama is the Ottoman residential palace built in 1742 for As'ad Pasha al-Azm, the governor of Hama and later of Damascus, whose family dominated 18th-century Ottoman Syrian politics. The palace features ornate ablaq stone facades, decorated wooden ceilings, and tiled courtyards, and houses today the Hama Museum of Folk Traditions. ## Population History - 6500 BC: 200 - 5000 BC: 1,000 - 3000 BC: 3,000 - 2000 BC: 6,000 - 1100 BC: 8,000 - 800 BC: 20,000 - 300 BC: 25,000 - 100 AD: 35,000 - 600 AD: 25,000 - 1100 AD: 30,000 - 1300 AD: 40,000 - 1500 AD: 30,000 - 1800 AD: 30,000 - 1900 AD: 45,000 - 1950 AD: 100,000 - 1982 AD: 200,000 - 2020 AD: 410,000 --- # Mari, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/mari Founded: 2900 BC Ended: 1759 BC Coordinates: 34.549444, 40.89 ## Description Mari was a major city-state of ancient Mesopotamia on the middle Euphrates, founded around 2900 BCE as one of the earliest planned cities of the region. Its grand palace, advanced canal irrigation, and extensive trade networks linked Sumer with the Levant and Anatolia and supported a sequence of city-state, Akkadian, Ur III, and Amorite political phases. Under the Amorite Lim dynasty, especially King Zimri-Lim (c. 1775-1761 BCE), the city reached its political and architectural peak before being destroyed by Hammurabi of Babylon in 1759 BCE and never refounded as a major settlement. The site of Tell Hariri was identified and excavated from 1933 onward by André Parrot and subsequent French missions, yielding the famous palace of Zimri-Lim and over 25,000 cuneiform tablets that have transformed modern knowledge of Bronze Age Mesopotamia. ## Historical Rulers - 2900 BC – 2300 BC: Sumerian City-States - 2300 BC – 2100 BC: Akkadian Empire - 2100 BC – 2000 BC: Third Dynasty of Ur - 2000 BC – 1759 BC: Kingdom of Mari ## Landmarks - City Walls and Gate Complex (built 2700 BC) Mari's mud-brick walls stretched 1.8 km around the city, featuring towers, gates, and water defenses. Despite periodic reinforcements, the walls failed to withstand Hammurabi's siege in 1759 BCE. - Irrigation Canal Network (built 2600 BC) Mari's prosperity depended on canals diverting Euphrates water to farmlands. The network, documented in palace texts, included sluice gates and maintenance paths. Traces of the system extend several kilometers beyond the city. - Temple of Ishtar (built 2500 BC) The Temple of Ishtar, central to Mari's religious life, was rebuilt multiple times. Excavations revealed votive statues, ritual tools, and foundation deposits. Expanded during Zimri-Lim's reign, it was ultimately destroyed alongside the city. - Royal Palace of Zimri-Lim (built 1800 BC) Built under King Zimri-Lim (c. 1775-1761 BCE), the palace covered over 2.5 hectares with nearly 300 rooms. It featured murals, advanced plumbing, and a throne room. Over 25,000 clay tablets discovered here have greatly expanded knowledge of Bronze Age politics. Hammurabi's forces destroyed the palace after looting its valuables. ## Population History - 2900 BC: 10,000 - 2500 BC: 50,000 - 2400 BC: 50,000 - 2300 BC: 50,000 - 2100 BC: 30,000 - 2000 BC: 30,000 - 1900 BC: 30,000 - 1800 BC: 60,000 - 1759 BC: null --- # Palmyra, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/palmyra Founded: 2000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 34.5566, 38.2667 ## Description Palmyra — known as Tadmor in early Semitic records and as Tadmur in Arabic — is a continuously inhabited oasis settlement in the heart of the Syrian Desert, midway between the Mediterranean and the Euphrates. Attested from the Bronze Age in cuneiform archives of Mari, the town grew under Aramean and successive Near Eastern empires before its great efflorescence in the 1st-3rd centuries CE, when it became one of the wealthiest caravan hubs of the Silk Road. Under Queen Zenobia, Palmyra briefly ruled an empire stretching from Asia Minor to Egypt (267-272 CE) before the Roman emperor Aurelian crushed the revolt and sacked the city in 273. A reduced but continuous Bedouin community persisted amid the ruins through the Byzantine, Arab, Seljuk, Mamluk, and Ottoman centuries, and under the French Mandate the modern village was relocated just outside the ancient enclosure to clear the ruins for excavation. UNESCO inscribed the ruins as a World Heritage Site in 1980, and during the Syrian civil war the Islamic State occupied the site in 2015-2017 and deliberately destroyed the Temple of Bel, the Temple of Baalshamin, the Arch of Triumph, and several tower tombs, also publicly executing the veteran Syrian archaeologist Khaled al-Asaad in 2015. The modern town of Tadmur today is heavily reduced but still inhabited under Syrian government control. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1000 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Tadmor") Earliest documented occupation of the Tadmor oasis. The name appears in cuneiform tablets from Mari (early 2nd millennium BCE) and in later Middle Assyrian records, identifying it as a small but strategic watering stop on the desert route between the Euphrates and the Levant. Material culture is broadly Amorite and West Semitic. - 1000 BC – 740 BC: Aramean Kingdom (known as "Tadmor") Tadmor developed as an Aramean caravan town in the Syrian Desert, sharing in the cultural and linguistic Aramean network that dominated post-Bronze-Age Syria. The town is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible (1 Kings 9:18) as a frontier post said to have been fortified by Solomon, and Aramaic became its principal language for the next millennium. - 740 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Tadmor") Tiglath-Pileser III's mid-8th-century campaigns brought the Syrian Desert under Neo-Assyrian control, and Tadmor served as a tributary stopover on the trans-desert trade routes. The town remained a modest caravan settlement until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Tadmor") After the fall of Nineveh, Tadmor passed to the Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II. The town continued as a small Aramaic-speaking caravan stop until Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 332 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Tadmor") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE, the Tadmor oasis was incorporated into the Achaemenid satrapy of Across-the-River (Eber-Nari). The settlement remained a modest Aramaic-speaking caravan stop on the Persian-controlled desert routes. - 332 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire After Alexander the Great's conquest of the Achaemenid Empire, the Syrian Desert passed nominally into the Macedonian sphere. The oasis entered Greek geographical writing under the Hellenized name Palmyra — a translation of the Semitic Tadmor often connected with the date palms of the oasis. - 281 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire Under loose Seleucid suzerainty after the Battle of Corupedium, the town's merchant aristocracy began to organize the long-range caravan trade that would later define the city. Greek civic forms layered over the older Aramaic-Semitic urban character until the Roman annexation of Syria in 64 BCE. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Pompey's settlement of the East in 64 BCE drew Palmyra into the Roman sphere; it was fully incorporated under Tiberius and became part of the province of Syria. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 267 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Granted the rank of a free city and then a Roman colonia under Caracalla, Palmyra flourished in the 1st-3rd centuries CE as the principal caravan emporium between the Roman Mediterranean and Parthian-Sasanian Mesopotamia, India, and China, with distinctive bilingual Greek-Aramaic inscriptions and lavish funerary art. - 267 AD – 273 AD: Palmyrene Empire of Zenobia After the assassination of King Odaenathus, his widow Queen Zenobia ruled as regent for their son Vaballathus and rapidly transformed Palmyra into the seat of a short-lived imperial power. Between 270 and 271 Palmyrene armies seized Roman Egypt and most of Anatolia, breaking with Rome openly in 272 until the emperor Aurelian counterattacked, defeated Zenobia in 272 and, after a second revolt, sacked Palmyra in 273. - 273 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Reduced to a frontier garrison town after Aurelian's sack, Palmyra was reorganized under Diocletian, who built new walls and stationed a legionary detachment — the Camp of Diocletian — to anchor the Strata Diocletiana frontier road. The town persisted as a militarized late Roman outpost on the desert margin. - 395 AD – 634 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Christianized Eastern Roman Empire, Palmyra continued as a frontier garrison and became a bishopric, with several churches inserted into older sanctuaries. The city retained modest population and military function until the Arab conquest in 634. - 634 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Tadmur") Palmyra fell to the Arab armies under Khalid ibn al-Walid in 634 and reverted to its Semitic name Tadmur. The town remained a small provincial center on the new desert frontier of the Rashidun Caliphate. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Tadmur") Under the Umayyads based at Damascus, Tadmur prospered modestly as a Syrian Desert station, and Umayyad presence is visible in the suq and small mosque inserted into the Temple of Bel precinct. The old caravan trade dwindled as routes shifted but the oasis continued to support a population of farmers, traders, and bedouin clans. - 750 AD – 969 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Tadmur") Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad, Tadmur lay on the desert frontier of the central Islamic lands. The town remained a modest Bedouin and farming community without significant political role. - 969 AD – 1089 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Tadmur") With the Fatimid takeover of Syria in 969, Tadmur passed to the Fatimid Caliphate as a remote desert outpost. The devastating earthquake of 1089 destroyed much of the surviving ancient fabric and depopulated the town. - 1089 AD – 1183 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Tadmur") Through the fragmented Seljuk and Burid emirates of Syria, Tadmur lingered as a small fortified outpost in the Syrian Desert after the 1089 earthquake. Population remained low and the town primarily served Bedouin pastoralists. - 1183 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Tadmur") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty incorporated the Syrian Desert into its centralized Syrian-Egyptian state. Tadmur continued as a minor desert outpost under Ayyubid administration. - 1260 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Tadmur") Under Mamluk rule the small Bedouin community continued in the oasis amid the ruins, with families clustering inside the temenos of the Temple of Bel. Timur's campaigns at the end of the 14th century (around 1400) inflicted further damage and reduced the town to its lowest medieval ebb. - 1517 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Tadmur") Sultan Selim I incorporated Mamluk Syria into the Ottoman Empire in 1517, and Tadmur became a minor village in the Vilayet of Damascus on the desert margin. For four centuries the oasis supported a few hundred Bedouin and settled Arab inhabitants who lived within and around the Temple of Bel enclosure, occasionally serving as guides to European antiquarian visitors after the site's rediscovery in the late 17th and 18th centuries. - 1918 AD – 1920 AD: Arab Kingdom of Syria (known as "Tadmur") After the Ottoman withdrawal in 1918 the Syrian Desert including Tadmur passed nominally under Faisal I's short-lived Arab Kingdom of Syria. Direct administration of the desert margin was minimal, and the kingdom was dissolved after French forces defeated the Syrian army at the Battle of Maysalun in July 1920. - 1920 AD – 1946 AD: French Mandate of Syria (known as "Tadmur") After the dissolution of the Arab Kingdom of Syria, Tadmur was incorporated into the French Mandate of Syria established by the League of Nations at the 1920 San Remo conference. In the late 1920s and 1930s the French authorities and French archaeologists cleared the ancient temenos of its village houses and relocated the inhabitants to a new town built just north of the ruins, opening the ancient core to systematic excavation. - 1946 AD – 2024 AD: Syrian Arab Republic (known as "Tadmur") Tadmur became part of independent Syria in 1946 and grew into a regional center in Homs Governorate, sustained by archaeology-driven tourism, phosphate mining at nearby Khneifess, agriculture in the oasis, and a notorious desert prison. The ruins were inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1980, and during the Syrian civil war the Islamic State occupied the site twice (May 2015 - March 2016 and December 2016 - March 2017), destroying major monuments and executing the longtime site curator Khaled al-Asaad in August 2015. After Syrian government and allied forces retook the area, a much reduced population began to return, and the site remained under Assad-government control until the fall of the regime in December 2024. - 2024 AD – present: Syrian Transitional Government (known as "Tadmur") Following the HTS-led collapse of the Assad government in December 2024, Tadmur passed under the new Syrian Transitional Government. The much-reduced town and the heavily damaged ancient ruins await reconstruction under the new administration. ## Landmarks - Temple of Baalshamin (built 17 AD) Temple of the Phoenician-Aramean sky god Baalshamin, in its current form dedicated in 131 CE under Hadrian but built over an earlier shrine of around 17 CE. The well-preserved Corinthian temple was one of the most photogenic monuments at Palmyra until it was demolished with explosives by the Islamic State in August 2015. - Temple of Bel (built 32 AD) Central sanctuary of Palmyra, dedicated to the supreme god Bel and consecrated in 32 CE. Set within a vast colonnaded temenos, it combined classical Greco-Roman temple architecture with distinctly Near Eastern features such as a roof terrace and lateral cult niches. Converted into a church in Byzantine times and into a mosque in the medieval period, the cella was deliberately blown up by the Islamic State in August 2015. - Tower Tombs of the Valley of the Tombs (built 100 AD) Distinctive multi-storey funerary towers built by Palmyra's wealthy families along the western necropolis between roughly the 1st century BCE and the 2nd century CE. Each tower contained tiered loculi sealed with sculpted limestone portraits of the deceased — a hallmark genre of Palmyrene art — and several towers, including the Tomb of Elahbel, were dynamited by the Islamic State in 2015. - Temple of Nabu (built 100 AD) Sanctuary dedicated to Nabu, the Mesopotamian god of wisdom and writing, situated along the Great Colonnade. Built during the 1st-2nd centuries CE, the temple combined a podium and cella of Greco-Roman type with a Near Eastern enclosure, with ruins surviving into the modern era though damaged during the conflicts of the 2010s. - Great Colonnade (built 150 AD) Palmyra's main axial street, a colonnaded avenue stretching roughly 1.2 km from the Temple of Bel to the funerary temple at the western end of the city. Built and embellished over the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE, it was lined with hundreds of Corinthian columns, many of which carried consoles for honorific statues of leading Palmyrene citizens. - Roman Theatre of Palmyra (built 150 AD) Semi-circular Roman theatre on the Great Colonnade, built in the 2nd century CE and never fully completed. Its scaenae frons, with three doors framed by columns, survived in unusually good condition into the modern era, before damage during the 2015-2017 Islamic State occupations of the site. - Arch of Triumph (built 200 AD) Monumental three-bayed arch built around the turn of the 3rd century CE, often associated with Septimius Severus. It cleverly absorbed a roughly 30-degree change of direction in the Great Colonnade, becoming one of Palmyra's most recognizable monuments before being destroyed by the Islamic State in October 2015. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 1,000 - 1000 BC: 3,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 200 AD: 50,000 - 273 AD: 30,000 - 600 AD: 10,000 - 634 AD: 10,000 - 1089 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 500 - 1700 AD: 500 - 1900 AD: 1,000 - 1950 AD: 3,000 - 2000 AD: 40,000 - 2011 AD: 51,000 - 2020 AD: 10,000 --- # Qatna, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/qatna Founded: 2000 BC Ended: 1340 BC Coordinates: 34.8343, 36.8595 ## Description Qatna was a major Amorite city-state in ancient Syria, flourishing during the Middle and Late Bronze Age. It served as a crucial political, military, and economic hub, connecting trade routes between Mesopotamia, Anatolia, and the Levant. Qatna reached its peak between 1800-1600 BCE before declining as regional power shifted toward the Hittites, Mitanni, and Egypt. The city was sacked and destroyed by Hittite forces under Suppiluliuma I around 1340 BCE and was never resettled as a major center. The site (modern Tell el-Mishrife near Homs) was rediscovered in the early 20th century and has been the focus of major archaeological excavations since the late 1990s, most notably the discovery of the royal palace and an undisturbed underground royal tomb with rich grave goods. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1500 BC: Kingdom of Qatna Qatna emerged as a powerful independent Amorite city-state during the Middle Bronze Age, ruled by a local dynasty of kings including Ishi-Addu, Amut-piel II, and Idanda that controlled trade routes between Mesopotamia, the Levant, and Anatolia. Its rulers maintained diplomatic and commercial ties with Mari, Yamhad, and the Old Babylonian Empire as documented in the Mari archives, and the city grew into one of the largest fortified urban sites in inland Syria with its monumental palace and underground royal tomb. - 1500 BC – 1370 BC: Mitanni As Hurrian-led Mitanni rose to dominate upper Syria from around 1500 BCE, Qatna lost its independence and was incorporated into the Mitanni sphere as a vassal kingdom retaining a local ruling house. The city remained an important regional centre on the Mitanni frontier with Egyptian-influenced Syria, and Egyptian envoys are attested in the cuneiform archives of the Qatna palace during the Amarna period. - 1370 BC – 1340 BC: Hittite Empire As Suppiluliuma I's Hittite Empire broke Mitanni power in the mid-14th century BCE, Qatna fell briefly within the orbit of the resurgent Hittites. King Idanda's correspondence with Egyptian and Hittite courts reflects the city's last desperate diplomacy before Suppiluliuma I overran and destroyed Qatna around 1340 BCE, after which the site was abandoned as a major urban centre. ## Landmarks - City Walls and Gates (built 1800 BC) Qatna was protected by thick mud-brick and stone fortifications, punctuated by monumental gates and bastions. These defenses underscored its status as a major fortified power in the Middle Bronze Age Near East. - Royal Palace of Qatna (built 1750 BC) The Royal Palace of Qatna covered about 10,000 square meters and featured extensive archives, luxurious ceremonial halls, and a unique underground burial chamber discovered with rich grave goods. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 8,000 - 1900 BC: 15,000 - 1800 BC: 20,000 - 1700 BC: 20,000 - 1600 BC: 20,000 - 1340 BC: null --- # Rhesaina, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/rhesaina Founded: 8000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.8422, 40.07016 ## Description Rhesaina — known in classical sources as Resh-aina (the 'spring-head'), in late antiquity as Theodosiopolis after Theodosius I's elevation of the town to city rank around 380 CE, and today as Ras al-Ayn in Arabic and Serê Kaniyê in Kurdish — is a city of northeastern Syria on the headwaters of the Khabur river, directly opposite the Turkish town of Ceylanpınar across the border. The site preserves more than ten thousand years of continuous occupation, beginning with Pre-Pottery Neolithic settlement at Tell Fekheriye by around 8000 BCE and continuing through every major Near Eastern period to the present. From around 2000 BCE the urban centre of Sikkan emerged, becoming the seat of the Aramean kingdom of Bit Bahiani in the early 1st millennium BCE — the celebrated 9th-century bilingual Akkadian-Aramaic inscription of Hadad-yisi, governor of Guzana, was discovered here in 1979. Annexed by the Neo-Assyrians and successively under Babylonian, Achaemenid, Macedonian, Seleucid, Parthian, and Roman administration, Rhesaina rose under Septimius Severus to colonial status, witnessed Gordian III's 243 victory over the Sasanians at the Battle of Resaena nearby, and was elevated by Theodosius I to bishopric and city rank. After the Arab conquest in 640 the city continued through successive Umayyad, Abbasid, Hamdanid, Marwanid, Seljuk, Zengid, Ayyubid, Mongol, Aq Qoyunlu, and Ottoman administrations until Timur's troops sacked it in 1393, ending its medieval prominence. The 1921 Treaty of Ankara divided the historic town in two along the new Turkish–Syrian border, with the northern half ceded to Türkiye as Ceylanpınar and the southern Arab–Kurdish–Christian quarters remaining under French Mandate Syria. The modern city had a 2004 population of around 29,000 and has been heavily affected by the Syrian Civil War, with the surrounding district falling under Turkish military occupation since the October 2019 Peace Spring offensive. ## Historical Rulers - 8000 BC – 6500 BC: Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Tell Fekheriye") The earliest occupation at Tell Fekheriye dates to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic, when a small farming community took advantage of the abundant freshwater springs at the head of the Khabur river to establish one of the earliest permanent settlements of the northern Fertile Crescent. - 6500 BC – 3500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Tell Fekheriye") Through the Halafian and Ubaid periods the settlement continued at the Khabur springs, with characteristic Halaf-painted ceramics linking it to the wider northern Mesopotamian Neolithic cultural network. - 3500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Tell Fekheriye") The Chalcolithic settlement at the Khabur springs participated in the Late Uruk-era southern Mesopotamian colonisation of the upper Khabur basin, with material culture reflecting both indigenous traditions and southern Sumerian contacts. - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Tell Fekheriye") Through the Early Bronze Age the settlement grew into a substantial regional centre on the upper Khabur, participating in the wider Akkadian and post-Akkadian Mesopotamian network of trade and urbanism. - 2000 BC – 1600 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Sikkan") By the early second millennium BCE the urban centre of Sikkan had emerged at the Khabur springs, attested in cuneiform records as one of the regional centres of the upper Khabur basin within the wider Amorite-period political system. - 1600 BC – 1340 BC: Mitanni (known as "Sikkan") Under the Hurrian-led Kingdom of Mitanni Sikkan became part of the upper Khabur heartland of the empire, lying close to the Mitanni capital at Washukanni. The site continued as a regional centre through the Mitanni period until the rising Middle Assyrian Empire absorbed the Khabur territories. - 1340 BC – 1100 BC: Middle Assyrian Empire (known as "Sikkan") Following the Middle Assyrian conquest of the Mitanni heartland under Adad-nirari I and Shalmaneser I, Sikkan was incorporated into the new Assyrian provincial system. The town continued as a regional administrative centre through the long Middle Assyrian period until the Bronze Age collapse. - 1100 BC – 870 BC: Aramean Kingdom (known as "Sikkan") Following the Late Bronze Age collapse Sikkan became one of the principal cities of the Aramean kingdom of Bit Bahiani centred on nearby Guzana (Tell Halaf). The celebrated 9th-century Akkadian-Aramaic bilingual inscription of Hadad-yisi — governor of Guzana under Neo-Assyrian suzerainty — was recovered from Tell Fekheriye in 1979 and represents one of the earliest and longest Aramaic inscriptions, documenting the transition from independent Aramean kingdom to vassal status. - 870 BC – 609 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Sikkan") Bit Bahiani was annexed by the Neo-Assyrian Empire under Ashurnasirpal II in the early 9th century BCE and incorporated as a province administered through local Aramean governors paying tribute to Nineveh. Sikkan continued as a regional administrative centre under direct Assyrian rule until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 609 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Resh-aina") After the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire the upper Khabur region passed under Neo-Babylonian control, with the town continuing as a regional centre through the long Babylonian period. - 539 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Resh-aina") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE incorporated the upper Khabur into the Achaemenid satrapy of Across-the-River. - 330 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Resh-aina") Alexander the Great's conquest brought the upper Khabur briefly under Macedonian control. - 323 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Resh-aina") Under the Seleucids Resh-aina continued as a regional centre of the upper Khabur, part of the Hellenistic Syrian-Mesopotamian realm until the Parthian advance into Mesopotamia in the mid-2nd century BCE. - 141 BC – 165 AD: Parthian Empire (known as "Resh-aina") Following Mithridates I's conquest of Mesopotamia Resh-aina passed under Parthian rule, remaining a frontier town facing the Roman Syrian provinces through the long Roman–Parthian wars of the late 1st century BCE and 1st–2nd centuries CE. - 165 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Lucius Verus's victorious campaign of 165 CE brought Resh-aina under Roman control as part of the new province of Mesopotamia. Septimius Severus elevated the town to colonial status around 195 CE, and the surrounding fields witnessed Gordian III's 243 victory at the Battle of Resaena over the Sasanian king Shapur I. Theodosius I elevated the town to full city status around 380 CE, briefly renaming it Theodosiopolis in his honour. - 395 AD – 611 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Theodosiopolis") Under Eastern Roman administration Theodosiopolis/Rhesaina continued as a fortified frontier city and metropolitan bishopric of late Roman Mesopotamia, substantially refortified by Justinian I as a key defence on the Sasanian frontier. - 611 AD – 628 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Resh-aina") Khosrow II's great Roman-Persian war brought Resh-aina under Sasanian control from around 611, during which one of the three major Sasanian academies was established at the city alongside the Adur Gushnasp-tradition Zoroastrian foundations. Heraclius's counteroffensive restored Byzantine rule in 628. - 628 AD – 640 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Theodosiopolis") Heraclius restored Byzantine control after the Sasanian withdrawal, but imperial rule lasted barely a decade before the Arab conquest of upper Mesopotamia. - 640 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Conquered by Arab forces around 640 during the Muslim conquest of Mesopotamia, Resh-aina — arabicised as Ras al-Ayn ('Head of the Spring') — was incorporated into the Rashidun province of al-Jazira. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Under Umayyad administration from Damascus, Ras al-Ayn continued as a regional centre of the Diyar Mudar district of upper Jazira. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Under the Abbasids Ras al-Ayn continued as a regional centre of the Jaziran provincial system, with the abundant Khabur springs making it a major agricultural and commercial centre. - 944 AD – 983 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Ras al-Ayn") With the establishment of the Hamdanid emirate of Mosul in the early 10th century Ras al-Ayn passed under Hamdanid control as a frontier town of upper Jazira. - 983 AD – 1085 AD: Marwanid Emirate (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Under the Kurdish Marwanid emirate of Mayyafariqin Ras al-Ayn continued as a regional centre of the upper Khabur basin until the Seljuk takeover of the Marwanid territories in 1085. - 1085 AD – 1182 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Following the Seljuk conquest of the Marwanid emirate Ras al-Ayn passed into the Great Seljuk realm and subsequently under local Turcoman atabegate administration. - 1182 AD – 1232 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Ras al-Ayn") After Nur ad-Din's consolidation of northern Syria and Saladin's takeover of the Zengid Mosul possessions, Ras al-Ayn was held alternately by Zengid Mosul and the rising Ayyubid power through the late 12th and early 13th centuries. - 1232 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Under Ayyubid rule from Aleppo Ras al-Ayn continued as a regional centre of the upper Jazira until the Mongol invasion of 1260 ended Ayyubid power in Syria. - 1260 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Ras al-Ayn") After the Mongol invasion the upper Khabur passed under Ilkhanid suzerainty, with the town continuing as a regional centre through the long Ilkhanid period. - 1335 AD – 1501 AD: Aq Qoyunlu (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Following the collapse of Ilkhanid authority Ras al-Ayn passed under successive Jalayirid and then Aq Qoyunlu administration of the Jazira. Timur's troops sacked the city in 1393, ending its role as a major medieval centre; the Aq Qoyunlu rebuilt it on a much reduced scale. - 1501 AD – 1516 AD: Safavid Iran (known as "Ras al-Ayn") After Shah Ismail I's establishment of the Safavid empire in 1501, Ras al-Ayn briefly passed under Safavid Qizilbash administration of the upper Jazira until the Ottoman conquest of the region after the Battle of Çaldıran. - 1516 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Annexed by Selim I in 1516, Ras al-Ayn was incorporated into the Ottoman Diyarbekir Eyalet as a small frontier town on the Khabur. The 19th-century Ottoman government settled Chechen refugees displaced by the Russian conquest of the Caucasus around the springs, refounding the medieval town on a new scale. During the Armenian genocide of 1915 some of the deportee camps were established near Ras al-Ayn where tens of thousands of Armenian deportees perished. - 1918 AD – 1946 AD: French Mandate of Syria (known as "Ras al-Ayn") After the Ottoman defeat in the First World War Ras al-Ayn was occupied by French forces and incorporated into the French Mandate of Syria established at the 1920 San Remo conference. The 1921 Treaty of Ankara divided the historic town in two, with the northern half ceded to Türkiye as Ceylanpınar and the southern half remaining under the Mandate as part of the Jazira province of Syria. - 1946 AD – 2024 AD: Syrian Arab Republic (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Following Syrian independence in 1946 Ras al-Ayn was incorporated into the new Syrian Arab Republic as a district of Hasakah Governorate. The town's population grew through the late 20th century to around 29,000 by 2004, with a mixed Arab–Kurdish–Christian population reflecting its multi-millennial history. The Syrian Civil War from 2011 brought severe disruption, and the surrounding district fell under Turkish military occupation in October 2019. - 2024 AD – present: Syrian Transitional Government (known as "Ras al-Ayn") Following the fall of the Assad government in December 2024 Ras al-Ayn passed under the authority of the Syrian Transitional Government, though the surrounding district remains under Turkish military occupation pending future political arrangements. ## Landmarks - Tell Fekheriye (built 8000 BC) The principal archaeological mound of ancient Sikkan/Rhesaina at the springs of the Khabur river, with continuous occupation from Pre-Pottery Neolithic through the medieval period. Excavated by Max von Oppenheim in 1929 and subsequently by joint German–American–Syrian expeditions, the mound produced the celebrated 9th-century Akkadian-Aramaic bilingual statue inscription of Hadad-yisi recovered in 1979 — one of the earliest and longest Aramaic inscriptions ever discovered. - Springs of the Khabur (Ras al-Ayn) (built 8000 BC) The abundant freshwater karstic springs at the head of the Khabur river — the toponym 'Ras al-Ayn' literally meaning 'Head of the Spring' — have been the defining geographical feature attracting human settlement at the site since the Pre-Pottery Neolithic. Several distinct large springs originally produced over 40 cubic metres per second of fresh water, supporting the agricultural economy of the surrounding plain through every period. - Justinianic City Walls (built 540 AD) The Roman and Byzantine fortifications of Theodosiopolis substantially rebuilt and reinforced by Justinian I in the mid-6th century as one of the principal defences of the Sasanian frontier. Surviving sections of the late antique circuit are visible in the modern town today. ## Population History - 8000 BC: 200 - 5000 BC: 1,000 - 2000 BC: 3,000 - 900 BC: 8,000 - 400 BC: 5,000 - 200 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 20,000 - 800 AD: 12,000 - 1200 AD: 15,000 - 1400 AD: 2,000 - 1700 AD: 2,000 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 2000 AD: 25,000 - 2010 AD: 50,000 - 2022 AD: 20,000 --- # Tell Brak, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/tell-brak Founded: 6500 BC Ended: 600 BC Coordinates: 36.6676, 41.0586 ## Description Tell Brak, also known historically as Nagar and later Nawar, is one of the earliest known cities in the world. Located on the upper Khabur basin of northern Mesopotamia, it developed into a major urban center by the late 5th millennium BCE and reached its greatest extent during the late Chalcolithic, with monumental architecture and long-distance trade. Tell Brak served as the capital of the Kingdom of Nagar in the third millennium, later became part of the Akkadian, Hurrian, Mariote, and Mitanni states, and gradually declined under Middle and Neo-Assyrian rule. It is famous for the Eye Temple, the fortified palace of Naram-Sin, and its early evidence of urbanization and organized religion. ## Historical Rulers - 6500 BC – 5500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Nagar") Initial occupation of the mound began during the Hassuna and Halaf phases of the northern Mesopotamian Late Neolithic, with the site gradually growing through the 7th and 6th millennia BCE on the Khabur plain. The earliest community was a small farming village producing the distinctive painted Halaf ceramics characteristic of Upper Mesopotamia at the time. - 5500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Nagar") Through the Ubaid and Late Chalcolithic Tell Brak grew rapidly into one of the earliest urban centres in the world, developing monumental architecture, craft specialization, and long-distance trade networks across northern Mesopotamia and into Anatolia. The Late Chalcolithic phases at Brak preserve some of the earliest evidence for organized mass violence, with the famous mass burial pits dating to the period c. 3800-3600 BCE. - 3000 BC – 2600 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Nagar") During the early third millennium BCE the urban core continued to grow as Tell Brak consolidated its position as one of the largest sites in the Khabur basin. Material culture from this transitional Early Bronze Age phase laid the foundation for the emergence of the Kingdom of Nagar. - 2600 BC – 2300 BC: Kingdom of Nagar (known as "Nagar") Tell Brak emerged as the capital of the Kingdom of Nagar, a powerful regional polity in the Khabur basin attested in third-millennium cuneiform records from Ebla and Mari. The city controlled agricultural hinterlands and trade routes linking southern Mesopotamia with Anatolia and the Mediterranean, and minted its own onager-drawn chariots. - 2300 BC – 2100 BC: Akkadian Empire (known as "Nagar") Following the Akkadian conquest under Sargon and his successors, Nagar became an important administrative center of the empire's northern frontier. A large fortified palace attributed to Naram-Sin was constructed at the site to project royal authority and oversee tribute collection across the Khabur. - 2100 BC – 1850 BC: Kingdom of Nawar (known as "Nawar") After the collapse of the Akkadian Empire, the city was reorganized as the Hurrian-speaking Kingdom of Nawar. It functioned as an independent or semi-independent city-state within the shifting political landscape of the Khabur region during the late third millennium and the early second millennium BCE. - 1850 BC – 1759 BC: Kingdom of Mari (known as "Nawar") During the Middle Bronze Age, Nawar fell within the orbit of the powerful Amorite Kingdom of Mari under the Lim dynasty, whose hegemony extended over the Khabur basin and the middle Euphrates. The settlement maintained its administrative and economic role as a regional Khabur centre while losing political independence to Mari's overlordship. - 1759 BC – 1500 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Nawar") After Hammurabi of Babylon sacked Mari in 1759 BCE the Khabur basin entered a fragmented period of small Hurrian and Amorite polities, with Nawar continuing as a regional settlement under shifting local rulers. The site contracted as political and commercial weight drifted eastward to the rising Hurrian states that would coalesce into Mitanni in the 16th century BCE. - 1500 BC – 1300 BC: Mitanni (known as "Nawar") Under the Hurrian-led Mitanni Empire, Nawar served as a regional administrative seat in the heart of the empire's core territory. A two-story Mitannian palace was built at the site, reflecting its continuing importance for governance and trade. - 1300 BC – 911 BC: Middle Assyrian Empire (known as "Nawar") Following the Middle Assyrian defeat of Mitanni under Ashur-uballit I and his successors, the site was incorporated into Assyrian territory and gradually lost its urban character. Repeated military campaigns and shifting frontiers reduced Nawar to a provincial outpost on the Assyrian periphery. - 911 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Nawar") Under the Neo-Assyrian kings the Khabur basin was firmly integrated into the heartland of the empire, although Nawar itself had already contracted to a minor settlement. The fall of the empire to the Medo-Babylonian coalition in 612 BCE left the broader region under brief Neo-Babylonian rule. - 612 BC – 600 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Nawar") After the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE the Neo-Babylonian Empire took control of upper Mesopotamia, but Nawar had already contracted to negligible occupation. The settlement was effectively abandoned by the end of the 7th century BCE. ## Landmarks - Eye Temple (built 3800 BC) Built during the city's late Chalcolithic expansion, the Eye Temple takes its name from the thousands of small alabaster figurines deposited within it, each carved with prominent staring eyes. The temple symbolized the religious and civic power of one of the world's earliest urban centers and remains one of the foundational structures for understanding Mesopotamian sacred architecture. - Palace of Naram-Sin (built 2250 BC) A massive fortified palace built during the Akkadian Empire under Naram-Sin to project imperial authority over the northern frontier. The complex housed administrative offices and storage rooms for tribute collected from the Khabur and Anatolian hinterlands. - Mitannian Palace (built 1500 BC) A two-story palace complex constructed during the Mitanni Empire's peak, associated with regional administration and long-distance trade. The structure preserved elements of earlier Akkadian and Hurrian building traditions alongside characteristic Mitannian architectural features. ## Population History - 6500 BC: 500 - 3000 BC: 20,000 - 2500 BC: 40,000 - 600 BC: null --- # Ugarit, Syria URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/syria/ugarit Founded: 6000 BC Ended: 1185 BC Coordinates: 35.6019, 35.7833 ## Description Ugarit was a major ancient port city located on the Mediterranean coast of modern Syria. Flourishing especially during the Late Bronze Age, Ugarit was a vibrant center of commerce, diplomacy, and culture, renowned for its cosmopolitan character and the invention of one of the earliest known alphabets. The city served as a key trade hub connecting Egypt, Anatolia, Cyprus, and Mesopotamia until its destruction around 1185 BCE during the Late Bronze Age Collapse. The site was never refounded; the tell at Ras Shamra remained largely abandoned until its archaeological rediscovery in 1928 and is today an archaeological zone managed as part of Syria's cultural heritage. ## Historical Rulers - 6000 BC – 5500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Ras Shamra") The earliest occupation at the tell of Ras Shamra began in the Late Neolithic as a small coastal farming and fishing community on the Levantine coast. Successive village layers attest to a sedentary Mediterranean community with simple mudbrick houses and ceramic production. - 5500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Ras Shamra") Through the Chalcolithic period the village on the tell continued to grow, with successive occupation layers accumulating and early copper-using technology appearing. No written records identify the settlement by name in this era, but the site was already a stable coastal community on the routes linking the northern Levant with the Mediterranean. - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement Through the third millennium BCE the site grew into a substantial urban center within the broader Amorite cultural sphere of the northern Levant. Ugarit emerged as a fortified trading town engaged with Ebla, the Levantine coast, and the Mesopotamian world, though without falling under any single imperial overlord during this period. - 2000 BC – 1450 BC: Amorite Kingdom of Ugarit During the Middle Bronze Age Ugarit consolidated as an independent Amorite city-kingdom within the Yamhad-led northern Levant. Its rulers maintained their own dynasty while engaging in commerce and occasional vassalage with the great regional powers (Yamhad, Mari, and the rising Hittite kingdom), and the city expanded its harbor and inland trade links. - 1450 BC – 1340 BC: New Kingdom of Egypt Following Thutmose III's Syrian campaigns Ugarit entered a phase of Egyptian suzerainty, with diplomatic and commercial ties documented in Egyptian and Akkadian correspondence including the Amarna Letters. Pharaonic authority alternated with Mitanni influence in the mid-fifteenth and early fourteenth centuries BCE before Hittite expansion redrew the regional balance. - 1340 BC – 1185 BC: Hittite Empire After Suppiluliuma I's mid-fourteenth-century expansion into Syria, King Niqmaddu II of Ugarit accepted Hittite suzerainty and the city became one of the most important vassal kingdoms of the Hittite Empire. Under Hittite protection Ugarit reached its cultural and economic peak, producing the Ugaritic alphabet — one of the earliest known alphabetic scripts — and extensive multilingual archives in Ugaritic, Akkadian, Hurrian, and Sumerian, before being destroyed around 1185 BCE during the Late Bronze Age Collapse and never reoccupied. ## Landmarks - Royal Palace of Ugarit (built 1400 BC) The Royal Palace of Ugarit covered over 10,000 square meters and contained over 90 rooms. Excavations revealed diplomatic archives written in multiple languages, highlighting Ugarit's role as a major political and trade center. - Temple of Baal (built 1400 BC) The Temple of Baal, located on the acropolis, was the spiritual heart of Ugarit, dedicated to the chief deity of the city's pantheon. Its architecture influenced later Levantine and Phoenician religious sites. - House of the High Priest (built 1350 BC) The residence of the High Priest of Ugarit was closely linked to the Temple of Baal. It served as both a living space and a religious administrative office, providing important insight into the relationship between religion and governance. ## Population History - 6000 BC: 200 - 5500 BC: 500 - 4000 BC: 1,500 - 3000 BC: 3,000 - 2000 BC: 6,000 - 1500 BC: 8,000 - 1400 BC: 10,000 - 1360 BC: 24,000 - 1300 BC: 10,000 - 1185 BC: null --- # Ayutthaya, Thailand URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/thailand/ayutthaya Founded: 1351 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 14.3692, 100.5876 ## Description Ayutthaya — properly Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya — is a Thai city on a fluvial island where the Chao Phraya, Lopburi, and Pa Sak rivers converge, about 80 kilometres north of modern Bangkok. Founded in 1351 by King Uthong (Ramathibodi I), it served for 416 years as the capital of the Ayutthaya Kingdom, the dominant Southeast Asian polity of the late medieval and early modern era. At its 17th-18th century peak under kings such as Naresuan, Narai, and Borommakot the city is estimated by some sources to have housed up to one million inhabitants, making it briefly the most populous city in the world, with an international urban fabric that included Portuguese, Dutch, French, Japanese, Persian, Chinese, and Mon quarters and embassies. In April 1767 a Burmese Konbaung army under Hsinbyushin completed a fourteen-month siege, burned the royal palaces and most of the city, and dispersed the population in one of the most catastrophic sacks of Southeast Asian history. The Thai court relocated south to Thonburi under Taksin (1767) and then across the river to Krung Thep (Bangkok) under Rama I in 1782, and the ruined Ayutthaya island became a sharply reduced provincial town under the new Chakri dynasty. Modern Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya has continued on the same island since the late 18th century, with a current population of roughly 55,000 in the city proper, and now serves as the seat of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province; the historic city was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991, with the open archaeological precinct of ruined wats, palaces, and chedis integrated into the inhabited modern town. ## Historical Rulers - 1351 AD – 1569 AD: Kingdom of Ayutthaya King Uthong, posthumously known as Ramathibodi I, founded Ayutthaya in 1351 as a new royal capital on a defensible fluvial island, displacing the older Sukhothai Kingdom further north. Under successive kings of the Uthong, Suphannaphum, and Sukhothai dynasties Ayutthaya expanded across the central Chao Phraya basin and absorbed the rival Khmer Empire's western territories, with the 1431 sack of Angkor a turning point in regional Southeast Asian power. The dynastic complex of wats and palaces took its initial form during this period, including Wat Mahathat and Wat Phra Si Sanphet. - 1569 AD – 1656 AD: Kingdom of Ayutthaya After the first Burmese sack of Ayutthaya in 1569 ended the Sukhothai dynasty's first run, King Naresuan restored independence in 1593 and the Sukhothai and Prasat Thong dynasties presided over a long 17th-century recovery. Ayutthaya emerged as a cosmopolitan trading capital with European and Asian factories, and population estimates by Western residents and ambassadors reached the hundreds of thousands. - 1656 AD – 1767 AD: Kingdom of Ayutthaya Under the Ban Phlu Luang dynasty, especially King Narai (1656-1688), Ayutthaya reached its political and economic peak with diplomatic missions exchanged between the Siamese court and the courts of Louis XIV, Aurangzeb, Kangxi, and the Safavid shah. Borommakot's reign (1733-1758) marked the apogee of Ayutthayan culture in literature and architecture. The Burmese Konbaung army of Hsinbyushin laid siege in 1765-1767 and stormed and burned the city in April 1767, killing or enslaving most of the population and effectively ending the Ayutthaya Kingdom. - 1767 AD – 1932 AD: Thonburi and Rattanakosin Kingdoms — reduced provincial town King Taksin established a new capital at Thonburi across the Chao Phraya from modern Bangkok in 1767, and Rama I founded the Chakri dynasty at Krung Thep (Bangkok) on the opposite bank in 1782, leaving the ruined Ayutthaya as a sharply reduced provincial town. Through the 19th century the island was gradually resettled at modest scale and from the 1870s onward it became an administrative seat of Monthon Krung Kao under King Chulalongkorn's reforms. Archaeological clearance of the ruined wats and palaces began under the same administration. - 1932 AD – present: Kingdom of Thailand (known as "Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya") After the 1932 constitutional revolution and the renaming of Siam as Thailand in 1939, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya became the seat of its eponymous province and continued to grow as a small modern city on the same fluvial island as the ancient capital. The Historic City of Ayutthaya was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991, and the city's population reached roughly 55,000 in the early 2020s, sharing the island with the open archaeological precinct of ruined chedis, wats, and royal palaces. ## Landmarks - Wat Yai Chaimongkhon (built 1357 AD) A monastery southeast of the historic island, founded by King Uthong in 1357 for forest-tradition monks returning from Sri Lankan studies. The colossal chedi was added by King Naresuan in 1592 to commemorate his elephant-back victory over the Burmese crown prince at the Battle of Nong Sarai. - Wat Phra Ram (built 1369 AD) An early Ayutthaya royal monastery founded in 1369 by King Ramesuan on the cremation site of his father Uthong. The tall central prang and the surrounding chedis stand within an artificial pond and represent the early Khmer-influenced phase of Ayutthayan religious architecture. - Wat Mahathat (built 1374 AD) One of the oldest and most important monasteries of the Ayutthaya Kingdom, founded around 1374 to enshrine a relic of the Buddha. The site preserves the iconic Buddha head encased in the roots of a banyan tree — a fragment of a 1767-era ruined statue famously photographed for tourism since the early 20th century. - Wat Phra Si Sanphet (built 1448 AD) The royal monastery within the Grand Palace precinct, founded in 1448 under King Borommatrailokkanat. Its three iconic bell-shaped chedis on a single platform house the cremated remains of three Ayutthayan kings; the 16-metre standing Buddha covered in gold leaf (Phra Sri Sanphetdayan) once stood here before being destroyed in the 1767 sack. - Wat Chaiwatthanaram (built 1630 AD) A Khmer-style royal monastery on the west bank of the Chao Phraya built in 1630 by King Prasat Thong as a memorial to his mother and a victory monument over the Khmer. The central prang and eight surrounding mandapas reflect the Ayutthaya kings' deliberate referencing of Angkorean royal architecture. ## Population History - 1351 AD: 50,000 - 1500 AD: 150,000 - 1600 AD: 300,000 - 1700 AD: 600,000 - 1750 AD: 800,000 - 1767 AD: 20,000 - 1800 AD: 5,000 - 1900 AD: 15,000 - 1950 AD: 25,000 - 2020 AD: 55,000 --- # Bangkok, Thailand URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/thailand/bangkok Founded: 1782 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 13.7563, 100.5018 ## Description Bangkok, known in Thai as Krung Thep, is the capital and largest city of Thailand. The site began as a small Chao Phraya River trading port called Bang Makok, meaning place of olive plums, under the Ayutthaya Kingdom from at least the 15th century. After the Burmese sack of Ayutthaya in 1767 ended that kingdom, King Taksin established a short-lived capital at Thonburi on the west bank of the river in 1767-1768. In 1782 King Rama I, founder of the Chakri Dynasty, moved the capital across to the east bank and founded the city of Krung Thep, beginning the Rattanakosin era. Siam was the only Southeast Asian state never colonized by European powers, using buffer-state diplomacy between British Burma and French Indochina. The 1932 Siamese Revolution ended absolute monarchy, and the country was renamed Thailand in 1939, briefly reverting to Siam from 1946 to 1949 before settling on Thailand. Today Bangkok is a global cultural, financial, and tourism hub of roughly 10.5 million in its metropolitan area, anchored by the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew in the historic Phra Nakhon district. ## Historical Rulers - 1782 AD – 1932 AD: Rattanakosin Kingdom of Siam (known as "Krung Thep") King Rama I founded Krung Thep on the east bank of the Chao Phraya River in 1782 as the new capital of Siam, succeeding Taksin's Thonburi across the river. The Chakri Dynasty ruled as an absolute monarchy, modernizing the kingdom while preserving independence against British and French colonial pressure during the 19th century. - 1932 AD – 1939 AD: Constitutional Monarchy of Siam (known as "Krung Thep") The Siamese Revolution of 1932 ended absolute monarchy, transforming Siam into a constitutional monarchy with Bangkok as its administrative center. The Chakri king remained head of state while a civilian and military elite took executive power. - 1939 AD – present: Kingdom of Thailand (known as "Krung Thep") Under Prime Minister Phibunsongkhram the country was renamed Thailand in 1939, briefly reverting to Siam between 1946 and 1949 before the Thailand name became permanent. Bangkok aligned with Japan during World War II, then with the United States during the Cold War, and has been the seat of successive constitutional, military, and royalist governments. The city has grown into a megacity and a leading global tourism destination. ## Landmarks - Grand Palace (built 1782 AD) The royal residence and ceremonial complex of the Chakri Dynasty, founded by King Rama I in 1782 at the heart of the new capital on Rattanakosin Island. It remains the symbolic seat of the Thai monarchy and the most visited landmark in Bangkok. - Wat Phra Kaew (built 1784 AD) The Temple of the Emerald Buddha, built within the Grand Palace grounds in 1784 to house the Phra Kaew Morakot, a revered jade image of the Buddha. It is the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand and a royal chapel of the Chakri kings. - Wat Pho (built 1788 AD) Reestablished under Rama I in 1788 on the site of an earlier 17th-century Ayutthaya-era temple, Wat Pho houses the colossal Reclining Buddha and is regarded as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage instruction. - Wat Arun (built 1809 AD) The Temple of Dawn on the Thonburi side of the Chao Phraya River was greatly expanded under King Rama II from 1809 onto the foundations of an earlier 17th-century temple. Its central prang, encrusted with porcelain, is one of Bangkok's defining riverside silhouettes. - Democracy Monument (built 1939 AD) Erected in 1939 along Ratchadamnoen Avenue to commemorate the 1932 Siamese Revolution that ended absolute monarchy. The monument has since become a recurring focal point of Thai political demonstrations. - MahaNakhon Tower (built 2016 AD) Completed in 2016 in the Silom-Sathon business district, MahaNakhon is a 314-meter mixed-use skyscraper whose pixelated facade and rooftop skywalk have made it one of the icons of modern Bangkok. ## Population History - 1782 AD: 50,000 - 1820 AD: 120,000 - 1850 AD: 200,000 - 1900 AD: 470,000 - 1950 AD: 1,500,000 - 1980 AD: 4,700,000 - 2000 AD: 8,000,000 - 2020 AD: 10,500,000 --- # Sukhothai, Thailand URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/thailand/sukhothai Founded: 1238 AD Ended: 1438 AD Coordinates: 17.0167, 99.7036 ## Description Sukhothai — properly Mueang Kao Sukhothai, 'the Old City of Sukhothai' — is the historic capital of the Sukhothai Kingdom, traditionally regarded as the first Thai state. Located in the lower Yom River valley in north-central Thailand about 425 kilometres north of Bangkok, the city was founded around 1238 CE when the Thai chieftains Pho Khun Bang Klang Hao and Pho Khun Pha Mueang threw off the suzerainty of the Khmer Empire and proclaimed Pho Khun Bang Klang Hao as King Si Inthrathit. Under Si Inthrathit's third son Ramkhamhaeng the Great (r. ca. 1279-1298) the kingdom expanded into a regional power and the city was monumentalised with large reservoirs (sā), royal palaces, and the great chedis of Wat Mahathat, Wat Si Sawai, Wat Sa Si, and Wat Sri Chum. The famous 1292 stele attributed to Ramkhamhaeng, which mentions the invention of the Thai script, was discovered in 1833 within the historic city. After Ramkhamhaeng's death the kingdom progressively contracted under pressure from the rising Ayutthaya state to the south, and Sukhothai was absorbed as a vassal in 1378 and fully annexed by Ayutthaya in 1438, after which the urban core was abandoned and the inhabitants relocated to nearby settlements. The Old City was preserved as a forested ruin until systematic archaeology under the Fine Arts Department in the 1950s-1970s, and is today the Sukhothai Historical Park. The modern provincial capital of Sukhothai is a separate Thai town founded in the 18th-19th century roughly 12 kilometres east on the Yom River, with the historic city inscribed jointly with Si Satchanalai and Kamphaeng Phet as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991. ## Historical Rulers - 1238 AD – 1279 AD: Sukhothai Kingdom — early independence Traditionally founded in 1238 when Thai chieftains Pho Khun Bang Klang Hao and Pho Khun Pha Mueang overthrew Khmer suzerainty at Sukhothai and crowned Pho Khun Bang Klang Hao as Si Inthrathit. Under his short reign the new city took shape inside a rectangular triple-walled enclosure with monumental reservoirs and the earliest of the city's wats. - 1279 AD – 1378 AD: Sukhothai Kingdom — Ramkhamhaeng and successors Under Ramkhamhaeng the Great (ca. 1279-1298) Sukhothai expanded into the dominant power of the central Thai-Lao region, with vassals as far as Luang Prabang to the northeast, Tavoy on the Andaman coast, and Nakhon Si Thammarat on the Malay peninsula. The 1292 stele attributed to Ramkhamhaeng records the invention of the modern Thai script and the kingdom's adoption of Theravada Buddhism. After his death his successors Loe Thai and Lithai continued patronage of the great wats but the kingdom contracted under Ayutthaya pressure. - 1378 AD – 1438 AD: Kingdom of Ayutthaya After the death of Lithai's son Mahathammaracha III, King Borommaracha II of Ayutthaya reduced Sukhothai to vassalage in 1378 and progressively absorbed its territories. The last Sukhothai king Mahathammaracha IV died in 1438 and the kingdom was formally annexed into the Ayutthaya Empire. The urban core was abandoned within a generation, the surviving inhabitants relocated to nearby settlements at Si Satchanalai, Kamphaeng Phet, and what would become modern Sukhothai twelve kilometres east on the Yom River. ## Landmarks - Wat Si Sawai (built 1238 AD) A monastery originally built as a Hindu shrine during the late Khmer period before the foundation of the Sukhothai Kingdom, with three Khmer-style prangs in a row. Following the foundation of the Thai state the site was converted to Theravada Buddhist use and a vihara was added to its eastern side. - Wat Mahathat (built 1240 AD) The royal monastery at the heart of the walled city, founded around 1240 by Si Inthrathit and the principal religious centre of the Sukhothai Kingdom. The central lotus-bud chedi — the defining architectural form of the Sukhothai style — is surrounded by smaller chedis, mondops, and bots, and the precinct preserves a colossal walking Buddha image in stucco and brick characteristic of Sukhothai sculptural style. - Sukhothai Hydraulic System (Sā Sokharot) (built 1280 AD) An elaborate water management network of large rectangular reservoirs (Tra Phang Trakuan, Tra Phang Thong, Tra Phang Ngoen) and connecting canals built around the walled city to capture monsoon runoff from the surrounding hills, irrigate the lowland rice fields, and supply the urban population. The system was an early Thai adaptation of Khmer-style hydraulic urbanism. - Ramkhamhaeng Stele (built 1292 AD) An inscribed stone stele attributed to King Ramkhamhaeng, dated 1292 in its colophon, discovered within the walled city in 1833 by the future King Mongkut. The four-sided pillar inscription in early Thai script records the kingdom's foundation, the invention of the script itself, social organisation, and Theravada Buddhist conversion, and is preserved in the Bangkok National Museum. Its authenticity has been debated in modern scholarship. - Wat Si Chum (built 1300 AD) A monastery to the northwest of the walled city containing the seated Buddha image Phra Achana, 11 metres tall and 11 metres wide at the knees, housed within a tall four-walled mondop with a slit window through which only the face of the Buddha is visible from the approach. The mondop walls contain a narrow staircase decorated with engraved slate panels of jataka tales. ## Population History - 1238 AD: 10,000 - 1290 AD: 50,000 - 1350 AD: 30,000 - 1400 AD: 10,000 - 1438 AD: null --- # Carthage, Tunisia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/tunisia/carthage Founded: 814 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.8528, 10.3231 ## Description Carthage was one of the greatest cities of the ancient Mediterranean, founded by Phoenician settlers from Tyre on the North African coast of the Gulf of Tunis. As capital of the Punic civilization it became a dominant naval and trade power, rivaling Rome until the Third Punic War ended in its complete destruction in 146 BCE. Refounded by Julius Caesar and Augustus as the Roman colony Colonia Iulia Carthago in the late 1st century BCE, it grew into one of the largest cities of the Roman Empire, later passed to Vandal and Byzantine rule, and was destroyed a second time during the Arab conquest of 698 CE. After the Arab destruction the regional capital shifted to newly founded Tunis some 15 km inland; the Byrsa hill site itself contracted to a small fishing and farming community that endured through the Aghlabid, Fatimid, Hafsid, and Ottoman periods while the ancient ruins served as a stone quarry for Tunis and Kairouan. The site's modern revival began under the French Protectorate of Tunisia (1881-1956), when Carthage was redeveloped as a fashionable residential area for European settlers and Tunisian elites and large-scale archaeological excavations resumed. Today the commune of Carthage is an exclusive suburb of Greater Tunis with roughly 21,000 inhabitants, hosts the Presidential Palace of Tunisia, and sits directly on the Punic and Roman ruins which form a UNESCO World Heritage archaeological park inscribed in 1979. ## Historical Rulers - 814 BC – 146 BC: Ancient Carthage (known as "Qart-ḥadaşt") Founded by Phoenician colonists from Tyre, traditionally under Queen Dido, Qart-ḥadaşt ("New City") grew into the dominant maritime and commercial power of the western Mediterranean. Punic Carthage controlled an extensive trading network and overseas territories in Sicily, Sardinia and Iberia, and clashed with Rome in three Punic Wars; the city was besieged, destroyed and its population enslaved by Scipio Aemilianus in 146 BCE. - 146 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Colonia Iunonia") After the destruction of 146 BCE the site lay largely desolate under Roman administration of the new province of Africa. Gaius Gracchus attempted a colonial refoundation as Colonia Iunonia in 122 BCE that failed, and a successful refoundation as a Roman colony was launched by Julius Caesar and completed under Augustus, restoring urban life on the Byrsa hill. - 27 BC – 439 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Colonia Iulia Carthago") Under the Empire Carthage became the capital of the senatorial province of Africa Proconsularis and one of the largest cities of the Roman world, serving as a key grain port supplying Rome. It developed into a major Christian center producing figures such as Tertullian, Cyprian and Augustine of Hippo until the Vandal invasion of North Africa. - 439 AD – 533 AD: Vandal Kingdom (known as "Carthago") Captured by Geiseric in 439 CE, Carthage became the capital of the Arian Vandal Kingdom of North Africa and a base for naval raids across the Mediterranean, including the sack of Rome in 455. The city retained much of its Roman urban fabric while Catholic communities suffered intermittent persecution under Vandal rule. - 533 AD – 698 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Carthago") Reconquered by Belisarius for Justinian I in 533 CE, Carthage became the seat of the Exarchate of Africa, the principal Byzantine administrative and military center in North Africa. It saw renewed church building and remained a significant Mediterranean port until repeated Arab assaults culminated in its capture and destruction by the Umayyad commander Hassan ibn al-Nu'man in 698 CE, after which the regional capital shifted inland to Tunis. - 698 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Qarṭājannah") Hassan ibn al-Nu'man's Umayyad forces captured and destroyed Byzantine Carthage in 698 CE, ending its existence as a major urban centre. The regional capital shifted to newly founded Tunis some 15 km inland, and the Byrsa hill site contracted to a small fishing and farming community on the coast. - 750 AD – 800 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Qarṭājannah") Under the early Abbasid governors of Ifriqiya the diminished site of Carthage continued as a small coastal village. Administrative and commercial weight remained centred on Tunis and Kairouan, while the ancient ruins were systematically quarried for building stone. - 800 AD – 909 AD: Aghlabid Dynasty (known as "Qarṭājannah") Under the Aghlabid emirate ruling Ifriqiya from Kairouan, the small village at Carthage continued as a coastal hamlet. The quarrying of Roman marble columns and ashlar for the Great Mosque of Kairouan and other Aghlabid foundations accelerated during this period. - 909 AD – 973 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Qarṭājannah") After the Fatimid Ismaili conquest of Ifriqiya in 909 the site of Carthage continued as a small fishing and farming community along the coast. The Fatimids moved their capital to al-Mahdiyya before relocating to Cairo, leaving Tunis and Mahdia as the principal urban centres of the region. - 973 AD – 1148 AD: Zirid Dynasty (known as "Qarṭājannah") Under the Sanhaja Berber Zirid emirate, ruling Ifriqiya from Mahdia and Kairouan, the Carthage site persisted as a marginal coastal settlement. Norman raids on Ifriqiya in the 12th century brought further insecurity to the coastal villages of the Gulf of Tunis. - 1148 AD – 1229 AD: Almohad Caliphate (known as "Qarṭājannah") After the Almohad reconquest of Ifriqiya from the Normans and Banu Hilal in 1148–1160, Carthage was administered as part of the Almohad provincial system. The diminished settlement continued as a small fishing community. - 1229 AD – 1574 AD: Hafsid Dynasty (known as "Qarṭājannah") Under the Hafsid emirate ruling Ifriqiya from Tunis, the village of Carthage was a coastal suburb of the medieval capital. The site was the target of Louis IX's Eighth Crusade in 1270, during which the French king died of disease on the beach near Carthage, and continued as a modest settlement until the Ottoman conquest. - 1574 AD – 1881 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Qarṭājannah") Under Ottoman rule of the Regency of Tunis, Carthage remained a modest rural settlement of fishermen and farmers near the antique ruins, administered as part of the Tunis hinterland. European travellers from the 17th century onward documented the increasingly looted Punic and Roman remains, and the first systematic surveys of the site were undertaken in the early 19th century. - 1881 AD – 1956 AD: French Protectorate of Tunisia After the French Protectorate was established in 1881, Carthage was redeveloped as a fashionable residential area for European settlers and Tunisian elites, served by the TGM coastal railway. The Cathedral of Saint Louis was completed on Byrsa hill in 1890, large-scale archaeological excavations resumed under French missions, and the modern municipality of Carthage was constituted as the seat of the Catholic Archdiocese of Carthage. - 1956 AD – present: Republic of Tunisia Since Tunisian independence in 1956, Carthage has functioned as an exclusive residential suburb of Greater Tunis and the seat of the Presidential Palace. The archaeological zone was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 and is managed alongside the inhabited commune, which today has approximately 21,000 residents living directly on top of the Punic and Roman city. ## Landmarks - Byrsa Hill Citadel (built 800 BC) The central elevated fortification of Carthage, where the main acropolis stood. Later became the site of a major Roman forum after the city's reconstruction. - Tophet of Carthage (built 750 BC) An open-air sanctuary where cremated remains were buried in urns beneath stone markers. Debate continues over whether it contains sacrificial victims or ordinary child burials. - Temple of Eshmoun (built 500 BC) Primary temple dedicated to Eshmoun, the Punic god of healing, which played a central role in Carthaginian religious life. - Punic Ports (built 300 BC) Consisting of a circular military harbor for 220 warships and a rectangular commercial harbor, these sophisticated port facilities were central to Carthaginian power. - Amphitheater of Carthage (built 100 AD) Large Roman amphitheater capable of seating 30,000 spectators, where St. Perpetua and other Christians were martyred in 203 CE. - Antonine Baths (built 162 AD) Monumental public baths built during the reign of Emperor Antoninus Pius, demonstrating the prosperity of Roman Carthage. - Basilica of Damous El Karita (built 400 AD) Massive Christian basilica complex from the Byzantine period, featuring a main church, baptistery, and funerary chapel. ## Population History - 814 BC: 5,000 - 700 BC: 40,000 - 600 BC: 100,000 - 500 BC: 100,000 - 430 BC: 50,000 - 400 BC: 200,000 - 300 BC: 500,000 - 200 BC: 150,000 - 100 BC: 100,000 - 100 AD: 250,000 - 200 AD: 300,000 - 300 AD: 300,000 - 361 AD: 66,000 - 400 AD: 270,000 - 500 AD: 100,000 - 622 AD: 50,000 - 698 AD: null - 1000 AD: 200 - 1500 AD: 300 - 1800 AD: 500 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 1956 AD: 12,000 - 2020 AD: 21,000 --- # Tunis, Tunisia URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/tunisia/tunis Founded: 698 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.8065, 10.1815 ## Description Tunis, founded near the ruins of Carthage, rose to prominence after the Arab conquest of North Africa. It became a major political, commercial, and cultural center of the Maghreb, especially under the Almohad and Hafsid dynasties. Today it remains the capital and largest city of Tunisia. ## Historical Rulers - 698 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Tūnis") Following the Arab conquest of North Africa, Tunis developed as a settlement near the ruins of Carthage and was integrated into the Umayyad provincial system of Ifriqiya. - 750 AD – 800 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Tūnis") After the Abbasid revolution, Ifriqiya including Tunis came under Abbasid suzerainty, governed from the regional capital Kairouan. - 800 AD – 909 AD: Aghlabid Dynasty (known as "Tūnis") Under the semi-autonomous Aghlabid emirs ruling on behalf of the Abbasids, Tunis grew as a secondary urban center of Ifriqiya alongside the capital Kairouan. - 909 AD – 972 AD: Fatimid Caliphate (known as "Tūnis") The Ismaili Fatimids overthrew the Aghlabids and incorporated Tunis into their North African domain before relocating their capital to Egypt. - 973 AD – 1148 AD: Zirid Dynasty (known as "Tūnis") Ruling Ifriqiya as Fatimid vassals and later asserting independence, the Zirids oversaw Tunis during a period of shifting loyalties and Bedouin incursions. - 1148 AD – 1229 AD: Almohad Caliphate (known as "Tūnis") The Almohads brought Tunis under a unified Maghrebi empire, elevating its administrative importance and contributing to its urban expansion. - 1229 AD – 1574 AD: Hafsid Dynasty (known as "Tūnis") As capital of the Hafsid state, Tunis flourished as a Mediterranean commercial hub and center of Islamic scholarship, hosting refugees from al-Andalus and major architectural patronage. - 1574 AD – 1881 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Tūnis") Conquered by Ottoman forces in 1574, Tunis became the seat of an Ottoman regency that gradually evolved into the semi-autonomous Beylik of Tunis under the Husainid dynasty. - 1881 AD – 1956 AD: French Protectorate of Tunisia Following the Treaty of Bardo, Tunis became the seat of the French Protectorate administration, undergoing significant modern urban expansion outside the medina with the construction of the colonial Ville Nouvelle. - 1956 AD – present: Republic of Tunisia After independence in 1956, Tunis became the capital of the Republic of Tunisia and has continued to serve as the country's political, economic, and cultural center. ## Landmarks - Medina of Tunis (built 698 AD) A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Medina is a dense maze of alleys, souks, and historic buildings including mosques, madrasas, and palaces. - Zitouna Mosque (built 732 AD) Founded by Ubayd Allah ibn al-Habhab, the mosque became a leading center of Islamic learning and jurisprudence for centuries. - Kasbah Mosque (built 1230 AD) Built during the Hafsid era, the mosque stands out for its decorative minaret and elegant design. - Bab el Bhar (built 1848 AD) Originally part of the old city walls, Bab el Bhar ('Sea Gate') marked the entrance to the Medina and remains an iconic landmark today. ## Population History - 698 AD: 2,000 - 800 AD: 6,000 - 900 AD: 10,000 - 1000 AD: 15,000 - 1250 AD: 70,000 - 1300 AD: 50,000 - 1361 AD: 35,000 - 1400 AD: 50,000 - 1450 AD: 65,000 - 1500 AD: 65,000 - 1515 AD: 62,000 - 1600 AD: 50,000 - 1673 AD: 60,000 - 1700 AD: 69,000 - 1730 AD: 78,000 - 1750 AD: 70,000 - 1780 AD: 50,000 - 1800 AD: 90,000 - 1805 AD: 100,000 - 1825 AD: 90,000 - 1850 AD: 90,000 - 1860 AD: 90,000 - 1867 AD: 100,000 - 1895 AD: 153,000 - 1900 AD: 156,000 - 1950 AD: 472,000 - 1975 AD: 893,000 - 2000 AD: 1,769,000 - 2025 AD: 2,545,000 --- # Acemhöyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/acemhoyuk Founded: 2000 BC Ended: 1200 BC Coordinates: 38.4833, 33.9333 ## Description Acemhöyük is a major Middle and Late Bronze Age archaeological mound on the southeastern edge of Lake Tuz in Aksaray Province, Türkiye, located near the modern village of Yeşilova about 18 kilometres northwest of Aksaray city centre on the fertile Uluırmak-Melendiz floodplain. The site is widely identified with the city Burušhattum mentioned in Old Assyrian and Hittite cuneiform sources — and possibly with the legendary Purushanda of the Akkadian 'King of Battle' epic in which Sargon of Akkad campaigns against a coalition of Anatolian kings — making Acemhöyük one of the principal independent Anatolian city-kingdoms of the early second millennium BCE. The site flourished particularly during the Old Assyrian Karum trade period (c. 2000-1750 BCE), when an Assyrian merchant colony connected it to the broader Mesopotamian tin and textile trade network alongside Kanesh, Hattuš, and Wahšušana, leaving behind monumental palatial complexes with painted plaster walls, bullae archives, and exquisite ivory furniture inlays now displayed in the Aksaray Museum. The city was reduced to a rural settlement under the Old Hittite Kingdom and abandoned by the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1200 BCE. Systematic excavation began under Nimet Özgüç in 1962 and continues today under Aliye Öztan as one of the longest-running Turkish archaeological projects. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1700 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Burušhattum") Acemhöyük flourished during the Old Assyrian Karum trade period as the city Burušhattum, an independent Anatolian city-kingdom controlling the southeastern Tuz Gölü plain and hosting one of the major Assyrian merchant colonies of the broader Anatolian-Mesopotamian tin and textile trade network. The site preserves monumental palatial complexes including the Sarıkaya and Hatipler palaces, with painted plaster walls, extensive bullae archives, and elite assemblages of obsidian, ivory furniture inlays, and seal impressions that document a sophisticated MBA Anatolian court culture. - 1700 BC – 1200 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Burušhattum") Following the rise of the Old Hittite Kingdom under Hattusili I, Burušhattum was absorbed into the expanding Hittite realm and gradually reduced from a major city-kingdom to a rural settlement within the Lower Land of the Hittite Empire. The site continued under Hittite imperial administration with diminished political importance until the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1200 BCE ended urban occupation entirely. ## Landmarks - Karum District (built 2000 BC) The Assyrian merchant quarter or karum of Burušhattum lay adjacent to the indigenous palatial core and housed the resident community of Old Assyrian merchants who linked Anatolian metal and wool production to Mesopotamian tin and textile supplies. The karum administrative tablets recovered at Acemhöyük complement the larger archive from Kanesh-Kültepe and provide the second great corpus of Old Assyrian commercial records from Anatolia. - Sarıkaya Palace (built 1900 BC) The Sarıkaya Palace was the principal monumental complex of Burušhattum during the Old Assyrian Karum period, a multi-room mudbrick palace with painted plaster walls, storerooms, and archive rooms that yielded thousands of cuneiform bullae and elite assemblages of carved ivory furniture inlays. The destruction of the palace by fire around 1750-1700 BCE preserved an exceptional snapshot of MBA Anatolian court culture and provided much of the basis for the modern dating of the Old Assyrian Karum period. - Hatipler Palace (built 1850 BC) A second monumental palace complex at Acemhöyük contemporary with the Sarıkaya Palace, the Hatipler complex extended the urban core of MBA Burušhattum and produced its own assemblage of decorated ivory inlays and administrative bullae. Together the two palaces document the dual-residence pattern characteristic of major Old Assyrian Karum-period Anatolian capitals. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 3,000 - 1900 BC: 8,000 - 1800 BC: 10,000 - 1700 BC: 5,000 - 1500 BC: 2,000 - 1200 BC: null --- # Aizanoi, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/aizanoi Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.20079825758603, 29.610299463770314 ## Description Aizanoi was a major city of ancient Phrygia and later the Roman province of Phrygia Pacatiana, occupying the upper valley of the Penkalas (modern Koca Çay) river at the modern Çavdarhisar in Kütahya Province. Ceramic evidence indicates continuous occupation of the site from the first half of the third millennium BCE through the Phrygian and successive Anatolian Iron Age phases. The city changed hands between the Kingdoms of Pergamon and Bithynia in the Hellenistic period before passing under Roman rule with the Attalid bequest of 133 BCE. The Temple of Zeus, the principal surviving monument of the city and one of the best-preserved Roman temples of Anatolia, was begun under Domitian in the early 90s CE and completed under Hadrian; its underground crypt continued an earlier sanctuary of the local Phrygian Mother Goddess Meter Steunene. Other major Roman monuments include the unique combined theater-stadium complex (a single architectural unit serving both functions), two surviving Roman arched bridges over the Penkalas, the macellum inscribed with Diocletian's 301 CE Price Edict, and two large bath complexes. Aizanoi was an early Christian bishopric whose bishop participated in the First Council of Nicaea in 325 CE, and the city declined after the seventh century with the broader contraction of inland Anatolia. The Çavdar Tatars, a sub-tribe under Seljuk and later Mongol authority, converted the temple hill into a fortified citadel in the thirteenth century, giving the modern village its name Çavdarhisar. The site has been under continuous German Archaeological Institute excavation since 1926 and is on the UNESCO World Heritage tentative list. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1650 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Aizanoi") The site at Çavdarhisar shows continuous Bronze Age occupation from the first half of the third millennium BCE attested by ceramic finds, sharing in the broader cultural patterns of western Anatolian Bronze Age communities. The pre-Hittite settlement is the earliest known phase of the city. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Aizanoi") Under the Old and New Hittite kingdoms the upper Penkalas valley lay within the western Hittite imperial sphere, with continued settlement on the future Aizanoi site participating in the broader Late Bronze Age Anatolian patterns. The community participated in the regional collapse around 1180 BCE that ended Hittite imperial authority. - 1180 BC – 695 BC: Phrygian Civilization Through the early and middle Phrygian period the site developed as an inland Phrygian community centered on the cult of the Mother Goddess Meter Steunene whose sanctuary occupied the limestone outcrop above the river. The Phrygian-language cult inscriptions of the Meter Steunene continued into the Roman period beneath the later Temple of Zeus. - 695 BC – 547 BC: Lydian Kingdom Following the Cimmerian destruction of Phrygian royal power around 695 BCE, the inland western Phrygian region including Aizanoi was absorbed by the rising Lydian Kingdom under the Mermnad dynasty. The local cult of Meter Steunene continued under Lydian suzerainty. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE brought Aizanoi into the Achaemenid Empire administered through the satrapy of Greater Phrygia. The settlement continued as a small inland community of the central Anatolian plateau through the Persian centuries. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE incorporated the Aizanoi region into the Macedonian Empire, and the settlement passed through the Wars of the Diadochi under Antigonus and the early Seleucid claimants until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Through the third and second centuries BCE Aizanoi changed hands between the rising Kingdom of Pergamon and the Kingdom of Bithynia in the contested borderlands of western Anatolia, before passing definitively into Pergamene control by the second century BCE. The Attalid bequest of 133 BCE brought the city into the Roman provincial system. - 133 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Aezani") After the Pergamene bequest of 133 BCE Aizanoi passed into the Roman provincial structure as part of the province of Asia and later of Phrygia Pacatiana. The first and second centuries CE produced the city's monumental peak with the Temple of Zeus begun under Domitian in 92-95 CE and completed under Hadrian, the unique combined theater-stadium complex built between 160 CE and the mid-third century, two Roman arched bridges over the Penkalas, the macellum inscribed with Diocletian's 301 CE Price Edict, and two large bath complexes. Aizanoi was an early Christian bishopric whose bishop attended the First Council of Nicaea in 325 CE. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Aizanoi continued as a Christian bishopric and small Byzantine town through the fifth and sixth centuries, declining markedly after the seventh-century reorganisation of inland Anatolia following the Arab raids. The city contracted to a fortified village around the Temple of Zeus through the middle Byzantine period until the Seljuk advance after Manzikert. - 1071 AD – 1300 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Çavdarhisar") Following the Battle of Manzikert and the Seljuk advance into western Anatolia, the diminished settlement at Aizanoi came under the Sultanate of Rum and the Çavdar Tatars, a Mongol-affiliated Turkic sub-tribe, converted the Temple of Zeus hill into a fortified citadel in the thirteenth century. The modern village name Çavdarhisar (Çavdar fortress) preserves this transformation. - 1300 AD – 1429 AD: Germiyanid Beylik (known as "Çavdarhisar") From the formation of the Germiyanid Beylik around 1300 the Çavdarhisar village came under the Germiyanid emirs based at nearby Kütahya, the principal Turkmen polity of the western Anatolian highlands. The beylik was definitively absorbed by the Ottomans in 1429 after the death of the last Germiyanid emir Yakup II. - 1429 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Çavdarhisar") Under Ottoman administration Çavdarhisar persisted as a small village of the Kütahya region through five centuries, with the surviving Roman monuments — particularly the Temple of Zeus — visible across the modern settlement. The first western documentation was made by the French archaeologist Charles Texier in the 1830s, who identified the site as the ancient Aizanoi. - 1923 AD – 2026 AD: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Çavdarhisar") Under the Republic of Türkiye Çavdarhisar became a district seat in Kütahya Province, with continuous excavation by the German Archaeological Institute since 1926. The site was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage tentative list in 2012 and undergoes ongoing restoration of the Temple of Zeus and the theater-stadium complex. ## Landmarks - Temple of Zeus (built 120 AD) The Temple of Zeus at Aizanoi is one of the best-preserved Roman temples in Anatolia, a pseudodipteral Ionic structure measuring 35 by 53 meters built between roughly 92 and 150 CE under Domitian, Trajan, and Hadrian. The temple sits on a high podium above a barrel-vaulted underground crypt that continued an earlier sanctuary of the local Phrygian Mother Goddess Meter Steunene, and is the central monument of the modern archaeological site. - Roman Bridges over the Penkalas (built 160 AD) Two surviving Roman arched bridges cross the Penkalas (modern Koca Çay) river within the ancient city center, built around the mid-second century CE and still in active use today. The bridges document the integration of the Aizanoi urban grid across the river and the engineering character of the Antonine-era civic infrastructure. - Theater-Stadium Complex (built 200 AD) The combined theater-stadium of Aizanoi, built between roughly 160 CE and the mid-third century, is unique in the ancient world as a single architectural unit serving both theatrical and athletic functions back-to-back along a shared seating spine. The complex could accommodate roughly 13,500 spectators in the theater and 13,500 in the stadium. - Macellum with Diocletian's Price Edict (built 250 AD) The Aizanoi macellum, a circular Roman market hall built around the mid-third century CE, preserves on its outer walls one of the most complete surviving copies of the 301 CE Edict on Maximum Prices issued by Diocletian, listing standardised prices for hundreds of goods and services across the empire. The inscription is one of the principal documentary sources for the economic history of the later Roman Empire. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 500 - 1500 BC: 1,500 - 700 BC: 3,000 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 200 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1500 AD: 1,500 - 1800 AD: 1,000 - 2025 AD: 1,500 --- # Aksaray, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/aksaray Founded: 1600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.3726, 34.0254 ## Description Aksaray, the ancient Šinuhtu of the Hittites and Archelaïs of the Greco-Roman period, is a city of south-central Anatolia on the southwestern edge of Cappadocia near the Tuz Gölü salt lake. The settlement is attested in Hittite cuneiform records as Šinaḫuttum and later Nenaşşa, and after the Hittite collapse passed through Phrygian, Achaemenid, Macedonian, and Seleucid administrations as a regional centre of Lycaonia-Cappadocia. The town was refounded as Archelaïs by Archelaus, the last king of Hellenistic Cappadocia, in the late 1st century BCE, continued as the Roman and Byzantine Colonia/Koloneia, and gained renewed importance under the Anatolian Seljuks when Kılıçarslan II made it a second capital and renamed it Aksaray — 'White Palace' — in the 12th century. Through the Karamanid period the city remained a major centre of Turkmen Anatolia before its Ottoman annexation by İshak Pasha in 1470 after a protracted struggle against the Karamanids. Modern Aksaray is the capital of Aksaray Province with a metropolitan population of around 250,000, and its provincial territory includes the Aceramic Neolithic site of Aşıklı Höyük and the great 13th-century Sultanhanı Caravanserai on the Konya-Aksaray road. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Šinaḫuttum") The site of Aksaray is attested in Hittite cuneiform records as Šinaḫuttum and later as Nenaşşa, an important town of the southern Anatolian Lower Land within the Hittite Empire. The city continued as a Hittite administrative centre until the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Garsaura") Following the Hittite collapse the town passed through the fragmented post-Hittite world of Tabal and the wider Phrygian cultural sphere of central Anatolia. King Kiyakiya of Šinuhtu is recorded in Neo-Assyrian sources as a Tabalian ruler who revolted against Sargon II in the late 8th century BCE, indicating the city's continued political relevance through the early Iron Age. - 547 BC – 322 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Garsaura") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE brought the city, now known as Garsaura, under Achaemenid Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Cappadocia. The town continued as a regional centre under Persian governors until the Macedonian conquest. - 322 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Garsaura") After Alexander the Great's defeat of the Achaemenids, Garsaura briefly came under Macedonian control during the campaigns of Perdiccas and the subsequent Wars of the Diadochi. The town passed through the contested early Hellenistic Anatolia until Seleucid consolidation after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 189 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Garsaura") Under the Seleucid kings Garsaura was incorporated into the Hellenistic Anatolian realm as a regional centre of Cappadocia. The city was integrated into Seleucid administration until the post-Apamea reorganization shifted Cappadocia to independent royal status. - 189 BC – 17 AD: Kingdom of Cappadocia (known as "Archelaïs") Under the Ariarathid and later Ariobarzanid kings of Cappadocia, Garsaura continued as a regional centre. Archelaus, the last king of Cappadocia who ruled from 36 BCE to 17 CE, refounded the town as Archelaïs in his own name as a major Hellenistic foundation, the most important new urban centre of late Cappadocian royal rule. - 17 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Archelaïs") Tiberius annexed Cappadocia as a Roman province in 17 CE following the death of Archelaus, and Archelaïs continued as a Roman regional centre, gaining the status of a colonia under Claudius and serving as a station on the great east-west Roman road system. Christianity took root in the late Roman period and the city became a bishopric, sometimes referred to as Colonia in late antique sources. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Koloneia") Under the Eastern Roman Empire the city was known as Koloneia and served as a significant Byzantine military centre and bishopric of Cappadocia. The town was repeatedly contested with Arab raids during the Abbasid-Byzantine frontier wars and was finally lost to the Anatolian Seljuks after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum After the Seljuk advance into Anatolia, Kılıçarslan II made Aksaray a second capital of the Sultanate of Rum in the late 12th century and renamed the city Aksaray — 'White Palace' — after the palace he constructed there. The city flourished as a major Seljuk centre with extensive madrasas, mosques, and caravanserai construction along the Konya-Aksaray road, including the great Sultanhanı Caravanserai built under Alaeddin Keykubad I in 1229. - 1308 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate Following the dissolution of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum, Aksaray passed under direct Mongol Ilkhanate suzerainty. The Ilkhanid period saw continued commerce on the Anatolian Silk Road routes through the city until the Ilkhanate itself fragmented in 1335. - 1335 AD – 1470 AD: Karamanid Beylik After the collapse of Ilkhanid central authority Aksaray was incorporated into the Karamanid Beylik centred on Karaman, becoming one of the principal Karamanid cities of central Anatolia. The city was contested with the rising Ottomans for over a century before İshak Pasha conquered it for Mehmed II in 1470 after a protracted struggle. - 1470 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire After İshak Pasha's 1470 conquest, Aksaray was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire and administered as a sanjak within the Karaman Eyalet and later the Konya Vilayet. The city remained a regional commercial centre on the Anatolian Silk Road until the broader 19th-century reorganization of Ottoman provincial administration. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic Aksaray initially formed part of Niğde Province before being elevated to its own province on 15 June 1989. The modern city has grown to a metropolitan population of around 250,000 with a strong agricultural and food-processing economy, and serves as the gateway to the Aceramic Neolithic site of Aşıklı Höyük and the volcanic landscape of southwestern Cappadocia. ## Landmarks - Aşıklı Höyük (built 8200 BC) The Aceramic Neolithic site of Aşıklı Höyük lies 25 kilometres southeast of Aksaray within the modern province, and represents one of the earliest sedentary villages in central Anatolia. Although a separate archaeological site rather than a monument of the modern city, Aşıklı Höyük is administered from Aksaray and forms the central Anatolian Cappadocian Aceramic Neolithic landscape that includes Aksaray's deeper prehistoric hinterland. - Aksaray Eğri Minare (built 1221 AD) The Eğri Minare or Crooked Minaret of Aksaray is a Seljuk-period brick minaret built around 1221 next to the Kızıl Mescit, leaning visibly some 27 metres above the city. The brick courses interlaced with bands of glazed tile reflect characteristic Anatolian Seljuk minaret design, and the structure is the principal Seljuk-period landmark of the old city. - Sultanhanı Caravanserai (built 1229 AD) Built in 1229 under the Anatolian Seljuk sultan Alaeddin Keykubad I on the Konya-Aksaray road some 42 km west of Aksaray, the Sultanhanı is the largest caravanserai in Türkiye and one of the most important monuments of Seljuk Anatolia. Its monumental cut-stone portal, open courtyard with central mosque kiosk, and covered winter hall preserve the classical Seljuk caravanserai plan in its most ambitious surviving form. - Aksaray Ulu Cami (built 1408 AD) The Ulu Cami or Great Mosque of Aksaray is a Karamanid-period congregational mosque built in 1408 under Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey II on the foundations of an earlier Seljuk mosque. The hypostyle hall with carved wooden columns and the surviving Karamanid mihrab and minbar represent one of the principal Beylik-era religious monuments of central Anatolia. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 1,500 - 700 BC: 4,000 - 100 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 12,000 - 1100 AD: 18,000 - 1250 AD: 30,000 - 1500 AD: 15,000 - 1800 AD: 10,000 - 1950 AD: 25,000 - 2020 AD: 250,000 --- # Alacahöyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/alacahoyuk Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.2343, 34.6961 ## Description Alacahöyük is one of the most significant archaeological sites in central Anatolia, with a continuous occupation sequence of fourteen layers from the late Chalcolithic period to the present-day Turkish village adjacent to the mound. The site is famous for its Early Bronze Age 'Royal Tombs' (2500–2300 BCE) containing elaborate gold, silver, and bronze artifacts including sun discs and animal-form ceremonial standards, and during the Hittite period it became a major religious center, often identified as Arinna, the cult city of the Sun Goddess. Monumental structures such as the Sphinx Gate and the richly carved orthostat reliefs illustrate the city's ceremonial role at the heart of the Hittite state cult. After the Bronze Age collapse the site continued at reduced scale through the Phrygian, Galatian, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman periods, with the uppermost archaeological layer preserving Ottoman-era material. The modern village of Alacahöyük in the Alaca district of Çorum Province continues this long sequence of habitation. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2500 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Alacahöyük") Earliest documented phase at the mound, during which a small agricultural community established itself on the site before the rise of the elite Hattian centre of the Royal Tombs era. The settlement participated in the broader central Anatolian Early Bronze Age cultural sphere with early metalworking and contacts across the plateau. - 2500 BC – 1650 BC: Hattian Civilization (known as "*Alacahöyük") Alacahöyük flourished as one of the principal centers of the Hattian Civilization, producing the famous royal tombs of the Early Bronze Age (~2300 BCE) with their distinctive bronze sun-disc standards and elaborate metalwork. The site continued through the Middle Bronze Age within the Hattian cultural sphere, with fortified structures and increasing population density, until incorporation into the Hittite Old Kingdom around 1650 BCE. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Alacahöyük") Incorporated into the Hittite Empire under Hattusili I, Alacahöyük served as a major religious and administrative center for over four centuries, often identified with Arinna, the city of the Sun Goddess at the heart of the Hittite state cult. Monumental sphinx gates, ceremonial reliefs, and dedicated cult buildings testify to its sacred status through the Old Kingdom and New Kingdom periods, until the Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "*Alacahöyük") After the collapse of the Hittite Empire, Alacahöyük persisted as a much-diminished settlement within the expanding Phrygian cultural sphere of central Anatolia. Phrygian ceramics and architectural elements have been recovered from the upper occupation layer of the mound, attesting to its incorporation into the broader Phrygian world as a peripheral village through the Iron Age. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Alacahöyük") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, the central Anatolian plateau was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the Cappadocian satrapy. The mound continued as a small rural settlement under Persian administration. - 334 BC – 278 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Alacahöyük") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. The mound continued as a low-level rural settlement until the Celtic Galatian migration of 278 BCE reshaped central Anatolian sovereignty. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom (known as "*Alacahöyük") From 278 BCE the broader Çorum plateau came under the Celtic Galatian Tectosages confederation centered on Ancyra. The Alacahöyük settlement continued as a small rural village within the Galatian sphere until Augustus's annexation of Galatia as a Roman province in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Alacahöyük") After Augustus's annexation of Galatia in 25 BCE, the area was incorporated into the Roman province of Galatia. Roman-period material in the upper occupation layer of the mound attests to continued rural occupation through the imperial period. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Alacahöyük") Under Eastern Roman administration the site continued as a Byzantine rural settlement on the Cappadocian plateau. Occupation continued through the Byzantine centuries until the Seljuk advance after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 ended Byzantine rule. - 1071 AD – 1174 AD: Danishmendid Beylik After the Seljuk victory at Manzikert in 1071, the Turkmen Danishmendid dynasty established its rule over north-central Anatolia and the Çorum region. Turkmen settlers maintained a small rural village beside the ancient mound, eventually attaching the Turkish form Alacahöyük to the site. - 1174 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum The Anatolian Seljuks absorbed the Danishmendid domains under Kilij Arslan II in 1174 and incorporated the Çorum region into the unified Anatolian Turkish state. The village beside the mound continued as a small rural community until the Mongol victory at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243. - 1243 AD – 1308 AD: Ilkhanate After the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243, the Sultanate of Rum became a Mongol vassal and the Çorum region was effectively administered by Ilkhanate-appointed governors. As Ilkhanid authority weakened in the late 13th century, the Eretnid Turkmen beys carved out an independent principality across the central Anatolian highlands. - 1308 AD – 1381 AD: Eretna Principality After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Çorum region passed under the Eretnid beylik centered on Sivas and Kayseri. The village of Alacahöyük continued as a small rural community under Eretnid administration. - 1381 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Following the dissolution of the Eretnid beylik, the Çorum region was incorporated into the early Ottoman state. The village of Alacahöyük continued as a modest agricultural community, with Ottoman-period material attested in the uppermost archaeological layer of the mound itself. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic the village of Alacahöyük has continued as a small agricultural community in the Alaca district of Çorum Province. The adjacent archaeological mound — investigated since the early 20th century, most famously by Turkish excavators from 1935 onward — is administered as a protected site and remains a UNESCO Tentative List candidate alongside Hattusa. ## Landmarks - Royal Tombs of Alacahöyük (built 2300 BC) The 13 Royal Tombs of Alacahöyük, dating to 2500–2300 BCE, are shaft graves containing elite individuals buried with rich assemblages of gold, silver, and bronze artifacts. Sun discs, animal figurines, jewelry, and ceremonial standards reveal advanced metallurgy and spiritual complexity. Some tombs also contained sacrificial remains, suggesting stratified religious rituals. - Sphinx Gate of Alacahöyük (built 1400 BC) Constructed during the Hittite New Kingdom, the Sphinx Gate featured flanking sphinx sculptures and relief-carved orthostats showing royal and religious scenes. It formed part of a fortified ceremonial complex, symbolizing the city's sacred role as Arinna, the cult center of the Sun Goddess. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 500 - 2500 BC: 1,500 - 2000 BC: 2,500 - 1500 BC: 4,000 - 1200 BC: 2,000 - 1000 BC: 300 - 500 BC: 400 - 1 AD: 500 - 500 AD: 600 - 1000 AD: 400 - 1500 AD: 200 - 1923 AD: 300 - 2020 AD: 400 --- # Alişar Höyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/alisar-hoyuk Founded: 4000 BC Ended: 1071 AD Coordinates: 39.6061, 35.261 ## Description Alişar Höyük is a large and historically pivotal mound in central Anatolia, located in the Sorgun district of Yozgat Province, Türkiye. It was occupied from the Chalcolithic period through the Byzantine era, with major development during the Early and Middle Bronze Ages when it served as a capital of a local Anatolian kingdom and is widely identified with the karum-period town of Ankuwa attested in Old Assyrian cuneiform records. In the Iron Age the site fell within the Phrygian cultural sphere that extended east of the Kızılırmak (as confirmed by the nearby Phrygian foundation of Kerkenes), and continued in reduced form through the Achaemenid, Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods — the remains of a late Roman or Byzantine church on the mound attest to its continued use into the medieval Christian world. The höyük was abandoned around the time of the Seljuk advance after Manzikert; the modern Turkish village of Alişar on the adjacent plain is a separate, much later settlement that took its toponym from the höyük. The höyük was the focus of pioneering early excavations by Hans Henning von der Osten for the Oriental Institute of Chicago in 1927-1932, and its stratigraphy remains a key reference for central Anatolian Bronze and Iron Age chronology. ## Historical Rulers - 4000 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Alişar Höyük") During the Chalcolithic period the mound was occupied by small agricultural communities that practiced early copper metallurgy alongside stone tool traditions. Settlement remained modest in scale, organized around household-level production and seasonal subsistence in the central Anatolian plateau. - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Alişar Höyük") In the Early Bronze Age the settlement grew into a fortified center with monumental architecture, palatial structures, and a stratified society. The site is thought to have functioned as the seat of a local Anatolian polity that controlled regional trade in metals and ceramics. - 2000 BC – 1650 BC: Hattian Civilization (known as "Ankuwa") During the Middle Bronze Age the mound — widely identified with the karum-period town of Ankuwa attested in Old Assyrian cuneiform records — operated within the Hattian-speaking cultural sphere of central Anatolia. Cuneiform tablets and imported goods from this layer attest to the presence of Assyrian merchants and a thriving administrative life alongside the local Hattian population. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Ankuwa") Under the Hittite Empire from Hattusili I onward, Alişar/Ankuwa functioned as a provincial town within the imperial heartland. Hittite royal texts mention the town as a cult center and a station on the king's circuit, indicating its sustained political and religious importance until the broader Late Bronze Age collapse. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "*Alişar Höyük") After the collapse of the Hittite Empire the urban fabric contracted but the settlement continued on a smaller scale through the Iron Age within the Phrygian cultural sphere that expanded eastward across central Anatolia, reaching east of the Kızılırmak as confirmed by the nearby Phrygian foundation of Kerkenes (Pteria). The phase ended nominally with the Achaemenid conquest after Cyrus the Great's defeat of Lydia in 547 BCE. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Alişar Höyük") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, the central Anatolian plateau was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the Cappadocian satrapy. The mound continued as a modest rural settlement under Persian administration. - 334 BC – 278 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Alişar Höyük") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. The mound continued as a low-level rural settlement until the Celtic Galatian migration of 278 BCE reshaped central Anatolian sovereignty. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom (known as "*Alişar Höyük") From 278 BCE the broader Yozgat plateau came under the Celtic Galatian Trocmi confederation centered to the east. The mound continued as a small rural settlement within the Galatian sphere until Augustus's annexation of Galatia as a Roman province in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Alişar Höyük") After Augustus's annexation of Galatia in 25 BCE, the area was incorporated into the Roman province of Galatia. The mound continued as a rural Roman settlement on the central Anatolian plateau, with Roman-period material attesting to sustained, if modest, occupation. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Alişar Höyük") Under Eastern Roman administration the mound continued as a rural Byzantine settlement on the Cappadocian plateau. The remains of a late Roman or Byzantine church on the mound attest to its continued role as a small Christian rural community until the Seljuk advance after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 effectively ended Byzantine rule and the höyük occupation. ## Landmarks - Early Bronze Age Fortified Acropolis (built 2500 BC) The acropolis at Alişar Höyük was protected by massive stone fortifications and included palatial residences, storage complexes, and elevated administrative buildings, reflecting the city's regional leadership during the Early Bronze Age. - Middle Bronze Age Destruction Layer (built 1700 BC) Widespread fire destruction found across the settlement coincides with the early military expansion of the Hittites. This layer separates the Hattian karum-period kingdom from the later Hittite imperial phases at the site. - Phrygian Iron Age Residences (built 800 BC) Simpler, more scattered buildings mark a shift from earlier urbanism to rural domestic life after the Hittite collapse. Pottery and tools from this layer align with broader Phrygian material culture across central Anatolia. ## Population History - 4000 BC: 200 - 2500 BC: 4,000 - 1800 BC: 3,000 - 1500 BC: 1,500 - 800 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 600 - 1 AD: 400 - 500 AD: 500 - 1000 AD: 400 - 1071 AD: null --- # Amasya, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/amasya Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.6499, 35.8353 ## Description Amasya is one of the most historically significant cities of Anatolia, nestled in a deep gorge along the Yeşilırmak River beneath dramatic cliffs bearing the rock-cut tombs of Pontic kings. It served as the capital of the Kingdom of Pontus, the birthplace of the geographer Strabo, and a major center of Ottoman learning. In 1919, Mustafa Kemal issued the Amasya Circular here, the first document calling for Turkish independence and the starting point of the War of Independence. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Amaseia") Archaeological traces along the Yeşilırmak valley indicate continuous occupation from the Early Bronze Age, when small fortified settlements developed on the defensible terraces beneath the Harşena cliffs. The community took advantage of the river crossing and rich agricultural land of the surrounding plain. - 2000 BC – 1650 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Amaseia") Through the Middle Bronze Age the settlement continued in the upper Yeşilırmak valley as a small regional community, within the broader Hattian cultural sphere of north-central Anatolia. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Amaseia") During the Late Bronze Age the region fell within the eastern domains of the Hittite Empire controlled from Hattusa. The settlement continued as a small upland community on the imperial periphery until the Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "*Amaseia") After the collapse of the Hittite state the upper Yeşilırmak basin came under the broader Phrygian cultural sphere of central and northern Anatolia. Settlement on the defensible heights above the river continued through the long Iron Age. - 547 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Amaseia") Following Cyrus the Great's defeat of Lydia in 547 BC, the territory was incorporated into the Achaemenid Persian Empire and administered as part of the satrapy of Cappadocia. A Persian-Anatolian aristocracy held local power, laying the foundation for the later Pontic dynasty. - 333 BC – 302 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Amaseia") Alexander the Great's victories ended Persian rule in Anatolia, and after his death the region passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. Local Persian-descended dynasts retained considerable autonomy in northern Anatolia during this brief transitional period before the founding of the Kingdom of Pontus. - 302 BC – 64 BC: Kingdom of Pontus (known as "Amaseia") Amaseia served as the first capital of the Kingdom of Pontus. The rock-cut royal tombs above the city date to this period. The geographer Strabo was born here around 64 BC. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Amaseia") Pompey reorganized Pontus as a Roman province in 64 BC. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Amaseia") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Amaseia became a prosperous Roman city and capital of Pontus Galaticus. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Amaseia") After the division of the Roman Empire the city passed to the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) administration and served as a regional center in the theme system of northern Anatolia. It became an important episcopal seat and held a fortified citadel guarding the Yeşilırmak corridor. - 1071 AD – 1175 AD: Danishmendid Beylik Following the Seljuk victory at Manzikert in 1071, much of northern Anatolia fell to Turkic principalities, and the Danishmendid dynasty established its rule over the region with Amasya as one of its principal centers. The city flourished as an early seat of Turco-Islamic learning. - 1175 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum The Seljuk Sultanate of Rum absorbed the Danishmendid territories and incorporated Amasya into its expanding state in Anatolia. The city continued to develop as a religious and administrative center until the Mongol invasion. - 1243 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate After the Seljuk defeat at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243, northern Anatolia came under Mongol Ilkhanid suzerainty administered through Seljuk and Mongol officials. Amasya remained a significant regional center on the Yeşilırmak corridor. - 1335 AD – 1380 AD: Eretna Principality After the dissolution of Ilkhanid authority, the Yeşilırmak basin passed under the Eretnid beylik founded by Alaeddin Eretna and centered on Sivas and Kayseri. Amasya remained a major regional center of the Eretnid state until the scholar-vizier Kadı Burhaneddin seized power from the last Eretnid ruler in 1380. - 1380 AD – 1393 AD: Kadı Burhaneddin State Kadı Burhaneddin, a polymath jurist who had served as vizier to the last Eretnids, deposed his masters in 1380 and proclaimed his own sultanate based at Sivas, with Amasya as one of its principal cities. The Burhaneddin sultanate resisted both Ottoman expansion and Aq Qoyunlu Turkmen pressure until Bayezid I conquered Amasya from Kadı Burhaneddin in 1393. - 1393 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Bayezid I annexed Amasya from Kadı Burhaneddin in 1393, after which it became an important Ottoman city, a centre of Islamic scholarship, and a traditional posting for Ottoman princes as provincial governors. Timur sacked the city in 1402 after his victory at Ankara but Ottoman control was restored under Mehmed I. On 22 June 1919 Mustafa Kemal issued the Amasya Circular here, declaring that the independence of the nation would be won by the nation itself. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, Amasya became the seat of its eponymous province. The city today functions as a provincial capital known for its preserved Ottoman timber houses, the Pontic rock tombs, and its role in the early history of the Turkish national movement. ## Landmarks - Amasya Castle (built 300 BC) A hilltop fortress with origins in the Pontic period, rebuilt and expanded under Byzantine and later rulers. Connected to the royal tombs by ancient tunnels, it commands the entire valley. - Pontic Royal Rock Tombs (built 250 BC) Five monumental rock-cut tombs carved into the cliff face above the city, serving as mausoleums for the kings of Pontus. Illuminated at night and reflected in the Yeşilırmak River below, they are the defining symbol of Amasya. - Sultan Bayezid II Complex (built 1486 AD) A large Ottoman külliye built by Prince Bayezid (later Sultan Bayezid II) while serving as governor of Amasya. Includes a mosque, madrasa, hospital, and soup kitchen, and represents one of the finest examples of early Ottoman architecture in northern Anatolia. - Amasya Tamimi Monument (built 1919 AD) Commemorates the Amasya Circular of June 22, 1919, in which Mustafa Kemal declared that the independence of the Turkish nation must be won by the nation itself — the founding document of the Turkish national movement. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 500 - 1500 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 4,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 500 AD: 15,000 - 1000 AD: 10,000 - 1500 AD: 25,000 - 1700 AD: 30,000 - 1800 AD: 28,000 - 1900 AD: 35,000 - 1950 AD: 42,000 - 2000 AD: 82,000 - 2025 AD: 100,000 --- # Amorium, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/amorium Founded: 800 BC Ended: 2026 AD Coordinates: 39.0201, 31.2944 ## Description Amorium was a major Byzantine city in Phrygia, central Anatolia (modern Türkiye), originally established as a Phrygian Iron Age settlement and rebuilt as a fortified administrative and military center of the eastern Roman world. It played a critical role in defending the Anatolian frontier against Arab raids, until its catastrophic sack by the Abbasid Caliph al-Mu'tasim in 838 CE shattered the city and its population. After Byzantine resettlement at greatly reduced scale and the post-Manzikert Turkish advance, the site continued as the small village of Hisarköy in modern Emirdağ district of Afyonkarahisar Province, with roughly 400 inhabitants today. Systematic archaeological excavations began in 1987 under Martin Harrison and were continued by Christopher Lightfoot for the British Institute at Ankara. ## Historical Rulers - 800 BC – 695 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "Amorion") - 695 BC – 547 BC: Lydian Kingdom (known as "Amorion") - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Amorion") - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Amorion") - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Amorion") - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Amorion") - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Amorion") Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Amorion") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Amorion") - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Hisarköy") - 1308 AD – 1390 AD: Germiyanid Beylik (known as "Hisarköy") - 1390 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Hisarköy") - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Hisarköy") ## Landmarks - Basilica of Amorium (built 600 AD) One of several churches constructed during Amorium's height, serving the spiritual needs of its Christian community and reflecting Middle Byzantine basilica architecture. - City Walls of Amorium (built 700 AD) The massive city walls were reinforced in the 7th and 8th centuries, making Amorium a key stronghold against Arab invasions. They ultimately failed during the 838 siege but remain one of the largest Byzantine defensive constructions of the period. ## Population History - 500 BC: 3,000 - 0 AD: 7,000 - 700 AD: 20,000 - 838 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 1,500 - 1500 AD: 300 - 1923 AD: 400 - 2020 AD: 400 --- # Anazarbus, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/anazarbus Founded: 300 BC Ended: 1374 AD Coordinates: 37.2639, 35.9056 ## Description Anazarbus — known in different periods as Cyinda, Caesarea ad Anazarbum, Justinopolis, Justinianopolis, Ain Zarba, and the modern Turkish Anavarza — was one of the great cities of ancient and medieval Cilicia, occupying a dramatic position beneath an isolated limestone ridge in the Çukurova plain north of Adana. The site began as the Hellenistic treasury fortress of Cyinda, where Eumenes of Cardia stored Alexander's accumulated treasures around 320 BCE, and grew through the late Hellenistic period into a substantial city. Renamed Caesarea ad Anazarbum after Augustus's annexation in 19 BCE, it rose under Rome to rival Tarsus as one of the principal cities of Cilicia, with monumental colonnaded streets, a triumphal arch, baths, theatre and stadium. After devastation by the 525 earthquake the city was rebuilt twice in the 6th century — first by Justin I, who renamed it Justinopolis, and then by Justinian I after a second earthquake, who renamed it Justinianopolis. Following Arab conquest in the 7th century the city, now known as Ain Zarba, remained an important Cilician centre under successive caliphates and was rebuilt by Harun al-Rashid in 796 and refortified by Sayf al-Dawla in the 10th century before Nikephoros II Phokas razed it in 962. After brief Seljuk and Crusader interludes the citadel and city were taken by the Armenian Rubenid prince Thoros I around 1111, becoming the capital of the Armenian principality of Cilicia until the early 13th century when Sis succeeded it. Mamluk forces under al-Ashraf Sha'ban destroyed Anazarbus in 1374 and the city was permanently abandoned, surviving only as the small village of Dilekkaya at the foot of the citadel ridge. The site preserves one of the most spectacular ensembles of Roman and medieval Armenian remains in all of Anatolia. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Cyinda") The earliest documented occupation at the site was the Hellenistic treasury fortress of Cyinda, mentioned by Diodorus Siculus as the stronghold where Eumenes of Cardia drew Alexander's accumulated treasures around 318 BCE. Under the Seleucid kings Cyinda continued as a regional fortified centre of eastern Cilicia, controlling the approach from the Cilician plain to the Anti-Taurus passes. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Pompey's settlement of Cilicia in 64 BCE brought the city under Roman authority, initially as part of the client kingdom of Tarcondimotus before Augustus's full annexation in 19 BCE renamed it Caesarea ad Anazarbum. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under successive emperors the city flourished as a rival to Tarsus for the metropolitanate of Cilicia, with monumental construction including a triumphal arch, colonnaded streets, theatre, stadium, baths and aqueduct that mark it as one of the finest surviving Roman urban ensembles in Anatolia. - 395 AD – 611 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Justinianopolis") Under Eastern Roman administration Anazarbus continued as a leading Cilician city and Christian metropolitan see. After the devastating earthquake of 525 the city was rebuilt by Justin I and renamed Justinopolis; following a second earthquake it was rebuilt again by Justinian I and renamed Justinianopolis, with the surviving polygonal walls and reinforced citadel dating largely from these 6th-century imperial reconstructions. - 611 AD – 628 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Justinianopolis") During Khosrow II's great Roman-Persian war, Sasanian forces overran much of Anatolia and held Anazarbus along with surrounding Cilicia from around 611 to 628 CE. Heraclius's counteroffensive restored Byzantine control with the conclusion of the war. - 628 AD – 637 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Justinianopolis") Heraclius restored Byzantine rule over Cilicia after the Sasanian withdrawal, but imperial control was brief before the Rashidun Arab conquest swept through Cilicia in 637 CE. - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Ain Zarba") Conquered by the Arabs in 637, the city — now arabicised as Ain Zarba — was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate's Cilician frontier with Byzantium. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Ain Zarba") Under Umayyad rule from Damascus, Ain Zarba remained a Thughur frontier post along the Byzantine border. The city retained substantial Christian population alongside its new Arab garrison through the late 7th and early 8th centuries. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Ain Zarba") Under Abbasid administration Ain Zarba continued as one of the principal cities of the Cilician Thughur frontier. The city was substantially rebuilt by Harun al-Rashid in 796 and remained a major Abbasid frontier base for raids into Byzantine Anatolia through the 9th and early 10th centuries. - 944 AD – 962 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Ain Zarba") With Sayf al-Dawla's establishment of the Hamdanid emirate of Aleppo in 944, Ain Zarba came under Hamdanid control. Sayf al-Dawla substantially refortified the city as a forward base against the resurgent Byzantines, but Nikephoros II Phokas's campaign of 962 stormed and razed Ain Zarba in one of the decisive Byzantine victories of the Cilician reconquest. - 962 AD – 1084 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Anazarbos") Nikephoros II Phokas's reconquest restored Byzantine rule over Cilicia in 962, and Anazarbos was resettled and partly rebuilt during the late 10th and 11th centuries. The Cilician territories were repopulated with Armenian Christian refugees from the eastern provinces, who would form the demographic basis of the later Armenian Cilician polity. - 1084 AD – 1097 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Anazarbos") After the Seljuk advance into Anatolia following Manzikert, Anazarbos was captured by Seljuk forces around 1084. The Seljuk hold proved brief as the First Crusade's passage through Cilicia in 1097 transferred the city to Crusader hands. - 1097 AD – 1111 AD: Crusader Principality of Antioch (known as "Anazarbos") Captured by Tancred during the First Crusade in 1097–1098, Anazarbos was attached to the Crusader Principality of Antioch as a forward base in eastern Cilicia. Frankish control was contested with both Byzantium and the rising Armenian Rubenid principality, and the city was ultimately seized by Thoros I of the Rubenid dynasty around 1111. - 1111 AD – 1374 AD: Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia (known as "Anavarza") Captured by the Rubenid prince Thoros I around 1111, Anazarbos — known to Armenian sources as Anavarza — became the principal capital of the Armenian principality of Cilicia, succeeded by Sis as the kingdom's main seat in the early 13th century. The Armenian kings substantially rebuilt the citadel on the dramatic isolated ridge above the city, constructing the surviving polygonal towers and curtain walls and a series of churches both within the citadel and the lower town. After two centuries of Armenian rule the city was stormed and destroyed by Mamluk forces under al-Ashraf Sha'ban in 1374, after which it was permanently abandoned. ## Landmarks - Roman Stadium (built 100 AD) A large Roman stadium of the 2nd century CE situated in the lower city, with substantial sections of the seating and entrance arches preserved. Together with the nearby theatre and the colonnaded streets, the stadium attests the metropolitan status of Roman Caesarea ad Anazarbum. - Triumphal Arch of Anazarbus (built 200 AD) A monumental triple-arched triumphal gate dating to the 2nd or early 3rd century CE, marking the northern entrance of the Roman city. The arch survives largely intact and is one of the best-preserved Roman triumphal arches in Asia Minor, with the central archway flanked by two smaller side arches and decorated with reliefs and inscriptions. - Citadel of Anazarbus (built 550 AD) The fortified upper city occupying the summit of the isolated limestone ridge that rises some 200 metres above the Çukurova plain. The surviving polygonal walls, gates and towers are predominantly Justinianic and Armenian Cilician work of the 6th–13th centuries, overlying earlier Hellenistic and Roman foundations. The citadel served as the principal stronghold of the Armenian Rubenid princes and the early Armenian Cilician kings. - Church of the Apostles (built 1180 AD) An Armenian Cilician church within the citadel complex, built during the 12th–13th centuries under the Rubenid and early Hetumid rulers as one of the principal religious foundations of the medieval capital. The standing walls preserve traces of the original Armenian frescoes and inscriptions. ## Population History - 300 BC: 2,000 - 100 BC: 10,000 - 200 AD: 25,000 - 500 AD: 30,000 - 600 AD: 20,000 - 800 AD: 12,000 - 1000 AD: 8,000 - 1200 AD: 15,000 - 1300 AD: 10,000 - 1374 AD: null --- # Ani, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/ani Founded: 300 AD Ended: 1700 AD Coordinates: 40.5074, 43.5726 ## Description Ani, known as the 'City of 1,001 Churches', was once a thriving medieval Armenian capital and a major trade hub on the Silk Road. Located on a triangular site protected by deep ravines on the modern Türkiye-Armenia frontier, the city reached its peak under the Bagratid Armenian dynasty in the 10th and 11th centuries when it served as the royal capital. After successive Byzantine, Seljuk, Georgian, and Mongol takeovers, devastating earthquakes, and shifting trade routes, Ani was effectively abandoned by 1700. Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, its extensive ruins remain as a testament to Armenian cultural and architectural achievement. ## Historical Rulers - 300 AD – 428 AD: Kingdom of Armenia Ani emerged as a small Armenian settlement during the Late Arsacid kingdom of Armenia. The site lay within the broader Armenian highlands and served as a minor regional crossroads connecting the Mediterranean with the Caucasus. - 428 AD – 636 AD: Sasanian Empire After the abolition of the Arsacid Armenian monarchy in 428 CE, the kingdom was partitioned between the Sasanian Empire and Byzantium, with Ani falling under Sasanian-controlled Marzpanate Armenia. The settlement continued as a small Armenian community under Persian-appointed marzpans. - 636 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate Following the Arab conquest of Armenia in the 640s, the region was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate. Ani remained a small Armenian Christian settlement under Arab administrative oversight. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, Armenia was administered as the Arminiyya province. Ani continued as a small settlement under local Armenian noble families who served as governors for the Caliphate. - 750 AD – 885 AD: Abbasid Caliphate Under the Abbasid Caliphate, Armenia became a frontier province administered through Armenian noble intermediaries. The Kamsarakan and later Bagratuni families consolidated regional power within the Abbasid framework, setting the stage for the restoration of an Armenian kingdom. - 885 AD – 1045 AD: Armenian Bagratid Kingdom Ashot I Bagratuni founded the Bagratid Armenian Kingdom in 885 CE under Abbasid recognition, and Ashot III moved the capital to Ani in 961. Under Bagratid rule Ani became the largest and wealthiest city of medieval Armenia, with monumental churches, palaces, and double city walls, and its position on the Silk Road brought extensive Persian, Byzantine, and Caucasus trade. - 1045 AD – 1064 AD: Byzantine Empire Following the death of the last Bagratid king Gagik II and the cession of the kingdom to Constantine IX Monomachos in 1045, Ani came under direct Byzantine rule. This period marked the transition of Armenian cultural autonomy to Byzantine imperial control, weakening the city's defenses just before the Seljuk advance. - 1064 AD – 1199 AD: Seljuk Empire Alp Arslan's Seljuk conquest of Ani in 1064 was a major blow to the Christian Caucasus and presaged Manzikert. The city continued to function as a trade center under Seljuk and then Shaddadid emirs, but gradually lost its Armenian character. - 1199 AD – 1236 AD: Kingdom of Georgia Queen Tamar of Georgia and her armies took Ani in 1199 and incorporated it into the Bagrationi-ruled Georgian Kingdom. Georgian and Armenian noble families exercised shared control over Ani during this period and the city maintained regional importance despite the shifting political landscape. - 1236 AD – 1335 AD: Mongol Empire Mongol forces captured Ani in 1236 and the city was incorporated into the Ilkhanate centered in Iran. The Mongol period devastated trade routes that sustained Ani's economy, and the city entered a long demographic decline as merchants sought safer alternatives. - 1335 AD – 1468 AD: Kara Koyunlu After the dissolution of the Ilkhanate, Ani passed under the Jalayirid and then the Kara Koyunlu Turkmen confederation. The city continued its long decline, accelerated by the devastating earthquake of 1319. - 1468 AD – 1502 AD: Aq Qoyunlu Uzun Hasan's Aq Qoyunlu Turkmen confederation displaced the Kara Koyunlu and held Ani as a peripheral frontier town. The city was effectively a depopulated ruin by this period. - 1502 AD – 1579 AD: Safavid Iran Shah Ismail's Safavid Empire took the area as part of its rapid expansion across eastern Anatolia and the Caucasus. Ani remained a depopulated ruin on the disputed Ottoman-Safavid frontier. - 1579 AD – 1700 AD: Ottoman Empire Following the Ottoman-Safavid war of 1578-1590, Ani passed to the Ottoman Empire. The site was effectively abandoned by the 17th century, leaving only the ruins that would later be rediscovered by 19th-century European travelers. ## Landmarks - City Walls (built 977 AD) Built by King Smbat II, the double walls stretched over 2.5 kilometers and featured numerous towers and gates. They were considered impregnable until the Seljuk conquest of 1064. - Cathedral of Ani (built 1001 AD) Completed by architect Trdat the Bagratid, the cathedral showcases Armenian architectural innovations including pointed arches and a tall central dome. Its design influenced Gothic architecture in Europe through architectural exchange in the medieval Mediterranean. - Church of the Holy Redeemer (built 1035 AD) Originally an impressive 19-sided polygonal church, only half survives today after a 1957 lightning strike caused partial collapse. It was built to house a fragment of the True Cross. - Ani Mosque of Minuchir (built 1072 AD) Built following the Seljuk conquest by the Shaddadid emir Manuchihr, this mosque features a distinctive minaret and mihrab. It is the earliest surviving Seljuk-period mosque in Anatolia. ## Population History - 300 AD: 500 - 961 AD: 20,000 - 1000 AD: 100,000 - 1064 AD: 80,000 - 1236 AD: 20,000 - 1500 AD: 2,000 - 1700 AD: null --- # Ankara, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/ankara Founded: 2500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.9334, 32.8597 ## Description Ankara is the capital of Türkiye and one of Anatolia's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Known as Ancyra in antiquity and Angora during the Ottoman period, it served as the capital of the Roman province of Galatia and became world-famous for its angora wool. After the Turkish War of Independence, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk chose Ankara as the capital of the newly founded Republic of Türkiye in 1923, transforming it from a small Anatolian town into a modern metropolis. ## Historical Rulers - 2500 BC – 1650 BC: Hattian Civilization (known as "Ankuwash") Early Anatolian settlement during the Hattian period and Early-to-Middle Bronze Age, serving as a regional center on the eastern edge of the Hattian cultural sphere. The site has been tentatively identified with the Hattian-Hittite city of Ankuwa. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Ankuwash") Ankuwash remained an important city under Hittite imperial control from the Old Kingdom of Hattusili I through the New Kingdom collapse around 1180 BCE. The settlement contributed to the empire's administrative and military network across central Anatolia. - 1180 BC – 700 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "Ankyra") Following the Bronze Age collapse, the city became part of the Phrygian cultural sphere, adopting the name Ankyra and serving as a regional Iron Age settlement. - 700 BC – 547 BC: Lydian Kingdom (known as "Ankyra") Under Lydian rule, Ankyra maintained its position as an important settlement in the Lydian sphere of influence in central Anatolia. - 547 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Ankyra") Ankyra became part of the Persian Empire's Lydian satrapy, integrated into the vast imperial administrative system under Achaemenid rule. - 333 BC – 278 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Ancyra") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought Ancyra into the Macedonian sphere, after which the region passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. The Celtic Galatian migration into central Anatolia in 278 BCE ended Macedonian-successor control. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom (known as "Ancyra") Celtic Galatians settled central Anatolia from 278 BCE under three tribal confederations, and made Ancyra a major tribal centre and the seat of the Tectosages. The Galatian period lasted until Augustus's annexation of Galatia as a Roman province in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Ancyra") Augustus made Ancyra the capital of the province of Galatia. The Temple of Augustus, still standing today, was erected in his honor. - 395 AD – 1073 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Ancyra") As a provincial city of the Byzantine Empire, Ancyra remained a significant Christian center and underwent periodic reconstruction following Arab raids. - 1073 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Engürü") Following the Seljuk victory at Manzikert, the city became known as Engürü and served as an important administrative center of the Sultanate of Rum. - 1243 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Engürü") Following the Seljuk defeat at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243, Engürü passed under Mongol Ilkhanid suzerainty administered through Seljuk officials. The city remained a significant regional center on the central Anatolian plateau. - 1335 AD – 1354 AD: Eretna Principality (known as "Engürü") After the dissolution of Ilkhanid authority, central Anatolia passed under the Eretnid beylik centered on Sivas and Kayseri. Engürü continued as a regional administrative center under Eretnid rule until Ottoman expansion. - 1354 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Angora") Timur defeated Sultan Bayezid I at the Battle of Ankara in 1402, briefly disrupting Ottoman control before it was restored. In 1919 Mustafa Kemal established the Turkish nationalist movement here, and the Turkish Grand National Assembly convened in Ankara in 1920; the sultanate was abolished in 1922 and the Ottoman period formally closed with the founding of the Republic on 29 October 1923. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Declared capital of the Republic of Türkiye on October 13, 1923. ## Landmarks - Temple of Augustus (built 25 BC) Built by the Galatian king Amyntas around 25 BC to honor Augustus, it is one of the best-preserved Roman temples in Anatolia. Its walls bear the Res Gestae Divi Augusti, Augustus's political testament inscribed in Latin and Greek. - Ankara Castle (built 620 AD) A hilltop citadel with origins in Roman and Byzantine times, substantially rebuilt in the 7th century against Arab raids. The castle's inner keep (İç Kale) still dominates the old city and houses the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations within its walls. - Hacı Bayram Mosque (built 1428 AD) Built in 1428 adjacent to the Temple of Augustus by the Sufi saint Hacı Bayram Veli, who is buried here. The mosque blends Seljuk and Ottoman architectural styles and remains one of Ankara's most sacred sites. - Anıtkabir (built 1944 AD) The mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Republic of Türkiye, constructed between 1944 and 1953. Set on a hilltop commanding the city, it is a major national monument and receives millions of visitors annually. ## Population History - 2500 BC: 1,000 - 1500 BC: 3,000 - 500 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 100,000 - 500 AD: 40,000 - 1000 AD: 20,000 - 1500 AD: 30,000 - 1800 AD: 25,000 - 1900 AD: 30,000 - 1923 AD: 75,000 - 1950 AD: 290,000 - 1975 AD: 1,700,000 - 2000 AD: 3,200,000 - 2025 AD: 5,800,000 --- # Antandrus, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/antandrus Founded: 1000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.5667, 26.9667 ## Description Antandrus was an ancient Aeolian Greek city on the Adramyttene Gulf in Mysia, on the southern slope of Mount Ida in northwestern Anatolia. Founded by Aeolian Greek settlers around 1000 BCE, it served the Aegean as a timber port for the cedar and pine forests of Ida and is mentioned by Herodotus and Strabo. Antandrus retained civic importance through Achaemenid, Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine rule — including a Nicaean phase after the Fourth Crusade — before declining into a small medieval Turkish settlement under the Karesi Beylik. The site continued under the Ottomans as the small fishing and trading village of Altınoluk, which has since grown into a modern coastal town in the Edremit district of Balıkesir Province with roughly 20,000 inhabitants today. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 546 BC: Aeolian Civilization (known as "Antandros") Antandros was founded by Aeolian Greek settlers along the southern slope of Mount Ida and developed as one of the coastal Aeolian cities of Mysia. The Aeolian poleis of northwestern Anatolia and Lesbos shared a common dialect of Greek and cultural identity distinct from the Ionian and Dorian Greeks further south. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Antandros") Following the Lydian collapse, Antandros came under Persian Achaemenid rule as part of the broader satrapal administration of western Anatolia. The city continued as a prosperous timber-exporting port serving the Aegean shipbuilding industry while paying tribute to the Persian crown. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Antandros") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought Antandros under Macedonian control, and the city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi under Antigonid and Lysimachian rule. Anatolian control consolidated under the Seleucids after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Antandros") Antandros was integrated into the Seleucid realm as a coastal town of Mysia, continuing its role as a Greek-speaking port supplying Ida timber to the Aegean. After the Roman defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea reassigned the region to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Antandros") Antandros was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon under the Treaty of Apamea, becoming part of the Pergamene Aegean coastal network. Pergamene rule over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Antandros") Antandros was incorporated into the new Roman province of Asia after the Attalid bequest, maintaining its prosperity as part of the expanding Roman commercial network and benefiting from the Pax Romana. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Antandros") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city continued as an important timber-trading settlement during the early and late Imperial periods. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Antandros") Antandros continued as a Byzantine settlement with gradual economic decline, suffering the long-term urban contraction common to many late antique and Byzantine Anatolian coastal towns. After Manzikert in 1071 the Mysian coast was briefly contested but recovered during the Komnenian campaigns of the 12th century. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Empire of Nicaea (known as "Antandros") After the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople in 1204, the Aegean coast of Mysia came under the Empire of Nicaea, the Byzantine successor state whose Laskarid emperors held northwestern Anatolia. Antandros continued as a small coastal community within the Nicaean realm until Michael VIII Palaiologos recovered Constantinople in 1261. - 1261 AD – 1303 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Antandros") After the Palaiologos restoration of the Byzantine capital at Constantinople, the Mysian coast returned to direct Byzantine administration. By the end of the 13th century the western Anatolian frontier was steadily eroded by Turkmen ghazis, and the area passed to the rising Karesi Beylik. - 1303 AD – 1345 AD: Karesi Beylik (known as "Antandros") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the southern Marmara and Mysian coast passed to the Karesi Beylik centered at Balıkesir. The site continued as a small rural settlement under Karesi rule until Ottoman annexation around 1345. - 1345 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Altınoluk") Following the Ottoman annexation of the Karesi Beylik, the settlement was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system and became known as Altınoluk ('Golden Spout'). The town evolved as a fishing and trading settlement, gradually shifting from its ancient urban character to a modest provincial harbor village. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Altınoluk") Under the Turkish Republic Altınoluk developed rapidly through twentieth-century coastal tourism and as a summer resort destination on the Adramyttene Gulf. The modern town in Edremit district of Balıkesir Province today has roughly 20,000 inhabitants, and the ancient site of Antandros is administered as a protected archaeological zone with ongoing Turkish excavations. ## Landmarks - Necropolis of Antandrus (built 500 BC) A large cemetery with rich grave goods, including imported Greek pottery and elite burials, shedding light on the social structures and trade connections of ancient Antandrus. Excavated by Turkish archaeologists since the early 2000s, the necropolis is the principal source of evidence for the Aeolian and Classical phases of the city. - Ancient Residential District (built 400 BC) Excavations have uncovered well-preserved houses, paved roads, and workshops, revealing aspects of daily life in a coastal Anatolian polis. The residential plan and finds indicate continuous habitation from the Classical through the Late Roman period. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 4,000 - 0 AD: 6,000 - 500 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1900 AD: 2,000 - 2020 AD: 20,000 --- # Antioch, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/antioch Founded: 300 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.2021, 36.1611 ## Description Antioch — modern Antakya — was one of the great cities of the ancient Mediterranean world, founded by Seleucus I Nicator around 300 BCE on the lower Orontes river in the Amik plain of southern Anatolia. As the capital of the Seleucid Empire and later the Roman province of Syria, Antioch grew into the third-largest city of the Roman world after Rome and Alexandria, with a population approaching half a million inhabitants and a status as the principal eastern metropolis where, according to the Acts of the Apostles, the followers of Christ were first called Christians. The city remained a leading Christian patriarchate and Byzantine urban centre through late antiquity, surviving devastating Sasanian sacks in 540 and 611, the catastrophic 526 earthquake, and a full Sasanian occupation between 611 and 628 before falling to the Rashidun Arabs in 638. Under successive Umayyad, Abbasid, and Hamdanid rule it remained an important frontier city until Byzantine reconquest by Nikephoros II Phokas in 969. After a brief Seljuk interlude (1084–1098) Antioch became the capital of the Crusader Principality of Antioch for 170 years, until Baybars's Mamluk army stormed and sacked the city in 1268 in a catastrophe from which it never recovered its earlier prominence. Ottoman rule from 1516 to 1918 preserved Antakya as a modest provincial sanjak centre, after which it passed under French Mandate administration as the Sanjak of Alexandretta (1918–1938), became the briefly independent Republic of Hatay (1938–1939), and was finally incorporated into the Republic of Türkiye in 1939 as the capital of Hatay province. The February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes inflicted catastrophic damage on the historic urban fabric of the modern city. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire The city was founded as a Hellenistic settlement and served as the capital of the Seleucid Empire, becoming one of the greatest cities of the eastern Mediterranean and a major center of trade and culture. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Pompey's annexation in 64 BCE, Antioch became the capital of the Roman province of Syria and remained one of the most important cities in the Roman East throughout the Republic and Imperial periods. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city grew into the third-largest of the Roman world after Rome and Alexandria, an early center of Christianity (where the followers of Christ were first called Christians per Acts 11:26), and the site of major imperial building campaigns under Augustus, the Antonines, and the Theodosian emperors. - 395 AD – 611 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Antioch remained a leading patriarchal see and one of the great cities of the Christian East. Khosrow I's Sasanian forces sacked the city in 540 CE and again in 573 but it was rebuilt each time and continued as a Byzantine urban center until the major Sasanian invasion of 611. - 611 AD – 628 AD: Sasanian Empire Khosrow II's armies captured Antioch in 611 during the great Roman-Persian war and held it for nearly two decades as part of the Sasanian conquest of Syria. Heraclius recovered the city in 628 with the conclusion of the war and the restoration of Byzantine control over Syria. - 628 AD – 638 AD: Byzantine Empire Heraclius restored Byzantine rule over Antioch after the Sasanian withdrawal, but the city's recovery was brief. The Arab conquest of Syria under the Rashidun general Abu Ubayda ended Byzantine rule less than a decade later. - 638 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Antakya") Following Arab conquest, Antioch transitioned to Islamic rule under the Rashidun Caliphate. The city adapted to new governance while maintaining its significant merchant networks and multicultural character. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Antakya") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based in Damascus, Antakya served as the principal urban center of the Jund Qinnasrin military district along the Byzantine frontier. The city retained much of its late-antique fabric and a large Christian population while being incorporated into the new Arab military and administrative system. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Antakya") Under Abbasid administration Antakya remained an important provincial city of northern Syria and a major thaghr — frontier strongpoint — facing Byzantine Anatolia. The city was contested through the period of weakening Abbasid central authority and brief Tulunid and Ikhshidid interludes that nominally acknowledged caliphal suzerainty. - 944 AD – 969 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Antakya") Sayf al-Dawla of the Shi'a Hamdanid dynasty took Aleppo and northern Syria in 944, making Antakya a frontier base for his decades-long wars with the resurgent Byzantine Empire. Hamdanid rule ended when Nikephoros II Phokas's general Michael Bourtzes recaptured Antakya for Byzantium in 969. - 969 AD – 1084 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Antakya") Byzantine reconquest restored Christian control and stimulated economic recovery. Antioch regained prominence as a major Byzantine city in the east, benefiting from renewed investment and trade networks. - 1084 AD – 1098 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Antakya") Seljuk control was brief, lasting only about fourteen years before Crusader forces arrived. The city experienced significant military pressure during this period of rapid political transition. - 1098 AD – 1268 AD: Crusader Principality of Antioch Captured by the armies of the First Crusade in June 1098 after an eight-month siege, Antioch became the capital of the Crusader Principality of Antioch under Bohemond of Taranto and his Norman successors. The city was the seat of one of the four major Crusader states in the Levant, hosting a Latin patriarchate alongside its Greek and Syriac Christian communities, and remained a centre of Frankish power for 170 years until Baybars's Mamluk army stormed and sacked it on 18 May 1268. - 1268 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Antakya") After Baybars's brutal sack of 1268 — which the Templar Grand Master called the greatest catastrophe ever to befall Christendom — Antakya never recovered its earlier prominence. Under Mamluk administration the much-reduced settlement served as a minor centre within the Aleppo viceroyalty, with most of the surviving population concentrated within the diminished urban core inside the old walls. - 1516 AD – 1918 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Antakya") Annexed by Selim I after the Battle of Marj Dabiq in 1516, Antakya was incorporated into the Ottoman Aleppo Vilayet as a sanjak centre on the Mediterranean approaches to Aleppo. The city remained a modest provincial centre with a multi-confessional population of Sunni and Alawite Muslims, Greek Orthodox, Syriac, Armenian, and Jewish communities, until the Ottoman defeat in the First World War ended four centuries of Ottoman rule with the Mudros Armistice of October 1918. - 1918 AD – 1938 AD: French Mandate of Syria (known as "Antakya") After the Mudros Armistice in October 1918 the region was occupied by French forces and formally placed under the French Mandate of Syria by the 1920 San Remo conference and the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne. The autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta was created within the Mandate to recognise the territory's substantial Turkish-speaking population, and remained under French administration until the 1936–1938 Franco-Turkish agreements that established a separate transitional Hatay republic. - 1938 AD – 1939 AD: Republic of Hatay (known as "Antakya") In September 1938 the Sanjak of Alexandretta was reorganised as the nominally independent Republic of Hatay with Antakya as its capital, under a Franco-Turkish accord and with French troops still nominally guaranteeing order. The Turkish-dominated parliament voted on 29 June 1939 to dissolve the republic and request union with Türkiye. - 1939 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Antakya") Following the Hatay parliament's vote in June 1939, the territory was incorporated into the Republic of Türkiye as the new province of Hatay, with Antakya as its provincial capital. The transfer was strongly contested by the Syrian Arab Republic, which has never formally recognised it. Antakya developed through the 20th century into a regional Mediterranean city of nearly 400,000 inhabitants before suffering catastrophic damage in the February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes, which destroyed much of the historic urban fabric and displaced large portions of the population. ## Landmarks - Walls of Antioch (built 200 BC) Antioch's impressive stone walls, some sections over 10 meters high, were expanded by various rulers to defend against Persian, Arab, and Crusader invasions. - Great Colonnaded Street (built 100 BC) A grand colonnaded street running through Antioch, paved with stone slabs and flanked by covered sidewalks, showcasing the city's prosperity during Roman times. - Church of Saint Peter (built 40 AD) A cave church on the slopes of Mount Staurin, where early Christians are said to have gathered. The structure was expanded and embellished over the centuries. ## Population History - 300 BC: 20,000 - 200 BC: 120,000 - 100 BC: 150,000 - 1 AD: 200,000 - 361 AD: 150,000 - 500 AD: 150,000 - 600 AD: 100,000 - 965 AD: 30,000 - 1100 AD: 30,000 - 1150 AD: 40,000 - 1268 AD: 27,000 - 1856 AD: 21,000 - 1965 AD: 128,412 - 2021 AD: 393,634 --- # Apasas, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/apasas Founded: 1700 BC Ended: 1200 BC Coordinates: 37.951, 27.368 ## Description Apasas was a Late Bronze Age Anatolian city located on Ayasuluk Hill, near modern Selçuk. It served as the capital of the Arzawa state and later became a Hittite vassal. Mentioned repeatedly in Hittite cuneiform records, Apasas was strategically important for relations between the Hittite Empire and the Mycenaean Greeks (Ahhiyawa). The city was destroyed around 1200 BCE during the wider Late Bronze Age collapse and remained largely abandoned until medieval times, when Byzantine refugees from the nearby classical city of Ephesus would eventually return to the same hill — by then a separate community known as Ayasoluk; see the Selçuk entry for the medieval and modern continuation on Ayasuluk Hill. ## Historical Rulers - 1700 BC – 1320 BC: Arzawa Capital of the western Anatolian kingdom of Arzawa, the dominant regional power on the Aegean coast through much of the Late Bronze Age. The city repeatedly clashed with the expanding Hittite Empire and traded with the Mycenaean Greek world (the Hittite 'Ahhiyawa'). - 1320 BC – 1200 BC: Hittite Empire After King Mursili II's campaigns shattered the Arzawan confederation around 1320 BCE, Apasas continued as a Hittite vassal city. The city remained a contested frontier point between Hittite authority and Mycenaean Greek influence on the Aegean coast, before being destroyed around 1200 BCE during the systemic Bronze Age collapse that ended the Hittite Empire and most Bronze Age Aegean civilizations. ## Population History - 1700 BC: 2,000 - 1500 BC: 4,000 - 1320 BC: 5,000 - 1201 BC: 500 - 1200 BC: null --- # Aphrodisias, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/aphrodisias Founded: 5800 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.7081, 28.7239 ## Description Aphrodisias was an ancient Carian and Greco-Roman city in southwestern Anatolia, renowned for its sanctuary of Aphrodite, exceptional marble sculpture workshops drawing on local quarries, and remarkably preserved monumental architecture. As a free city with tax-exempt status granted by Augustus, it enjoyed prosperity and architectural development rivaling larger provincial centers, leaving an exceptionally intact stadium, theater, baths, Sebasteion, and Tetrapylon. The urban city was largely abandoned around 1200 CE after centuries of Byzantine decline, but a small Turkish-era village known as Geyre — a Turkified rendering of the regional name Caria — grew up directly on the ruins under the Sultanate of Rum, Aydın Beylik, and Ottoman rule. The Turkish government relocated the inhabitants roughly 2 km west of the site in the 1950s and 1960s to permit full archaeological excavation, and the relocated Geyre village remains the canonical modern community of Aphrodisias with around 2,500 inhabitants today. The archaeological zone was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2017. ## Historical Rulers - 5800 BC – 5500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Pekmez Höyük") Earliest documented occupation at the Pekmez Höyük within the later Aphrodisias site, established as a small Late Neolithic farming community in the inland Anatolian highlands. Subsistence was based on mixed cereal cultivation and animal husbandry, with simple mudbrick architecture and locally produced ceramics. - 5500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Pekmez Höyük") Through the Chalcolithic the Pekmez Höyük continued as a small agricultural community engaged in mixed farming and early copper use. No central polity emerged here; the settlement was one of many farming villages of the inland Anatolian highlands during the long pre-urban period. - 3000 BC – 1200 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Pekmez Höyük") The Pekmez Höyük continued in occupation through the Early, Middle, and Late Bronze Age, participating in the regional settlement system of inland Caria. Material culture indicates contact with the wider Anatolian and Aegean networks without integration into a central state. - 1200 BC – 546 BC: Carian Civilization (known as "Ninoë") Iron Age Carian settlement known as Ninoë, a name associated with the Mesopotamian deity Nin and suggesting eastern cultural contact. The site participated in the wider Carian cultural sphere of southwestern Anatolia until Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE ended Carian independence. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Ninoë") Caria was absorbed into the Persian Empire after Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia and administered as part of the Carian satrapy, often under the rule of the Persian-appointed Hekatomnid dynasty centered at Halikarnassos and Mylasa. Ninoë continued as a Carian town under Persian overlordship. - 334 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Megale Polis") Alexander's campaign through Asia Minor brought the city under Macedonian rule, when it was briefly known as Megale Polis ('Great City') in Greek sources. After Alexander's death the city passed through Antigonid control until the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BCE. - 301 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire After the Battle of Ipsus, Caria passed to the Seleucids and the city took the name Aphrodisias from its cult of Aphrodite established during this period. After the Roman defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea transferred much of southwestern Anatolia to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Aphrodisias was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon under the Treaty of Apamea. Pergamene rule over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Aphrodisias was incorporated into the new Roman province of Asia, gaining favored status under Sulla and later Julius Caesar, and was granted 'free city' (libera et immunis) status by Augustus around 7 CE as a sister city of Rome. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Roman rule it reached the peak of its marble sculpture school and saw major monumental construction including the Sebasteion, Hadrianic Baths, and Tetrapylon. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Stauropolis") Renamed Stauropolis ('City of the Cross') after Christianization, the city became an important ecclesiastical center of Caria and the Temple of Aphrodite was converted into a basilica. The Byzantine city declined steadily through earthquakes and economic contraction until the Seljuk advance into western Anatolia after Manzikert ended Byzantine rule. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Geyre") After the Battle of Manzikert the region passed under the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate of Rum, with brief Byzantine recoveries under the Komnenoi and Nicaeans in the 12th and early 13th centuries. The urban core was effectively abandoned around 1200, and a small rural community took the Turkified form of the regional name 'Caria' as Geyre. - 1308 AD – 1425 AD: Aydın Beylik (known as "Geyre") Following the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Aphrodisias area passed to the Aydın Beylik centered at Birgi and later Ayasuluk. The small Turkish farming village of Geyre persisted directly on top of the ancient site with cottages and farmyards built among the marble columns and stoas of the classical city. - 1425 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Geyre") After the final Ottoman annexation of the Aydın Beylik in the early 15th century, Geyre was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system as a small village within the Aydın Sancak. The community remained modest, with population in the low hundreds, but was continuously inhabited throughout the long Ottoman period. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Geyre") Under the Turkish Republic the village of Geyre was relocated roughly 2 km west of the ancient site in the 1950s and 1960s to permit full archaeological excavation under the joint Turkish-American Aphrodisias Expedition. The relocated Geyre village in Karacasu district of Aydın Province continues today with roughly 2,500 inhabitants as the modern community of Aphrodisias; the archaeological zone was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2017. ## Landmarks - South Agora (built 200 BC) A large rectangular public space measuring 215 by 175 meters, surrounded by colonnaded porticoes with shops and civic buildings. The agora underwent several phases of construction, with significant renovations during the Roman imperial period, and a monumental tetrapylon gateway marked its entrance on the north side. - Temple of Aphrodite (built 100 BC) An impressive Ionic temple with 8 columns on its short sides and 13 on its long sides, constructed of local marble and enclosing an earlier cult structure. It housed the sacred image of Aphrodite of Aphrodisias and was converted into a Christian basilica in the 5th century CE by removing the interior walls and adding an apse at the eastern end. - Stadium (built 100 BC) A massive structure measuring 262 meters long and 59 meters wide with seating for 30,000 spectators across 30 tiers, distinctive for its curved closures at both ends. The stadium hosted athletic games and ceremonies and remained in use through the Byzantine period for civic gatherings. - Theater (built 27 BC) Originally constructed in the late Hellenistic period and extensively remodeled during the Roman era, the theater could seat approximately 8,000 spectators. In the 2nd century CE the orchestra was converted into a pool for aquatic displays, and the stage building preserves remarkable sculptural reliefs depicting Apollo, Muses, and mythological scenes. - Sebasteion (built 20 AD) A three-story complex with two parallel colonnaded halls 80 meters long leading to a temple of the divine emperors, adorned with over 200 marble relief panels depicting Roman mythology, conquered nations, and imperial family members. The sculptural program celebrates the perceived divine nature of the emperors and Rome's imperial ideology. - Bouleuterion (built 100 AD) A semicircular roofed building with tiered seating for approximately 1,700 people, featuring an elaborately decorated stage and excellent acoustics. The roofed design made it suitable for musical performances and council meetings throughout the year regardless of weather. - Hadrianic Baths (built 120 AD) A massive bath complex built in honor of Emperor Hadrian's visit to the city, featuring the typical Roman bathing sequence of cold, warm, and hot rooms. The complex also included an exercise palaestra, relaxation rooms, and sophisticated heating and water management systems. - Tetrapylon (built 200 AD) An elaborate marble gateway with four rows of four columns supporting a broken pediment and intricate ceiling coffers. The structure features exquisitely carved Corinthian capitals and decorative elements that exemplify the virtuosity of Aphrodisian sculptors, and has been partially reconstructed to stand as one of the most recognizable landmarks of the site today. - Bishop's Palace (built 450 AD) A large complex built adjacent to the converted Temple of Aphrodite (now a basilica), featuring formal reception halls, private apartments, and administrative offices. The structure incorporated spolia from earlier pagan buildings and contained elaborate mosaic floors depicting Christian themes. ## Population History - 5800 BC: 100 - 3000 BC: 300 - 1200 BC: 800 - 500 BC: 3,000 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 8,000 - 0 AD: 10,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 200 AD: 20,000 - 300 AD: 18,000 - 400 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 12,000 - 600 AD: 10,000 - 700 AD: 6,000 - 900 AD: 5,000 - 1100 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 400 - 1923 AD: 800 - 2020 AD: 2,500 --- # Arsameia, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/arsameia Founded: 255 BC Ended: 72 AD Coordinates: 37.9428, 38.6569 ## Description Arsameia on the Nymphaios — known in modern Turkish as Eski Kale — was a small Hellenistic royal sanctuary city in the eastern Taurus mountains north of Samosata, founded around 255 BCE by the Orontid prince Arsames I at the older settlement of Nymphaios. Set on a steep rocky outcrop above the Nymphaios river (modern Kahta Çayı) some 8 km north of the modern town of Kâhta in Adıyaman Province, the site became one of the two principal royal hierothesia of the Kingdom of Commagene, complementing the great mountaintop hierothesion of Antiochus I Theos on Mount Nemrut. Arsameia served as the dynastic burial sanctuary of Mithridates I Callinicus (r. c. 100–70 BCE), the father of Antiochus I Theos, and preserves the longest surviving Greek inscription in Anatolia — the Nomos of Antiochus I — alongside the magnificently preserved dexiosis relief depicting Antiochus I clasping hands with a nude Herakles, the iconic monument of the syncretic Graeco-Persian dynastic religion of late Hellenistic Commagene. The royal sanctuary fell into disuse following Vespasian's annexation of Commagene in 72 CE, and was effectively abandoned in the early Roman period. The site is today preserved as an open-air archaeological monument managed within the network of Commagenian heritage sites around Mount Nemrut. ## Historical Rulers - 255 BC – 235 BC: Kingdom of Sophene The site of Nymphaios was refounded around 255 BCE as Arsameia by the Orontid prince Arsames I, who had inherited from his father Sames I an autonomous Armenian kingdom — Sophene — in the eastern Taurus. Arsames founded the royal city as one of the new dynastic centres of his realm, alongside the more important capital at Arsamosata on the upper Euphrates. The kingdom was reasserted under direct Seleucid control by Antiochus Hierax around 235 BCE. - 235 BC – 163 BC: Seleucid Empire Antiochus Hierax's Seleucid forces overran the Orontid territories around 235 BCE and reduced Arsameia to a regional Seleucid town within the upper Euphrates territories. Although Sophene re-emerged as an independent kingdom under the Zariadrid dynasty after the Battle of Magnesia in 188 BCE, the southern districts including Arsameia remained on the contested Seleucid–Sophene frontier until the local Seleucid satrap Ptolemaeus declared the independent Kingdom of Commagene in 163 BCE. - 163 BC – 72 AD: Kingdom of Commagene Arsameia became one of the two principal royal hierothesia of the Kingdom of Commagene, with Mithridates I Callinicus (r. c. 100–70 BCE) buried at the site and his son Antiochus I Theos (r. 70–38 BCE) commissioning the great Nomos inscription, the monumental dexiosis relief of Antiochus shaking hands with Herakles, and the rock-cut tunnel and ceremonial way. Following Vespasian's annexation of Commagene in 72 CE the dynastic sanctuary lost its cultic function and was abandoned in the early Roman period. ## Landmarks - Hierothesion of Mithridates I Callinicus (built 70 BC) The rock-cut dynastic sanctuary and burial complex of Mithridates I Callinicus, father of Antiochus I Theos of Commagene, situated on the upper terrace of the Eski Kale outcrop. The hierothesion was the principal royal cult site of the Commagenian dynasty before the construction of the more famous Mount Nemrut hierothesion, and the focal point of the annual royal religious calendar prescribed in the Nomos inscription. - Antiochus–Herakles Dexiosis Relief (built 50 BC) A monumental rock-cut relief commissioned by Antiochus I Theos depicting the king clasping the right hand of a nude Herakles, identified in the Commagenian syncretic theology with the Persian deity Artagnes. The relief is the best-preserved example of the distinctive Commagenian dexiosis genre, in which the king is portrayed as the divine equal of Greek and Iranian gods, and is among the most reproduced images of Hellenistic Anatolia. - Nomos Inscription of Antiochus I (built 50 BC) A long monumental Greek inscription of some 240 lines carved on the rock face beside the dexiosis relief, prescribing the ritual calendar and sacrificial regulations for the cult of Antiochus I and his ancestors. The Nomos is the longest surviving Greek inscription from Anatolia and the principal documentary source for the syncretic Graeco-Persian dynastic religion of Commagene. - Rock-Cut Tunnel of Arsameia (built 50 BC) A long sloping rock-cut tunnel descending from the upper terrace of the sanctuary to a depth of more than 150 metres into the hillside, of uncertain ritual or hydraulic function. The tunnel is one of the most distinctive Hellenistic engineering monuments of Anatolia and likely formed part of the ritual complex of the hierothesion. ## Population History - 255 BC: 500 - 100 BC: 1,500 - 50 BC: 2,000 - 1 AD: 1,000 - 72 AD: null --- # Arsamosata, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/arsamosata Founded: 240 BC Ended: 1234 AD Coordinates: 38.6609, 39.5109 ## Description Arsamosata — known in Armenian as Arshamashat and in later Arabic sources as Shimshat — was the principal royal capital of the Kingdom of Sophene, founded around 240 BCE by King Arsames I as the new dynastic seat replacing the older capital at Carcathiocerta (modern Eğil). The Persian-derived name meaning 'Joy of Arsames' followed Achaemenid royal naming conventions and reflected the strongly Iranian character of the Orontid dynasty. Set on a fortified mound on the north bank of the Murat river — the Arsanias of classical authors — west of modern Elazığ, the city served as a royal centre of Sophene through the Orontid and later Zariadrid dynasties until absorption into Tigranes the Great's Greater Armenia around 94 BCE. Under the Roman and Byzantine empires Arsamosata continued as a modest agricultural town and frontier fortress, captured and recaptured between the empire and the early caliphates from the 7th century onward, and was briefly the capital of a small Byzantine theme after the 939 reconquest. The geographer Yaqut already described it as 'in ruins, with only a tiny population' in the early 13th century; the surviving garrison probably withdrew after the Seljuk conquest of the region around 1234, and the settlement was permanently abandoned. The mound site of Haraba was excavated by D. H. French and the Aşvan Project between 1968 and 1973 in salvage work before the rising waters of the Keban Dam reservoir submerged the lower terraces of the site in 1974. ## Historical Rulers - 240 BC – 94 BC: Kingdom of Sophene Founded around 240 BCE by Arsames I of the Orontid dynasty of Sophene as his new royal capital, replacing the older Sophene seat at Carcathiocerta. The city served as the principal residence of the Orontid and later Zariadrid kings of Sophene through the 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE, including the period of Seleucid suzerainty under Antiochus Hierax from c. 235 BCE and the Zariadrid restoration after the Battle of Magnesia in 188 BCE. - 94 BC – 106 AD: Kingdom of Armenia Tigranes the Great absorbed Sophene into the expanding Greater Armenian kingdom around 94 BCE, ending Sophene's independence. Arsamosata continued as a regional centre of Armenian Sophene, intermittently under Roman client status from the late 1st century BCE through the long Armenian–Roman–Parthian frontier conflict until Trajan's annexation of Armenia in 114 CE. - 106 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Following the formal Roman incorporation of Sophene as a province by Trajan in the early 2nd century CE, Arsamosata became an imperial garrison town on the upper Euphrates frontier. The city was briefly capital of the late Roman province of Sophanene and contained an imperial mint operating during the late 3rd and 4th centuries. - 395 AD – 638 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Arsamosata continued as a fortified town of Roman Sophanene and an episcopal see, contested through the long Byzantine–Sasanian wars of the 6th and early 7th centuries until the Arab conquest of the upper Euphrates region. - 638 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Shimshat") Captured by Arab forces during the Muslim conquest of Armenia, Arsamosata — now known in Arabic as Shimshat — was incorporated into the early caliphal frontier system on the upper Euphrates. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Shimshat") Under Umayyad administration Shimshat continued as a Thughur frontier town on the upper Euphrates marches facing Byzantine Armenia. - 750 AD – 837 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Shimshat") Shimshat continued under Abbasid administration as a Thughur frontier town. The city was repeatedly contested in the Arab–Byzantine wars of the 8th and 9th centuries until Byzantine reconquest under the emperor Theophilus's eastern campaign. - 837 AD – 939 AD: Byzantine Empire Theophilus's eastern campaign of 837 restored Byzantine control over Arsamosata, though the city was repeatedly contested with the resurgent Hamdanid emirate of Aleppo and Mosul through the late 9th and early 10th centuries. - 939 AD – 958 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Shimshat") Hamdanid forces under Sayf al-Dawla recaptured Arsamosata in the late 930s and held it for two decades as a frontier outpost facing the resurgent Byzantines. The city was lost again following John Kourkouas's and Nikephoros Phokas's campaigns of the 950s. - 958 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire Byzantine reconquest in the late 950s made Arsamosata briefly the capital of a small Byzantine theme until that administrative arrangement was dismantled in the 970s. The town remained under Byzantine control through the 11th century until the Seljuk advance after Manzikert. - 1071 AD – 1085 AD: Marwanid Emirate (known as "Shimshat") After Manzikert in 1071 the upper Euphrates region passed under the Kurdish Marwanid emirate of Mayyafariqin, which absorbed Arsamosata along with much of the former Byzantine frontier. Marwanid rule ended with the Seljuk takeover of the emirate's territories in 1085. - 1085 AD – 1234 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Shimshat") After the Seljuk takeover of the Marwanid territories in 1085 Arsamosata declined sharply, with the geographer Yaqut already describing the city in the early 13th century as 'in ruins, with only a tiny population.' The remaining garrison probably withdrew following the consolidation of Seljuk Sultanate of Rum control over the region under Kayqubad I around 1234, after which the site was permanently abandoned. ## Landmarks - Citadel Mound of Arsamosata (built 240 BC) The fortified upper mound at Haraba on the north bank of the Murat river, originally laid out by Arsames I as the royal palace and citadel of Sophene's new capital. The site was reinforced and rebuilt successively by Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Hamdanid, and Seljuk garrisons over more than a millennium, with the surviving structures predominantly late antique and medieval. The lower terraces of the mound were inundated by the Keban Dam reservoir in 1974, but the citadel summit remains above the modern waterline. - Royal Palace of Arsames I (built 240 BC) The Hellenistic royal palace complex on the upper terrace of the mound, partially excavated by the Aşvan Project between 1968 and 1973 before the rising waters of the Keban Dam reservoir. The palace yielded substantial Sophene-period architectural remains and pottery, providing one of the few well-documented Orontid royal contexts in eastern Anatolia. ## Population History - 240 BC: 2,000 - 100 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 6,000 - 400 AD: 4,000 - 700 AD: 2,500 - 950 AD: 4,000 - 1100 AD: 2,000 - 1200 AD: 500 - 1234 AD: null --- # Arslantepe, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/arslantepe Founded: 4500 BC Ended: 700 BC Coordinates: 38.3815, 38.3608 ## Description Arslantepe (Aslantepe, 'Lion Hill') is one of the most important prehistoric and protohistoric sites of eastern Anatolia, the first of the three successive Malatya-plain cities and located on a settlement mound about 7 km northeast of modern Malatya. Continuously occupied from the Chalcolithic through the Late Iron Age, it provides the earliest known evidence of state formation in the region, including a monumental palatial complex with painted mudbrick walls (~3300 BCE) and one of the world's oldest weapon deposits. Through the Late Bronze Age it served as the Hittite frontier city Malidiya, and as the capital of the Neo-Hittite kingdom of Melid it produced spectacular stone sculptures, including the so-called Lion Gate that gives the site its modern name. Sargon II's Assyrian sack in 712 BCE marks the effective end of Arslantepe as a major center, and around 700 BCE the mound is abandoned; the place name 'Melid' eventually passes to the Roman fortress of Melitene (modern Battalgazi) founded roughly seven centuries later eight kilometers to the southwest, and from there to modern Malatya. Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2021. ## Historical Rulers - 4500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Arslantepe") Late Chalcolithic agricultural settlement on the Euphrates plain. The community developed centralized food storage and administrative practices that anticipate state formation, and by around 3300 BCE constructed the monumental palatial complex with painted mudbrick walls — one of the earliest known centralized state-like structures in the world. The site contains the earliest royal weapons cache (~50 swords and spearheads) and shows trade and ideological links with Late Uruk Mesopotamia. - 3000 BC – 2300 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Arslantepe") Post-palatial reorganization marked a sharp transformation as the site reduced in scale while continuing as a substantial settlement. Connections with the Transcaucasian Kura-Araxes culture became prominent during this period. - 2300 BC – 1340 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Arslantepe") Reduced occupation through the late Early Bronze Age and Middle Bronze Age disruptions in eastern Anatolia. The site continued in modest occupation as the broader upper Euphrates region passed through Akkadian collapse, the post-Hattian fragmentation of Anatolia, and the rise of the Mitanni kingdom that dominated the area before the Hittite reconquest under Suppiluliuma I. - 1340 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Malidiya") Suppiluliuma I's defeat of Mitanni around 1340 BCE brought the upper Euphrates region into the Hittite Empire, and Arslantepe became the Hittite frontier city Malidiya as recorded in cuneiform archives. The strategic position guarded the Euphrates crossing toward Mesopotamia and Syria, serving as a forward base for Hittite operations against the resurgent Middle Assyrian Empire until the Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 850 BC: Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Melid (known as "Malizi") After the collapse of the Hittite Empire, Arslantepe became the capital of the independent Neo-Hittite kingdom of Melid, ruled by a local dynasty using hieroglyphic Luwian. The famous stone lions and reliefs of the Lion Gate date to this period, and the kingdom became one of the major Iron Age polities of the upper Euphrates. - 850 BC – 712 BC: Urartu (known as "Melitea") Melid paid tribute to the expanding kingdom of Urartu while maintaining nominal independence under its local Luwian dynasty. The city was caught between Urartian and Neo-Assyrian rivalry on the upper Euphrates, with shifting tributary arrangements documented in both Urartian and Assyrian royal inscriptions. - 712 BC – 700 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Meliddu") Sargon II sacked Melid in 712 BCE, ending its role as a regional capital. The site was partially destroyed and rapidly diminished, with the area's population beginning to concentrate at the plain settlement that later became Roman Melitene and modern Battalgazi. ## Landmarks - Palatial Complex of Arslantepe (built 3300 BC) The Arslantepe Palace, featuring painted mudbrick walls and evidence of centralized governance and early weapon control, marks a pivotal moment in state formation history. One of the earliest known palace structures in the world. - Royal Tomb (built 3000 BC) A stone-built royal burial from the Early Bronze Age containing one adult and four sacrificed adolescents, accompanied by metalwork. Among the earliest known elite burials displaying human sacrifice in the Near East. - Neo-Hittite Lion Gate and Stone Sculptures (built 900 BC) The monumental stone lions and reliefs at Arslantepe are emblematic of the Neo-Hittite artistic tradition and served both protective and symbolic functions at city gates and ceremonial areas. The lions inspired the modern Turkish name of the site, 'Arslantepe' (Lion Hill). ## Population History - 4500 BC: 500 - 3300 BC: 3,000 - 3000 BC: 2,000 - 2500 BC: 5,000 - 2000 BC: 4,000 - 1200 BC: 8,000 - 900 BC: 10,000 - 712 BC: 5,000 - 700 BC: null --- # Aşıklı Höyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/asikli-hoyuk Founded: 8200 BC Ended: 7400 BC Coordinates: 38.3496, 34.23 ## Description Aşıklı Höyük is the earliest known village in central Anatolia, an Aceramic Pre-Pottery Neolithic settlement mound on the western bank of the Melendiz stream in the volcanic landscape of Cappadocia, approximately 25 kilometres southeast of Aksaray and 1 kilometre south of the modern Kızılkaya village. Occupied from around 8200 to 7400 BCE, the site documents one of the earliest sustained sedentary communities in central Anatolia and a prime example of the regional transition from mobile foraging to settled village life. Aşıklı Höyük's mud-brick houses were closely packed into honeycomb-like agglutinative plans accessed from rooftops, anticipating the much later famous arrangement at Çatalhöyük; its inhabitants practised early experimental sheep husbandry, used obsidian from the nearby Göllüdağ and Nenezi Dağ volcanic sources for an extensive lithic industry, and produced the oldest known evidence in Anatolia of cranial trepanation surgery performed on a living patient. The site was abandoned around 7400 BCE for reasons that remain debated, with the population apparently dispersing to other emerging Pre-Pottery Neolithic sites in the wider Cappadocian region, and was never reoccupied; archaeological work has been ongoing under Ufuk Esin and from 2006 Mihriban Özbaşaran, and the site forms part of the broader Cappadocian Aceramic Neolithic landscape proposed for UNESCO consideration. ## Historical Rulers - 8200 BC – 7400 BC: Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Aşıklı Höyük") Aşıklı Höyük was occupied continuously from around 8200 to 7400 BCE as one of the earliest sedentary communities on the central Anatolian plateau. Successive layers of densely packed mud-brick houses accessed from rooftops document the gradual elaboration of village life, with subsistence based on hunted gazelle and aurochs alongside early experimental management of sheep, while the nearby Göllüdağ and Nenezi Dağ obsidian sources supported a major lithic industry that exchanged blades and cores across central and southeastern Anatolia. The site was abandoned around 7400 BCE without later reoccupation. ## Landmarks - Agglutinative Mud-Brick Houses (built 8200 BC) Densely packed rectangular and oval mud-brick houses with plastered floors and internal hearths, arranged in honeycomb-like agglutinative plans accessed not by ground-level doors but from rooftops via wooden ladders. The arrangement anticipated by nearly two millennia the more famous later configuration at Çatalhöyük, and the successive house levels at Aşıklı Höyük preserve a continuous architectural sequence over some eight centuries of the Aceramic Neolithic. - Trepanation Burial (built 8000 BC) Skeletal remains from Aşıklı Höyük include the oldest known evidence in Anatolia of cranial trepanation surgery, performed on a living adult woman around 8000 BCE. The patient survived the procedure long enough for bone regrowth, making the find one of the earliest documented cases of successful prehistoric brain surgery anywhere in the world and a foundational discovery for the archaeology of early medicine. ## Population History - 8200 BC: 200 - 8000 BC: 400 - 7700 BC: 500 - 7500 BC: 300 - 7400 BC: null --- # Aspendos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/aspendos Founded: 1000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.9398, 31.1711 ## Description Aspendos was an ancient Pamphylian city on the Eurymedon river in southern Anatolia, today famous for housing one of the best-preserved Roman theaters in the world. Founded by mixed Anatolian and Aegean populations in the Early Iron Age and Hellenized through cultural contact, the city minted its own coinage under the local Pamphylian Greek name Estwediys and prospered from horse breeding, the salt trade, and inland Pamphylian agriculture. Under Roman rule it reached its monumental peak with the great theater built under Marcus Aurelius and a sophisticated siphon aqueduct system. The modern Turkish village of Belkıs sits directly beside the surviving theater in the Serik district of Antalya Province, descended from continuous small Turkmen and Ottoman village habitation since the late Byzantine period, and today numbers roughly 500 inhabitants. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 547 BC: Pamphylian Civilization (known as "Estwediys") Aspendos emerged in the Eurymedon valley as one of the autonomous cities of Pamphylia, a coastal southern Anatolian region settled by mixed indigenous Anatolian and Aegean migrant populations following the Late Bronze Age collapse. Local tradition tied the foundation to Greek colonists led by the seer Mopsus after the Trojan War, and the resulting communities developed the distinctive Pamphylian Greek dialect under which the city was known locally as Estwediys. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia, Pamphylia and its cities were absorbed into the Achaemenid satrapal system. Aspendos paid tribute to the Persian king while continuing to mint its own silver staters, and the Eurymedon river beside it became the site of the famous Greek victory over a Persian force around 466 BCE under the Athenian general Cimon. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire After Alexander's march through Asia Minor, Aspendos initially negotiated terms but later resisted, prompting Alexander to impose a heavier tribute and the surrender of the horses for which the city was famous. Following Alexander's death the city passed through the hands of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE consolidated Anatolian control under the Seleucids. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Under the Seleucid kings Aspendos retained its civic institutions and continued to mint its own coinage, although control of Pamphylia shifted periodically to Ptolemaic Kingdom during the Syrian Wars of the 3rd century BCE. After the Roman defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea transferred southern Anatolia to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Aspendos was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon under the Treaty of Apamea, becoming part of the broader Pergamene sphere across southern Anatolia. Pergamene rule over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Aspendos was incorporated into the new Roman province of Asia and later into the province of Pamphylia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under the Pax Romana the city reached its peak prosperity, gaining monumental architecture including the famous theater built under Marcus Aurelius and a sophisticated siphon aqueduct that brought water from the mountains 15 kilometers away. - 395 AD – 1207 AD: Byzantine Empire After the division of the Roman Empire in 395 CE, Aspendos came under Eastern Roman administration and Christianity became dominant, attested by the construction of a basilica within the old urban core. The city declined steadily through the Arab raids of the 7th-9th centuries and contracted further during the long medieval reorganization of southern Anatolia, until the Seljuk conquest of the Antalya region under Kayqubad I in 1207 ended Byzantine rule. - 1207 AD – 1321 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Belkıs") Following the Seljuk conquest of Pamphylia, a small Turkmen and later Turkish village known as Belkıs formed beside the surviving theater and basilica ruins, reusing antique blocks for its houses. The great theater itself was occasionally used as a caravanserai under Anatolian Seljuk rule, with Seljuk inscriptions and decoration added to its stage building. - 1321 AD – 1423 AD: Teke Beylik (known as "Belkıs") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Antalya region passed to the Teke Beylik centered at the coastal city of Antalya, which controlled the surrounding Pamphylian plain. Belkıs continued as a modest rural village under Teke rule until Ottoman annexation in the early 15th century. - 1423 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Belkıs") Following the final Ottoman annexation of the Teke Beylik, Belkıs was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system as a small village within the sancak of Teke. The community remained small and pastoral throughout the long Ottoman period, with no significant revival of the ancient urban core. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Belkıs") Under the Turkish Republic Belkıs has continued as a small village in the Serik district of Antalya Province, with roughly 500 inhabitants. The Roman theater of Aspendos was restored from the 1940s onward and has hosted the Aspendos International Opera and Ballet Festival since 1994, while the broader archaeological zone is administered as a protected site adjacent to the inhabited village. ## Landmarks - Aspendos Agora (built 150 BC) The city's main marketplace and civic center, surrounded by colonnades and public buildings where Aspendos's famous horses, salt, wine, and olive oil were traded. Archaeological excavations have revealed shops, administrative buildings, and a bouleuterion (council house) around this central space. - Theater of Aspendos (built 155 AD) Built by the local architect Zeno during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, this extraordinary theater could seat around 12,000 spectators and remains one of the best-preserved Roman theaters in the world. Its remarkable acoustics carry the human voice from the orchestra to the highest tier, and the stage building's elaborate facade with marble columns and statues survives largely intact. - Aspendos Aqueduct (built 160 AD) An ingenious pressurized water system brought water from springs in the mountains 15 km away across the Pamphylian plain. The system included an inverted siphon bridge crossing a valley using the principle of communicating vessels, with water flowing through pressurized stone pipes — substantial portions of the masonry piers and the channel remain visible today. - Basilica of Aspendos (built 500 AD) A Byzantine basilica constructed during the city's later period, representing the transformation of the formerly pagan Roman city into a Christian center. Only the foundations and some column fragments remain today. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 1,000 - 400 BC: 15,000 - 0 AD: 20,000 - 200 AD: 35,000 - 600 AD: 12,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: 200 - 1700 AD: 300 - 1923 AD: 400 - 2020 AD: 500 --- # Assos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/assos Founded: 1000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.4878, 26.3361 ## Description Assos was a significant ancient Greek city dramatically situated on a steep volcanic hill overlooking the Aegean Sea, commanding views of the island of Lesbos. The city is renowned for its exceptionally well-preserved Temple of Athena, a unique Doric structure with distinctive archaic features, and for being the location where Aristotle founded his first philosophical school. Built with locally quarried andesite stone that gives the ruins their characteristic dark color, Assos combined natural defensive advantages with sophisticated urban planning, and its strategic position controlling sea routes along the northern Aegean made it an important commercial center throughout antiquity. Following late Byzantine decline a small Turkmen and later Ottoman village known as Behramkale settled directly on the ancient acropolis around the Temple of Athena, and continues today as the modern village of Behramkale in Ayvacık district of Çanakkale Province, with roughly 500 permanent inhabitants living among the andesite ruins of the antique city. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 546 BC: Aeolian Civilization Founded by Aeolian Greek settlers from Lesbos, Assos developed as a fortified hilltop polis taking advantage of its volcanic acropolis and natural harbor. During this period it grew into one of the prominent Aeolian centers on the Troad coast, with civic and religious life centered on the temple precinct at the summit. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following the Persian conquest of Lydia and the Ionian coast, Assos was absorbed into the Achaemenid Empire and administered as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia. The city retained its Greek civic character while paying tribute to Persian authority, and in the mid-4th century BCE it briefly served as a center for the philosopher-tyrants Hermias and his circle, which included Aristotle. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Assos passed to Macedonian control as Alexander the Great swept through Asia Minor following his crossing of the Hellespont. After Alexander's death the city changed hands among the Diadochi, ultimately falling under Lysimachus until his defeat at Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Following Lysimachus's defeat at Corupedium in 281 BCE Assos was absorbed into the Seleucid Empire and administered as part of its Anatolian possessions. The city retained its Greek civic life under Seleucid suzerainty until Rome's victory at Magnesia and the Treaty of Apamea transferred most of Seleucid Asia Minor to Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Under the 188 BCE Treaty of Apamea Assos passed to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon and remained one of its Aeolian coastal possessions for over half a century. During this period the city saw significant monumental construction, including the expansion of its agora, stoas, and civic buildings. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic On the bequest of the Pergamene kingdom to Rome, Assos became part of the Roman province of Asia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. It remained a modest but prosperous port town, retaining its Greek civic institutions and gaining new Roman-era structures such as bath complexes; the city is also noted in the New Testament as a stop on the apostle Paul's journey. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman / Byzantine administration Assos continued as a regional bishopric and small fortified settlement, with population and economic importance declining steadily across late antiquity. After Manzikert in 1071 the Troad coast remained Byzantine through the long 12th-century Komnenian campaigns. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Empire of Nicaea After the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople in 1204, Assos and the Troad coast came under the Empire of Nicaea, the Byzantine successor state whose Laskarid emperors held northwestern Anatolia from the capital at neighbouring Nicaea (İznik). The city continued as a small fortified settlement on the Aegean shore of the Nicaean realm until Michael VIII Palaiologos recovered Constantinople in 1261. - 1261 AD – 1300 AD: Byzantine Empire After the Palaiologos restoration of Constantinople, Assos returned to direct Byzantine administration. By the end of the 13th century the city was largely depopulated as Turkish beyliks expanded across the Troad. - 1300 AD – 1345 AD: Karesi Beylik (known as "Behramkale") Following the Byzantine collapse a small Turkmen settlement formed directly on the ancient acropolis under the Karesi Beylik, the Turkmen principality controlling the Troad and southern Marmara from its capital at Balıkesir. The village known as Behramkale clustered among the Hellenistic and Roman ruins until the Ottoman annexation of the beylik in 1345. - 1345 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Behramkale") After Orhan's annexation of the Karesi Beylik in 1345, Behramkale continued as a small Ottoman rural community among the antique ruins. A small mosque was constructed near the Temple of Athena on the summit, partly using spolia from the ancient structures. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Behramkale") Under the Turkish Republic Behramkale has continued as a small village in the Ayvacık district of Çanakkale Province, with roughly 500 permanent inhabitants whose houses still stand among the ancient walls. The lower harbour area, today known as Assos İskelesi, developed in parallel as a small tourism-oriented hamlet, and the entire site is administered as a protected archaeological zone by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. ## Landmarks - Necropolis (built 800 BC) Located primarily along the approaches to the city, Assos's necropolis contains sarcophagi and tombs dating from the Archaic period through Byzantine times. The sarcophagi of Assos were famous in antiquity for their flesh-consuming properties (the term 'sarcophagus' literally means 'flesh-eater'). The local stone was believed to accelerate decomposition, leading to its use throughout the ancient world for burial containers. - Temple of Athena (built 530 BC) Constructed of local andesite stone on the highest point of the acropolis, this temple combines Doric architecture with unusual archaic features. Its columns have no bases, but the frieze is decorated with reliefs of sphinxes, griffins, and centaurs fighting lions elements more typical of Ionic architecture. Some of its sculptural elements were removed by American archaeologists in the 1800s and are now in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. - City Walls (built 400 BC) Encompassing approximately 3 kilometers, these impressive walls were constructed of local andesite stone and include several well-preserved gates and towers. The quality of their construction and strategic design demonstrate the military importance of Assos throughout antiquity. Particularly notable is the western gate, which features a unique corbelled arch design rarely seen in ancient Greek fortifications. - Gymnasium and Bouleuterion Complex (built 200 BC) This complex near the agora includes a gymnasium for athletic training and education of young citizens, alongside a bouleuterion (council house) where the city's governing body met. Together, these structures exemplify the Greek emphasis on physical and intellectual development, alongside democratic governance. The complex underwent significant renovation during the Roman period while maintaining its original Hellenistic layout. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 800 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 300 BC: 7,000 - 0 AD: 10,000 - 200 AD: 12,000 - 500 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1300 AD: 200 - 1700 AD: 300 - 1923 AD: 400 - 2020 AD: 500 --- # Attaleia, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/attaleia Founded: 158 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.8841, 30.7056 ## Description Attaleia, today the city of Antalya, was founded around 158 BCE by King Attalos II of Pergamon as a planned coastal harbor on the Pamphylian shore, named after its royal founder. After the Attalid bequest to Rome it became a prosperous Roman port and the principal city of Pamphylia, and the apostle Paul departed from its harbor on his missionary voyages to Cyprus and Antioch. Under Byzantine rule the city was heavily fortified against Arab naval raids, and after the Seljuk conquest of 1207 it served as the major Mediterranean port and shipyard of the Sultanate of Rum. Continuously occupied through the Teke Beylik and Ottoman rule, it became the seat of the Antalya sancak and later vilayet, and today thrives as the metropolitan capital of Antalya Province and the gateway to Türkiye's Mediterranean tourism coast. ## Historical Rulers - 158 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Attaleia was founded around 158 BCE by Attalos II of Pergamon as a planned port city on the Pamphylian coast, intended to give the Attalid kingdom a major Mediterranean naval base. The new foundation was named after its royal founder and rapidly developed as the principal Pergamene harbor in southern Anatolia until Attalos III bequeathed the kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Under Roman administration Attaleia became part of the province of Asia and later the province of Pamphylia, growing into the leading port of the southern Anatolian coast. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The apostle Paul departed from its harbor on his missionary voyages in the 1st century CE, and the city received monumental Roman building campaigns including the triple-arched triumphal gate erected for the visit of the emperor Hadrian in 130 CE. - 395 AD – 1207 AD: Byzantine Empire Attaleia served the Eastern Roman Empire as a major naval base on the southern Anatolian coast, repeatedly fortified against Arab sea raids from the 7th century onward and absorbing population from declining inland Pamphylian cities like Perge. Briefly captured by the Seljuks in 1085 and recovered by the Byzantines during the First Crusade, the city remained an important Byzantine port until Sultan Kaykhusraw I permanently incorporated it into the Sultanate of Rum in 1207. - 1207 AD – 1321 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Antalya") Following Kaykhusraw I's conquest in 1207, Antalya became the principal Mediterranean port and naval shipyard of the Sultanate of Rum, anchoring Anatolian Seljuk maritime trade with Egypt, Cyprus, and the Italian merchant republics. Sultan Kayqubad I added major monuments including the Yivli Minaret, and the city flourished as a multicultural commercial hub through the 13th century until the dissolution of Seljuk authority under Ilkhanid pressure. - 1321 AD – 1423 AD: Teke Beylik (known as "Antalya") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, Antalya became the capital of the Teke Beylik, the Turkmen principality that took its name from the surrounding Tekeli region. The beylik continued the city's role as the dominant southern Anatolian port through the 14th century, briefly annexed by Bayezid I in 1391 and restored after Timur's victory at Ankara in 1402, until final Ottoman annexation in 1423. - 1423 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Antalya") Antalya was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system as the seat of the Teke sancak and later the Antalya Vilayet, retaining its role as the principal Mediterranean port of southern Anatolia. The city's walled Kaleiçi quarter housed Greek Orthodox and Armenian communities alongside the Turkish Muslim majority, and the population gradually grew through the long Ottoman period until the population exchanges and wars of the early 20th century reshaped its demographic profile. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Antalya") Under the Turkish Republic Antalya became the capital of Antalya Province, transformed in the second half of the 20th century from a modest provincial city of about 30,000 into the metropolitan gateway of Türkiye's Mediterranean tourism economy. Large-scale urban expansion, the development of greenhouse agriculture, and the rise of international tourism have raised the city's population above 1.3 million, while the historic Kaleiçi quarter, Hadrian's Gate, and the Yivli Minaret remain the symbols of its long urban continuity. ## Landmarks - Hadrian's Gate (built 130 AD) A monumental triple-arched triumphal gate erected in 130 CE to commemorate the visit of the emperor Hadrian to Attaleia. Flanked by two square towers and decorated with Corinthian columns, it remains the most prominent Roman monument in the city and one of the principal entrances into the historic Kaleiçi quarter. - Hıdırlık Tower (built 150 AD) A 14-meter cylindrical Roman tower of the 2nd century CE rising on a square base above the cliffs at the southern edge of the old harbor. Probably built as a combined funerary monument and watchtower, it later served as a Byzantine and Ottoman lighthouse and remains a landmark of the Kaleiçi skyline. - Kaleiçi Walls and Harbor (built 200 AD) The double line of fortifications around the old town and harbor preserves layers of Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, and Seljuk construction reinforced repeatedly against Arab naval raids and later Latin and Mamluk threats. Today the walled Kaleiçi quarter encloses the city's densest concentration of antique, medieval, and Ottoman heritage. - Yivli Minaret (built 1230 AD) The Fluted Minaret, built under Sultan Kayqubad I of the Sultanate of Rum around 1230, became the architectural emblem of Seljuk Antalya. Its eight-fluted brick shaft on a stone base reflects the distinctive Anatolian Seljuk minaret form and survives as the most recognizable medieval monument of the city. ## Population History - 158 BC: 2,000 - 0 AD: 10,000 - 200 AD: 30,000 - 600 AD: 15,000 - 1000 AD: 20,000 - 1300 AD: 25,000 - 1500 AD: 30,000 - 1700 AD: 25,000 - 1923 AD: 30,000 - 1980 AD: 250,000 - 2020 AD: 1,300,000 --- # Battalgazi, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/battalgazi Founded: 70 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.4292, 38.4014 ## Description Battalgazi, historically known as Melitene and later Eski Malatya ('Old Malatya'), is the second of the three successive Malatya-plain cities — the medieval town that succeeded the much older Bronze and Iron Age mound of Arslantepe (Melid) eight kilometers to the northeast, and was in turn succeeded by modern Malatya at Aspuzu eight kilometers to the southwest. Located in the agricultural plain at 38.43°N, 38.40°E, it was founded around 70 CE as a Roman legionary fortress (Castra Melitenensis) under the Emperor Vespasian — the place name Melitene preserving the much older Anatolian toponym Melid from Arslantepe, it became the seat of Legio XII Fulminata and developed into one of the principal cities of late Roman and Byzantine Eastern Anatolia. After the Arab conquests of the 7th century it was a frequent battleground, captured and recaptured by Byzantines, Arabs and Seljuks. Following the 1058 earthquake and the Seljuk advance after Manzikert, the town became firmly Turkic-Islamic. Under the Ottomans it remained the regional center until the 19th century, when most of its population gradually relocated to nearby Aspuzu (modern Malatya). The town was renamed Battalgazi in 1986 after the Muslim warrior-hero Seyyid Battal Gazi, traditionally associated with the city's medieval Islamic defense. ## Historical Rulers - 70 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Melitene") Founded by Vespasian around 70 CE as a permanent legionary fortress (Castra Melitenensis) for the Legio XII Fulminata to guard the Euphrates frontier. A civilian town grows around the fortress, replacing the older settlement at nearby Arslantepe as the regional center. - 395 AD – 638 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Melitene") Major Byzantine fortress city and seat of a metropolitan bishopric. Frequent base for campaigns against the Sassanid Persians on the eastern frontier. - 638 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Malatya") Conquered by Arab forces in 638 during the early Islamic expansion, Malatya was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate's al-Jazira province. The city became a key Arab frontier post on the Byzantine border. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Malatya") Under the Umayyad Caliphate Malatya served as one of the key thughur frontier strongholds facing Byzantium. The city was repeatedly raided and rebuilt during the Arab-Byzantine border warfare of the late 7th and early 8th centuries. - 750 AD – 934 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Malatya") Under the Abbasids the city became a major Thughur frontier stronghold and the site of the legendary exploits of Seyyid Battal Gazi in Muslim epic tradition. The Caliphate organized continuous summer raiding against Byzantine Anatolia from Malatya until John Kourkouas's Byzantine counteroffensive. - 934 AD – 1058 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Melitene") John Kourkouas captures the city for Byzantium in 934. Resettled with Armenian and Syriac Christian populations. The 1058 earthquake severely damages the city walls and infrastructure, weakening Byzantine control just before the Seljuk advance. - 1058 AD – 1178 AD: Danishmendid Beylik (known as "Malatya") After the Byzantine collapse following Manzikert, Malatya was taken by the Danishmendid Turkmen beylik that controlled north-central Anatolia. The name shifted from Melitene to its Turkish form Malatya during this period. - 1178 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Malatya") The Anatolian Seljuks absorbed the Danishmendid territories and integrated Malatya into the Sultanate of Rum. The Great Mosque (Ulu Cami) was built under Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad I in 1224 as a major Seljuk monument. - 1243 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Malatya") Following the Mongol victory at Köse Dağ in 1243, eastern Anatolia came under Ilkhanid suzerainty administered through Seljuk and Mongol officials. Malatya remained a regional center on the Euphrates approaches. - 1335 AD – 1381 AD: Eretnid Dynasty (known as "Malatya") After the dissolution of Ilkhanid authority Malatya passed under the Eretnid beylik centered on Sivas and Kayseri, founded by Eretna Bey in 1335. The city continued as a regional centre on the eastern frontier of the Eretnid realm until the qadi Burhan al-Din Ahmad usurped power in Sivas in 1381 and ended Eretnid rule. - 1381 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Malatya") Following the Eretnid collapse Malatya passed under Mamluk Egyptian control, contested briefly with the qadi Burhaneddin's Sivas state and devastated by Timur's 1400 campaign. After Timur's withdrawal the city was administered through the Dulkadirid Turkmen beylik based in southeastern Anatolia as a Mamluk vassal, remaining a frontier town between the Mamluk and Ottoman spheres until Selim I's annexation. - 1516 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Eski Malatya") Annexed by Selim I after the conquest of the Mamluk and Dulkadir territories in 1516, the town served as the regional sanjak centre for three centuries under its established name of Malatya. The 1838–1839 Ottoman army occupation by Hafız Paşa during the war against Mehmet Ali Paşa triggered a gradual migration of the population to the nearby Aspuzu plain, and from around 1840 the older town came to be known as Eski Malatya (Old Malatya) to distinguish it from the new settlement that inherited the unmodified Malatya name. Through the late Ottoman period the older site persisted as a smaller satellite with population shrinking to a few thousand as commerce, administration, and most residents shifted to the new town on the plain. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the early Turkish Republic Eski Malatya continued as a township of Malatya Province on the original site of Roman Melitene and medieval Malatya. The town remained modest in size — a few thousand residents — overshadowed by the rapidly growing new Malatya at Aspuzu. In 1986 the town was officially renamed Battalgazi after the medieval Muslim hero Seyyid Battal Gazi, and it became a separate metropolitan district of Malatya in 2012 with a modern population approaching 80,000. ## Landmarks - City Walls of Eski Malatya (built 70 AD) The rectangular fortified circuit was originally laid out by Roman engineers as the perimeter of the legionary fortress (Castra Melitenensis) and was reinforced and expanded under the Byzantines, Arabs and Seljuks over many centuries. Substantial sections of the medieval walls and gates survive today. - Ulu Cami (built 1224 AD) Commissioned by the Anatolian Seljuk Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad I in 1224. One of the most important examples of Seljuk-era mosque architecture in Anatolia, featuring a domed courtyard mosque plan, brick minaret and intricate tilework. Still in active use today. - Silahtar Mustafa Paşa Kervansaray (built 1637 AD) A large Ottoman caravanserai built by the grand vizier Silahtar Mustafa Paşa in 1637 to serve trade caravans on the route between Anatolia and the Levant. Restored in the 20th century. ## Population History - 70 AD: 5,000 - 200 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 25,000 - 800 AD: 15,000 - 1058 AD: 30,000 - 1200 AD: 25,000 - 1500 AD: 15,000 - 1800 AD: 20,000 - 1840 AD: 15,000 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 1950 AD: 8,000 - 2000 AD: 30,000 - 2025 AD: 80,000 --- # Bergama, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/bergama Founded: 400 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.119, 27.176 ## Description Bergama is a town in İzmir Province of western Türkiye, continuously inhabited for some 2,400 years on and around the steep acropolis of ancient Pergamon. Under the Attalid dynasty (283-133 BCE) Pergamon became one of the cultural capitals of the Hellenistic world — famed for its library that rivaled Alexandria's, the invention of parchment (charta pergamena), the monumental Great Altar of Zeus, and the Asclepion healing sanctuary. As a Roman provincial metropolis it served as the early seat of the province of Asia and the physician Galen practiced here in the 2nd century CE. After a devastating Umayyad raid in 716 and the Turkic advance into western Anatolia after Manzikert, the surviving population gradually relocated from the exposed acropolis to the valley plain about 1.5 km below, where the medieval and Ottoman town of Bergama (the Turkish form of Pergamon) took shape. Under the Karesi Beylik and the Ottomans, Bergama became a substantial provincial sanjak town with a mixed Muslim and Greek Orthodox population, with the 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange removing the remaining Greek community. Modern Bergama, a district of İzmir Province, has a population of over 100,000 and an economy combining tobacco, olive, and livestock agriculture with tourism centered on the UNESCO-listed ancient ruins. ## Historical Rulers - 400 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Pergamon") First clearly attested in Xenophon's Anabasis around 400 BCE as a fortified acropolis stronghold of the family of Gongylos, an exiled Eretrian noble granted the site by the Persian king. The Gongylid family ruled Pergamon as a hereditary local lordship under the Persian satrap of Hellespontine Phrygia until Alexander's conquest of Anatolia. - 334 BC – 283 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Pergamon") Alexander the Great's conquest brought Pergamon into the Macedonian sphere, after which the acropolis passed through the Wars of the Diadochi under Antigonid and Lysimachian control. Lysimachus deposited his treasury at Pergamon under the eunuch officer Philetaerus, who upon Lysimachus's death at Corupedium in 281 BCE used the treasury to found an independent Attalid dynasty. - 283 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Pergamon") Philetaerus used the acropolis treasury deposited there by Lysimachus to found an independent Attalid dynasty. Under his successors — Eumenes I, Attalus I, Eumenes II, and Attalus II — Pergamon became one of the wealthiest and most culturally ambitious kingdoms of the Hellenistic world, building the Great Altar of Zeus, the library that rivaled Alexandria's, and the monumental terraced acropolis. Attalus III bequeathed the kingdom to Rome on his death in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Pergamum") Pergamum became the original capital of the new Roman province of Asia, although Ephesus eventually overtook it as the primary provincial seat. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Pergamum") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city continued as one of the great metropolises of Roman Asia Minor, with major imperial-era construction including the Temple of Trajan on the highest terrace of the acropolis and the expansion of the Asclepion where Galen — the most influential physician of antiquity after Hippocrates — practiced in the 2nd century CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Pergamon") Under Eastern Roman administration Pergamon continued as an important bishopric and regional center, with the walled acropolis serving as the fortified core. An Umayyad Arab raid devastated the city in 716 CE during the run-up to the Second Arab Siege of Constantinople, and after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 the surviving community gradually relocated to the valley plain 1.5 km below near the Selinos stream. The lower settlement that would become medieval Bergama took shape on this more defensible ground while the empty acropolis above stood as a quarry for building stone. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Empire of Nicaea (known as "Pergamon") After the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople in 1204, the western Aegean coast came under the Empire of Nicaea, the Byzantine successor state whose Laskarid emperors held northwestern Anatolia from their capital at Nicaea (İznik). The Pergamon valley community continued as a small fortified town within the Nicaean realm until Michael VIII Palaiologos recovered Constantinople in 1261. - 1261 AD – 1296 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Pergamon") After the Palaiologos restoration of the Byzantine capital, the Pergamon area returned to direct Byzantine administration. The western Anatolian frontier was steadily eroded by Turkmen ghazis through the late 13th century, and the town passed to the rising Karesi Beylik around 1296. - 1296 AD – 1345 AD: Karesi Beylik Pergamon passed to the Karesi Beylik, the Turkmen principality based in Balıkesir, and the Turkish form 'Bergama' came into use for the lower town. Mosques and caravanserais began to define the medieval character of the settlement, while the old acropolis above continued to serve as a quarry for new construction in the valley. - 1345 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Orhan annexed the Karesi domains around 1345, and Bergama developed as a regional sanjak and later kaza town under successive Ottoman administrative reforms. Through the late 19th century the town had a substantial Greek Orthodox minority alongside its Turkish Muslim majority, and from the 19th century onward the classical ruins above became a major archaeological destination — most famously through the German excavations that removed the Great Altar of Zeus to Berlin. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye The 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange removed the remaining Greek community, and Turkish refugees from Greece resettled in the town. Bergama became a district of İzmir Province and grew steadily on the strength of agriculture and tourism focused on the ancient ruins above, with population reaching around 106,000 by the 2020s. ## Landmarks - Asclepion of Pergamon (built 400 BC) Greatly expanded during the Roman period, this sanctuary dedicated to Asclepius (god of medicine) combined religious healing with early medical practices. It featured therapeutic sleeping halls, a sacred spring, theaters for performance therapy, and a tunnel for symbolic rebirth, and the physician Galen — second only to Hippocrates in ancient medicine — practiced here. - Library of Pergamon (built 190 BC) Founded by Eumenes II to rival Alexandria's library, it housed approximately 200,000 volumes in rooms adjacent to the Temple of Athena on the acropolis. When Egypt cut off the papyrus supply, Pergamon developed parchment (charta pergamena) as a writing material, giving it its name. - Great Altar of Zeus (built 180 BC) Commissioned by Eumenes II, this monumental altar featured a 120-meter frieze depicting the Gigantomachy (battle between Gods and Giants), representing one of the most spectacular sculptural ensembles of the ancient world. Its remains were excavated by German archaeologists and are now displayed in Berlin's Pergamon Museum. - Temple of Trajan (built 114 AD) Built on the highest point of the acropolis, this massive marble temple was dedicated to the deified Emperor Trajan and Zeus. Its dramatic setting and scale emphasized Roman dominance while incorporating Hellenistic architectural principles. - Red Basilica (built 130 AD) A massive Roman-era brick temple in the lower city, originally dedicated to Egyptian deities (Serapis, Isis, Harpocrates). Converted to a Christian basilica in the Byzantine period and identified in the Book of Revelation as one of the Seven Churches of Asia, its enormous brick walls still rise 19 meters above the valley today. - Ulu Cami of Bergama (built 1399 AD) Built by Bayezid I after the Ottoman absorption of the Karesi territories, this is one of the oldest Ottoman-era mosques in the region. It features a single dome over a square prayer hall and a brick minaret. - Çukur Han (built 1500 AD) Ottoman commercial inn (han) built in the early 16th century to serve trade caravans passing through Bergama. It continues to operate as a market space today. - Bergama Synagogue (built 1850 AD) Built in the mid-19th century to serve the town's small but historically continuous Jewish community. Largely empty after the mid-20th century as the community dispersed, but the building survives. ## Population History - 400 BC: 3,000 - 283 BC: 15,000 - 200 BC: 80,000 - 100 BC: 130,000 - 1 AD: 180,000 - 100 AD: 200,000 - 200 AD: 180,000 - 400 AD: 100,000 - 600 AD: 60,000 - 716 AD: 30,000 - 1000 AD: 5,000 - 1100 AD: 1,000 - 1300 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 5,000 - 1800 AD: 12,000 - 1900 AD: 25,000 - 1950 AD: 35,000 - 2000 AD: 65,000 - 2025 AD: 106,000 --- # Bodrum, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/bodrum Founded: 1000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.0357, 27.4291 ## Description Bodrum, the ancient Halicarnassus, is a coastal city on the Aegean shore of southwestern Türkiye occupying a major promontory between two natural harbors of the Carian coast. The site was settled as a Dorian Greek colony from the Argolid around 1000 BCE and developed through the Archaic and Classical periods as a culturally mixed Carian-Greek polis, expelled early from the Doric Hexapolis but emerging as the principal coastal city of native Caria. The Hekatomnid dynasty of Carian satraps under Achaemenid suzerainty made Halicarnassus their capital from 392 BCE, and Mausolus ruled from 377 to 353 BCE laying the foundations of the great tomb completed by his sister-widow Artemisia between 353 and 350 BCE that gave the modern word "mausoleum" to all subsequent monumental tombs and was counted among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Herodotus, the historian who created the Western tradition of historical inquiry, was born here around 484 BCE. Alexander the Great besieged and captured the city in 334 BCE, beginning a long Hellenistic and Roman provincial period during which the city slowly declined as commercial primacy shifted toward Ephesus and the inland Carian centers. The Knights Hospitaller built the Castle of Saint Peter on the harbor promontory beginning in 1402, partly from masonry quarried from the by-then earthquake-ruined Mausoleum, until the castle surrendered to Suleiman the Magnificent in 1522 alongside Rhodes. The town remained a quiet Ottoman fishing port through the following four centuries and emerged after the 1923 founding of the Republic of Türkiye as one of the principal resort cities of the Turkish Aegean coast. The Castle of Saint Peter now houses the Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology with its renowned collection of Bronze Age shipwrecks. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 546 BC: Carian Civilization (known as "Halicarnassus") Halicarnassus was founded around 1000 BCE as a Dorian Greek colony from Troezen and Argos on the rocky promontory between the natural harbors of the Carian coast. The early city joined the Doric Hexapolis with Cos, Knidos, Lindos, Ialyssos, and Kameiros but was soon expelled and developed through the Archaic period as a culturally mixed Carian-Greek polis with substantial native population, eventually emerging as the principal coastal city of native Caria. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Halicarnassus") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, Halicarnassus and the rest of Caria came under Achaemenid suzerainty administered through local Carian dynasts. From 392 BCE the Hekatomnid satrapal dynasty made Halicarnassus their capital, and under Mausolus (377-353 BCE) and his sister-widow Artemisia the city was extensively replanned with the Mausoleum, theater, royal palace, and the Myndos Gate raised on the Hippodamian street grid. The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, completed between 353 and 350 BCE, became one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Halicarnassus") Alexander the Great besieged Halicarnassus in 334 BCE in one of the major sieges of his Anatolian campaign, breaching the Myndos Gate but failing to capture the harbor citadels until the Persian commanders Memnon and Orontobates evacuated by sea. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi under Antigonus, Lysimachus, and the early Seleucid claimants before the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Halicarnassus") Through most of the third century BCE Halicarnassus was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt as part of their Mediterranean thalassocracy. The city continued as a substantial Hellenistic port, though political importance shifted progressively toward the inland Carian centers at Mylasa and Stratonicea under Ptolemaic administration. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Halicarnassus") Antiochus III's western campaign of the late 190s BCE detached Caria from the Ptolemaic sphere and brought Halicarnassus briefly under Seleucid control. The interlude lasted less than a decade, ending with the Treaty of Apamea of 188 BCE that reassigned Caria to Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea (known as "Halicarnassus") Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Halicarnassus was administered from Rhodes alongside the other mainland Carian communities for two decades. Rhodian rule ended in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power and declared the Carian and Lycian cities free. - 167 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Halicarnassus") After the Roman declaration of Carian freedom in 167 BCE, Halicarnassus passed into the Roman sphere as a free harbor and was eventually incorporated into the province of Asia. The city remained a substantial regional port through the imperial centuries, with the theater enlarged under Antonine reconstruction in the second century CE. - 395 AD – 1402 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Halikarnassos") Under Eastern Roman administration Halicarnassus continued as a small Christian harbor in the theme of Kibyrrhaeotai, devastated by Arab naval raids in the seventh and eighth centuries and progressively reduced through the medieval Byzantine centuries. The Mausoleum was severely damaged by a series of earthquakes between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries, reducing it to ruins by the time the Knights Hospitaller arrived. - 1402 AD – 1522 AD: Knights Hospitaller (known as "Petronion") The Order of Saint John began the Castle of Saint Peter on the harbor promontory in 1402 following Timur's defeat of the Ottomans at Ankara had opened the southwestern Anatolian coast, quarrying substantial masonry from the ruined Mausoleum for the new fortifications over the following century. The castle served as a Hospitaller outpost connected by signal to Rhodes and Kos until the surrender to Suleiman the Magnificent on 26 December 1522 immediately following the fall of Rhodes. - 1522 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Under Ottoman administration the town was renamed Bodrum, from the Turkish bodrum (cellar) applied to the medieval substructures around the castle, and remained a quiet provincial fishing port through the four centuries of Ottoman rule. The castle was repurposed as an Ottoman garrison and prison and absorbed the surrounding sponge-diving and fishing economy of the southwestern Aegean coast. - 1923 AD – 2026 AD: Republic of Türkiye With the proclamation of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923 Bodrum became a district seat in Muğla Province, with the population exchange following the Greco-Turkish War removing the substantial Greek Orthodox community. From the 1970s the writer Cevat Şakir Kabaağaçlı (the 'Fisherman of Halicarnassus') and the opening of the Castle of Saint Peter as the Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology in 1962 catalysed Bodrum's emergence as one of the principal resort cities of the Turkish Aegean, with a metropolitan population now exceeding 170,000. ## Landmarks - Mausoleum of Halicarnassus (built 353 BC) The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, completed between 353 and 350 BCE for the Carian satrap Mausolus by his sister-widow Artemisia and the architects Satyros and Pythius, stood roughly 45 meters high with a stepped pyramidal roof crowned by a four-horse chariot and ranked among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Severely damaged by earthquakes between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries, the structure was extensively quarried by the Knights Hospitaller for the Castle of Saint Peter, leaving only the foundations and scattered sculpture now distributed between Bodrum and the British Museum. - Halicarnassus Theater (built 350 BC) The theater of Halicarnassus was carved into the slope of the Göktepe hill above the city under Mausolus in the fourth century BCE and enlarged in Roman form in the second century CE. The structure could seat roughly 13,000 spectators and remains the principal surviving Hekatomnid-era monument of the ancient city. - Myndos Gate (built 350 BC) The Myndos Gate is the principal surviving section of the fourth-century BCE Hekatomnid city walls of Halicarnassus, a triple gate complex framing the western road toward Myndos and the site of Alexander the Great's decisive breach during the 334 BCE siege. Excavations at the gate have recovered substantial Hellenistic Macedonian arrowheads and casualty remains documenting the assault. - Castle of Saint Peter (built 1402 AD) The Castle of Saint Peter (Petronium) was begun by the Knights Hospitaller in 1402 on the harbor promontory and progressively expanded through the fifteenth century with five langue-specific towers built by the French, German, Italian, English, and Spanish divisions of the Order. The fortress was surrendered to the Ottomans in 1522 alongside Rhodes and now houses the Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology, renowned for its collection of Late Bronze Age shipwreck finds from the Uluburun and Cape Gelidonya excavations. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 350 BC: 20,000 - 200 BC: 15,000 - 100 AD: 12,000 - 400 AD: 8,000 - 800 AD: 4,000 - 1300 AD: 2,000 - 1500 AD: 3,000 - 1700 AD: 5,000 - 1900 AD: 7,000 - 1960 AD: 5,000 - 2000 AD: 35,000 - 2025 AD: 175,000 --- # Bursa, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/bursa Founded: 202 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.1828, 29.0665 ## Description Bursa is the fourth-largest city of Türkiye, on the northern slopes of Mount Uludağ in southern Marmara, founded around 202 BCE by King Prusias I of Bithynia as Prusa. After Bithynia was bequeathed to Rome in 74 BCE the city became a Roman and Byzantine metropolitan see famous for the thermal springs at Çekirge. Captured by Orhan Bey in 1326 it served as the first Ottoman capital and became the cradle of early Ottoman architecture and silk production, retaining its role as the dynastic mausoleum city even after the capital moved to Edirne and Constantinople. Under the Turkish Republic Bursa has grown into a metropolitan area of roughly three million centred on the automotive and textile industries, and the early Ottoman urban core was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2014. ## Historical Rulers - 202 BC – 74 BC: Kingdom of Bithynia (known as "Prousa") Founded around 202 BCE by King Prusias I as a Bithynian royal city named after himself, supposedly on the advice of his Carthaginian guest Hannibal. The city served as a regional administrative centre on the slopes of Uludağ until Nicomedes IV bequeathed Bithynia to Rome in 74 BCE. - 74 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Prusa") Incorporated into the Roman province of Bithynia et Pontus in 74 BCE, Prusa flourished under the early empire as a thermal-spa town drawing imperial patronage for the mineral baths at Çekirge. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Prusa") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The orator Dio Chrysostom was born here around 40 CE, and Pliny the Younger's correspondence with Trajan repeatedly refers to civic affairs of the city. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Prousa") Under the Eastern Roman Empire Prousa continued as a Byzantine metropolitan see and regional centre in Bithynia. After Manzikert in 1071 the surrounding countryside was contested with the Seljuks, but the city itself remained Byzantine through the Komnenian recovery and the long 12th-century campaigns in Bithynia. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Empire of Nicaea (known as "Prousa") After the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople in 1204, the Byzantine successor state of the Empire of Nicaea established its capital at neighbouring Nicaea (İznik) just east of Bursa. Prousa became part of the heartland of the Nicaean realm under the Laskarid emperors, a short-lived but intensive period of Bithynian prosperity that ended when Michael VIII Palaiologos recovered Constantinople in 1261. - 1261 AD – 1326 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Prousa") After the Palaiologos restoration of the Byzantine capital at Constantinople, Prousa returned to Constantinople-centred Byzantine administration. From the late 13th century the Bithynian frontier was steadily eroded by the rising Osmanli beylik, and the city itself fell to Orhan Bey in April 1326 after a long blockade. - 1326 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Orhan made Bursa the first Ottoman capital in 1326, and the city was monumentalised under Orhan and Murad I with the Hudavendigar, Yıldırım, Yeşil, and Muradiye complexes that defined early Ottoman religious architecture. The capital moved to Edirne in 1365 and Constantinople in 1453, but Bursa remained the dynastic mausoleum of the first six sultans and the principal Ottoman silk-trade centre based on the Koza Han, retaining its prestige through six centuries of Ottoman rule. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic Bursa has grown into a metropolitan area of roughly three million inhabitants, centred on automotive manufacturing (Tofaş, Fiat, Renault), textiles, and food processing alongside its surviving Ottoman heritage core. 'Bursa and Cumalıkızık: the Birth of the Ottoman Empire' was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2014. ## Landmarks - Cumalıkızık Ottoman Village (built 1330 AD) A 14th-century Ottoman vakıf village on the slopes of Mount Uludağ above Bursa, founded by Orhan Bey to support the imamzade complexes in the city. The village preserves the dense fabric of timber-framed (hımış) Ottoman rural houses, narrow stone-paved lanes, and the village mosque, and was inscribed jointly with the Bursa monuments as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2014. - Ulu Camii (built 1399 AD) The Grand Mosque of Bursa, commissioned by Bayezid I in fulfillment of a vow at the 1396 Battle of Nicopolis and completed in 1399. The 20-domed hypostyle prayer hall on a square plan supported by twelve massive piers represents the multi-domed Ottoman mosque type before the Hagia Sophia model became dominant, and the calligraphic panels by Ottoman master scribes preserve a remarkable record of Ottoman epigraphic art. - Yeşil Camii ve Yeşil Türbe (built 1419 AD) The 'Green Mosque' of Mehmed I, completed in 1419, with the adjoining Yeşil Türbe ('Green Tomb') containing Mehmed I's sarcophagus. Both buildings are clad in extraordinary blue and green tilework executed by the master Nakkaş Ali of Tabriz and his workshop, representing the apogee of early Ottoman Iznik-and-Tabriz tile decoration before the development of the classical Iznik palette later in the 15th century. - Muradiye Complex (built 1426 AD) The complex of Murad II completed in 1426, comprising a T-plan mosque, madrasa, imaret, hammam, and a celebrated complex of twelve royal tombs — including those of Murad II himself, Şehzade Mustafa, Cem Sultan, and other Ottoman princes — set in a walled garden. The Muradiye is the principal Ottoman dynastic mausoleum site outside Istanbul. - Koza Han (built 1491 AD) The 'Cocoon Caravanserai' commissioned by Bayezid II and completed in 1491 as the principal market for raw silk cocoons in the Ottoman Empire. The two-storey hexagonal courtyard surrounding a small mescit in the centre served as the daily auction house for Bursa silk merchants for over four centuries and remains in commercial use today. ## Population History - 202 BC: 3,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 20,000 - 1000 AD: 25,000 - 1326 AD: 30,000 - 1400 AD: 50,000 - 1600 AD: 70,000 - 1800 AD: 80,000 - 1900 AD: 100,000 - 1950 AD: 130,000 - 2020 AD: 3,000,000 --- # Çadır Höyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/cadir-hoyuk Founded: 5000 BC Ended: 1308 AD Coordinates: 39.6766, 35.1431 ## Description Çadır Höyük is a major archaeological mound on the northwestern edge of the central Anatolian plateau in the Sorgun district of Yozgat Province, Türkiye, occupied from the late sixth millennium BCE until at least the thirteenth century CE. It served as a thriving rural and administrative center during the Hittite Empire and demonstrated resilience during the Bronze Age collapse, with strong Iron Age industrial deposits, a Hellenistic phase attested by minor pottery and underlying walls, and a substantial Middle Byzantine settlement with a basilica and cemetery. Excavations led by Ronald Gorny and Sharon Steadman since the 1990s document one of central Anatolia's longest single-site occupation sequences spanning seven millennia, with the mound's ancient name still unknown. Occupation on the höyük itself contracted through the Seljuk period and effectively ended in the early fourteenth century; the small modern Turkish village of the same name on the adjacent plain is a later, separate settlement. ## Historical Rulers - 5000 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Çadır Höyük") During the Late Chalcolithic period the mound was occupied by small farming communities engaged in mixed agriculture, animal husbandry, and early copper use. Excavated levels show modest mudbrick architecture and ceramics linking the site to wider north-central Anatolian cultural networks. - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Çadır Höyük") In the Early Bronze Age Çadır Höyük expanded as part of the regional settlement system that linked the central plateau to wider Anatolian trade routes. Domestic and craft activity intensified, with metallurgy and pottery production reflecting growing economic complexity. - 2000 BC – 1650 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Çadır Höyük") The settlement participated in the dense network of central Anatolian towns of the karum period, with domestic compounds, storage facilities and workshops indicating its role as a productive rural node embedded in regional administrative structures. The site lay within the broader Hattian cultural sphere of central Anatolia. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Çadır Höyük") Under the Hittite Empire from Hattusili I onward, Çadır Höyük functioned as a fortified rural and administrative centre on the northern margins of the imperial heartland. Elite compounds with planned courtyards, sealed entryways and storage indicate integration with imperial economic and bureaucratic systems. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "*Çadır Höyük") Following the collapse of the Hittite Empire the site continued at a reduced scale by Iron Age communities within the Phrygian cultural sphere that expanded across central Anatolia, reaching east of the Kızılırmak as confirmed by the nearby Phrygian foundation of Kerkenes (Pteria). Material culture shows continuity in subsistence alongside changes in architecture and ceramics typical of the post-Hittite reorganization. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Çadır Höyük") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, the central Anatolian plateau was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the Cappadocian satrapy. The mound continued as a modest rural settlement under Persian administration. - 334 BC – 278 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Çadır Höyük") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. The mound continued as a low-level rural settlement, with a minor amount of Hellenistic pottery and a Hellenistic wall underlying the later Byzantine occupation attesting to continued, if reduced, life through this period. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom (known as "*Çadır Höyük") From 278 BCE the Celtic Galatian tribes settled central Anatolia under three confederations, with the broader Çorum-Yozgat plateau falling within the Tectosages and Trocmi sphere. Çadır persisted as a small rural settlement under Galatian authority, with the Hellenistic-period material on the mound remaining limited, until Augustus's annexation of Galatia as a Roman province in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Çadır Höyük") After Augustus's annexation of Galatia in 25 BCE, the area was incorporated into the Roman province of Galatia. The excavators have noted that the Roman period is the one phase with the least clear evidence at Çadır, suggesting either minimal occupation or an effective occupation gap before the substantial Middle Byzantine reoccupation in late antiquity. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Çadır Höyük") During the Middle Byzantine period the settlement was reoccupied as part of the rural Cappadocian countryside. A basilica and associated cemetery on the mound attest to Christianisation in late antiquity, and three successive Byzantine building phases document an incremental decline through the 7th-11th centuries before the Seljuk advance after Manzikert ended Byzantine rule. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Çadır") Following the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 and the Seljuk advance across central Anatolia, Turkmen settlers maintained a much-reduced occupation on the mound under the Sultanate of Rum. Occupation contracted further through the 13th century and the höyük was effectively abandoned by the early 14th century; the modern Turkish village of Çadır on the adjacent plain is a later, separate settlement. ## Landmarks - Middle Bronze Age Domestic Area (built 1800 BC) Domestic structures with ovens, bins, and workshops illustrate the role of Çadır Höyük as a productive rural settlement embedded in regional economic networks. The architectural plan reflects the karum-period Anatolian household economy. - Late Bronze Age Elite Compound (built 1400 BC) A large elite compound from the Late Bronze Age includes planned courtyards, storage facilities, and sealed entryways. It reflects centralized planning and local adaptation of Hittite imperial architectural styles. - Byzantine Basilica and Cemetery (built 500 AD) A basilica-style church with associated burials reveals the Christianization of the settlement in late antiquity. Architectural fragments and grave goods suggest a small yet active religious community within the Byzantine rural countryside of Cappadocia. ## Population History - 5000 BC: 200 - 3000 BC: 1,000 - 1600 BC: 2,000 - 1000 BC: 1,500 - 600 AD: 800 - 1100 AD: null - 1300 AD: 100 - 1308 AD: null ## Sources - Excavations on the north-central plateau: the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age occupation at Çadır Höyük — https://www.academia.edu/download/54244126/Anatolian_Studies_2008.pdf - THE 2009 AND 2012 SEASONS OF EXCAVATION AT ÇADıR HÖYÜK ON THE ANATOLIAN NORTH CENTRAL PLATEAU — https://www.academia.edu/4818591/THE_2009_AND_2012_SEASONS_OF_EXCAVATION_AT_%C3%87AD%C4%B1R_H%C3%96Y%C3%9CK_ON_THE_ANATOLIAN_NORTH_CENTRAL_PLATEAU?source=swp_share - The 2013 and 2014 Excavation Seasons at Çadır Höyük on the Anatolian North Central Plateau — https://www.academia.edu/35476796/The_2013_and_2014_Excavation_Seasons_at_%C3%87ad%C4%B1r_H%C3%B6yu_k_on_the_Anatolian_North_Central_Plateau?source=swp_share --- # Çankırı, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/cankiri Founded: 700 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.6013, 33.6134 ## Description Çankırı — ancient Gangra and Roman Germanicopolis — is a small provincial city on the northern Anatolian plateau about 130 km northeast of Ankara, in the upland transition between the Pontic Mountains and the Anatolian steppe. The site is attested from the Iron Age as Gangra, the principal centre of the indigenous Paphlagonian people of north-central Anatolia, and served as the royal capital of the Hellenistic Kingdom of Paphlagonia under the Pylaemenid dynasty from 281 BCE. After incorporation into the Roman province of Galatia in 6 BCE, Gangra was the metropolis of Paphlagonia and was renamed Germanicopolis under the emperor Claudius around 50 CE in honour of his late brother Germanicus. The city was an important Byzantine bishopric and hosted the local synod of Gangra around 340 CE that condemned the ascetic excesses of the Eustathians, before falling to the Danishmendid Turkmen after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. Under successive Seljuk Sultanate of Rum, Ilkhanate, Candaroğlu, and Ottoman rule the town remained a modest provincial centre of north-central Anatolia, and was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire by Bayezid I in 1392. Modern Çankırı is the capital of Çankırı Province with about 75,000 inhabitants, known for the medieval Çankırı Castle, the great underground salt caves at Tuz Köyü, and the local synod-era ecclesiastical heritage. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 547 BC: Paphlagonian Civilization (known as "Gangra") Gangra was the principal Iron Age centre of the indigenous Paphlagonian people of north-central Anatolia, occupying a defensible hilltop on the northern Anatolian plateau. The town was attested in Greek sources from the early Classical period as the seat of the Paphlagonian dynasts, until the Persian conquest of Anatolia after the fall of Lydia in 547 BCE. - 547 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Gangra") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE brought Paphlagonia and Gangra under Achaemenid Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia. The Paphlagonian dynasts continued to hold considerable local autonomy as Persian vassals until the Macedonian conquest of Anatolia. - 333 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Gangra") After Alexander the Great's defeat of the Achaemenids, Gangra and Paphlagonia passed nominally into the Macedonian sphere through the campaigns of Eumenes and Antigonus. The region passed through the Wars of the Diadochi under Lysimachus until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 183 BC: Kingdom of Paphlagonia (known as "Gangra") Following the collapse of Lysimachus's Thracian kingdom in 281 BCE, the Paphlagonian dynasts of the Pylaemenid line founded an independent kingdom centred on Gangra with secondary capitals at Pompeiopolis and Sinope's hinterland. The kingdom remained independent until the Pontic king Pharnaces I conquered Paphlagonia around 183 BCE. - 183 BC – 65 BC: Kingdom of Pontus (known as "Gangra") Pharnaces I of Pontus absorbed Paphlagonia and Gangra into the Pontic Kingdom around 183 BCE, and the region remained under Pontic rule through Mithridates V and his son Mithridates VI Eupator. After Pompey defeated Mithridates VI in the Third Mithridatic War, the eastern settlement of 65 BCE restored a Roman client Pylaemenid kingship at Gangra under King Attalus and his successor Deiotarus Philadelphus. - 65 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Gangra") Pompey's eastern settlement of 65 BCE brought Paphlagonia and Gangra into the Roman provincial system as a Roman client kingdom under the last Pylaemenid kings. Under the Roman Republic the kingdom was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Germanicopolis") Under the Augustan Principate the Pylaemenid client kingdom continued until the death of King Deiotarus Philadelphus in 6 BCE, when Augustus annexed Paphlagonia as part of the Roman province of Galatia. The city was renamed Germanicopolis under Emperor Claudius around 50 CE in honour of his late brother Germanicus, and became the metropolis of the new Roman district of Paphlagonia. The local synod of Gangra around 340 CE — one of the early regional church councils — condemned the ascetic excesses of the followers of Eustathius of Sebaste, and the city remained an important late-Roman ecclesiastical centre until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Gangra") Under the Eastern Roman administration Gangra continued as a metropolitan bishopric and the principal town of the Byzantine theme of Paphlagonia, with a strong garrison anchoring the southern Pontic frontier against Arab and later Seljuk incursions. The town was contested through the Byzantine-Arab wars of the 8th and 9th centuries before falling to the Danishmendid Turkmen in the aftermath of the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. - 1071 AD – 1174 AD: Danishmendid Beylik After the Seljuk victory at Manzikert in 1071, the Turkmen Danishmendid dynasty established its rule over north-central Anatolia and incorporated Çankırı — the Turkified form of Gangra — into the new beylik. The town was Islamicized during this period and served as one of the principal Danishmendid centres of the upper Halys basin until the Seljuk absorption in 1174. - 1174 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum The Anatolian Seljuks absorbed the Danishmendid domains under Kilij Arslan II in 1174 and incorporated Çankırı into the unified Anatolian Turkish state. The town continued as a regional centre on the routes between Konya and the Black Sea coast until the Mongol victory at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243. - 1243 AD – 1309 AD: Ilkhanate After the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243, the Sultanate of Rum became a Mongol vassal and Çankırı was effectively administered by Ilkhanate-appointed governors. As Ilkhanid authority weakened in the late 13th century, the Candaroğlu Turkmen beys carved out an independent principality across the southern Pontic hinterland. - 1309 AD – 1392 AD: Candaroğlu Beylik The Candaroğlu (Isfendiyarid) Beylik centred on Kastamonu and the southern Pontic coast incorporated Çankırı from around 1309 as one of its principal inland towns. The beylik held Çankırı for nearly a century as a regional commercial and religious centre with several surviving Anatolian Seljuk-Turkmen mosques and madrasas, until Bayezid I's Ottoman annexation in 1392. - 1392 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Bayezid I annexed Çankırı from the Candaroğulları in 1392 and incorporated it into the Ottoman Empire as a kaza of the Vilayet of Ankara. Under five centuries of Ottoman rule the town remained a modest provincial centre on the north-central Anatolian plateau, known for its underground salt mines at Tuz Köyü, its medieval castle, and its Ottoman-era madrasas and mosques until the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923, Çankırı became the seat of its eponymous province on the north-central Anatolian plateau. The town has developed through the Republican period into a regional administrative and educational centre of about 75,000 inhabitants, with the great underground salt caverns at Tuz Köyü as its principal industrial and tourism asset. ## Landmarks - Tuz Mağarası (built 100 AD) The great underground salt cavern complex at Tuz Köyü about 22 km west of Çankırı, exploited since Roman times for rock salt extraction and now opened as a heritage and health-tourism destination. The complex of crystalline halite chambers covers several hectares and includes a sanatorium for asthma and respiratory therapy at its lower levels. - Çankırı Castle (built 500 AD) The medieval fortress on the hilltop above the modern town, occupying the ancient acropolis of Gangra-Germanicopolis with traces of Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman construction phases. The castle anchored the town's defences from late antiquity through the Ottoman period and preserves substantial sections of curtain wall and towers. - Taş Mescit Madrasa (built 1242 AD) An Anatolian Seljuk masonry mosque and madrasa complex built in 1242 under Emir Cemaleddin Ferruh, a vassal of the Seljuk Sultan Kayqubad I. The mosque is famous for its ornate stone portal and the snake-and-staff reliefs at the entrance, traditionally interpreted as a healing symbol and one of the earliest medical school iconographies of Anatolian Seljuk architecture. - Çankırı Ulu Camii (built 1558 AD) The principal Ottoman congregational mosque of Çankırı, built in 1558-1559 by the chief Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan for Suleiman the Magnificent's daughter Mihrimah Sultan. The mosque combines a single-domed prayer hall with a slender minaret and remains the principal Ottoman monument of the town. ## Population History - 700 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 2,000 - 100 BC: 4,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 500 AD: 6,000 - 1000 AD: 4,000 - 1392 AD: 5,000 - 1700 AD: 12,000 - 1900 AD: 20,000 - 1923 AD: 18,000 - 1950 AD: 15,000 - 2000 AD: 60,000 - 2020 AD: 75,000 --- # Carchemish, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/carchemish Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 605 BC Coordinates: 36.8295, 38.0166 ## Description Carchemish, located on the banks of the Euphrates river near the modern Syrian-Turkish border, was a major ancient city with continuous importance from the Early Bronze Age through the Iron Age. It served as a key center of the Hittite Empire after Suppiluliuma I's conquest in the 14th century BCE and later became the capital of one of the most prominent Neo-Hittite kingdoms before falling under Assyrian control in 717 BCE. Carchemish was the site of a decisive battle in 605 BCE between Egypt and Babylon, in which Nebuchadnezzar II's victory ended Egyptian aspirations in Syria and sealed the rise of the Neo-Babylonian Empire. After 605 BCE the city declined and was effectively abandoned, today straddling the border at Karkamış in Türkiye and Jarabulus in Syria. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Carchemish") Early Bronze Age occupation at the strategic Euphrates crossing established Carchemish as a settlement of regional importance, with material culture linked to the broader north Syrian and Upper Mesopotamian sphere. The mound accumulated layers of habitation as local communities exploited the river trade routes. - 2000 BC – 1810 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Karkamissa") During the early Middle Bronze Age, Carchemish (Karkamissa) emerged as an independent city-kingdom on the Euphrates, attested in Old Assyrian and early Mari archive records. The city controlled the strategic river crossing on the route between upper Mesopotamia and the Mediterranean, ruled by local Amorite-influenced dynasts before the rise of Yamhad reorganized the regional hierarchy. - 1810 BC – 1600 BC: Kingdom of Yamhad (known as "Karkamissa") Through the Middle Bronze Age IIB Carchemish operated as a leading vassal kingdom within the broader Amorite Kingdom of Yamhad centred on Halab (Aleppo). The local Carchemish kings are well attested in the Mari archives as participants in the diplomatic and commercial networks linking Yamhad, Mari, and Babylon, until the collapse of Yamhad and the rise of Hurrian-led powers in upper Mesopotamia. - 1600 BC – 1340 BC: Mitanni (known as "Karkamissa") Following the collapse of Yamhad and the rise of Hurrian power, Carchemish fell within the Mitanni sphere as a vassal kingdom of the Hurrian-led empire. The city retained its commercial importance on the upper Euphrates trade routes until Suppiluliuma I's conquest brought it into the Hittite Empire. - 1340 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Karkamissa") After its conquest by Suppiluliuma I in the 14th century BCE, Carchemish became the seat of a Hittite viceroyalty governing northern Syria, ruled by a cadet branch of the royal house. It served as the empire's main administrative center south of the Taurus until the collapse of the central Hittite state around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 717 BC: Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Carchemish (known as "Karkamisa") After the fall of the Hittite Empire, Carchemish continued under its local Luwian-speaking dynasty as one of the most prominent Neo-Hittite (Syro-Hittite) kingdoms. Its rulers maintained Hittite royal traditions, produced extensive hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions and stone reliefs, and balanced relations with the rising Neo-Assyrian Empire until Sargon II's annexation in 717 BCE. - 717 BC – 605 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Karkemiš") Sargon II annexed Carchemish in 717 BCE, ending its independence and converting the kingdom into an Assyrian province. The city remained an important Assyrian administrative and military center on the Euphrates until 605 BCE, when Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon defeated the Egyptian and remnant Assyrian forces here, sealing the end of Assyrian power. ## Landmarks - City Walls and Gates (built 1600 BC) Massive stone and mudbrick walls surrounded the city across multiple construction phases, with elaborate gateways such as the King's Gate adorned with lion sculptures and carved scenes of royal power. The fortifications combined Hittite imperial engineering with Neo-Hittite ceremonial decoration. - Royal Palace Complex (built 1300 BC) The royal palace complex included monumental gates, audience halls, and elaborate sculptural reliefs depicting Neo-Hittite rulers, divine figures, and processional scenes. The palace was the seat of the Hittite viceroyalty under Suppiluliuma's lineage and the later Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Carchemish. - Sacred Precinct and Temples (built 1200 BC) The sacred precinct included temples dedicated to the Storm God and other Luwian-Hittite deities, with decorated orthostat panels lining temple entrances. The orthostats — many now in the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in Ankara — are among the finest examples of Neo-Hittite sculptural art. - Battlefield of Carchemish (built 605 BC) Nebuchadnezzar II's victory at this battlefield in 605 BCE marked the fall of Assyrian power in the region and the rise of Babylonian dominance in the Near East. The battle ended Egyptian aspirations in Syria and shifted the geopolitical balance of the ancient Near East for the next half-century. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 3,000 - 2500 BC: 8,000 - 1700 BC: 10,000 - 1600 BC: 20,000 - 1500 BC: 10,000 - 1400 BC: 10,000 - 1300 BC: 10,000 - 605 BC: null --- # Çatalhöyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/catalhoyuk Founded: 7500 BC Ended: 5700 BC Coordinates: 37.6663, 32.8266 ## Description Çatalhöyük, one of the earliest known urban settlements, was a major Neolithic site on the Konya Plain of central Anatolia where people lived in densely packed mud-brick houses without streets, entered only through roof openings via wooden ladders. The twin mounds (Çatalhöyük East, c. 7500-6700 BCE; Çatalhöyük West, c. 6700-5700 BCE) provide crucial evidence of early agriculture, household organization, and Neolithic symbolism — including extensive wall paintings, animal-skull installations, and the so-called 'goddess' figurines. The site was effectively abandoned by around 5700 BCE and lay unrecognized for millennia until James Mellaart identified it in 1958; excavations began in 1961 and have continued under successive international projects (most notably Ian Hodder's long campaign from 1993). The site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2012 as the most complete record of an early sedentary farming community. ## Historical Rulers - 7500 BC – 6700 BC: Early Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Çatalhöyük East") Agro-pastoral Neolithic communities founded the eastern mound (Çatalhöyük East), establishing densely clustered mud-brick houses entered through roof openings. The settlement grew into one of the largest Neolithic population centers in the Near East, sustained by cereal cultivation, herding, and hunting. - 6700 BC – 5700 BC: Late Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Çatalhöyük West") As the eastern mound was gradually depopulated, occupation shifted to the adjacent western mound, marking a transition toward the Early Chalcolithic. Material culture evolved with new pottery styles and changes in household organization, before the site was abandoned entirely. ## Landmarks - Residential Structures (built 7100 BC) Mud-brick houses built directly adjacent to one another with no streets or ground-level doors. Access was through ladders from the roof, creating a honeycomb-like settlement pattern. - Wall Paintings (built 7000 BC) Numerous houses contained elaborate murals showing hunting scenes, geometric patterns, and what appear to be spiritual or religious imagery including distinctive 'goddess' figures. ## Population History - 7000 BC: 2,000 - 6500 BC: 5,000 - 6000 BC: 3,000 - 5700 BC: null --- # Çavuştepe, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/cavustepe Founded: 764 BC Ended: 645 BC Coordinates: 38.3525, 43.4594 ## Description Çavuştepe was a major Urartian fortress and palace complex on a long limestone ridge overlooking the Gürpınar plain twenty-five kilometers southeast of Van. Founded as Sardurihinili by the Urartian king Sarduri II between 764 and 735 BCE, the site combined an upper citadel with a temple of the storm god Haldi and a lower citadel with a temple of the god Irmushini, the royal palace with its throne room, defensive walls and towers, and extensive cisterns and storage facilities. The masonry of the site is among the finest of the ancient Near East, with bedrock-cut and ashlar blocks fitted without mortar to extraordinarily precise tolerances. The fortress was destroyed in the seventh century BCE, traditionally attributed to a Scythian or Median attack during the broader collapse of the Urartian Empire. Continuous excavations conducted by Afif Erzen of Istanbul University between 1961 and 1986 revealed the site as one of the best-documented Urartian royal complexes outside the capital at Tushpa. ## Historical Rulers - 764 BC – 645 BC: Urartu (known as "Sardurihinili") Sarduri II founded Sardurihinili between 764 and 735 BCE as a royal fortress and palace complex commanding the route from the Urartian capital at Tushpa toward the southern Lake Van basin. The fortress was destroyed in the mid-seventh century BCE, traditionally attributed to a Scythian or Median attack during the broader collapse of Urartian power, and was not reoccupied. ## Landmarks - Temple of Haldi (Upper Citadel) (built 750 BC) The upper citadel of Sardurihinili enclosed a temple of Haldi, the principal storm god of the Urartian pantheon, on a small leveled summit terrace. The temple stone foundations and dedicatory cuneiform inscriptions of Sarduri II survive. - Temple of Irmushini (Lower Citadel) (built 750 BC) The lower citadel preserved a temple of the otherwise little-known Urartian god Irmushini, set within the main palatial enclosure alongside the throne room and royal apartments. The temple is one of the few attested cult buildings dedicated to this deity in the Urartian record. - Royal Palace and Throne Room (built 750 BC) The royal palace of Sarduri II occupied the lower citadel with a throne room paved with finely fitted ashlar blocks and a sequence of ceremonial halls, storage magazines, and workshops. The complex is one of the most coherent Urartian royal residential ensembles known archaeologically. ## Population History - 764 BC: 800 - 700 BC: 1,500 - 650 BC: 1,000 - 645 BC: null --- # Çayönü Tepesi, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/cayonu-tepesi Founded: 10200 BC Ended: 6800 BC Coordinates: 38.2164, 39.7264 ## Description Çayönü Tepesi is one of the foundational Pre-Pottery Neolithic sites of the ancient Near East, located in the Ergani district of Diyarbakır Province at the foot of the southeastern Taurus mountains near the headwaters of the Tigris, at an elevation of around 810 metres. Occupied from approximately 10200 to 6800 BCE, the site spans the full Pre-Pottery Neolithic A, B, and C sequence and documents one of the longest continuous Neolithic stratigraphic records anywhere in the world. Çayönü is internationally renowned for its remarkable architectural sequence — from early round huts through grill plan, cobble plan, cell plan, and finally large-room buildings — and for the so-called Skull Building, a cult or funerary structure that contained the remains of more than 400 individuals including 70 disarticulated skulls displayed on a stone platform. The site has also produced some of the earliest evidence of cold-hammered native copper use in human prehistory, dating to around 7200 BCE, alongside one of the earliest archaeological assemblages documenting the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture and animal domestication. Joint Turkish-American excavations under Halet Çambel of Istanbul University and Robert Braidwood of the University of Chicago began in 1964 and have continued under Mehmet Özdoğan and successors, with major 2020s discoveries including 11,000-year-old burials and a 9,500-year-old red-floored public building. ## Historical Rulers - 10200 BC – 6800 BC: Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Çayönü Tepesi") Çayönü was occupied continuously from around 10200 to 6800 BCE, spanning the full Pre-Pottery Neolithic A, B, and C sequence. The site documents the long-term development of sedentary village life in the upper Tigris piedmont, with successive architectural phases — round huts, grill plan buildings, cobble plan, cell plan, and large-room buildings — preserving over three thousand years of continuous architectural evolution. The community pioneered the early domestication of einkorn and emmer wheat, peas, lentils, and chickpeas, the management of sheep and goats, and the cold-hammered working of native copper from around 7200 BCE, alongside the elaborate funerary and ritual practices documented in the famous Skull Building with its 70 disarticulated crania and over 400 buried individuals. ## Landmarks - Çayönü Architectural Sequence (built 10000 BC) Çayönü preserves one of the longest continuous architectural sequences of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic, with successive building phases moving from early round huts through grill plan buildings with closely spaced parallel stone foundations, to cobble plan houses, to cell plan multi-room buildings, and finally to large-room buildings of the later PPN. The successive plans document the gradual elaboration of domestic space and household organization over more than three millennia of village life. - Skull Building (built 8500 BC) A monumental cult or funerary structure occupying the centre of the Çayönü site, the Skull Building contained the remains of more than 400 individuals deposited over its long use life, with 70 disarticulated crania displayed on a stone platform inside the chamber. Traces of blood on the stone surface and an associated flint blade have led to interpretations of the building as a site of communal ritual activity, providing some of the most important evidence for early Neolithic funerary and religious practice in the Near East. - Early Copper Metallurgy Evidence (built 7200 BC) Çayönü has produced some of the earliest evidence in the world for the cold-hammering of native copper, dated to around 7200 BCE, including small beads, awls, and pins worked from native copper nuggets sourced from the nearby Ergani Maden deposits some 20 km away. The finds document the origins of Anatolian metallurgy long before the development of true smelting and stand as a foundational chapter in the global history of human technological development. ## Population History - 10200 BC: 100 - 9000 BC: 300 - 8000 BC: 500 - 7000 BC: 400 - 6800 BC: null --- # Comana, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/comana Founded: 1500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.3316, 36.326 ## Description Comana — known as Comana in Cappadocia (Comana Cappadociae) to distinguish it from Comana Pontica far to the north — was one of the most important temple-states of ancient Anatolia. Identified with Hittite Kummanni, the religious capital of the Kizzuwatna kingdom, the city grew around the cult of the Anatolian war and mother goddess Ma (identified by the Greeks with Enyo and by the Romans with Bellona). In its Hellenistic and Roman heyday it was governed by a high priest whose authority was second only to the king of Cappadocia, with the temple controlling vast estates and thousands of sacred servants (hierodouloi). The city occupied the same site as the modern village of Şar in the Tufanbeyli district of Adana province, where ancient ruins still stand among the inhabited houses, preserving the line of an unbroken settlement reaching back over three and a half thousand years. ## Historical Rulers - 1500 BC – 1325 BC: Kizzuwatna Kingdom (known as "Kummanni") Kummanni served as the religious capital of the Kizzuwatna kingdom in southeastern Anatolia, hosting the principal cult of the goddess Ḫepat (later assimilated to Ma). The city is mentioned repeatedly in Hittite cuneiform records, and Hittite kings made ritual visits to its temple before Kizzuwatna was absorbed into the Hittite Empire under Shuppiluliuma I. - 1325 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Kummanni") Under Shuppiluliuma I and his successors the Kizzuwatna region was fully integrated into the Hittite Empire, and Kummanni continued as the empire's principal cult center for Ḫepat. Hittite kings continued ritual visits and temple endowments at the site until the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 546 BC: Tabal (known as "Kummanni") After the collapse of the Hittite Empire, Kummanni continued as a local cult center within the broader Neo-Hittite world, most likely under the Iron Age kingdom of Tabal and its successor principalities. The temple-state structure and the cult of Ma survived the broader political collapse, with Neo-Assyrian raids in the 8th-7th centuries BCE touching the region without ending the cult. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Kummanni") Absorbed into the Persian Empire after Cyrus the Great's conquest of Anatolia, the temple-state retained significant autonomy under the Achaemenid satrapal system, paying tribute while governing its own estates. The cult of Ma continued without interruption through the long Persian period. - 334 BC – 322 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought Cappadocia nominally into the Macedonian sphere, and Greek tradition hellenized the city's name as Komana Chrysē ('Golden Comana'). After Alexander's death the region rapidly reorganized under the new Ariarathid dynasty as an independent Hellenistic kingdom. - 322 BC – 17 AD: Kingdom of Cappadocia Under the Ariarathid and later Ariobarzanid kings of Cappadocia the temple-state of Comana continued under royal protection, with its high priest, according to Strabo, second in influence only to the king himself. Greek civic forms layered over the older Anatolian temple administration, and the great processions of Ma continued to draw thousands of pilgrims through the long Hellenistic kingdom. - 17 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Tiberius annexed Cappadocia as a Roman province in 17 CE, and Comana was reorganized as a Roman polis while retaining its temple-state structure. The cult of Ma — now identified with Bellona — remained influential, and the Sarus River bridge and the Roman colonnaded street date from this period. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Komana") Christianization gradually displaced the cult of Ma, and Comana became a Byzantine bishopric (Komana of Cappadocia). The city declined from its Roman peak but persisted as a regional religious and administrative center until the broader Byzantine collapse in eastern Anatolia after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. - 1071 AD – 1300 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Şar") Turkmen Seljuks took control of upper Cilicia after Manzikert. The settlement shrank dramatically and the population gradually Islamized, with the Turkish name Şar (likely derived from local pronunciation of the older name) gradually replacing Comana. - 1300 AD – 1516 AD: Ramadanid Beylik (known as "Şar") After Seljuk fragmentation, the Cilician plain and uplands fell to local Turkmen and Mamluk-aligned principalities, eventually consolidated under the Ramadanid Beylik based at Adana. Şar remained a minor agricultural village amid the ruined ancient temple complex through the long Ramadanid period. - 1516 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Şar") Selim I annexed the Ramadanid territories alongside the Mamluk lands after his 1516-17 conquests in Syria and Egypt. Şar remained a small Ottoman village throughout the long Ottoman period, with European travelers and early antiquarians beginning to take note of its surviving ruins from the 18th century onward. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Şar") Şar is administered as a village in the Tufanbeyli district of Adana province, with the modern village's population hovering around 800-900. Archaeological research on Comana intensified from the late 20th century onward, and the ancient temple complex remains visible amid the inhabited houses. ## Landmarks - Temple of Ma (built 1500 BC) The Temple of Ma was the heart of Comana's religious life across more than a millennium and a half — from Hittite Kummanni through Roman Comana Cappadociae. The temple controlled extensive landed estates and a large body of sacred servants (hierodouloi), with Hittite kings and later Cappadocian and Roman pilgrims travelling to worship there. Strabo describes its high priest as second in influence only to the king of Cappadocia. - Sarus River Bridge (built 100 BC) Roman-era bridge spanning the Sarus river (modern Seyhan), linking Comana to the major routes connecting Cilicia with central Anatolia. The bridge reinforced the city's strategic and religious importance as a pilgrimage destination. - Roman Colonnaded Street (built 100 AD) Remains of a marble-paved colonnaded street still visible amid the modern village. Evidence of Comana's reorganization as a Roman polis with the standard imperial urban repertoire. ## Population History - 1500 BC: 2,000 - 1000 BC: 5,000 - 0 AD: 8,000 - 500 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 1,500 - 2000 AD: 800 - 2025 AD: 850 --- # Çukuriçi Höyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/cukurici-hoyuk Founded: 6700 BC Ended: 1900 BC Coordinates: 37.9292, 27.3594 ## Description Çukuriçi Höyük is a prehistoric settlement mound on the Aegean coastal plain of western Anatolia, about 3 km southeast of the later classical city of Ephesus. One of the earliest known farming villages in western Anatolia, it was occupied almost continuously from the Neolithic through the Early Bronze Age — a span of nearly five thousand years. The site provides crucial evidence for the spread of agriculture from Anatolia to the Aegean and for the rise of metalworking in the Early Bronze Age. Çukuriçi was finally abandoned around 1900 BCE, well before the later Bronze Age and Iron Age settlements of the Selçuk plain. The mound takes its name from the modern Turkish çukur (hollow), reflecting its low-lying setting. ## Historical Rulers - 6700 BC – 5500 BC: Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Çukuriçi Höyük") The earliest village phase at the mound, spanning the Early and Late Neolithic in western Anatolia. The community practiced early agriculture with cereal cultivation and domesticated sheep and goat, and produced some of the earliest decorated pottery in the region, suggesting cultural ties to the central Anatolian Neolithic centers. - 5500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Çukuriçi Höyük") Continuous occupation through the Chalcolithic. Early evidence of copper use appears at the site, marking the gradual transition toward metallurgical technology in western Anatolia. - 3000 BC – 1900 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Çukuriçi Höyük") The mound's most prosperous and best-documented phase. The settlement becomes a regional metallurgical center, producing arsenical copper and bronze tools traded along the Aegean coast. Abandoned around 1900 BCE for reasons that remain debated; population may have dispersed to other settlements in the Cayster valley. ## Population History - 6700 BC: 100 - 5500 BC: 300 - 3000 BC: 500 - 2500 BC: 800 - 1900 BC: null --- # Cyzicus, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/cyzicus Founded: 756 BC Ended: 1200 AD Coordinates: 40.3911, 27.8869 ## Description Cyzicus was a major Greek polis of Mysia, occupying the southwestern tip of the Kapıdağ peninsula (ancient Arctonnesos) on the southern shore of the Sea of Marmara. Founded around 756 BCE as a Milesian colony, the city became one of the wealthiest harbors of the Propontis through the Archaic and Classical periods and minted the famous gold staters of Cyzicus that served as standard high-denomination currency across the Aegean and Black Sea. The 410 BCE Battle of Cyzicus, in which the Athenian admiral Alcibiades destroyed the Spartan fleet, was the decisive naval engagement of the later Peloponnesian War. Roman Cyzicus enjoyed free city status and withstood a major siege by Mithridates VI of Pontus in 74 BCE, after which the imperial Temple of Hadrian was built in the second century CE as one of the largest Roman temples of Asia Minor at roughly 117 by 60 meters. A series of earthquakes from 443 CE onward, culminating in the catastrophic 1063 earthquake, progressively destroyed the city, and the population was transferred to nearby Artake before the thirteenth century. ## Historical Rulers - 756 BC – 546 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Kyzikos") Cyzicus was founded around 756 BCE as a Milesian Greek colony on the southwestern tip of the Kapıdağ peninsula (ancient Arctonnesos). The city emerged through the Archaic period as one of the wealthiest harbors of the Propontis, beginning to mint the famous gold staters of Cyzicus that would become standard high-denomination currency across the Aegean and Black Sea. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Kyzikos") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE Cyzicus came under Achaemenid suzerainty as part of the satrapy of Daskyleion. The city alternated between Persian control and Athenian alliance through the fifth century, with the 410 BCE Battle of Cyzicus in which Alcibiades destroyed the Spartan fleet marking the decisive naval engagement of the later Peloponnesian War, before the Peace of Antalcidas restored Persian control in 387 BCE. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Kyzikos") Alexander the Great recaptured Cyzicus in 334 BCE during his Anatolian campaign. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Kyzikos") Through the third and second centuries BCE Cyzicus was closely tied to the Attalid dynasty of Pergamon as a major Hellenistic port and continued to mint its famous gold staters. The Attalid bequest of 133 BCE brought the city into the Roman provincial system. - 133 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Rome granted Cyzicus free city status in recognition of its strategic importance and the city withstood a major siege by Mithridates VI of Pontus in 74 BCE, after which the loyalty was rewarded by an extension of territory. The imperial Temple of Hadrian was built in the second century CE as one of the largest Roman temples of Asia Minor at roughly 117 by 60 meters. - 395 AD – 1200 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Kyzikos") Under Eastern Roman administration Cyzicus continued as an episcopal see and substantial Marmara port through the early Byzantine centuries. A series of earthquakes from 443 CE onward progressively damaged the city, culminating in the catastrophic 1063 earthquake that destroyed most of the urban fabric, after which the surviving population was transferred to nearby Artake before the thirteenth century. ## Landmarks - Cyzicus Stater (built 550 BC) The gold staters of Cyzicus, minted from the late sixth century BCE through the third century BCE, became the standard high-denomination currency for trade across the Aegean and the Black Sea, with hundreds of recovered specimens documenting the city's commercial reach. The coins are distinguished by their tuna-fish reverse symbol and by an extraordinary variety of obverse types. - Temple of Hadrian at Cyzicus (built 150 AD) The Temple of Hadrian at Cyzicus was begun under Hadrian in the early second century CE and completed under his successors as a colossal pseudodipteral structure of roughly 117 by 60 meters, ranking among the largest Roman temples ever built in Asia Minor. The temple was severely damaged by the 1063 earthquake and the surviving column drums and capitals were subsequently quarried for medieval Constantinopolitan and Bursa construction. - Roman Amphitheater (built 150 AD) The Roman amphitheater of Cyzicus was built in the second century CE on the eastern slope of the lower city with capacity for roughly 30,000 spectators, one of the largest amphitheaters of the eastern Mediterranean. The structure survives in fragmentary form following the earthquakes that destroyed the surrounding city. ## Population History - 756 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 10,000 - 400 BC: 20,000 - 200 BC: 15,000 - 100 AD: 18,000 - 200 AD: 25,000 - 500 AD: 15,000 - 1000 AD: 8,000 - 1100 AD: 2,000 - 1200 AD: null --- # Derinkuyu, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/derinkuyu Founded: 1200 BC Ended: 2026 AD Coordinates: 38.37357, 34.735098 ## Description Derinkuyu is a remarkable underground city in Cappadocia, carved deep into the volcanic rock formations of central Anatolia, located beneath the modern Turkish town of Derinkuyu in Nevşehir Province. One of the largest and most complex underground settlements in the world, the multi-level complex descends up to 60 meters and could shelter thousands of people along with their livestock and food stores. It provided critical protection during Late Bronze Age, Byzantine, and medieval periods of invasion and religious persecution, with chapels and a large cruciform church integrated into the deeper levels. The underground city continued in occasional use by the local Greek-speaking Christian community through the Ottoman period until the 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange, after which the surface town developed under the Turkish Republic. The modern town of Derinkuyu today has around 11,000 inhabitants and sits directly above the largely preserved underground complex, a portion of which was opened to visitors in 1969 and forms part of the broader UNESCO 'Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia' listing. ## Historical Rulers - 1200 BC – 1180 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Elengubu") - 1180 BC – 546 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "Elengubu") - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Malakopia") - 334 BC – 322 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Malakopia") - 322 BC – 17 AD: Kingdom of Cappadocia (known as "Malakopia") - 17 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Malakopia") - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Malakopia") - 1071 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Malakopia") - 1243 AD – 1308 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Malakopia") - 1308 AD – 1487 AD: Karamanid Beylik (known as "Malakopia") - 1487 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Malakopia") - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye ## Landmarks - Derinkuyu Underground City (built 1000 BC) A multi-level underground city descending up to 60 meters, featuring living quarters, stables, kitchens, wineries, schools, and chapels, interconnected by ventilation shafts and hidden passageways. The complex could shelter thousands of people along with their livestock during periods of invasion or persecution, and is one of the largest of the more than two hundred underground settlements documented across Cappadocia. ## Population History - 1200 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 1,000 - 500 AD: 2,000 - 1000 AD: 1,500 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1923 AD: 1,500 - 1970 AD: 4,000 - 2020 AD: 11,000 --- # Diyarbakır, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/diyarbakir Founded: 2000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.9136, 40.2356 ## Description Diyarbakır is a major city of southeastern Türkiye, built on a black basalt plateau above the western bank of the Tigris river and ringed by one of the most intact ancient defensive systems in the world — a roughly 5.5-kilometre circuit of basalt walls and 82 towers that grew from Roman foundations through Byzantine, Marwanid, Artuqid, and Ottoman reconstructions. The settlement on Amida hill is attested from the Bronze Age and appears in Assyrian records as Amidu, with the Romans rebuilding it from 230 CE as Amida, capital of the province of Mesopotamia. After the Arab conquest of 639 the surrounding region became known as Diyâr Bakr ('the lands of the Bakr tribe'), a name that eventually attached to the city itself, and through the Marwanid, Seljuk, Artuqid, Ayyubid, Aq Qoyunlu, Safavid, and Ottoman periods the walled city continued as a major regional centre and the most important Kurdish city in the empire. Modern Diyarbakır has grown into the principal urban centre of southeastern Türkiye with a metropolitan population of around 1.7 million, and its fortress walls and adjacent Hevsel Gardens along the Tigris were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Landscape in 2015. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1500 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Amida hill") Bronze Age occupation on the basalt outcrop overlooking the Tigris is attested by stratigraphic levels under the later walled city. The site served as a strategic crossing of the upper Tigris through the Middle Bronze Age. - 1500 BC – 1340 BC: Mitanni (known as "*Amida hill") During the Late Bronze Age the Amida area lay within the Hurrian-led Mitanni Empire of upper Mesopotamia, with the settlement serving as a fortified river crossing. The Mitanni kingdom held the upper Tigris until Suppiluliuma I's Hittite expansion and the subsequent Middle Assyrian conquest. - 1340 BC – 911 BC: Middle Assyrian Empire (known as "Amidu") After Ashur-uballit I broke Mitanni power, the city of Amidu appears in Middle Assyrian royal annals as a fortified centre subject to the kings of Ashur, including campaigns by Tukulti-Ninurta I. The black basalt outcrop made the site a natural fortress on the imperial frontier. - 911 BC – 780 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Amidu") Under the Neo-Assyrian kings from Adad-nirari II onward, Amidu was integrated into the heartland of the empire as a major fortified provincial center. Assyrian control held firm through Ashurnasirpal II and Shalmaneser III until the kingdom of Urartu began pressing south into the upper Tigris in the early 8th century BCE. - 780 BC – 745 BC: Urartu (known as "Amida") Urartu under Sarduri II briefly extended its reach into the upper Tigris during the mid-8th century BCE while Assyria was weakened by internal succession crises. Amida fell within the Urartian sphere until Tiglath-Pileser III's accession in 745 BCE began the rapid restoration of Assyrian dominance across upper Mesopotamia. - 745 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Amidu") Tiglath-Pileser III and his successors Sargon II and Sennacherib re-established firm Assyrian control over Amidu and the upper Tigris, defeating Urartu and incorporating the city into the imperial administration. Amidu remained a Neo-Assyrian provincial centre until the fall of Nineveh and the empire's collapse in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Amid") After the fall of Assyria, upper Mesopotamia passed under Neo-Babylonian control. The city continued as a regional center on the frontier between Mesopotamia and the Anatolian world. - 539 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Amid") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE, the upper Tigris region was incorporated into the Achaemenid Persian Empire as part of the satrapy of Armenia. Amid continued as a regional center on the frontier between the Persian and Anatolian worlds. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Amida") Alexander the Great's campaign brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, and after his death it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Seleucid consolidation after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 141 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Amida") Hellenistic Amida was a frontier town in the upper Tigris valley under Seleucid administration after the Battle of Corupedium. Seleucid control over Mesopotamia continued until Mithridates I of Parthia overran the region in 141 BCE. - 141 BC – 83 BC: Parthian Empire (known as "Amida") Under the Parthian Arsacids the upper Tigris was incorporated into the new Iranian empire, with Amida serving as a frontier town on the marches of Armenia. Parthian control lasted until Tigranes the Great of Armenia conquered the region around 83 BCE in his great westward expansion. - 83 BC – 66 BC: Kingdom of Armenia (known as "Amida") Tigranes the Great's brief Armenian empire absorbed the upper Tigris from the Parthians, holding Amida among its outlying frontier cities. Tigranes was defeated by Pompey in 66 BCE, and Amida reverted to the Roman-Parthian frontier zone. - 66 BC – 195 AD: Parthian Empire (known as "Amida") Following Pompey's settlement of the East and the collapse of Tigranes's empire, the upper Tigris reverted to Parthian sovereignty within the Roman-Parthian contested zone. Roman incursions under Trajan in 114-117 and Lucius Verus in 165-166 briefly held the region, but Parthian rule was restored each time until Septimius Severus's permanent annexation of Mesopotamia. - 195 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Amida") Septimius Severus's eastern campaign established the Roman province of Mesopotamia in 195 CE, permanently incorporating Amida into the empire. Constantius II rebuilt and fortified the city around 349 as a major eastern frontier bulwark facing Sasanian Persia, and in 359 the Persian king Shapur II besieged and stormed Amida in a campaign extensively narrated by the eyewitness Ammianus Marcellinus. - 395 AD – 639 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Amida") Under the Eastern Roman empire Amida remained the principal frontier city of Roman Mesopotamia, repeatedly besieged by the Sasanian Persians; Khusrau I sacked the city in 503 and Khusrau II in 602. Justinian I rebuilt the basalt walls on a monumental scale in the early 6th century, and Amida became one of the great centres of Syriac Christianity with a major bishopric. - 639 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Amid") Arab forces under Iyad ibn Ghanm conquered the city in 639 and incorporated it into the new Islamic Jazira province. Christian and Muslim communities lived side by side within the basalt walls under the new administration. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Amid") Under Umayyad administration Amid retained its strategic role on the northern frontier of the Caliphate. The city continued as a major Syriac Christian center under Umayyad governors with significant Arab Muslim immigration. - 750 AD – 990 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Amid") Under Abbasid administration from Baghdad, Amid continued as a major provincial center. The surrounding region became known as Diyâr Bakr after the Banu Bakr tribe settled in the area, and the name gradually attached to the city itself. - 990 AD – 1085 AD: Marwanid Emirate (known as "Amid") From 990 to 1085 the Kurdish Marwanid dynasty ruled Amid as the capital of an independent emirate, expanding the basalt walls, building the great congregational mosque (1091 expansion), the On Gözlü ('Ten-Eyed') Bridge over the Tigris in 1065, and patronizing scholarship and architecture. - 1085 AD – 1183 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Amid") After the Marwanid collapse the city passed under Seljuk suzerainty and a succession of Seljuk governors. The Great Mosque was substantially rebuilt under Malik-Shah I in 1091. - 1183 AD – 1232 AD: Artuqid Dynasty (known as "Amid") The Artuqid Turkmen dynasty captured Amid in 1183 and ruled the city as a principal Artuqid centre, building palaces, mosques, and the elaborate inner citadel (İçkale). The Artuqids continued the architectural florescence of Diyarbakır's basalt fortifications through the late 12th and early 13th centuries. - 1232 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Amid") Saladin's Ayyubids took the city in 1232 and continued its development as a major regional capital, including significant additions to the city walls and gates. Ayyubid rule ended with the Mongol Ilkhanate's expansion across upper Mesopotamia. - 1260 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Amid") Amid passed through Mongol Ilkhanate suzerainty, ruled increasingly directly from the Ilkhanid heartland in Iran. The city remained a major regional center throughout the Mongol period, with continuous occupation and ongoing expansion of the basalt fortifications. - 1335 AD – 1378 AD: Jalayirid Sultanate (known as "Amid") After the dissolution of Ilkhanid central authority in 1335, Amid passed under the Jalayirid Sultanate of Baghdad founded by Hasan Buzurg. Jalayirid control was contested by rising Turkmen confederations in upper Mesopotamia and eastern Anatolia until the Aq Qoyunlu under Qara Yuluq Uthman Beg established their capital at Amid in 1378. - 1378 AD – 1508 AD: Aq Qoyunlu (known as "Amid") Qara Yuluq Uthman Beg of the Bayandur Turkmen clan established the Aq Qoyunlu confederation's capital at Amid in 1378, beginning a long Aq Qoyunlu phase that culminated under Uzun Hasan in the mid-15th century. From Amid and later Tabriz, Uzun Hasan extended Aq Qoyunlu rule across Iraq, Iran, and eastern Anatolia until early Safavid pressure ended the confederation in the early 16th century. - 1508 AD – 1515 AD: Safavid Iran (known as "Amid") Shah Ismail I incorporated Amid into the new Safavid Empire of Iran briefly. Ottoman expansion under Selim I ended Safavid control after the Battle of Çaldıran in 1514. - 1515 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Diyarbekir") After the Battle of Çaldıran in 1514, Selim I incorporated Diyarbakır into the Ottoman Empire in 1515. The city became the seat of the large Eyalet of Diyarbekir, one of the most important Ottoman provinces of eastern Anatolia, with a mixed Kurdish, Turkish, Armenian, Syriac, and Arab population, and Ottoman patronage built monuments such as the Behram Pasha Camii (1572). - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic the city was renamed Diyarbakır in 1937 and grew into the principal urban centre of southeastern Türkiye, with a metropolitan population of around 1.7 million in the early 2020s. The historic walled old city around Sur district remains the cultural heart and was inscribed together with the adjacent Hevsel Gardens along the Tigris as a UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Landscape in 2015. ## Landmarks - Diyarbakır Fortress Walls (built 350 AD) The roughly 5.5-kilometre circuit of black basalt walls and 82 towers around the old city, originally laid out in the Roman period under Constantius II around 349 CE and progressively expanded by Justinian I in the 6th century, the Marwanids in the 11th, and the Artuqids and Ayyubids in the 12th-13th centuries. After the Great Wall of China it is the longest continuous fortification of antiquity, and its monumental gates — Mardin Kapısı, Urfa Kapısı, Dağ Kapısı, and Yeni Kapı — preserve dynastic inscriptions and reliefs documenting the city's rulers. - On Gözlü Köprü (built 1065 AD) The 'Ten-Eyed Bridge' across the Tigris immediately southeast of the walled city, built in 1065 under the Marwanid emir Nizamuddevle Nasr ibn Nizamiddin in black basalt with ten pointed arches. The bridge carries an Arabic foundation inscription on its parapet and remains in use as a pedestrian crossing within the UNESCO cultural landscape. - Great Mosque of Diyarbakır (Ulu Cami) (built 1091 AD) One of the oldest extant mosques in Anatolia, established in the late 7th century on the foundations of a Roman temple and a Byzantine cathedral that had served as the Great Church of Saint Thomas. The current four-iwan plan with its monumental courtyard façade dates largely to the 1091 Seljuk-period reconstruction under Malik-Shah I and was further expanded by Marwanid, Artuqid, and Ottoman patrons. - Diyarbakır İçkale (Inner Citadel) (built 1200 AD) The fortified inner citadel at the northeast corner of the city walls, overlooking a sharp bend in the Tigris. The İçkale layers Roman, Byzantine, Artuqid, and Ottoman fortifications, with the Artuqid Saint George Church (later Hazreti Süleyman Camii) and the late-19th century Artuklu Palace standing within the citadel grounds. - Behram Paşa Camii (built 1572 AD) An Ottoman congregational mosque commissioned by the Diyarbakır beylerbeyi Behram Pasha in 1572 and designed by the Sinan school. Its distinctive black-and-white alternating courses of basalt and limestone reflect the local 'ablaq' building tradition adapted to Ottoman classical mosque architecture. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 3,000 - 500 BC: 10,000 - 350 AD: 30,000 - 500 AD: 50,000 - 700 AD: 30,000 - 1100 AD: 50,000 - 1500 AD: 50,000 - 1800 AD: 60,000 - 1900 AD: 65,000 - 1950 AD: 80,000 - 2020 AD: 1,700,000 --- # Edirne, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/edirne Founded: 500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.677, 26.5557 ## Description Edirne — ancient Uskudama, Roman Hadrianopolis, and medieval Adrianople — is the principal city of Turkish Eastern Thrace, on the confluence of the Tundzha, Maritsa, and Arda rivers near the modern Greek and Bulgarian frontiers. The site is attested as the Odrysian Thracian settlement of Uskudama from the 5th century BCE, before passing through Macedonian, Hellenistic Thracian, Roman client, and finally direct Roman provincial rule when Thrace was annexed by Emperor Claudius in 46 CE. Emperor Hadrian refounded the city as Hadrianopolis around 125 CE, after which the new Roman city became a major Balkan road junction on the routes between the Adriatic, the Danube, and Constantinople. Hadrianopolis was the site of the catastrophic Battle of Adrianople on 9 August 378 CE, in which the Visigoth king Fritigern crushed the Eastern Roman army of Emperor Valens, killing the emperor and prefiguring the long Gothic migrations that would reshape the late Roman world. Under Byzantine rule the city was a key Thracian fortress contested with Bulgarians, briefly held by the Latin Empire after 1204, recovered by the Nicaeans and Palaiologans, and finally captured by Murad I around 1369. Adrianople replaced Bursa as the new Ottoman capital and served as the imperial seat for 84 years until Mehmed II conquered Constantinople in 1453, remaining thereafter a major imperial residence and the site of the great Selimiye Mosque built by Mimar Sinan for Sultan Selim II between 1568 and 1575. The city was occupied by Russian forces in 1829 and 1878 and by Bulgaria during the First Balkan War of 1912-1913, before being secured for Türkiye under the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923. Modern Edirne is the provincial capital of Edirne Province with about 165,000 inhabitants, an important university and border town facing both Greece and Bulgaria, and the Selimiye Mosque was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2011. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 336 BC: Odrysian Kingdom (known as "Uskudama") Uskudama — meaning 'water-fortress' or 'wet-walls' in the Thracian language — was the principal Thracian settlement of the Odrysian Kingdom at the confluence of the Tundzha and Maritsa rivers in southern Thrace. The Odrysians ruled the wider region as the dominant Thracian polity from around 480 BCE under King Teres I and his successors, until Philip II of Macedon's campaigns in the 340s BCE broke Thracian independence. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Uskudama") Under Alexander the Great and his Diadochi successor Lysimachus, Uskudama and the surrounding Odrysian heartland were incorporated into the Macedonian sphere as part of the new Hellenistic order in Thrace. The site passed through the chaotic territorial reconfiguration of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 46 AD: Odrysian Kingdom (known as "Uskudama") After the collapse of Lysimachus's Thracian kingdom in 281 BCE and the subsequent Galatian invasion, the Odrysian and related Thracian dynasties — Sapaean, Astaean, and Bessian — re-emerged as competing Thracian states in the upper Marmara hinterland. The Odrysian Kingdom was progressively restored as a Roman client kingdom from the late 1st century BCE under the Sapaean dynasty, until the last king Rhoemetalces III was murdered in 46 CE and Emperor Claudius annexed Thrace as a Roman province. - 46 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Hadrianopolis") After Claudius's annexation of Thrace in 46 CE, Uskudama was integrated into the new Roman province of Thracia as a regular provincial town. Emperor Hadrian refounded the city as Hadrianopolis around 125 CE on his tour of the eastern provinces, after which it grew into a major Balkan road junction at the intersection of the routes between the Adriatic, the Danube, and Constantinople. Hadrianopolis was the site of the catastrophic Battle of Adrianople on 9 August 378 CE, in which the Visigoth king Fritigern crushed the Eastern Roman army of Emperor Valens, killing the emperor and prefiguring the long Gothic migrations that would reshape the late Roman world. - 395 AD – 1369 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Adrianople") Under the Eastern Roman administration Adrianople served as one of the principal Thracian fortress cities of the empire and the seat of the theme of Thrace and Macedonia, surviving Bulgarian, Pecheneg, and Norman raids through the middle Byzantine period. The city briefly fell to the Latin Empire after the Fourth Crusade in 1204, but Latin Emperor Baldwin I was defeated and captured by the Bulgarian Tsar Kaloyan at the Battle of Adrianople on 14 April 1205, after which the city was contested between Bulgarian Empire, Nicaean, and Palaiologan claimants. After Michael VIII Palaiologos's restoration of Constantinople in 1261, Adrianople reverted to the Byzantine Empire as one of its principal Thracian fortress cities until the Ottoman conquest around 1369. - 1369 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Murad I captured Adrianople — renamed Edirne in Turkish — around 1369 and made it the new Ottoman capital, replacing Bursa, after which it served as the imperial seat of the Ottoman Empire for 84 years until Mehmed II conquered Constantinople in 1453. Edirne remained a major imperial residence and second capital, hosting the great Selimiye Mosque built by Mimar Sinan for Sultan Selim II between 1568 and 1575, as well as the Edirne Palace (Saray-i Cedid-i Amire) used by Sultan Mehmed IV in the late 17th century. The city was occupied by Russian forces in 1829 and 1878-1879 and by Bulgaria during the First Balkan War of 1912-1913, before being secured for Türkiye under the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, with the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey ending five and a half centuries of Ottoman rule. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923 and the Treaty of Lausanne, Edirne was secured as the principal Turkish city of Eastern Thrace and the seat of its eponymous province. The Selimiye Mosque was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2011, and the city has developed through the Republican period into a regional border centre and university town of about 165,000 inhabitants facing both Greece and Bulgaria. ## Landmarks - Eski Camii (built 1414 AD) The Eski Camii — Old Mosque — was completed in 1414 under Sultan Mehmed I, the first imperial mosque built in Edirne after the Ottoman conquest. The nine-domed hypostyle prayer hall represents the early-Ottoman type derived from the great mosque of Bursa, and the interior calligraphic inscriptions on the piers are among the largest in the Ottoman world. - Üç Şerefeli Mosque (built 1447 AD) The Üç Şerefeli Mosque was completed in 1447 under Sultan Murad II as the principal imperial mosque of Ottoman Edirne in the final years before the conquest of Constantinople. Distinguished by its four minarets of different designs and the eponymous three-balconied (üç şerefeli) southwestern minaret, the mosque is widely seen as the transitional masterpiece between early-Ottoman and classical-Ottoman architecture. - Bayezid II Külliyesi (built 1488 AD) The Sultan Bayezid II charitable complex (külliye) was completed in 1488 by the architect Hayrettin on the Tundzha river bank just outside the historic core, comprising a mosque, two madrasas, an imaret, and the Darüşşifa hospital famous for its early use of music therapy. The hospital remained operational until the late 19th century and is now preserved as the Sultan Bayezid II Health Museum, a UNESCO Memory of the World inscribed institution. - Selimiye Mosque (built 1575 AD) The Selimiye Mosque was completed in 1575 by the chief Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan for Sultan Selim II, who Sinan himself declared his architectural masterpiece in his autobiography. The mosque's central dome — at 31.5 metres in diameter and 43 metres in height — is the largest in the Ottoman world, surpassing even the Hagia Sophia, and the surrounding complex of madrasas and Arasta market was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2011 as the pinnacle of classical Ottoman architecture. ## Population History - 500 BC: 2,000 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 1 AD: 8,000 - 125 AD: 20,000 - 200 AD: 30,000 - 378 AD: 25,000 - 500 AD: 30,000 - 1000 AD: 25,000 - 1204 AD: 20,000 - 1369 AD: 15,000 - 1450 AD: 50,000 - 1500 AD: 100,000 - 1600 AD: 110,000 - 1750 AD: 100,000 - 1829 AD: 80,000 - 1900 AD: 90,000 - 1923 AD: 30,000 - 1950 AD: 30,000 - 1980 AD: 70,000 - 2020 AD: 165,000 --- # Eğil, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/egil Founded: 900 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.2548, 40.0928 ## Description Eğil — known in antiquity as Carcathiocerta, in the Hellenistic period as Epiphania, and to the Byzantines as Ingila — is a small town in northern Diyarbakır Province occupying the limestone bluffs above the Tigris river some 50 kilometres north of Diyarbakır. The site preserves more than two and a half millennia of continuous occupation, beginning as an Iron Age fortified stronghold within the Urartian and later Neo-Assyrian frontier zone — the celebrated rock-cut reliefs and cuneiform inscriptions on the citadel cliff face are commonly attributed to Tiglath-Pileser I and successive Assyrian kings campaigning into the Nairi lands. From around 260 BCE Carcathiocerta served as the first capital of the Hellenistic Kingdom of Sophene under Sames I, before Arsames I relocated the royal seat to Arsamosata on the upper Euphrates around 240 BCE. Under successive Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Marwanid, Seljuk, Artuqid, Ayyubid, Aq Qoyunlu, Safavid, and Ottoman administrations the town continued as a regional bishopric and frontier fortress, becoming the seat of the long-lived Kurdish Eğil Beyliği under Ottoman suzerainty from the 16th century to 1838. The modern Eğil district of Diyarbakır Province has a population of around 21,500, with the original ancient town partially submerged beneath the reservoir of the Dicle Dam impounded in 1997. Major surviving monuments include the citadel cliff with its rock-cut tombs traditionally identified as the burial places of the Orontid kings of Sophene, the Eğil Castle, and the venerated cliffside shrines of Nabi Elyesa (Prophet Elisha) and Nabi Zülkifl (Prophet Ezekiel). ## Historical Rulers - 900 BC – 740 BC: Urartu (known as "*Eğil Citadel") The Eğil citadel cliff rising above the Tigris was a fortified Iron Age outpost on the southern frontier of the Urartian kingdom, within the Nairi lands repeatedly campaigned against by both Urartu and Assyria during the 9th and 8th centuries BCE. The Urartian fortified settlement preceded the Neo-Assyrian frontier presence attested by the rock-cut reliefs on the cliff face. - 740 BC – 609 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "*Eğil Citadel") Following Tiglath-Pileser III's campaigns into the upper Tigris and the destruction of Urartian power in the late 8th century BCE, the Eğil citadel passed under Neo-Assyrian control. The celebrated rock-cut reliefs and Akkadian cuneiform inscriptions on the citadel cliff are commonly attributed to Assyrian royal campaigns in the Nairi lands. - 609 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "*Eğil Citadel") After the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire the upper Tigris region passed briefly under Neo-Babylonian control. The fortress at Eğil continued as a regional frontier post. - 539 BC – 331 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Eğil Citadel") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE brought the upper Tigris under Achaemenid rule as part of the satrapy of Armenia. The fortified citadel continued as a regional centre under Persian administration until the Macedonian conquest. - 331 BC – 260 BC: Kingdom of Armenia (known as "Carcathiocerta") After Alexander the Great's conquest of the Achaemenids the upper Tigris region passed under the Orontid satraps of Armenia who reasserted local autonomy. Carcathiocerta — 'the rock of Carcath' — became the principal seat of the southwestern Orontid lands that would soon break away as the independent Kingdom of Sophene. - 260 BC – 94 BC: Kingdom of Sophene (known as "Carcathiocerta") Carcathiocerta became the first capital of the breakaway Kingdom of Sophene under Sames I around 260 BCE, with Strabo describing it as 'the royal city of Sophene.' Arsames I (r. c. 255–225 BCE) relocated the royal seat to the new foundation of Arsamosata on the upper Euphrates around 240 BCE, but Carcathiocerta continued as a major regional centre of Sophene and the dynastic burial site of the Orontid kings — the rock-cut royal tombs on the cliff above the Tigris are traditionally identified as the sepulchres of the Orontid rulers of Sophene. - 94 BC – 106 AD: Kingdom of Armenia (known as "Carcathiocerta") Tigranes the Great absorbed Sophene into the expanding Greater Armenian kingdom around 94 BCE, and Carcathiocerta continued as a regional centre of southern Armenia under successive Artaxiad and Arsacid kings, intermittently under Roman client status from the 1st century BCE through the long Armenian–Parthian frontier conflict. - 106 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Ingila") Following Trajan's annexation of Armenia in the early 2nd century CE, the upper Tigris was incorporated into the Roman provincial system as part of Sophanene. The town — now known by the late Roman form Ingila — became an episcopal see of the patriarchate of Antioch and a regional fortress on the Roman–Sasanian frontier. - 395 AD – 638 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Ingila") Under Eastern Roman administration Ingila continued as a fortified town and metropolitan bishopric of late Roman Sophanene, contested through the long Byzantine–Sasanian wars of the 6th and early 7th centuries until the Arab conquest of the upper Tigris. - 638 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Ankil") Captured by Arab forces during the Muslim conquest of Armenia, the town — arabicised as Ankil or similar — was incorporated into the Rashidun Jazira province. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Ankil") Under Umayyad administration Ankil continued as a frontier town of the Jaziran caliphate, with a substantial surviving Christian population alongside the new Arab garrison. - 750 AD – 983 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Ankil") Under the Abbasids the town continued as a small Jaziran administrative centre, repeatedly contested during the Arab–Byzantine and Hamdanid frontier wars of the 9th and 10th centuries. - 983 AD – 1085 AD: Marwanid Emirate (known as "Egil") Under the Kurdish Marwanid emirate of Mayyafariqin (Silvan) founded around 983 by Bad ibn Dustak, the Eğil citadel — now bearing its modern Kurdish name in Arabic transcription as Egil — became one of the most important fortified strongholds of the emirate, controlling the Tigris approaches to the Marwanid capital. The Marwanid period preserved the citadel and the cliff tombs as one of the most distinctive medieval sites of the upper Tigris. - 1085 AD – 1183 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Egil") After the Seljuk takeover of the Marwanid territories in 1085 Eğil passed into the Great Seljuk realm and subsequently under various Anatolian Seljuk and Artuqid sub-rulers contesting the upper Tigris region through the 12th century. - 1183 AD – 1232 AD: Artuqid Dynasty (known as "Egil") Under the Artuqid sub-dynasty of Hisn Kayfa and Mardin Eğil became a regional Artuqid stronghold on the upper Tigris during the late 12th and early 13th centuries, before the Ayyubid takeover of Hisn Kayfa in 1232. - 1232 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Egil") Following the Ayyubid takeover of Hisn Kayfa from the Artuqids in 1232 Eğil passed under Ayyubid rule until the Mongol invasion of the Jazira in 1260. - 1260 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Egil") After the Mongol invasion of the Jazira and the destruction of the Ayyubid emirates in 1260, the upper Tigris region passed under Ilkhanid suzerainty administered through local Kurdish lords. Eğil continued as a small fortified centre. - 1335 AD – 1501 AD: Aq Qoyunlu (known as "Egil") After the collapse of Ilkhanid authority Eğil passed through the contested territories of the Turkmen confederations of the Jazira and was incorporated into the Aq Qoyunlu realm under the Bayandurid dynasty during the 14th and 15th centuries until the Safavid takeover of eastern Anatolia. - 1501 AD – 1515 AD: Safavid Iran After Shah Ismail I's establishment of the Safavid empire in 1501, Eğil and the wider Diyarbakır region passed under Safavid control as part of the new Qizilbash administration of eastern Anatolia, until the Ottoman conquest of the region after the Battle of Çaldıran. - 1515 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Following the Battle of Çaldıran in 1514 and the subsequent Ottoman consolidation of eastern Anatolia under İdris Bidlisi, Eğil was incorporated into the Ottoman Diyarbekir Eyalet from 1515. Throughout much of the Ottoman period the town and its surrounding rural district were administered by the Kurdish Eğil Beyliği, a hereditary Yurtluk-Ocaklık principality whose hereditary beys ruled from the citadel as Ottoman vassals until the centralizing reforms of Mahmud II abolished the beylik in 1838. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic Eğil continued as a district of Diyarbakır Province on the Tigris river. The town has a 2022 population of around 21,500 inhabitants, predominantly Kurdish. The lower terraces of the historic town and surrounding villages including Çakırören were partially submerged following the 1997 impoundment of the Dicle Dam reservoir; the citadel cliff with its rock-cut tombs and Assyrian reliefs remains above the waterline as one of the most distinctive archaeological landscapes of southeastern Anatolia. ## Landmarks - Eğil Citadel and Rock-Cut Reliefs (built 1100 BC) The fortified citadel on the limestone cliff above the Tigris, originally an Iron Age stronghold on the Urartian–Assyrian frontier and successively rebuilt through every subsequent period to the Ottoman era. The cliff face preserves a series of rock-cut reliefs and cuneiform inscriptions attributed by some scholars to Tiglath-Pileser I and Shalmaneser III, recording Assyrian royal campaigns into the Nairi lands during the late 2nd and early 1st millennia BCE. - Rock-Cut Tombs of the Sophene Kings (built 250 BC) A series of monumental rock-cut chamber tombs carved into the citadel cliff above Eğil, traditionally identified as the dynastic burial complex of the Orontid kings of Sophene from the foundation of the kingdom around 260 BCE through the Zariadrid period. The tombs are among the principal surviving monuments of the late Hellenistic Armenian kingdoms. - Maqam of Nabi Elyesa (Prophet Elisha) (built 1100 AD) A venerated medieval shrine on the citadel cliff at Eğil, identified by Islamic tradition as the tomb of the biblical prophet Elisha (Nabi Elyesa). The shrine has been a major regional pilgrimage site since at least the Marwanid and Artuqid periods and remains in active veneration today. - Eğil Castle (built 1100 AD) The medieval citadel of Eğil rebuilt by the Marwanid and Artuqid dynasties during the 11th and 12th centuries on the foundations of the late antique and Sophene fortifications. The castle served as the residence of the hereditary Eğil beys throughout the Ottoman period until the beylik was abolished in 1838. ## Population History - 900 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 1,500 - 260 BC: 4,000 - 100 BC: 3,000 - 200 AD: 4,000 - 500 AD: 3,500 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1300 AD: 2,500 - 1600 AD: 3,000 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 2000 AD: 12,000 - 2022 AD: 21,500 --- # Ephesus, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/ephesus Founded: 1050 BC Ended: 1100 AD Coordinates: 37.9395, 27.3416 ## Description Ephesus was a major Greco-Roman metropolis famed for the Temple of Artemis — one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World — and for its role as the capital of the Roman province of Asia with a 2nd-century population approaching 250,000. Founded by Ionian Greek colonists around 1050 BCE in the valley below Ayasuluk Hill (where the earlier Bronze Age settlement of Apasas had stood), the city joined the Ionian League and later flourished under Seleucid, Pergamene, Roman, and Byzantine rule as a leading port of the Aegean. Ephesus played a key role in early Christianity, hosting the Council of Ephesus in 431 CE that affirmed the doctrine of Mary as Theotokos. Classical Ephesus was effectively abandoned around 1100 CE due to harbor silting, earthquakes, and Arab and Turkic pressure; the medieval town of Ayasoluk (later renamed Selçuk) that emerged on Ayasuluk Hill is treated in this archive as a separate settlement. ## Historical Rulers - 1050 BC – 546 BC: Ionian League (known as "Ephesos") Ionian Greeks from Athens settled the valley around 1050 BCE, with founding tradition attributing the city to the Athenian prince Androklos. Ephesos became one of the twelve cities of the Ionian Dodekapolis, met with its sister poleis at the Panionion sanctuary on Mount Mycale, and emerged as a major trade hub and cultural center of Aegean Anatolia. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Ephesos") Captured by Cyrus the Great after the defeat of the Lydian king Croesus, Ephesos was administered as part of the satrapy of Lydia. The city retained significant Greek civic identity and continued as a major Aegean port through the long Achaemenid period. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Ephesos") Alexander's Anatolian campaign liberated Ephesos from Persian rule in 334 BCE, and he offered to fund the rebuilding of the Temple of Artemis destroyed by arson in 356 BCE — an offer the city politely declined. After Alexander's death his successor Lysimachus relocated the population to a new walled site between Mount Pion and Mount Coressus and briefly renamed it Arsinoeia after his wife, until Anatolian control consolidated under the Seleucids after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Ephesos") Under the Seleucid kings the original name Ephesos was restored and the city flourished as a major commercial center of western Anatolia. After the Roman defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea reassigned Ephesos to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Ephesos") Following the Treaty of Apamea Ephesos passed to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon, where it remained one of the principal cities of the Pergamene realm until Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Ephesus was incorporated into the new Roman province of Asia after the Attalid bequest and became the provincial capital and a major commercial port of the eastern Mediterranean. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Augustus and his successors the city reached its imperial peak with a population of 200,000-250,000 at its 2nd-century height and major construction including the Library of Celsus, the Temple of Hadrian, and the colonnaded Harbor Street. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Ephesos") Ephesos continued as a major Byzantine city and metropolitan see, hosting the Council of Ephesus in 431 CE that affirmed the doctrine of Mary as Theotokos. Decline began in the 7th century due to Persian and Arab raids and the progressive silting of the harbor, accelerating through the late Byzantine period. - 1071 AD – 1100 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Ephesos") After Manzikert the Seljuk advance into western Anatolia rendered the valley site increasingly unsafe and economically untenable. The remaining population relocated uphill to Ayasuluk Hill (~3 km northeast) over the late 11th century, effectively abandoning classical Ephesus; the medieval town at Ayasuluk (later Selçuk) is treated as a separate settlement in this archive. ## Landmarks - Temple of Artemis (built 550 BC) Colossal marble temple measuring 115 by 55 meters with 127 columns 18 meters high, rebuilt at least three times across Greek and Roman antiquity. Destroyed by fire in 356 BCE and reconstructed under Alexander, the temple was finally destroyed by Gothic invaders in 268 CE, leaving only the foundation and a single reconstructed column today. - Great Theater (built 300 BC) Originally built in the Hellenistic period and greatly expanded under Roman rule, the theater could seat 25,000 spectators across 66 rows of seats divided into three horizontal sections. Its excellent acoustics made it ideal for performances and large public gatherings. - Curetes Street (built 100 BC) A marble-paved street running from the Library of Celsus to the Hercules Gate, flanked by colonnades, fountains, monuments, and elite homes. The street was illuminated at night, had a sophisticated underground drainage system, and featured important structures like the Temple of Hadrian and the Scholastica Baths. - Terrace Houses (built 100 BC) A set of well-preserved peristyle houses built on terraces up the slope of Mount Bulbul, featuring sophisticated amenities including running water, hypocaust heating systems, mosaics, and frescoes. The houses provide extraordinary insight into the daily life of wealthy Romans in Asia Minor from the 1st to 7th centuries CE. - Harbor Street and Arcadiane (built 27 BC) A wide colonnaded avenue 600 meters long paved with marble and flanked by shops, warehouses, and monuments. The street was illuminated by torches at night, making it one of the first streets in the ancient world with regular nighttime lighting, and it terminated at the harbor with a monumental arch. - Library of Celsus (built 120 AD) Designed with an elaborate two-story façade with four pairs of columns framing niches containing statues of Wisdom, Knowledge, Intelligence, and Virtue. The interior held approximately 12,000 scrolls in niches and cabinets, with the consul Celsus himself buried in a sarcophagus beneath the library floor. - Temple of Hadrian (built 138 AD) A small but elegantly proportioned temple with a richly decorated façade including scenes from Ephesian mythology and a relief believed to depict Medusa. Four Corinthian columns support a curved arch bearing a relief of Tyche, goddess of fortune. - Church of Mary Theotokos (built 431 AD) Originally a Roman basilica converted into a church, this enormous structure over 260 meters long was where the Council of Ephesus met in 431 CE to declare Mary as Theotokos (Mother of God). The church had a cruciform plan and eventually became a cathedral of the metropolitan see of Asia. - Basilica of St. John (built 548 AD) A massive cross-shaped basilica commissioned by Emperor Justinian over the traditional burial site of John the Apostle on Ayasuluk Hill above the valley city. Built while classical Ephesus was still inhabited, the basilica later became the religious nucleus around which the post-1100 hilltop town of Ayasoluk (modern Selçuk) grew. - Ayasuluk Citadel (built 600 AD) Byzantine fortifications atop Ayasuluk Hill above classical Ephesus, providing defense against Arab naval raids. The citadel was inherited by the post-1100 successor town of Ayasoluk/Selçuk, and the Aydın Beylik later expanded it in the 14th century. ## Population History - 1050 BC: 2,000 - 800 BC: 5,000 - 550 BC: 15,000 - 200 BC: 40,000 - 100 BC: 51,000 - 1 AD: 100,000 - 100 AD: 200,000 - 200 AD: 200,000 - 300 AD: 125,000 - 500 AD: 100,000 - 600 AD: 100,000 - 700 AD: 60,000 - 1000 AD: 20,000 - 1100 AD: null --- # Eskiyapar Höyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/eskiyapar-hoyuk Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.1581, 34.7732 ## Description Eskiyapar Höyük is a large and strategically located settlement mound in central Anatolia, about six kilometers west of Alaca in the Hüseyinabad Plain, with continuous occupation from the Chalcolithic through to the present day. It served as a religious and administrative center at various times, with excavations revealing Early Bronze Age treasure deposits, Hittite tablets referencing Arinna and Tahurpa, and architectural remains possibly linked to the Storm God cult; the site is sometimes proposed as the ancient Hittite city of Ankuwa or Tahurpa. Its finds include exceptional gold, silver, and electrum artifacts reflecting regional and interregional connections with sites like Troy and Poliochni. The modern Turkish village of Eskiyapar lived directly on the mound through the Ottoman and early Republican periods, and was officially relocated to an adjacent site in 1983-84 to allow systematic archaeological excavation; the relocated village remains the modern settlement. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") Earliest documented occupation at the mound, beginning as a small agrarian community in the early third millennium BCE on the fertile central Anatolian plain. Over the Early Bronze Age the settlement grew into a fortified centre participating in long-distance exchange networks linking central Anatolia with the Aegean and the Caucasus, and the wealthy elite burials and famous buried treasure hoards of the later EBA reflect access to gold, silver, and electrum and ties with sites such as Troy, Poliochni, and Arslantepe. - 2000 BC – 1650 BC: Hattian Civilization (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") During the Middle Bronze Age the site was integrated into the Anatolian network of city-states active in the Old Assyrian trade system, operating within the broader Hattian-speaking cultural sphere of central Anatolia. It functioned as a regional administrative and cult center on the route between Hattusa and the Halys basin. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") Under the Hittite Empire from Hattusili I onward, the city was a provincial cult and administrative center, with monumental architecture, a probable Storm God temple, and cuneiform tablets referencing key cult centers like Arinna and Tahurpa. It is one of the candidates frequently proposed for the ancient Hittite city of Ankuwa, with occupation ending abruptly during the broader Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") After the fall of the Hittite Empire the mound continued to be inhabited at a reduced scale by Iron Age communities linked to the Phrygian cultural sphere that came to dominate central Anatolia. The settlement lost its imperial role and reverted to a village-level local center. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, the central Anatolian plateau was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the Cappadocian satrapy. The mound continued as a modest rural settlement under Persian administration. - 334 BC – 278 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. The mound continued as a low-level rural settlement until the Celtic Galatian migration of 278 BCE reshaped central Anatolian sovereignty. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") From 278 BCE the Celtic Galatian tribes settled central Anatolia under three confederations, with the Tectosages controlling the broader Çorum-Alaca-Ankara region. Eskiyapar lay within the eastern Tectosages-Trocmi frontier and persisted as a small rural settlement under Galatian authority, with archaeological deposits of this period confirmed by surveys, until Augustus's annexation of Galatia as a Roman province in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") After Augustus's annexation of Galatia in 25 BCE, the region was incorporated into the Roman province of Galatia. The mound continued as a modest rural settlement on the central Anatolian plateau through the Roman period. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Eskiyapar Höyük") Under Eastern Roman administration the mound continued as a rural Byzantine settlement on the Cappadocian plateau, with occupational layers attesting to continued habitation through the Byzantine centuries. Occupation continued until the Seljuk advance after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 ended Byzantine rule. - 1071 AD – 1174 AD: Danishmendid Beylik (known as "Eskiyapar") After the Seljuk victory at Manzikert in 1071, the Turkmen Danishmendid dynasty established its rule over north-central Anatolia and the Çorum region. Turkmen settlers maintained a small village directly on the mound, taking the Turkish name Eskiyapar ('old structure') from the visible ancient ruins. - 1174 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Eskiyapar") The Anatolian Seljuks absorbed the Danishmendid domains under Kilij Arslan II in 1174 and incorporated the Çorum region into the unified Anatolian Turkish state. The village on the mound continued as a small rural community until the Mongol victory at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243. - 1243 AD – 1308 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Eskiyapar") After the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243, the Sultanate of Rum became a Mongol vassal and the Çorum region was effectively administered by Ilkhanate-appointed governors. As Ilkhanid authority weakened in the late 13th century, the Eretnid Turkmen beys carved out an independent principality across the central Anatolian highlands. - 1308 AD – 1381 AD: Eretna Principality (known as "Eskiyapar") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Çorum region passed under the Eretnid beylik centered on Sivas and Kayseri. The village of Eskiyapar continued as a small rural community on the mound under Eretnid administration. - 1381 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Eskiyapar") Following the dissolution of the Eretnid beylik, the Çorum region was incorporated into the early Ottoman state. The village of Eskiyapar continued as a modest agricultural community living directly on the ancient mound through the long Ottoman period. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Eskiyapar") Under the Turkish Republic the village of Eskiyapar continued on the mound itself as a small agricultural community in the Alaca district of Çorum Province. In 1983-84 the village was officially relocated from the mound to its current adjacent location to allow systematic archaeological excavation by the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations, and the höyük is now administered as a protected site while the relocated village remains the modern Eskiyapar settlement. ## Landmarks - Bronze Age Treasure Hoards (built 2200 BC) Two buried hoards inside buildings destroyed by fire contained gold earrings, silver cups, electrum axes, and long-handled pans. Their craftsmanship links Eskiyapar with Troy, Poliochni, and Arslantepe, showing widespread cultural ties and exceptional wealth during the Early Bronze Age. - Storm God Temple Remains (built 1600 BC) While not fully excavated, architectural remains and a large number of bull head ornaments suggest the presence of a temple dedicated to the Storm God. This aligns with typical Hittite religious complexes across the empire. - Middle Hittite Tablet (built 1400 BC) A rare cuneiform tablet written in Middle Hittite script references two major cult centers — Arinna and Tahurpa — indicating Eskiyapar's participation in the Hittite state cult system. The tablet strengthens the view that the site could be ancient Ankuwa. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 500 - 2200 BC: 3,000 - 1600 BC: 5,000 - 1200 BC: 2,500 - 0 AD: 1,000 - 600 AD: 600 - 1000 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 400 - 1923 AD: 600 - 1984 AD: 800 - 2020 AD: 900 --- # Fethiye, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/fethiye Founded: 800 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.6193, 29.1147 ## Description Fethiye occupies the harbor site of ancient Telmessos, the largest city of western Lycia, set around a sheltered bay on the southwestern Anatolian coast. Lycian Telmessos appears in the indigenous record as Telebehi and grew in the Archaic period around an acropolis on Hızırlık hill above the modern town, while its monumental cliff-face necropolis of rock-cut house-tombs forms the most famous surviving Lycian funerary ensemble. The city became a major Hellenistic port under Ptolemaic and then Rhodian Peraean control and joined the Lycian League in 167 BCE as one of its six largest member cities with three federal votes. Roman incorporation in 43 CE was followed by extensive theater construction and steady prosperity through the early Byzantine centuries. In the eighth century the city was renamed Anastasiopolis, probably in honor of Emperor Anastasios II, and from the late ninth century onward came to be known as Makri after the small island at the entrance of the harbor. The Beylik of Menteşe absorbed the region in 1284, after which the city was definitively annexed by the Ottoman Empire under Murad II in 1424 and known as Meğri through the Ottoman centuries. The town was renamed Fethiye in 1934 in honor of Fethi Bey, one of the first Ottoman Air Force pilots, who died in an aircraft crash in 1914. The 1957 Fethiye earthquakes destroyed roughly ninety percent of buildings in the modern town while sparing most of the ancient rock-cut monuments above it. ## Historical Rulers - 800 BC – 547 BC: Lycian Civilization (known as "Telebehi") Under the indigenous Lycian polities Telmessos (native Telebehi) grew as a major port at the western end of Lycia, with its earliest settlement focused on the Hızırlık acropolis above the harbor. The city participated in the shared Lycian linguistic and funerary tradition that would later produce the distinctive rock-cut tombs cut into the cliffs above the bay. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Telmessos") Following the campaign of the Persian general Harpagos in 547 BCE Telmessos passed into the Achaemenid Empire alongside the rest of Lycia, administered through local Lycian dynasts under Persian satrapal authority. After the Athenian victory at Eurymedon around 466 BCE Telmessos briefly joined the Delian League as a tributary member before reverting to firm Persian control later in the fifth century. The city's funerary architecture flourished under this period, culminating in the great Ionic rock-cut Tomb of Amyntas carved around 350 BCE. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Telmessos") Alexander the Great captured Telmessos in 333 BCE during his Lycian campaign, and the city became one of his bases for operations along the southern Anatolian coast. Through the Wars of the Diadochi Telmessos passed in turn through the hands of Antigonus, Lysimachus, and the early Seleucid claimants before the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE settled control of southwestern Anatolia. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Telmessos") For most of the third century BCE Lycia including Telmessos was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt as the northeastern flank of their maritime empire, with the Telmessian harbor serving as a key Ptolemaic naval station. Around 240 BCE Ptolemy III granted Telmessos as a dynastic possession to Ptolemy son of Lysimachus, whose descendants ruled the city as a semi-autonomous Ptolemaic enclave well into the second century. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Telmessos") Antiochus III's western campaign of the late 190s BCE detached Lycia from the Ptolemaic sphere and brought Telmessos briefly under Seleucid control. The episode lasted less than a decade: after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at Magnesia in 190 BCE the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned Lycia to the island republic of Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea (known as "Telmessos") Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Telmessos was administered from Rhodes alongside the other Lycian cities, paying tribute and accepting Rhodian magistrates while retaining its civic institutions. Rhodian rule was deeply resented across Lycia, and the brief period ended in 167 BCE when Rome declared the Lycian cities free in retaliation for Rhodian neutrality during the Third Macedonian War. - 167 BC – 43 AD: Lycian League (known as "Telmessos") Following Roman recognition of Lycian autonomy in 167 BCE, Telmessos joined the Lycian League as one of the six largest cities holding the maximum three votes in the federal assembly alongside Xanthos, Patara, Pinara, Olympos, and Myra. The Hellenistic theater on the Telmessian acropolis dates from this period of federal prosperity, and Telmessian commercial activity reached its ancient peak as the western gateway port of the League. - 43 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Telmessos") Emperor Claudius incorporated Lycia as a Roman province in 43 CE, later combined with Pamphylia under Vespasian, and Telmessos continued as a substantial harbor city of the new province. The theater was expanded in Roman form, and the city minted civic coinage and conducted regional trade through the imperial centuries. - 395 AD – 1284 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Anastasiopolis") Under Eastern Roman administration Telmessos was Christianized and continued as an episcopal see in the province of Lycia, suffering severely from the Arab naval raids of the seventh to ninth centuries that prompted fortification of the acropolis. In the early eighth century the city was renamed Anastasiopolis, probably in honor of Emperor Anastasios II, but the name did not endure: from 879 CE the city is attested as Makri (Greek for ' long', after the long island at the harbor mouth). Through the middle Byzantine period Makri remained a fortified coastal town until increasing Turkmen pressure in the thirteenth century. - 1284 AD – 1391 AD: Menteshe Beylik (known as "Beskaza") The Beylik of Menteşe annexed Makri in 1284 during its consolidation of the southwestern Anatolian coast and refounded it under the Turkish name Beskaza as part of their maritime emirate. The Menteshe beys made the harbor a station in their Aegean naval activity, and Turkish settlement gradually replaced the Greek-speaking population over the following century. - 1391 AD – 1402 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Meğri") Sultan Bayezid I annexed the Beylik of Menteşe in 1391 during his consolidation of the western Anatolian beyliks, incorporating Beskaza into the Ottoman Empire for the first time under the renewed Greek-derived name Meğri. The arrangement proved temporary: Bayezid's defeat at the Battle of Ankara in 1402 by Timur shattered Ottoman authority in western Anatolia and restored the Menteshe beys. - 1402 AD – 1424 AD: Menteshe Beylik (known as "Meğri") After Timur's restoration of the Anatolian beyliks following the Battle of Ankara, the Menteshe beys reasserted control over their former territory including Meğri through the early fifteenth century. The restoration was short-lived as the recovering Ottoman state under Mehmed I and Murad II progressively reabsorbed the western Anatolian beyliks. - 1424 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Meğri") Sultan Murad II definitively annexed the Beylik of Menteşe in 1424, returning Meğri to permanent Ottoman administration as part of the Sanjak of Menteşe within the eyalet of Anatolia. The town remained a modest Ottoman provincial port through the following five centuries, with a substantial Greek-speaking Christian community that traded olives, timber, and chrome ore across the eastern Mediterranean until the population exchange following the Greco-Turkish War of 1919-1922. - 1923 AD – 2026 AD: Republic of Türkiye With the proclamation of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923 Meğri became a district seat in Muğla Province, and in 1934 it was officially renamed Fethiye in honor of Fethi Bey, one of the first Ottoman Air Force pilots, who had died in an aircraft crash in 1914. The Fethiye earthquakes of 1957 destroyed roughly ninety percent of the modern town's buildings while sparing the ancient rock-cut tombs above; from the late twentieth century Fethiye developed into one of the principal tourist centers of the Turkish Mediterranean coast while preserving the Telmessian monuments at its core. ## Landmarks - Lycian Rock-Cut Tomb Necropolis (built 400 BC) The cliffs above modern Fethiye preserve dozens of Lycian rock-cut tombs cut between the fifth and second centuries BCE, ranging from simple house-tombs to elaborate temple facades like the Tomb of Amyntas. Together with the sarcophagus tombs scattered across the town below, the necropolis constitutes the most extensive surviving Lycian funerary landscape outside Xanthos. - Tomb of Amyntas (built 350 BC) The Tomb of Amyntas is the largest and best-preserved of the Telmessian rock-cut house-tombs, carved into the cliff face above the harbor around 350 BCE with a temple-like Ionic facade complete with two columns in antis. A short Greek inscription on the left anta identifies the occupant as Amyntas son of Hermagios, otherwise unknown, and the tomb is the iconic monument of Hellenistic Lycian funerary architecture. - Telmessos Theater (built 150 BC) The theater of Telmessos was built in the late Hellenistic period on the slope below the acropolis facing the harbor and rebuilt in Roman form during the imperial centuries, with a capacity of roughly 6,000 spectators. Buried under modern construction for much of the twentieth century, the theater was systematically excavated between 1992 and 1995 and is the principal classical monument visible in central Fethiye today. - Fethiye Castle (Telmessos Acropolis) (built 600 AD) The walls crowning Hızırlık hill above the town reuse earlier Lycian and Hellenistic fortifications but in their current form date from the Byzantine fortification of the seventh to ninth centuries in response to Arab naval raids, with later modifications under the Knights of Saint John and the Beylik of Menteşe. The castle commands the harbor and offers the principal surviving view of the layered military architecture of Telmessos / Makri. ## Population History - 800 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 2,000 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 400 AD: 7,000 - 700 AD: 4,000 - 1000 AD: 2,500 - 1300 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 4,000 - 1800 AD: 7,000 - 1950 AD: 10,000 - 2000 AD: 50,000 - 2025 AD: 110,000 --- # Gaziantep, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/gaziantep Founded: 300 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.066, 37.3781 ## Description Gaziantep, historically known as Aintab (or Ayntab) and in antiquity as Antiochia ad Taurum, is a major city in southeastern Anatolia at the foot of the Taurus mountains, in the fertile basin of the Sajur river east of Cilicia. Its named history begins with the Seleucid foundation of Antiochia ad Taurum around 300 BCE, after which it passed through Roman, Byzantine, early Islamic, Seljuk, Crusader, Zengid, Ayyubid, Mongol, Mamluk and Dulkadirid hands during the medieval period. Throughout much of antiquity and the early medieval period, Aintab itself was a secondary fortress overshadowed by the larger nearby city of Dülük (ancient Doliche) some 12 km to the north; Aintab rose to regional prominence after Dülük was devastated by earthquake in the 14th century. Ottoman rule began with Selim I's annexation in 1516, and the city flourished as a major Ottoman commercial centre on the Anatolia–Aleppo trade route through the long Ottoman period. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire it was occupied briefly by British (1918) and then French (1919–1921) forces; the prolonged Turkish resistance and siege of Antep during this occupation earned the city the honorific 'Gazi' ('warrior/veteran'), which was formally appended to its name in 1928. Modern Gaziantep is one of Turkey's largest cities with over two million inhabitants, renowned for its UNESCO-recognised cuisine, its baklava and pistachio industries, and the Zeugma Mosaic Museum housing the finest Roman mosaics from the nearby ancient city of Zeugma on the Euphrates. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Antiochia") Founded by the early Seleucid kings around 300 BCE as Antiochia ad Taurum, one of several Antiochs established to consolidate Seleucid control over the Cilicia–north Syria corridor. The settlement served as a regional centre on the route connecting the Syrian plain to the Anatolian plateau through the Taurus passes. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Antiochia") Pompey's settlement of the East in 64 BCE brought the city under Roman authority as part of the province of Syria, later attached to Commagene and Cilicia in successive administrative reorganisations. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Antiochia") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Aintab/Antiochia continued as a regional fortified town in the Taurus foothills, overshadowed by neighbouring Doliche (Dülük), the cult centre of Iuppiter Dolichenus 12 km to the north. - 395 AD – 637 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Antiochia") Under Eastern Roman administration the city remained a fortified post in the diocese of Oriens, with Doliche serving as the local episcopal seat. Justinianic-era fortifications strengthened the hilltop castrum that would later evolve into Gaziantep Castle. - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Aintab") Conquered by Arab forces during the Muslim conquest of the Levant around 637 CE, Aintab passed into the Rashidun province of Qinnasrin (Jund Qinnasrin). The town became a frontier fortress between the new caliphate and the Byzantine border lands. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Aintab") Under Umayyad rule from Damascus, Aintab remained a Thughur frontier post facing Byzantine Anatolia. The fortress was a base for raids and counter-raids across the Taurus during the Arab–Byzantine wars. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Aintab") Under the Abbasids Aintab continued as a Thughur frontier fortress within the Jazira–north Syrian defensive system, repeatedly contested with Byzantine raids during the 9th and early 10th centuries. - 944 AD – 962 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "Aintab") With Sayf al-Dawla's establishment of the Hamdanid emirate of Aleppo in 944, Aintab passed under Hamdanid control as part of the frontier zone facing Byzantium. It was held by the Hamdanids until Nikephoros II Phokas's reconquest of the region in 962. - 962 AD – 1067 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Antep") Nikephoros II Phokas recaptured the region for Byzantium in 962, restoring Aintab to imperial control for the first time in three centuries. The town was resettled in part with Armenian Christian populations and remained Byzantine until the Seljuk advance after Manzikert. - 1067 AD – 1098 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Aintab") Afshin Bey captured the fortress of Aintab for the Seljuks in 1067, four years before the decisive battle of Manzikert. The town became part of the emerging Anatolian Seljuk realm on the southeastern frontier with the Crusader states soon to be established in north Syria. - 1098 AD – 1150 AD: Crusader County of Edessa (known as "Aintab") Captured by the Crusaders during the First Crusade in 1098, Aintab was united with the Maraş Seigneurship as a fief of the Crusader County of Edessa. The town remained a Christian Crusader outpost on the northern flank of the county until the gradual Zengid reconquest of Edessa's territories. - 1150 AD – 1172 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Aintab") After the fall of Edessa and the dismemberment of the Crusader county, Aintab passed briefly back under Anatolian Seljuk control during the mid-12th century before being seized by the expanding Zengid atabegate of Nur ad-Din. - 1172 AD – 1181 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Aintab") Captured by the Zengids around 1172 during Nur ad-Din's consolidation of north Syria, Aintab became part of the Zengid Aleppo realm. It passed to the Ayyubids shortly after Nur ad-Din's death and Saladin's takeover of Aleppo. - 1181 AD – 1218 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Aintab") Captured by Saladin's Ayyubid forces around 1181, Aintab was integrated into the Ayyubid Aleppine principality. The fortress was rebuilt and reinforced during the early 13th century before being lost again to the Anatolian Seljuks under Kayqubad I. - 1218 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Aintab") Retaken by the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate of Rum in 1218, Aintab returned to the orbit of Konya for a quarter-century until the Mongol victory at Köse Dağ in 1243 brought eastern Anatolia under Ilkhanid suzerainty. - 1243 AD – 1317 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Aintab") Following the Mongol victory at Köse Dağ in 1243, Aintab fell under Ilkhanid suzerainty administered through the diminished Sultanate of Rum. The town was repeatedly contested with the Mamluks during the late 13th century and changed hands several times before final Mamluk consolidation. - 1317 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Aintab") After the collapse of Ilkhanid authority over the southeastern Anatolian frontier, Aintab passed under Mamluk Egyptian rule from around 1317, with the local Dulkadirid Turkmen beylik administering the town as a Mamluk vassal from the late 14th century. The town flourished as a regional commercial centre on the Aleppo–Anatolia trade route during this period. - 1516 AD – 1921 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ayntab") Annexed by Selim I in 1516 just before the Battle of Marj Dabiq, Aintab became part of the Ottoman Aleppo Vilayet and developed into one of the major commercial cities of southeastern Anatolia. Its workshops produced textiles, copperware, and the pistachio confectionery for which the city remains famous. After the Ottoman defeat in the First World War the city was occupied first by British forces in December 1918 and then transferred to French forces in November 1919; the prolonged Turkish resistance and siege of Antep continued under nominal Ottoman sovereignty until the French withdrawal in December 1921 under the Treaty of Ankara. - 1921 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Following the French evacuation under the Treaty of Ankara in December 1921, Antep came under the Ankara government and was formally integrated into the Republic of Türkiye in 1923. In recognition of the city's heroic resistance during the 1920–1921 siege, the Turkish Grand National Assembly added the honorific 'Gazi' ('warrior/veteran') to its name in 1928, producing the modern toponym Gaziantep. The city has since grown into one of Turkey's largest urban centres, with a metropolitan population exceeding two million, anchored by textile, food, and pistachio industries. ## Landmarks - Gaziantep Castle (built 500 AD) A circular hilltop fortress in the heart of Gaziantep, originally built as a Roman watchtower and substantially rebuilt by the emperor Justinian I in the 6th century. Successive Arab, Seljuk, Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman rulers reinforced and expanded the walls and bastions over the following thousand years. The castle was severely damaged in the February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes and is currently undergoing restoration. - Kurtuluş Mosque (built 1893 AD) Built between 1873 and 1893 as the Armenian Cathedral of the Holy Mother of God (Surp Asdvadzadzin), this monumental basilica was the principal church of Aintab's large Armenian Christian community before the deportations of 1915. The building was converted to a mosque in 1980 and renamed Kurtuluş ('Liberation') Mosque in commemoration of the Turkish resistance during the French occupation. - Zeugma Mosaic Museum (built 2011 AD) Opened in 2011, the Zeugma Mosaic Museum houses one of the world's largest collections of Roman mosaics, rescued from the ancient city of Zeugma on the Euphrates before its partial flooding by the Birecik Dam reservoir. The collection includes the celebrated 'Gypsy Girl' mosaic and elaborate floor pavements from the 2nd–3rd centuries CE. ## Population History - 300 BC: 3,000 - 1 AD: 8,000 - 500 AD: 10,000 - 1000 AD: 6,000 - 1200 AD: 10,000 - 1500 AD: 15,000 - 1700 AD: 25,000 - 1900 AD: 45,000 - 1950 AD: 75,000 - 2000 AD: 850,000 - 2025 AD: 2,222,000 --- # Gelibolu, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/gelibolu Founded: 600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.4103, 26.6708 ## Description Gelibolu — ancient Kallipolis, medieval Gallipoli, and the historical springboard of Ottoman expansion into Europe — is a port town on the European shore of the Dardanelles strait in northwestern Türkiye, at the western entrance of the Sea of Marmara. Founded around 600 BCE by Greek colonists from the Megarian foundation of Mesembria on the Black Sea, the polis took its name from the Greek for 'beautiful city' and developed as a strategic harbour controlling the European entrance to the Hellespont. Through the Classical period Kallipolis alternated between Achaemenid Persian rule, Athenian Delian League tribute, and Macedonian suzerainty under Philip II, until its incorporation into the Roman provincial system after the Third Mithridatic War. Under the Byzantine Empire the town served as a key naval base on the Dardanelles, briefly held by the Latin Empire after 1204 and recovered by the Nicaean emperor John III Doukas Vatatzes in 1235. A devastating earthquake in March 1354 collapsed the walls of Kallipolis and allowed the Ottoman commander Süleyman Pasha — eldest son of Sultan Orhan — to seize the town and establish the first permanent Ottoman foothold on European soil, a moment widely regarded as the beginning of the Ottoman conquest of the Balkans. Gelibolu was briefly returned to Byzantium in 1366 by the Savoyard crusader Amadeus VI but reconquered by Murad I in 1377, after which it served for nearly six centuries as the principal Ottoman naval base and imperial shipyard (Tersane-i Amire) on the Mediterranean approaches to Istanbul. During the First World War the Gallipoli Peninsula was the site of the catastrophic Allied Gallipoli Campaign of 1915-1916 in which roughly 480,000 troops landed against Ottoman defences organised in part by Mustafa Kemal, suffering some 250,000 Allied casualties before withdrawing in January 1916. Modern Gelibolu is a district seat in Çanakkale Province with around 30,000 inhabitants and serves as the principal ferry terminal on the European side of the Dardanelles connecting to Lapseki on the Asian shore. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Kallipolis") Founded around 600 BCE by Greek colonists from the Megarian foundation of Mesembria on the Black Sea, the polis controlled the European entrance to the Hellespont and the strategic Dardanelles narrows. The town developed as an autonomous Greek city within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Propontis until the Persian conquest of European Thrace under Darius I around 512 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Kallipolis") Darius I incorporated Kallipolis into the Achaemenid Empire as a tributary city under the satrapy of Skudra during the Persian campaigns into Thrace and the subsequent Greco-Persian Wars. The polis was liberated by the Greek allied fleet under Spartan command in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Kallipolis") After its liberation from Persian rule Kallipolis rejoined the wider Hellenic Propontic polis network and paid tribute to the Athenian-led Delian League through the fifth century BCE. The polis alternated between Spartan and Athenian alignment during the Peloponnesian and Corinthian Wars and was incorporated into the Macedonian sphere under Philip II's general subjugation of the Thracian Marmara coast in the 340s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Kallipolis") Under Alexander the Great and his immediate successors Kallipolis was nominally Macedonian while retaining most of its civic autonomy as a free Greek polis. The polis passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Kallipolis") After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Kallipolis passed under the formal suzerainty of the Antigonid kingdom of Macedonia while preserving its working autonomy as a Greek free city. The polis remained a strategic Hellespontine port at the contested edge of the Antigonid, Seleucid, and Bithynian Hellenistic spheres, until the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Kallipolis") After the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE Kallipolis passed under nominal Roman authority, though formal Roman administration of the Hellespont developed gradually. The polis was firmly drawn into the Roman provincial system during the Third Mithridatic War from 73 BCE and Pompey's eastern settlement of 64 BCE as part of the new province of Bithynia and Pontus, continuing under late-Republican administration until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Kallipolis") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Kallipolis continued as a strategic Hellespontine port on the new Roman naval and commercial networks of the eastern Mediterranean. The town was a steady provincial port through the Roman imperial period until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Kallipolis") Under the Eastern Roman administration Kallipolis served as one of the principal Byzantine naval bases on the Dardanelles, anchoring the imperial fleets that controlled the Hellespont and the Marmara approaches to Constantinople. The town was reorganized within the theme system and supported a substantial garrison and shipyard until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1235 AD: Latin Empire (known as "Gallipoli") Following the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204, Kallipolis was incorporated into the Latin Empire as a key Dardanelles port garrison and a Venetian commercial station. The Nicaean emperor John III Doukas Vatatzes recovered the town in 1235 during his expansion of the Nicaean recovery of European Byzantine territory. - 1235 AD – 1354 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Kallipolis") After John III Doukas Vatatzes's recovery in 1235 and the restoration of Constantinople by Michael VIII Palaiologos in 1261, Kallipolis served once more as a Byzantine naval base and Hellespont fortress under the Palaiologan emperors. A devastating earthquake on 2 March 1354 collapsed the walls and many of the houses of the town, leaving it open to the Ottoman crossing of the Dardanelles. - 1354 AD – 1366 AD: Ottoman Empire After the earthquake of March 1354 reduced the walls of Kallipolis, the Ottoman commander Süleyman Pasha — eldest son of Sultan Orhan — crossed the Dardanelles and seized the town as the first permanent Ottoman foothold on European soil. The moment is widely regarded as the beginning of the Ottoman conquest of the Balkans, until the town was briefly returned to Byzantine control by the Savoyard crusader Amadeus VI in 1366. - 1366 AD – 1377 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Kallipolis") Amadeus VI of Savoy, on a crusading expedition supporting his cousin Emperor John V Palaiologos, captured Gelibolu from the Ottomans in 1366 and returned it to Byzantine administration. The town was held only briefly until Murad I reconquered it in 1377, ending Byzantine rule on the European side of the Dardanelles permanently. - 1377 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Murad I's reconquest of Gelibolu in 1377 secured the Ottoman crossing of the Dardanelles definitively, and the town served for nearly six centuries as the principal Ottoman naval base and Tersane-i Amire shipyard on the Mediterranean approaches to Istanbul. During the First World War the Gallipoli Peninsula was the site of the catastrophic Allied Gallipoli Campaign of 1915-1916 in which roughly 480,000 troops landed against Ottoman defences organised in part by Mustafa Kemal, suffering some 250,000 Allied casualties before withdrawing in January 1916. Ottoman rule over the peninsula ended with the abolition of the sultanate in November 1922 and the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey the following October. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, Gelibolu became a district seat (ilçe merkezi) within Çanakkale Province on the European side of the Dardanelles. The town has grown to around 30,000 inhabitants and serves as the principal ferry terminal on the European shore of the Dardanelles, with the Gallipoli Campaign battlefields and military cemeteries on the southern peninsula attracting substantial Australian, New Zealand, British, and Turkish commemorative tourism each year. ## Landmarks - Castle of Gelibolu (built 1354 AD) The Ottoman fortress of Gelibolu, rebuilt on Byzantine foundations after Süleyman Pasha's capture in 1354 and substantially renovated under Bayezid II in the late 15th century. The surviving castle anchored Ottoman naval administration on the Dardanelles and now houses the Piri Reis Museum dedicated to the celebrated Ottoman cartographer and admiral. - Tersane-i Amire of Gelibolu (built 1390 AD) The Ottoman imperial naval arsenal and shipyard founded under Bayezid I in the 1390s as the principal Ottoman naval base on the Mediterranean approaches to Istanbul. The arsenal supported Ottoman galley fleets through nearly five centuries and was the seat of the Kapudan Pasha and the Eyalet of the Archipelago administration. - Bayezid II Mosque (built 1483 AD) An imperial Ottoman mosque built under Sultan Bayezid II as part of his patronage of the Gelibolu naval base. The single-domed mosque with attached medrese and imaret was endowed for the spiritual welfare of Ottoman sailors and the local Muslim community. - Gallipoli Campaign Memorials (built 1915 AD) The major Allied and Ottoman cemeteries, memorials, and battlefield sites on the southern Gallipoli Peninsula commemorating the catastrophic 1915-1916 campaign — including the Helles, Lone Pine, Chunuk Bair, and Anzac Cove memorials and the Turkish Çanakkale Şehitler Abidesi. The peninsula is administered as the Gallipoli Peninsula Historical National Park and is the focus of major Australian, New Zealand, British, and Turkish commemorations every 25 April. ## Population History - 600 BC: 1,500 - 400 BC: 4,000 - 100 BC: 6,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 500 AD: 10,000 - 1000 AD: 15,000 - 1204 AD: 10,000 - 1354 AD: 7,000 - 1500 AD: 20,000 - 1700 AD: 30,000 - 1900 AD: 25,000 - 1915 AD: 25,000 - 1923 AD: 12,000 - 1950 AD: 15,000 - 1980 AD: 18,000 - 2000 AD: 25,000 - 2020 AD: 30,000 --- # Göbeklitepe, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/gobeklitepe Founded: 9500 BC Ended: 8000 BC Coordinates: 37.2231, 38.9226 ## Description Göbeklitepe is a Pre-Pottery Neolithic monumental site on a limestone ridge near Şanlıurfa in southeastern Türkiye, dating to approximately 9500-8000 BCE — among the oldest known monumental structures in the world, predating Stonehenge by some six thousand years and the development of agriculture and pottery in the region. Excavated since 1995 under Klaus Schmidt and the German Archaeological Institute and continued by Lee Clare, the site comprises a series of large circular and oval enclosures containing T-shaped monolithic limestone pillars up to 5.5 metres tall and 16 tonnes in weight, many richly carved with reliefs of foxes, snakes, scorpions, vultures, boars, gazelles, and abstract anthropomorphic forms. Traditionally interpreted as a ritual gathering place built by hunter-gatherer communities, recent work has identified evidence of seasonal or permanent habitation alongside the ceremonial structures, complicating the strict 'ritual centre only' reading. Around 8000 BCE the enclosures were deliberately backfilled and abandoned, sealing the monuments under deposits that preserved them until modern excavation. The site has had no permanent settlement since the Pre-Pottery Neolithic, and is administered today as an open archaeological zone and visitor centre under Türkiye's Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Göbeklitepe was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2018 as a transformative discovery for understanding the origins of monumental architecture and social complexity in the Neolithic Near East. ## Historical Rulers - 9500 BC – 8000 BC: Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Göbeklitepe") Construction of the earliest circular enclosures with T-shaped limestone pillars during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (c. 9500-8800 BCE), as a gathering and ritual focus for hunter-gatherer communities of the surrounding Urfa-Harran plain, with monumental architecture predating the local adoption of agriculture and pottery. During the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (c. 8800-8000 BCE) smaller rectangular structures replaced the earlier round enclosures alongside evidence of domestic architecture and water-management features. Around 8000 BCE the enclosures were deliberately backfilled and the site permanently abandoned. ## Landmarks - Enclosure D (built 9500 BC) The largest and best-preserved of the round enclosures at Göbeklitepe, dating to the early Pre-Pottery Neolithic A. It contains two central T-shaped limestone pillars, each over 5 metres tall and weighing several tonnes, surrounded by a ring of smaller pillars carved with reliefs of foxes, snakes, scorpions, and vultures. Pillar 18 in this enclosure preserves a carved belt and loincloth interpreted by some scholars as an anthropomorphic representation. - Enclosure C (built 9400 BC) A large multi-walled round enclosure containing a central monolithic pillar and a remarkable doorway flanked by a sculpted boar relief. Enclosure C is one of the most architecturally complex structures at the site and shows multiple phases of remodelling before its eventual deliberate backfilling. - Enclosure A (built 9300 BC) Sometimes called the 'snake pillar enclosure', this round structure features pillars with low-relief carvings of clusters of snakes and other animals. Its T-shaped central pillars are smaller than those of Enclosure D but preserve exceptionally clear reliefs. - PPNB Rectangular Structures (built 8800 BC) A series of smaller rectangular buildings replacing the earlier round enclosures during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B phase. These structures, identified across the upper terraces of the tepe, suggest a shift from large communal gatherings toward smaller, possibly residential or workshop activities before the site's final abandonment around 8000 BCE. ## Population History - 9500 BC: 100 - 9000 BC: 300 - 8500 BC: 200 - 8000 BC: null --- # Gordion, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/gordion Founded: 2300 BC Ended: 1400 AD Coordinates: 39.6503, 31.9783 ## Description Gordion was the capital of the Phrygian Kingdom in central Anatolia, occupying the strategic position above the Sakarya river at the modern Yassıhöyük near Polatlı in Ankara Province. The site was inhabited from the Early Bronze Age around 2300 BCE and came under successive Hittite, post-Hittite, and Phrygian control through the late second and early first millennia BCE. The Phrygian polity reached its height under the Midas dynasty in the eighth century BCE, with monumental construction of the citadel and palatial megarons and the great burial mound known as Tumulus MM, the largest Iron Age tumulus in Anatolia at fifty meters high and three hundred meters in diameter. The Phrygian kingdom collapsed around 695 BCE under Cimmerian invasion, after which Gordion came under the Lydian Kingdom and then Achaemenid Persia. Alexander the Great famously cut or unfastened the Gordian Knot at the acropolis in 333 BCE during his Anatolian campaign, an act traditionally read as the prophecy of his future kingship over Asia. Galatian Celts settled in the region from 278 BCE following their migration from Thrace, after which Gordion served as a regional center of the Galatian tribe of the Tolistobogii. The site contracted progressively under Roman and Byzantine administration with continuous but reduced occupation until medieval abandonment around 1400. The University of Pennsylvania's continuous excavations since 1950 have made Gordion one of the most thoroughly documented Iron Age sites in the Near East, with the dendrochronology of its juniper timbers anchoring the absolute chronology of the eastern Mediterranean. ## Historical Rulers - 2300 BC – 1650 BC: Bronze Age Settlement The Early Bronze Age occupation of Gordion began around 2300 BCE on the natural mound above the Sakarya river, with ceramic and metallurgical connections to the Troad and Cilicia documenting integration into the broader Anatolian Bronze Age trade network. Through the Middle Bronze Age the settlement received administrative seals indicating contact with the rising Hittite state. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire Under the Old and New Hittite kingdoms Gordion was part of the wider Hittite imperial sphere on the northwestern frontier of the empire, with continuous settlement on the citadel mound and material culture sharing in the broader Late Bronze Age Anatolian patterns. The settlement participated in the regional collapse around 1180 BCE that ended Hittite imperial authority. - 1180 BC – 900 BC: Iron Age Settlement The transitional Early Iron Age phase at Gordion shows ceramic and linguistic shifts toward southeastern Europe, consistent with the arrival of Balkan migrant populations identified by ancient sources as the proto-Phrygians. Continuous occupation through this period produced the foundations of the later Phrygian citadel without yet displaying the monumental palatial architecture of the kingdom proper. - 900 BC – 695 BC: Phrygian Civilization Through the ninth and eighth centuries BCE Gordion emerged as the royal capital of the Phrygian Kingdom under a line of kings traditionally named Gordias and Midas, with the construction of the monumental East Citadel Gate, the palatial Megaron complex, the lower town circuit walls, and a cluster of royal tumuli including the great Tumulus MM (the Midas Mound, c. 740 BCE) and the earlier Tumulus W. Phrygian Gordion controlled the central Anatolian plateau from the Sangarios basin to the borders of Lydia and Urartu and exchanged embassies with Neo-Assyria, where King Mita of Mushki appears in Sargonid royal correspondence. The kingdom collapsed under Cimmerian invasion around 695 BCE. - 695 BC – 547 BC: Lydian Kingdom Following the Cimmerian destruction of Phrygian royal power around 695 BCE, the western Phrygian territories including Gordion were absorbed by the rising Lydian Kingdom under the Mermnad dynasty. The site was rebuilt as a Lydian provincial center while preserving substantial Phrygian cultural continuity, with the Phrygian language continuing in use across the central Anatolian plateau under Lydian suzerainty. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Cyrus the Great's defeat of Croesus and conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE brought Gordion into the Achaemenid Empire, with extensive archaeological evidence for the Persian siege of the citadel preserved in the destruction levels of that year. Through the following two centuries Gordion served as a Persian satrapal administrative center on the Royal Road from Sardis to Susa. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great reached Gordion in 333 BCE during his Anatolian campaign and at the acropolis was shown the famous Gordian Knot tying the yoke of the wagon of the legendary King Gordias; Alexander cut or unfastened the knot, fulfilling the prophecy that whoever loosened it would rule Asia. Greek worship and pottery progressively replaced Phrygian traditions through the subsequent Wars of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom Galatian Celts crossed into Anatolia in 278 BCE following their migration from Thrace and settled across the central plateau, with Gordion becoming a principal regional center of the Tolistobogii tribe. The Galatian period saw modest reoccupation of the citadel and continued rural settlement of the surrounding plains until the formal Roman annexation of Galatia under Augustus in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Gordium") Under Roman provincial administration as part of the new province of Galatia from 25 BCE, Gordion contracted to a small rural settlement on the western part of the citadel mound. Sporadic Roman occupation continued through the imperial centuries with no major new monumental construction at the site. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire Through the Byzantine centuries Gordion continued as a minor agricultural settlement of central Anatolia, with reduced material remains documenting modest medieval village occupation among the visible Phrygian ruins. The settlement passed out of Byzantine control following the Battle of Manzikert and the Seljuk advance into central Anatolia in the late eleventh century. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum Under the Sultanate of Rum the Gordion area remained a minor settlement of the central Anatolian plateau. Medieval lime-coated pits and ovens excavated on the citadel mound document the modest scale of the Seljuk-era village before final abandonment in the early fourteenth century. ## Landmarks - East Citadel Gate (built 850 BC) The monumental East Citadel Gate of Phrygian Gordion, built around 850 BCE in the Early Phrygian period and surviving to a height of ten meters, is the best-preserved Iron Age gate complex in Anatolia. The gate combined a long ramped approach with parallel side chambers and was the ceremonial entrance to the royal palatial quarter. - Citadel Megaron Complex (built 750 BC) The central megaron complex on the citadel mound preserves a series of large Phrygian palatial halls with pebble-mosaic floors, the earliest known examples of figured pebble mosaics in the ancient world. The complex was burned in the destruction level conventionally associated with the kingdom's collapse around 700-695 BCE. - Tumulus MM (Midas Mound) (built 740 BC) The Great Tumulus MM is the largest Iron Age burial mound in Anatolia, standing fifty meters high with a diameter of three hundred meters and built around 740 BCE for a Phrygian king traditionally identified with Midas. Beneath the mound a remarkable juniper-and-pine burial chamber preserved the intact royal burial together with purple and golden textiles, dozens of bronze vessels, and carved wooden furniture inlaid with geometric marquetry, recovered intact by the Penn Museum expedition in 1957. ## Population History - 2300 BC: 500 - 1500 BC: 1,500 - 900 BC: 3,000 - 740 BC: 8,000 - 547 BC: 4,000 - 333 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 3,000 - 100 AD: 2,500 - 500 AD: 1,500 - 1000 AD: 500 - 1300 AD: 200 - 1400 AD: null --- # Harran, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/harran Founded: 2000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.8625, 39.0333 ## Description Harran was an important ancient city located at a strategic crossroads in northern Mesopotamia, known for its distinctive beehive-shaped mud houses and as the last stronghold of ancient Mesopotamian star worship. Mentioned in biblical texts as the place where Abraham lived, it served as a major religious center for the moon god Sin and later became a renowned center of translation and learning during the Islamic Golden Age. The city thrived as a trade hub and intellectual center until its destruction by Mongol forces in 1260 CE. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1500 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Harranu") Harran emerged in the early second millennium BCE as a Hurrian and Amorite caravan town at the crossroads between Anatolia, Syria, and Mesopotamia, with a sanctuary dedicated to the moon god Sin already attested in this period. The town is mentioned in the Mari archives and in Old Assyrian texts from Kanesh as a node on the long-distance trade routes between Assur and Anatolia, ruled by local Amorite-Hurrian chiefs before the rise of the Mitanni Kingdom. - 1500 BC – 1350 BC: Mitanni (known as "Harranu") From around 1500 BCE Harran was incorporated into the Hurrian-led Kingdom of Mitanni, whose Indo-Aryan charioteer elite dominated upper Mesopotamia and northern Syria from the capital at Washukanni. The city retained its religious status as a major Sin sanctuary within the Mitanni realm until the kingdom was destroyed by the Hittite king Suppiluliuma I in the mid-14th century BCE. - 1350 BC – 911 BC: Middle Assyrian Empire (known as "Harranu") Following the collapse of Mitanni, Harranu was absorbed into the expanding Middle Assyrian Empire under Ashur-uballit I and his successors. It served as a key provincial center on the Euphrates frontier, and the Temple of Sin grew in stature as one of the principal moon-god sanctuaries of the Assyrian heartland. - 911 BC – 609 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Harranu") Under the Neo-Assyrian Empire Harran became one of the most important provincial cities of the realm, with its Sin temple rebuilt repeatedly by kings including Shalmaneser III and Ashurbanipal. After the fall of Nineveh to a Median-Babylonian coalition in 612 BCE Ashur-uballit II withdrew to Harran and made it the last Assyrian capital, until the city itself fell to the same coalition in 609 BCE, definitively ending Assyrian statehood. - 609 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire Harran passed to the Neo-Babylonian Empire after 609 BCE. Its religious importance peaked under Nabonidus, the last Neo-Babylonian king, who was himself from a Harran family and rebuilt the Temple of Sin on a grand scale, spending much of his reign at the city to the discomfort of the Marduk priesthood of Babylon. - 539 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE, Harran was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the satrapy of Babirush. The city continued as an administrative and religious hub on the great royal road linking Anatolia to Mesopotamia. - 330 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Carrhae") Following the defeat of the Achaemenid Empire, Harran came under Macedonian control during Alexander's eastern campaigns and was Hellenized under the Greek name Carrhae. The brief direct Macedonian period ended with Alexander's death in 323 BCE, after which the city passed to his successors. - 323 BC – 129 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Carrhae") After the Wars of the Diadochi the city was incorporated into the Seleucid Empire, where it continued as a Hellenized caravan town under the name Carrhae. Its Sin temple remained a regional pilgrimage center even under Seleucid administration until Parthian expansion under Mithradates I detached Mesopotamia from Seleucid control. - 129 BC – 216 AD: Parthian Empire (known as "Carrhae") Carrhae fell to the Parthian Arsacids in 129 BCE and remained a key Parthian frontier city for over three centuries. It is most famous for the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BCE, where the Parthian general Surena annihilated the invading Roman army of Marcus Licinius Crassus, who was killed along with most of his seven legions — one of the worst defeats in Roman military history. The city continued under Parthian rule despite brief Roman raids by Trajan (115-117 CE) and Lucius Verus (162-166 CE). - 216 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Carrhae") Septimius Severus's Mesopotamian campaigns in the late second century established a lasting Roman presence around Carrhae, and by 216 CE the city was firmly within the Roman province of Mesopotamia. Caracalla was assassinated by his own praetorian prefect outside Carrhae in 217 CE on a visit to the Sin temple. Despite Christianization elsewhere the city retained a strong pagan identity throughout Roman rule. - 395 AD – 639 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Carrhae") Under the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, Carrhae remained a frontier garrison facing the Sasanian Empire and was repeatedly contested in the long Roman-Persian wars, including a Sasanian occupation under Khosrow II from 609 until Heraclius's reconquest in 628. Famously, the Sin temple cult survived into the seventh century, making Carrhae one of the last functioning pagan sanctuaries of late antiquity. - 639 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate Arab forces under Iyad ibn Ghanm captured Harran in 639 CE, ending Byzantine rule and incorporating the city into the Rashidun Caliphate. The Sabian community of Harran retained its astronomical and Hellenistic learning under early Islamic protection as Ahl al-Kitab. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Harran was a major regional center within Jund Diyar Mudar. The last Umayyad caliph Marwan II moved his court to Harran in 744 and made it the empire's de facto capital until his defeat at the Battle of the Zab in 750. The Grand Mosque of Harran with its distinctive square minaret dates from this period. - 750 AD – 990 AD: Abbasid Caliphate Under the Abbasids, Harran flourished as one of the great translation centers of the Islamic Golden Age. The Sabian scholars of Harran — most famously Thabit ibn Qurra and his school — rendered Greek mathematical, astronomical, and philosophical works into Arabic and Syriac, transmitting Ptolemy, Apollonius, Archimedes, and Euclid to the wider Islamic world. The city remained a major caravan and intellectual hub through the ninth and tenth centuries. - 990 AD – 1081 AD: Numayrid Emirate As Abbasid central authority weakened, the Banu Numayr, an Arab tribe of upper Mesopotamia, established a semi-autonomous emirate centered on Harran, Raqqa, and Saruj. Numayrid rule preserved the city's commercial and religious importance through the late tenth and eleventh centuries before falling to the advancing Seljuks. - 1081 AD – 1127 AD: Seljuk Empire Seljuk Turkic forces under the Great Seljuks and later regional Seljuk princes (including Suleiman ibn Qutalmish and Tutush) took control of Harran around 1081 as part of their broader conquest of Syria and northern Mesopotamia. The city served as a base for Seljuk operations during the early Crusader period. - 1127 AD – 1183 AD: Zengid Atabegate Imad ad-Din Zengi, the atabeg of Mosul, captured Harran in 1127 as part of his consolidation of Sunni power in northern Mesopotamia. Under Zengi and his son Nur ad-Din the city became an important administrative and military center used as a staging point against the Crusader County of Edessa. - 1183 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate Saladin and his Ayyubid successors absorbed Harran from the Zengids in 1183. Under various Ayyubid branches the city continued as a regional capital, hosting madrasas and a court that patronized scholars including the historian Ibn al-Athir before the Mongol cataclysm. - 1260 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate Hulagu Khan's Mongol forces sacked Harran in 1260 in the same campaign that destroyed Baghdad, massacring much of the population and demolishing its monuments. Under the Ilkhanate the depopulated site retained only nominal administrative status as the city was effectively ruined, with the Sabian and Christian communities largely gone. - 1335 AD – 1410 AD: Jalayirid Sultanate After the disintegration of the Ilkhanate, northern Mesopotamia passed to the Jalayirid Sultanate of Baghdad, founded by Hasan Buzurg. Harran remained largely abandoned ruins within Jalayirid territory, used by Bedouin and Turkmen pastoralists rather than as an urban center. - 1410 AD – 1468 AD: Kara Koyunlu The Kara Koyunlu (Black Sheep) Turkmen confederation displaced the Jalayirids from Mesopotamia in 1410 and held the region including the ruined site of Harran until their defeat by their Aq Qoyunlu rivals. - 1468 AD – 1501 AD: Aq Qoyunlu Uzun Hasan's Aq Qoyunlu (White Sheep) Turkmen confederation took control of northern Mesopotamia from the Kara Koyunlu in 1468. Harran remained an abandoned site associated only with the standing ruins of its Grand Mosque and citadel. - 1501 AD – 1514 AD: Safavid Iran Shah Ismail I extended Safavid rule from Iran into eastern Anatolia and northern Mesopotamia, briefly bringing the Harran area into the Safavid sphere until Selim I's decisive victory at Chaldiran in 1514. - 1514 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire After Selim I's victory at Chaldiran in 1514 and the conquest of Mamluk Syria in 1516-1517, Harran was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire as part of the Diyar Mudar sancak of the Eyalet of Diyarbakır and later the Vilayet of Aleppo. For four centuries it remained a sparsely inhabited rural locality of beehive-roofed mud houses among the ancient ruins, briefly contested in the post-WWI Allied occupation and Turkish War of Independence before the foundation of the Republic in 1923. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the proclamation of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, Harran became part of the new state in what is now Şanlıurfa Province. The modern village preserves its distinctive beehive houses alongside excavated Achaemenid, Roman, and Umayyad-era remains; the Harran University was re-established in 1992 as a successor in name to the medieval Sabian academy. ## Landmarks - Temple of Sin (built 900 BC) Dedicated to the Mesopotamian moon deity Sin, this temple complex was one of the most important religious sites in the ancient Near East. Repeatedly rebuilt and expanded, particularly during Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods, it remained active even into early Islamic times as Harran was one of the last strongholds of ancient Mesopotamian religion. - Traditional Beehive Houses (built 600 AD) Harran's distinctive mud-brick houses with conical beehive-shaped roofs represent a building tradition dating back millennia. These structures provided excellent insulation against the extreme temperatures of the region, remaining cool in summer and warm in winter. Some examples of this distinctive architecture can still be seen in the area today. - Grand Mosque of Harran (built 744 AD) Built during the Umayyad period, this rectangular mosque featured a distinctive square minaret. Its construction involved repurposed stones from earlier structures, typical of the architectural palimpsest of ancient cities. The ruins of its walls and minaret remain visible today. - University of Harran (built 830 AD) Not a single building but a collection of institutions where scholars translated works of Aristotle, Plato, Euclid, and other Greek scientists and philosophers into Arabic. The university was particularly known for its medical and astronomical studies, helping to preserve and transmit classical knowledge to the Islamic world and eventually to Europe. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 2,000 - 1500 BC: 5,000 - 1350 BC: 8,000 - 1000 BC: 15,000 - 700 BC: 25,000 - 0 AD: 30,000 - 750 AD: 40,000 - 1200 AD: 20,000 - 1260 AD: 1,000 - 1500 AD: 10,000 - 2000 AD: 70,000 - 2020 AD: 100,000 --- # Hierapolis, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/hierapolis Founded: 190 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.9255, 29.1289 ## Description Hierapolis, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site alongside the Pamukkale travertine terraces, was an ancient Greco-Roman spa city in Phrygia famous for its extraordinary calcite-laden thermal waters. Founded as a thermal spa around 190 BCE by Eumenes II of Pergamon, the city combined exceptional natural beauty with sophisticated hydrological engineering. Hierapolis was renowned throughout antiquity as a healing center where thousands sought remedies in its medicinal waters. It was also an important religious center, housing temples to Apollo and Pluto — including the famous Plutonium, a cave emitting toxic gases believed to be an entrance to the underworld — and later became a significant early Christian site where the apostle Philip is said to have been martyred. Its unique necropolis with over 1,200 tombs reflects the city's wealthy multicultural population and its reputation as a place where people came both to heal and to die. The city was abandoned after a devastating earthquake in 1354. The small modern village of Pamukkale, about 1.5 km to the south, is a separate Turkish-era settlement and not part of Hierapolis's history. ## Historical Rulers - 190 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Founded around 190 BCE by Eumenes II of Pergamon as a Hellenistic spa city to capitalize on the thermal springs of the travertine plateau. The name 'Hierapolis' (Sacred City) reflects its religious dedication to the cult of the Mother Goddess and Apollo, and the territory passed formally to Pergamon two years later under the Treaty of Apamea. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Attalus III's bequest of Pergamon to Rome in 133 BCE and the suppression of the Aristonicus revolt in 129 BCE, Hierapolis became part of the Roman province of Asia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city was devastated by a major earthquake in 60 CE under Nero but rebuilt on a grander scale, gaining the great theater, the Plutonium gas-temple, and the monumental colonnaded plateia; its population reached around 100,000 in the second century CE. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire Hierapolis continued as a major Byzantine bishopric and pilgrimage center associated with the martyrdom of the apostle Philip, with a monumental Martyrium built on the hill outside the city in the fifth century. The city declined through repeated earthquakes and shifting trade routes, contracting steadily through the seventh-tenth centuries. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Pamukkale") After the Battle of Manzikert the region passed under the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate of Rum, with brief Byzantine recoveries under the Komnenoi in the twelfth century. Population shrank dramatically and the urban core gave way to a small Turkmen community living among the ruins. - 1308 AD – 1390 AD: Germiyanid Beylik (known as "Pamukkale") Following the disintegration of the Sultanate of Rum, the Hierapolis area fell within the territory of the Germiyanid Beylik based at Kütahya. A major earthquake in 1354 destroyed most of what remained of the ancient city, and habitation shifted off the travertine plateau down to the lowlands at the foot of the cliffs. - 1390 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Pamukkale") Bayezid I annexed the Germiyanid lands in 1390, and after a brief restoration following Timur's victory at Ankara in 1402 the area returned to definitive Ottoman rule. A small Turkish thermal-spring village known as Pamukkale ('cotton castle' after the calcium-carbonate terraces) persisted in the lowlands at the foot of the cliffs throughout Ottoman rule, attracting bathers and European travellers from the seventeenth century onward. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Pamukkale") Under the Turkish Republic the lowland village of Pamukkale developed slowly until the tourism boom of the late twentieth century, after the ancient ruins and travertines were inscribed jointly as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. The modern village today has roughly 2,500 permanent residents focused on heritage tourism, while the Hierapolis archaeological park on the plateau immediately above is administered by the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism. ## Landmarks - Pamukkale Travertine Terraces (built 190 BC) Perhaps the most distinctive feature of Hierapolis, the brilliant white calcium carbonate terraces of Pamukkale ('Cotton Castle') were formed over millennia by the calcium-rich thermal waters cascading down the hillside. Ancient Hierapolis was deliberately built to incorporate these natural pools, with sophisticated hydrological engineering channeling the mineral waters through the city and Roman baths constructed directly over the springs. The same geological activity that created the terraces also produced the periodic earthquakes that damaged the city throughout its history. - Plutonium (built 100 BC) A small cave-shrine sacred to Pluto (and through him to Apollo Karios), believed to be an entrance to the underworld. The cave emits naturally occurring carbon dioxide and other toxic volcanic gases — fatal to humans and animals at ground level, but with a pocket of breathable air higher up. Priests demonstrated their divine immunity by holding their breath while leading sacrificial animals to their deaths inside. Strabo gives a detailed first-hand account of the phenomenon. - Theater of Hierapolis (built 60 AD) Built during Emperor Nero's reign and expanded by later rulers, the theater of Hierapolis was carved into the hillside with a horseshoe-shaped auditorium of 50 rows seating around 12,000 spectators. Its grand stage building, nearly 20 meters high, preserves marble reliefs of Apollo, Artemis, and mythological scenes, and adapted over centuries from dramas and religious rites to later gladiatorial games. - Martyrium of Saint Philip (built 425 AD) An octagonal Byzantine martyrium built on the hill outside the city walls, traditionally marking the spot where the apostle Philip was martyred. The site became a major Christian pilgrimage destination through the early Byzantine period. ## Population History - 190 BC: 8,000 - 100 BC: 15,000 - 0 AD: 25,000 - 100 AD: 60,000 - 200 AD: 100,000 - 400 AD: 50,000 - 600 AD: 25,000 - 800 AD: 10,000 - 1000 AD: 5,000 - 1200 AD: 2,000 - 1354 AD: null - 1500 AD: 200 - 1800 AD: 500 - 1950 AD: 800 - 2020 AD: 2,500 --- # Hüseyindede Höyüğü, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/huseyindede-hoyugu Founded: 1650 BC Ended: 1400 BC Coordinates: 40.287, 34.2328 ## Description Hüseyindede Höyüğü is a small Old Hittite period cult site in the Sungurlu district of Çorum Province in north-central Anatolia, about 45 kilometers northwest of the Hittite capital at Hattuša. Excavations between 1997 and 2003 by Tunç Sipahi and Tayfun Yıldırım of Ankara University revealed a complex of six temple buildings — without any domestic architecture — that functioned as a cult center rather than a settlement. The most celebrated finds are two intact Hittite relief vases now displayed in the Çorum Museum, parallels of the famous İnandık Vase, that depict a spring ritual with musicians playing sazlike lutes, cymbals, and lyre, dancers performing a hand-in-hand halay, and an acrobat leaping over a bull — one of the earliest attestations of the bull-leaping motif outside Crete. The cult buildings were destroyed by fire and the site was abandoned, with only a single Roman-period rock-cut tomb representing later activity in the area. ## Historical Rulers - 1650 BC – 1400 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Hüseyindede") Founded as an Old Hittite cult center on a hilltop in the heartland of the Hittite Empire under Hattusili I and his successors. Six temple buildings forming a 22.5 by 16 meter complex were used for spring ritual ceremonies attested by two relief vases depicting musicians, halay dancers, and a bull-leaping acrobat. The complex was destroyed by fire during the Old Hittite period and never rebuilt, ending site occupation. ## Landmarks - Old Hittite Temple Complex (built 1650 BC) A complex of six rectangular cult buildings arranged on terraces over a 22.5 by 16 meter footprint, with the inner Room 4 (13.5 by 9 meters) interpreted as the main ceremonial hall. The walls and floors preserved the relief vases and pottery vessels in situ until the buildings were destroyed by a single fire event during the Old Hittite Kingdom. - Hüseyindede Relief Vases (built 1600 BC) Two large Old Hittite relief vases recovered from the cult complex, now in the Çorum Museum. The larger vase depicts a spring religious ceremony with musicians, dancers, and a bull-leaping acrobat — one of the earliest known representations of bull-leaping outside Minoan Crete — and the smaller vase shows a hand-in-hand halay dance whose costumes and gestures are sometimes compared to surviving Anatolian folk traditions. ## Population History - 1650 BC: 50 - 1500 BC: 80 - 1400 BC: null --- # Iasos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/iasos Founded: 2500 BC Ended: 1500 AD Coordinates: 37.2806, 27.5894 ## Description Iasos was a Greek polis of Caria occupying a small rocky peninsula in the Asin Körfezi gulf near modern Kıyıkışlacık village in the Milas district of Muğla Province. The site has been continuously occupied from the Early Bronze Age around 2500 BCE with Minoan and Mycenaean material attesting to second-millennium maritime contact, before the traditional foundation of the Doric Greek polis as a colony of Argos in the early Iron Age. Iasos joined the Athenian-led Delian League and suffered Spartan attack during the Peloponnesian War, before passing under the Carian Hekatomnids, Alexander the Great, and the successive Hellenistic kingdoms. The Italian School of Archaeology has excavated the site since the 1960s, revealing the agora, the bouleuterion, the sanctuary of Artemis Astias, the Roman fish market, and a sequence of harbor installations. The medieval castle on the seaward promontory, reused through the Byzantine, Menteshe, and early Ottoman periods, controlled the natural harbor until the site was abandoned in the fifteenth or sixteenth century. ## Historical Rulers - 2500 BC – 1100 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Iasos") The Iasos peninsula was settled in the Early Bronze Age from around 2500 BCE and continued through the Middle and Late Bronze Age with substantial Minoan and Mycenaean material attesting to second-millennium maritime contact across the Aegean. The settlement participated in the regional collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement Argive Greek settlers refounded the peninsula as the Doric polis of Iasos in the early Iron Age, according to the foundation tradition reported by Polybius and Strabo. The early polis took shape on the small peninsula with its protected natural harbor. - 800 BC – 546 BC: Hellenic Civilization Through the Archaic period Iasos developed as a substantial Carian-Greek polis with the sanctuary of Artemis Astias as its principal religious focus. The city minted its own coinage and maintained close ties with the broader Argive and Doric cultural sphere. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, Iasos came under Achaemenid suzerainty as part of Caria. The city joined the Athenian-led Delian League in the fifth century and was sacked by Spartan forces during the Peloponnesian War before reverting to Persian control through the Hekatomnid satrapal dynasty. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE incorporated Iasos into the Macedonian Empire. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi and was besieged by Philip V of Macedon in 201 BCE during a later Macedonian intervention. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom Through most of the third century BCE Iasos was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt as part of their Mediterranean thalassocracy. The city continued as a substantial Hellenistic port. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Antiochus III's western campaign brought Iasos briefly under Seleucid control until the Treaty of Apamea of 188 BCE reassigned Caria to Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Iasos was administered from Rhodes alongside the other mainland Carian communities for two decades. The arrangement ended in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power. - 167 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Iasus") After the Roman declaration of Carian freedom in 167 BCE Iasos passed into the Roman provincial structure as a regional port. The city built a substantial Roman fish market on the harbor front in the second century CE and continued through the imperial period without rising to the prominence of larger Carian centers. - 395 AD – 1261 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Iasos contracted toward the seaward promontory and the Byzantine castle was raised on the ancient acropolis to control the harbor through the Arab naval raids of the seventh to ninth centuries and the long Byzantine medieval contraction. The site passed out of effective Byzantine control with the Menteshe expansion in the later thirteenth century. - 1261 AD – 1424 AD: Menteshe Beylik (known as "Asin") The Menteshe Beylik absorbed Iasos in the later thirteenth century and refortified the harbor castle under the Turkish name Asin. The site briefly returned to Ottoman authority under Bayezid I from 1390 to 1402 before being restored to the Menteshe beys after the Battle of Ankara and finally annexed by Murad II in 1424. - 1424 AD – 1500 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Asın") Under definitive Ottoman administration from 1424 the small coastal settlement at Asın continued for less than a century before being abandoned in the fifteenth or sixteenth century as the population dispersed to inland villages of the Milas region. The harbor castle and the surrounding ancient ruins gradually silted in. ## Landmarks - Sanctuary of Artemis Astias (built 400 BC) The sanctuary of Artemis Astias was the principal civic cult of Iasos, with a Doric temple set on a high terrace above the agora and continuous dedicatory activity from the Archaic through the Roman imperial period. The cult is documented in multiple surviving Hellenistic inscribed decrees of the polis. - Agora and Bouleuterion (built 300 BC) The Hellenistic agora and bouleuterion of Iasos lay at the center of the peninsula city with a colonnaded square framed by stoas and a small assembly hall on its southern side. The complex underwent Roman remodeling in the second century CE while preserving its Hellenistic core layout. - Iasos Castle (built 700 AD) The medieval castle on the seaward promontory was built on Byzantine foundations of the seventh and eighth centuries CE in response to the Arab naval raids of the early medieval period. The structure was reused and modified through the Menteshe Beylik and early Ottoman periods under the Turkish name Asin Castle. ## Population History - 2500 BC: 500 - 1500 BC: 1,500 - 1000 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 4,000 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 4,000 - 500 AD: 3,000 - 1000 AD: 1,500 - 1300 AD: 1,000 - 1500 AD: null --- # İpsala, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/ipsala Founded: 550 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.9245, 26.3921 ## Description İpsala — ancient Kypsela (Cypsela) — is a small town in Edirne Province in Turkish Eastern Thrace, on the eastern bank of the Maritsa river (ancient Hebros) directly facing the Greek frontier across the river. The site was founded around the mid-6th century BCE as a Greek polis on the lower Hebros, serving as the principal commercial emporium of the river valley and a major station on the great east-west route that the Romans would later monumentalize as the Via Egnatia between the Adriatic and Constantinople. After Macedonian, Antigonid, and Odrysian rule through the Hellenistic period, Kypsela was incorporated into the Roman provincial system after the Battle of Pydna in 168 BCE and became the principal town of the Roman province of Rhodope under the imperial administration. Under Byzantine rule Cypsela was a major autocephalous archbishopric — its bishops Georgius and Theophylactus attended the Second Council of Constantinople (553) and the Second Council of Nicaea (787) — until the Latin Empire briefly held the area after 1204. After the Palaiologan Byzantine recovery in the 13th century, the town fell to the Ottomans under Orhan around 1360 as one of the early Ottoman conquests in southern Thrace. Under five centuries of Ottoman rule İpsala continued as a small market town and Maritsa crossing, and the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne fixed the modern Greek-Turkish frontier along the river just west of the town. Modern İpsala is a town of about 8,500 inhabitants in Edirne Province, hosting one of the principal land border crossings between Türkiye and Greece directly opposite the Greek town of Kipoi. ## Historical Rulers - 550 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Kypsela") Founded around 550 BCE as a Greek polis on the eastern bank of the Hebros river near its outlet to the Aegean, Kypsela developed as the principal Greek emporium of the lower Hebros valley within the wider Hellenic colonial network of the northern Aegean. The polis controlled the great east-west route between Macedonia, Thrace, and the Hellespont, and traded with the Aegean islands and the Greek mainland until the Macedonian conquest of Thrace under Philip II in the 340s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Kypsela") Under Alexander the Great and his Diadochi successor Lysimachus, Kypsela was nominally Macedonian while retaining most of its civic autonomy as a free Greek polis. The town passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Kypsela") After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Kypsela passed under the formal suzerainty of the Antigonid kingdom of Macedonia while preserving its working autonomy as a Greek free city on the contested frontier with the Odrysian Thracian dynasties of the upper Hebros. The polis minted its own coinage and remained an important Aegean-facing commercial port until the Roman reorganization of Macedonia as a province after the Andriscus revolt of 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Cypsela") After the suppression of Andriscus in 148 BCE, Macedonia was reorganized as a Roman province and Cypsela was integrated into the new provincial system as a major Via Egnatia mansio on the road between the Adriatic ports and Byzantium. Under the Roman Republic the city was part of the new provincial network until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Cypsela") Under the Augustan Principate and the long imperial peace, Cypsela became the principal town of the Roman province of Rhodope and a major station on the Via Egnatia between the Adriatic and Constantinople. The city was the seat of a Christian bishopric from the late imperial period and remained a key provincial centre on the southern Thracian frontier until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Cypsela") Under the Eastern Roman administration Cypsela was raised to an autocephalous archbishopric of the southern Thracian church, with its bishops Georgius attending the Second Council of Constantinople in 553 and Theophylactus the Second Council of Nicaea in 787. The town was a Byzantine fortress port and a major Via Egnatia station until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1235 AD: Latin Empire (known as "Cypsela") Following the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople, Cypsela was incorporated into the Latin Empire's Thracian holdings. The town suffered repeated Bulgarian raids during the chaotic Latin period until the Nicaean emperor John III Doukas Vatatzes recovered the lower Hebros valley in 1235 during his expansion of the Nicaean recovery of European Byzantine territory. - 1235 AD – 1360 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Cypsela") After John III Doukas Vatatzes's recovery in 1235 and the restoration of Constantinople by Michael VIII Palaiologos in 1261, Cypsela reverted to the restored Palaiologan empire as one of its principal Thracian fortress towns. The town fell to the Ottoman sultan Orhan around 1360 as part of the early Ottoman conquest of southern Thrace. - 1360 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Orhan's Ottoman armies captured Cypsela around 1360 as one of the early Ottoman conquests in southern Thrace, after which the town — Turkified as İpsala — was incorporated into the Ottoman Sancak of Gallipoli and later Edirne. Under five centuries of Ottoman rule İpsala continued as a small market town and Maritsa river crossing, with a mixed Muslim, Greek Orthodox, and Sephardic Jewish population until the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne fixed the modern Greek-Turkish frontier along the Maritsa just west of the town. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, İpsala became a district (ilçe) seat within Edirne Province on the new Greek-Turkish frontier. The town has remained a modest agricultural and commercial centre of about 8,500 inhabitants, hosting one of the principal land border crossings between Türkiye and the European Union opposite the Greek town of Kipoi. ## Landmarks - Citadel and Walls of Kypsela (built 300 BC) The Hellenistic and Roman city walls of Kypsela on the Hebros riverbank, built and rebuilt through the polis era and substantially reinforced under Byzantine emperors. Most of the circuit was destroyed in the Ottoman and modern periods, though scattered foundation courses survive in the historic core of the modern town. - Hacı İlyas Mosque (built 1490 AD) An early-Ottoman mosque built in the late 15th century by Hacı İlyas as one of the first imperial-period religious buildings of İpsala. The single-domed prayer hall with its slender stone minaret survives as the principal Ottoman heritage monument of the modern town. - İpsala Stone Bridge (built 1672 AD) An Ottoman stone bridge across the Maritsa river built under Sultan Mehmed IV in the late 17th century, replacing earlier wooden bridges on the same crossing. The bridge anchored the historic Edirne-Adrianople road to the Aegean and was the principal Ottoman crossing of the lower Maritsa until the modern reinforced-concrete bridge replaced it after the 1923 frontier settlement. ## Population History - 550 BC: 1,500 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 500 AD: 6,000 - 1000 AD: 5,000 - 1204 AD: 4,000 - 1360 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 5,000 - 1700 AD: 7,000 - 1900 AD: 6,000 - 1950 AD: 5,000 - 2022 AD: 8,546 --- # İstanbul, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/istanbul Founded: 657 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.0086, 28.9802 ## Description İstanbul — known as Byzantion in Greek, Byzantium in Latin, Constantinople under the Romans and Byzantines, and Kostantiniyye under the Ottomans — is a transcontinental megacity straddling the Bosphorus strait between Europe and Asia. Founded around 657 BCE by Megarian Greek colonists led by the legendary oikist Byzas on the European shore of the Bosphorus, the polis exploited its supremely defensible peninsula and its control of the Black Sea trade to grow into one of the great Greek city-states of the Aegean world. After alternating between Persian, Athenian, Spartan, and Macedonian spheres of influence through the Classical period, Byzantium passed under Roman protection in the 70s BCE and was reduced to a Roman provincial city after Septimius Severus sacked it in 196 CE for siding with his rival Pescennius Niger. Constantine the Great refounded the city as the New Rome on 11 May 330 CE, and through nearly a thousand years as Constantinople it served as the political, religious, and cultural heart of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, growing into the largest Christian city of the medieval world before the Fourth Crusade sacked it in 1204 and the brief Latin Empire interlude followed. Sultan Mehmed II's conquest in May 1453 ended Byzantine rule and made Kostantiniyye the capital of the Ottoman Empire, after which it was extensively rebuilt with a great Islamic monumental landscape until the abolition of the sultanate at the end of the First World War. With the proclamation of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923 the political capital moved to Ankara and the city was officially renamed İstanbul, but it has remained the country's largest city and principal economic and cultural center, with roughly fifteen million inhabitants today as the most populous urban agglomeration in Europe. ## Historical Rulers - 657 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Byzantion") The polis was founded around 657 BCE by Megarian Greek colonists led by the legendary oikist Byzas on a defensible peninsula at the European mouth of the Bosphorus, exploiting its dual natural harbours and control of all maritime traffic between the Aegean and the Black Sea. Through the early Archaic period Byzantion developed as an autonomous Greek city-state within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Propontis and Pontus, with a mixed Megarian-Chalcedonian population, until its conquest by Darius I of Persia around 512 BCE during the Achaemenid Scythian campaign. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Byzantion") Darius I incorporated Byzantion into the Achaemenid Empire as a tributary city under the satrapy of Skudra, using it as a forward base for Persian operations against the Scythians and later against the Greek mainland. The city was liberated by the Spartan regent Pausanias and his Greek allied fleet in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Byzantion") After its liberation from Persian rule Byzantion was contested through the Classical period among the major Greek powers, joining the Athenian-led Delian League, defecting to Sparta after Aegospotami in 405 BCE, returning to Athens under Thrasybulus around 390 BCE, and aligning briefly with Persia in the mid-fourth century. The polis famously resisted a year-long siege by Philip II of Macedon in 340-339 BCE, traditionally saved by the appearance of a crescent moon over the city — an event commemorated in the crescent that later became the emblem of the city and the Ottoman Empire. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Byzantion") After the accession of Alexander the Great and the Macedonian campaigns into Asia, Byzantion submitted to Macedonian suzerainty while retaining most of its civic autonomy. The polis passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Byzantion") After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Byzantion passed under the formal Antigonid Macedonian sphere on the European side of the Bosphorus while preserving its working independence as a Greek free city contested between the Antigonid, Seleucid, and Ptolemaic kingdoms. The polis resisted Galatian raids in the third century BCE, paid intermittent tribute to the Bithynian kings, and continued minting its own coinage with the distinctive dolphin and trident series, until the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Byzantion") After the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE Byzantion passed under nominal Roman authority while retaining its free-city status. The polis was firmly drawn into the Roman provincial system after siding with Rome during the Third Mithridatic War from 73 BCE and Pompey's settlement of the East in 64 BCE that formed the new province of Bithynia and Pontus, retaining nominal free city status while being effectively integrated into the new provincial framework until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 330 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Byzantium") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE the city continued as a Greek free polis within the Roman province of Bithynia and Pontus, retaining its civic institutions and Black Sea commercial role through the early imperial period. Byzantium fatally sided with Pescennius Niger against Septimius Severus in the civil wars of the 190s; after a three-year siege Severus captured and partially destroyed the city in 196 CE before rebuilding it as a Roman provincial city with a new hippodrome and walls. Constantine the Great chose this strategic site as his new imperial capital, formally inaugurating Nova Roma on 11 May 330 CE. - 330 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Constantinople") Constantine the Great refounded the city as the New Rome on 11 May 330 CE, and through nearly nine centuries as Constantinople it served as the political, religious, and cultural heart of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire. The city was endowed with the Hagia Sophia of Justinian (537), the Theodosian land walls (413), the Great Palace, the Hippodrome, and dozens of major churches, and grew into the largest Christian city of the medieval world with a population around 500,000 at its peak. Repeated Arab sieges (674-678, 717-718) and Bulgarian and Rus attacks were repelled by the formidable walls, until the city was finally sacked by the Fourth Crusade on 12-13 April 1204 and the Byzantine state shattered into rival successor empires. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Latin Empire (known as "Constantinopolis") Following the Fourth Crusade's sack of the city in April 1204, Constantinople became the capital of the Crusader-founded Latin Empire under Baldwin I of Flanders, with Venice receiving three-eighths of the city and the islands of the Aegean. The Latin period saw catastrophic depopulation as much of the Greek population fled to the rival Empire of Nicaea, the systematic looting of Constantinople's relics and artworks for Western European treasuries, and steady territorial losses to the surrounding Byzantine successor states. The Nicaean general Alexios Strategopoulos retook Constantinople for Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos on 25 July 1261. - 1261 AD – 1453 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Constantinople") Michael VIII Palaiologos's recapture of Constantinople in 1261 restored Byzantine rule but to a much-reduced empire surrounded by Latin, Bulgarian, Serbian, and rising Ottoman rivals. The restored Palaiologan capital experienced a cultural and artistic flowering — the late Byzantine Renaissance of Mistras and the Chora monastery mosaics — even as it lost most of its remaining territory and became economically dependent on Genoese and Venetian merchants. After multiple Ottoman sieges in the late 14th and early 15th centuries, Sultan Mehmed II finally captured the city on 29 May 1453 after a 53-day siege, ending nearly 1,123 years of Eastern Roman rule. - 1453 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Kostantiniyye") After Mehmed II's conquest on 29 May 1453 the city — now officially Kostantiniyye in Ottoman Turkish — was rapidly repopulated through forced and voluntary migration and became the political, religious, and cultural capital of the Ottoman Empire. The Hagia Sophia was converted into the principal congregational mosque, Topkapı Palace was built as the imperial seat from 1459, and successive sultans endowed the city with the Süleymaniye (1557), the Sultan Ahmed Mosque (1616), and dozens of other monumental complexes that gave the historic peninsula its enduring Islamic skyline. The city served as the capital of a vast multi-ethnic empire until the abolition of the sultanate in November 1922 and the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey in October 1923 ended four and a half centuries of Ottoman rule. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923 the political capital moved to Ankara and the city was officially renamed İstanbul, though it remained the country's largest urban centre and its principal commercial, financial, and cultural hub. The 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange and the 1955 Istanbul pogrom progressively erased the centuries-old Greek and Armenian communities of the city, while massive rural-to-urban migration from the 1950s onwards drove the metropolitan population from one million to roughly fifteen million today. İstanbul is the most populous urban agglomeration in Europe and one of the great megacities of the world, with a sprawling metropolitan area now extending more than 100 kilometres along both shores of the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara. ## Landmarks - Walls of Constantinople (built 413 AD) The Theodosian land walls were completed in 413 CE under Emperor Theodosius II as a double circuit of stone and brick fortifications stretching about six and a half kilometres across the western landward approach to the city. The walls successfully repelled Arab, Avar, Bulgarian, and Rus sieges for more than a thousand years until Sultan Mehmed II's gunpowder artillery breached them in May 1453. - Hagia Sophia (built 537 AD) The Hagia Sophia was completed in 537 CE under Justinian I as the principal patriarchal cathedral of the Byzantine Empire, with a massive central dome 31 metres in diameter that remained the largest enclosed dome in the world for nearly a thousand years. The cathedral was converted to a congregational mosque by Mehmed II after the Ottoman conquest in 1453, designated a museum in 1934 under Atatürk, and reconverted to a working mosque in 2020. - Galata Tower (built 1348 AD) The Galata Tower is a nine-storey stone tower completed in 1348 by the Genoese colony of Galata across the Golden Horn from the Byzantine capital, rising 67 metres above the harbour and crowning the Genoese podestà's walled enclave. It served as a fire watchtower under the Ottomans and now offers some of the most iconic panoramic views over the historic peninsula and the Bosphorus. - Grand Bazaar (built 1455 AD) The Grand Bazaar (Kapalıçarşı) was founded by Sultan Mehmed II shortly after the conquest of Constantinople, beginning with the construction of the inner bedesten in 1455 and expanding over the following four centuries into one of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world. Today the complex covers more than thirty thousand square metres with over four thousand shops arrayed along sixty-one covered streets. - Topkapı Palace (built 1465 AD) Topkapı Palace was built between 1459 and 1465 under Sultan Mehmed II on the acropolis of the old Byzantine city as the principal residence of the Ottoman sultans for nearly four centuries. The complex of four interconnected courtyards on a peninsula overlooking the Golden Horn houses the Ottoman imperial treasury, the imperial harem, and major Islamic religious relics, and was opened as a public museum in 1924. - Süleymaniye Mosque (built 1557 AD) The Süleymaniye Mosque was completed in 1557 by the chief Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan as the principal imperial foundation of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. Commanding the third hill of the historic peninsula above the Golden Horn, the great külliye complex includes the mosque, four madrasas, a hospital, a public kitchen, the tombs of Suleiman and Hürrem Sultan, and is widely considered the masterpiece of classical Ottoman architecture. - Sultan Ahmed Mosque (built 1616 AD) The Sultan Ahmed Mosque — popularly known as the Blue Mosque after the blue Iznik tiles that cover its interior walls — was built between 1609 and 1616 under Sultan Ahmed I to face the Hagia Sophia across the Hippodrome square. It is the only Ottoman imperial mosque with six minarets, an unusual feature in the early 17th century that according to tradition required the construction of a seventh minaret at the Great Mosque of Mecca to restore primacy. ## Population History - 657 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 8,000 - 300 BC: 15,000 - 100 BC: 36,000 - 100 AD: 50,000 - 200 AD: 30,000 - 330 AD: 100,000 - 400 AD: 400,000 - 500 AD: 500,000 - 600 AD: 600,000 - 622 AD: 400,000 - 700 AD: 400,000 - 800 AD: 400,000 - 900 AD: 500,000 - 944 AD: 330,000 - 1000 AD: 600,000 - 1100 AD: 400,000 - 1200 AD: 250,000 - 1250 AD: 100,000 - 1261 AD: 100,000 - 1300 AD: 100,000 - 1340 AD: 80,000 - 1350 AD: 80,000 - 1400 AD: 75,000 - 1425 AD: 70,000 - 1453 AD: 45,000 - 1477 AD: 98,000 - 1500 AD: 200,000 - 1510 AD: 250,000 - 1515 AD: 300,000 - 1528 AD: 400,000 - 1550 AD: 660,000 - 1552 AD: 660,000 - 1575 AD: 680,000 - 1600 AD: 700,000 - 1650 AD: 700,000 - 1690 AD: 750,000 - 1700 AD: 700,000 - 1750 AD: 625,000 - 1794 AD: 560,000 - 1800 AD: 570,000 - 1815 AD: 597,600 - 1825 AD: 675,000 - 1830 AD: 700,000 - 1848 AD: 778,000 - 1850 AD: 785,000 - 1875 AD: 873,000 - 1885 AD: 873,565 - 1900 AD: 900,000 - 1914 AD: 1,125,000 - 1925 AD: 817,000 - 1950 AD: 1,035,000 - 1970 AD: 2,825,000 - 1975 AD: 3,200,000 - 2000 AD: 8,260,000 - 2020 AD: 15,000,000 --- # İzmir, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/izmir Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 2026 AD Coordinates: 38.46371, 27.17123 ## Description İzmir, classical Smyrna, is one of the oldest and most significant cities of the ancient Mediterranean, founded around 3000 BCE as Old Smyrna at Bayraklı and refounded on the slopes of Mount Pagos (modern Kadifekale) under Alexander's successors at the end of the 4th century BCE. As an Aeolian and later Ionian Greek polis it produced the early urban planning of Old Smyrna and was linked by tradition to Homer, and after the Hellenistic refoundation it became one of the wealthiest cities of Roman Asia. Under Byzantine and successive Turkish rulers — the Seljuks, Aydın Beylik, briefly the Timurids, and the Ottomans — Smyrna grew into the great cosmopolitan port of the eastern Aegean, with a mixed Turkish, Greek, Armenian, Jewish, and Levantine population, until the 1922 fire and the Turkish reconquest brought the Ottoman era to an end. Today İzmir is Türkiye's third-largest city and a major Aegean port, commercial, and cultural center on the same gulf where the ancient settlement first took shape. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Old Smyrna") - 2000 BC – 1550 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Old Smyrna") - 1550 BC – 1100 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Old Smyrna") - 1100 BC – 600 BC: Aeolian Civilization (known as "Smyrna") - 600 BC – 547 BC: Lydian Kingdom (known as "Smyrna") - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Smyrna") - 334 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Smyrna") - 301 BC – 281 BC: Kingdom of Lysimachus (known as "Smyrna") - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Smyrna") - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Smyrna") - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Smyrna") - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Smyrna") - 395 AD – 1081 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Smyrna") - 1081 AD – 1097 AD: Seljuk Empire - 1097 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Smyrna") - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Empire of Nicaea (known as "Smyrna") - 1261 AD – 1317 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Smyrna") - 1317 AD – 1402 AD: Aydın Beylik - 1344 AD – 1402 AD: Knights Hospitaller (known as "Smyrna") - 1402 AD – 1415 AD: Timurid Empire - 1415 AD – 1919 AD: Ottoman Empire - 1919 AD – 1922 AD: Kingdom of Greece (known as "Smyrna") - 1922 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye ## Landmarks - Agora of Smyrna (built 333 BC) Originally built during the Hellenistic period and reconstructed after an earthquake in 178 CE, the agora served as the commercial heart of ancient Smyrna and remains an impressive archaeological site today. - Kadifekale (built 300 BC) Built by Alexander's successor Lysimachus, this 'Velvet Castle' has been continuously used as a fortress through Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman periods, offering panoramic views of the city and gulf. - Hisar Mosque (built 1598 AD) Built during the Ottoman period, this mosque represents the classical Ottoman architectural style and has survived multiple earthquakes and the Great Fire of 1922. - Church of St. Polycarp (built 1625 AD) Named after Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna and Christian martyr of the 2nd century, this Catholic church remains an important reminder of the city's religious diversity. - Kemeraltı Bazaar (built 1650 AD) One of the largest and oldest open-air markets in the world, dating back to the 17th century and still serving as a vibrant commercial center with numerous shops, coffeehouses, and workshops. - Konak Clock Tower (built 1901 AD) Designed by Levantine French architect Raymond Charles Père and built as a gift from Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany, this 25-meter marble tower has become the symbolic center of modern İzmir. - Asansör (built 1907 AD) Built by wealthy Jewish businessman Nesim Levi to connect the hillside with the lower parts of the city, this elevator tower has been converted into a restaurant with panoramic views of İzmir Bay. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 300 - 1100 BC: 1,000 - 700 BC: 5,000 - 600 BC: 1,000 - 300 BC: 20,000 - 100 BC: 90,000 - 100 AD: 125,000 - 200 AD: 100,000 - 500 AD: 60,000 - 1000 AD: 30,000 - 1300 AD: 25,000 - 1500 AD: 15,000 - 1650 AD: 75,000 - 1664 AD: 90,000 - 1675 AD: 111,000 - 1700 AD: 135,000 - 1750 AD: 130,000 - 1800 AD: 125,000 - 1814 AD: 120,000 - 1825 AD: 135,000 - 1850 AD: 150,000 - 1900 AD: 201,000 - 1950 AD: 231,000 - 1975 AD: 760,000 --- # İzmit, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/izmit Founded: 712 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.7647, 29.9444 ## Description İzmit — ancient Astakos and later Nicomedia (Nikomedeia) — is the capital of Kocaeli Province on the eastern shore of the Gulf of İzmit, at the head of the southeastern Sea of Marmara about 100 km east of Istanbul. The site was founded around 712 BCE by Megarian Greek colonists as the polis of Astakos, refounded in 264 BCE by King Nicomedes I of Bithynia as Nicomedia, and made the royal capital of the Bithynian kingdom for over two centuries until Nicomedes IV bequeathed his realm to Rome in 74 BCE. Under the Roman Empire Nicomedia grew into one of the largest cities of the eastern Mediterranean, served as the eastern capital of Diocletian's Tetrarchy from 286 CE, and was the city where Emperor Constantine the Great died in 337 CE before being buried at Constantinople. After Constantine's foundation of his New Rome on the Bosphorus, Nicomedia continued as a major Byzantine metropolitan see and naval base, surviving repeated Arab, Persian, and Seljuk pressure across the middle Byzantine period. The Seljuks briefly held the city after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, but the First Crusade and the Komnenian recovery returned it to Byzantine rule in 1097 as the principal Bithynian fortress facing Constantinople. After the Palaiologan restoration, Nicomedia fell to the Ottoman sultan Orhan in 1337 — Turkified as İzmit — and served as a major Ottoman naval base and provincial centre throughout the imperial period. Modern İzmit is the capital of Kocaeli Province with roughly 400,000 inhabitants in the city core and over 1.9 million in the wider Kocaeli metropolitan area, serving as one of Türkiye's principal industrial and port cities at the head of the Gulf of İzmit, devastated by the 17 August 1999 Kocaeli earthquake that killed more than 17,000 people across the region. ## Historical Rulers - 712 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Astakos") Astakos was founded around 712 BCE by Megarian Greek colonists at the head of the gulf later named after it, on the eastern shore of the Propontis, within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Marmara. The polis controlled the maritime approach to the great land route across northern Anatolia and developed as an early Greek port until the Persian conquest of western Anatolia after the fall of Lydia in 547 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Astakos") Darius I's Scythian campaigns and the broader Persian incorporation of western Anatolia brought Astakos under Achaemenid rule as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia. The polis was liberated together with neighbouring Byzantion and Kalchedon by the Greek allied fleet under Spartan command in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Astakos") After its liberation from Persian rule Astakos rejoined the wider Hellenic Propontic polis network as a tributary ally of the Athenian-led Delian League and was resettled with Athenian colonists in the late 5th century BCE to reinforce the Athenian commercial network on the Propontis. The polis alternated between Spartan and Athenian alignment during the Peloponnesian and Corinthian Wars until the Macedonian conquest of western Anatolia under Philip II in the 340s BCE. - 336 BC – 297 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Astakos") Under Alexander the Great and his Diadochi successor Lysimachus, Astakos was nominally Macedonian while retaining most of its civic autonomy. Lysimachus destroyed the polis around 301 BCE during his consolidation of Thrace and Bithynia, and the surviving population dispersed during the subsequent Bithynian rebellion that founded the new kingdom under Zipoetes I in 297 BCE. - 297 BC – 74 BC: Kingdom of Bithynia (known as "Nicomedia") King Zipoetes I founded the independent Kingdom of Bithynia in 297 BCE, and his son Nicomedes I refounded the destroyed site of Astakos as the new royal capital of Nicomedia (Nikomedeia) on the adjacent shore of the gulf in 264 BCE. The city served as the Bithynian capital for over two centuries under Prusias I, Nicomedes II, and their successors, growing into one of the principal cities of Hellenistic Asia Minor. The last Bithynian king Nicomedes IV bequeathed his kingdom to Rome on his death in 74 BCE, ending Bithynian independence. - 74 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Nicomedia") Nicomedes IV's bequest brought the Bithynian kingdom into the Roman provincial system as the new province of Bithynia, with Nicomedia as its metropolitan capital. Under the Roman Republic the city continued as the principal commercial and administrative centre of the northwestern Anatolian provinces until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Nicomedia") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE Nicomedia continued as the metropolis of Roman Bithynia and grew into one of the largest cities of the eastern empire, attested by the correspondence of Pliny the Younger as proconsul in 111-113 CE and his famous exchanges with Trajan about Christian governance. Diocletian made Nicomedia his eastern Tetrarchic capital from 286 CE, endowing it with a great imperial palace, a hippodrome, monumental baths, and a mint, and from here issued the Edict against Christians of 303 CE that opened the Great Persecution. Emperor Constantine the Great died at his villa near Nicomedia on 22 May 337 CE before being buried at his new capital of Constantinople, and the city remained one of the principal centres of the eastern Roman world until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1078 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Nikomedeia") Under the Eastern Roman administration Nikomedeia continued as a major Byzantine metropolitan see, naval base, and the principal fortress of the Bithynian thema facing across the Sea of Marmara to Constantinople. The city survived Persian Sasanian and Arab incursions through the 7th and 8th centuries and was repeatedly the staging point for Byzantine military campaigns into Anatolia and the Caucasus, until the Seljuk advance after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 brought it under Turkmen pressure. - 1078 AD – 1097 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "İznikmid") Süleyman ibn Qutalmish of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum captured Nikomedeia around 1078 and incorporated it into his short-lived Anatolian Seljuk state with its capital at Nicaea. The town was Turkified as İznikmid during this brief period until the armies of the First Crusade and the Byzantine Komnenian forces recovered the Bithynian coast for the empire in 1097. - 1097 AD – 1337 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Nikomedeia") After the First Crusade and the Komnenian reconquest of 1097, Nikomedeia served as one of the principal Byzantine fortresses of Bithynia facing the Seljuk frontier in the interior of Anatolia. The city was briefly held by the Latin Empire after the Fourth Crusade and recovered by the Nicaean Byzantines, but in the 14th century it came under sustained Ottoman pressure as the new Turkmen beylik expanded across northwestern Anatolia. - 1337 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Orhan captured Nikomedeia in 1337 after the Battle of Pelekanon (1329) and a sustained blockade, after which the city was Turkified as İzmit and became one of the principal early Ottoman cities alongside Bursa. Under nearly six centuries of Ottoman rule İzmit served as a major naval base, shipyard, and provincial capital on the Sea of Marmara, with significant Muslim, Greek, Armenian, and Sephardic Jewish populations, until the Greek-Turkish War of 1919-1922 and the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey ended the Ottoman period. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, İzmit became the capital of Kocaeli Province and developed through the Republican period into one of the country's principal industrial cities, with extensive petrochemical, automotive, and shipbuilding industries along the Gulf of İzmit. The catastrophic Kocaeli (Marmara) earthquake of 17 August 1999, a magnitude 7.6 event on the North Anatolian Fault, killed more than 17,000 people across the region and devastated the historic core of the city. The modern city has rebuilt to about 400,000 inhabitants in the urban core and over 1.9 million in the wider Kocaeli metropolitan area. ## Landmarks - Walls of Nicomedia (built 260 BC) The Hellenistic and Roman city walls of Nicomedia, originally built under Nicomedes I at the foundation of the Bithynian royal capital around 260 BCE and substantially expanded under Diocletian and the Byzantine emperors. Substantial sections of late-Roman and Byzantine masonry survive on the slopes of the modern Old İzmit, including the harbour-side acropolis citadel. - Diocletian's Palace at Nicomedia (built 286 AD) The eastern Tetrarchic imperial palace begun by Emperor Diocletian on his elevation of Nicomedia to imperial capital in 286 CE, with associated hippodrome, monumental baths, and a major imperial mint. Most of the complex was destroyed by the catastrophic earthquake of 358 CE under Constantius II and subsequent Byzantine and Ottoman construction, though scattered architectural fragments survive in the modern Kocaeli Museum. - Pertev Mehmed Pasha Mosque (built 1579 AD) An Ottoman imperial mosque complex built in 1579 by the chief Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan for the grand vizier Pertev Mehmed Pasha. The single-domed prayer hall with a slender minaret anchors the historic core of Ottoman İzmit on the hill above the harbour and survives among Sinan's late masterpieces. - Kocaeli Earthquake Memorial (built 2000 AD) A memorial complex commemorating the more than 17,000 people killed across the Marmara region by the magnitude 7.6 Kocaeli earthquake on 17 August 1999, on the North Anatolian Fault. The site includes preserved earthquake-damaged structures and an interpretation centre on seismic hazard and reconstruction in the Marmara industrial corridor. ## Population History - 712 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 6,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 100 BC: 25,000 - 100 AD: 50,000 - 300 AD: 100,000 - 400 AD: 80,000 - 700 AD: 40,000 - 1000 AD: 30,000 - 1078 AD: 20,000 - 1300 AD: 15,000 - 1500 AD: 25,000 - 1700 AD: 40,000 - 1900 AD: 60,000 - 1950 AD: 80,000 - 1999 AD: 350,000 - 2020 AD: 400,000 --- # Kadıköy, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/kadikoy Founded: 685 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.99, 29.03 ## Description Kadıköy — ancient Chalcedon (Greek Χαλκηδών) — is a district on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus directly opposite Istanbul's historic peninsula, today part of the Istanbul metropolitan municipality but historically a distinct Greek polis with over a thousand years of independent civic identity. Founded around 685 BCE by Megarian Greek colonists seventeen years before the same colonial wave founded Byzantion across the Bosphorus, Chalcedon was traditionally derided by later Greek historians as the 'City of the Blind' for choosing the inferior Asian shore over the strategic European peninsula. Through the Classical and Hellenistic periods Chalcedon alternated between Achaemenid Persian rule, Athenian Delian League tribute, Spartan suzerainty, and Macedonian-Bithynian sovereignty until the Roman bequest of Bithynia in 74 BCE. Under Byzantine rule the city hosted the famous Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon in 451 CE, which defined the Christological doctrine of the two natures of Christ and triggered the great Chalcedonian-Miaphysite schism that persists in the eastern Christian world to this day. Chalcedon was repeatedly sacked during the Sasanian invasion of 626, the Arab sieges of Constantinople, and the Fourth Crusade of 1204, and was captured by the Ottoman sultan Orhan in 1352 as the first Ottoman foothold on the immediate approaches to Constantinople. Under Ottoman rule the much-reduced settlement became the personal estate of the Şeyhülislam of the empire and was Turkified as Kadıköy ('village of the qadi'), retaining its character as a small Greek and Armenian fishing village. Kadıköy revived dramatically in the 19th century as a Greek, Armenian, and Levantine summer suburb of the imperial capital, served by the first ferry line across the Bosphorus, and became one of the most cosmopolitan quarters of late-Ottoman Constantinople. Modern Kadıköy is one of the principal districts of the Istanbul metropolitan municipality with about 470,000 inhabitants, retaining its historic role as the principal Asian-side ferry terminal and cultural quarter facing the Byzantine and Ottoman heart of the city across the Bosphorus. ## Historical Rulers - 685 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Chalcedon") Founded around 685 BCE by Megarian Greek colonists on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus, seventeen years before the same colonial wave founded Byzantion. The polis was famously derided as the 'City of the Blind' for choosing the inferior eastern shore over the strategic European peninsula, but developed as an autonomous Greek city within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Propontis, controlling the Asian approach to the Bosphorus until the Persian conquest of Anatolia around 512 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Chalcedon") Darius I's Scythian campaigns brought Chalcedon together with Byzantion under Achaemenid rule as a tributary city under the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia. The polis was liberated by the Spartan regent Pausanias and his Greek allied fleet in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Chalcedon") After its liberation from Persian rule Chalcedon rejoined the wider Hellenic Propontic polis network and paid tribute to the Athenian-led Delian League, remaining closely tied to Athenian commercial and military operations on the Bosphorus through the fifth century BCE. The polis alternated between Spartan and Athenian alignment during the Peloponnesian and Corinthian Wars until the Macedonian conquest under Philip II in the 340s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Chalcedon") Under Alexander the Great and his Diadochi successor Lysimachus, Chalcedon was nominally Macedonian while retaining most of its civic autonomy as a free Greek polis. The town passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 74 BC: Kingdom of Bithynia (known as "Chalcedon") After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Chalcedon passed under the effective suzerainty of the rising Bithynian kingdom that controlled the Asian Marmara coast under Zipoetes I and his successors. The polis preserved its formal independence as a Greek free city on the southwestern frontier of the Bithynian kingdom and continued minting its own coinage, until Nicomedes IV's bequest of the Bithynian kingdom to Rome drew Chalcedon into the Roman provincial system in 74 BCE. - 74 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Chalcedon") Nicomedes IV's bequest brought Chalcedon into the new Roman province of Bithynia and Pontus as one of its principal coastal cities. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system as a major Bosphorus port until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Chalcedon") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE Chalcedon continued as a Roman provincial city of Bithynia, increasingly overshadowed by neighbouring Byzantium across the Bosphorus. The city was the seat of a Christian bishopric from the second century and became a major martyr cult centre after the execution of Saint Euphemia of Chalcedon under Diocletian around 304 CE, until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1352 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Chalcedon") Under the Eastern Roman administration Chalcedon was the southern terminus of the Asian shore of the Bosphorus facing the new imperial capital at Constantinople. The city hosted the famous Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon in 451 CE — which defined the Christological doctrine of the two natures of Christ and triggered the great Chalcedonian-Miaphysite schism — and was repeatedly sacked during the Sasanian invasion of 626, the Arab sieges of Constantinople, and the Fourth Crusade of 1204. The much-reduced town was finally captured by the Ottoman sultan Orhan in 1352 after the Battle of Pelekanon, becoming the first Ottoman foothold on the immediate approaches to Constantinople. - 1352 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Orhan's capture of Chalcedon in 1352 brought the town under Ottoman administration well before Mehmed II's final conquest of Constantinople in 1453. The much-reduced settlement became the personal estate (mülk) of the Şeyhülislam of the empire and was Turkified as Kadıköy ('village of the qadi'), retaining its character as a small Greek, Armenian, and Muslim fishing village on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus. From the mid-19th century onwards Kadıköy revived dramatically as a cosmopolitan summer suburb of the imperial capital, served by the first regular ferry line across the Bosphorus from 1837 and the Haydarpaşa railway terminus from 1872 — the eastern starting point of the Baghdad Railway. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923, Kadıköy became one of the principal districts of the Istanbul metropolitan municipality on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus. The 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange and subsequent emigration largely eliminated the historic Greek and Armenian communities, but Kadıköy continued to grow as a cosmopolitan residential, cultural, and commercial centre reaching about 470,000 inhabitants today, facing the Byzantine and Ottoman heart of the city across the strait. ## Landmarks - Site of Hagia Euphemia and the Council of Chalcedon (built 304 AD) The lost martyrium church of Saint Euphemia of Chalcedon, executed under Diocletian around 304 CE, became the principal pilgrimage shrine of the Asian Bosphorus shore through the early Byzantine period. The basilica hosted the Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon in October 451 CE that defined the two natures of Christ; the original site was destroyed during the 626 Sasanian sack and the relics were translated to Constantinople, leaving only literary descriptions and a putative archaeological location in the modern Kadıköy historic core. - Yeldeğirmeni Quarter (built 1880 AD) The historic 19th-century cosmopolitan quarter of Kadıköy on the slopes above the Haydarpaşa railway terminal, named after the windmills that once stood there. The neighbourhood preserves the densest concentration of late-Ottoman and early-Republican Greek, Armenian, and Levantine apartment buildings, churches, and shops in the historic Asian-side core of Istanbul. - Hemdat Israel Synagogue (built 1899 AD) The principal Sephardic synagogue of Kadıköy, completed in 1899 for the substantial Jewish community of the late-Ottoman cosmopolitan suburb. The synagogue continues to function and is one of the principal surviving 19th-century religious buildings of the Kadıköy historic core. - Haydarpaşa Railway Terminus (built 1908 AD) The monumental neo-Renaissance terminus of the Anatolian Railway and the Baghdad Railway, built by the German architects Otto Ritter and Helmut Cuno between 1906 and 1908 under Sultan Abdul Hamid II. The seaside palace-style station on a man-made quay served as the eastern starting point of the Berlin-Baghdad rail link and remains the most iconic Late-Ottoman building of Kadıköy. ## Population History - 685 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 300 BC: 10,000 - 100 AD: 25,000 - 400 AD: 20,000 - 626 AD: 12,000 - 1000 AD: 8,000 - 1352 AD: 4,000 - 1500 AD: 3,000 - 1700 AD: 5,000 - 1850 AD: 30,000 - 1900 AD: 70,000 - 1950 AD: 200,000 - 2000 AD: 400,000 - 2020 AD: 470,000 --- # Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/kahramanmaras Founded: 2000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.5858, 36.9371 ## Description Kahramanmaraş, classical Germanicia Caesarea and medieval Mar'ash, is a major city of southeastern Türkiye built at the foot of Ahir Dağı at the historic junction of the Anatolian highlands and the northern Syrian plain. The site has been inhabited from the Middle Bronze Age caravan economy of the early second millennium BCE, but rose to prominence in the early Iron Age as Marqas, capital of the Syro-Hittite Neo-Hittite kingdom of Gurgum founded by Larama I around 950 BCE. Annexed by Sargon II of Assyria in 711 BCE, the city continued under Neo-Babylonian, Achaemenid, Macedonian, and Seleucid rule before being refounded as Germanicia Caesarea by the Roman emperor Caligula in honour of his predecessor Germanicus. Under successive Byzantine, Arab caliphal, Crusader, Zengid, Ayyubid, Mamluk, and Dulkadirid administrations the city remained a regional centre on the contested Anatolian-Syrian frontier, becoming the capital of the Turkmen Beylik of Dulkadir from 1337 to 1522 before its incorporation into the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish Republic renamed the city Kahramanmaraş in 1973 in recognition of its role in the War of Independence, and modern Kahramanmaraş has a metropolitan population of around 750,000 — though the February 2023 earthquakes devastated much of the historic and modern urban fabric and have driven a major reconstruction programme since. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1550 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Marash") Middle Bronze Age occupation at the site is attested at a strategic caravan junction linking northern Syria, Mesopotamia, and central Anatolia. The community participated in the broader Middle Bronze Age trade network without yet falling under any single imperial overlord. - 1550 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Marash") During the Late Bronze Age the Marash area fell within the broader sphere of the Hittite Empire and its north Syrian vassals. The settlement persisted as a regional Anatolian-Syrian frontier community until the Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE disrupted Hittite imperial control. - 1180 BC – 1050 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Marash") Following the systemic Late Bronze Age collapse, the Marash region passed through a period of fragmented small-scale occupation as the Hittite imperial system disintegrated. Aramean and Luwian-speaking groups gradually reorganized into the early Iron Age Neo-Hittite kingdoms of southeastern Anatolia. - 1050 BC – 711 BC: Gurgum (known as "Marqas") Marqas was the capital of the Syro-Hittite Neo-Hittite kingdom of Gurgum, known to its Luwian inhabitants as Kurkuma. The dynasty traditionally founded by Larama I around 950 BCE ruled until Sargon II's annexation, producing monumental Hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions, basalt orthostat reliefs, and the celebrated Maraş Stele series now preserved in the Kahramanmaraş Archaeology Museum and the Louvre. - 711 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Marqas") Sargon II annexed Gurgum in 711 BCE following the dethronement of the last Gurgumean king Tarhulara, reorganizing the kingdom as the Neo-Assyrian province of Marqas. The city continued as a Neo-Assyrian provincial centre on the empire's northwestern frontier until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Marqas") After the fall of Assyria, the Marqas region passed to the rising Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II. The city continued as a regional centre on the Anatolian frontier until the Achaemenid Persian conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE. - 539 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Marqas") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE incorporated the upper Euphrates region into the Achaemenid Persian Empire as part of the satrapy of Cilicia. The city continued as a regional centre on the route between Anatolia and northern Syria under Persian provincial administration. - 333 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Marqas") Alexander the Great's victory at the Battle of Issus in 333 BCE brought the Marqas region into Macedonian control, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. The region was contested between Antigonus, Lysimachus, and Seleucus before Seleucid consolidation after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Marqas") Under the Seleucid kings the city was integrated into the Hellenistic Syrian realm as a regional centre on the upper Pyramos river. Seleucid control over Cilicia and the Commagene region weakened in the second and first centuries BCE before Pompey's settlement of the east ended Seleucid sovereignty. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Germanicia") Pompey's reorganization of the east in 64 BCE brought the city under Roman authority, and it was refounded as Germanicia Caesarea by the emperor Caligula in honour of his deceased predecessor Germanicus. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Germanicia") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city flourished as a regional centre of Commagene and later Cilicia Secunda, hosting an important early Christian bishopric and producing the future emperor Leo III the Isaurian who founded the Byzantine Isaurian dynasty. - 395 AD – 637 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Germanikeia") Under the Eastern Roman Empire, Germanikeia remained a major regional bishopric and military centre on the frontier facing Sasanian Persia and later the Arab Caliphates. The city was repeatedly contested in the long Roman-Persian wars before falling to the Arab conquest of Syria in 637 CE. - 637 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Mar'ash") After the Arab conquest of the Levant the city was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate's province of al-Sham, and the classical name Germanikeia gave way to the Arabic Mar'ash. The town became a major frontier garrison on the Byzantine-Caliphate frontier — the Thughur — facing the Cilician gates. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Mar'ash") Under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Mar'ash served as a major frontier garrison town of the Thughur facing Byzantine Anatolia. The city was rebuilt and refortified by Muawiya I and successive Umayyad caliphs as a forward base for the annual summer raids into Byzantine territory. - 750 AD – 962 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Mar'ash") Under the Abbasid Caliphate, Mar'ash continued as a frontier centre of the Thughur al-Shamiya, repeatedly contested with the Byzantine Empire across the Cilician gates. Harun al-Rashid in particular invested heavily in the city's fortifications during his late 8th-century campaigns. - 962 AD – 1086 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Germanikeia") Nikephoros II Phokas recovered Germanikeia from the Hamdanids and Abbasid frontier emirates in 962 CE during the Byzantine reconquest of Cilicia, and the city was reincorporated into the empire as a fortified frontier centre. The renewed Byzantine administration ended with the Seljuk advance into Anatolia after Manzikert. - 1086 AD – 1097 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Mar'ash") Following the Seljuk advance into Anatolia after Manzikert and the disintegration of Byzantine frontier defences, Mar'ash passed under Seljuk Turkic control around 1086. Seljuk rule was brief, ending with the arrival of the First Crusade in 1097. - 1097 AD – 1149 AD: Crusader County of Edessa (known as "Marash") The First Crusade incorporated Marash into the Crusader County of Edessa established in 1098, where the city served as a key inland fortress with a substantial Armenian Christian population. After Zengi's capture of Edessa in 1144 the city changed hands repeatedly between Crusader, Byzantine Komnenian, and Zengid forces until Nur al-Din's definitive Zengid recapture in 1149. - 1149 AD – 1185 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Mar'ash") Nur al-Din Zengi's Zengid atabegate took Mar'ash from the Crusaders in 1149 and incorporated it into a Sunni Muslim state opposing the Latin presence in Syria. The city served as a regional administrative and military centre during the Zengid era before passing to the Ayyubids after Nur al-Din's death. - 1185 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Mar'ash") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty absorbed Mar'ash from the Zengids and incorporated it into the wider Syrian-Egyptian state. The city continued as a regional Ayyubid centre on the Anatolian frontier until the Mongol invasions ended Ayyubid rule across the Levant. - 1260 AD – 1337 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Mar'ash") After the Mamluk victory at Ain Jalut in 1260 Mar'ash was incorporated into the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt and Syria as a frontier district. Mamluk control over the upper Euphrates frontier became increasingly nominal during the early 14th century as Turkmen tribal confederations consolidated in southeastern Anatolia. - 1337 AD – 1522 AD: Dulkadirid Beylik (known as "Maraş") Karaca Bey founded the Dulkadirid Beylik of the Bozok Turkmen confederation in 1337, with successive capitals at Elbistan and then Maraş. As Mamluk and later Ottoman vassals, the Dulkadirid beys including Süleyman Bey, Süli Bey, and Alaüddevle Bey patronized poets, scholars, and major architectural projects, with strategic marriage alliances tying the dynasty to both the Mamluk and Ottoman royal houses including Süleyman the Magnificent's grandmother Sittişah Hatun. - 1522 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Maraş") Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent annexed the Dulkadirid Beylik into the Ottoman Empire in 1522 as the Eyalet of Dulkadir, with Maraş as its provincial capital. Under Ottoman rule the city was a major regional centre of Kurdish, Armenian, Turkish, and Syriac population, hosting Ottoman governors and substantial Ermeni and Süryani Christian communities until the late 19th and early 20th-century convulsions of the Hamidian massacres, the 1915 Armenian Genocide, and the French Mandate occupation of 1919-1920. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Following the city's successful 1920 expulsion of the French occupation by local nationalist forces — the action that gave the city its eventual honorific name — Maraş became part of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923. The Turkish Grand National Assembly renamed the city Kahramanmaraş in 1973 in recognition of its role in the War of Independence, and the modern metropolitan area grew to around 750,000 inhabitants before the devastating Türkiye-Syria earthquakes of February 2023 caused mass destruction and triggered an ongoing reconstruction programme. ## Landmarks - Maraş Stele Series (built 900 BC) A series of monumental basalt funerary and dedicatory stelae produced in the Neo-Hittite kingdom of Gurgum between roughly the 10th and 8th centuries BCE, carved with Hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions and orthostat reliefs of seated rulers, banquet scenes, and deities. The stelae — most famously the 'Maraş Stele' of King Halparuntiyas — are now divided between the Kahramanmaraş Archaeology Museum, the Istanbul Archaeology Museums, and the Louvre, and form a foundational corpus for Neo-Hittite art history. - Kahramanmaraş Castle (built 100 BC) The medieval castle on the hill above the city, occupying a Hellenistic-Roman fortified hilltop and rebuilt in successive Byzantine, Abbasid Thughur, Crusader, Zengid, Mamluk, and Dulkadirid phases. Its present stone walls and bastions are largely Mamluk and Dulkadirid in date, and the castle housed the seat of successive medieval governors until the Ottoman period. - Ulu Cami of Kahramanmaraş (built 1442 AD) The principal congregational mosque of the old city, built around 1442 by the Dulkadirid bey Süleyman Bey and renovated in the Ottoman period. Its low cut-stone exterior, mihrab, minbar, and surrounding cemetery make it one of the most important surviving Dulkadirid-era monuments and the cultural anchor of the historic core of Kahramanmaraş. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 2,000 - 1500 BC: 3,000 - 1050 BC: 5,000 - 800 BC: 10,000 - 711 BC: 8,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 12,000 - 800 AD: 8,000 - 1100 AD: 10,000 - 1400 AD: 15,000 - 1600 AD: 20,000 - 1900 AD: 35,000 - 1950 AD: 60,000 - 2020 AD: 750,000 --- # Kanish, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/kanish Founded: 3300 BC Ended: 395 AD Coordinates: 38.8509, 35.6338 ## Description Kanish — known today as Kültepe — was a key Bronze Age city in central Anatolia, 21 kilometers northeast of modern Kayseri, that served as the principal hub of the Old Assyrian karum trade network in the early second millennium BCE. The site was occupied from the late 4th millennium BCE through the Roman period, with its peak as the Anatolian capital of the Old Assyrian merchant network producing some 23,500 cuneiform tablets — the largest collection of private texts surviving from the ancient Near East. Kanish was destroyed and rebuilt several times before becoming the power base of early Hittite-speaking rulers such as Anitta of Kuššara, whose conquests are recorded in the earliest known Hittite-language text. Although the karum lower town was abandoned around 1700 BCE, the citadel mound continued in reduced form through the Hittite Empire, the Iron Age Neo-Hittite polity of Tabal, the Achaemenid satrapy of Cappadocia, the Hellenistic Kingdom of Cappadocia centred at nearby Mazaca, and the Roman province of Cappadocia, with the latest discontinuous occupation extending through the Roman Empire. The mound is now an open-air archaeological site and a UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List candidate. ## Historical Rulers - 3300 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Kültepe") The earliest settlement at Kültepe dates to the late 4th millennium BCE, with recent excavations revealing Late Chalcolithic occupation on the central mound. The community was small in scale, organized around mixed agriculture and early copper metallurgy on the central Anatolian plateau. - 3000 BC – 2500 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Kültepe") Through the Early Bronze Age the settlement grew on the central mound, with archaeological evidence (Levels 14-18) showing close relations to Mesopotamia, northern Syria, and Cilicia. The site developed as a regional centre along trade routes linking central Anatolia southward and eastward. - 2500 BC – 2000 BC: Hattian Civilization (known as "Kaneš") During the later Early Bronze Age, Kaneš was a Hattian-speaking centre on the central Anatolian plateau. The site grew into a fortified upper-city mound with a surrounding settlement, benefiting from its position along trade routes that linked central Anatolia with both the south and the east. - 2000 BC – 1750 BC: Kingdom of Kaneš (known as "Kaneš") The local Anatolian Kingdom of Kaneš ruled the city and hosted the principal hub of the Old Assyrian karum network, with a resident merchant community from Aššur that managed long-distance trade in tin and textiles in exchange for Anatolian silver and gold. The lower-town karum operated alongside the local Anatolian palace administration on the citadel mound, and tens of thousands of cuneiform tablets recovered from merchant houses document the commercial, legal, and family life of this era. - 1750 BC – 1650 BC: Kingdom of Kuššara (known as "Kaneš") Following the destruction of the karum around 1750 BCE, the city came under the control of early Hittite-speaking rulers from the Kingdom of Kuššara, most notably Anitta, who recorded his conquests in the earliest known Hittite-language text. Kaneš served as a political seat during this transition before the centre of Hittite power shifted toward Hattusa under the founding Hittite kings. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Kaneš") Under the Hittite Empire from Hattusili I onward, the citadel mound at Kültepe continued in much reduced form as a provincial settlement within the Old and New Kingdom heartland. The site never recovered the urban scale of the karum period, with occupation contracting until the broader Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Tabal (known as "*Kültepe") After the Hittite collapse the mound lay within the heartland of the Neo-Hittite Luwian polity of Tabal in Cappadocia. Iron Age material on the site attests continued reduced occupation through the Tabal phase, ending nominally with the Achaemenid conquest of Anatolia in 547 BCE. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Kültepe") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, the Cappadocian highlands were incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as the satrapy of Cappadocia. The mound continued as a modest rural settlement under Persian administration. - 334 BC – 322 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Kültepe") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought the region briefly into the Macedonian sphere. After his death the satrap Ariarathes I broke away from Macedonian successor control around 322 BCE and consolidated the independent Kingdom of Cappadocia centred on nearby Mazaca. - 322 BC – 17 BC: Kingdom of Cappadocia (known as "*Kültepe") Under the independent Hellenistic Kingdom of Cappadocia of the Ariarathid and later Ariobarzanid dynasties, the regional capital was established at Mazaca (modern Kayseri) some twenty kilometres to the southwest. The Kültepe mound continued as a small rural settlement on the agricultural plain until Tiberius's annexation of Cappadocia as a Roman province in 17 CE. - 17 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Kültepe") Tiberius annexed the Kingdom of Cappadocia as a Roman province in 17 CE, renaming Mazaca as Caesarea. The Kültepe mound continued as a modest rural settlement on the agricultural hinterland of Caesarea through the imperial period, with Roman-era occupation forming the latest discontinuous layer on the site before final abandonment. ## Landmarks - Karum District (built 1950 BC) Located in the lower city, the karum was the heart of economic activity at Kaneš. Archaeologists uncovered tens of thousands of cuneiform tablets here, revealing a well-organized network of Assyrian merchants, residential and commercial houses, and storage facilities. The karum exemplifies one of the earliest international trade systems in recorded history, linking Anatolia with the Mesopotamian heartland. - Warşama Palace (built 1850 BC) This large palace complex in the upper city served both administrative and ceremonial functions for the local Anatolian rulers of Kaneš. It was reused and likely expanded by Anitta of Kuššara, who issued the earliest known historical text in Hittite from this location, marking the architectural transition from Assyrian mercantile influence to early Hittite statecraft. ## Population History - 3300 BC: 300 - 3000 BC: 1,000 - 2500 BC: 5,000 - 1900 BC: 40,000 - 1750 BC: 50,000 - 1700 BC: 5,000 - 1400 BC: 3,000 - 1000 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 1,500 - 1 AD: 1,000 - 300 AD: 800 - 395 AD: null --- # Karadeniz Ereğli, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/karadeniz-eregli Founded: 560 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.2828, 31.4163 ## Description Karadeniz Ereğli — ancient Heraclea Pontica (Herakleia Pontike) — is a port city on the western Black Sea coast of Zonguldak Province in northern Türkiye, about 200 km east of Istanbul. Founded around 560 BCE by Megarian and Boeotian Greek colonists, Heraclea grew into the most powerful Greek polis on the southern Black Sea coast, controlling extensive territory along the Bithynian-Paphlagonian frontier and founding its own daughter colonies at Chersonesus Taurica in Crimea and Callatis on the Romanian coast. The polis was famous in the Classical period for the long tyranny of the philosopher-tyrants Clearchus, Satyrus, Timotheus, and Dionysius from 364 to 305 BCE — disciples of Plato and Isocrates who ruled Heraclea as a celebrated experiment in Greek philosophical despotism. Heraclea remained autonomous through the Hellenistic period, intermittently aligned with the Bithynian and Pontic kingdoms, until Marcus Aurelius Cotta sacked the city brutally in 70 BCE during the Third Mithridatic War. Under Roman and Byzantine rule the city continued as a major Black Sea port, naval base, and Christian bishopric, briefly held by the Empire of Trebizond after the Fourth Crusade in 1204 before being recovered by the Empire of Nicaea in 1206. Heraclea passed to the Candaroğlu (Isfendiyarid) Beylik in the late 14th century and was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire by Mehmed II in 1461 along with the rest of the Candaroğlu domain. Under Ottoman rule Ereğli was a small naval base and fishing port on the Black Sea, but the discovery of major coalfields in the 19th century transformed it into the principal coal-mining centre of the Ottoman and later Turkish Black Sea coast. Modern Karadeniz Ereğli is a city of about 110,000 inhabitants centred on the giant Erdemir steelworks established in 1965, one of Türkiye's principal heavy-industrial complexes. ## Historical Rulers - 560 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Heraclea Pontica") Founded around 560 BCE by joint Megarian and Boeotian Greek colonists on the southern shore of the Black Sea, Heraclea Pontica was named after the hero Heracles whom local tradition placed in a sacred cave near the city. The polis developed rapidly as a major Greek port on the Black Sea coast within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Pontus until the Persian conquest of Anatolia after the fall of Lydia and the Achaemenid expansion into Thrace under Darius I. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Heraclea Pontica") Darius I's European campaigns and the broader Achaemenid expansion into the Black Sea littoral brought Heraclea under nominal Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia. The polis was liberated together with the other southern Pontic Greek cities by the Greek allied fleet under Spartan command in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Heraclea Pontica") After its liberation from Persian rule Heraclea remained briefly within the Athenian-led Delian League before reasserting full independence within the wider Hellenic Pontic polis network. The polis founded its own daughter colonies at Chersonesus Taurica in Crimea and Callatis on the western Pontic coast, and rose to be the most powerful Greek polis on the southern Black Sea coast until the Macedonian conquest of Anatolia in the 330s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Heraclea Pontica") Under Alexander the Great and his Diadochi successor Lysimachus, Heraclea was nominally Macedonian while retaining its civic institutions under the late Heraclean tyrants Clearchus, Satyrus, Timotheus, and Dionysius — disciples of Plato and Isocrates who ruled the polis as a celebrated experiment in Greek philosophical despotism from 364 to 305 BCE. The town passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 70 BC: Kingdom of Pontus (known as "Heraclea Pontica") Through the Hellenistic period Heraclea preserved its formal independence as a Greek free city on the southern Pontic coast, under the local Heracleote dynasty descended from the earlier Clearchid tyrants and intermittently aligned with the Bithynian and Pontic kingdoms. The polis came under increasing influence of the Kingdom of Pontus under Mithridates V and Mithridates VI Eupator, and was finally drawn into the Third Mithridatic War as a Pontic ally before being brutally sacked by Marcus Aurelius Cotta in 70 BCE, ending Heraclean independence. - 70 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Heraclea Pontica") Cotta's sack of Heraclea in 70 BCE drew the city into the Roman provincial system as part of the new province of Bithynia and Pontus after Pompey's eastern settlement of 64 BCE. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Heraclea Pontica") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE Heraclea continued as a major Black Sea port of Roman Bithynia, gradually recovering from Cotta's devastation. The city was a Christian bishopric from the late second century and remained a significant Pontic naval and commercial centre until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Pontoheraclea") Under the Eastern Roman administration Pontoheraclea continued as a Byzantine naval base and metropolitan bishopric on the western Black Sea coast. The city was repeatedly contested in the 7th-9th centuries with Sasanian, Arab, and Bulgarian raids, served as a major naval station of the Optimaton thema, and remained Byzantine until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1206 AD: Empire of Trebizond (known as "Pontoheraclea") After the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in April 1204, David Komnenos of the new Empire of Trebizond seized the southern Pontic coast as far west as Pontoheraclea in his attempt to extend Trapezuntine rule along the Black Sea. The city was retaken by Theodore I Laskaris of the Empire of Nicaea around 1206 during his consolidation of the Bithynian and Pontic frontiers. - 1206 AD – 1360 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Pontoheraclea") After Theodore Laskaris's recovery in 1206 and the Palaiologan restoration of Constantinople in 1261, Pontoheraclea reverted to the restored Byzantine Empire as one of its principal Black Sea ports. The town suffered from Genoese commercial pressure through the late 13th and 14th centuries before falling to the Candaroğlu Turkmen beys of Kastamonu around 1360. - 1360 AD – 1461 AD: Candaroğlu Beylik (known as "Ereğli") The Candaroğlu (Isfendiyarid) Beylik centred on Kastamonu and Sinop incorporated Heraclea — now Turkified as Ereğli — around 1360 as their western Black Sea outlet. The town remained under Candaroğlu rule as a fishing and trading port for nearly a century until Mehmed II's annexation of the entire Candaroğlu beylik in 1461. - 1461 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ereğli") Mehmed II annexed Ereğli together with Sinop from the last Candaroğlu ruler İsmail Bey in 1461, after the conquest of the Empire of Trebizond. Under nearly five centuries of Ottoman rule Ereğli was a small naval base and fishing port on the Black Sea, until the discovery of major coalfields in the upper Çatalağzı district in the 1820s transformed the area into the principal coal-mining centre of the Ottoman Empire, with the first state-operated mines opened in 1848. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923 the town's name was standardized as Karadeniz Ereğli to distinguish it from the Mediterranean Ereğli (Konya Ereğlisi) and the Marmara Ereğlisi to the west. The establishment of the giant Ereğli Demir-Çelik (Erdemir) steelworks in 1965 transformed the city into one of Türkiye's principal heavy-industrial complexes, and the modern city has grown to about 110,000 inhabitants centred on the steelworks and the coal-mining hinterland. ## Landmarks - Cave of Heracles (built 550 BC) A large natural sea-cave on the cliff face just east of the ancient city, identified in Greek tradition as the cave where Heracles descended into Hades to retrieve Cerberus. The cave was a major cult site of the polis from the Archaic period and remains the principal mythological monument of modern Karadeniz Ereğli. - Citadel and Walls of Heraclea Pontica (built 400 BC) The Classical and Hellenistic city walls of Heraclea, built and reinforced under the tyrants Clearchus, Satyrus, and their successors in the 4th century BCE and substantially rebuilt under the Byzantine emperors. Substantial sections of late-Roman and Byzantine masonry survive along the peninsular acropolis of the modern Old Town. - Hagia Sophia of Heraclea (built 540 AD) A 6th-century Byzantine basilica dedicated to the Holy Wisdom on the central acropolis of Heraclea, built under Justinian I as the seat of the metropolitan archbishopric of Pontoheraclea. Substantial wall sections, apse foundations, and mosaic floor fragments survive as the principal Byzantine monument of the modern city. - Erdemir Steelworks (built 1965 AD) The giant Ereğli Demir-Çelik İşletmeleri (Erdemir) integrated steel mill complex completed in 1965 as one of the foundational heavy-industrial projects of Republican Türkiye, occupying a vast coastal site east of the historic core. Erdemir remains the principal steel producer of Türkiye and the centre of the modern Karadeniz Ereğli economy. ## Population History - 560 BC: 1,500 - 400 BC: 8,000 - 300 BC: 15,000 - 70 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 12,000 - 1000 AD: 10,000 - 1204 AD: 8,000 - 1360 AD: 5,000 - 1461 AD: 4,000 - 1700 AD: 6,000 - 1900 AD: 15,000 - 1950 AD: 25,000 - 1965 AD: 35,000 - 2000 AD: 85,000 - 2020 AD: 110,000 --- # Karahantepe, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/karahantepe Founded: 9500 BC Ended: 8000 BC Coordinates: 37.0925581023416, 39.303507693895504 ## Description Karahantepe is a major Pre-Pottery Neolithic archaeological site in the Tektek Mountains of Şanlıurfa Province, dated between roughly 9500 and 8000 BCE and part of the same Stone Hills (Taş Tepeler) cultural complex that includes Göbeklitepe forty-six kilometers to the west. The site was identified in 1997 by Bahattin Çelik of Harran University during surface survey and entered large-scale excavation only in 2019 under Necmi Karul of Istanbul University as part of the comprehensive Taş Tepeler regional project. Karahantepe occupies roughly ten hectares of preserved settlement with surface remains and adjoining quarry zones extending the protected area to fifteen hectares, but only about five percent of the site had been excavated by 2023. The site preserves over 266 T-shaped pillars carved directly into the bedrock alongside Göbeklitepe-style monumental structures, animal sculptures, and a striking 2.3-meter anthropomorphic standing pillar discovered in 2023 in a special pillared chamber together with bird and serpent figures. Faunal evidence shows a subsistence economy based on hunted gazelles and gathered legumes consistent with the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A-B horizon, demonstrating monumental ritual construction by communities not yet practicing settled agriculture. Karahantepe is one of the principal new lines of evidence in the ongoing reinterpretation of the Neolithic Revolution, showing that monumental ritual architecture preceded rather than followed the full transition to farming. The site was abandoned around the mid-eighth millennium BCE in the same cultural transition that ended Göbeklitepe. Continuous excavation and surface conservation are underway under the joint Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Istanbul University team as one of the highest-priority archaeological projects in Türkiye. ## Historical Rulers - 9500 BC – 8000 BC: Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Karahantepe") Karahantepe was occupied during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A-B periods by hunter-gatherer communities who constructed monumental ritual chambers featuring T-shaped pillars and anthropomorphic sculptures while still practicing wild-resource subsistence based on gazelle hunting and the gathering of wild legumes. The site participated in the broader Stone Hills (Taş Tepeler) cultural complex of the upper Euphrates basin that produced Göbeklitepe, Nevali Çori, Sefer Tepe, Kurt Tepesi, and other contemporary monumental sanctuary sites, and was abandoned around the mid-eighth millennium BCE in the cultural transition that ended the broader regional pattern. ## Landmarks - Bedrock Pillar Hall (built 9200 BC) A large hall of eleven phallic pillars carved in situ from the bedrock with a watching anthropomorphic head set into one wall was excavated between 2021 and 2023. The structure is one of the most striking single finds of the Taş Tepeler project and is preserved under a protective shelter for ongoing study and visitor access. - T-Pillar Sanctuary Complex (built 9000 BC) The principal sanctuary at Karahantepe consists of multiple roughly circular subterranean chambers cut directly into the bedrock, each enclosing rows of T-shaped pillars analogous to those at Göbeklitepe but in greater concentration. Over 266 such pillars have been identified across the site, many carved with reliefs of leopards, snakes, vultures, and human figures. - Anthropomorphic Pillar Chamber (built 9000 BC) A special rock-cut chamber excavated in 2023 contains a 2.3-meter anthropomorphic standing statue carved with detailed facial features and a prominent ribcage, set among smaller pillars topped with bird and serpent reliefs. The chamber is the most significant single Pre-Pottery Neolithic figurative monument discovered to date and is interpreted as a ritual interior with possible ancestor-cult associations. ## Population History - 9500 BC: 100 - 9000 BC: 300 - 8500 BC: 500 - 8200 BC: 300 - 8000 BC: null --- # Karaman, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/karaman Founded: 1600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.1813, 33.2191 ## Description Karaman, the ancient Lānda of the Hittites and Laranda of the Greek and Roman periods, is a city of south-central Anatolia north of the Taurus mountains, around 100 kilometres south of Konya. The site was a military and trade centre of the Hittite Empire from at least the Late Bronze Age and continued through successive Phrygian, Lydian, and Achaemenid administrations as a regional centre of Lycaonia. The city is most associated with the Karamanid Beylik, the powerful Turkmen principality that took the town from the Anatolian Seljuks in 1256, renamed it Karaman after Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey, and made it their capital from 1275 until the Ottoman conquest in 1466-1483. Karaman was the seat of Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey's celebrated 1277 Turkish-language decree commanding that 'henceforth in the council, the dergâh, the bargâh, and the meydan, no language other than Turkish shall be spoken,' which has come to symbolize the recognition of Turkish as the official language of Anatolia. Modern Karaman is the capital of Karaman Province in central Türkiye with a metropolitan population of around 250,000, with the Karaman Castle and the Karamanid-era Hatuniye Medrese and Ulu Cami serving as the principal monuments of the historic core. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Lānda") The site of Karaman first appears in Hittite cuneiform records as Lānda, a military and trade centre of the southern Anatolian plateau within the Hittite Empire's Lower Land. The town served as a Hittite administrative outpost controlling the routes between central Anatolia and the Cilician plain until the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Laranda") Following the collapse of the Hittite Empire, Laranda passed through the fragmented post-Hittite world of Lycaonia, falling within the broader Phrygian cultural sphere of central Anatolia and briefly under Lydian influence during the eastward expansion of Croesus. The settlement persisted as a regional centre on the southern Anatolian plateau through the long Iron Age. - 547 BC – 322 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Laranda") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE brought Laranda into the Achaemenid Persian Empire as part of the satrapy of Cappadocia. The city served as a regional administrative centre of Lycaonia under Persian governors until the Macedonian conquest. - 322 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Laranda") After Alexander the Great's defeat of the Achaemenids, Lycaonia briefly came under Macedonian rule. Perdiccas, Alexander's regent and successor general, destroyed Laranda in 322 BCE after defeating Ariarathes I of Cappadocia, and the city was subsequently rebuilt during the Wars of the Diadochi before Seleucid consolidation. - 281 BC – 189 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Laranda") Under the Seleucid kings Laranda was incorporated into the Hellenistic Syrian-Anatolian realm as a regional centre of Lycaonia. The city was rebuilt and Hellenized under Seleucid administration until the Roman-led reorganization following the 189 BCE Treaty of Apamea. - 189 BC – 17 AD: Kingdom of Cappadocia (known as "Laranda") Following the Treaty of Apamea Laranda passed under the Ariarathid kingdom of Cappadocia, which absorbed much of Lycaonia. The city continued as a regional Hellenistic centre under successive Ariarathid and Ariobarzanid kings until the Roman annexation of Cappadocia under Tiberius. - 17 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Laranda") Tiberius annexed Cappadocia as a Roman province in 17 CE, incorporating Laranda into the Roman administrative system. The city continued as a regional centre of Lycaonia, gaining the status of a bishopric in the late Roman period and serving as a station on the major Roman roads linking Iconium with the Cilician Gates. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Laranda") Under the Eastern Roman Empire Laranda continued as a Byzantine bishopric and frontier town facing the Arab caliphal threat after the 7th century. The city was repeatedly raided by Arab forces during the Abbasid-Byzantine frontier wars and was finally lost to the Anatolian Seljuks after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. - 1071 AD – 1256 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Larende") After Manzikert the Anatolian Seljuks took Laranda and gradually Turkified the city, with the Turkic form Larende attaching to the medieval town. The Seljuk Sultanate of Rum administered the city through local governors until the rising Karamanid Turkmen confederation seized it in 1256. - 1256 AD – 1483 AD: Karamanid Beylik Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey captured the city in 1256 and renamed it Karaman after his own name, making it the capital of the Karamanid Beylik from 1275 onward. The dynasty patronized major construction including the Hatuniye Medrese (1382) and the Ulu Cami, and Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey issued his celebrated 1277 decree commanding that Turkish replace Persian as the language of public affairs. The beylik resisted Ottoman pressure for over a century before Mehmed II conquered Karaman in 1466 and Bayezid II completed its absorption in 1483. - 1483 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire After the final absorption of the Karamanid Beylik in 1483, Karaman became the seat of the Karaman Eyalet, one of the principal Ottoman provinces of Anatolia, with jurisdiction stretching from Konya south to the Mediterranean coast. The city remained a regional administrative and commercial centre throughout the long Ottoman period, gradually overshadowed by Konya as the modern provincial capital developed. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic Karaman initially remained a district of Konya Province before being elevated to its own province on 15 June 1989. The modern city has grown into a metropolitan population of around 250,000 with a strong agricultural and food-processing economy, and continues to honour Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey's 1277 Turkish-language decree as a foundational moment in the development of modern Turkish national identity. ## Landmarks - Karaman Castle (built 1100 AD) The medieval citadel of Karaman occupies a low hill in the centre of the old city, with surviving walls and towers largely dating from successive Seljuk, Karamanid, and Ottoman reconstructions over Byzantine and earlier foundations. The castle was the principal residence of the Karamanid beys from the late 13th century onward and remained an Ottoman administrative centre through the early modern period. - Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey Türbesi (built 1300 AD) The mausoleum traditionally attributed to Karamanoğlu Mehmet Bey, the founder of the dynasty who issued the 1277 Turkish-language decree, is a small Beylik-period domed tomb in the old city of Karaman. The site has become a major destination for Turkish nationalist pilgrimage and commemoration since the 20th century, particularly around the 13 May anniversary of the Turkish-language decree. - Ulu Cami of Karaman (built 1370 AD) The Ulu Cami or Great Mosque of Karaman is a Karamanid-period congregational mosque, built in the late 14th century and renovated several times under the Ottomans. Its hypostyle hall with wooden columns, painted ceiling, and the surviving Karamanid minbar and mihrab represent one of the principal Beylik-era religious monuments of central Anatolia. - Hatuniye Medrese (built 1382 AD) The Hatuniye Medrese was commissioned by Sultan Hatun, daughter of Murad I and wife of the Karamanid Alaeddin Ali Bey, in 1382 as one of the major monuments of late 14th-century Karamanid architecture. The cut-stone portal with rich geometric decoration and the iwan-and-courtyard plan rank the building among the finest surviving examples of Anatolian Beylik-period madrasa architecture. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 1,000 - 1000 BC: 3,000 - 322 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 12,000 - 500 AD: 15,000 - 1000 AD: 10,000 - 1275 AD: 25,000 - 1400 AD: 35,000 - 1600 AD: 25,000 - 1900 AD: 10,000 - 1950 AD: 25,000 - 2020 AD: 250,000 --- # Karatepe, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/karatepe Founded: 720 BC Ended: 612 BC Coordinates: 37.2592, 36.2358 ## Description Karatepe, originally named Azatiwadaya after its founder, is a Late Iron Age fortified citadel and Neo-Hittite border town in the Andırın plain of southeastern Anatolia, on the western shore of what is now the Aslantaş Dam reservoir in Osmaniye Province. The site was founded around 720 BCE by Azatiwada, a vassal ruler installed by King Awariku of the Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Adana, to control the mountain pass between the Cilician plain and the Anti-Taurus uplands. Karatepe is internationally famous for the celebrated Phoenician-Hieroglyphic Luwian bilingual inscription carved on the orthostats of its monumental gateways, which provided the key to deciphering Hieroglyphic Luwian in the 1940s much as the Rosetta Stone unlocked Egyptian. The city was destroyed and abandoned in the late 8th or early 7th century BCE during the Neo-Assyrian conquest of Cilicia under Sargon II and his successors, never to be reoccupied. Helmuth Theodor Bossert's excavations from 1947 to 1957 revealed the walled city of Azatiwadaya beneath the karatepe ('black hill'), and the site has been preserved since 1958 as the Karatepe-Aslantaş Open-Air Museum, today protected within the Karatepe-Aslantaş National Park. ## Historical Rulers - 720 BC – 708 BC: Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Adana (known as "Azatiwadaya") Azatiwada, vassal ruler installed by King Awariku of the Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Adana, founded the fortified citadel of Azatiwadaya around 720 BCE to control the pass between the Cilician plain and the Anti-Taurus mountains. The site's monumental gateways were decorated with orthostat reliefs and inscribed with the bilingual Phoenician and Hieroglyphic Luwian texts that commemorate Azatiwada's deeds and his dedication of the city to the Storm God. - 708 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Azatiwadaya") After Sargon II's reorganization of Cilicia as the Neo-Assyrian province of Que around 708 BCE, Azatiwadaya lost its independent Neo-Hittite status. The site was destroyed by fire in the late 8th or early 7th century BCE during the Assyrian campaigns in the region and was effectively abandoned, with no significant reoccupation through the remainder of the Neo-Assyrian period until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. ## Landmarks - Fortified Citadel of Azatiwadaya (built 720 BC) The walled Neo-Hittite citadel founded by Azatiwada around 720 BCE consisted of a roughly oval upper enclosure on the karatepe hill defended by basalt walls and gate towers, with monumental north and south gateways lined by basalt orthostat reliefs of mythological and ceremonial scenes. The internal layout included a palatial complex, storage magazines, and cult installations, and the orthostat sculptures combine indigenous Luwian artistic traditions with Aramean and Phoenician motifs reflecting the cultural complexity of late Neo-Hittite Cilicia. - Karatepe Bilingual Inscription (built 710 BC) The Phoenician-Hieroglyphic Luwian bilingual inscription carved on the orthostats of the north and south gateways of Azatiwadaya is the longest known Phoenician text and one of the longest Hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions. It records King Azatiwada's account of his deeds, his foundation of the city, and his dedications to the Storm God, and its bilingual nature provided the key to the modern decipherment of Hieroglyphic Luwian in the 1940s and 1950s following Helmuth Bossert's excavations. ## Population History - 720 BC: 1,000 - 700 BC: 1,500 - 680 BC: 200 - 612 BC: null --- # Kayseri, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/kayseri Founded: 500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.7225, 35.4875 ## Description Kayseri — known in antiquity as Mazaka and from the early Roman imperial period as Caesarea — is one of the great historical cities of central Anatolia, occupying a strategic position on the high Cappadocian plateau at the northern foot of Mount Erciyes (ancient Argaeus). Although Bronze Age urbanism in central Cappadocia was concentrated at nearby Kanesh-Kültepe some twenty kilometres to the northeast, the site of Mazaka itself emerged as a regional settlement under Achaemenid Cappadocian satraps from the late 6th century BCE. Following the establishment of the Hellenistic Kingdom of Cappadocia under Ariarathes I around 322 BCE, Mazaka became the principal royal capital of the Ariarathid and later Ariobarzanid dynasties for nearly three centuries, until Tiberius's annexation of Cappadocia as a Roman province in 17 CE. The city was renamed Caesarea in honour of Augustus and elevated to the metropolitan see of the Roman province of Cappadocia, achieving its Late Roman peak under bishop Saint Basil the Great in the 4th century. After Byzantine fortifications under Justinian, a Sasanian sack of 611, and centuries of contested frontier status under the early caliphates, Caesarea was captured by the Danishmendid Turkmen in 1074 and entered upon a long period of Turkic-Islamic rule, becoming under the Anatolian Seljuks one of the major cities of the Sultanate of Rum and seat of the magnificent Hunat Hatun and Sahabiye Seljuk-era complexes. After Mongol Ilkhanid suzerainty (1243), Eretnid (1335) and Karamanid (1402) administrations, the city was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire by Selim I in 1515 and remained a major Anatolian commercial centre throughout the Ottoman period. Modern Kayseri is one of the largest cities of Türkiye, with a metropolitan population approaching 1.4 million and a renowned industrial and commercial economy alongside major Seljuk-era monuments preserved at the centre of the historic city. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Mazaka") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE the Cappadocian plateau was incorporated into the Achaemenid satrapy of Cappadocia. The settlement of Mazaka emerged during this period as a regional centre under Persian governors administering the highland province. - 330 BC – 322 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Mazaka") Alexander the Great's defeat of the Achaemenids brought Cappadocia briefly under Macedonian rule. After Alexander's death the satrap Ariarathes I seized the opportunity to establish an independent Cappadocian kingdom. - 322 BC – 17 AD: Kingdom of Cappadocia (known as "Mazaka") Under the Ariarathid and later Ariobarzanid dynasties of the independent Hellenistic Kingdom of Cappadocia, Mazaka served as the principal royal capital for nearly three centuries. The city was rebuilt as a Hellenistic capital under successive kings down to the last king Archelaus, who renamed it Eusebeia at the Argaeus in his programme of cultural Hellenisation, until Tiberius's annexation of the kingdom as a Roman province. - 17 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Caesarea") Tiberius annexed Cappadocia as a Roman province in 17 CE following the deposition of Archelaus and renamed Mazaka as Caesarea in honour of Augustus. The city flourished as the metropolitan capital of the province of Cappadocia, with major construction including theatres, baths, and the imperial mint, and emerged as one of the leading centres of late antique Christianity under bishop Saint Basil the Great (r. 370–379), one of the four great Cappadocian Fathers. - 395 AD – 611 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Kaisareia") Under Eastern Roman administration Caesarea continued as the metropolitan capital of Cappadocia and one of the principal Christian centres of Asia Minor. Justinian I substantially refortified the city in the 6th century as a key strategic centre on the eastern frontier facing the Sasanians. - 611 AD – 628 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Kaisareia") Khosrow II's Sasanian forces captured and sacked Caesarea around 611–612 CE during the great Roman-Persian war, holding the city until Heraclius's counteroffensive restored Byzantine control. - 628 AD – 1074 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Kaisareia") Heraclius restored Byzantine rule over Caesarea after the Sasanian withdrawal. Through the long medieval Byzantine period the city continued as one of the principal cities of central Anatolia and the metropolitan see of Cappadocia, repeatedly threatened by Umayyad and Abbasid Arab raids of the 7th–10th centuries but never permanently lost to the caliphates. Manzikert in 1071 opened the city to Turkmen advance, and Caesarea fell to the Danishmendid emir Gümüştekin in 1074. - 1074 AD – 1178 AD: Danishmendid Beylik Under Danishmendid Gümüştekin and his successors Caesarea — now bearing its Turkish form Kayseri — was rebuilt as one of the principal cities of the Danishmendid emirate of Sivas, with substantial reconstruction recorded around 1134. The dynasty patronised major construction including mosques and madrasas before the Anatolian Seljuks absorbed the beylik's territories in 1178. - 1178 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum Under the Anatolian Seljuks Kayseri became one of the principal cities of the Sultanate of Rum, with the Seljuk sultans wintering in the city alongside their primary capital at Konya. Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad I made Kayseri his second capital, and the great Seljuk-era monuments of the city — including the Hunat Hatun Külliyesi (1238), the Sahabiye Medrese (1267), and the Çifte Medrese — date predominantly from this 13th-century Seljuk golden age. - 1243 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate Following the Mongol victory at Köse Dağ in 1243, Kayseri came under Ilkhanid suzerainty administered through Seljuk vassal sultans and Mongol officials. The city continued as a regional administrative centre until the dissolution of Ilkhanid authority over Anatolia in the 1330s. - 1335 AD – 1402 AD: Eretnid Dynasty After the collapse of Ilkhanid central authority Eretna Bey established his beylik centred on Sivas and Kayseri in 1335. Kayseri served as one of the principal cities of the Eretnid realm until the qadi Burhan al-Din Ahmad usurped power in Sivas in 1381 and held the city until his death in 1398, after which Bayezid I briefly annexed Kayseri to the Ottoman Empire before Timur's catastrophic invasion of 1402. - 1402 AD – 1515 AD: Karamanid Beylik Following Timur's 1402 victory at the Battle of Ankara and the collapse of Ottoman authority in central Anatolia, Kayseri was seized by the Karamanid Beylik based at Konya. Through the 15th century the city was repeatedly contested between Karamanids, the resurgent Ottomans under Mehmed II, the Dulkadirids, and briefly the Aq Qoyunlu, with intermittent Ottoman control from 1466 onward before Selim I's definitive annexation in 1515. - 1515 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Selim I's annexation of Karamanid and Dulkadirid territories in 1515 brought Kayseri definitively into the Ottoman Empire as the seat of a sanjak of the Karaman Eyalet, later of the Sivas Vilayet. The city flourished as a major Ottoman commercial centre on the Anatolian trade routes, with a substantial Armenian and Greek Christian minority alongside the Turkish Muslim majority until the demographic transformations of the late Ottoman and early Republican periods. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic Kayseri continued as the capital of Kayseri Province and developed into one of the largest cities of central Anatolia. Granted metropolitan municipal status in 1988, the city has a current metropolitan population approaching 1.4 million and a renowned industrial and commercial economy producing carpets, textiles, furniture, and food products. ## Landmarks - Kayseri Castle (built 540 AD) The fortified citadel at the centre of Kayseri, originally rebuilt by Justinian I in the mid-6th century atop earlier Roman and Hellenistic foundations and successively reinforced under Seljuk Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad I in the 13th century and the Ottomans in the 16th–17th centuries. The basalt walls and towers preserved today are predominantly Seljuk and Ottoman work overlying the Justinianic core. - Çifte Medrese (built 1206 AD) The 'twin madrasa' commissioned in 1206 by Sultan Kaykhusraw I and his sister Gevher Nesibe Hatun as a paired theological school and hospital — the latter functioning as one of the earliest documented teaching hospitals in the medieval Islamic world, now housing the Gevher Nesibe Museum of Medical History. - Hunat Hatun Külliyesi (built 1238 AD) The monumental Seljuk-era religious complex commissioned in 1238 by Mahperi Hunat Hatun, wife of Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad I, comprising the Hunat Hatun Mosque, the founder's türbe, a madrasa, and a hammam. One of the principal surviving monuments of the Anatolian Seljuk architectural tradition, the complex remains in active use as a religious foundation today. - Sahabiye Medrese (built 1267 AD) An elaborate Seljuk-era madrasa commissioned by the vizier Fahreddin Ali Sahip Ata in 1267, distinguished by its magnificent stone-carved portal and iwan-and-courtyard plan. The building is one of the finest surviving examples of late Anatolian Seljuk religious architecture. ## Population History - 500 BC: 3,000 - 200 BC: 15,000 - 100 AD: 40,000 - 400 AD: 50,000 - 600 AD: 40,000 - 900 AD: 25,000 - 1200 AD: 40,000 - 1400 AD: 20,000 - 1600 AD: 35,000 - 1900 AD: 60,000 - 1950 AD: 65,000 - 2000 AD: 530,000 - 2025 AD: 1,400,000 --- # Kerkenes, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/kerkenes Founded: 600 BC Ended: 547 BC Coordinates: 39.7584, 35.0657 ## Description Kerkenes is the largest pre-Hellenistic urban site on the Anatolian plateau, an Iron Age planned city covering over 2.5 square kilometers atop Kerkenes Dağı in modern Yozgat Province, central Turkey. Founded around 600 BCE and identified by Herodotus as Pteria, the city was enclosed by more than 7 kilometers of stone fortification wall with seven monumental gates, and laid out around palatial compounds, an administrative quarter, and an aniconic cult precinct. Excavations directed first by Geoffrey Summers and now by Scott Branting have established the city as a Phrygian foundation rather than the earlier proposed Median one — confirmed by Phrygian-style megaron architecture, inscriptions in the Phrygian language, an aniconic Matar cult idol, and sculpture in Phrygian style. The site was violently destroyed by fire around 547 BCE, traditionally attributed to the Lydian king Croesus during his campaign east of the Halys, and was never rebuilt, leaving Kerkenes a striking single-period testament to Phrygian eastward expansion in the late Iron Age. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "Pteria") Founded around 600 BCE as a massive planned Phrygian stronghold on the Kerkenes Dağı plateau east of the Halys, the city extended Phrygian power deep into the central Anatolian highlands during the resurgence following the Cimmerian disruptions. Excavated megaron architecture, Phrygian-language inscriptions, an aniconic Matar cult idol, and Phrygian-style sculpture establish the city as a Phrygian foundation, identified by Herodotus as Pteria. It was sacked and burned around 547 BCE, traditionally attributed to the Lydian king Croesus during his campaign across the Halys, and was never reoccupied. ## Landmarks - City Wall Circuit (built 600 BC) Kerkenes was surrounded by over 7 km of continuous stone wall, punctuated by towers and gates. The wall delineated a planned urban settlement and defined the ceremonial and political limits of the city. - Gate System and Urban Layout (built 600 BC) Seven monumental gates allowed controlled access into the city, each linked to a radial street that structured the internal urban layout. Their monumental scale and carved orthostats emphasize the city's symbolic power and order. - Palatial and Administrative Complex (built 580 BC) Located at the center of the city, this complex includes large courtyards, multi-room buildings, and storage areas. Artifacts like Phrygian inscriptions and elite pottery suggest centralized governance and high-status activity. - Temple Complex (built 570 BC) Excavations in the southeast quadrant uncovered a large hall with altars and evidence of burnt offerings, suggesting the presence of a major religious structure integrated into the city's formal layout. ## Population History - 600 BC: 20,000 - 547 BC: null --- # Kilistra, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/kilistra Founded: 300 BC Ended: 2026 AD Coordinates: 37.665977, 32.213499 ## Description Kilistra was an ancient settlement in Lycaonia in central Anatolia, located in what is today the Meram district of Konya Province, Türkiye. It is renowned for its unique rock-cut architecture and Christian heritage during the Byzantine period, often called the 'Cappadocia of Konya' for its rock-carved houses, churches, and monastic complexes that served as refuges during periods of Arab raids and unrest. After the Christian community dwindled under Sultanate of Rum and Karamanid rule the same valley continued to be inhabited as a small Turkmen and later Turkish village, today known as Gökyurt, with roughly 400 permanent inhabitants whose modern houses stand among the surviving rock-cut features. The site has been excavated and consolidated since the 1990s and is administered as a protected archaeological zone. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Lystra") Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Lystra") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Lystra") - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Lystra") - 1308 AD – 1487 AD: Karamanid Beylik (known as "Gökyurt") - 1487 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Gökyurt") - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Gökyurt") ## Landmarks - Rock-Cut Houses and Monastic Complexes (built 400 AD) Complexes of interconnected rooms, halls, and storerooms carved into soft tuff stone, similar in technique to those of Cappadocia but unique to the Konya region. The complexes served both as habitation and as refuges for the surrounding Christian population during periods of insecurity. - Rock-Cut Churches of Kilistra (built 500 AD) A network of small rock-hewn churches decorated with simple frescoes, providing insights into rural Christian worship practices during the Byzantine period. The cruciform plans and surviving paint traces parallel the better-known churches of Cappadocia. ## Population History - 300 BC: 500 - 0 AD: 1,500 - 500 AD: 2,000 - 1200 AD: 200 - 1700 AD: 300 - 1923 AD: 350 - 2020 AD: 400 --- # Klazomenai, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/klazomenai Founded: 1100 BC Ended: 1000 AD Coordinates: 38.3667, 26.7667 ## Description Klazomenai was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League, occupying the coastal plain and the offshore Karantina island near modern Urla in İzmir Province. Founded by Ionian Greek settlers around 1100 BCE on the mainland mound of Limantepe, the city joined the Ionian Revolt against Persia in 499 BCE and afterward relocated its civic center to the offshore island for defensive reasons. Klazomenai produced the early Presocratic philosopher Anaxagoras (circa 510-428 BCE) who introduced the doctrine of nous as the ordering principle of the cosmos, and was a major exporter of olive oil and the distinctive Klazomenian painted terracotta sarcophagi of the late sixth century BCE. The site preserves one of the oldest surviving industrial olive oil presses of the ancient Mediterranean, a sixth-century BCE complex of levered weights and settling tanks documented as the earliest of its kind. Alexander the Great connected Karantina island to the mainland with a causeway in 334 BCE, and the city continued through Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine centuries before progressive medieval abandonment. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement Klazomenai was founded around 1100 BCE by Ionian Greek settlers on the Limantepe mound, part of the broader Ionian migration to the coast of Asia Minor in the Early Iron Age. The early settlement participated in the formation of the Ionian dodecapolis along the central Aegean coast. - 800 BC – 494 BC: Hellenic Civilization Through the Archaic period Klazomenai prospered as a member of the Ionian League with its assembly at the Panionion sanctuary, becoming one of the earliest Greek poleis to issue silver coinage in the late sixth century BCE. The city pioneered olive oil exports across the Mediterranean and produced the famous Klazomenian painted terracotta sarcophagi with war scenes, chariot racing, and hunting motifs. - 494 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire The Persian victory at the Battle of Lade in 494 BCE ended the Ionian Revolt and brought Klazomenai back under Achaemenid suzerainty, prompting the relocation of the civic center from the Limantepe mainland mound to the more easily defensible offshore Karantina island. The philosopher Anaxagoras left the city in middle life to teach at Athens during this Persian period. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE incorporated Klazomenai into the Macedonian Empire, and he reportedly built the causeway connecting Karantina island to the mainland. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Through the third and early second centuries BCE Klazomenai was held by the Seleucid Empire as part of the wider Ionian coast. The city continued as a substantial port through this period. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Following the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE Klazomenai passed under Pergamene control alongside the rest of western Anatolia. The Attalid bequest of 133 BCE brought the city into the Roman provincial system. - 133 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Clazomenae") Roman Clazomenae continued as a small port city of the province of Asia through the imperial centuries. The city did not achieve major monumental renewal but retained a continuous population through Roman administration. - 395 AD – 1000 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Klazomenai contracted significantly through the Arab naval raids of the seventh to ninth centuries that depopulated the Ionian coast. The site was progressively abandoned in the medieval Byzantine period, with the small population shifting to inland communities. ## Landmarks - Klazomenai Olive Oil Press Complex (built 550 BC) The sixth-century BCE olive oil press complex at Klazomenai is the oldest known industrial-scale olive oil production facility in the ancient Mediterranean, with stone settling tanks, leveraged crushing weights, and a system of channels for separating oil from water. The complex predates other known ancient Greek presses by centuries and documents the city's role as a major olive oil exporter. - Klazomenian Sarcophagi Production (built 550 BC) Klazomenai produced the distinctive painted terracotta clay sarcophagi of the late sixth and early fifth centuries BCE decorated with battle scenes, chariot races, hunting compositions, and geometric patterns. Recovered examples are housed in the British Museum and other major collections and represent the principal artistic tradition of the Ionian city. - Karantina Island Causeway (built 334 BC) The causeway connecting Karantina island to the mainland was traditionally attributed to Alexander the Great's intervention of 334 BCE, joining the post-revolt offshore civic center back to the original Limantepe area. The crossing survives in modified form to the modern day. ## Population History - 1100 BC: 500 - 700 BC: 3,000 - 500 BC: 8,000 - 200 BC: 6,000 - 100 AD: 5,000 - 400 AD: 3,000 - 800 AD: 1,000 - 1000 AD: null --- # Knidos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/knidos Founded: 900 BC Ended: 700 AD Coordinates: 36.6858, 27.375 ## Description Knidos was a major Greek city of southwestern Anatolia situated at the tip of the long Datça peninsula, at the modern Tekir, where the Aegean and Mediterranean seas meet. The city was founded as a Dorian colony from the Argolid and the Peloponnese around 900 BCE and emerged as one of the six member cities of the Doric Hexapolis alongside Halicarnassus, Cos, and the three earlier cities of Rhodes. Its position commanding the maritime route between the Aegean and the eastern Mediterranean produced substantial early commercial wealth, and Knidian colonists founded daughter settlements in Lipari and the Adriatic during the Archaic period. The city is best known as the home of Praxiteles's Aphrodite of Knidos, sculpted around 360 BCE as the first major monumental nude female statue of classical art and housed in a circular shrine on the Knidian acropolis; the original is lost but the type is preserved in numerous Roman copies. The 394 BCE Battle of Cnidus offshore destroyed Spartan naval power in the Aegean and confirmed the Athenian-Persian recovery, and the Knidian school of medicine produced Eudoxus of Knidos the astronomer, Ctesias the historian, and Sostratus the architect of the Lighthouse of Alexandria. Knidos sided with Rome against Antiochus III in the Roman-Seleucid war and retained free city status under the early empire, surviving as a substantial harbor through the Byzantine centuries before progressive decline ended in abandonment by the early eighth century CE. The original city is thought to have stood further east on the peninsula and to have moved to the present site at Tekir around 360 BCE. The principal British Museum excavations of Charles Thomas Newton in 1857-1858 recovered the great Knidian Lion of the southeastern necropolis and the sanctuary of Demeter, while the modern Selçuk University excavations have continued since 1988. ## Historical Rulers - 900 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement Dorian colonists from the Argolid established the early Knidian settlement on the Datça peninsula around 900 BCE in the broader Dorian migration that produced the Doric Hexapolis of southwestern Anatolia and the southeastern Aegean. The early settlement is thought to have stood further east on the peninsula rather than at the later classical site at Tekir. - 800 BC – 546 BC: Hellenic Civilization Through the Archaic period Knidos prospered as one of the six member cities of the Doric Hexapolis, with its assembly at the Triopian headland honoring Apollo, Poseidon, and the local nymphs. The city founded colonies on Lipara in the Aeolian Islands and in the Adriatic, and developed early democratic institutions replacing an earlier oligarchic constitution. - 546 BC – 394 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, Knidos came under Achaemenid suzerainty administered through the satrapy of Caria. The city briefly joined the Athenian-led Delian League after the Persian Wars but was again under Persian control by the time of the 394 BCE Battle of Cnidus, when the Persian-Athenian fleet under Conon and Pharnabazus destroyed Spartan naval power offshore. - 394 BC – 334 BC: Hellenic Civilization After the Battle of Cnidus Knidos recovered substantial autonomy in the renewed Athenian sphere of the early fourth century BCE, and around 360 BCE the city built or rebuilt its monumental upper town at the present site of Tekir at the tip of the peninsula. Praxiteles' Aphrodite of Knidos was installed in its circular shrine on the acropolis during this period, becoming the most famous single statue of the classical world. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE incorporated Knidos into the Macedonian Empire without recorded resistance, and the city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi under Antigonus, Lysimachus, and the early Seleucid claimants until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom Through most of the third century BCE Knidos was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt as part of their Mediterranean thalassocracy. The Knidian-born architect Sostratus designed the Lighthouse of Alexandria for Ptolemy II Philadelphus in the early third century BCE. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Antiochus III's western campaign of the late 190s BCE brought Knidos briefly under Seleucid control. The episode ended with the Treaty of Apamea of 188 BCE that reassigned Caria to Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Knidos was administered from Rhodes alongside the other mainland Carian communities for two decades. Knidos had sided with Rome against Antiochus III, and the Rhodian rule ended in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power. - 167 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Cnidus") Rome rewarded Knidos with free city status for its support against Antiochus III, and the city retained nominal autonomy under the early empire as a substantial Carian harbor and pilgrimage center for the Aphrodite cult. Through the imperial centuries Knidos continued as a regional port without major monumental additions to its Hellenistic core. - 395 AD – 700 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Knidos continued as a small Christian harbor and episcopal see, with Christian basilicas built on the terraces of the upper town through the fifth and sixth centuries. The city was devastated by the Arab naval raids of the seventh and eighth centuries and progressively abandoned, with the population dispersing to inland villages of the Datça peninsula by the early eighth century. ## Landmarks - Sanctuary of Aphrodite Euploia (built 360 BC) The circular peripteros sanctuary of Aphrodite Euploia on the upper terrace of the acropolis housed Praxiteles's Aphrodite of Knidos, the first major monumental nude female statue of classical art, sculpted around 360 BCE and visible from all sides through the open colonnade. The original statue is lost but the type survives in numerous Roman copies including the Belvedere Aphrodite and the so-called Colonna Knidian in the Vatican. - Lion Tomb of Knidos (built 350 BC) The Lion Tomb of Knidos was a large pyramidal monumental tomb of the mid-fourth century BCE built on the southeastern coast of the peninsula and crowned by a 2.9-meter Pentelic marble lion. The monument was discovered by Charles Thomas Newton in 1858 and the lion now stands in the Great Court of the British Museum. - Round Temple of Aphrodite (built 340 BC) A second sanctuary on the western upper terrace housed an early-Hellenistic circular peripteros temple identified by some scholars as the original Aphrodite Euploia shrine. The structure stood as the architectural model for circular tholoi and survives in fragmentary form on its terrace platform overlooking the southern harbor. - Sanctuary of Demeter (built 330 BC) The Knidian sanctuary of Demeter and Kore on the upper terraces produced a substantial corpus of dedicatory sculpture and inscribed votives recovered by the 1858 Newton expedition, including the famous fourth-century BCE seated Demeter of Knidos now in the British Museum. The sanctuary continued in active cult use through the Roman imperial centuries. ## Population History - 900 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 350 BC: 10,000 - 100 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 400 AD: 5,000 - 600 AD: 2,000 - 700 AD: null --- # Konya, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/konya Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.8746, 32.4932 ## Description Konya is the capital of Konya Province in central Anatolia and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities of the Anatolian plateau, with stratigraphic occupation at the central Alâeddin Hill (Alâeddin Tepesi) reaching back to the Chalcolithic period in the third millennium BCE. The site appears in Hittite-era cuneiform sources as Ikkuwaniya, then in Greek and Roman tradition as Ikonion / Iconium, attested by Xenophon in the 4th century BCE and developed into a major Roman colony where the apostle Paul is recorded preaching in the Acts of the Apostles. After Roman and Byzantine centuries the city's pivotal era arrived with the Sultanate of Rum, which made Konya its capital from 1097 to 1308. Under sultans such as Kılıçarslan II, Kayqubad I, and Kayqubad II the city flourished as the political and intellectual heart of medieval Anatolia, with the Alâeddin Mosque crowning the central hill and the great Seljuk madrasas — Karatay, İnce Minareli, Sırçalı — making it a leading centre of Islamic scholarship and a sanctuary for the Persian mystic Jalal al-Din Rumi, whose 1273 mausoleum (Mevlana Türbesi) remains one of Türkiye's most visited pilgrimage sites. Karamanid, Ottoman, and Republican administrations followed, and modern Konya has grown into a major Anatolian metropolitan area of roughly 2.2 million inhabitants. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Alâeddin Tepesi") Stratigraphic sondages in the Alâeddin mound at the heart of the modern city have documented Early Bronze Age occupation, with simple agricultural settlement on a low rise overlooking the western fringes of the Konya plain. The community remained modest in scale through the third millennium, embedded in the broader central Anatolian EBA regional system. - 2000 BC – 1500 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Alâeddin Tepesi") The Alâeddin mound continued in occupation through the Early and Middle Bronze Age as a small agricultural settlement on the central Anatolian plateau. Material culture indicates contact with the broader Anatolian network without yet being integrated into a central state. - 1500 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Ikkuwaniya") Hittite cuneiform records mention the town of Ikkuwaniya in the Lower Land of central Anatolia, identified by many scholars with the Alâeddin mound at Konya. The settlement served as a regional administrative and religious centre on the imperial periphery before collapsing with the wider Late Bronze Age system around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 546 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "Kawania") After the Hittite collapse the Konya plain came under the eastern sphere of Phrygian cultural influence, and Greek tradition associated the city with the foundation myth of Annakos or Iconion involving Deucalion and Pyrrha. The settlement persisted as a Phrygian-influenced town with continuing occupation on and around the central mound. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Ikonion") Following the Persian conquest of Lydia in 546 BCE, Ikonion was absorbed into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the satrapy of Cappadocia. Xenophon's Anabasis records the city in 401 BCE as the last Phrygian town that the Greek mercenaries of the Ten Thousand passed before entering the satrapy proper. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Ikonion") Alexander the Great's campaign brought the city into the Macedonian sphere, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. Anatolian control consolidated under the Seleucids after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Ikonion") Under the Seleucid kings Ikonion was integrated into the Lycaonian territories of the Seleucid realm and retained its Greek civic identity. After the Roman defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea reassigned Lycaonia to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Ikonion") Ikonion was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon under the Treaty of Apamea, becoming part of the broader Pergamene Lycaonian holdings. Pergamene rule over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Iconium") After the Attalid bequest of 133 BCE, Iconium was incorporated into Roman Asia and later the Roman provinces of Galatia and Lycaonia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Iconium") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Augustus refounded the city as Colonia Iulia Felix Gemina Lustra in the 1st century CE and Claudius elevated it as Claudiconium, while Hadrian later honored it with his own name as Hadrianus Iconium. The apostle Paul is recorded preaching at Iconium in the Acts of the Apostles. - 395 AD – 1077 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Ikonion") Under the Eastern Roman Empire Ikonion was the seat of a metropolitan bishopric and a key fortress on the Anatolian plateau's central plain. The city was sacked by Arab raids in the 8th century and again in 838 by the same Abbasid campaign that destroyed Amorium, but recovered and remained a major Byzantine military and administrative centre until the Sultanate of Rum advance after Manzikert. - 1077 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum After Manzikert opened Anatolia to Turkmen migration, the Sultanate of Rum was founded in 1077 with Nikaia as its first capital, and following the First Crusade the court was relocated to Konya around 1097, where it remained for over two centuries. Under sultans Kılıçarslan II, Kayqubad I, and Kayqubad II the city flourished as a Persianate Islamic capital with monumental Seljuk architecture including the Alâeddin Mosque, the Karatay and İnce Minareli madrasas, and Seljuk caravanserais lining the trade routes. Jalal al-Din Rumi spent his adult life in Konya and was buried in the city as the foundation of the Mevlevi Sufi order, and Mongol Ilkhanid suzerainty after the 1243 Battle of Köse Dağ gradually displaced Seljuk political power until the dynasty's formal extinction in 1308. - 1308 AD – 1487 AD: Karamanid Beylik After Seljuk collapse the Turkmen Karamanid Beylik captured Konya and ruled it as the capital of one of the strongest Anatolian principalities, with sustained patronage of Sufi orders and continuing construction of mosques and madrasas. The Karamanids repeatedly clashed with the rising Ottomans before the city was finally annexed to the Ottoman Empire by Mehmed II's son Bayezid II in 1487. - 1487 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Under the Ottomans Konya served as the seat of the Eyalet and later Vilayet of Karaman and was a major centre of grain production for the imperial heartland. The Mevlevi tekke at Rumi's tomb continued as one of the principal Sufi institutions of the empire, and the city remained an important religious and provincial administrative centre into the late Ottoman period. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic Konya has grown into a major Anatolian metropolitan area, with the broader municipality population reaching roughly 2.2 million in the early 2020s. The city anchors agricultural industry on the Konya plain, hosts Selçuk University, and continues as the headquarters of the Mevlevi Sufi tradition centred on the annual Şeb-i Arus commemoration of Rumi's death. ## Landmarks - Alâeddin Mosque (built 1220 AD) The principal congregational mosque of Seljuk Konya, completed under Sultan Kayqubad I in 1220 on the summit of the central Alâeddin Hill where Bronze Age and Phrygian occupation had been concentrated. The mosque has a hypostyle prayer hall with reused Byzantine and Roman columns, and the adjoining royal mausoleum (kümbet) houses the tombs of eight Seljuk sultans of Rum. - Karatay Medresesi (built 1251 AD) A Seljuk theological seminary founded in 1251 by the Seljuk vizier Celaleddin Karatay, distinguished by its monumental marble portal and its dome decorated with one of the most intricate tilework programmes in Seljuk architecture, depicting the heavenly spheres in deep blue, turquoise, and white. The building has functioned as the Karatay Tile Museum since 1955. - İnce Minareli Medrese (built 1264 AD) A Seljuk theological seminary built under Sahib Ata Fahreddin Ali in 1264, famous for its richly carved marble portal and the slender ('ince') minaret that originally rose alongside it, partly destroyed by lightning in 1901. The building now houses Konya's collection of Seljuk stone and wood carvings. - Mevlâna Türbesi (built 1274 AD) The mausoleum and dervish lodge of Jalal al-Din Rumi, who died in Konya in 1273 and was buried in the rose garden of the Seljuk palace. The conical green-tiled tomb tower added shortly after his death became the foundational shrine of the Mevlevi Sufi order, and the site was expanded under Karamanid and Ottoman patronage into a complex of tomb chambers, semahane, and dervish cells; now operated as the Mevlâna Müzesi, it remains one of Türkiye's most visited pilgrimage sites. - Sahip Ata Külliyesi (built 1283 AD) A complex of mosque, dervish lodge, and mausoleum founded in 1283 by the Seljuk vizier Sahib Ata Fahreddin Ali. The grand marble entrance portal, brick minaret, and tiled mihrab represent the late Seljuk synthesis of monumental stone, ceramic, and woodwork that defined the city's medieval architectural character. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 1,000 - 1500 BC: 3,000 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 500 AD: 25,000 - 1077 AD: 40,000 - 1250 AD: 100,000 - 1400 AD: 50,000 - 1600 AD: 30,000 - 1800 AD: 35,000 - 1900 AD: 50,000 - 1950 AD: 130,000 - 2020 AD: 2,200,000 --- # Kozan, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/kozan Founded: 70 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.4481, 35.8103 ## Description Kozan — known historically as Sis and in Roman times as Flaviopolis — is a town in the Çukurova plain of southern Anatolia, in Adana Province at the foot of the Anti-Taurus mountains. The earliest documented name, Sis (or Siskia), is pre-Roman and probably of Luwian origin. The settlement was reorganised by the Romans as Flaviopolis around 70 CE under the Flavian emperors, and continued as a Byzantine episcopal town until the Arab conquest of Cilicia in 705 CE. After three centuries of Umayyad and Abbasid rule and a Byzantine reconquest under Nikephoros II Phokas in 965, the town passed into the orbit of the Anatolian Seljuks and then of the Armenian Rubenid princes of Cilicia. Sis was rebuilt by Leo II in 1186 and made the capital of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia for nearly two centuries, becoming the seat of the Armenian Catholicate of Cilicia and the heart of the Cilician Armenian church and state until the Mamluk-vassal Ramadanid Beylik captured and demolished the city in 1375. After Ottoman annexation in 1516 the renamed Kozan remained a modest provincial town under the powerful Kozanoğlu derebeys of the 18th and 19th centuries until central Ottoman authority was restored in 1865. After a brief French occupation of Cilicia in 1919–1921 the town was incorporated into the Republic of Türkiye, and is today a district of Adana Province with around 130,000 inhabitants. The Catholicate of Sis itself departed for Antelias in Lebanon following the displacement of the Armenian community in 1915 and remains the seat of the Catholicate of the Great House of Cilicia. ## Historical Rulers - 70 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Flaviopolis") Reorganised and renamed Flaviopolis under the Flavian emperors around 70 CE, the town in the eastern Cilician plain succeeded an earlier settlement known as Sis or Siskia. Under Roman administration it functioned as a regional town of Cilicia Secunda, with a Christian episcopal see attested from the 4th century. - 395 AD – 705 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Sision") Under Eastern Roman administration the town — known to Byzantine sources as Sision — continued as a small fortified centre of Cilicia Secunda and an episcopal see of the Patriarchate of Antioch. The town was fortified during the 6th and 7th centuries against repeated Sasanian and then Arab raids on Cilicia. - 705 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Sis") Following the Umayyad conquest of Cilicia in the early 8th century, Sis was incorporated into the Thughur frontier zone facing Byzantine Anatolia. The town was fortified as a frontier outpost during the Arab–Byzantine wars of the 8th century. - 750 AD – 965 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Sis") Under Abbasid administration Sis continued as a Thughur frontier town of the Cilician marches, with a reduced Christian population alongside Arab garrisons. The town was repeatedly contested in the Arab–Byzantine wars of the 9th and early 10th centuries until Byzantine reconquest under Nikephoros II Phokas. - 965 AD – 1080 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Sision") Nikephoros II Phokas's reconquest of Cilicia in the 960s restored Sis to Byzantine control after nearly three centuries of Arab rule. The town was resettled in part with Armenian Christian populations transferred from the eastern provinces, who would form the demographic base of the later Armenian polity in Cilicia. - 1080 AD – 1186 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Sis") After the Seljuk advance into Anatolia following Manzikert, Cilicia became a contested frontier between Sultanate of Rum, the emerging Armenian Rubenid principality, and brief Byzantine reassertion under Manuel I Komnenos. Sis itself passed through several hands in this confused century before Leo II's consolidation. - 1186 AD – 1375 AD: Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia (known as "Sis") Rebuilt by Leo II of the Rubenid dynasty in 1186 and made the capital of the Armenian principality — elevated to kingdom in 1198 — Sis became the political and religious centre of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia for nearly two centuries. The Catholicate of Cilicia was permanently installed at Sis in 1294, making the city the seat of the Armenian Apostolic Church for the medieval period. The kingdom and its capital fell to Mamluk and Ramadanid forces in April 1375 after a prolonged siege. - 1375 AD – 1516 AD: Ramadanid Beylik (known as "Sis") After the fall of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, Sis was captured and partly demolished by the forces of the Ramadanid Beylik acting as Mamluk vassals in 1375. The Ramadanid Turkmen dynasty administered the city from their nearby capital at Adana as a Mamluk frontier outpost until Selim I's annexation of Mamluk Syria. The Armenian Catholicate of Cilicia, however, was permitted to remain at Sis throughout this period. - 1516 AD – 1921 AD: Ottoman Empire Annexed by Selim I after the conquest of Mamluk Syria in 1516, Sis remained under Ottoman sovereignty for four centuries, gradually adopting its modern Turkish name Kozan. From the late 17th to the mid-19th century the town and its hinterland were dominated by the semi-independent Kozanoğlu derebeys, an Avşar Turkmen notable family who governed the Anti-Taurus uplands as Ottoman tax-farmers until the Reform Army of Derviş Paşa restored central authority in 1865. The Armenian Catholicate of Cilicia continued at Sis throughout the Ottoman period until the displacement of the Armenian community in 1915, after which the catholicosal see was relocated first to Aleppo and ultimately to Antelias in Lebanon. After the Ottoman defeat in the First World War the town was occupied by French forces from late 1919 to late 1921. - 1921 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Following the French evacuation of Cilicia under the Treaty of Ankara in October 1921, Kozan was incorporated into the new Republic of Türkiye as a district of Adana Province. The town has grown through the 20th century into a regional centre of citrus and orchard agriculture with about 130,000 inhabitants today, dominated by the imposing medieval citadel of Sis on the hill above the town. ## Landmarks - Sis Castle (Kozan Castle) (built 1186 AD) The monumental Armenian Cilician citadel rebuilt by Leo II in 1186 on the steep crag overlooking the town, occupying the site of an earlier Byzantine fortress. The fortified perimeter of nearly 700 metres encloses some 44 towers along a ridge above the Sumbas river, with the bulk of the surviving structures dating to the late 12th and 13th centuries. The castle served as the seat of the Armenian Cilician kings and as the principal stronghold of the kingdom until the Mamluk-Ramadanid conquest of 1375. - Cathedral of Sis (Catholicosate of Cilicia) (built 1294 AD) The Armenian cathedral church of the Catholicosate of Cilicia at Sis served as the principal seat of the Armenian Apostolic Church between 1294 and 1915, succeeding the earlier catholicosal seats at Hromkla and elsewhere. The medieval cathedral was destroyed and rebuilt several times before the displacement of the Armenian community in 1915; the catholicosal see was subsequently relocated to Antelias in Lebanon, where it continues as the Catholicate of the Great House of Cilicia. - Hoşkadem Mosque (built 1448 AD) Built by the Mamluk Sultan Sayf al-Din Hoshqadam around 1448 during the period of Ramadanid–Mamluk administration of Sis. A characteristic example of late Mamluk mosque architecture in Cilicia, it served as the principal Friday mosque of the town through the Ottoman period and remains in use today. ## Population History - 70 AD: 3,000 - 300 AD: 5,000 - 600 AD: 3,000 - 900 AD: 2,000 - 1200 AD: 8,000 - 1300 AD: 12,000 - 1400 AD: 4,000 - 1700 AD: 5,000 - 1900 AD: 8,000 - 1950 AD: 15,000 - 2000 AD: 75,000 - 2025 AD: 132,000 --- # Laodicea, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/laodicea Founded: 260 BC Ended: 1400 AD Coordinates: 37.8357, 29.1078 ## Description Laodicea ad Lycum was a wealthy commercial center in western Anatolia, situated at the intersection of major trade routes in the Lycus valley near modern Denizli, founded around 260 BCE by the Seleucid king Antiochus II and named for his wife Laodice. It was famous in antiquity for its black wool textile production, Phrygian eye medicine, and banking industry, and is mentioned in the New Testament as one of the Seven Churches of Asia in the Book of Revelation, where it received a stern spiritual rebuke for being 'lukewarm'. The city was repeatedly damaged by earthquakes but rebuilt itself without imperial assistance due to its immense wealth, and archaeological excavations have revealed one of the largest ancient stadiums in Anatolia, multiple theaters, and extensive water systems with innovative siphon engineering. Laodicea was finally abandoned during the long medieval decline of the Lycus valley as the surviving inhabitants migrated to the more defensible site of Denizli. ## Historical Rulers - 260 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Founded by the Seleucid king Antiochus II in the mid-3rd century BCE and named after his wife Laodice, the city was established as a strategic urban node in the Lycus valley, replacing or absorbing earlier local settlements. Under Seleucid administration it developed as a center of commerce and Hellenistic culture in southwestern Phrygia until the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned the region to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Laodicea was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon under the Treaty of Apamea, becoming part of the Pergamene network of Phrygian and Lycus-valley cities. Pergamene rule over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Following the bequest of the Attalid kingdom to Rome, Laodicea passed into Roman hands and was incorporated into the province of Asia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. It flourished as a major commercial hub renowned for banking, textile production from local black wool, and the manufacture of eye salves, and rebuilt itself after major earthquakes without imperial aid. The city became an important early Christian center, addressed as one of the Seven Churches in the Book of Revelation. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration the city served as a regional ecclesiastical and administrative center, hosting church councils and remaining a notable metropolitan bishopric. Recurrent earthquakes, Arab raids, and shifting trade routes gradually eroded its prosperity through the long Byzantine period until the Seljuk advance into Anatolia after Manzikert ended Byzantine rule. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Laodikya") After the Byzantine collapse in Anatolia following Manzikert, the Lycus valley fell under the control of the Sultanate of Rum, with brief Byzantine recoveries under the Komnenoi and the passage of Crusader armies. Laodicea changed hands repeatedly during these wars and its urban fabric was progressively reduced as population and trade shifted toward more defensible sites. - 1308 AD – 1400 AD: Germiyanid Beylik (known as "Eski Hisar") Following the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Lycus valley fell within the territory of the Germiyanid Beylik based at Kütahya. By the early 14th century the surviving inhabitants had largely relocated to the nearby settlement that would become Denizli, leaving the ancient site in ruins; the deserted ruins came to be known locally as Eski Hisar ('Old Fortress'). ## Landmarks - Stadium of Laodicea (built 50 AD) This enormous structure, measuring approximately 350 meters long, could seat over 25,000 spectators on stone seating arranged in an elongated U-shape with both curved and straight sections. Built during the early Roman imperial period, it hosted athletic games, gladiatorial contests, and public ceremonies and remains one of the best-preserved ancient stadiums in Anatolia. - Water Distribution Terminal (built 75 AD) This complex structure distributed water throughout the city after it arrived via an aqueduct from springs approximately 6 kilometers away. The system employed sophisticated siphon technology to cross valleys before reaching the distribution center, designed to bring potable water from distant sources because the nearer springs were heavily mineralized by the area's hot waters. - Syrian Street (built 100 AD) This impressive colonnaded street, stretching 900 meters through the city center, was lined with shops, public buildings, and monuments. Recent excavations have revealed intricate marble paving, drainage systems, and hundreds of columns that exemplify the Roman approach to urban design combining commercial space with monumental architecture. - Central Church (built 400 AD) Excavated only in recent decades, this large basilica-plan church reflects the importance of Laodicea as an early Christian center. The structure incorporates elaborate mosaics and architectural elements adapted from earlier Roman buildings, holding particular significance as the physical successor to one of the Seven Churches mentioned in Revelation. ## Population History - 260 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 15,000 - 100 AD: 45,000 - 300 AD: 30,000 - 600 AD: 25,000 - 1100 AD: 10,000 - 1300 AD: 2,000 - 1400 AD: null --- # Lapseki, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/lapseki Founded: 654 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.3447, 26.6856 ## Description Lapseki — ancient Lampsakos (Λάμψακος, Latin Lampsacus) — is a port town on the Asian shore of the Dardanelles in Çanakkale Province, directly opposite the European-side town of Gelibolu and the ferry crossing of the strait. Founded around 654 BCE by Phocaean Greek colonists, the polis was famous in antiquity for its sweet wine, sacred fish, and the cult of the fertility god Priapus whose principal sanctuary stood here. Lampsakos paid a substantial annual tribute of 12 talents to Athens as a member of the Delian League — one of the highest assessments of any allied city — and became a major Hellenistic intellectual centre when the philosopher Epicurus moved to Lampsakos around 310 BCE, founding the Epicurean inner circle with his students Metrodorus and Polyaenus before relocating to Athens. The polis was the home of the rhetorician Anaximenes of Lampsacus who served as Alexander the Great's tutor, and Anaxagoras of Clazomenae spent his final exile here teaching philosophy after his banishment from Athens. Lampsakos passed under Persian, Athenian, Spartan, Macedonian, Attalid Pergamene, and finally Roman rule with the Attalid bequest of 133 BCE, remaining a significant Hellespont port through the Roman and Byzantine periods. The town was captured by the Ottomans during the 14th-century conquest of the Asian Hellespont and became Lapseki under five centuries of Ottoman rule as a small fishing and ferry port. Modern Lapseki is a town of about 10,000 inhabitants and the Asian-side terminus of the busy Lapseki-Gelibolu ferry route across the Dardanelles, with the 2022 Çanakkale 1915 Bridge (the world's longest mid-span suspension bridge) crossing the strait just south of the town. ## Historical Rulers - 654 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Lampsakos") Founded around 654 BCE by Phocaean Greek colonists on the Asian shore of the Hellespont, Lampsakos developed rapidly as a major Greek port controlling the eastern entrance of the strait. Within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Hellespont the polis became famous for its sweet wine, sacred fish, and the cult of the fertility god Priapus, until the Persian conquest of Anatolia after the fall of Lydia in 547 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Lampsakos") Darius I's campaigns brought Lampsakos under Achaemenid Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia. The polis was liberated together with the other Asian Hellespont cities by the Greek allied fleet after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea in 480-479 BCE. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Lampsakos") After its liberation from Persian rule Lampsakos rejoined the wider Hellenic Hellespontic polis network and paid one of the highest annual tributes of any allied city to the Athenian-led Delian League — twelve talents. The polis hosted the exiled philosopher Anaxagoras of Clazomenae after his banishment from Athens, and alternated between Athenian and Spartan alignment through the Peloponnesian and Corinthian Wars until the Macedonian conquest under Philip II in the 340s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Lampsakos") Under Alexander the Great and his Diadochi successor Lysimachus, Lampsakos was nominally Macedonian while retaining its civic institutions as a free Greek polis. The polis was the home of Anaximenes of Lampsacus, Alexander's rhetoric tutor, and the philosopher Epicurus moved here around 310 BCE to found his Epicurean inner circle before relocating to Athens. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Lampsakos") After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Lampsakos passed under nominal Seleucid suzerainty over Asia Minor while preserving its working autonomy as a Greek free city. The polis famously appealed to Rome in 196 BCE against Antiochus III's renewed European campaigns and was placed under Attalid Pergamene control by the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at the Battle of Magnesia. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Lampsakos") After the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE, Lampsakos was incorporated into the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon as part of its Hellespontine possessions. The polis served as a major Aegean-Pontic customs station until the last Attalid king Attalus III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome on his death in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Lampsacus") Attalus III's bequest brought Lampsakos into the Roman provincial system as part of the new province of Asia. Under the Roman Republic the city continued as the principal Asian-side Hellespont customs station until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Lampsacus") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Lampsacus continued as a major Roman Hellespont port and customs station. The city was a Christian bishopric from the second century and remained an active port through the late Roman period until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Lampsakos") Under Eastern Roman administration Lampsakos remained a Byzantine port and metropolitan bishopric on the Asian shore of the Hellespont. The town was contested through the medieval Byzantine wars with Sasanian, Arab, and Bulgarian raids, and remained an active customs station until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1224 AD: Latin Empire (known as "Lampsakos") Following the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204, Lampsakos was incorporated into the Latin Empire's Hellespont possessions. The town was recovered by the Empire of Nicaea under Theodore I Laskaris and John III Doukas Vatatzes in the 1220s during the Nicaean reconquest of Asia Minor. - 1224 AD – 1356 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Lampsakos") After the Nicaean recovery and the Palaiologan restoration of Constantinople in 1261, Lampsakos reverted to the restored Byzantine Empire as a Hellespont customs station. The town progressively declined through the 14th century until the Ottoman crossing at Gelibolu after the 1354 earthquake transferred the Hellespont to Ottoman control. - 1356 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Ottoman forces under Süleyman Pasha and Murad I captured Lampsakos in the mid-14th century during the early Ottoman conquest of the Asian Hellespont, after which the town — Turkified as Lapseki — was incorporated into the Sancak of Biga. Under nearly six centuries of Ottoman rule Lapseki continued as a small fishing port and Asian-side ferry terminal across the Dardanelles to Gelibolu, with mixed Muslim, Greek, and Armenian populations until the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923, Lapseki became a district seat (ilçe) within Çanakkale Province on the Asian shore of the Dardanelles. The town has grown to about 10,000 inhabitants and remains the Asian-side terminus of the busy Lapseki-Gelibolu ferry route, with the 2022 Çanakkale 1915 Bridge — the world's longest mid-span suspension bridge at 2,023 metres — now crossing the strait just south of the town. ## Landmarks - Acropolis of Lampsakos (built 550 BC) The fortified hilltop citadel of Lampsakos on the headland above the Hellespont, occupied from the Archaic period through the Byzantine era with successive fortification phases. Substantial sections of Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine walls survive on the heights above the modern Lapseki harbour. - Sanctuary of Priapus (built 500 BC) The principal cult sanctuary of the fertility god Priapus, son of Aphrodite and Dionysus, whose worship was specifically associated with Lampsakos in the Classical and Hellenistic periods. The sanctuary attracted pilgrims from across the Aegean for the festivals of the Priapeia, and the cult statue and ribald Priapean hymns inspired the surviving Carmina Priapea collection of Latin satirical poetry. - Çanakkale 1915 Bridge (built 2022 AD) A monumental suspension bridge over the Dardanelles completed in 2022, with a main span of 2,023 metres — the longest of any suspension bridge in the world. The bridge links Lapseki on the Asian shore to Sütlüce/Gelibolu on the European shore, replacing the historic ferry crossing and named to commemorate the Ottoman victory of the 1915 Gallipoli Campaign. ## Population History - 654 BC: 1,500 - 400 BC: 8,000 - 300 BC: 15,000 - 1 AD: 18,000 - 500 AD: 12,000 - 1000 AD: 8,000 - 1204 AD: 5,000 - 1356 AD: 3,000 - 1700 AD: 4,000 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 1950 AD: 4,500 - 2000 AD: 8,000 - 2020 AD: 10,000 --- # Letoon, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/letoon Founded: 700 BC Ended: 1400 AD Coordinates: 36.331573683214586, 29.289575828942404 ## Description Letoon was the federal sanctuary of ancient Lycia, a sacred religious complex dedicated to Leto and her divine twins Apollo and Artemis, located about 4 kilometers south of the Lycian capital at Xanthos. The sanctuary contained three temples arranged side by side dedicated to Leto, Apollo, and Artemis, alongside a sacred spring, nymphaeum, and theater, and served as the spiritual heart of the Lycian League. It is best known as the find-spot of the Letoon Trilingual Inscription in Lycian, Greek, and Aramaic, which proved crucial for the decipherment of the Lycian language. Letoon was gradually abandoned through the long Byzantine decline of inland Lycia and silted over by the marshy plain, and today the site is administered jointly with Xanthos as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 546 BC: Lycian Civilization Under the indigenous Lycian polities, Letoon developed as the shared sanctuary of the Lycian cities, anchoring federal worship of Leto, Apollo, and Artemis. The site grew around a sacred spring with early shrines that reflected local Anatolian religious traditions blended with emerging Greek influences through coastal contact. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following the Persian conquest of Lycia under Cyrus the Great, Letoon came under Achaemenid suzerainty administered through local Lycian dynasts and Persian satraps. The sanctuary continued to function as a federal religious center, and the famous Trilingual Inscription was erected here in 337 BCE under the satrap Pixodarus, recording a decree in Lycian, Greek, and Aramaic. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's campaign through Lycia incorporated the region peacefully into the Macedonian Empire, with Letoon retaining its sanctuary function. Greek cultural influence intensified through the Wars of the Diadochi, accelerating the Hellenization of religious practice and inscriptions at the site. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom For most of the 3rd century BCE Lycia and its federal sanctuary were held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt, who used the Lycian harbors as the eastern flank of their thalassocracy. Under Ptolemaic patronage Letoon received new monumental construction in Greek architectural form over the earlier Lycian shrines, while continuing to host federal cult activity for the Lycian cities. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Following Antiochus III's western campaign, Lycia and Letoon passed briefly into the Seleucid sphere. The interlude was short-lived: after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned Lycia to the island republic of Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome to Rhodes at the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE, Letoon and the surrounding Lycian cities were administered from Rhodes for the next two decades, paying tribute and accepting Rhodian magistrates while retaining their civic and federal cult institutions. Rhodian rule was deeply resented across Lycia and ended in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power in retaliation for Rhodian neutrality during the Third Macedonian War. - 167 BC – 43 AD: Lycian League Following Roman recognition of Lycian autonomy in 167 BCE the cities constituted themselves as the Lycian League and Letoon served as the central federal sanctuary where the League gathered for shared cult and political deliberation. The great Ionic and Doric temples to Leto, Apollo, and Artemis took their classical form during this period of federal prosperity. - 43 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Emperor Claudius incorporated Lycia as a Roman province in 43 CE, later combined with Pamphylia under Vespasian. Letoon retained its role as the religious heart of the Lycian community under Roman protection, receiving imperial patronage, theater renovations, and continued festival activity into the broader Greco-Roman cult network of Asia Minor. - 395 AD – 1400 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Letoon was gradually Christianized, with the Temple of Leto repurposed as a basilica and the pagan sanctuary's role fading as the surrounding Lycian settlements reorganized around new ecclesiastical centers. Through the Arab naval raids of the 7th-9th centuries and the long contraction of inland Lycia the site lost its remaining inhabitants, and as Seljuk and Turkish beyliks absorbed the surrounding region the ruins were silted over by the marshy plain and finally abandoned. ## Landmarks - Letoon Trilingual Inscription (built 337 BC) Found near the Temple of Apollo, the Letoon Trilingual Inscription of 337 BCE records a decree in Lycian, Greek, and Aramaic, issued under the Persian satrap Pixodarus. It was crucial for the decipherment of the Lycian language and remains the most important single document for the multicultural governance of Achaemenid southwestern Anatolia. - Temple of Leto (built 300 BC) The Temple of Leto, the largest at Letoon, was built in the 3rd century BCE over an earlier Lycian shrine on a raised Ionic platform and housed the cult statue of Leto. Flooding from the sacred spring beside it gave the temple its symbolic character, and it was later converted into a Byzantine basilica reflecting the site's long religious continuity. ## Population History - 700 BC: 100 - 500 BC: 200 - 300 BC: 400 - 0 AD: 600 - 200 AD: 800 - 400 AD: 500 - 600 AD: 300 - 800 AD: 150 - 1000 AD: 50 - 1400 AD: null --- # Magnesia ad Maeandrum, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/magnesia-ad-maeandrum Founded: 800 BC Ended: 1200 AD Coordinates: 37.8597, 27.5278 ## Description Magnesia ad Maeandrum was a major Greek city of Ionia situated on a tributary of the Maeander river near modern Tekin village in the Germencik district of Aydın Province. The city was founded around the eighth century BCE by Aeolian and Thessalian Magnetes alongside Cretan settlers, destroyed by Cimmerian invasion sometime between 726 and 660 BCE, and refounded shortly thereafter by Milesian and Ephesian colonists. The Persian king Artaxerxes I granted Magnesia to the exiled Athenian statesman Themistocles as his personal residence in the 460s BCE, where he lived out his life and was buried. Hermogenes of Priene rebuilt the colossal Temple of Artemis Leukophryene around 200 BCE as the fourth largest Ionic temple of Asia Minor after Ephesus, Didyma, and Sardis, with the Magnesian Decrees inscribed on its outer walls. The city continued through the Pergamene, Roman, and Byzantine centuries before progressive abandonment by the thirteenth century as the Maeander valley silted around the ancient harbor. ## Historical Rulers - 800 BC – 546 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Magnesia") Magnesia was founded around 800 BCE by Aeolian and Thessalian Magnetes alongside Cretan settlers on a tributary of the Maeander, and developed through the Archaic period as a substantial Ionian polity outside the formal Ionian dodecapolis. The city was destroyed by Cimmerian invasion sometime between 726 and 660 BCE and refounded shortly thereafter by Milesian and Ephesian colonists. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Magnesia") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE Magnesia came under Achaemenid suzerainty as part of the satrapy of Sardis. The Persian king Artaxerxes I granted Magnesia to the exiled Athenian statesman Themistocles as his personal residence in the 460s BCE, where he lived out his life and was buried. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Magnesia") Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE incorporated Magnesia into the Macedonian Empire. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Magnesia") Through the third and early second centuries BCE Magnesia was held by the Seleucid Empire as part of western Anatolia. The architect Hermogenes of Priene rebuilt the colossal Temple of Artemis Leukophryene around 200 BCE on a new monumental scale, with the famous Magnesian Decrees inscribed on its outer walls. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Magnesia") Following the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE Magnesia passed under Pergamene control alongside the rest of western Anatolia. The Attalid bequest of 133 BCE brought the city into the Roman provincial system. - 133 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under Roman provincial administration from 133 BCE Magnesia continued as a substantial city of the province of Asia, distinguished by the late Latin epithet ad Maeandrum (on the Maeander) to differentiate it from Magnesia ad Sipylum near Manisa. The city achieved its monumental peak under the Antonines with continued temple, agora, theater, and stadium development. - 395 AD – 1200 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Magnesia") Under Eastern Roman administration Magnesia continued as an episcopal see and substantial town through the early Byzantine centuries, declining markedly after the Arab raids of the seventh to ninth centuries and the progressive silting of the Maeander valley around the ancient harbor. The site was abandoned by the thirteenth century as the population dispersed to Aydın and the surrounding villages. ## Landmarks - Temple of Artemis Leukophryene (built 200 BC) The colossal Temple of Artemis Leukophryene at Magnesia was rebuilt around 200 BCE by the architect Hermogenes of Priene as a pseudodipteral Ionic structure of roughly 41 by 67 meters, the fourth largest Ionic temple of Asia Minor after Ephesus, Didyma, and Sardis. The famous Magnesian Decrees inscribed on its outer walls record the city's diplomatic correspondence with Greek cities accepting the temple's asylia privilege. - Agora (built 150 BC) The colonnaded Hellenistic agora of Magnesia was laid out around the Temple of Artemis Leukophryene as one of the largest planned civic squares of Hellenistic Asia Minor. The complex received continuous monumental additions through the Roman imperial period. - Stadium (built 100 AD) The Roman stadium of Magnesia could seat roughly 30,000 spectators along its long track, one of the largest athletic facilities of Asia Minor. The structure hosted the games of the Magnetes during the festival of Artemis Leukophryene through the imperial centuries. ## Population History - 800 BC: 1,000 - 600 BC: 3,000 - 400 BC: 8,000 - 200 BC: 12,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: null --- # Malatya, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/malatya Founded: 1840 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.3552, 38.3095 ## Description Modern Malatya is a major city in eastern Anatolia, founded in the Aspuzu plain about 8–10 km southwest of the older fortress town of Eski Malatya (modern Battalgazi), itself founded as the Roman Melitene seven kilometers southwest of the much older Bronze and Iron Age mound of Arslantepe (Melid). Modern Malatya is therefore the third in a sequence of three successive Malatya-plain settlements, each established a few kilometers from its predecessor. Aspuzu was historically a vineyard and summer-retreat area used by the residents of Eski Malatya. In the winter of 1838–1839, an Ottoman army under Hafız Paşa wintered in and around Eski Malatya before its defeat at the Battle of Nizip (1839); the disruption and damage caused by this occupation triggered a gradual migration of the population to Aspuzu, which had a milder climate and was less affected by malaria. By the 1850s–1880s the administrative center shifted to the new settlement, which inherited the name 'Malatya'; the older town became known as Eski Malatya and later (1980s) Battalgazi. Modern Malatya is now a regional capital with a population over 600,000. ## Historical Rulers - 1840 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Following the 1838–1839 Ottoman army occupation of Eski Malatya during the war against Mehmet Ali Paşa, the population begins relocating to Aspuzu. The settlement grows organically through the 1840s–1860s and gradually inherits the administrative role and the name 'Malatya' from the older town. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Designated provincial capital of Malatya Province. Major growth driven by agriculture (especially apricots — Malatya produces ~70% of the world's dried apricot supply), industry, and migration from rural Eastern Anatolia. Population reaches ~600,000 by the 21st century. ## Landmarks - Yeni Camii (built 1840 AD) Built shortly after the settlement of Aspuzu began, the Yeni Camii is one of the founding landmarks of modern Malatya. Its construction marked the new town's emergence as a coherent urban center distinct from Eski Malatya. ## Population History - 1840 AD: 5,000 - 1880 AD: 15,000 - 1900 AD: 30,000 - 1950 AD: 50,000 - 2000 AD: 381,081 - 2020 AD: 426,381 - 2025 AD: 600,000 --- # Manavgat, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/manavgat Founded: 1200 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.7867, 31.4431 ## Description Manavgat is a modern city located in Türkiye's Antalya Province, near the Mediterranean coast and the ancient cities of Side and Selge. It is most famous today for the Manavgat River and its picturesque waterfalls. While the immediate area was inhabited in antiquity, especially during the Roman and Byzantine periods, modern Manavgat developed significantly during the Seljuk and Ottoman periods and experienced major urban growth in the 20th century. ## Historical Rulers - 1200 AD – 1307 AD: Seljuk Empire (known as "Manavghad") First settlement bearing the name Manavghad emerges during Seljuk expansion into coastal Pamphylia. Turkmen tribes settle the fertile plain near the Manavgat River, alongside the older Byzantine population of nearby Side. - 1307 AD – 1423 AD: Anatolian Beyliks (known as "Manavghad") Following Seljuk decline, the region falls to the Teke Beylik based in Antalya. Manavghad remains a small agricultural settlement on the trade route between Antalya and Alanya. - 1423 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Annexed by Murad II as part of the absorption of the Teke Beylik. Spelling shifts from Manavghad to modern Manavgat. The town remains a modest kaza (district seat) within the Antalya sanjak for the duration of Ottoman rule. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Designated a district of Antalya Province. Major urban growth from the 1980s onwards driven by Mediterranean tourism — Side's archaeological appeal and the Manavgat Waterfall — and the Oymapınar Dam project (1984). ## Landmarks - Oymapınar Dam (built 1984 AD) Built on the Manavgat River, the Oymapınar Dam plays a major role in energy production, irrigation, and flood control for the area. ## Population History - 1200 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1800 AD: 3,000 - 1900 AD: 5,000 - 1950 AD: 15,000 - 2000 AD: 72,000 - 2020 AD: 240,000 - 2025 AD: 260,000 --- # Manisa, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/manisa Founded: 1300 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.6191, 27.4289 ## Description Manisa, known in antiquity as Magnesia ad Sipylum, is a city at the northern foot of Mount Sipylus (Spil Dağı) in western Anatolia. It is best remembered for the Battle of Magnesia in 190 BCE, in which the Roman Republic and its allies decisively defeated the Seleucid king Antiochus III. Later it became a significant Byzantine center, served as a residence of the Empire of Nicaea at nearby Nymphaion, was the capital of the Beylik of Saruhan, and an important Ottoman sancak where several princes (şehzade) — including the future Süleyman the Magnificent — served as governors. Continuously inhabited at essentially the same site, it is today the capital of Manisa Province. ## Historical Rulers - 1300 BC – 1200 BC: Arzawa (known as "*Mount Sipylus") Mount Sipylus lay within the Arzawa lands of western Anatolia, on the contested frontier between Arzawan polities (Mira, Seha River Land) and the Hittite Empire. The slopes hosted a sacred cult landscape including the Cybele/Mother Goddess rock relief and the rock formation later identified in Greek myth as the Weeping Rock of Niobe; no urban settlement at the historical Magnesia ad Sipylum site is securely attested for this period. - 1200 BC – 547 BC: Lydian Kingdom (known as "Magnesia") From the early Iron Age the area at the foot of Mount Sipylus lay within the Lydian heartland — first under the legendary Heraclid dynasty of Greek tradition and from c. 680 BCE under the historical Mermnad kings centered at nearby Sardis. The town of Magnesia ad Sipylum was traditionally associated with the Magnetes of Thessaly, while the cult landscape on Sipylus retained its Cybele rock relief and the Niobe legend. The Lydian Kingdom ended in 547 BCE with Cyrus the Great's defeat of Croesus. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Magnesia") After Cyrus the Great's defeat of Croesus and the fall of Sardis, the region passed to the Achaemenid Persian Empire and was administered as part of the satrapy of Lydia. - 334 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Magnesia") Following Alexander the Great's victory at the Granicus in 334 BCE, western Anatolia, including the area of Magnesia ad Sipylum, came under Macedonian control. - 301 BC – 190 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Magnesia") After the Battle of Ipsus and the partition of Alexander's empire, the city fell within the Seleucid sphere. In 190 BCE it gave its name to the Battle of Magnesia, in which a Roman army under Lucius Cornelius Scipio, aided by Pergamon, decisively defeated Antiochus III. - 190 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Magnesia") By the Treaty of Apamea (188 BCE) the territory was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon, Rome's ally, and Magnesia ad Sipylum remained an Attalid city until the bequest of Attalus III to Rome. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Magnesia") Following the bequest of the Attalid kingdom to Rome and the organization of the province of Asia, Magnesia ad Sipylum became a Roman provincial city. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Magnesia") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. It suffered severe damage in the earthquake of 17 CE that struck the cities of Asia and was rebuilt with imperial assistance under Tiberius. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Magnesia") With the division of the Roman Empire, the city continued as a Byzantine provincial center in the theme of Thrakesion, retaining its strategic position on the routes between the Aegean coast and the Anatolian interior. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Empire of Nicaea (known as "Magnesia") After the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204, Magnesia became one of the most important cities of the Byzantine successor state, the Empire of Nicaea. The nearby palace at Nymphaion served as a favored imperial residence, and the city housed an imperial mint. - 1261 AD – 1313 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Magnesia") Following the recovery of Constantinople by Michael VIII Palaiologos in 1261, Magnesia returned to the restored Byzantine Empire. In the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries Byzantine control in western Anatolia steadily eroded under Turcoman pressure. - 1313 AD – 1410 AD: Saruhan Beylik The Turcoman lord Saruhan Bey captured the city around 1313 and made it the capital of the Beylik of Saruhan. The Turkish name Manisa, derived from Magnesia, became the standard form, and the beylik developed the city with mosques, madrasas, and other foundations until Ottoman annexation. - 1410 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Incorporated definitively into the Ottoman realm in the early 15th century, Manisa became the center of the sancak of Saruhan. It served as a training ground for Ottoman princes (şehzade), including the future Süleyman the Magnificent, who governed here before ascending the throne in 1520. The city flourished as a center of Ottoman princely culture, with major mosque complexes endowed by valide sultans. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye After the Turkish War of Independence — during which much of the historic city was destroyed by fire in 1922 — Manisa became part of the Republic of Türkiye and the capital of Manisa Province. It was rebuilt in the 20th century and today is a regional center close to İzmir. ## Landmarks - Weeping Rock of Niobe (built 1300 BC) A natural rock formation on Mount Sipylus traditionally identified in Greek myth with Niobe, who was turned to stone after the death of her children. The association is attested in antiquity and the site remained a landmark throughout the city's history. - Cybele/Mother Goddess Rock Relief of Mount Sipylus (built 1200 BC) A weathered rock-cut seated figure on the slopes of Mount Sipylus, generally identified with a Hittite-era depiction of the Mother Goddess and mentioned by ancient authors. It is among the oldest surviving monuments associated with the city. - Sandıkkale (built 300 BC) The fortified acropolis on the slopes of Mount Sipylus above the city, with remains of Hellenistic and Byzantine fortifications. It dominated the ancient and medieval settlement below. - Ulu Camii (built 1366 AD) Built under the Beylik of Saruhan by İshak Bey, the Great Mosque is one of the principal monuments of the Saruhanid period, with a courtyard, prayer hall, and adjacent madrasa forming an early Anatolian Turkish religious complex. - Sultaniye Camii (built 1522 AD) A mosque complex endowed by Ayşe Hafsa Sultan, mother of Süleyman the Magnificent, during the period when her son governed Manisa as şehzade. The associated darüşşifa is traditionally linked to the origin of the local Mesir festival. - Muradiye Mosque (built 1585 AD) An Ottoman mosque complex commissioned by Sultan Murad III, who had served as şehzade in Manisa. It is often associated with the workshop of the chief imperial architect Sinan and includes a madrasa and other dependencies. ## Population History - 1300 BC: 300 - 700 BC: 3,000 - 190 BC: 15,000 - 100 AD: 20,000 - 600 AD: 10,000 - 1250 AD: 15,000 - 1500 AD: 12,000 - 1700 AD: 25,000 - 1900 AD: 40,000 - 1950 AD: 50,000 - 2020 AD: 400,000 --- # Marmara Ereğlisi, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/marmara-ereglisi Founded: 600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.9694, 27.9542 ## Description Marmara Ereğlisi — ancient Perinthos and later Heraclea — is a small port town on the northern Marmara coast of Tekirdağ Province in Turkish Thrace, about 88 km west of Istanbul. Founded around 600 BCE by Samian Greek colonists on a defensible peninsula above the Sea of Marmara, the polis of Perinthos developed as one of the major Aegean and Marmara Greek city-states with extensive trade across the Hellespont. Perinthos heroically resisted the year-long siege of Philip II of Macedon in 340 BCE, holding out alongside its neighbour Byzantion until the Macedonian withdrawal, an episode commemorated by later Greek and Roman writers as a high point of polis resilience. Renamed Heraclea by the Roman emperors of the third century CE, the city served as a major Byzantine naval base and one of the most senior metropolitan ecclesiastical sees of the early Christian church, with the Metropolitan of Heraclea retaining the formal privilege of consecrating the Patriarch of Constantinople into the modern era. After the Fourth Crusade and the brief Latin Empire interlude, Heraclea was captured by Bayezid I in 1391, briefly returned to Byzantine control after the Battle of Ankara in 1402, and finally taken by Mehmed II in 1453 just before his conquest of Constantinople. Under Ottoman rule the town — known as Ereğli — declined to a small fishing village of mixed Greek Orthodox, Armenian, and Muslim population, suffering severe disruption during the 1912-1913 Balkan Wars and the 1922-1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange. Modern Marmara Ereğlisi is a district seat of Tekirdağ Province with around 25,000 inhabitants, expanding rapidly as a residential and industrial extension of the greater Tekirdağ metropolitan area along the western Marmara coast. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Perinthos") Founded around 600 BCE by Samian Greek colonists on a defensible peninsula on the northern Marmara coast, Perinthos rapidly grew into one of the major Greek city-states of the Marmara world. The polis developed extensive maritime trade through the Hellespont and into the Pontic interior, alongside the wider Hellenic colonial network of the Propontis, until the Persian conquest of European Thrace under Darius I around 512 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Perinthos") Darius I incorporated Perinthos and the Thracian Marmara coast into the Achaemenid Empire as a tributary city under the satrapy of Skudra during the Persian campaigns against the European Scythians. The polis was liberated by the Greek allied fleet under Spartan command in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Perinthos") After its liberation from Persian rule Perinthos rejoined the wider Hellenic Propontic polis network and paid tribute to the Athenian-led Delian League through the fifth century BCE. The polis famously resisted the year-long siege of Philip II of Macedon in 340 BCE, holding out alongside Byzantion until the Macedonian withdrawal, before passing under Macedonian suzerainty in the late 340s and 330s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Perinthos") Under Alexander the Great and his immediate successors Perinthos was nominally Macedonian while retaining most of its civic autonomy as a free Greek polis. The polis passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Perinthos") After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Perinthos passed under the formal suzerainty of the Antigonid kingdom of Macedonia while preserving its working autonomy as a Greek free city. The polis continued to mint its own coinage with the distinctive Apollo-and-Quadriga series and served as a major Marmara port at the contested edge of the Antigonid, Seleucid, and Bithynian Hellenistic spheres, until the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Perinthos") After the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE Perinthos passed under nominal Roman authority within the new province of Macedonia, though formal Roman administration of Thrace developed gradually. The polis was firmly drawn into the Roman provincial system during the Third Mithridatic War from 73 BCE and Pompey's eastern settlement of 64 BCE as part of the new province of Bithynia and Pontus, continuing under late-Republican administration until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Heraclea") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued as a major Marmara port and the seat of the koinon of Thrace from the early Empire. The town was renamed Heraclea by the Roman emperors of the third century CE — sometimes attributed to Diocletian — and became the metropolitan capital of the late Roman province of Europa within the Diocese of Thrace, until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Heraclea") Under the Eastern Roman administration Heraclea served as one of the principal Byzantine naval bases on the western Marmara approaches to Constantinople and as one of the most senior metropolitan ecclesiastical sees of the early Christian church. The Metropolitan of Heraclea retained the formal privilege of consecrating the Patriarchs of Constantinople — a memory of the city's pre-Constantinian ecclesiastical primacy in Thrace — until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Latin Empire (known as "Heraclea") Following the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204, Heraclea was incorporated into the Latin Empire's Thracian holdings and assigned to Latin military fief-holders. The town suffered repeated Bulgarian raids during the chaotic Latin period until Michael VIII Palaiologos's Nicaean general Alexios Strategopoulos retook Constantinople and the surrounding Thracian towns in 1261. - 1261 AD – 1391 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Heraclea") After Michael VIII Palaiologos's restoration of Byzantine Constantinople in 1261, Heraclea reverted to the restored empire as one of its principal Marmara fortress ports. The town remained under Palaiologan administration until its capture by the Ottoman sultan Bayezid I in 1391 during the Ottoman encirclement of the Byzantine capital. - 1391 AD – 1402 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ereğli") Bayezid I captured Heraclea in 1391 and incorporated the town into the Ottoman state, renaming it Ereğli in Turkish. Bayezid's catastrophic defeat by Timur at the Battle of Ankara in July 1402 triggered the Ottoman interregnum and the partial Byzantine recovery of Marmara territory under the 1403 Treaty of Gallipoli. - 1402 AD – 1453 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Heraclea") Under the 1403 Treaty of Gallipoli, Süleyman Çelebi returned Heraclea together with Thessalonica and other coastal cities to the recovering Byzantine Empire of Manuel II Palaiologos. Heraclea served once more as a Palaiologan fortress port until Sultan Mehmed II captured it on his march to Constantinople in 1453, just before the final siege of the imperial capital. - 1453 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ereğli") Mehmed II's final capture of Ereğli in 1453 was completed just before the fall of Constantinople, and the town was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire as a small kaza of the Vilayet of Edirne. Under four and a half centuries of Ottoman rule the town remained a small fishing and farming village of mixed Greek Orthodox, Armenian, and Muslim population, suffering significant disruption during the 1912-1913 Balkan Wars and the 1922-1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923 the town's name was standardized as Marmara Ereğlisi in modern Turkish, distinguishing it from the Black Sea Ereğli (Karadeniz Ereğli). Since the late 20th century the town has expanded rapidly as a residential and industrial extension of the greater Tekirdağ metropolitan area along the western Marmara coast, with around 25,000 inhabitants in the district centre and substantial seasonal summer population. ## Landmarks - Acropolis Hill of Perinthos (built 600 BC) The natural defensive headland that anchored the ancient city, occupied continuously from the Samian foundation through the late-Byzantine period. The acropolis preserves traces of an archaic sanctuary of Apollo, a Roman temple complex, and the medieval ecclesiastical buildings of the metropolitan see of Heraclea. - Walls of Perinthos (built 550 BC) The Archaic and Classical Greek fortifications of the Perinthian peninsula, rebuilt and expanded across the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods. The famous walls successfully withstood the year-long siege of Philip II of Macedon in 340 BCE; substantial sections of late-Roman and early-Byzantine masonry survive along the southern and eastern shore of the peninsula. - Roman Theatre of Heraclea (built 100 AD) The substantial Roman-era theatre of Heraclea Perinthos, surveyed by 19th and 20th-century archaeologists but largely buried under modern construction. Surviving sections of the cavea and stage building are visible at the southwestern foot of the acropolis hill. - Heraclea Aqueduct (built 200 AD) The Roman aqueduct of Heraclea Perinthos, built to bring water from the surrounding hills into the imperial-era city and substantially repaired under the Byzantine emperors. Portions of the arched stone structure survive in the rural landscape east of the modern town. ## Population History - 600 BC: 1,500 - 400 BC: 6,000 - 340 BC: 8,000 - 100 BC: 10,000 - 1 AD: 15,000 - 300 AD: 20,000 - 500 AD: 18,000 - 1000 AD: 15,000 - 1204 AD: 8,000 - 1391 AD: 5,000 - 1453 AD: 3,000 - 1700 AD: 4,000 - 1900 AD: 6,000 - 1923 AD: 4,000 - 1950 AD: 5,000 - 2000 AD: 15,000 - 2020 AD: 25,000 --- # Marmaris, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/marmaris Founded: 600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.8516, 28.2756 ## Description Marmaris occupies the natural harbor of ancient Physkos on the Carian coast of southwestern Anatolia, at the head of a sheltered bay between the Bozburun and Datça peninsulas. The site was a minor Carian port whose name appears in Greek geographers from the sixth century BCE, with acropolis fortifications surviving on Asar Tepe just north of the modern town center. Physkos served as a station on the maritime route between Rhodes and Caria and from the Hellenistic period was absorbed into the Rhodian Peraea, the mainland territory administered by the island polity of Rhodes. After Rome ended Rhodian rule over Caria in 167 BCE the city continued as a modest Greco-Roman harbor town and later as a Byzantine settlement subject to the Arab naval raids of the seventh to ninth centuries. The Beylik of Menteşe absorbed the region in the late thirteenth century, and after a contested fifteenth century the town was definitively incorporated into the Ottoman Empire by Murad II in 1424. Marmaris Castle in its current form was rebuilt in 1522 by Suleiman the Magnificent as a staging point for the Ottoman siege of Rhodes, with the adjoining Hafsa Sultan Caravanserai built in the same year. Today the ancient acropolis at Asar Tepe is largely unexcavated beneath modern Marmaris, while the Ottoman castle houses the Marmaris Archaeology Museum. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 546 BC: Carian Civilization (known as "Physkos") Physkos appears in the Greek geographic tradition from the sixth century BCE as a minor harbor of indigenous Caria, sheltered between the Bozburun and Datça peninsulas on the maritime corridor toward Rhodes. The settlement clustered around the acropolis on Asar Tepe and shared in the broader Carian cultural koine documented at Mylasa and Halikarnassos, though it remained a secondary port without major federal cult function. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Physkos") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, Caria including Physkos passed into the Achaemenid Empire and was administered through local Carian dynasts under Persian satrapal oversight, most prominently the Hekatomnid dynasty based at Mylasa and Halikarnassos. Physkos continued as a minor harbor on the Rhodian sea route, sharing in the gradual Hellenization of Carian elite culture documented during this period. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Physkos") Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE incorporated Caria into the Macedonian Empire, and according to later tradition the small garrison of Physkos abandoned its acropolis without resistance. Through the subsequent Wars of the Diadochi the town passed through the hands of Antigonus Monophthalmus and Lysimachus before the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE redistributed Caria among the Hellenistic successors. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Physkos") Through most of the third century BCE coastal Caria was contested between the Ptolemaic and Seleucid kingdoms, with Ptolemaic naval dominance making Physkos and the adjoining bays effective Ptolemaic harbors for much of the period. Rhodes meanwhile extended its Incorporated Peraea over neighboring communities, and Physkos increasingly oriented itself toward the Rhodian commercial sphere even while remaining nominally under Ptolemaic suzerainty. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Physkos") Antiochus III's western campaign of the late 190s BCE brought Caria including Physkos briefly into the Seleucid Empire. The interlude lasted less than a decade: Roman victory over Antiochus at Magnesia in 190 BCE and the subsequent Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned the entire Carian coast to the island republic of Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea (known as "Physkos") Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Physkos was administered directly from Rhodes alongside the other mainland Carian and Lycian communities, paying tribute and accepting Rhodian magistrates while retaining local civic institutions. The arrangement integrated Physkos fully into the Rhodian commercial network, though it lasted only two decades before Rome curtailed Rhodian power. - 167 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Physkos") After Rome declared the Carian and Lycian cities free of Rhodian rule in 167 BCE in retaliation for Rhodian neutrality during the Third Macedonian War, Physkos passed into the Roman sphere as a free harbor and was eventually incorporated into the province of Asia. The city remained a modest stop on the southwestern Anatolian coast through the Roman imperial centuries, with limited monumental construction reflecting its secondary status compared to neighboring Kaunos and Knidos. - 395 AD – 1284 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Physkos") Under Eastern Roman administration Physkos continued as a small Christian harbor in the theme of Kibyrrhaeotai, but the Arab naval raids of the seventh to ninth centuries devastated the coastal Caria settlements and reduced the town to a fortified refuge. Byzantine recovery in the middle period brought modest stability, but Carian coast remained marginal through the later imperial centuries as Seljuk and Turkmen pressure mounted on inland Anatolia. - 1284 AD – 1391 AD: Menteshe Beylik The Beylik of Menteşe, founded by Menteşe Bey in southwestern Anatolia in the second half of the thirteenth century, absorbed the Carian coast including the harbor of Physkos by the 1280s and refounded it as a Turkish port community. The Menteshe beys built a regional maritime polity famed as one of the earliest Turkish naval states in the Aegean, and the town gradually acquired its modern name from the Turkish form Marmaris. - 1391 AD – 1402 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Bayezid I annexed the Beylik of Menteşe in 1391 during his consolidation of the western Anatolian beyliks, incorporating Marmaris into the Ottoman Empire for the first time. The arrangement proved temporary: Bayezid's defeat at the Battle of Ankara in 1402 by Timur shattered Ottoman authority in western Anatolia and allowed the Menteshe beys to reclaim their lands. - 1402 AD – 1424 AD: Menteshe Beylik After Timur restored the Anatolian beyliks following the Battle of Ankara, the Menteshe beys reasserted control over their former territory including Marmaris through the early fifteenth century. The restoration was short-lived as the recovering Ottoman state under Mehmed I and Murad II progressively reabsorbed the western Anatolian beyliks. - 1424 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Murad II definitively annexed the Beylik of Menteşe in 1424, returning Marmaris to permanent Ottoman administration as part of the Sanjak of Menteşe within the eyalet of Anatolia. The town's most prominent surviving monuments date from Suleiman the Magnificent's 1522 Rhodes campaign, when Marmaris Castle was rebuilt as a forward base and the Hafsa Sultan Caravanserai was endowed in the same year by the sultan's mother. Marmaris remained a quiet Ottoman provincial harbor for the following four centuries, briefly used by Admiral Nelson as a fleet rendezvous in 1798 on the eve of the Battle of the Nile. - 1923 AD – 2026 AD: Republic of Türkiye With the proclamation of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923 Marmaris became a district seat in Muğla Province, retaining its modest harbor-town character into the mid-twentieth century. The Fethiye earthquakes of 1957 damaged the modern town while sparing the Ottoman castle, and from the late twentieth century onward Marmaris developed rapidly into one of the major resort cities of the Turkish Aegean coast while the ancient acropolis at Asar Tepe remains largely unexcavated beneath modern construction. ## Landmarks - Asar Tepe Acropolis (ancient Physkos) (built 500 BC) The acropolis of ancient Physkos sits on the low hill of Asar Tepe just north of the modern town center, with surviving courses of Carian and Hellenistic fortification walls along the summit. The site has never been systematically excavated and is largely overgrown, but surface finds and the visible defensive circuit confirm continuous occupation from the Iron Age Carian period through the Hellenistic Rhodian Peraea. - Marmaris Castle (built 1522 AD) Marmaris Castle was rebuilt in 1522 by Suleiman the Magnificent as a forward staging base for the Ottoman conquest of Hospitaller Rhodes, replacing an earlier Byzantine or beylik-era fortification on the same harbor outcrop. The castle's seven bastions enclose a small inner courtyard, and since 1991 the structure has housed the Marmaris Archaeology Museum displaying finds from the surrounding Carian and Rhodian coast. - Hafsa Sultan Caravanserai (built 1522 AD) The Hafsa Sultan Caravanserai was endowed in 1522 by Ayşe Hafsa Sultan, mother of Suleiman the Magnificent, in connection with the same Rhodes campaign that rebuilt the castle. The two-story stone building in the old bazaar served Ottoman merchants and pilgrims for centuries and survives as the principal surviving Ottoman civil monument of Marmaris. ## Population History - 600 BC: 300 - 300 BC: 800 - 100 BC: 1,500 - 200 AD: 2,000 - 500 AD: 1,200 - 800 AD: 500 - 1200 AD: 400 - 1500 AD: 1,500 - 1800 AD: 3,000 - 1950 AD: 5,000 - 2000 AD: 30,000 - 2025 AD: 95,000 --- # Maşat Höyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/masat-hoyuk Founded: 2000 BC Ended: 1180 BC Coordinates: 40.1484, 35.7622 ## Description Maşat Höyük, identified with the ancient Hittite city of Tappika (also known as Tabigga), is a major Bronze Age archaeological site in north-central Turkey. Initially settled in the Early Bronze Age, it rose to prominence during the Hittite Empire as a fortified provincial capital. It is especially notable for its archive of cuneiform tablets, which document military and administrative communication with the Hittite court. Artifacts such as Mycenaean pottery indicate international connections across the Eastern Mediterranean. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1600 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Maşat Höyük") During the Middle Bronze Age the mound was occupied by local Anatolian communities prior to Hittite political consolidation. Settlement was modest in scale and oriented toward agriculture and regional exchange within north-central Anatolia. - 1600 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Tappika") Under Hittite rule the site became a fortified provincial center known as Tappika (Tabigga), administered on behalf of the central authority at Hattusa. It served as a frontier post against the Kaska peoples to the north and housed an administrative palace and cuneiform archive. The settlement was destroyed around the collapse of the Hittite Empire in the early 12th century BCE. ## Landmarks - Hittite Palace Complex (built 1400 BC) This multi-room complex, located on the upper citadel mound, housed Hittite officials and the site's cuneiform archive. It reflects centralized planning and elite architectural standards. - Cuneiform Tablet Archive (built 1350 BC) More than 200 tablets were discovered at Maşat Höyük, providing insight into Hittite frontier defense and the Kaska conflict. Many are letters to or from Tudhaliya II’s administration. - Late Helladic Pottery Findspot (built 1350 BC) Imported Mycenaean stirrup jars (LHIIIA/B) found in situ show that Maşat Höyük participated in broader regional networks of interaction during the Late Bronze Age. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 500 - 1350 BC: 2,000 - 1180 BC: null --- # Metropolis, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/metropolis Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.4167, 27.4167 ## Description Metropolis, meaning 'City of the Mother Goddess,' was an important ancient settlement in western Anatolia, in the Torbalı district of modern İzmir Province. With origins tracing back to the Neolithic period, the city flourished through Hittite, Mycenaean, Greek, Roman, and Byzantine eras, known for its rich cultural legacy, strategic location, fertile lands, and significant sanctuaries. After Byzantine urban abandonment the same site continued to be inhabited as a small Turkmen and later Ottoman village known as Yeniköy, which today persists as a small modern Turkish settlement of roughly 800 inhabitants beside the surviving ancient theater, baths, and Hellenistic walls. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1500 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Puranda") Early agricultural communities occupied the hill of Metropolis from the Neolithic onward, with traces of small-scale settlement and cult activity associated with the Anatolian Mother Goddess tradition. No contemporary written name survives; the later Hittite-era 'Puranda' is applied retrospectively. - 1500 BC – 1200 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Puranda") Western Anatolia fell within the Hittite sphere of influence during the Late Bronze Age, and the settlement at Metropolis lay in territory the Hittites contested with the Arzawa lands. Local rulers likely paid tribute while retaining autonomy in cult and daily life. - 1200 BC – 800 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Puranda") Following the collapse of Hittite power around 1200 BCE the upper Cayster valley site continued at much-reduced scale through the Greek Dark Age, with sparse post-Mycenaean and Protogeometric material attesting trade contacts between inland Anatolia and the Aegean. The settlement persisted as a small Iron Age community absorbing Aeolian and early Ionian Greek influence until the rise of Lydian power in the upper Cayster around 800 BCE. - 800 BC – 547 BC: Lydian Kingdom (known as "Mētropolis") From the early seventh century BCE the Mermnad kings of Lydia extended their authority over the upper Cayster valley, and Greek Ionian colonists settled the site under Lydian suzerainty. The name Mētropolis derived from the cult of the Mother Goddess (Meter), and the early sanctuaries and civic structures anchored the city in both the Lydian political world and the religious geography of Ionia. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Mētropolis") After Cyrus the Great's defeat of Lydia in 547 BCE, Metropolis and the broader Ionian coast came under Achaemenid Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Lydia. The city retained its Greek civic identity while paying tribute and supplying soldiers to the Persian satrapal administration. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Mētropolis") Alexander's 334 BCE campaign across Anatolia brought Metropolis under Macedonian control, liberating the Ionian poleis from Persian rule. After Alexander's death the region passed through the hands of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Mētropolis") Following Lysimachus's defeat at Corupedium, the city was incorporated into the rising Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. Under Pergamene rule Metropolis saw considerable Hellenistic building activity, including its theater and the Temple of Ares. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Mētropolis") After Attalus III's bequest of the Pergamene Kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE, Metropolis was incorporated into the province of Asia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Mētropolis") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under the Empire the city enjoyed a prosperous provincial existence with bath complexes, public infrastructure, and continued cult activity supported by agriculture in the fertile Cayster valley. - 395 AD – 1308 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Mētropolis") Under the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, Christian institutions gradually replaced the older pagan sanctuaries and a basilica was raised east of the acropolis. The urban settlement contracted over the later Byzantine centuries, with the area briefly held by the Nicaean Empire after the Fourth Crusade and restored under the Palaiologoi, before passing to the Turkmen Aydın Beylik with the collapse of the Sultanate of Rum. - 1308 AD – 1390 AD: Aydın Beylik (known as "Yeniköy") After Byzantine urban abandonment a small Turkmen village known as Yeniköy formed adjacent to the ancient ruins under the Beylik of Aydın, whose Aegean Turkmen lords controlled the Cayster valley from their capitals at Birgi and Ayasoluk. The village reused antique blocks for local construction. - 1390 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Yeniköy") Bayezid I incorporated the Aydın lands into the Ottoman state in 1390, briefly interrupted by the Timurid restoration of the beylik after Ankara in 1402 before Murad II's definitive annexation around 1425. Yeniköy continued as a modest Ottoman village beside the ancient ruins through the long Ottoman centuries. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Yeniköy") Under the Turkish Republic Yeniköy has continued as a small village in the Torbalı district of İzmir Province with roughly 800 inhabitants. Excavations of ancient Metropolis began in 1989 under Recep Meriç of Dokuz Eylül University and have continued under the Sabancı Foundation, uncovering the theater, Hellenistic walls, baths, and a major Byzantine basilica. ## Landmarks - Sanctuary of Meter Gallesia (built 600 BC) Located near the ancient acropolis, the sanctuary hosted rituals devoted to the Anatolian Mother Goddess, representing continuity from prehistoric cult practices. - The Theater of Metropolis (built 200 BC) Built into the natural slope of a hill, it accommodated around 4000 spectators and remains a prominent example of Greek theater design adapted during the Roman period. - Temple of Ares (built 200 BC) An exceptional architectural and religious structure signifying the martial culture during the Hellenistic period in western Anatolia. - Roman Baths (built 100 AD) Ruins of an extensive bath complex with mosaic floors, hypocaust heating systems, and water channels, reflecting Roman urban luxuries. - Byzantine Church Complex (built 600 AD) An early Byzantine basilica, located to the east of the acropolis, served as a center of Christian religious life in the later history of the city. ## Population History - 1500 BC: 3,000 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 400 AD: 6,000 - 1100 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: 200 - 1700 AD: 400 - 1923 AD: 600 - 2020 AD: 800 --- # Milas, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/milas Founded: 700 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.3167, 27.7833 ## Description Milas, ancient Mylasa, is a town of approximately 52,000 inhabitants in Muğla Province occupying the same site as the principal city of inland Caria for over twenty-seven centuries. Mylasa is first attested in the early seventh century BCE under the Carian leader Arselis, ally of Gyges of Lydia, and was the capital of the Carian Hekatomnid satrapal dynasty from Hecatomnus's accession in 391 BCE until his son Mausolus moved the capital to Halicarnassus around 370 BCE. The city retained substantial importance through the Hellenistic and Roman centuries despite being sacked by Quintus Labienus in 40 BCE, and produced the well-preserved Roman tomb of Gümüşkesen built in the second century CE as a simplified copy of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus. Following the Seljuk advance and the founding of the Menteshe Beylik in the late thirteenth century, Mylasa was made the first capital of the new Turkmen polity under Menteshe Bey before the administrative center shifted to nearby Beçin. The Firuz Bey Mosque of 1394 in the lower town and the Beçin Castle five kilometers away preserve the principal medieval monumental architecture of the Menteshe and early Ottoman periods. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 546 BC: Carian Civilization (known as "Mylasa") Mylasa is first attested in the early seventh century BCE under the Carian leader Arselis, an ally of Gyges of Lydia, as the principal city of inland Caria. The city was the seat of the federal cult of Zeus Carios at nearby Labraunda and developed through the Archaic period as the religious and political heart of the Carian polity. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Mylasa") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE Mylasa became the chief city of Caria under Persian satrapal administration, first through the Lygdamid dynasty and from 391 BCE through the Hekatomnid dynasty founded by Hecatomnus. Mausolus inherited the Hekatomnid satrapy in 377 BCE and around 370 BCE moved the Carian capital from Mylasa to Halicarnassus. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Mylasa") Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE incorporated Mylasa into the Macedonian Empire. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Mylasa") Through most of the third century BCE Mylasa was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt. The city continued as a substantial inland Carian polity with the Zeus Carios sanctuary at Labraunda maintained under Ptolemaic patronage. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Mylasa") Antiochus III's western campaign of the late 190s BCE brought Mylasa briefly under Seleucid control. The episode ended with the Treaty of Apamea of 188 BCE that reassigned Caria to Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea (known as "Mylasa") Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Mylasa was administered from Rhodes alongside the other Carian cities for two decades. The arrangement ended in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power. - 167 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Mylasa") After the Roman declaration of Carian freedom in 167 BCE Mylasa passed into the Roman sphere as a free city. The city suffered substantially when sacked by Quintus Labienus in 40 BCE during the Roman civil wars, but recovered through the imperial centuries with the construction of the Gümüşkesen tomb in the second century CE. - 395 AD – 1261 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Mylasa") Under Eastern Roman administration Mylasa continued as an episcopal see and substantial Christian town, with Saint Ephrem documented as bishop in the fifth century. The city declined through the Arab raids of the seventh to ninth centuries and the long Byzantine contraction of inland Caria before the Menteshe conquest. - 1261 AD – 1390 AD: Menteshe Beylik Menteshe Bey captured Mylasa in 1261 and made the city the first capital of the new Menteshe Beylik before the administrative center shifted to nearby Beçin. The Firuz Bey Mosque was endowed at the lower town in 1394 immediately after the Ottoman incorporation as one of the principal Menteshe-era monuments. - 1390 AD – 1402 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Bayezid I annexed the Menteshe Beylik in 1390 during his consolidation of the western Anatolian beyliks. The arrangement proved temporary after Bayezid's defeat at the Battle of Ankara in 1402. - 1402 AD – 1420 AD: Menteshe Beylik Following Timur's restoration of the Anatolian beyliks after the Battle of Ankara, the Menteshe beys reasserted control over Milas through the early fifteenth century. The restoration was short-lived as the recovering Ottoman state progressively reabsorbed the western beyliks. - 1420 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Mehmed I definitively annexed the Menteshe Beylik in 1420, returning Milas to permanent Ottoman administration as part of the Sanjak of Menteşe within the eyalet of Anatolia. The town remained a regional Ottoman center through the following five centuries with a significant Greek Orthodox community until the population exchange of 1923. - 1923 AD – 2026 AD: Republic of Türkiye Under the Republic of Türkiye Milas became a district seat in Muğla Province, with the population exchange following the Greco-Turkish War removing the Greek community. The town has expanded into a regional center of approximately 52,000 inhabitants surrounding the surviving ancient and medieval monuments. ## Landmarks - Gümüşkesen Mausoleum (built 150 AD) The Gümüşkesen is a substantially intact Roman tomb of the second century CE built as a simplified copy of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, with a pyramidal roof on Corinthian columns above a square podium burial chamber. The structure is the principal surviving Roman monument of Mylasa and the most complete tomb of its type anywhere in Anatolia. - Baltalı Kapı (built 150 AD) The Baltalı Kapı (Gate with the Axe) is a well-preserved Roman city gate of the second century CE carrying a relief of a double-headed labrys axe, the sacred symbol of the Carian Zeus Labraundos cult at nearby Labraunda. The gate stands at the eastern entrance to the ancient city. - Beçin Castle (built 1280 AD) Beçin Castle, five kilometers south of Milas, was the administrative seat of the Menteshe Beylik from the late thirteenth century after the capital shifted from Mylasa proper. The fortified complex preserves the Menteshe palace, mosque, medrese, and bath ensemble around the late Byzantine and early Turkish citadel. - Firuz Bey Mosque (built 1394 AD) The Firuz Bey Mosque was built in 1394 by the Ottoman governor Firuz Bey shortly after the first Ottoman annexation of the Menteshe Beylik, in the late Menteshe-early Ottoman architectural transition style of southwestern Anatolia. The single-domed stone structure with marble portico stands in the historic lower town of Milas. ## Population History - 700 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 350 BC: 15,000 - 100 BC: 12,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 400 AD: 10,000 - 800 AD: 5,000 - 1300 AD: 6,000 - 1500 AD: 8,000 - 1700 AD: 10,000 - 1900 AD: 15,000 - 1960 AD: 20,000 - 2025 AD: 52,000 --- # Miletus, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/miletus Founded: 2000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.5303, 27.277 ## Description Miletus was one of the leading Greek poleis of Ionia and a major center of philosophy, trade, and science in the ancient world. Home to the natural philosophers Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes, Miletus founded dozens of colonies around the Black Sea and Mediterranean and gave the world its first systematic urban plan through the architect Hippodamus. The city's harbors silted up over centuries, and through the Sultanate of Rum, Menteshe Beylik, and Ottoman periods it contracted into the small Turkish town of Balat, which continued to be inhabited as the surrounding plain transformed into farmland. The modern village of Balat in Didim district of Aydın Province sits directly amid the ruins, with roughly 500 inhabitants today living alongside the surviving theater, Baths of Faustina, and the Hippodamian street grid that still defines the site. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1450 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Millawanda") An Early to Middle Bronze Age settlement on the Aegean coast with strong Minoan trade contact, attested archaeologically through Minoan pottery, frescoes, and architectural influence. The site appears in later Hittite records as Millawanda, the name by which it would continue to be known into the Late Bronze Age. - 1450 BC – 1100 BC: Mycenaean Civilization (known as "Millawanda") From around 1450 BCE the settlement passed under Mycenaean Greek (Achaean) influence and became a Mycenaean foundation on the Anatolian coast. Hittite records describe Millawanda as a contested town on the western fringe of Anatolia, associated with the Ahhiyawa kingdom usually identified with the Mycenaeans, until the broader Bronze Age collapse around 1100 BCE. - 1100 BC – 1000 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Millawanda") Following the Bronze Age collapse Millawanda was largely depopulated through the early Greek Dark Age, with only sparse sub-Mycenaean and Protogeometric material attesting continued minimal occupation. The site lay largely vacant until the Ionian Greek refoundation of Miletos around 1000 BCE. - 1000 BC – 546 BC: Ionian League (known as "Miletos") Following the collapse of Bronze Age powers, Ionian Greek settlers refounded Miletos which became the leading polis of the Ionian Dodekapolis and met with its sister cities at the Panionion sanctuary on Mount Mycale. The city grew into the dominant maritime power of the Aegean, founding dozens of colonies around the Black Sea and Mediterranean, and produced the first Greek natural philosophers Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes, until the Persian conquest of Lydia and the Ionian coast in 547-546 BCE. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Miletos") After Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia and the Ionian coast in 547-546 BCE, Miletos was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the satrapy of Lydia. Miletus led the Ionian Revolt against Persia from 499 BCE, and was sacked by Achaemenid forces in 494 BCE after the failure of the rebellion; the city was rebuilt on the Hippodamian grid and gradually recovered commercial importance under Persian suzerainty until Alexander's conquest in 334 BCE. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Miletos") Alexander the Great besieged and captured Miletos in 334 BCE, ending Achaemenid control. The city was integrated into the Macedonian sphere and passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Anatolian control consolidated after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Miletos") For most of the 3rd century BCE Miletos was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt, who used the Ionian harbors as the northern flank of their thalassocracy across the eastern Mediterranean. Hellenistic urban patronage continued under Ptolemaic protection. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Miletos") Following Antiochus III's western campaign, Miletos passed briefly into the Seleucid sphere. The interlude was short-lived: after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea reassigned much of southwestern Anatolia to Rhodes. - 188 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After a brief period of Rhodian assignment and a long status as a Roman free city, Miletus was formally incorporated into the province of Asia after the bequest of the Attalid kingdom in 133 BCE. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Roman administration the city retained its civic prosperity and gained monumental construction including expanded baths, the Nymphaeum, and the enlarged theater, although the progressive silting of its harbors gradually eroded its maritime importance. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Miletus continued as a Byzantine town and ecclesiastical center, hosting a metropolitan see. Continued sedimentation of the Meander river left the once-coastal city increasingly inland and accelerated its economic decline, until the Seljuk advance into western Anatolia after Manzikert ended Byzantine rule. - 1071 AD – 1261 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Balat") Following the Seljuk advance into western Anatolia after the Battle of Manzikert, Miletus passed under the Sultanate of Rum and was reduced to a small Turkmen settlement among the ancient ruins. The Turkish name Balat ('palace', from Greek palation) entered use for the contracting town through this period. - 1261 AD – 1424 AD: Menteshe Beylik (known as "Balat") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Caria region passed to the Menteshe Beylik with its capital at Milas. Balat served as the beylik's principal coastal port and naval base, and the İlyas Bey Mosque built in 1404 amid the ancient ruins remains the most prominent monument of the Menteshe period at the site. - 1424 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Balat") After Ottoman annexation of the Menteshe Beylik in 1424, Balat continued as a small Ottoman village within the Aydın Vilayet. The disappearance of the harbour and the agricultural transformation of the surrounding plain reduced the town to a modest farming community living amid the antique ruins, and the village was relocated slightly within the site in the 19th century after malarial flooding. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Balat") Under the Turkish Republic Balat has continued as a small village in the Didim district of Aydın Province with roughly 500 inhabitants. German archaeological excavations at ancient Miletus began under Theodor Wiegand in 1899 and have continued through successive German Archaeological Institute campaigns into the present, with the site administered as a protected zone alongside the inhabited village. ## Landmarks - Hippodamian Street Grid (built 479 BC) After the Persian destruction of 494 BCE, Miletus was rebuilt according to the grid plan of Hippodamus, a native of the city who became known as the 'father of European urban planning'. This orthogonal street layout influenced urban design throughout the ancient Mediterranean. - Theater of Miletus (built 300 BC) Originally built in Hellenistic times and substantially expanded during the Roman period, this massive theater could seat 15,000 spectators. It remains one of the best-preserved structures at the site and a defining monument of the ancient cityscape. - Nymphaeum (built 79 AD) A three-story ornate fountain building supplied by aqueducts, decorated with columns and statues, providing fresh water and architectural spectacle to the city center. - Baths of Faustina (built 164 AD) Built by Marcus Aurelius in honor of his wife Faustina, these extensive bath buildings demonstrate the importance of Roman bathing culture and the city's prosperity during the imperial period. The complex retained substantial standing masonry and sculptural decoration recovered in modern excavations. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 2,000 - 650 BC: 50,000 - 100 AD: 70,000 - 600 AD: 20,000 - 1100 AD: 5,000 - 1300 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1800 AD: 500 - 2020 AD: 500 --- # Myra, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/myra Founded: 1200 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.2552, 29.986 ## Description Myra, on the Andriake plain in modern Antalya Province of southwestern Türkiye, was one of the leading cities of ancient Lycia and is famed for its dramatic rock-cut tombs blending Greek and native Lycian forms and for its association with Saint Nicholas — the original Santa Claus — who served as bishop in the 4th century CE. As one of the six federal capitals of the Lycian League it held three votes in the federal assembly, and under Roman and Byzantine rule it grew into a major Mediterranean port and Christian pilgrimage destination. After Arab raids, earthquakes, the silting of its harbor, and the 1087 Italian removal of Saint Nicholas's relics from his church, the urban city contracted sharply but settlement continued at much-reduced scale through the Sultanate of Rum, Teke Beylik, and Ottoman periods as the small Turkish village of Kale-i Demre. Under the Turkish Republic that village grew into the modern district town of Demre, with roughly 25,000 inhabitants today sitting directly on and around the ancient theater, rock tombs, and the still-standing Byzantine Church of Saint Nicholas, which remains a major pilgrimage destination. ## Historical Rulers - 1200 BC – 546 BC: Lycian Civilization Iron Age Lycian settlement on the Andriake plain emerged after the collapse of the Hittite Empire, possibly descended from the Late Bronze Age Lukka peoples mentioned in Hittite and Egyptian records. The Lycians developed a distinctive culture with their own language and the rock-cut tomb tradition for which Myra later became famous. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following Cyrus the Great's defeat of Lydia, Lycia was absorbed into the Persian Empire and administered through Persian-appointed satraps and local Lycian dynasts. The region retained considerable local autonomy and Myra's rock-cut tomb tradition reached its monumental peak during this period. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great accepted the submission of the Lycian cities without significant resistance during his campaign through Asia Minor. Myra passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Anatolian control consolidated after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom For most of the 3rd century BCE Lycia and Myra were held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt, who used the Lycian harbors as the eastern flank of their thalassocracy. Greek language, civic forms, and koine inscriptions came to dominate Myra under Ptolemaic patronage. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Following Antiochus III's western campaign, Lycia and Myra passed briefly into the Seleucid sphere. The interlude was short-lived: after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned Lycia to the island republic of Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome to Rhodes at the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE, Myra and the surrounding Lycian cities were administered from Rhodes for the next two decades. Rhodian rule was deeply resented and ended in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power in retaliation for Rhodian neutrality during the Third Macedonian War. - 167 BC – 43 AD: Lycian League Following Roman recognition of Lycian autonomy in 167 BCE the cities constituted themselves as the Lycian League, and Myra was one of the six leading cities of the League with three votes in the federal assembly. The city remained a major harbor through the long period of nominal autonomy under Roman protection. - 43 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Emperor Claudius formally annexed Lycia in 43 CE as a Roman province, later combined with Pamphylia under Vespasian. Myra reached its peak as a major port and provincial metropolis of the eastern Mediterranean, with monumental construction of its great theater and harbor installations at Andriake. - 395 AD – 1087 AD: Byzantine Empire Myra became the metropolitan see of Lycia and the seat of Saint Nicholas in the early 4th century, and after his death his cult turned the city into a major Christian pilgrimage destination across the Mediterranean. Saracen Arab naval raids in 808 CE devastated the city and subsequent earthquakes and the silting of the harbor by the Myros river accelerated the decline, until the Seljuk capture under Suleiman ibn Qutalmish in 1087 ended Byzantine rule. - 1087 AD – 1321 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Kale-i Demre") Following the Anatolian Seljuk capture in 1087, Italian merchants from Bari took the relics of Saint Nicholas later the same year, removing the last reason for continued pilgrimage. The urban city contracted sharply within a generation, and a small fortified Turkish village known as Kale-i Demre persisted at the site under the Sultanate of Rum, occupying the area around the ancient theater and the Byzantine Church of Saint Nicholas. - 1321 AD – 1423 AD: Teke Beylik (known as "Kale-i Demre") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Lycian coast passed to the Teke Beylik centered at Antalya. Kale-i Demre continued as a modest rural village under Teke rule, with the antique monuments standing semi-buried among the houses, until Ottoman annexation in the early 15th century. - 1423 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Kale-i Demre") Following the final Ottoman annexation of the Teke Beylik, Kale-i Demre was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system as a small fortified Turkish village. The village name combined the Turkish 'kale' (castle) with 'Demre', a Turkified form of an older local name, and through the long Ottoman period the population remained in the low thousands. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Demre") Under the Turkish Republic the village grew rapidly through twentieth-century expansion of greenhouse agriculture in the Andriake plain and tourism centered on the Church of Saint Nicholas and the rock-cut Lycian tombs. The modern district town was formally renamed from Kale to Demre in 2005 and today has around 25,000 inhabitants sitting directly on the ancient Myra footprint, with the Byzantine basilica restored and the open-air archaeological zone of theater, tombs, and harbor at Andriake maintained by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. ## Landmarks - Myra Rock Tombs (built 400 BC) The rock necropolis of Myra features dozens of elaborate Lycian tombs carved directly into the steep limestone cliffs above the city, dating primarily from the 4th century BCE. The most striking tombs resemble Greek temple façades with columns and pediments yet follow the indigenous Lycian house-tomb tradition, with relief sculptures depicting funeral banquets, mythological scenes, and daily life. Arranged in two main clusters (the river and ocean necropoli), they create an imposing 'city of the dead' overlooking the settlement and demonstrate the Lycian reverence for ancestors and belief in the afterlife. - Church of Saint Nicholas (built 520 AD) Originally constructed in the 6th century CE under Justinian over the burial place of the famous bishop who died around 343 CE, the Church of Saint Nicholas was extensively renovated in 1042 under Emperor Constantine IX Monomachus and Empress Zoe, who added the domed basilica form still visible today. A marble sarcophagus believed to have originally contained the saint's remains stands empty since 1087, when Italian merchants from Bari seized the relics, and remnants of colorful frescoes and mosaics depicting scenes from Nicholas's life survive within the basilica. The church remains a major Mediterranean pilgrimage destination. ## Population History - 1200 BC: 1,000 - 800 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 3,500 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 0 AD: 8,000 - 200 AD: 20,000 - 400 AD: 15,000 - 600 AD: 10,000 - 800 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1100 AD: 500 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1923 AD: 2,000 - 1990 AD: 10,000 - 2020 AD: 25,000 --- # Nerik, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/nerik Founded: 4500 BC Ended: 700 BC Coordinates: 41.2077, 35.4293 ## Description Nerikka (Nerik) was a significant Hittite religious city in northern Anatolia identified with the archaeological mound of Oymaağaç Höyük, 7 kilometers northwest of modern Vezirköprü in Samsun Province on the eastern bank of the Kızılırmak. The site is a long-lived multi-period höyük with stratigraphy reaching back to the Chalcolithic period around 4500 BCE, dedicated under the Hittites to the Storm God of Heaven and serving as a sacred center for the annual purulli spring festival. Though it was destroyed during the Kaska incursions and lost to the Hittites for over a century, King Hattusili III reclaimed and rebuilt the city, restoring its religious primacy until the broader Hittite collapse around 1180 BCE. Reduced Iron Age occupation persisted on the mound through the early first millennium BCE before final abandonment as a settlement, after which the höyük was reused for Roman-period interment burials when the regional center shifted to nearby Neoklaudiopolis (modern Vezirköprü). The modern village of Oymaağaç on the adjacent plain is a separate later settlement. ## Historical Rulers - 4500 BC – 3000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Oymaağaç Höyük") The earliest occupation of the natural travertine outcrop at Oymaağaç Höyük dates to the Chalcolithic period, with small farming communities established by around 4500 BCE. The settlement was modest in scale, organized around early agriculture and limited copper metallurgy on the central Black Sea hinterland. - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Oymaağaç Höyük") In the Early Bronze Age the settlement expanded as part of the wider central-northern Anatolian network. Continued occupation built up the höyük substantially through this long period before the Middle Bronze Age cultural shift toward identifiable Hattian and Hittite spheres. - 2000 BC – 1650 BC: Hattian Civilization Pre-Hittite Anatolian (Hattic) settlement at the site identified with modern Oymaağaç Höyük. The cult of the Storm God of Heaven originates here in the Hattic religious tradition and is later inherited by the Hittites along with the place name. - 1650 BC – 1450 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Nerikka") The Old Hittite Kingdom absorbed the city, adopting both its name (now spelled Nerikka in cuneiform) and its Storm God cult. Nerikka became one of the holiest sites of the Hittite state and the focus of the annual purulli spring festival until Kaska incursions overran the region in the mid-15th century BCE. - 1450 BC – 1300 BC: Kaska (known as "Nerikka") Kaska tribes from the Pontic mountains overran northern Hittite territory, capturing and destroying Nerikka. The Hittite court continued to perform the purulli festival in exile, mourning the loss of the sacred city for over a century. - 1300 BC – 1200 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Nerikka") King Hattusili III recaptures Nerikka around 1265 BCE and rebuilds the Temple of the Storm God, restoring its religious primacy. The city remains active until the general collapse of the Hittite Empire around 1180 BCE. - 1200 BC – 700 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Oymaağaç Höyük") After the Hittite collapse the höyük continued in reduced form through the early Iron Age, attested by pits and material remains that have been a focus of recent German-Turkish excavation. Occupation contracted through the centuries until the site was effectively abandoned as a settlement around the 8th-7th century BCE; the regional center later shifted in classical times to nearby Neoklaudiopolis (modern Vezirköprü), and the höyük itself was reused as a cemetery during the Roman period. ## Landmarks - Temple of the Storm God of Heaven (built 1300 BC) Rebuilt by Hattusili III after reclaiming the city, the temple was dedicated to the Storm God of Heaven. It played a central role in the annual renewal rituals and reinforced the divine legitimacy of the king. ## Population History - 4500 BC: 200 - 3000 BC: 800 - 2000 BC: 2,000 - 1650 BC: 5,000 - 1400 BC: 8,000 - 1300 BC: 10,000 - 1200 BC: 3,000 - 900 BC: 1,000 - 700 BC: null --- # Nevali Çori, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/nevali-cori Founded: 8700 BC Ended: 7500 BC Coordinates: 37.5167, 38.6167 ## Description Nevalı Çori was a Pre-Pottery Neolithic B settlement on a terrace above the Euphrates river in Şanlıurfa Province, dated between roughly 8700 and 7500 BCE and contemporary with the broader Stone Hills (Taş Tepeler) cultural complex of Göbeklitepe and Karahantepe. The site preserved a semisubterranean cult building enclosing thirteen T-shaped limestone pillars up to three meters tall, decorated with carved arms, hands, and animal reliefs, alongside one of the earliest known large-scale anthropomorphic limestone sculptures of the human form. Excavation was conducted as a rescue operation between 1983 and 1991 under Harald Hauptmann of the University of Heidelberg in advance of the construction of the Atatürk Dam. The site was inundated by the damming of the Euphrates in 1993 and is now permanently submerged beneath the Atatürk Reservoir. Together with Göbeklitepe and Karahantepe, Nevalı Çori transformed the modern understanding of monumental ritual architecture in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic, establishing that complex symbolic building predated the full transition to settled agriculture. ## Historical Rulers - 8700 BC – 7500 BC: Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement (known as "*Nevali Çori") Nevalı Çori was occupied during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B period by communities who constructed a semisubterranean cult building enclosing thirteen monumental T-shaped limestone pillars decorated with arms, hands, and animal reliefs, alongside one of the earliest known large-scale anthropomorphic stone sculptures. The settlement participated in the broader Stone Hills (Taş Tepeler) cultural horizon of the upper Euphrates basin that produced Göbeklitepe and Karahantepe, and was abandoned in the cultural transition of the later eighth millennium BCE that ended the regional pattern. ## Landmarks - Cult Building with T-Pillars (built 8500 BC) The principal monument of Nevalı Çori was a roughly square semisubterranean cult building containing thirteen T-shaped limestone pillars up to three meters tall arrayed along the walls and at the center of the chamber. Many pillars carried relief carvings of arms with hands, depicting the stylised body identity of the pillars themselves, and the building was rebuilt at least three times before abandonment. - Anthropomorphic Limestone Sculpture (built 8500 BC) Excavations recovered a large-scale anthropomorphic limestone head and torso from the cult building, one of the earliest substantial human-form sculptures of the ancient Near East. The piece is now housed in the Şanlıurfa Museum and is a principal reference for early Neolithic figurative art. - Domestic House Complexes (built 8500 BC) The settlement contained rectangular multi-room mud-brick houses on terraced stone foundations, with characteristic underfloor channels that may have served for heating, ventilation, or drainage in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B residential pattern. The houses cluster around the cult building and document a developing village-scale community organisation. ## Population History - 8700 BC: 100 - 8200 BC: 300 - 7800 BC: 500 - 7500 BC: null --- # Nikaia, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/nikaia Founded: 316 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.4297, 29.7185 ## Description Nikaia (modern İznik) was a major Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine city on the eastern shore of Lake İznik in northwestern Anatolia, founded as Antigoneia by Antigonus I in 316 BCE and renamed Nikaia by Lysimachus in 301 BCE after his wife. Under the Kingdom of Bithynia and the Roman Empire it served as one of the leading cities of northwestern Asia Minor and hosted the First Council of Nicaea in 325 CE, where the Nicene Creed defining Trinitarian orthodoxy was promulgated. After the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople in 1204, Nikaia became the capital of the Empire of Nicaea — the Byzantine government-in-exile that recovered Constantinople in 1261 and restored the Palaiologan Byzantine state. Ottoman forces under Orhan captured the city in 1331 and it became famous for its distinctive İznik ceramic tile production that decorated mosques across the Ottoman Empire. Today İznik is a small town of around 22,000 in Bursa Province, with the lake-facing walls, the Hagia Sophia of Nikaia, and the surviving Roman gates all standing within the modern urban fabric. ## Historical Rulers - 316 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Antigoneia") Founded by Antigonus I Monophthalmus around 316 BCE as Antigoneia, the city was renamed Nikaia by Lysimachus in 301 BCE after the Battle of Ipsus, in honor of his deceased wife. After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Anatolian control consolidated under the Seleucids and the emerging local kingdom of Bithynia. - 281 BC – 74 BC: Kingdom of Bithynia Nikaia became one of the principal cities of the Kingdom of Bithynia under the Zipoetid and later kings, serving alongside Nicomedia as a royal seat. It minted Bithynian coinage and developed as a major Hellenistic urban center on the rich agricultural plain east of Lake Askania. - 74 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Nicomedes IV bequeathed the Kingdom of Bithynia to Rome in 74 BCE, and Nikaia was incorporated into the new province of Bithynia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Roman rule the city became a major provincial center known for its rectangular street grid, monumental gates, and theater, and hosted the First Council of Nicaea in 325 CE convened by Constantine the Great, which promulgated the Nicene Creed defining Trinitarian orthodoxy. - 395 AD – 1078 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Nikaia remained a leading city of Bithynia and a major Christian center, hosting the Second Council of Nicaea in 787 CE that restored the veneration of icons. The Hagia Sophia of Nikaia served as the metropolitan cathedral until Seljuk forces under Suleiman ibn Qutalmish captured the city in 1078. - 1078 AD – 1097 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "İznik") Nikaia served briefly as the first capital of the Sultanate of Rum under Suleiman ibn Qutalmish and his son Kilij Arslan I, marking the high-water mark of early Seljuk expansion into Byzantine Anatolia. The First Crusade besieged and recaptured the city for the Byzantine Empire in 1097, ending Seljuk rule. - 1097 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire Restored to Byzantine authority by the First Crusade, Nikaia returned to its role as a major Bithynian city and ecclesiastical center under the Komnenian and Angelid dynasties. Its strong walls and defensible lake-side position made it one of the most secure refuges of the late Byzantine state. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Empire of Nicaea After the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople in 1204, Theodore I Laskaris established the Empire of Nicaea here as the principal Byzantine government-in-exile, with Nikaia serving as the imperial capital, patriarchal seat, and refuge of Greek Orthodox culture during the Latin occupation. Under John III Vatatzes and his successors the empire campaigned successfully against the Latin Empire, the Bulgarians, and the Sultanate of Rum, and Michael VIII Palaiologos finally recaptured Constantinople in 1261, ending Nikaia's role as imperial capital. - 1261 AD – 1331 AD: Byzantine Empire Following the restoration of the Byzantine state in Constantinople, Nikaia reverted to provincial status but remained a major fortified city of Bithynia. Ottoman pressure from the early 14th century steadily eroded Byzantine authority in the region until Orhan captured Nikaia after a long siege in 1331. - 1331 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "İznik") After Orhan's capture in 1331, Nikaia was renamed İznik and incorporated into the early Ottoman state, briefly serving as a religious and intellectual center under the Ottomans. From the late 15th to the 17th century İznik became famous for its distinctive ceramic tile production that decorated mosques across the empire, and the town continued as a modest provincial center through the long Ottoman period. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "İznik") Under the Turkish Republic İznik has continued as a small district town in Bursa Province with roughly 22,000 inhabitants. The ancient and medieval walls, the Hagia Sophia of Nikaia (now the İznik Ayasofya Mosque-Museum), the surviving Roman gates, and the Yeşil Camii of 1378 are administered as a continuous heritage zone within the modern urban fabric. ## Landmarks - Lefke Gate (built 78 AD) Triple-arched monumental Roman gate on the eastern wall of the city, built around 78 CE under Vespasian as part of the Roman re-fortification of Nikaia. The triumphal-arch design with three openings between flanking towers remains substantially intact and stands as one of the principal entries into the ancient walled city. - City Walls of Nikaia (built 260 AD) The double line of fortifications around Nikaia preserves Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman construction, with the main walls dating to the late Roman period and extensive Byzantine reinforcement under the Empire of Nicaea. The walls run roughly 4.5 km around the urban core with over 100 surviving towers and four monumental Roman gates, making them one of the most complete sets of urban fortifications surviving anywhere in Anatolia. - Hagia Sophia of Nikaia (built 500 AD) Originally a 6th-century Byzantine basilica that served as the metropolitan cathedral of Nikaia and the site of the Second Council of Nicaea in 787 CE that restored the veneration of icons. Converted into a mosque after the Ottoman conquest in 1331, the building was restored as a mosque-museum in the modern era and retains fragments of its original Byzantine frescoes and mosaic floor. - Yeşil Camii (built 1378 AD) The Green Mosque, built between 1378 and 1391 by the Ottoman vizier Çandarlı Hayreddin Pasha, marks the early Ottoman architectural assimilation of İznik. Its distinctive minaret of green İznik tile gives the mosque its name and signals the beginning of the city's tradition of monumental Ottoman ceramic production. ## Population History - 316 BC: 3,000 - 100 BC: 15,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 325 AD: 35,000 - 600 AD: 25,000 - 1000 AD: 20,000 - 1200 AD: 20,000 - 1250 AD: 40,000 - 1331 AD: 20,000 - 1500 AD: 30,000 - 1700 AD: 15,000 - 1923 AD: 5,000 - 2020 AD: 22,000 --- # Olympos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/olympos Founded: 300 BC Ended: 1500 AD Coordinates: 36.3972, 30.4708 ## Description Olympos was an ancient Lycian coastal city in a secluded valley where the Olympos river meets the Mediterranean, founded around 300 BCE under Ptolemaic Lycia and later one of the six leading cities of the Lycian League with three federal votes. It is best known for the 1st-century BCE episode when the pirate warlord Zenicetus seized the city as a base of the Cilician pirate confederation before being defeated by the Roman proconsul Servilius Vatia in 78 BCE. Intrinsically linked to nearby Mount Chimaera (Yanartaş), where natural gas vents produce eternal flames that inspired the Greek myth of the fire-breathing Chimaera, the site became a center for the cult of Hephaistos. The city declined through Arab naval raids and Byzantine contraction, briefly served as a Genoese trading anchorage, and was finally abandoned around 1500 with the consolidation of Ottoman rule. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom Olympos was founded as a Hellenistic Lycian city around 300 BCE during the long period of Ptolemaic control over Lycia, when the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt used the Lycian harbors as the eastern flank of their thalassocracy. Greek language and civic forms predominated, while the cult of Hephaistos at the nearby Chimaera flames was integrated into the city's religious life. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Following Antiochus III's western campaign, Olympos and the rest of Lycia passed briefly into the Seleucid sphere. The interlude was short-lived: after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned Lycia to the island republic of Rhodes. - 188 BC – 100 BC: Lycian League After a brief and resented period of Rhodian rule, the Lycian cities won Roman recognition of their federal autonomy in 167 BCE and constituted themselves as the Lycian League. Olympos was admitted as a full member and is recorded as one of the six largest cities, holding three votes in the league assembly, with standardized federal coinage and civic prosperity through the 2nd century BCE. - 100 BC – 78 BC: Cilician Pirates In the early 1st century BCE the pirate warlord Zenicetus seized Olympos as a stronghold of the Cilician pirate confederation that controlled much of the southern Anatolian coast. The pirates used the secluded harbor as a base for raiding Mediterranean shipping and actively promoted the cult of Hephaistos at the nearby Chimaera flames, until the Roman proconsul Publius Servilius Vatia stormed the city in 78 BCE during his anti-piracy campaign. - 78 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Following the Roman suppression of piracy Olympos was reintegrated into provincial life, and after Claudius's annexation of Lycia in 43 CE it became part of the province of Lycia et Pamphylia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city flourished as a small but prosperous coastal harbor with monumental architecture including baths, a theater built under Hadrian, and an imperial-cult temple, and Christianity gradually displaced the older pagan cults from the 3rd century onward. - 395 AD – 1207 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Olympos became a Christian episcopal seat under the metropolitan of Myra, and the imperial-cult temple was converted into a basilica. From the mid-7th century onward repeated Arab naval raids and the broader contraction of Anatolian coastal urbanism reduced the city to a small fortified settlement, and Genoese and Venetian merchants briefly used the harbor as a trading anchorage during the late Byzantine period. - 1207 AD – 1321 AD: Sultanate of Rum Following Kaykhusraw I's conquest of the Antalya region in 1207, the Lycian coast passed under the Sultanate of Rum. The urban core of Olympos was effectively abandoned, with only the natural harbor seeing intermittent use, while Genoese-attributed small fortifications were added at the site. - 1321 AD – 1423 AD: Teke Beylik After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Lycian coast passed to the Teke Beylik centered at Antalya. Olympos was no longer maintained as a settlement, and the ruined buildings were gradually overtaken by Mediterranean vegetation. - 1423 AD – 1500 AD: Ottoman Empire Following the final Ottoman annexation of the Teke Beylik, the Olympos valley was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system, but no settlement was re-established at the ancient site. By around 1500 the harbor was abandoned for good and the city ceased to function in any meaningful sense. ## Landmarks - Theater of Olympos (built 100 AD) Built in the 2nd century CE under Hadrian, the Theater of Olympos is set asymmetrically against the narrow valley terrain, with one side resting on the slope and the other supported by massive substructures. The cavea seated roughly 3,000-4,000 spectators and the structure was used for performances, civic events, and religious ceremonies before Byzantine workshops were installed within parts of the building. - Temple-Church Complex (built 300 AD) Originally constructed as a 2nd-century imperial-cult temple, the structure was converted into a Christian basilica in the late 4th century with the addition of an apse, narthex, and mosaic floors that reused earlier columns and foundations. The complex was expanded with side chapels and a baptistery and remained active until at least the 9th century, making it one of the longest-used religious sites in Lycia. ## Population History - 300 BC: 8,000 - 50 BC: 6,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 200 AD: 15,000 - 400 AD: 12,000 - 600 AD: 8,000 - 800 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1300 AD: 1,000 - 1500 AD: null --- # Patara, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/patara Founded: 1500 BC Ended: 1340 AD Coordinates: 36.263, 29.3168 ## Description Patara was one of the major Lycian cities of the southern Anatolian coast, occupying a natural harbor at the mouth of the Xanthos river in modern Antalya Province, and served as the political capital of the Lycian League and the principal commercial port of Lycia. The site is first attested in Hittite cuneiform records under the name Patar, where King Tudhaliya IV is recorded as making offerings to its gods in the late thirteenth century BCE, and continued as an indigenous Lycian polity through the Iron Age and the Persian period. The city surrendered to Alexander the Great in 333 BCE without resistance, and was briefly renamed Arsinoë after his wife by Ptolemy Philadelphus during the early Hellenistic period. Following Antiochus III's recovery of Lycia in 197 BCE, the Roman declaration of Lycian freedom in 167 BCE, and the constitution of the Lycian League, Patara served as the federal capital where the League's archives, treasury, and the Bouleuterion assembly hall stood. The city achieved its Roman peak under the early Empire with monumental construction including Nero's lighthouse of 64 CE — one of the oldest surviving lighthouses of the ancient world — the triple-arched Gate of Modestus, the rebuilt Roman theater of 147 CE under Antoninus Pius, and a 22.5-kilometer aqueduct with an early inverted siphon of marble pipes. Patara is traditionally venerated as the birthplace of Saint Nicholas of Myra around 270 CE, the historical bishop whose cult evolved into the modern figure of Santa Claus. The city declined through the Byzantine centuries as its harbor progressively silted, and after the Sultanate of Rum captured Patara in 1211 the site was abandoned by the mid-fourteenth century, leaving the surviving monuments to be slowly buried under coastal sand dunes. The site has been under continuous archaeological investigation since 1988 by Akdeniz University and is now one of the most extensively excavated Lycian cities, with the Bouleuterion, theater, lighthouse, and gates restored as the centerpiece of the modern open-air archaeological park. ## Historical Rulers - 1500 BC – 546 BC: Lycian Civilization (known as "Patar") Patara is first attested in late Hittite cuneiform records of the thirteenth century BCE under the name Patar, where Tudhaliya IV made offerings to its local gods following his Lukka expedition, and continued as an indigenous Lycian polity through the Iron Age. By the Archaic period Patara was a substantial harbor town with the sanctuary and oracle of Apollo Patareos that ancient sources rated second in importance only to Delphi, and served as the principal port of the broader Xanthos valley. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following the Persian general Harpagos's campaign against Lycia in 540 BCE, Patara came under Achaemenid suzerainty administered through local Lycian dynasts. The city continued as a major Lycian harbor with active commercial and religious life, and the cult of Apollo Patareos drew dedications from across the eastern Mediterranean. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Patara surrendered to Alexander the Great in 333 BCE without resistance during his Lycian campaign, after which the city participated in the Wars of the Diadochi and passed in turn through the hands of Antigonus, Lysimachus, and the early Seleucid claimants before the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom (known as "Arsinoë") For most of the third century BCE Lycia including Patara was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt as the northeastern flank of their maritime empire, with Patara serving as a major Ptolemaic naval station. Ptolemy II Philadelphus enlarged the city around 270 BCE and briefly renamed it Arsinoë after his wife and sister, though the ancient name persisted in popular use and reasserted itself after Ptolemaic rule ended. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Antiochus III's western campaign of the late 190s BCE detached Lycia from the Ptolemaic sphere and brought Patara briefly under Seleucid control. The episode lasted less than a decade: after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at Magnesia in 190 BCE the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned Lycia to Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Patara was administered from Rhodes alongside the other Lycian cities, paying tribute and accepting Rhodian magistrates while retaining its civic institutions. The brief period ended in 167 BCE when Rome declared the Lycian cities free in retaliation for Rhodian neutrality during the Third Macedonian War. - 167 BC – 43 AD: Lycian League Following Roman recognition of Lycian autonomy in 167 BCE, Patara served as the political capital of the Lycian League, housing the federal Bouleuterion assembly hall, the League's archives, and its treasury, while remaining the principal commercial harbor of the federation. The city held the maximum three votes in the federal assembly alongside Xanthos, Pinara, Tlos, Olympos, and Myra. - 43 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Emperor Claudius incorporated Lycia as a Roman province in 43 CE, later combined with Pamphylia under Vespasian, and Patara achieved its monumental peak under the early Empire as the provincial capital. Major construction included Nero's lighthouse of 64 CE, Claudius's 22.5-kilometer aqueduct with its inverted siphon of marble pipes, Vespasian's reconstruction of the same aqueduct after the 68 CE earthquake, Modestus's triple-arched gate around 100 CE, and Antoninus Pius's rebuilding of the theater after the earthquake of 141 CE. Saint Nicholas, later bishop of Myra and the historical figure behind the cult of Santa Claus, was born at Patara around 270 CE. - 395 AD – 1211 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Patara continued as a significant harbor and episcopal see, suffering severely from the Arab naval raids of the seventh to ninth centuries that prompted fortification of the upper city. Through the middle and late Byzantine centuries the harbor progressively silted and the city contracted toward the citadel, until increasing Sultanate of Rum pressure on the southern Anatolian coast culminated in the 1211 capture by Kaykhusraw I. - 1211 AD – 1340 AD: Sultanate of Rum Under the Sultanate of Rum and the subsequent Mongol vassalage Patara declined into a coastal village among the silt-buried Roman ruins, with the harbor effectively closed and trade reorganised around Antalya to the east. The site was abandoned around 1340 as the population dispersed to inland villages, leaving the surviving monuments to be slowly buried under the advancing coastal sand dunes. ## Landmarks - Lycian League Bouleuterion (built 150 BC) The Bouleuterion of the Lycian League at Patara, built in the mid-second century BCE and enlarged under the early Empire, served as the federal assembly hall where the constituent cities held their proportional votes (one, two, or three depending on size). The structure could accommodate roughly 1,400 delegates and is the principal surviving federal-political monument of any Greek league. - Patara Lighthouse (built 64 AD) The Patara Lighthouse, built in 64 CE under Nero on a three-tiered square base rising twenty-six meters, is one of the oldest surviving lighthouses of the ancient world and the best-preserved lighthouse of the Roman East. The structure was buried by the medieval silting that ended the harbor and was rediscovered and partially reconstructed by Akdeniz University excavations from 2005. - Arch of Modestus (built 100 AD) The triple-vaulted triumphal Arch of Modestus, built around 100 CE in honor of the Roman provincial governor Mettius Modestus, formed the monumental northern entrance to the city across the road from the Xanthos valley. The arch carried a busted attic with statues of imperial family members and a dedicatory inscription, and stands restored on its original foundations. - Roman Theater of Patara (built 147 AD) The Roman theater of Patara was rebuilt in 147 CE under Antoninus Pius after the catastrophic earthquake of 141 CE that damaged much of southwestern Anatolia, with a diameter of roughly eighty meters and capacity for approximately 6,000 spectators. The structure overlies an earlier Hellenistic theater and survives substantially complete after its excavation from the coastal sand dunes between 1988 and 2010. ## Population History - 1500 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 3,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 150 BC: 12,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 400 AD: 10,000 - 700 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: 2,000 - 1340 AD: null --- # Perge, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/perge Founded: 1000 BC Ended: 1200 AD Coordinates: 36.9613, 30.86 ## Description Perge was one of the wealthiest cities of ancient Pamphylia, located 15 kilometers east of modern Antalya. Mentioned in Late Bronze Age Hittite records as Parha and re-founded by mixed Anatolian and Aegean populations after the Trojan War, it became famed for its sophisticated grid plan and the central water channel that ran the length of its colonnaded main street. Perge flourished under Roman rule with monumental gates and towers, a theater, stadium, baths, and ornate fountain complexes funded by wealthy benefactors such as Plancia Magna. It is notable as the birthplace of the mathematician Apollonius and as a stop for the apostle Paul, and it remained an important Christian metropolitan see in Pamphylia until its medieval abandonment in favor of nearby Antalya. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 547 BC: Pamphylian Civilization (known as "Parha") Parha emerged in the Pamphylian plain east of the Eurymedon, mentioned in Late Bronze Age Hittite records as a town on the southern periphery of Hittite authority. After the collapse of the Hittite Empire, the area received Aegean migrant populations that blended with the indigenous Anatolian substrate to produce the distinctive Pamphylian Greek dialect, and the settlement developed as one of the autonomous cities of Iron Age Pamphylia. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia, Perge and the wider Pamphylian region were incorporated into the Achaemenid satrapal system. The city retained considerable autonomy in its civic life and continued to develop as a Greek-speaking urban center while paying tribute to the Persian crown. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Perge surrendered peacefully to Alexander the Great during his Anatolian campaign and served as a base of operations as his army moved through Pamphylia. Local guides from the city reportedly helped the Macedonians navigate the region, and Perge passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Anatolian control consolidated under the Seleucids after Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Under the Seleucid kings Perge retained its civic institutions and was extensively rebuilt with Hellenistic urban planning, including its orthogonal grid, monumental gates, and the foundations of public buildings that would later define its Roman appearance. Control of Pamphylia shifted periodically to Ptolemaic Kingdom during the 3rd-century Syrian Wars, before the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE transferred southern Anatolia to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Perge was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon under the Treaty of Apamea, becoming part of the Pergamene sphere across southern Anatolia. Pergamene rule over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Perge was incorporated into the Roman province of Asia and later the province of Pamphylia, reaching its greatest prosperity under the Pax Romana. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Wealthy benefactors such as Plancia Magna funded theaters, baths, colonnaded streets, and fountain complexes, and Christianity arrived early — the apostle Paul is recorded as having visited the city in the 1st century CE. - 395 AD – 1200 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Perge emerged as an important Christian metropolitan see in Pamphylia, with new churches built within the older Roman urban fabric. The city declined steadily from the 7th century onward under pressure from Arab naval raids, the silting of the Cestrus river that had connected it to the sea, and the advance of the Seljuk Turks into southern Anatolia. By the 13th century the inhabitants had largely abandoned the lowland site in favor of nearby Antalya, leaving Perge to fall into ruin. ## Landmarks - Hellenistic-Roman Gates and Towers (built 200 BC) The monumental entrance to Perge features two massive Hellenistic round towers about 13 meters in diameter, flanking a horseshoe-shaped courtyard. Behind the gates stood a Roman-period three-story decorative façade adorned with statues of the city's founders, and a monumental fountain that cascaded water into the central channel of the colonnaded main street. The complex was repeatedly modified across antiquity, blending defensive function with civic spectacle. - Stadium of Perge (built 50 AD) Built in the 1st century CE, Perge's stadium measures 234 by 34 meters and could seat up to 12,000 spectators on a distinctive U-shaped sphendone plan. Thirty rows of stone seats rest on seventy vaulted chambers that doubled as shops and storage, and the northern end was closed by an ornate colonnaded façade. Originally an athletic venue, it was later adapted for gladiatorial contests and animal hunts, and its isolation from later development preserved it remarkably well. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 1,500 - 500 BC: 10,000 - 200 BC: 20,000 - 0 AD: 25,000 - 200 AD: 50,000 - 400 AD: 30,000 - 600 AD: 15,000 - 800 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: null --- # Pessinus, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/pessinus Founded: 400 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.3314, 31.5833 ## Description Pessinus was the principal cult sanctuary of the Mother Goddess Cybele in central Anatolia, situated above the Sakarya river at the modern Ballıhisar village in Eskişehir Province. Archaeological research has demonstrated that the urban sanctuary developed only from around 400 BCE, undermining the earlier scholarly tradition that linked Pessinus to King Midas's eighth-century Phrygian Kingdom. The sanctuary was governed through the Hellenistic centuries as a temple-state under the eunuch Galli priesthood serving the Magna Mater, and the Galatian Tolistobogii tribe held the surrounding territory from their 278 BCE settlement of central Anatolia. In 204 BCE during the Second Punic War Roman authorities transferred the goddess's principal aniconic image — a black meteoritic stone said to have fallen from the sky — from Pessinus to Rome on Sibylline advice, establishing the cult of Cybele at the heart of the Roman religious system. Augustus annexed Galatia in 25 BCE and Pessinus was reorganised as a Greek-style polis with monumental construction of a marble Corinthian Sebasteion temple of the imperial cult under Tiberius, colonnaded streets, and a remarkable canalised waterway through the urban center. Christianity reached the area in the third century CE, the imperial temple was decommissioned around 398 CE, and Pessinus was raised to the metropolitan see of the new province of Galatia Salutaris. An Arab raid destroyed the city in 715 CE, after which Pessinus contracted into a small mountain village that survived as the modest modern community of Ballıhisar through the Seljuk, Ottoman, and Republican periods. Continuous excavations by Ghent University from 1967 to 2008 and by Melbourne University from 2009 have made Pessinus one of the most extensively documented temple cities of central Anatolia. ## Historical Rulers - 400 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Pessinous") The urban sanctuary at Pessinus developed in the late Achaemenid period from around 400 BCE under nominal Persian satrapal authority administered through the satrapy of Greater Phrygia. The sanctuary was already governed by the Galli eunuch priesthood serving the Phrygian Mother Goddess Cybele who would become the central religious focus of the city in subsequent centuries. - 334 BC – 278 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Pessinous") Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE brought Pessinus into the Macedonian Empire without recorded incident. The sanctuary continued to function under Macedonian and early Diadochi authority through the Wars of the Diadochi until the Galatian migration of 278 BCE settled Celtic peoples across central Anatolia. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom (known as "Pessinous") From the Galatian settlement of central Anatolia in 278 BCE, the Tolistobogii tribe controlled the territory around Pessinus while the sanctuary itself continued as an autonomous temple-state under the Galli priesthood. In 204 BCE Roman ambassadors transferred the aniconic black meteoritic image of the goddess from Pessinus to Rome on Sibylline advice, establishing the cult of Magna Mater at the heart of the Roman religious system during the Second Punic War. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Following Augustus's annexation of Galatia in 25 BCE Pessinus was reorganised as a Greek-style polis with substantial monumental construction over the following century, including a marble Corinthian Sebasteion temple of the imperial cult built under Tiberius between 25 and 35 CE, colonnaded streets, a theater, and a remarkable five-hundred-meter canalised waterway through the urban center. The city served as one of the principal cult centers of imperial Anatolia through the early empire. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Pessinous") Under Eastern Roman administration Pessinus became the metropolitan see of the new province of Galatia Salutaris created around 398 CE, with the imperial temple decommissioned and converted into Christian use. An Arab raid destroyed the urban city in 715 CE and the site contracted thereafter into a small fortified village that continued under nominal Byzantine authority through the medieval contraction of central Anatolia until the Seljuk advance after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Ballıhisar") Following the Battle of Manzikert and the Seljuk advance into central Anatolia, the diminished settlement on the former temple hill came under the Sultanate of Rum and was reorganised as the small mountain village of Ballıhisar. The ancient monumental ruins remained visible across the abandoned upper city. - 1308 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ballıhisar") Through the Ottoman centuries Ballıhisar persisted as a small agricultural village under the eyalet of Anatolia, with the ancient temple stones progressively spoliated for village construction. The first western documentation of the site was made by the French traveller Charles Texier in 1834. - 1923 AD – 2026 AD: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Ballıhisar") Under the Republic of Türkiye Ballıhisar became a small village in Sivrihisar district of Eskişehir Province, with continuous archaeological excavation directed by Ghent University from 1967 to 2008 and by the University of Melbourne from 2009. The Sebasteion temple, the colonnaded square, the canalisation system, and the theater have been progressively revealed across the modern village. ## Landmarks - Colonnaded Square and Canalisation (built 1 AD) The urban heart of Roman Pessinus consisted of an elaborate colonnaded quadriporticus square with Hellenistic gymnasium antecedents, paired with a remarkable canalised waterway over 500 meters long and 11 to 13 meters wide that managed the seasonal river flow through the city center. The system represents one of the most ambitious urban water-management projects of Anatolia. - Sebasteion Temple of Cybele and Augustus (built 30 AD) The Sebasteion of Pessinus, a marble Corinthian peripteros temple built under Tiberius between roughly 25 and 35 CE, served as the principal sanctuary of the imperial cult and continued the ancient cult of the Magna Mater Cybele. The temple was designed with mathematical precision on a 0.76-meter modular grid and overlooked a stepped theatrical area combining ritual and gladiatorial functions. - Theater of Pessinus (built 100 AD) The Roman theater of Pessinus was built into the slope of the lower city in the early second century CE with capacity for roughly 6,000 spectators. The structure served both for civic performances and for the gladiatorial games of the imperial cult sanctuary above. ## Population History - 400 BC: 1,000 - 200 BC: 3,000 - 0 AD: 5,000 - 200 AD: 8,000 - 400 AD: 5,000 - 700 AD: 3,000 - 800 AD: 500 - 1200 AD: 600 - 1800 AD: 1,000 - 2025 AD: 700 --- # Pinara, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/pinara Founded: 800 BC Ended: 900 AD Coordinates: 36.4886, 29.2519 ## Description Pinara was a principal city of ancient Lycia situated on a steep round rock formation near modern Minare village in the Fethiye district of Muğla Province. The city was founded as a colony of Xanthos and developed through the Iron Age as a substantial Lycian polity, joining the Lycian League with the maximum three votes in the federal assembly from 167 BCE. Pinara surrendered to Alexander the Great in 334 BCE without resistance and remained a prosperous Greek-speaking city under Ptolemaic, Pergamene, and Roman administration. The cliffs above the city preserve over nine hundred rock-cut house-tombs alongside the elaborate so-called Royal Tomb, the largest cluster of Lycian funerary architecture at any single site. The city was abandoned in the ninth century CE following repeated raids and the broader contraction of Byzantine Lycia. ## Historical Rulers - 800 BC – 546 BC: Lycian Civilization Pinara was founded as a colony of Xanthos in the early Iron Age under the original name Artymnesos, taking its later Lycian name Pinara from Pilleñni meaning round in reference to the distinctive cylindrical rock formation that dominates the site. The city developed through the Archaic period as one of the principal inland Lycian polities. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following the Persian general Harpagos's campaign against Lycia in 540 BCE Pinara came under Achaemenid suzerainty administered through local Lycian dynasts. The city's rock-cut funerary architecture flourished through the fifth and fourth centuries BCE. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Pinara surrendered to Alexander the Great in 334 BCE without resistance during his Lycian campaign. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom Through most of the third century BCE Pinara was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt as part of their Lycian thalassocracy. The city continued as a substantial Hellenistic polity. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Antiochus III's western campaign brought Pinara briefly under Seleucid control until the Treaty of Apamea of 188 BCE reassigned Lycia to Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Pinara was administered from Rhodes for two decades. Rhodian rule ended in 167 BCE when Rome declared the Lycian cities free. - 167 BC – 43 AD: Lycian League Pinara joined the Lycian League at its 167 BCE constitution as one of the six principal cities with the maximum three votes in the federal assembly. The city continued as a substantial Hellenistic-Roman polity in the federal framework. - 43 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under Roman provincial administration from the Claudian annexation of 43 CE, Pinara continued as a regional Lycian city. The earthquakes of 141 and 240 CE were repaired in part through the benefactions of Opramoas of Rhodiapolis. - 395 AD – 900 AD: Byzantine Empire Pinara was Christianized early and produced five documented bishops in the Byzantine episcopal lists. Repeated Arab naval raids on the Lycian coast from the seventh century onward gradually depopulated the city, which lost its inhabitants by the ninth century. ## Landmarks - Rock-cut Tomb Necropolis (built 400 BC) The cliffs above Pinara preserve over nine hundred rock-cut house-tombs carved between the fifth and second centuries BCE, the largest single concentration of Lycian funerary architecture anywhere. The tombs range from simple chambers to elaborate temple-front facades that document the development of Lycian funerary art. - Royal Tomb (built 400 BC) The so-called Royal Tomb at Pinara is an elaborate Lycian rock-cut chamber tomb with a sculpted porch facade carved into the cliff in the fourth century BCE. The interior chamber preserves carved couches and the porch carries city-view reliefs unique among Lycian tombs. - Roman Theater (built 150 AD) The Roman theater of Pinara was carved into the slope below the upper city in the second century CE with capacity for roughly 3,200 spectators. The structure survives in excellent condition due to the early abandonment of the site. ## Population History - 800 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 2,000 - 300 BC: 4,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 400 AD: 4,000 - 700 AD: 1,000 - 900 AD: null --- # Priene, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/priene Founded: 800 BC Ended: 1300 AD Coordinates: 37.6594, 27.2972 ## Description Priene was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League and stands today as one of the most perfect surviving examples of ancient Greek urban planning, built on a steep hillside with a precise grid layout developed in the Hippodamian tradition. The city was deliberately replanned in its present location around 350 BCE after the original coastal site silted up, and its compact orthogonal plan, well-preserved Temple of Athena Polias designed by Pytheos, intact bouleuterion, and Hellenistic theater offer the clearest picture in Anatolia of an ancient Greek polis layout. Though smaller than its Ionian neighbors Ephesus and Miletus, Priene retained its civic institutions and Hellenistic character through Roman and Byzantine rule until the silting of the Maeander plain left it deeply inland and the city was abandoned by the end of the 13th century. ## Historical Rulers - 800 BC – 546 BC: Ionian League (known as "Old Priene") Founded as one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League by Greek settlers along the Aegean coast, Priene functioned as an independent polis with strong maritime and religious ties to its Ionian neighbors and met with them at the Panionion sanctuary on Mount Mycale. The original settlement was located near the mouth of the Maeander river, a site that would eventually become unusable due to heavy silting. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following the fall of Lydia, Priene came under Persian control alongside the other Ionian cities of western Anatolia. The city participated in the failed Ionian Revolt in the early 5th century BCE and continued under Achaemenid suzerainty, paying tribute while retaining a degree of local self-governance. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great liberated Priene from Persian rule during his Anatolian campaign and contributed funds toward the completion of the Temple of Athena Polias, an act commemorated by a dedicatory inscription. The relocated city, replanned on the Hippodamian grid, took shape under Macedonian patronage and passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Under the Seleucid kings Priene retained its civic institutions and continued as a model of Hellenistic urbanism, completing its theater, bouleuterion, agora, and gymnasia. After the Roman defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea reassigned southwestern Anatolia to Pergamon and Rhodes. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Priene was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon under the Treaty of Apamea. Pergamene rule over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Priene was bequeathed to Rome with the rest of the Attalid kingdom and incorporated into the province of Asia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Roman administration the city retained its Hellenistic character with relatively few modifications, gradually losing prominence as Ephesus and Miletus drew commerce away. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire As part of the Eastern Roman Empire, Priene became a small Christian settlement and bishopric, with several churches built within and over older structures. Continued silting of the Maeander plain left the city far inland and economically marginal. - 1071 AD – 1261 AD: Sultanate of Rum Following the Seljuk advance into western Anatolia after Manzikert, the inland Priene area passed under nominal Sultanate of Rum authority. The contracting Christian community persisted on the hillside site with little new construction as the surrounding plain became insecure and increasingly marshy. - 1261 AD – 1300 AD: Menteshe Beylik After the dissolution of Seljuk authority the Caria region passed to the Menteshe Beylik. Priene was no longer maintained as a settlement under Menteshe rule, and by the end of the 13th century the inhabitants had abandoned the hillside site as the silted Maeander plain became unsustainable. ## Landmarks - Hippodamian Grid System (built 350 BC) The entire city was laid out on the Hippodamian grid, with streets running at right angles to create regular city blocks despite the challenging steep terrain. The rigid geometry produced an urban landscape of terraces with parallel east-west and north-south streets, making Priene the textbook example of Hellenistic urban design. - Temple of Athena Polias (built 340 BC) Designed by the architect Pytheos (who also worked on the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus), this temple represents a refined example of Ionic architecture, with Alexander the Great contributing funds for its completion. Five of its original columns have been re-erected, and its position on a terrace high above the city emphasized its importance in the urban landscape. - Theater (built 300 BC) Built into the hillside, this Hellenistic theater could accommodate approximately 5,000 spectators — nearly the entire citizen population. Unlike many ancient theaters that were substantially modified in Roman times, Priene's theater retains its original Hellenistic design with a horseshoe-shaped cavea, stone throne seats for dignitaries, and a low Greek-style stage building. - Bouleuterion (built 200 BC) This remarkably intact council chamber could seat about 640 citizens of the demos around a central altar and speaker's platform. Its semicircular form and excellent acoustics demonstrate the physical setting of Greek democratic governance. ## Population History - 800 BC: 1,500 - 300 BC: 6,000 - 0 AD: 5,000 - 200 AD: 4,000 - 500 AD: 2,000 - 1000 AD: 500 - 1300 AD: null --- # Sagalassos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/sagalassos Founded: 1400 BC Ended: 650 AD Coordinates: 37.6781, 30.5194 ## Description Sagalassos was the principal city of ancient Pisidia in the western Taurus mountains of southwestern Türkiye, occupying a series of terraces at 1,450-1,700 meters elevation above the modern village of Ağlasun in Burdur Province. The site is first attested in Hittite cuneiform records of the fourteenth century BCE under the name Salawassa and continued through the Iron Age as a principal hilltop polity of the Pisidian highlands. Alexander the Great captured the city by storm in 333 BCE during his Anatolian campaign, after which Sagalassos passed in turn through Macedonian Diadochi, Seleucid, and Pergamene control before the Roman bequest of 133 BCE. Hadrian elevated Sagalassos to the title of First City of Pisidia and made it a center of the imperial cult during the second century CE, prompting the monumental rebuilding of the city under the Antonine emperors with the Antoninus Pius Nymphaeum, the upper agora, an enlarged theater, and the bath complex where a colossal statue of Hadrian was discovered in 2007. The city was devastated by an earthquake in 518 CE, halved by the Justinianic plague of 541-543, and abandoned after a final earthquake in the middle of the seventh century. Sagalassos is one of the best-preserved Hellenistic and Roman cities of Anatolia precisely because of its abrupt abandonment and its high mountain isolation, with no later occupation overlying the ruins. Continuous archaeological excavation since 1985 under Stephen Mitchell and from 1990 under the long-running Belgian project led by Marc Waelkens has restored the Antoninus Pius Nymphaeum, the Heroon, and substantial portions of the upper agora to their ancient elevations. ## Historical Rulers - 1400 BC – 1200 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Salawassa") The Late Bronze Age occupation of the Sagalassos hilltop is attested in Hittite cuneiform records of the fourteenth and thirteenth centuries BCE under the name Salawassa, identified as a mountain settlement on the southern frontier of the Hittite imperial sphere. The settlement participated in the regional collapse around 1200 BCE that ended Hittite imperial authority. - 1200 BC – 547 BC: Pisidian Civilization Through the Iron Age the site developed as a fortified hilltop polity of the Pisidian highland tribes, sharing in the broader culture of the western Taurus mountains documented at Selge, Termessos, and the other Pisidian centers. The Pisidians remained independent of the Phrygian and Lydian kingdoms to the north and were known in ancient sources for their warlike independence. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, Pisidia was nominally incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire administered through the satrapy of Greater Phrygia, but the highland communities including Sagalassos maintained substantial autonomy throughout the Persian centuries. The Pisidians appear in the ancient sources as quasi-independent mountain confederations paying intermittent tribute to the Persian crown. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great captured Sagalassos by storm in 333 BCE during his Pisidian campaign, in one of the principal mountain engagements of his Anatolian advance, with the Macedonians forcing the upper city after heavy losses. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi under Antigonus and the early Seleucid claimants before the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Under nominal Seleucid suzerainty through the third century BCE, Sagalassos and the surrounding Pisidian highland retained substantial local autonomy with Seleucid garrisons stationed at strategic passes rather than within the highland cities themselves. The Treaty of Apamea of 188 BCE reassigned the Pisidian region to the Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Pergamene rule over Pisidia was largely nominal as the highland cities continued in functional autonomy through the second century BCE. The 133 BCE bequest of the Attalid kingdom to Rome by Attalos III brought Sagalassos into the Roman sphere without significant change to local civic institutions. - 133 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Sagalassus") After the Pergamene bequest of 133 BCE Sagalassos passed into the Roman provincial structure, briefly granted to the client king Amyntas of Galatia in 39 BCE before incorporation into the new province of Galatia in 25 BCE. Hadrian elevated the city to the title of First City of Pisidia (Πρώτη Πισιδίας) and made it a center of the imperial cult in the second century CE, prompting the monumental rebuilding of the urban core under the Antonine emperors with the Antoninus Pius Nymphaeum (160-180 CE), the enlarged theater, the colonnaded streets, and the bath complex where a colossal statue of Hadrian was discovered in 2007. - 395 AD – 650 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Sagalassos continued as a substantial mountain city through the fifth and early sixth centuries with the construction of a major Christian basilica complex on the upper city. A devastating earthquake in 518 CE collapsed much of the monumental city, the Justinianic plague of 541-543 halved the surviving population, and a final earthquake in the middle of the seventh century prompted the complete abandonment of the upper city in favor of the lowland villages at modern Ağlasun. ## Landmarks - Heroon (built 25 BC) The Heroon, a small Doric peripteros monument on a high podium overlooking the lower agora, was built in the late first century BCE as a hero shrine for an unidentified Sagalassian benefactor. The structure was reconstructed by the Belgian team in the late 1990s as one of the first major anastylosis projects on the site. - Apollo Klarios Temple (built 50 AD) The Temple of Apollo Klarios, built on a hillside terrace above the upper agora in the mid-first century CE, served as the principal civic sanctuary of Roman Sagalassos and the seat of the city's imperial cult under the Antonines. The temple was converted into a Christian basilica in the fifth century CE. - Antoninus Pius Nymphaeum (built 170 AD) The Antoninus Pius Nymphaeum, built on the upper agora between approximately 160 and 180 CE, is a monumental water display fountain with a marble facade of niches framed by paired columns rising above a sequence of cascading basins. The structure was restored to its full ancient elevation between 1998 and 2010 by the Belgian excavation team and is the principal Antonine monument of the city. - Roman Theater (built 175 AD) The theater of Sagalassos, carved into the slope above the upper agora and enlarged to its Roman form under the late Antonines, could seat roughly 9,000 spectators. The structure has survived substantially intact under the slope debris of the seventh-century earthquake. ## Population History - 1400 BC: 300 - 1200 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 2,000 - 300 BC: 3,000 - 0 AD: 5,000 - 150 AD: 8,000 - 400 AD: 6,000 - 518 AD: 3,000 - 600 AD: 1,500 - 650 AD: null --- # Samsat, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/samsat Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.5794, 38.4814 ## Description Samsat — ancient Samosata, Hellenistic capital of the Kingdom of Commagene, built on the older Neo-Hittite site of Kummuh — is a small town on the right bank of the Euphrates in Adıyaman Province, southeastern Anatolia. The mound of Samsat Höyük preserved more than five thousand years of continuous occupation from the Chalcolithic onward, becoming the capital of the Iron Age Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Kummuh from around 1100 BCE, then of the Hellenistic Kingdom of Commagene founded by Ptolemaeus around 163 BCE, and finally a Roman metropolis of Syria after Vespasian's annexation in 72 CE. As the birthplace of the satirist Lucian and the seat of patriarchs of the Syriac and Jacobite churches, late antique Samosata was one of the leading cities of the upper Euphrates frontier. After the Arab conquest of 640 the city — known in Arabic as Sumaysat — remained an important caliphal frontier post, and following the Byzantine reconquest under Nikephoros II Phokas it passed through Seljuk, Crusader, Zengid, Ayyubid, Mongol, Mamluk and Dulkadirid hands before Ottoman annexation in 1516. In 1989 the entire Samsat Höyük and the original town were submerged by the rising waters of the Atatürk Dam reservoir on the Euphrates, and the inhabitants were resettled to a new town nearby. The flooded mound is one of the most significant lost archaeological sites in modern Türkiye; salvage excavations under Nimet Özgüç in the late 1970s and 1980s recovered substantial remains of the Hellenistic Commagenian palace before the inundation. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Chalcolithic Settlement (known as "*Samsat Höyük") The earliest documented occupation at Samsat Höyük dates to the Late Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, with material recovered from the deepest excavated levels by the salvage missions of the late 1970s and 1980s before the site was submerged. The settlement participated in the wider upper Euphrates Bronze Age cultural networks linking Anatolia and northern Syria. - 2000 BC – 1600 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Samsat Höyük") Through the Middle Bronze Age the mound continued as a significant settlement on the upper Euphrates, within the broader cultural sphere of northern Syria and southeastern Anatolia. - 1600 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Samsat Höyük") During the Late Bronze Age the upper Euphrates region was incorporated into the Hittite Empire as part of its southeastern dominion. The mound continued in reduced form within the Hittite cultural orbit until the systemic Late Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1100 BC – 708 BC: Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Kummuh (known as "Kummuh") After the Hittite collapse the settlement re-emerged as the capital of the Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Kummuh, a Luwian-speaking successor state of the eastern Taurus and upper Euphrates region. The kingdom maintained dynastic continuity through the 9th–8th centuries BCE under successive Neo-Assyrian vassal kings until Sargon II annexed Kummuh outright in 708 BCE after the revolt of King Mutallu. - 708 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Kummuhu") Following Sargon II's annexation in 708 BCE, the kingdom was converted into the Assyrian province of Kummuhu, with the former capital serving as a regional administrative centre on the upper Euphrates. The town remained under Assyrian control until the collapse of the empire at the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Kummuhu") After the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire the upper Euphrates region passed under Neo-Babylonian control as part of the redistributed Assyrian territories, with the former Kummuhu province continuing as a regional Babylonian administrative district. - 539 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Kummuhu") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE brought the territory under Achaemenid Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Across-the-River. The mound continued as a regional centre under Persian administration. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Kummuhu") Alexander the Great's conquest brought the upper Euphrates region into the Macedonian sphere, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Seleucid consolidation following the Battle of Corupedium. - 281 BC – 163 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Samosata") Under the early Seleucid kings the settlement was refounded as Samosata, a Hellenised toponym preserving the ancient Kummuh in altered form. The town was raised to a major regional centre by the early 3rd century BCE under Sames I of Sophene, before passing under Seleucid suzerainty proper. The Seleucid hold weakened during the 2nd century BCE until the local Orontid satrap Ptolemaeus declared independence in 163 BCE. - 163 BC – 72 AD: Kingdom of Commagene (known as "Samosata") Samosata served as the royal capital of the independent Kingdom of Commagene from its foundation around 163 BCE under Ptolemaeus, through the cultural peak under Antiochus I Theos (r. 70–38 BCE) and his celebrated monumental hierothesion on Mount Nemrut, until Vespasian formally annexed the kingdom in 72 CE following the deposition of King Antiochus IV. The Hellenistic-Persian syncretic culture of the Commagenian court — combining Iranian Achaemenid, Macedonian Hellenistic, and local Anatolian elements — produced one of the most distinctive royal cultures of the late Hellenistic east. - 72 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Samosata") Vespasian's annexation in 72 CE incorporated Samosata into the Roman province of Syria as the metropolis of Commagene and a major Euphrates frontier base, with Legio XVI Flavia Firma stationed there. The city gained colonial status under Hadrian and remained an important commercial and military centre through the imperial period. Samosata was the birthplace of the celebrated 2nd-century satirist Lucian, and produced a distinctive Christian community whose Syriac and Greek heritage marked the late antique town. - 395 AD – 640 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Samosata") Under Eastern Roman administration Samosata remained a major Euphrates frontier city and Christian metropolitan see, with substantial Greek-speaking and Syriac-speaking populations and a major theological school. The city was contested through the Roman-Sasanian wars and was repeatedly damaged before the Arab conquest of the upper Euphrates region. - 640 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Sumaysat") Captured by Arab forces in 640 during the Muslim conquest of the Levant, Samosata — arabicised as Sumaysat — was incorporated into the Rashidun Jazira province as a frontier post facing Byzantine Anatolia. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Sumaysat") Under the Umayyads Sumaysat served as a Thughur frontier fortress on the upper Euphrates, controlling the river crossing and the route into Byzantine Anatolia. The town was repeatedly contested during the Arab–Byzantine wars of the late 7th and early 8th centuries. - 750 AD – 958 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Sumaysat") Under the Abbasids Sumaysat remained one of the principal frontier towns of the Jaziran Thughur, with successive fortifications and Christian–Muslim community accommodations through the long Abbasid period. The town was the seat of the Jacobite Syriac patriarchate at various points during the early Islamic period. - 958 AD – 1085 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Samosata") Byzantine reconquest of the upper Euphrates under John Tzimiskes restored Samosata to imperial control in 958 CE. The city was held through the late 10th and 11th centuries as a major frontier town facing the Hamdanid and later Marwanid emirates of the Jazira, until the Seljuk advance after Manzikert ended Byzantine rule. - 1085 AD – 1098 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Samosata") Seljuk control over Samosata was brief, lasting only some thirteen years between the post-Manzikert advance into the upper Euphrates region and the arrival of the First Crusade. - 1098 AD – 1150 AD: Crusader County of Edessa (known as "Samosata") Captured by Baldwin of Boulogne during the First Crusade in 1098, Samosata was integrated into the Crusader County of Edessa as one of its northern fortresses controlling the Euphrates crossings. The town remained Crusader until the Zengid reconquest of the former county under Nur ad-Din in the mid-12th century. - 1150 AD – 1183 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "Sumaysat") Following the dismemberment of the County of Edessa, Samosata passed under Zengid control as part of Nur ad-Din's consolidation of northern Syria and the Jazira. - 1183 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "Sumaysat") Following Saladin's takeover of the Zengid Aleppo and Jazira possessions, Sumaysat passed into the Ayyubid realm as part of the upper Euphrates territories administered from Aleppo. The town continued in reduced form through the late 12th and early 13th centuries before the Mongol invasion. - 1260 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "Sumaysat") After the Mongol invasion of the Jazira and the destruction of Aleppo in 1260, the upper Euphrates region passed under Ilkhanid suzerainty. Sumaysat continued as a small administrative town through the Mongol period. - 1335 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "Sumaysat") Following the collapse of Ilkhanid authority over the upper Euphrates frontier, Sumaysat passed under Mamluk Egyptian rule, with the local Dulkadirid Turkmen beylik based at Maraş administering the surrounding Adıyaman district as a Mamluk vassal. The town continued in much reduced form through the long Mamluk period. - 1516 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Annexed by Selim I after the conquest of Mamluk Syria in 1516, Samsat was incorporated into the Ottoman Diyarbekir Eyalet as a modest sanjak centre on the Euphrates. The town remained a small provincial settlement through the long Ottoman period, never recovering its earlier metropolitan stature. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic Samsat continued as a small Euphrates-side town in Adıyaman Province. In 1989 the entire town and the Samsat Höyük mound — preserving more than five millennia of continuous occupation — were submerged by the rising waters of the Atatürk Dam reservoir on the Euphrates, with residents evacuated on 5 March 1988 and resettled at a new town site beside the new shoreline. The relocated Samsat suffered severe damage in the 2 March 2017 Samsat earthquake and the 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes, after which much of the town was rebuilt. Population approximately 3,800 in 2022. ## Landmarks - Samsat Höyük (built 3000 BC) The principal archaeological mound of ancient Samosata/Kummuh, occupied continuously from the Late Chalcolithic through the Byzantine period and into the Ottoman era. Salvage excavations under Nimet Özgüç between 1978 and 1989 recovered substantial Hellenistic, Roman, and earlier remains including a Commagenian palatial complex before the entire mound was submerged by the rising Atatürk Dam reservoir in 1989. - Commagenian Palace of Antiochus I (built 60 BC) The royal palace of King Antiochus I Theos of Commagene (r. 70–38 BCE) on the upper terrace of Samsat Höyük, partially excavated before the reservoir flooding. The palace produced significant Hellenistic floor mosaics and architectural fragments now held in the Adıyaman Archaeological Museum, and represents one of the principal lost royal centres of the late Hellenistic east. - Roman City Walls of Samosata (built 100 AD) The Roman fortification circuit of Samosata as a Euphrates frontier base of Legio XVI Flavia Firma, originally constructed in the early imperial period and reinforced through late antiquity. The walls and Roman urban remains were documented in the 1980s salvage excavations before being lost to the reservoir. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 500 - 2000 BC: 1,500 - 1100 BC: 5,000 - 700 BC: 8,000 - 200 BC: 12,000 - 1 AD: 30,000 - 200 AD: 40,000 - 500 AD: 25,000 - 800 AD: 10,000 - 1100 AD: 8,000 - 1400 AD: 3,000 - 1700 AD: 2,000 - 1900 AD: 2,500 - 1985 AD: 5,000 - 2022 AD: 3,800 --- # Samsun, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/samsun Founded: 1500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.2867, 36.3314 ## Description Samsun, historically known as Amisos, is a major city on the Black Sea coast of northern Anatolia. Originally a Late Bronze Age Paphlagonian settlement on the Samsun plain, the site was refounded around 600 BCE as the Ionian Greek colony of Amisos by settlers from Miletus, and grew into a leading Black Sea port. Through Achaemenid, Pontic, Roman, Byzantine, and successive Turkish-Islamic rule the city retained its importance, and is now celebrated as the starting point of the Turkish War of Independence in 1919 when Mustafa Kemal Atatürk landed here. Modern Samsun is the largest city of the central Black Sea coast and the provincial capital of Samsun Province with around 500,000 inhabitants. ## Historical Rulers - 1500 BC – 600 BC: Paphlagonian Civilization (known as "Enete") Late Bronze Age and Iron Age settlement of the indigenous Heneti (Eneti), a Paphlagonian people mentioned by Homer as allies of Troy. Local höyük occupation in the wider Samsun plain (Dündartepe, Tekkeköy) reflects the broader Paphlagonian cultural sphere of the central Black Sea coast. - 600 BC – 546 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Amisos") Ionian Greek colonists from Miletus established the polis of Amisos around 600 BCE, contemporary with their foundation of Sinope. The autonomous Greek polis developed as a major Black Sea trading post within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Pontus, alongside the displaced indigenous Paphlagonian population. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Amisos") Amisos came under Persian rule after Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia, administered as part of the Cappadocian satrapy. The city retained its Greek civic structure and continued maritime trade while paying tribute to satrapal authority. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Amisos") Amisos submitted to Alexander's officers during his Anatolian campaign, marking brief Macedonian rule before the Wars of the Diadochi. Anatolian control consolidated under the new Kingdom of Pontus after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 63 BC: Kingdom of Pontus (known as "Amisos") Amisos was absorbed into the new Kingdom of Pontus founded by Mithridates I and became one of the kingdom's principal cities and a royal residence under Mithridates VI Eupator, who refounded it as 'Eupatoria' for a time. The city flourished as a major Pontic port and minting center until the Roman conquest. - 63 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Amisus") Pompey defeated Mithridates VI and incorporated the Pontic territories into Rome, and Amisus was granted free city status for its strategic and commercial importance. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Amisus") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. It continued as a prosperous Black Sea trading port throughout the imperial period and became an early Christian center. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Amisos") A major Byzantine port on the Black Sea, Amisos served as a naval base and trading hub linking Constantinople with the Caucasus and Crimea. The Seljuk advance into Anatolia after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 ended Byzantine rule on the central Black Sea coast. - 1071 AD – 1174 AD: Danishmendid Beylik After Manzikert, the Turkmen Danishmendids extended their rule along the southern Black Sea coast and incorporated Amisos into their north-central Anatolian beylik. The Turkish form of the name — Samsun — gradually replaced the Greek Amisos during this period. - 1174 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum The Anatolian Seljuks absorbed the Danishmendid domains under Kilij Arslan II and brought Samsun into a unified Anatolian Turkish state. Trade with Genoese and Venetian merchants flourished at the port through the early 13th century until the Mongol victory at Köse Dağ in 1243. - 1243 AD – 1300 AD: Ilkhanate After the Battle of Köse Dağ, the Sultanate of Rum became a Mongol vassal, and Samsun was effectively administered by Ilkhanate-appointed governors and local Seljuk officials. As Ilkhanid authority weakened in the late 13th century, local Turkmen beys carved out independent principalities along the Black Sea coast. - 1300 AD – 1420 AD: Emirate of Canik Local Turkish beys carved out independent principalities — collectively known as the Beyliks of Canik — controlling the central and eastern Black Sea coast through the 14th century. Samsun served as the principal port of this Canik confederation. - 1420 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Bayezid I's earlier campaigns and Murad II's consolidation incorporated the Canik beyliks into the Ottoman state. Samsun developed as a regional port and tobacco production center under the long Ottoman period, growing rapidly in the late 19th century as European steam shipping transformed Black Sea commerce. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Mustafa Kemal landed at Samsun on 19 May 1919, traditionally considered the start of the Turkish War of Independence. Samsun continues as a major Black Sea port and provincial capital of Samsun Province with around 500,000 inhabitants today. ## Landmarks - Amisos Hill and Tumuli (built 500 BC) Located near modern Samsun, this archaeological site features monumental tombs and ruins from the city's ancient Greek and Pontic periods. The richest tumuli contained Hellenistic gold jewelry now in the Samsun Archaeological Museum. - Gazi Museum (built 1902 AD) Originally a hotel built in 1902, this building hosted Mustafa Kemal in May 1919 during his landing at Samsun and now functions as a museum dedicated to his legacy. The preserved interior and exhibits document the opening days of the Turkish War of Independence. - Atatürk Monument (built 1931 AD) A powerful symbol of Turkish independence built by Austrian sculptor Heinrich Krippel, showing Atatürk on horseback. The monument commemorates Atatürk's 1919 landing at Samsun that began the Turkish War of Independence. ## Population History - 1500 BC: 1,000 - 1000 BC: 2,000 - 600 BC: 3,000 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 300 BC: 10,000 - 0 AD: 15,000 - 500 AD: 10,000 - 1300 AD: 8,000 - 1500 AD: 12,000 - 1900 AD: 25,000 - 1950 AD: 70,000 - 2000 AD: 400,000 - 2025 AD: 500,000 --- # Samuha, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/samuha Founded: 1600 BC Ended: 1150 BC Coordinates: 39.6194, 36.5281 ## Description Šamuḫa was a major military, religious, and cultural center of the Hittite Empire, especially prominent during periods of dynastic instability when it served as a royal seat. Though its exact location remains debated among scholars (most often identified with modern Kayalıpınar), it was situated along the upper Kızılırmak river system in north-central Anatolia. Šamuḫa played a critical role in the empire's northern defense strategy against the Kaska peoples and was closely linked to the worship of the Hurrian weather god Teshub, hosting major imperial cult festivals. The city's tablet finds document its strategic and religious functions during the New Kingdom under Tudhaliya III and Suppiluliuma I. Šamuḫa was abandoned along with other major Hittite centers in the broader Late Bronze Age collapse. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1190 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Šamuḫa") Šamuḫa emerged as a regional center within the Hittite Middle Kingdom, integrated into the realm's northern frontier administration with its strategic position near the upper Kızılırmak supporting military operations and Hurrian-influenced cult activity. Under the New Kingdom it rose to imperial prominence as a religious and military stronghold that at times served as a royal seat during dynastic instability, hosting important cult activity tied to Teshub and acting as a staging base for campaigns against the Kaska peoples to the north. - 1190 BC – 1150 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "Šamuḫa") With the collapse of the Hittite Empire around 1190 BCE amid the wider Late Bronze Age crisis, Šamuḫa lost its imperial patronage and administrative role. The site declined rapidly through a brief early Iron Age sparse occupation and was effectively abandoned within a few decades, leaving no successor polity to maintain it. ## Landmarks - Temple of Teshub (built 1400 BC) Texts recovered from Hittite archives suggest the presence of a major temple complex at Šamuḫa dedicated to Teshub, the Hurrian-Hittite weather god, used in royal purification rituals and seasonal festivals. Šamuḫa was considered a spiritual heartland for the Hurrian-Hittite cult system and the focus of important New Kingdom religious reforms. - Royal Garrison Compound (built 1380 BC) Although not fully excavated, both Hittite textual records and partial excavation results indicate the city held a significant Hittite garrison. It served as a forward launching point for Hittite military campaigns against the troublesome Kaska tribes of northern Anatolia. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 2,000 - 1350 BC: 10,000 - 1150 BC: null --- # Şanlıurfa, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/sanliurfa Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.1674, 38.7939 ## Description Şanlıurfa ('Glorious Urfa') is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, located on the upper Mesopotamian frontier of southeastern Türkiye. Revered in Islamic tradition as the birthplace of Abraham, the city features sacred pools filled with carp said to be under divine protection, and it has served as a crucial crossroads between Mesopotamia and Anatolia for over five millennia. Known successively as Urhai, Edessa, al-Ruha, and finally Urfa, the city was the capital of the Kingdom of Osroene under the Abgarid dynasty and is traditionally remembered as one of the earliest political entities to adopt Christianity. Under successive Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Crusader, Zengid, Ayyubid, Mongol, Aq Qoyunlu, and Ottoman administrations, Şanlıurfa remained a major trade and pilgrimage center, and earned its modern honorific 'Şanlı' (Glorious) for its resistance during the Turkish War of Independence. The modern city of around 2.2 million is now the capital of Şanlıurfa Province in southeastern Anatolia. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1500 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Urhai") The settlement on the plain emerged during the Early Bronze Age as part of the cultural sphere shared by upper Mesopotamian populations. Its location near key trade routes between Mesopotamia and Anatolia made it a regional waypoint through the Early and Middle Bronze Ages. - 1500 BC – 1340 BC: Mitanni (known as "Urhai") During the Late Bronze Age, upper Mesopotamia and the Urhai region fell within the Hurrian-led Mitanni Empire. The settlement served as a node within the Mitanni administrative network linking the upper Euphrates to the Khabur basin. - 1340 BC – 911 BC: Middle Assyrian Empire (known as "Urhai") Following Ashur-uballit I's defeat of Mitanni, the area passed into Middle Assyrian control as part of the western frontier of the empire. The settlement continued as a regional administrative center under Assyrian provincial governors. - 911 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Urhai") Under the Neo-Assyrian kings the upper Euphrates region was firmly integrated into the heartland of the empire. The settlement continued as a provincial node until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Urhai") After the fall of Nineveh the region passed into the hands of the Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar II. The settlement remained a commercial node on the route between Mesopotamia and Anatolia. - 539 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Urhai") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE brought the upper Euphrates under Achaemenid Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Across-the-River (Eber-Nari). The city remained an administrative and commercial node in the western marches of the Persian realm. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Edessa") Brought under Macedonian rule during Alexander the Great's campaigns against the Achaemenid Empire, the city was given the Greek name Edessa, after the Macedonian capital. Greek administrative and cultural practices began to shape urban life and Edessa passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Seleucid consolidation after Corupedium. - 281 BC – 132 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Edessa") Under the Seleucid kings the city was refounded as a Hellenistic polis and became one of the leading cities of upper Mesopotamia. Edessa developed Greek-style institutions while retaining its mixed Aramaic-speaking population, until Seleucid authority collapsed and local Arab and Aramean groups asserted independence in the mid-2nd century BCE. - 132 BC – 244 AD: Kingdom of Osroene (known as "Edessa") Edessa became the capital of the small but durable kingdom of Osroene, ruled by the Abgarid dynasty. The kingdom maintained a careful balance between Parthian and Roman power, and Edessa is traditionally remembered as one of the earliest centers where Christianity took root in the political establishment, before being absorbed as a Roman client and eventually annexed in 244 CE. - 244 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Edessa") Fully incorporated into the Roman Empire in the mid-3rd century, Edessa became a frontier metropolis facing the Sasanian Persians. It grew into a major center of Syriac Christianity, theology, and scholarship, famed for its School of Edessa. - 395 AD – 639 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Edessa") Under Eastern Roman administration Edessa continued as a major Christian center on the Persian frontier, with the renowned Syriac school of theology shaping the eastern Christian tradition. The Sasanians sacked the city in 609 before Heraclius briefly restored Byzantine control, until the Arab conquest of upper Mesopotamia in 639. - 639 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "al-Ruha") Captured by Arab armies under Iyad ibn Ghanm in 639, the city was incorporated into the new Islamic provincial system as part of Jazira province and renamed al-Ruha in Arabic. Christian and Muslim communities lived side by side under the new administration. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "al-Ruha") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, al-Ruha continued as an important administrative center in the Jazira province. The city remained a major Christian-Syriac center under Umayyad governors. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "al-Ruha") Under Abbasid rule from Baghdad, al-Ruha was a major node on the frontier with the Byzantine Empire. The city participated in the long Arab-Byzantine border warfare, with periodic Byzantine raids reaching its walls. - 944 AD – 1031 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty (known as "al-Ruha") Under the Shi'a Hamdanid emirs of Aleppo, al-Ruha was integrated into a regional Arab dynasty that resisted both Abbasid central authority and Byzantine encroachment. Sayf al-Dawla and his successors patronized poetry, scholarship, and frontier fortifications. - 1031 AD – 1086 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Edessa") Byzantine forces under George Maniakes reconquered Edessa in 1031 and the city returned to imperial administration after nearly four centuries of Arab rule. The walls were rebuilt and a Byzantine governor administered the city until the Seljuk advance after Manzikert in 1071. - 1086 AD – 1098 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "al-Ruha") Seljuk forces under Tutush captured Edessa from Byzantium in 1086, integrating it briefly into the rising Anatolian Seljuk world. Local Armenian Christian leaders maintained partial autonomy, and the city changed hands among Turkic emirs during the First Crusade's approach. - 1098 AD – 1144 AD: Crusader County of Edessa (known as "Edessa") Seized during the First Crusade by Baldwin of Boulogne, the city became the capital of the County of Edessa, the first of the Crusader states established in the Levant. Its fall to Imad al-Din Zengi in 1144 was a major shock to Latin Christendom and helped prompt the Second Crusade. - 1144 AD – 1183 AD: Zengid Atabegate (known as "al-Ruha") After Zengi's reconquest in 1144, al-Ruha was incorporated into the Zengid dynasty's growing Sunni state. Nur al-Din continued patronage of fortifications and Sunni religious institutions through the mid-12th century. - 1183 AD – 1260 AD: Ayyubid Sultanate (known as "al-Ruha") Saladin's Ayyubid dynasty incorporated al-Ruha into its wider Syrian-Egyptian state. The city continued as a regional market and pilgrimage center, with significant religious building activity under Ayyubid patronage. - 1260 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate (known as "al-Ruha") Following Hulagu Khan's campaigns the city passed under the Mongol Ilkhanate based in Iran. Mongol governors and Persian-trained officials administered the city through the late 13th and early 14th centuries. - 1335 AD – 1410 AD: Jalayirid Sultanate (known as "al-Ruha") After the dissolution of the Ilkhanate in 1335, al-Ruha and the upper Euphrates passed to the Jalayirid Sultanate of Baghdad founded by Hasan Buzurg. The city was repeatedly contested by the Eretnid and Mamluk neighbours during the 14th century, with Mamluk forces briefly holding al-Ruha as the Jalayirid state weakened. - 1410 AD – 1508 AD: Aq Qoyunlu (known as "al-Ruha") The Aq Qoyunlu Turkmen confederation under Qara Yuluq Uthman Beg consolidated control over the upper Euphrates from 1410, displacing the Jalayirids and the Mamluk frontier garrisons. Under Uzun Hasan in the mid-15th century al-Ruha was a major Aq Qoyunlu provincial centre until the early Safavid expansion brought the city under Shah Ismail I. - 1508 AD – 1517 AD: Safavid Iran (known as "al-Ruha") Shah Ismail I incorporated al-Ruha into the new Safavid Empire of Iran for a brief period in the early 16th century. Ottoman expansion under Selim I ended Safavid control in 1517 after the Battle of Marj Dabiq. - 1517 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Urfa") Incorporated into the Ottoman Empire under Selim I following the defeat of the Mamluks, Urfa became a provincial center within the empire's southeastern Anatolian and Mesopotamian holdings. It served as a regional trade hub for caravan routes connecting Aleppo, Mosul, and Diyarbakır until the empire's dissolution after the First World War. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic of Türkiye, the city became part of the new state and was eventually awarded the honorific 'Şanlı' (Glorious) in 1984 in recognition of its role in the Turkish War of Independence. It has since grown rapidly as the capital of Şanlıurfa Province and a major urban center in southeastern Anatolia, with a metropolitan population of around 2.2 million. ## Landmarks - Cave of Abraham (built 1000 BC) A natural cave beneath the Mevlid Halil Mosque believed to be the birthplace of the prophet Abraham (Ibrahim in Islamic tradition). It has been a pilgrimage destination for Muslims for centuries and features a small water source considered to have healing properties. - Urfa Castle (built 300 BC) Originally built in Hellenistic times on a hill overlooking the city, with expansions during Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic periods. Two ancient columns topped with Corinthian capitals (locally known as 'Nimrod's Throne') stand within the citadel, representing some of the oldest standing structures in the city. - Balıklıgöl (built 200 BC) Two pools fed by the spring where Abraham was allegedly thrown into fire by Nimrod and saved when the fire turned to water and logs to fish. The carp in these pools are considered sacred and are not eaten, and the surrounding complex includes the Mosque of Halil-ur-Rahman built by the Ayyubids in 1211. - Great Mosque of Urfa (built 1170 AD) Originally the Cathedral of St. Sophia during Byzantine times, converted to a mosque after Muslim reconquest from the Crusaders. The current structure dates primarily from the Ayyubid and Ottoman periods, featuring a distinctive portico with ancient columns and a square minaret. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 2,000 - 2000 BC: 4,000 - 1000 BC: 8,000 - 500 BC: 15,000 - 132 BC: 25,000 - 100 AD: 50,000 - 244 AD: 65,000 - 361 AD: 75,000 - 500 AD: 100,000 - 622 AD: 50,000 - 1000 AD: 35,000 - 1071 AD: 35,000 - 1100 AD: 41,000 - 1144 AD: 47,000 - 1796 AD: 22,000 - 1800 AD: 22,000 - 1816 AD: 50,000 - 1892 AD: 143,485 - 1927 AD: 203,595 - 2025 AD: 2,237,745 --- # Sapinuwa, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/sapinuwa Founded: 1600 BC Ended: 1071 AD Coordinates: 40.255, 35.236 ## Description Šapinuwa was a significant administrative and religious center of the Hittite Empire, briefly serving as a royal residence and potential alternate capital during the 14th century BCE under Tudhaliya III. Located at modern Ortaköy in Çorum Province about 70 kilometers east of Hattusa, the site housed a major cuneiform tablet archive written in multiple languages including Hittite, Hattic, Hurrian, and Akkadian, documenting diplomatic correspondence, religious texts, and royal administration. Its strategic position on the northern frontier of Hittite-controlled territory facing the Kaska peoples gave it both military and logistical importance until the city was destroyed by fire in the 14th century BCE and largely abandoned. The site was reused as a Roman-period cemetery and continued in minor fashion through the Galatian, Roman, and Byzantine periods, with finds from these phases displayed in the Çorum Museum, before being effectively abandoned at the time of the Seljuk advance after Manzikert; the modern town of Ortaköy on the adjacent plain is a separate later settlement. Excavations by Aygül Süel and Mustafa Süel since 1990 have recovered more than 3,000 tablets and substantial monumental architecture from the imperial Hittite period. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1400 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Šapinuwa") Šapinuwa emerged in the Hittite Middle Kingdom as a fortified provincial center on the northern frontier of Hatti, with administrative and cultic functions. Under the New Kingdom the city flourished as a major royal residence and administrative hub, briefly functioning alongside Hattusa as a seat of imperial power under Tudhaliya III, with excavated tablet archives revealing its role in diplomacy, religious affairs, and military coordination against the Kaska peoples. The city was destroyed by a major fire in the 14th century BCE and was largely abandoned as a settlement thereafter. - 1400 BC – 1180 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Šapinuwa") After the 14th-century BCE fire that destroyed Hittite Šapinuwa, the site was largely abandoned through the Late Bronze Age while the surrounding north-central Anatolian region remained under nominal Hittite imperial authority and pressure from the Kaska tribes. Only scattered occupation continued among the ruined Hittite administrative quarters until the broader Bronze Age Collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "*Ortaköy") Following the Bronze Age Collapse, the Çorum plateau passed into the broader Phrygian cultural sphere of central Anatolia during the long Iron Age. The Šapinuwa höyük itself remained largely abandoned, with only minor Phrygian-era ceramics attesting to reduced occupation in the surrounding plain until the Persian conquest of Anatolia in 547 BCE. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Ortaköy") After Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, the region was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the Cappadocian satrapy. Occupation continued at a modest rural scale on and around the ruined Hittite mound. - 334 BC – 278 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Ortaköy") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, and the site continued as a small rural settlement through the Wars of the Diadochi. The Çorum plateau remained nominally Macedonian until the Celtic Galatian migration of 278 BCE reshaped central Anatolian sovereignty. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom (known as "*Ortaköy") After many centuries of abandonment, the site was reused on a small scale during the Hellenistic and Galatian periods, with Hellenistic and Galatian-period ceramics, glass, and metal artefacts now displayed in the Çorum Museum. The Çorum plateau lay within the eastern Tectosages-Trocmi sphere of the Galatian confederations until Augustus's annexation of Galatia as a Roman province in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Ortaköy") After Augustus's annexation of Galatia in 25 BCE, the area was incorporated into the Roman province of Galatia. The ruined Hittite city itself was reused as a Roman-period cemetery, with grave goods and small finds attesting to continued, if modest, use of the site through the imperial period. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Ortaköy") Under Eastern Roman administration the site continued in minor fashion through the Byzantine centuries, with Byzantine-period ceramics and metalwork recovered from the ruins. Occupation effectively ended with the Seljuk advance after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, and the modern town of Ortaköy on the adjacent plain developed as a separate later settlement. ## Landmarks - Palatial Complex and Archive (built 1500 BC) The central royal complex at Šapinuwa included storage buildings, audience halls, and a major cuneiform archive. Over 3,000 clay tablets were recovered here, some written in four languages (Hittite, Hattic, Hurrian, Akkadian), providing extensive insight into Late Bronze Age diplomacy, religion, and Hittite imperial governance. - Temple District (built 1450 BC) Shrines and temple buildings with associated ritual equipment and offerings have been discovered in the temple district of the site. Inscriptions in Hurrian, Hittite, and Hattian suggest a rich multilingual ceremonial tradition that reflects the cosmopolitan character of New Kingdom Hittite cult. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 3,000 - 1400 BC: 12,000 - 1380 BC: null - 200 BC: 200 - 100 AD: 300 - 500 AD: 250 - 1071 AD: null --- # Sardis, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/sardis Founded: 1200 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.4894, 28.04 ## Description Sardis was the capital of the ancient Lydian Kingdom and one of the great metropolises of western Anatolia. Famed as the home of Croesus and the birthplace of standardized coinage — the world's first gold and silver coins were minted here around 600 BCE — the city sat at the western terminus of the Royal Road of the Persian Empire and at the crossing of major trade routes between the Aegean and inland Anatolia. After Lydian, Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman heydays, Sardis remained a significant Byzantine center until severe earthquakes and Turkic pressure reduced it to a frontier town, and Tamerlane's army sacked the city in 1402 and dispersed the remaining urban population. The surviving community dwindled to a small Turkish village known as Sart, which has remained continuously inhabited at the same site through the long Ottoman period and into the modern Republic of Türkiye, today numbering roughly 1,500 inhabitants beside the active archaeological excavations led by Harvard's Sardis Expedition. ## Historical Rulers - 1200 BC – 546 BC: Lydian Kingdom (known as "Sfard") Capital of the Lydian Kingdom, which emerged after the Bronze Age collapse and grew into the dominant power of western Anatolia. Under the Mermnad dynasty from Gyges through Croesus, Sardis pioneered minted coinage, controlled the gold deposits of the Pactolus river, and became a byword for wealth across the Greek world. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Sparda") Cyrus the Great defeated Croesus and absorbed Lydia into the Persian Empire, with Sardis becoming the seat of the satrapy of Sparda and the western terminus of the Royal Road running to Susa. The city remained the principal Achaemenid administrative center of western Anatolia for two centuries. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great captured Sardis without a fight after the Persian defeat at the Granicus in 334 BCE, restoring Lydian civic institutions and the worship of Lydian gods. After Alexander's death the city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi under Antigonid and Lysimachian control, until Anatolian power consolidated under the Seleucids after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Sardis became the principal Seleucid administrative center of western Asia Minor, and Antiochus III restored and embellished the city before his defeat by Rome at Magnesia in 190 BCE. The Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned the region to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Following the Treaty of Apamea, Sardis passed to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon and remained a major regional center of the Attalid administration. Pergamene rule over Sardis ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Sardis was incorporated into the new Roman province of Asia after the Attalid bequest and continued as a free city under republican rule. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Devastated by a great earthquake in 17 CE and rebuilt with imperial funding under Tiberius, it embarked on its Roman imperial heyday with the monumental gymnasium-bath complex, the synagogue, the rebuilt Temple of Artemis, and its status as one of the Seven Churches of Asia in Revelation. - 395 AD – 1076 AD: Byzantine Empire Sardis continued as a Byzantine metropolitan bishopric and regional center. A second major earthquake around 616 CE destroyed much of the city including the synagogue, after which Sardis recovered only partially and progressively contracted behind its acropolis defenses, until the Seljuk advance into western Anatolia after Manzikert ended Byzantine rule. - 1076 AD – 1098 AD: Sultanate of Rum Following the Seljuk capture of Nicaea and the wider Sultanate of Rum advance across western Anatolia, Sardis fell under Anatolian Seljuk control for two decades. The First Crusade restored Byzantine authority across western Anatolia by 1098. - 1098 AD – 1313 AD: Byzantine Empire Byzantine forces under the Komnenian and later Nicaean rulers reasserted control over Sardis, with John III Vatatzes consolidating Nicaean rule in the 1230s. Turkic pressure intensified through the 13th century until Saruhan Bey's takeover around 1313 ended Byzantine authority in the Hermos valley. - 1313 AD – 1410 AD: Saruhan Beylik (known as "Sart") Saruhan Bey took Sardis and incorporated it into his beylik based at Manisa, after which the Turkish form of the name Sart gradually replaced Sardis. The city continued as a regional center but at much reduced scale under Saruhan rule until Ottoman annexation in the early 15th century. - 1410 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Sart") After the final Ottoman annexation of the Saruhan domains, Sart was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system within the Aydın Vilayet. In 1402 Tamerlane's army had sacked Sart on its way to the Battle of Ankara, dispersing the urban population and destroying many monuments, and the village remained at much-reduced scale through the long Ottoman period; the village's continuous habitation later provided the linguistic source for the recovery of the ancient name Sardis in 19th-century European scholarship. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Sart") Under the Turkish Republic the village of Sart has continued as a small agricultural community in the Salihli district of Manisa Province, with roughly 1,500 inhabitants. Systematic excavation of the ancient city resumed in 1958 under the Harvard-Cornell Sardis Expedition and continues today, focusing on the gymnasium-bath complex, the synagogue, and the Lydian palace and gold-refining installations. ## Landmarks - Royal Lydian Tombs of Bin Tepe (built 650 BC) A field of monumental tumulus burial mounds across the plain north of the city, traditionally associated with the kings of Lydia. The largest, the Tumulus of Alyattes, is around 355 meters in diameter and over 60 meters high — one of the largest burial mounds of antiquity. - Temple of Artemis (built 550 BC) The Temple of Artemis at Sardis, measuring 100 by 50 meters with columns nearly 18 meters tall, ranks among the grandest Ionic temples of antiquity. Begun during the Lydian period and expanded through Hellenistic and Roman times, its pseudo-dipteral layout and colossal columns showcased Sardis' enduring wealth and artistic sophistication, and parts of the structure survived its 4th-century conversion to a Christian church with two complete columns still standing today. - Gymnasium and Bath Complex (built 150 AD) A monumental Roman-era complex built in the 2nd century CE and the most extensively reconstructed structure on the site. The marble court of the bath-gymnasium has been re-erected to its full height by modern archaeologists, and its lavish architectural ornament demonstrates the city's continued wealth long after its Lydian heyday. - Sardis Synagogue (built 200 AD) The Sardis Synagogue, uncovered in 1962, is one of the most impressive ancient Jewish monuments ever discovered. Integrated into the city's gymnasium complex, the 4th-century expansion created a hall capable of seating over 1,000 worshippers, with elaborate mosaics, marble panels, and over 80 inscriptions in Greek and Hebrew reflecting the Jewish community's size, wealth, and integration into Sardian society until the early 7th-century earthquake destroyed it. ## Population History - 1200 BC: 2,000 - 800 BC: 10,000 - 600 BC: 30,000 - 546 BC: 35,000 - 430 BC: 35,000 - 300 BC: 25,000 - 1 AD: 20,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 200 AD: 40,000 - 400 AD: 20,000 - 616 AD: 15,000 - 800 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 3,000 - 1200 AD: 2,000 - 1300 AD: 1,500 - 1402 AD: 100 - 1700 AD: 300 - 1923 AD: 800 - 2020 AD: 1,500 --- # Sarissa, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/sarissa Founded: 1600 BC Ended: 1200 BC Coordinates: 39.308, 36.9096 ## Description Šarişşa was a planned Hittite city founded during the Old Kingdom period, notable for its orthogonal street layout and monumental Hittite architecture in the rugged uplands of north-central Anatolia. It served as a regional administrative and religious center, with excavations at modern Kuşaklı revealing temples, palaces, fortifications, and a substantial cuneiform archive. The city flourished under the reigns of Tudhaliya I and Suppiluliuma I in the New Kingdom, and was abandoned at the broader collapse of the Hittite Empire around 1200 BCE. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1200 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Šarişşa") Founded under the Hittite Old Kingdom as a planned regional center in the northern highlands of central Anatolia, the city was laid out with an orthogonal street plan and fortified from the outset to serve as an administrative and cultic node for the surrounding territory. Under the New Kingdom Šarişşa continued as a provincial administrative and religious center with monumental temples and palace archives expanded during the reigns of Tudhaliya I and Suppiluliuma I, before being abandoned around the collapse of the Hittite state at the end of the Late Bronze Age. ## Landmarks - Temple of the Weather God (built 1500 BC) A well-preserved Hittite temple oriented astronomically and dedicated to the Hittite Weather God. The structure features cuneiform inscriptions, stone-built ritual chambers, and well-preserved foundation deposits that document its central role in the city's religious life. - Gate Complex and Fortification Walls (built 1500 BC) Large stone gates and surrounding fortification walls designed as an integral part of Šarişşa's planned urban layout. The gates display symbolic relief carvings and engineering techniques characteristic of imperial Hittite architecture, including casemate construction and corbelled passageways. - Palace and Archive Area (built 1450 BC) Remains of a palace complex including archive rooms with clay tablets, suggesting Šarişşa was also an important bureaucratic hub of the Hittite provincial administration. The archive material includes administrative texts, cult inventories, and Hittite-language royal correspondence. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 2,000 - 1400 BC: 10,000 - 1300 BC: 12,000 - 1200 BC: null --- # Selçuk, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/selcuk Founded: 1100 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.9466, 27.3733 ## Description Selçuk is a town in Türkiye's İzmir Province, occupying Ayasuluk Hill — the same hill where the Late Bronze Age city of Apasas had stood nearly two millennia earlier. Settlement on the hill resumed in the late Byzantine period when the population of the nearby classical city of Ephesus, struggling with a silted harbor and Arab raids, gradually relocated uphill for defense. The town was successively held by Byzantines, the Beylik of Aydın, and the Ottoman Empire, known throughout as Ayasoluk (a Turkish form of 'Hagios Theologos', the dedication of the Byzantine Basilica of St. John). In 1914 the modern name Selçuk was adopted; the 1923 Greek–Turkish population exchange completed the demographic transformation of the town. Today Selçuk is a small town centered on tourism, serving as the gateway to the ancient Ephesus archaeological site. The roughly 2300-year gap between Apasas (ended ~1200 BCE) and the Byzantine refoundation in 1100 CE is treated in this archive as a true discontinuity; Apasas and Selçuk are kept as separate entries despite sharing Ayasuluk Hill. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 AD – 1304 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Hagios Theologos") After the classical Ephesus valley is abandoned around 1100 CE, the surviving Byzantine population concentrates on Ayasuluk Hill around the 6th-century Basilica of St. John. The fortified town is known in Greek as Hagios Theologos ('Saint the Theologian'). - 1304 AD – 1390 AD: Aydın Beylik (known as "Ayasoluk") The Turkmen Aydın Beylik captured the town, and the name shifted to its Turkish form Ayasoluk. A brief commercial revival followed under İsa Bey, who built the namesake mosque in 1375, and trade with Genoese and Venetian merchants flourished through the late 14th century. - 1390 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Ayasoluk") Annexed by Bayezid I. Trade gradually shifts away from the silted harbor; Ayasoluk shrinks to a small village for most of the Ottoman period. A small Greek Orthodox community remains. In 1914 the town is officially renamed Selçuk, after the Seljuk dynasty, reflecting a conscious break from the Byzantine name. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye The 1923 Greek–Turkish population exchange removes the remaining Greek Orthodox community; Turkish refugees (muhacir) from Greece settle in the town. Modern Selçuk develops as a tourism-focused settlement serving the Ephesus archaeological site, with population growing to around 35,000 by the 21st century. ## Landmarks - İsa Bey Mosque (built 1375 AD) Built by İsa Bey of the Aydın Beylik in 1375, this large Seljuk-influenced mosque incorporates spolia (columns and capitals) salvaged from the ruined classical city of Ephesus and the Byzantine Basilica of St. John. It is one of the most important examples of pre-Ottoman Turkish architecture in Anatolia. ## Population History - 1100 AD: 5,000 - 1304 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 1,500 - 1800 AD: 1,000 - 1923 AD: 3,000 - 1950 AD: 6,000 - 2000 AD: 25,000 - 2025 AD: 38,000 --- # Selge, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/selge Founded: 1000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.2281, 31.1286 ## Description Selge was a prominent ancient city in the mountainous interior of Pisidia, beside the modern village of Altınkaya in Türkiye's Antalya Province. According to tradition it was founded by Greek colonists, reputedly Spartan settlers, and was famed in antiquity for its independence, military strength, and the wealth it drew from olive groves, vines, and the storax resin of the surrounding Taurus forests. Under Roman rule Selge flourished with monumental civic buildings including a grand theater, agora, and aqueduct, and its remote, defensible position preserved much of its autonomy throughout antiquity. After Byzantine decline and the Seljuk advance into Pamphylia the urban site contracted to a small village known today as Altınkaya, which has continuously occupied the ruins under successive Sultanate of Rum, Teke beylik, Ottoman, and Republican rule. The site now lies within Köprülü Canyon National Park and is administered as a protected archaeological zone alongside the inhabited village. ## Historical Rulers - 1000 BC – 547 BC: Pisidian Civilization Selge emerged in the rugged Taurus highlands as one of the autonomous cities of Pisidia, a culturally and linguistically distinct region of southern Anatolia whose mountain communities never coalesced into a central state. Over time the city adopted Greek civic institutions and cultivated a foundation tradition that claimed Spartan settlers as colonists, while its indigenous Pisidian character persisted beneath the Hellenic veneer. It was famed in antiquity for its martial reputation and the wealth it drew from olives, vines, and the storax resin trade. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire After Cyrus the Great's conquest of Anatolia, Selge fell within the Achaemenid sphere as part of the satrapy covering Pisidia and Pamphylia. The mountainous terrain limited direct Persian control, and Selge retained substantial autonomy in local affairs throughout the long period of nominal Persian rule. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire During Alexander's Anatolian campaign, Selge sent envoys to negotiate friendly relations rather than face the Macedonian army in battle. Its strategic mountain position and famed military reputation made cooperation more practical than conquest, and Selge passed through the early Wars of the Diadochi while preserving its institutions. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Following the Battle of Corupedium, Selge passed under nominal Seleucid suzerainty while continuing to mint its own coinage and govern its internal affairs. In 218 BCE the Seleucid general Achaeus besieged the city but failed to take it, and Selge negotiated a treaty that confirmed its de facto independence — a posture it largely maintained until the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE transferred southern Anatolia to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Under the Treaty of Apamea, Selge was assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon, though effective control over the highland Pisidian city remained limited and the city continued to operate largely autonomously. Pergamene authority over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Selge was integrated into the Roman provincial system, first within Galatia and later Pamphylia, and entered its period of greatest civic monumentality. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Roman administration the city built its grand theater, agora, and aqueduct system, and its wealth from olives, wine, and the storax trade reached its peak before gradual decline set in during the later imperial centuries. - 395 AD – 1207 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman administration Selge served as a regional bishopric within the metropolitan province of Side. The highland population gradually declined from the 7th century onward under pressure from Arab raids and the disruption of inland trade, and by the time of the Seljuk advance into Pamphylia the urban site was largely abandoned. - 1207 AD – 1321 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Altınkaya") Following the Seljuk conquest of Antalya under Kayqubad I in 1207, the surrounding Pamphylian highlands came under the Sultanate of Rum. The urban site of Selge was effectively abandoned, but a small Turkish village known as Zerk or Altınkaya formed directly amid the ruins, reusing antique stone from the theater, agora, and city walls for its houses. - 1321 AD – 1423 AD: Teke Beylik (known as "Altınkaya") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the Antalya region passed to the Teke Beylik centered at the coastal city of Antalya, which controlled the southern Taurus uplands including the territory around Selge. The village of Altınkaya persisted as a modest rural settlement under Teke rule until Ottoman annexation in the early 15th century. - 1423 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Altınkaya") Following the final Ottoman annexation of the Teke Beylik, Altınkaya was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system as a small mountain village within the sancak of Teke. The community remained small and pastoral throughout the long Ottoman period, with no significant revival of the ancient urban core. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Altınkaya") Under the Turkish Republic the village of Altınkaya has continued as a small mountain community in the Manavgat district of Antalya Province, with roughly 300 inhabitants engaged in animal husbandry and seasonal tourism within Köprülü Canyon National Park. Italian and Turkish archaeological surveys of the ancient theater, agora, and Hellenistic walls have been conducted from the 1960s onward, and the site is administered as a protected archaeological zone alongside the inhabited village. ## Landmarks - City Walls and Gates (built 200 BC) The city was enclosed by thick stone walls of polygonal masonry, substantial remnants of which are still visible across the ridge. Their scale and construction reflect Selge's strongly militarized character and its repeated resistance to Hellenistic and Roman encroachment. - Selge Theater (built 2 AD) Carved into the hillside, this large Roman theater could seat around 9,000 spectators and served as the city's principal venue for civic, dramatic, and religious gatherings. Its well-preserved cavea remains one of the most striking ruins of highland Pisidia. - Roman Aqueduct (built 2 AD) An extensive aqueduct system brought fresh water to the city from distant springs across difficult mountain terrain. The surviving piers and channel sections showcase Roman engineering adapted to the steep Taurus landscape. - Agora of Selge (built 2 AD) The remains of the agora include colonnaded streets and public squares where trade, governance, and civic interaction occurred. Surrounding stoa and shop fronts indicate the central role of the agora in the city's commercial life. ## Population History - 1000 BC: 500 - 500 BC: 5,000 - 200 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 400 AD: 4,000 - 800 AD: 1,500 - 1200 AD: 200 - 1700 AD: 250 - 1923 AD: 300 - 2020 AD: 300 --- # Selimiye, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/selimiye Founded: 1895 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.7667, 31.3889 ## Description Selimiye is the modern Turkish town built on top of the ruins of ancient Side, on the Pamphylian peninsula in Antalya Province. After the ancient Side was abandoned around 1200 CE and the site lay essentially uninhabited for nearly seven centuries, Cretan Muslim refugees fleeing the unrest preceding the 1897 Greco-Cretan war were resettled by Ottoman authorities on the peninsula in 1895 and founded a small fishing village called Selimiye directly on the antique ruins. The community long retained Greek as a household language and a distinct Cretan cultural identity. Through the early Turkish Republic Selimiye remained a small village of one to two thousand inhabitants, until the late 20th-century Antalya tourism boom transformed the peninsula into one of the Mediterranean's busiest resort towns. Today the modern town — widely known again as Side after the ancient name — has a year-round population of around 15,000 (and summer crowds many times larger) and sits directly amid the surviving Greek, Roman, and Byzantine ruins. The 695-year gap between ancient Side's abandonment and Selimiye's 1895 refoundation is treated as a true discontinuity in this archive; see the Side entry for the antique city's history. ## Historical Rulers - 1895 AD – 1923 AD: Late Ottoman Empire — Selimiye refoundation In 1895 Cretan Muslim refugees fleeing the unrest before the Greek-Cretan war of 1897-1898 were resettled by Ottoman authorities on the abandoned Side peninsula. The new fishing village, named Selimiye, grew up directly on top of the ancient ruins; the community long retained Greek as a household language and a distinct Cretan cultural identity within the late Ottoman state. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Side") Selimiye continued as a small fishing village through the early Turkish Republic, with population around one to two thousand into the mid-twentieth century. Archaeological work at the ancient site from the 1940s onward and the Antalya-region tourism boom of the 1980s and 1990s transformed the peninsula into a major Mediterranean resort, now widely called Side again, with a year-round population of around 15,000 that swells several times over each summer. ## Landmarks - Side Museum (built 1962 AD) Founded in 1962 inside the restored Roman-era bath complex of ancient Side, the museum displays sculptures, sarcophagi, and inscriptions recovered from the surrounding archaeological zone. ## Population History - 1895 AD: 500 - 1950 AD: 1,500 - 1980 AD: 3,000 - 2020 AD: 15,000 --- # Sestos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/sestos Founded: 600 BC Ended: 1356 AD Coordinates: 40.2167, 26.3833 ## Description Sestos was an ancient Greek polis on the European shore of the Hellespont (modern Dardanelles), at the narrowest crossing point of the strait near modern Akbaş Bay just north of Eceabat in Çanakkale Province. Founded around 600 BCE by Aeolian Greek colonists from Lesbos, the polis developed as the principal European-side port controlling traffic between the Aegean and the Sea of Marmara — particularly the grain trade from the Black Sea to Athens. Xerxes I of Persia crossed the Hellespont here on his great pontoon bridge of 480 BCE during the second Persian invasion of Greece, a moment described in detail by Herodotus and commemorated as one of the most celebrated logistical feats of antiquity. Sestos was also the setting of the famous Greek love story of Hero and Leander, with Leander swimming each night across the Hellespont from Abydos to visit his lover Hero in the tower at Sestos until he drowned in a storm. The polis alternated between Athenian and Spartan control through the Peloponnesian War, witnessed the Athenian naval defeat at Aegospotami just downstream in 405 BCE, and passed under Macedonian, Attalid Pergamene, and finally Roman rule with the Attalid bequest of 133 BCE. Under Roman and Byzantine administration Sestos remained an important Hellespont customs station and Christian bishopric through late antiquity, surviving repeated raids during the medieval Byzantine wars. The town was briefly held by the Latin Empire after the Fourth Crusade in 1204 and recovered by the Empire of Nicaea around 1235, but progressively declined as Hellespont trade shifted to the rising Byzantine and Ottoman centres. Sestos was effectively abandoned as an urban centre by the mid-14th century when the Ottomans crossed the Hellespont at Gelibolu after the 1354 earthquake, and the modern town of Eceabat developed at a separate site some kilometres to the south. ## Historical Rulers - 600 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization Founded around 600 BCE by Aeolian Greek colonists from Lesbos on the European shore of the Hellespont, Sestos controlled the narrowest crossing of the strait between the Aegean and the Sea of Marmara. The polis developed as a major early Greek port within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Hellespont until the Persian conquest of European Thrace under Darius I around 512 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire Darius I's Scythian campaigns brought Sestos under Achaemenid rule as part of the satrapy of Skudra. Xerxes I built his famous pontoon bridge across the Hellespont here in 480 BCE to invade Greece, after which the polis was liberated by the Greek allied fleet under Spartan command in 478 BCE following the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization After its liberation from Persian rule Sestos rejoined the wider Hellenic Hellespontic polis network and paid tribute to the Athenian-led Delian League, becoming a key station on the grain route from the Black Sea to Athens. The polis was the setting of the famous love story of Hero and Leander and alternated between Athenian and Spartan control through the Peloponnesian War, until the Macedonian conquest of the Hellespont under Philip II in the 340s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Under Alexander the Great and his Diadochi successor Lysimachus, Sestos was nominally Macedonian while retaining its civic institutions as a free Greek polis. The town passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Antigonid Dynasty After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Sestos passed under the formal suzerainty of the Antigonid kingdom of Macedonia, though the European Hellespont remained contested with the Seleucid and Ptolemaic spheres through the 3rd century BCE. The polis preserved its working civic autonomy through Antiochus III's brief European campaigns of 196-190 BCE, until the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE placed Sestos under Attalid Pergamene control after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at the Battle of Magnesia. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon After the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE, Sestos was incorporated into the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon as part of its Hellespontine possessions. The polis served as a major customs station controlling Aegean-Pontic trade until the last Attalid king Attalus III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome on his death in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Attalus III's bequest brought Sestos into the Roman provincial system as part of the new province of Asia, with the city continuing as the principal Hellespont customs station. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial network until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Sestos continued as the principal Roman customs station on the European shore of the Hellespont. The city was a Christian bishopric from the late imperial period and remained an active port through the late Roman centuries until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Sestos served as a major Byzantine fortress and customs station on the European shore of the Hellespont, anchoring the imperial control of Aegean-Pontic trade. The town suffered Arab and Bulgarian raids through the middle Byzantine period and remained in use until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1235 AD: Latin Empire Following the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204, Sestos was incorporated into the Latin Empire as one of its Hellespont possessions. The town was recovered by the Empire of Nicaea under John III Doukas Vatatzes around 1235 during his consolidation of European Byzantine territory. - 1235 AD – 1356 AD: Byzantine Empire After Vatatzes's recovery in 1235 and the Palaiologan restoration of Constantinople in 1261, Sestos reverted to the Byzantine Empire as a much-reduced Hellespont customs station. The town progressively declined through the late Byzantine period until the Ottoman crossing at Gelibolu after the 1354 earthquake transferred the European Hellespont to Ottoman control, and Sestos was effectively abandoned as an urban centre by 1356. ## Landmarks - Acropolis of Sestos (built 500 BC) The fortified hilltop citadel of Sestos overlooking the Hellespont, occupied from the Archaic period through Byzantine times with successive fortification phases. Substantial sections of Hellenistic and Roman walls and the foundation footprint of the acropolis survive on the heights above Akbaş Bay. - Site of Xerxes's Pontoon Bridge (built 480 BC) The narrowest crossing of the Hellespont where Xerxes I built his famous twin pontoon bridge in 480 BCE — described in detail by Herodotus — to transport the Persian army of an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 soldiers from Asia into Europe. The bridge of 360 lashed Phoenician and Egyptian galleys spanning roughly 1,300 metres was destroyed by a storm and rebuilt, and the crossing point near Sestos remained the canonical narrow point of the Hellespont through antiquity. - Byzantine Harbour and Customs Station (built 500 AD) The Byzantine fortified harbour and imperial customs station of Sestos on the Hellespont, controlling all maritime traffic between the Aegean and the Sea of Marmara. The harbour works and customs buildings were progressively reinforced under the middle Byzantine emperors and remained operational until the Ottoman crossing in the mid-14th century. ## Population History - 600 BC: 1,500 - 480 BC: 5,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 1 AD: 12,000 - 400 AD: 8,000 - 800 AD: 5,000 - 1204 AD: 3,000 - 1300 AD: 1,500 - 1356 AD: 500 --- # Side, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/side Founded: 700 BC Ended: 1200 AD Coordinates: 36.7667, 31.3889 ## Description Side was a major ancient coastal city on the Pamphylian peninsula of southern Anatolia, near modern Manavgat in today's Antalya Province. Founded around 700 BCE by Greek colonists from Aeolian Cyme, it developed a distinctive local Sidetic language and grew into a prominent Hellenistic and Roman port, famed for its harbor, slave trade, monumental theater seating up to 20,000, and twin harbor temples of Apollo and Athena, peaking under Roman rule at perhaps 25,000 inhabitants. Repeated Arab naval raids and earthquakes contracted the city through the Byzantine era, and by around 1200 the remaining inhabitants had abandoned the peninsula as the region passed to the Seljuks and successor Anatolian beyliks. The site lay essentially uninhabited for nearly seven centuries before Cretan Muslim refugees refounded a village on the ruins in 1895, recorded as a separate entry under Selimiye in line with the archive's policy that long gaps between abandonment and refoundation produce two distinct entries on the same physical site. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 546 BC: Pamphylian Civilization Side was founded around 700 BCE by Greek colonists from Aeolian Cyme on the Pamphylian peninsula, but the settlement quickly absorbed the local indigenous population and developed the distinctive Sidetic language attested in its own non-Greek alphabet on coins and inscriptions. The city operated as one of the autonomous coastal communities of Iron Age Pamphylia, engaged in maritime trade along the southern Anatolian shore. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following the Persian conquest of Lydia and western Anatolia, Side came under Achaemenid suzerainty as part of the broader Pamphylian region. The city retained considerable local autonomy and continued its maritime commerce while paying tribute to the Persian administration. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire During his campaign through Anatolia, Alexander the Great incorporated Side into the Macedonian sphere with little resistance, and the city was drawn into the wider Hellenistic world that emerged from his conquests. Side passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Anatolian control consolidated after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 215 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom For most of the 3rd century BCE Side fell within the Ptolemaic kingdom's southern Anatolian holdings, which used Pamphylian harbors as the eastern flank of the Ptolemaic thalassocracy. Under Ptolemaic patronage the city prospered as a slave-trade and grain port linking the eastern Mediterranean networks. - 215 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Side passed to Seleucid control during the expansion of Antiochus III into southern Anatolia. The city remained a notable harbor on the Pamphylian coast and was the site of a famous naval engagement between Seleucid and Rhodian fleets during the conflict with Rome, ended by the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Side was nominally assigned to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon under the Treaty of Apamea, though Pergamene authority over coastal Pamphylia remained limited and the city retained effective autonomy in its civic and maritime affairs. Pergamene rule over the region ended when Attalos III bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BCE. - 133 BC – 67 BC: Pamphylian Civilization After the dissolution of Pergamene authority, Side operated effectively independently alongside the other autonomous cities of Pamphylia, well before Rome formally provincialized the region. The city became notorious as the principal eastern Mediterranean center of the Cilician pirate confederation and a major slave market, until Pompey's anti-piracy campaign of 67 BCE forcibly ended the pirate networks of the southern Anatolian coast. - 67 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Pompey's campaign against the Cilician pirates, Side was brought firmly under Roman control and later incorporated into the province of Pamphylia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Roman rule the city reached its greatest prosperity, building the monumental theater, twin harbor temples of Apollo and Athena, agora, nymphaeum, and aqueduct system that still characterize the site today. - 395 AD – 1200 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Side became the seat of the metropolitan bishop of Pamphylia and continued to function as an important Mediterranean port. Repeated Arab naval raids from the 7th century onward, combined with destructive earthquakes and shifting trade patterns, contracted the city to a fortified remnant within its old walls. By around 1200 the surviving inhabitants had abandoned the peninsula as the Seljuk advance into Pamphylia made the exposed coastal site unsustainable. ## Landmarks - City Walls and Gates (built 100 BC) The defensive walls enclosing the peninsula included monumental Hellenistic and Roman-era gates, sections of which remain partly visible today. The walls reflected the city's maritime importance and its need to defend against piracy and later Arab naval raids. - Side Theater (built 150 AD) The largest theater of Pamphylia, seating between 15,000 and 20,000 spectators and built into the natural slope of the peninsula in a blend of Hellenistic and Roman architectural styles. Substantial portions of the cavea, vaulted substructures, and stage building remain standing today. - Temple of Apollo (built 150 AD) Famous for its five reconstructed marble columns rising directly above the sea at the tip of the peninsula, this peripteral temple symbolized Side's religious and maritime importance. It formed half of a twin harbor temple complex with the adjacent Temple of Athena. - Temple of Athena (built 150 AD) Dedicated to Athena, the second of the twin harbor temples standing beside the Temple of Apollo at the peninsula's tip. Together the pair framed the entrance to Side's commercial harbor and served as the city's primary religious focus during the Roman imperial period. - Nymphaeum (built 150 AD) A monumental fountain complex supplied by the city's aqueduct system, serving both as a functional water distribution point and as an architectural showpiece at the main approach to the city. Its ornate facade with niches for statues marked the entrance into Roman Side. ## Population History - 700 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 10,000 - 200 BC: 15,000 - 100 AD: 25,000 - 400 AD: 8,000 - 600 AD: 5,000 - 900 AD: 1,000 - 1200 AD: null --- # Silivri, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/silivri Founded: 660 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.0738, 28.2461 ## Description Silivri — ancient Selymbria — is a coastal town on the European shore of the Sea of Marmara in Istanbul Province, about 67 km west of the Istanbul metropolitan core on the historic land road from Constantinople to Adrianople. Founded around 660 BCE by Megarian Greek colonists three years before the same colonial wave founded Byzantion at the mouth of the Bosphorus, the polis took its name from the Thracian king Selys and developed as an autonomous Greek city-state alongside the indigenous Thracian population of the European Marmara hinterland. Through the Classical period Selymbria alternated between Achaemenid Persian rule from around 512 BCE, Athenian Delian League membership after 478, and Spartan or independent status, until the Macedonian conquest under Philip II and the eventual Roman incorporation in the 70s BCE. Emperor Anastasius I built the southern terminus of the great Anastasian Long Walls of Thrace at Selymbria around 503 CE, anchoring an 56-kilometre fortified line across the Thracian peninsula that protected Constantinople's hinterland from Avar and Slavic raids. Selymbria was captured by the Ottoman sultan Murad I in 1387 during the Ottoman encirclement of Byzantine Constantinople, returned to Byzantine control briefly after the Battle of Ankara in 1402, and finally taken by Mehmed II in 1453 just before his conquest of Constantinople. Under Ottoman rule Silivri remained a small fishing and farming town with a substantial Greek Orthodox population through the 19th century, suffering severe disruption during the 1912-1913 Balkan Wars and the 1922-1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange. Since the 1980s Silivri has grown rapidly as part of greater Istanbul's western suburban expansion and now has roughly 200,000 residents, with the high-security F-type Silivri Prison Complex serving as one of Turkey's principal detention facilities. ## Historical Rulers - 660 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Selymbria") Founded around 660 BCE by Megarian Greek colonists on the northern shore of the Sea of Marmara, three years before the same Megarian colonial wave founded Byzantion at the mouth of the Bosphorus. The polis was traditionally named after the Thracian king Selys and developed as an autonomous Greek city-state within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Propontis, coexisting with the indigenous Thracian population until the Persian conquest of Thrace under Darius I around 512 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Selymbria") Darius I incorporated Selymbria and the Thracian Marmara coast into the Achaemenid Empire as a tributary city under the satrapy of Skudra during the Persian campaigns against the European Scythians. The polis was liberated together with neighbouring Byzantion by the Spartan regent Pausanias and his Greek allied fleet in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Selymbria") After its liberation from Persian rule Selymbria rejoined the wider Hellenic Propontic polis network and paid tribute to the Athenian-led Delian League through the fifth century BCE. The polis was forced to surrender to Alcibiades in 410 BCE during the Athenian operations against Byzantion, alternated between Spartan and Athenian alignment during the late Peloponnesian and Corinthian Wars, and resisted the encroaching power of Macedon until Philip II's general subjugation of the Thracian Marmara coast in the 340s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Selymbria") Under Alexander the Great and his immediate successors Selymbria was nominally Macedonian while retaining most of its civic autonomy as a free Greek polis. The polis passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Selymbria") After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Selymbria passed under the formal suzerainty of the Antigonid kingdom of Macedonia while preserving its working autonomy as a Greek free city. The polis continued to mint its own coinage with the distinctive fish-and-trident series and served as a Marmara port at the contested edge of the Antigonid, Seleucid, and Bithynian Hellenistic spheres, until the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Selymbria") After the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE Selymbria passed under nominal Roman authority, though formal Roman administration of Thrace developed gradually. The polis sided firmly with Rome during the Third Mithridatic War from 73 BCE and was drawn into the Roman provincial system after Pompey's eastern settlement of 64 BCE as part of the new province of Bithynia and Pontus, continuing under late-Republican administration until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Selymbria") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, Selymbria continued as a modest Marmara port on the Via Egnatia approaches to Byzantium. The city was a small but stable provincial town and a Christian bishopric from the late third century until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Selymbria") Under the Eastern Roman administration Selymbria served as a key fortress port on the western Marmara approaches to Constantinople, briefly renamed Eudoxiopolis in honour of the empress Eudoxia in the early 5th century. Emperor Anastasius I built the southern terminus of the great Anastasian Long Walls of Thrace at Selymbria around 503 CE, anchoring the fortified line that protected the imperial capital from Avar, Slavic, and Bulgarian raids. The city remained a Byzantine provincial centre with a metropolitan bishopric and a strong garrison until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Latin Empire (known as "Selymbria") Following the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204, Selymbria was included in the Latin Empire's Thracian holdings and assigned to Latin military fief-holders. The town suffered repeated Bulgarian raids during the chaotic Latin period until Michael VIII Palaiologos's Nicaean general Alexios Strategopoulos retook Constantinople and the surrounding Thracian towns in 1261. - 1261 AD – 1387 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Selymbria") After Michael VIII Palaiologos's restoration of Byzantine Constantinople in 1261, Selymbria reverted to the restored empire as one of its principal Thracian fortress ports. The town was the seat of the Palaiologan despotate of Selymbria under Matthew Kantakouzenos and Constantine XI Palaiologos in the 14th century, and fell to the Ottoman sultan Murad I in 1387 during the Ottoman encirclement of the Byzantine capital. - 1387 AD – 1402 AD: Ottoman Empire Murad I's capture of Selymbria in 1387 brought the town under Ottoman administration for the first time and pushed the Ottoman frontier directly against the walls of Constantinople. Bayezid I's catastrophic defeat by Timur at the Battle of Ankara in July 1402 triggered the Ottoman interregnum and the partial Byzantine recovery of Thracian territory under the 1403 Treaty of Gallipoli. - 1402 AD – 1453 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Selymbria") Under the 1403 Treaty of Gallipoli, Süleyman Çelebi returned Selymbria together with Thessalonica and the Bulgarian coast to the recovering Byzantine Empire of Manuel II Palaiologos. Selymbria served once more as a Palaiologan fortress port until Sultan Mehmed II captured it on his march to Constantinople in 1453, just before the final siege of the imperial capital. - 1453 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Mehmed II's final capture of Silivri in 1453 was completed just before the fall of Constantinople, and the town was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire as a modest kaza of the Vilayet of Edirne. Under four and a half centuries of Ottoman rule Silivri remained a small fishing and farming town with substantial Greek Orthodox, Armenian, and Muslim populations, suffering significant disruption during the 1912-1913 Balkan Wars, the 1922-1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange, and the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey in October 1923. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923, Silivri became a district seat (ilçe merkezi) within Istanbul Province on the western Marmara coast. Since the 1980s the town has grown explosively as part of greater Istanbul's western suburban expansion, with rapid agricultural-to-urban land conversion, large-scale beach tourism, and the construction of the F-type Silivri Prison Complex as one of Turkey's principal detention facilities. ## Landmarks - Silivri Castle (built 500 AD) The Byzantine fortress of Selymbria, built and rebuilt across the late Roman, Byzantine, and Palaiologan periods on a low headland above the Sea of Marmara. Substantial sections of the late Byzantine curtain walls and towers survive, including the harbour-side acropolis citadel that anchored the city's defences against the Ottoman approach. - Anastasian Long Walls — Selymbria Terminus (built 503 AD) The southern terminus of the great Anastasian Long Walls of Thrace, built under Emperor Anastasius I around 503 CE to run approximately 56 km from Selymbria on the Marmara to the Black Sea coast and protect the Constantinopolitan hinterland from Avar, Slavic, and Bulgarian raids. Substantial portions of the wall circuit and its forts survive across the Çatalca peninsula, with the Selymbria terminus integrated into the city's harbour defences. - Silivri Bridge (built 1562 AD) A long Ottoman stone bridge across the Silivri stream on the historic Edirne-Istanbul road, built in 1562 by the chief Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan under Suleiman the Magnificent. The 33-arched bridge — among the longest of its kind in Ottoman architecture — survives in good condition just east of the modern town centre. - Piyale Pasha Mosque (built 1573 AD) An Ottoman mosque built in 1573 by Piyale Pasha, the grand admiral of the Ottoman navy under Selim II. The mosque combines a single-domed prayer hall with a slim minaret and is one of the principal 16th-century monuments of the town. ## Population History - 660 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 4,000 - 300 BC: 6,000 - 100 AD: 8,000 - 500 AD: 10,000 - 1000 AD: 6,000 - 1200 AD: 4,000 - 1387 AD: 3,000 - 1453 AD: 2,000 - 1600 AD: 4,000 - 1800 AD: 6,000 - 1900 AD: 8,000 - 1923 AD: 6,000 - 1950 AD: 9,000 - 1980 AD: 30,000 - 2000 AD: 100,000 - 2020 AD: 200,000 --- # Sinop, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/sinop Founded: 630 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 42.0256, 35.1519 ## Description Sinop, historically known as Sinope, is a major ancient and modern port city located on a natural promontory along the Black Sea coast of northern Anatolia. Founded around 630 BCE by Ionian Greek colonists from Miletus, it grew into a powerful maritime polis and the principal mother-city of the Black Sea Greek world, founding its own colonies at Trapezus, Kotyora, and Kerasos. Sinope served as the royal capital of the Kingdom of Pontus under Mithridates VI, became a Roman colonia under Julius Caesar, and was the birthplace of the philosopher Diogenes the Cynic. Under successive Sultanate of Rum, Pervâneoğlu, Candaroğlu, and Ottoman rule the city remained a major shipbuilding and naval port, and today functions as the provincial capital of Sinop Province with roughly 60,000 inhabitants. ## Historical Rulers - 630 BC – 437 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Sinope") Ionian Greek colonists from Miletus established Sinope on a defensible peninsula along the southern Black Sea coast, exploiting its dual natural harbors. The autonomous polis flourished as the leading mother-city of the Pontic Greek colonies within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere, founding daughter foundations such as Trapezus, Kotyora, and Kerasos along the eastern Black Sea coast, until Athenian and then Persian influence ended its early independence. - 437 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Sinope") After Pericles's mid-5th century Athenian expedition to the Black Sea ended, Sinope came firmly under Achaemenid Persian suzerainty, although it retained considerable local autonomy as a Greek polis. The city continued its maritime trade while paying tribute to satrapal authority. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Sinope") Following Alexander the Great's defeat of the Achaemenids, Sinope nominally fell within the Macedonian sphere, although Alexander's campaigns largely bypassed the southern Black Sea coast and the city preserved much of its civic life. After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE the wider region was reorganized into the new Kingdom of Pontus. - 281 BC – 63 BC: Kingdom of Pontus (known as "Sinope") Sinope was incorporated into the Kingdom of Pontus founded by Mithridates I and, under Mithridates VI Eupator, was made the royal capital. It became one of the most prominent Hellenistic cities of the Black Sea with significant monumental construction, palace facilities, and minting of distinctive Pontic coinage. - 63 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Sinope") Pompey captured Sinope during the Third Mithridatic War and incorporated it into the Roman province of Bithynia and Pontus, and Julius Caesar refounded it as Colonia Julia Felix Sinope. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Sinope") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The city retained its commercial role and gained Roman colonial status, continuing as a prosperous Black Sea port throughout the imperial period. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Sinope") Under Eastern Roman administration Sinope remained a significant naval and ecclesiastical center on the Pontic coast, serving as a Byzantine naval base, surviving Arab raids, and functioning as a key node in Black Sea defense. The Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204 ended the unified Byzantine state. - 1204 AD – 1214 AD: Empire of Trebizond (known as "Sinope") After the Fourth Crusade fragmented Byzantine authority, Sinope came under the breakaway Empire of Trebizond, briefly serving as the westernmost outpost of the Komnenian successor state on the Black Sea. Sultan Kaykaus I of the Sultanate of Rum captured the city after a Trapezuntine setback in 1214. - 1214 AD – 1261 AD: Sultanate of Rum Sultan Izzeddin Kaykaus I's 1214 capture gave the Sultanate of Rum its principal Black Sea port. Under his successor Alaeddin Kayqubad I the city was repopulated with Muslim settlers, its fortifications rebuilt, and the harbor expanded into the sultanate's main northern naval base. - 1261 AD – 1322 AD: Pervâneoğlu Beylik As Seljuk central authority disintegrated under Ilkhanid Mongol pressure, Sinop came under the Pervâneoğulları, a beylik founded by the descendants of Muinüddin Süleyman Pervâne. They governed the city as a semi-independent maritime principality with continued strong naval activity. - 1322 AD – 1461 AD: Candaroğlu Beylik The Candaroğulları (Isfendiyarids) absorbed Sinop into their north Anatolian beylik centered on Kastamonu and the Black Sea coast, maintaining a strong shipbuilding industry and naval presence until Ottoman annexation. - 1461 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Mehmed II annexed Sinop in 1461 after a bloodless surrender by the last Candaroğlu ruler İsmail Bey, ending the beylik. The city served as a major Ottoman shipyard and naval base, and was the site of the devastating Russian naval assault in 1853 during the Crimean War. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the proclamation of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, Sinop became a provincial capital and retained its strategic Black Sea location and historic harbor. The city today functions as an administrative, fishing, and tourism center with roughly 60,000 inhabitants. ## Landmarks - Sinop Fortress (built 200 BC) The impressive stone walls surrounding Sinop date back to Hellenistic times and were extensively expanded during the Byzantine and Seljuk periods. The fortifications enclose the peninsular old town and remain the most visible monument of the city's medieval naval significance. - Temple of Serapis (built 2 AD) Remains of a Roman-era temple dedicated to Serapis, showing the blend of Greek, Anatolian, and Egyptian religious traditions characteristic of Pontic cities. The cult of Serapis was particularly associated with Sinope through the syncretic Hellenistic deity's origin myth involving Ptolemy I. - Sinop Prison (built 1887 AD) Originally built inside the old Sinop Fortress as an Ottoman prison, it became an infamous penal institution used until 1999 and is now open as a museum. The complex housed numerous notable Turkish writers and political prisoners during the Republican era. ## Population History - 630 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 8,000 - 0 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 7,000 - 1200 AD: 6,000 - 1300 AD: 8,000 - 1500 AD: 10,000 - 1900 AD: 15,000 - 1950 AD: 25,000 - 2020 AD: 60,000 --- # Sivas, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/sivas Founded: 2000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.7477, 37.0179 ## Description Sivas, known in antiquity as Sebasteia, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities of Anatolia. Settled during the Hittite Bronze Age around 2000 BCE, it served as a crossroads of civilizations at the heart of the Anatolian plateau. It rose to regional prominence under the Danishmend dynasty and the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum, becoming a major center of Islamic art and scholarship. The city holds a special place in modern Turkish history as the site of the 1919 Sivas Congress, a pivotal moment in the Turkish War of Independence. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1650 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Megalopolis") Bronze Age occupation in the area of modern Sivas is attested archaeologically through the Middle Bronze Age, with the settlement functioning as a minor agricultural and pastoral hub on the high Anatolian plateau. Its specific Bronze Age toponym is not securely attested in surviving cuneiform records. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "*Megalopolis") Under the Hittite Empire the area lay within the eastern domains of the state, controlled from the imperial capital at Hattusa. The settlement was integrated into Hittite administrative networks as a minor regional town until the collapse of the empire around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "*Megalopolis") After the collapse of the Hittite Empire, the upper Halys region fell within the broader Phrygian cultural sphere of central Anatolia. The settlement remained a modest plateau town along trade and migration routes through the long Iron Age, eventually coming under Median suzerainty in the 7th century BCE. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Megalopolis") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia, the upper Halys region was incorporated into the Achaemenid Persian Empire, administered through Persian satraps. The settlement continued as a small plateau town under Achaemenid provincial administration. - 334 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Megalopolis") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, though his armies passed largely south of the upper Halys. After Alexander's death the region passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the new Kingdom of Pontus consolidated authority over the upper Halys. - 301 BC – 64 BC: Kingdom of Pontus (known as "*Megalopolis") Following the wars of the Diadochi, the upper Halys region came under the Hellenistic Kingdom of Pontus founded by Mithridates I. The town was reorganized along Greek civic lines and is generally identified with the Pontic Hellenistic foundation of Megalopolis, though the attribution is not fully secure. It served as a regional administrative and market center within the Pontic interior. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Sebasteia") After Pompey's settlement of the East in 64 BCE the city was incorporated into the Roman provincial system and eventually renamed Sebasteia in honour of the emperor Augustus. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Sebasteia") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Under Roman rule it became a node on the military road network of eastern Anatolia and the seat of an early Christian community famed for the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste. It grew steadily as a fortified provincial town facing the Armenian frontier. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Sebasteia") With the division of the Roman Empire in 395 CE Sebasteia passed to the eastern Roman (Byzantine) administration and served as a strategic stronghold on the empire's Armenian frontier. It became the seat of a metropolitan bishopric and, from the 10th century, hosted large Armenian populations resettled there by imperial policy. Byzantine control ended after the Seljuk victory at Manzikert in 1071. - 1071 AD – 1174 AD: Danishmendid Beylik In the aftermath of Manzikert the city was taken by the Turkmen Danishmendid emirs, who made Sivas one of their principal capitals in central Anatolia. Under their patronage Sivas was Islamicized, fortified, and developed as a centre of trade and learning, until the Danishmend state was absorbed by the rising Sultanate of Rum in 1174. - 1174 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum Sivas was annexed by the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate of Rum and rapidly became one of its leading cities alongside Konya and Kayseri. Its position on the Silk Road made it a major caravan and commercial hub, attracting merchants from Genoa, Venice and the Islamic east. The Seljuks endowed the city with mosques, madrasas and caravanserais that remain among the finest monuments of medieval Anatolia. - 1243 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate After the Seljuk defeat at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243 Sivas became a tribute-paying dependency of the Mongol Ilkhanate, ruled increasingly directly from Tabriz. Despite political subordination the city retained its commercial importance, and Mongol-era viziers continued to commission monumental medreses. Ilkhanid authority weakened sharply after 1335 with the collapse of the dynasty. - 1335 AD – 1381 AD: Eretna Principality With the dissolution of Ilkhanid power, the former Mongol governor Eretna established an independent beylik centered on Sivas and Kayseri. The city served as one of the principal seats of the Eretnid dynasty, which maintained a fragile balance between Anatolian Turkmen rivals and the Mamluks. Internal succession crises eroded the principality until it was supplanted by Kadı Burhaneddin. - 1381 AD – 1398 AD: Kadı Burhaneddin State The scholar-vizier Kadı Burhaneddin seized power from the last Eretnid rulers and proclaimed himself sultan, ruling from Sivas. His state controlled much of central-eastern Anatolia and resisted both the Ottomans and Turkmen confederations. After his death in battle in 1398 the city was annexed by the Ottomans. - 1398 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Sivas was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire by Bayezid I in 1398, briefly devastated during Timur's 1400 sack, and then rebuilt as the centre of a large eyalet covering much of central Anatolia. Under Ottoman administration it remained a regional capital, garrison town and commercial waypoint with significant Muslim, Armenian and Greek populations. In September 1919 the Sivas Congress convened here to unify the national resistance during the late-Ottoman collapse. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Following the abolition of the Ottoman Sultanate in 1922 and the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, Sivas became the seat of an eponymous province in the new state. It developed as an industrial and railway centre on the Ankara–Erzurum line and is officially commemorated as the host of the 1919 Sivas Congress. The city remains a regional educational and administrative hub on the central Anatolian plateau. ## Landmarks - Divriği Ulu Camii ve Darüşşifası (built 1228 AD) Commissioned by the Mengujekid ruler Ahmed Shah and his wife Turan Melek. The ornate portals are considered unrivaled in Islamic decorative stone art. The attached darüşşifa (hospital) was one of the most sophisticated medical institutions of the medieval world. Located in Divriği, within the Sivas province. - Gök Medrese (built 1271 AD) Built by the Seljuk vizier Sahib Ata Fahreddin Ali. Named for its twin minarets and the blue (gök) tile decoration. Its elaborately carved portal rivals that of any Seljuk structure in Anatolia. - Buruciye Medresesi (built 1271 AD) Commissioned by a wealthy Bukharan merchant, Muzaffer Burucirdi, as a medrese and mausoleum. Its courtyard and portal carvings reflect the cosmopolitan character of 13th-century Sivas at the intersection of Silk Road trade routes. - Sivas Congress Building (built 1892 AD) Originally built as a school during the late Ottoman period. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk convened the Sivas Congress here, which unified regional resistance groups into a single national movement and issued the Declaration of National Pact. Now preserved as a museum. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 8,000 - 200 AD: 25,000 - 800 AD: 15,000 - 1200 AD: 40,000 - 1400 AD: 20,000 - 1600 AD: 30,000 - 1800 AD: 40,000 - 1900 AD: 55,000 - 2000 AD: 250,000 - 2024 AD: 345,000 --- # Stratonicea, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/stratonicea Founded: 700 BC Ended: 1985 AD Coordinates: 37.3219, 28.0639 ## Description Stratonicea was a major Hellenistic and Roman city of Caria occupying the site of the earlier Carian town of Idrias (anciently Khrysaoris) at modern Eskihisar near Yatağan in Muğla Province. The Seleucid king Antiochus I Soter or his son Antiochus II Theos refounded the city around 270 BCE as a Hellenistic colony named after Queen Stratonice, building over the surviving Carian community of Idrias. Stratonicea joined the Chrysaorian League of Carian cities and controlled the major regional sanctuaries of Hekate at Lagina and Zeus at Panamara through the Hellenistic and Roman centuries. The city won Augustus's favor for withstanding a Parthian siege in 40 BCE during the Roman civil wars and received imperial cult status with the construction of an Ionic peripteral temple to the deified emperor. The site was inhabited continuously into the twentieth century as the village of Eskihisar before the population was relocated in the 1980s for lignite coal mining around the ancient ruins. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 546 BC: Carian Civilization (known as "Idrias") The site was occupied through the Iron Age as the Carian town of Idrias, also called Khrysaoris in later Greek sources, set on the rich agricultural plain northwest of Mylasa. The settlement participated in the broader Carian polity that shared the federal cult at Mylasa and Labraunda. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Idrias") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE Idrias came under Achaemenid suzerainty as part of the Carian satrapy. The town continued as a substantial inland Carian community through the Persian centuries. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Idrias") Alexander the Great's western Anatolian campaign of 334 BCE incorporated Idrias into the Macedonian Empire. The town passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire The Seleucid king Antiochus I Soter or his son Antiochus II Theos refounded Idrias around 270 BCE as a Hellenistic colony named Stratonicea after Queen Stratonice, integrating the Carian community as the substrate of a new Hellenistic polis with monumental civic architecture. The city joined the Chrysaorian League of Carian cities and assumed control of the regional sanctuaries at Lagina and Panamara during this period. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Stratonicea was administered from Rhodes alongside the other mainland Carian communities. The arrangement ended in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power. - 167 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire After the Roman declaration of Carian freedom in 167 BCE Stratonicea passed into the Roman provincial structure and began independent coinage. The city earned Augustus's favor for withstanding a Parthian siege in 40 BCE and received the construction of an Ionic peripteral temple to the deified emperor, with continued monumental development through the Antonine period. - 395 AD – 1304 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Stratonikeia") Under Eastern Roman administration Stratonicea continued as an episcopal see and substantial Christian town through the early Byzantine centuries, declining markedly after the Arab raids of the seventh to ninth centuries. The contracted settlement was absorbed into the Menteshe Beylik during the early fourteenth century expansion. - 1304 AD – 1424 AD: Menteshe Beylik (known as "Eskihisar") The Menteshe Beylik absorbed Stratonicea around 1304 and the contracted settlement was renamed Eskihisar (Old Fortress) in reference to the visible ancient ruins. The town briefly returned to Ottoman authority under Bayezid I from 1390 to 1402 before being restored to the Menteshe beys after the Battle of Ankara. - 1424 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Eskihisar") Sultan Murad II definitively annexed the Menteshe Beylik in 1424, returning Eskihisar to permanent Ottoman administration as a small village of the Sanjak of Menteşe. The settlement persisted as a quiet agricultural community among the visible ancient ruins through five centuries. - 1923 AD – 1985 AD: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Eskihisar") Under the Republic of Türkiye Eskihisar continued as a small village of approximately 1,500 inhabitants directly on top of the ancient Stratonicea ruins. The village population was relocated in the 1980s to clear the site for the expansion of the Yatağan lignite coal mining operations, ending nearly three millennia of continuous occupation. ## Landmarks - Bouleuterion (built 200 BC) The Hellenistic bouleuterion of Stratonicea was built around 200 BCE as the federal assembly hall of the Chrysaorian League of Carian cities, with stepped stone seating for roughly 1,200 delegates. The structure is one of the principal surviving federal-political monuments of the Carian Hellenistic period. - Augustan Imperial Temple (built 5 BC) The Ionic peripteral temple of the imperial cult at Stratonicea was built shortly after Augustus's reward for the city's loyalty during the Parthian siege of 40 BCE. The temple stood on a podium overlooking the upper agora and was one of the earliest imperial cult sanctuaries in inland Caria. - Roman Theater (built 100 AD) The Roman theater of Stratonicea was built in the early second century CE on a southwestern slope of the city with capacity for roughly 12,000 spectators. The structure preserves the cavea, scaenae frons, and significant marble decoration in good condition. ## Population History - 700 BC: 1,000 - 300 BC: 5,000 - 100 BC: 10,000 - 100 AD: 12,000 - 400 AD: 8,000 - 800 AD: 3,000 - 1300 AD: 1,500 - 1600 AD: 1,000 - 1900 AD: 1,500 - 1985 AD: null --- # Tarsus, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/tarsus Founded: 2000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.9167, 34.9 ## Description Tarsus, on the fertile Cilician plain of southern Türkiye, is one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities with a history spanning over 4,000 years. Strategically located where the Cilician Gates open onto the Mediterranean, the city has been a significant commercial, intellectual, and cultural center linking Anatolia, Syria, and the eastern Mediterranean throughout its history. Tarsus gained particular prominence during the Roman period as a center of learning, as the site of the celebrated meeting between Mark Antony and Cleopatra in 41 BCE, and as the birthplace of Saul of Tarsus (later known as Saint Paul the Apostle). The ancient city was also renowned for its school of philosophy, which rivaled those of Athens and Alexandria, and today Tarsus continues as a thriving city in Mersin Province that preserves traces of its rich multicultural heritage. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1650 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "Tarşa") Bronze Age urban occupation at the Gözlü Kule mound represents the earliest fortified settlement at Tarsus, attested archaeologically through Middle Bronze Age pottery and architecture. The site already controlled the southern approach to the Cilician Gates linking the Anatolian plateau to the Levant. - 1650 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Tarşa") Tarsus was integrated into the Hittite Empire as part of the kingdom of Kizzuwatna in upper Cilicia. The settlement served as an important regional center linking central Anatolia with the Mediterranean coast and Syria, declining along with the wider Hittite world during the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 740 BC: Tabal (known as "Tarzu") After the Hittite collapse the city, recorded in Assyrian sources as Tarzu, came under the shifting influence of the Neo-Hittite Luwian-Aramaean kingdom of Tabal in upper Cilicia. The settlement remained a regional commercial hub on the route between the Anatolian plateau and the Levant through the long Iron Age. - 740 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Tarzu") Tiglath-Pileser III's campaigns in Cilicia brought Tarsus under direct Neo-Assyrian control around 740 BCE. The city was administered as part of the Assyrian provincial system serving as a Mediterranean port for the empire, until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Tarzu") After the fall of Nineveh, Cilicia and its principal city Tarsus passed to the Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nebuchadnezzar II. The city continued as a regional commercial centre on the route between Mesopotamia and the Mediterranean. - 539 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE incorporated Cilicia and Tarsus into the Achaemenid Empire, typically administered through the local client dynasty of the Syennesis under Persian overlordship. The city minted its own coinage and remained a wealthy administrative and commercial center serving the empire's western provinces. - 333 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great occupied Tarsus in 333 BCE after forcing the Cilician Gates, reportedly falling seriously ill there after bathing in the cold waters of the Cydnus river. The city was integrated into his expanding Macedonian Empire and passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Anatolian power consolidated under the Seleucids after Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire Under the Seleucid kings Tarsus remained one of the principal cities of Cilicia, with control occasionally contested by Ptolemaic Egypt during the Syrian Wars of the 3rd century BCE. The city was thoroughly Hellenized as a center of Greek learning, philosophy, and rhetoric, and was for a time refounded as Antiochia-on-the-Cydnus before Pompey's Roman annexation of Cilicia in 64 BCE. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic After Pompey's reorganization of the East, Tarsus became the capital of the Roman province of Cilicia and one of the leading intellectual centers of the empire, with philosophical schools that contemporaries compared favorably to those of Athens and Alexandria. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. It was the setting for the celebrated meeting of Mark Antony and Cleopatra in 41 BCE and the birthplace of Saul of Tarsus, later the apostle Paul. - 395 AD – 638 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman Empire Tarsus continued as an important Cilician city and ecclesiastical see, suffering from the wars between Byzantium and the Sasanian Empire in the 6th and early 7th centuries. The city fell to the Arab armies during the early Islamic conquests in 638 CE. - 638 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate Following the Arab conquest of Cilicia, Tarsus was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate's province of al-Sham. The city's strategic position near the Cilician Gates made it a major frontier post facing Byzantine Anatolia. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under Umayyad rule Tarsus served as a frontier stronghold on the Byzantine-Arab frontier, repeatedly raided and recaptured between the two powers. The city was largely depopulated for much of this period as a no-man's-land between the empires. - 750 AD – 965 AD: Abbasid Caliphate Under the Abbasids, Caliph al-Mahdi systematically refortified Tarsus from 778-786 CE as a major frontier stronghold of the Thughur — the fortified Arab-Byzantine border — facing Byzantine Anatolia. The city housed a substantial population of warrior-volunteers and supported almost continuous summer raiding (sa'ifa) against Byzantine territory until the Byzantine reconquest under Nikephoros II Phokas in 965. - 965 AD – 1085 AD: Byzantine Empire Nikephoros II Phokas restored Tarsus to Byzantine control in 965 and the city remained under imperial administration for a century. Renewed Turkmen incursions and the wider Byzantine collapse in Anatolia after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 led to the loss of the city in the 1080s. - 1085 AD – 1375 AD: Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia After renewed turmoil following the Seljuk advance into Anatolia in the late 11th century, Tarsus came under the emerging Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, formed by Armenian refugees from eastern Anatolia and formally constituted as a kingdom in 1198. As an Armenian royal possession the city became a significant trading port linking the Mediterranean with the interior, until continual Mamluk pressure brought the kingdom's final collapse in 1375. - 1375 AD – 1517 AD: Mamluk Sultanate With the fall of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia in 1375, Tarsus came under the control of the Egyptian-based Mamluk Sultanate, which administered the city as part of its northern frontier. The region also saw incursions and partial control by the Ramadanid Beylik, who acted at times as Mamluk vassals in Cilicia. - 1517 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Under Ottoman rule Tarsus was administered as part of the Adana region, with its fortunes tied to the agricultural productivity of the Cilician plain and the trade routes through the Cilician Gates. Marshland and malaria periodically depressed the city's size, but cotton cultivation in the 19th century revived its economy and population, and the city experienced a brief French occupation after World War I before incorporation into the Republic of Türkiye. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, Tarsus became part of Mersin Province and developed into a major agricultural, industrial, and educational center in southern Anatolia. The city has grown substantially in the modern era while preserving major archaeological remains from its Hittite, Roman, and medieval phases. ## Landmarks - Cleopatra's Gate (built 100 BC) Also known as St. Paul's Gate, this monumental stone archway was part of the ancient city walls of Roman Tarsus, traditionally associated with Cleopatra's entry into the city to meet Mark Antony in 41 BCE although the current structure dates to a slightly later period. The gate stands approximately 8.5 meters high with a width of 5.5 meters, constructed of large limestone blocks without mortar, and marks the eastern entrance to the ancient city as part of a defensive system that encircled Roman Tarsus. - St. Paul's Well (built 1 AD) Located in the courtyard of an old house believed to stand on the site of Saint Paul's birthplace, this ancient well has been venerated for centuries by Christian pilgrims, with archaeological evidence suggesting the well dates back to the Roman period. The water was historically believed to have healing properties, and the site includes a small museum with artifacts related to early Christianity in Tarsus. Pope Benedict XVI visited this landmark during his 2006 trip to Turkey, highlighting its continued religious significance. ## Population History - 2000 BC: 5,000 - 1000 BC: 10,000 - 200 BC: 50,000 - 100 BC: 100,000 - 0 AD: 120,000 - 500 AD: 80,000 - 850 AD: 48,000 - 900 AD: 48,000 - 1800 AD: 30,000 - 1927 AD: 73,907 - 2000 AD: 348,205 - 2020 AD: 346,715 --- # Taşköprü, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/taskopru Founded: 700 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.5206, 34.2155 ## Description Taşköprü — ancient Pompeiopolis — is a small town in the Kastamonu Province of northern Türkiye, on the Gökırmak river in central Paphlagonia about 45 km east of Kastamonu. The site is attested as an Iron Age Paphlagonian settlement of unknown name, before Pompey the Great refounded it as Pompeiopolis in 65 BCE following his eastern settlement after the Third Mithridatic War. Pompeiopolis became the capital of the Roman province of Paphlagonia after its formation under Augustus, and grew into one of the principal Roman cities of north-central Anatolia with monumental colonnaded avenues, basilicas, a theatre, and baths excavated since 2006 by joint German-Turkish missions on Zımbıllı Tepe. The city was the metropolitan see of Paphlagonia from the 4th century but progressively declined through the Arab raids of the 7th-8th centuries and was reduced to a small Byzantine garrison town by the late medieval period. The medieval Turkmen town of Taşköprü ('stone bridge') developed on the same site after the Danishmendid and Seljuk conquest of north-central Anatolia in the 11th-12th centuries, taking its name from the Ottoman-era stone bridge over the Gökırmak. Under Danishmendid, Seljuk, Candaroğlu, and Ottoman rule the town remained a modest provincial centre, and was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire by Bayezid I in 1392. Modern Taşköprü is the district seat of Taşköprü ilçesi within Kastamonu Province with about 22,000 inhabitants, internationally known as Turkey's principal garlic-growing region and the site of the Pompeiopolis archaeological park. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 547 BC: Paphlagonian Civilization (known as "*Pompeiopolis") An Iron Age Paphlagonian settlement of unknown name occupied the strategic ridge at Zımbıllı Tepe above the Gökırmak river through the early and mid first millennium BCE. The site was a regional centre of the indigenous Paphlagonian population of north-central Anatolia until the Persian conquest of Anatolia after the fall of Lydia in 547 BCE. - 547 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Pompeiopolis") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE brought Paphlagonia and the future Pompeiopolis site under Achaemenid Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia. The local Paphlagonian dynasts continued to hold considerable autonomy as Persian vassals until the Macedonian conquest of Anatolia. - 333 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Pompeiopolis") After Alexander the Great's defeat of the Achaemenids, the Paphlagonian highlands passed nominally into the Macedonian sphere through the campaigns of Eumenes and Antigonus. The region passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 183 BC: Kingdom of Paphlagonia (known as "*Pompeiopolis") Following the collapse of Lysimachus's Thracian kingdom in 281 BCE, the Paphlagonian Pylaemenid dynasty established an independent kingdom centred on Gangra with the future Pompeiopolis site as one of its secondary centres. The kingdom remained independent until the Pontic king Pharnaces I conquered Paphlagonia around 183 BCE. - 183 BC – 65 BC: Kingdom of Pontus (known as "*Pompeiopolis") Pharnaces I of Pontus absorbed Paphlagonia around 183 BCE, and the region remained under Pontic rule through Mithridates V and Mithridates VI Eupator. After Pompey defeated Mithridates VI in the Third Mithridatic War, the eastern settlement of 65 BCE refounded the Paphlagonian settlement as the new colonia of Pompeiopolis. - 65 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Pompeiopolis") Pompey the Great refounded the Paphlagonian settlement as Pompeiopolis in 65 BCE as part of his eastern settlement after the Third Mithridatic War, creating a new Roman colonia on a regular Hippodamian grid plan. The city was the principal Roman foundation of inland Paphlagonia until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Pompeiopolis") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE the city was incorporated into the Roman province of Galatia and after 6 BCE into the new district of Paphlagonia, of which Pompeiopolis became the metropolitan capital. Joint German-Turkish excavations on Zımbıllı Tepe since 2006 have revealed the colonnaded forum, the basilica, the theatre, the great bath complex, and elite peristyle houses with mosaic floors of the second and third centuries CE. The city remained a Christian metropolitan see and a major Anatolian inland centre until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Pompeiopolis") Under the Eastern Roman administration Pompeiopolis continued as the metropolitan see of Paphlagonia and a Byzantine fortress on the central Anatolian road network. The city progressively declined through the Sasanian invasions of the early 7th century and the Arab raids of the 7th and 8th centuries, and was reduced to a small Byzantine garrison town by the late medieval period before the Danishmendid conquest after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. - 1071 AD – 1174 AD: Danishmendid Beylik After the Seljuk victory at Manzikert in 1071, the Turkmen Danishmendid dynasty established its rule over north-central Anatolia and the Turkified settlement of Taşköprü ('stone bridge') emerged on the ruins of Pompeiopolis. The Danishmendids held the town until their absorption by the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum in 1174. - 1174 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum The Anatolian Seljuks absorbed the Danishmendid domains under Kilij Arslan II in 1174 and incorporated Taşköprü into the unified Anatolian Turkish state. The town continued as a small regional centre in the Gökırmak valley until the Mongol victory at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243. - 1243 AD – 1309 AD: Ilkhanate After the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243, the Sultanate of Rum became a Mongol vassal and Taşköprü was effectively administered by Ilkhanate-appointed governors. As Ilkhanid authority weakened in the late 13th century, the Candaroğlu Turkmen beys carved out an independent principality across the Paphlagonian highlands. - 1309 AD – 1392 AD: Candaroğlu Beylik The Candaroğlu (Isfendiyarid) Beylik centred on neighbouring Kastamonu incorporated Taşköprü from around 1309 as one of its principal inland towns of central Paphlagonia. The beylik held Taşköprü for nearly a century as a regional commercial and religious centre until Bayezid I's Ottoman annexation in 1392. - 1392 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Bayezid I annexed Taşköprü from the Candaroğulları in 1392 and incorporated it into the Ottoman Empire as a kaza of the Vilayet of Kastamonu. Under five centuries of Ottoman rule the town remained a modest provincial centre of central Paphlagonia, with several surviving Ottoman mosques and the great Ottoman stone bridge across the Gökırmak that gave the town its name. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923, Taşköprü became a district (ilçe) within Kastamonu Province. The town has grown to about 22,000 inhabitants and is internationally known as Turkey's principal garlic-growing region, while the adjacent Pompeiopolis archaeological park on Zımbıllı Tepe has been the subject of major German-Turkish excavations since 2006. ## Landmarks - Pompeiopolis Forum and Colonnaded Street (built 100 AD) The Roman civic centre of Pompeiopolis on the eastern slope of Zımbıllı Tepe, with a monumental colonnaded forum and an axial decumanus paved with limestone slabs. Excavated since 2006 by joint German-Turkish missions, the complex preserves substantial sections of column drums, capitals, and the basilica foundations of the 2nd-century imperial city. - Roman Theatre of Pompeiopolis (built 150 AD) A Roman theatre on the southern slope of Zımbıllı Tepe with an estimated capacity of around 5,000 spectators, built into the natural hillside in the mid-2nd century CE. The cavea seating, orchestra, and scaenae frons foundations have been progressively cleared by the ongoing excavations, providing the principal monumental visible remain of the ancient city. - Muzafereddin Gazi Mosque (built 1366 AD) A Candaroğlu-era mosque built in 1366 under the local emir Muzafereddin Gazi, the earliest surviving Turkish religious monument of Taşköprü. The single-domed prayer hall with its slender minaret anchors the historic core of the modern town. - Ottoman Stone Bridge of Taşköprü (built 1583 AD) The great Ottoman stone bridge across the Gökırmak river that gave the modern town its name, built around 1583 under the local notable Yörgüç Paşa in the late 16th century. The 18-arched limestone bridge spans roughly 110 metres and remains in continuous use as a vehicular and pedestrian crossing. ## Population History - 700 BC: 800 - 300 BC: 2,000 - 65 BC: 3,000 - 100 AD: 15,000 - 300 AD: 12,000 - 500 AD: 8,000 - 800 AD: 3,000 - 1071 AD: 1,500 - 1500 AD: 5,000 - 1700 AD: 8,000 - 1900 AD: 10,000 - 1950 AD: 10,000 - 2000 AD: 18,000 - 2020 AD: 22,000 --- # Tavium, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/tavium Founded: 278 BC Ended: 1200 AD Coordinates: 39.859132, 34.506459 ## Description Tavium — modern Büyüknefes in the Yerköy district of Yozgat Province — was the capital of the Trocmi tribe, one of the three Celtic peoples who formed the Galatian Kingdom of central Anatolia after their migration across the Hellespont in 278 BCE. Strategically positioned on the great east-west road across the Anatolian plateau from Ancyra to Sebasteia and Caesarea, Tavium became a major commercial junction and the principal Trocmi sanctuary of the Galatian gods. After Augustus annexed the Galatian Kingdom as a Roman province in 25 BCE, Tavium continued as one of its three metropoleis — alongside Ancyra and Pessinus — and a station on the imperial road network of north-central Anatolia. The city was famous in Roman times for its great sanctuary of the local god Mars Tavianus, attested by Strabo and surviving inscriptions, and for its trade in salt, livestock, and Pontic timber. Tavium remained a Christian bishopric and Byzantine fortress through late antiquity, declining progressively through the Byzantine-Sasanian and Byzantine-Arab wars of the 7th and 8th centuries before being effectively abandoned by the early second millennium, when the modern Turkmen village of Büyüknefes took shape on its ruins. ## Historical Rulers - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom Tavium was founded around 278 BCE by the Galatian Trocmi tribe — one of the three Celtic peoples settled in central Anatolia after the Brennus migration across the Hellespont — as their tribal capital on the great east-west road across the Anatolian plateau. The town served as the principal Trocmi sanctuary of the Galatian gods and a major commercial junction in north-central Anatolia until Augustus annexed the Galatian Kingdom as a Roman province on the death of King Amyntas in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire After Augustus's annexation of the Galatian Kingdom in 25 BCE, Tavium continued as one of the three metropoleis of the new Roman province of Galatia alongside Ancyra and Pessinus. The city was famous for its great sanctuary of the local god Mars Tavianus — attested by Strabo and the surviving epigraphic record — and for its trade in salt, livestock, and Pontic timber, until the Theodosian partition of the empire in 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1200 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman administration Tavium continued as a Christian bishopric and Byzantine fortress on the central Anatolian plateau through the late-Roman and middle-Byzantine periods. The town declined progressively through the Sasanian invasions of the early 7th century and the Arab raids of the 7th-8th centuries, and was effectively abandoned by the early second millennium when the small Turkmen village of Büyüknefes took shape on its ruins after the Seljuk and Danishmendid conquests of central Anatolia. ## Landmarks - Acropolis of Tavium (built 250 BC) The fortified hilltop citadel of Tavium occupying the highest point of the site at Büyüknefes, with masonry traces from the Galatian, Roman, and Byzantine periods. The acropolis anchored the city's defences and preserves surface remains of the Roman city wall circuit that ran around the lower town. - Sanctuary of Mars Tavianus (built 100 BC) The principal cult precinct of Tavium dedicated to the local god Mars Tavianus, a syncretic Galatian-Roman war deity worshipped from the Hellenistic period through Roman imperial times. The sanctuary is attested by Strabo and by surviving Latin and Greek dedicatory inscriptions, though its precise architectural form is known only from scattered surface remains. - Roman City Walls of Tavium (built 200 AD) The Roman city walls of Tavium enclosing the lower town below the acropolis, built in the Roman imperial period and substantially repaired in the late antique era. Substantial sections of the curtain wall and several towers survive as surface ruins in the modern Büyüknefes village fields. ## Population History - 278 BC: 500 - 100 BC: 5,000 - 100 AD: 12,000 - 300 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 6,000 - 900 AD: 2,000 - 1200 AD: null --- # Tekirdağ, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/tekirdag Founded: 700 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 40.9833, 27.5167 ## Description Tekirdağ — ancient Bisanthe, medieval Rhaedestus, and Ottoman Rodosçuk — is the principal city of the eastern Marmara coast of Turkish Thrace, about 130 km west of Istanbul. Founded around 700 BCE by Samian Greek colonists on a low coastal headland above the Sea of Marmara, the polis developed as an autonomous Greek city alongside the indigenous Odrysian Thracian population of the European Marmara hinterland. Through the Classical period Bisanthe alternated between Achaemenid Persian rule, Athenian Delian League tribute, and Spartan suzerainty, until the Macedonian conquest under Philip II in the 340s BCE and the eventual Roman incorporation in the 70s BCE. Renamed Rhaedestos in the late antique period, the city flourished under Byzantine rule as a naval base and grain port on the western Marmara approaches to Constantinople, serving as an episcopal see and a major commercial hub for the imperial grain trade. Süleyman Pasha, the eldest son of the Ottoman sultan Orhan I, captured Rhaedestos in 1357 as part of the early Ottoman conquests in Thrace, renaming it Rodosçuk and incorporating it into the rapidly expanding Ottoman state. Under four and a half centuries of Ottoman rule the town flourished as the principal Marmara port for Edirne and the European hinterland, and from 1720 to his death in 1735 hosted the exiled Hungarian prince Ferenc Rákóczi II in residence under Sultan Ahmed III. The 1922-1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange transformed the urban demography of the town, after which it was renamed Tekirdağ in standardized modern Turkish during the early Republican period. Modern Tekirdağ is the capital of Tekirdağ Province with about 200,000 inhabitants in the city proper and over 1.1 million in the wider province, with a rapidly growing port and an expanding economic role as the western Marmara industrial extension of Greater Istanbul. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 512 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Bisanthe") Founded around 700 BCE by Samian Greek colonists on a low coastal headland above the Sea of Marmara, the polis overlaid an older Thracian settlement of the same name reported by later writers. Bisanthe developed as an autonomous Greek city in the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Propontis, coexisting with the indigenous Odrysian Thracian hinterland until the Persian conquest of European Thrace under Darius I around 512 BCE. - 512 BC – 478 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Bisanthe") Darius I incorporated Bisanthe and the Thracian Marmara coast into the Achaemenid Empire as a tributary city under the satrapy of Skudra during the Persian campaigns against the European Scythians. The polis was liberated by Pausanias and his Greek allied fleet in 478 BCE after the Persian defeats at Salamis and Plataea. - 478 BC – 336 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Bisanthe") After its liberation from Persian rule Bisanthe rejoined the wider Hellenic Propontic polis network and paid tribute to Athens through the Athenian-led Delian League in the fifth century BCE. The polis alternated between Spartan and Athenian alignment during the Peloponnesian and Corinthian Wars, was briefly held by Xenophon and the Ten Thousand as a refuge in 400 BCE per the Anabasis, and finally fell to Macedonian suzerainty under Philip II in the 340s BCE. - 336 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Bisanthe") Under Alexander the Great and the early Diadochi Bisanthe remained nominally Macedonian while retaining most of its civic autonomy as a free Greek polis. The town passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the territorial settlement of the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 148 BC: Antigonid Dynasty (known as "Bisanthe") After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE Bisanthe passed under the formal suzerainty of the Antigonid kingdom of Macedonia while preserving its working autonomy as a Greek free city. The polis continued to mint its own coinage with the celebrated Demeter-Dolphin series and served as a minor commercial port at the contested edge of the Antigonid, Seleucid, and Bithynian Hellenistic spheres, until the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE. - 148 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Bisanthe") After the Roman dissolution of the Macedonian kingdom in 148 BCE Bisanthe passed under nominal Roman authority within the new province of Macedonia, though formal Roman administration of Thrace developed only gradually through the next century. Bisanthe's alliance with Rome during the Third Mithridatic War in 73 BCE drew the town firmly into the Roman provincial system after Pompey's eastern settlement of 64 BCE, and the polis was integrated into the wider provincial framework until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Bisanthe") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued as a Marmara port on the Via Egnatia approaches to Byzantium and later Constantinople. The town was a steady commercial port through the Roman imperial period, gradually adopting the alternative name Rhaedestos by late antiquity that would prevail under the Eastern Roman administration after the Theodosian partition of 395 CE. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Rhaedestus") Under Eastern Roman administration Rhaedestos flourished as a naval base, grain port, and episcopal see on the western Marmara approaches to Constantinople, serving as a major outlet for grain shipments from the Thracian hinterland to feed the imperial capital. The town was reorganized as the seat of the theme of Thrakesion in the late 9th century and developed a substantial defended harbour. Rhaedestos remained a key Byzantine maritime centre until the Fourth Crusade's capture of Constantinople in 1204. - 1204 AD – 1261 AD: Latin Empire (known as "Rodosto") Following the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204, Rhaedestos — now Latinized as Rodosto — was assigned to Venetian commercial interests as a major Marmara grain port. The Venetian factory at Rodosto handled the wheat trade between the Thracian hinterland and the Italian maritime republics until Michael VIII Palaiologos's reconquest of Constantinople in 1261. - 1261 AD – 1357 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Rhaedestus") After Michael VIII Palaiologos's restoration of Byzantine Constantinople in 1261, Rhaedestos reverted to the restored Palaiologan Empire as one of its principal Thracian fortress ports. The town survived Bulgarian raids and the catastrophic Black Death of 1347-1348 before falling to the Ottoman expansion of the mid-14th century. - 1357 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Rodosçuk") Süleyman Pasha, the eldest son of the Ottoman sultan Orhan I, captured Rhaedestos in 1357 as part of the early Ottoman conquests in Thrace, renaming it Rodosçuk and incorporating it into the rapidly expanding Ottoman state. Under four and a half centuries of Ottoman rule the town flourished as the principal Marmara port for Edirne and the European hinterland, and from 1720 to his death in 1735 hosted the exiled Hungarian prince Ferenc Rákóczi II under the protection of Sultan Ahmed III. The town's name evolved through Tekfurdağı in the late Ottoman period — meaning the Hill of the Tekfur (Byzantine ruler) — until the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923 the town's name was standardized as Tekirdağ in modern Turkish orthography, and the city became the capital of its eponymous province on the western Marmara coast. The 1922-1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange transformed the urban demography, after which Tekirdağ developed steadily through the 20th century as an industrial port and the western terminus of greater Istanbul's expansion, reaching about 200,000 in the city proper and over 1.1 million in the wider province. ## Landmarks - Rhaedestus Citadel and Walls (built 500 AD) The Byzantine fortified citadel and walls of Rhaedestos, built in their late-Roman form around the early 6th century CE and substantially expanded under the middle and late Byzantine emperors. Portions of the curtain wall and the harbour mole survive at the modern town's historic core, though much of the medieval circuit was dismantled in the 19th and early 20th centuries. - Rüstem Pasha Mosque of Tekirdağ (built 1553 AD) An Ottoman imperial mosque built in 1553 by the chief architect Mimar Sinan for Grand Vizier Rüstem Pasha, son-in-law of Suleiman the Magnificent. The mosque combines a single dome resting on an octagonal drum with elaborate Iznik tile decoration and an attached double-domed bedesten that served as the heart of the Ottoman commercial quarter. - Rákóczi Museum (Macar Evi) (built 1720 AD) The early 18th-century konak in which the exiled Hungarian prince Ferenc Rákóczi II lived from 1720 to his death in 1735 under the protection of Sultan Ahmed III, after losing his struggle against Habsburg rule in Hungary. Restored and opened as a museum in 1982 with the support of the Hungarian government, the building preserves period furniture, weapons, and documents of the Rákóczi household in exile. - Tekirdağ Clock Tower (built 1889 AD) An Ottoman clock tower built in 1889 under Sultan Abdul Hamid II as part of the empire-wide programme commemorating the 25th anniversary of his accession. The slender stone tower stands at the centre of the old town and remains one of the principal Ottoman monuments of late-19th-century Tekirdağ. ## Population History - 700 BC: 1,000 - 500 BC: 4,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 100 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 12,000 - 1200 AD: 8,000 - 1357 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 10,000 - 1700 AD: 30,000 - 1900 AD: 35,000 - 1923 AD: 25,000 - 1950 AD: 30,000 - 1980 AD: 75,000 - 2000 AD: 150,000 - 2020 AD: 200,000 --- # Termessos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/termessos Founded: 700 BC Ended: 500 AD Coordinates: 36.9819, 30.4625 ## Description Termessos was a major mountain city of ancient Pisidia, occupying a fortified plateau at roughly 1,050 meters elevation on Mount Güllük Dağı (ancient Solymos) in the western Taurus range north of Antalya. The city was founded by the Solymi, a Pisidian people identified by Homer in connection with the legend of Bellerophon and attested in Anatolian sources from the Iron Age. Alexander the Great besieged Termessos in 333 BCE during his Pisidian campaign but withdrew without taking the city after recognising its mountain position as effectively impregnable — likening it to an eagle's nest — and redirected his army toward Sagalassos. The city retained its independence through the Hellenistic centuries under nominal Seleucid and Pergamene suzerainty and was confirmed in this status by the Roman Lex Antonia de Termessibus of 70 BCE, which formally guaranteed the city's autonomy and exemption from Roman taxation. Under the Roman Empire Termessos prospered as a wealthy autonomous polis with extensive monumental construction in the second and third centuries CE, including Hadrian's Gate, the theater, the Heroön of the Pisidian dynast Alketas, and a sprawling rock-cut and sarcophagus necropolis covering the mountain slopes. The city was a Christian bishopric in the fourth and fifth centuries CE but was progressively abandoned following the destruction of its aqueduct by an earthquake in the fifth century which ended the water supply to the mountain town. The site was never excavated systematically and has remained substantially untouched, preserving the surface ruins in a state unparalleled among major Pisidian cities and producing over a thousand surface-find inscriptions. Termessos National Park, established in 1970, protects the surviving Hellenistic walls, monumental Roman buildings, and necropoleis on the mountain together with their forest setting. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 547 BC: Pisidian Civilization The Solymi, a Pisidian people identified by Homer in connection with the legend of Bellerophon, fortified the high plateau on Mount Solymos as their principal mountain stronghold from the Iron Age. Termessos was an independent polity sharing in the broader Pisidian culture of the western Taurus highlands documented at Selge, Sagalassos, and the other mountain centers. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, Pisidia was nominally incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire administered through the satrapy of Greater Phrygia, but the highland communities including Termessos maintained substantial autonomy throughout the Persian centuries. The mountain city paid intermittent tribute and otherwise operated as a self-governing polity. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great besieged Termessos in 333 BCE during his Pisidian campaign but withdrew without taking the city, the only major Anatolian settlement that successfully resisted his army. Alexander likened the mountain fortress to an eagle's nest and redirected his forces to Sagalassos, leaving Termessos's autonomous status intact through the Wars of the Diadochi. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Under nominal Seleucid suzerainty through the third century BCE, Termessos retained substantial local autonomy with no Seleucid garrison stationed within the city. The Treaty of Apamea of 188 BCE reassigned the Pisidian region to the Kingdom of Pergamon, but again without effective control over the highland Pisidian cities. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon Pergamene authority over Pisidia was largely nominal as Termessos continued in functional autonomy through the second century BCE. The 133 BCE bequest of the Attalid kingdom to Rome by Attalos III brought the city into the Roman sphere without significant change to its self-governing institutions. - 133 BC – 500 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Termessus") After the Pergamene bequest of 133 BCE Termessos passed into the Roman sphere as an autonomous ally, and the Roman Lex Antonia de Termessibus of 70 BCE formally guaranteed the city's independence and tax exemption — preserving the status the city had defended since Alexander's failed siege. Roman Termessus achieved its monumental peak in the second and third centuries CE with Hadrian's Gate, the theater, the gymnasium, the Heroön of Alketas, and a vast rock-cut and sarcophagus necropolis covering the mountain slopes. The city was a Christian bishopric in the fourth and fifth centuries before progressive abandonment following the destruction of the aqueduct by a fifth-century earthquake which ended the water supply to the mountain plateau. ## Landmarks - Heroön of Alketas (built 319 BC) The rock-cut Heroön of Alketas commemorates the Macedonian general Alketas, brother of Perdiccas, who took refuge at Termessos after the Wars of the Diadochi and was killed by the inhabitants in 319 BCE before being honored with a tomb in the cliff face. The relief shows an armed horseman and is one of the principal early Hellenistic tomb monuments of Pisidia. - Hellenistic Walls (built 300 BC) The Hellenistic defensive walls of Termessos, built in the late fourth and third centuries BCE, encircle the upper city with massive cyclopean masonry incorporating natural rock outcrops. The walls were the architectural answer to Alexander's lesson of 333 BCE and remained the practical guarantee of Termessian autonomy through the Hellenistic and Roman centuries. - Theater of Termessos (built 100 BC) The theater of Termessos was carved into the mountain slope above the upper city in the Hellenistic period and enlarged in Roman form during the imperial centuries, with capacity for roughly 4,200 spectators in a dramatic mountainside setting overlooking the Antalya plain. The theater is one of the most spectacularly sited classical theaters of Anatolia. - Hadrian's Gate (built 130 AD) Hadrian's Gate at Termessos was built around 130 CE in honor of the emperor's visit to Pisidia, a three-arched triumphal monument that formed the principal western entrance to the city along the rising mountain road. The structure survives substantially intact at the threshold of the upper plateau. ## Population History - 700 BC: 500 - 400 BC: 2,000 - 200 BC: 5,000 - 0 AD: 6,000 - 200 AD: 8,000 - 400 AD: 5,000 - 500 AD: null --- # Tlos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/tlos Founded: 1500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.5491, 29.4264 ## Description Tlos was one of the principal cities of ancient Lycia, occupying a fortified acropolis above the Xanthos river valley near modern Seydikemer in Muğla Province. First attested in Hittite cuneiform records of the fifteenth century BCE as Dalawa, the city developed through the Iron Age as the Lycian polity of Tlawa and became one of the six principal three-vote cities of the Lycian League from 167 BCE. Roman Tlos held the title of "very brilliant metropolis of the Lycian nation" with monumental Antonine construction and recovery from the earthquakes of 141 and 240 CE under the benefactor Opramoas. The acropolis was reused as an Ottoman fortress by the local notable Kanlı Ali Ağa in the eighteenth century, leaving a continuous habitation arc through the modern village of Yakaköy. The most famous monument of the site is the rock-cut Tomb of Bellerophon with its relief of the hero riding Pegasus, set into the cliff below the acropolis. ## Historical Rulers - 1500 BC – 546 BC: Lycian Civilization (known as "Dalawa") Tlos appears in Hittite cuneiform records of the fifteenth century BCE under the name Dalawa and developed through the Iron Age as the Lycian polity of Tlawa on the fortified acropolis above the Xanthos valley. The city emerged as one of the largest Lycian centers with substantial Archaic rock-cut funerary monuments cut into the cliff below the citadel. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following the Persian general Harpagos's campaign of 540 BCE Tlos came under Achaemenid suzerainty administered through local Lycian dynasts. The city prospered through the fifth and fourth centuries BCE with extensive new funerary architecture and growing Greek cultural integration. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's Lycian campaign of 333 BCE incorporated Tlos into the Macedonian Empire without recorded resistance. The city passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom For most of the third century BCE Tlos was held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt as part of their Lycian thalassocracy. The city continued as a substantial Hellenistic polity through the period. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Antiochus III's western campaign brought Tlos briefly into the Seleucid sphere until the Treaty of Apamea of 188 BCE reassigned Lycia to Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome at Apamea, Tlos was administered from Rhodes alongside the other Lycian cities for two decades. Rhodian rule ended in 167 BCE when Rome declared the Lycian cities free. - 167 BC – 43 AD: Lycian League Tlos joined the Lycian League at its 167 BCE constitution as one of the six principal cities with the maximum three votes in the federal assembly. The city minted federal coinage and maintained close ties with the federal sanctuary at Letoon. - 43 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Emperor Claudius incorporated Lycia as a Roman province in 43 CE, and Tlos achieved its monumental peak under the Antonines with the title "very brilliant metropolis of the Lycian nation." The earthquakes of 141 and 240 CE were repaired through the benefactions of the wealthy Lycian Opramoas of Rhodiapolis. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Tlos was an early bishopric and continued as a substantial Christian town through the Arab raids of the seventh to ninth centuries that depopulated the Lycian coast. The city contracted to a fortified hilltop refuge through the middle Byzantine period. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum Following the Battle of Manzikert and the Seljuk advance into Anatolia, Tlos came under the Sultanate of Rum and operated as a small mountain settlement of the southwestern Anatolian frontier. The fortified acropolis continued to serve a small Christian population. - 1308 AD – 1423 AD: Teke Beylik The Teke Beylik based at Antalya absorbed Tlos at the early-fourteenth-century formation of the western Anatolian beyliks following the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum. The site was reorganised as a small Turkmen highland settlement. - 1423 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Yakaköy") Ottoman incorporation of the Teke Beylik in 1423 brought Tlos under the eyalet of Anatolia, and the settlement reorganised as the small village of Yakaköy below the ancient acropolis. The local notable Kanlı Ali Ağa rebuilt the acropolis as a personal fortified residence in the late eighteenth century, leaving the surviving Ottoman tower at the summit. - 1923 AD – 2026 AD: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Yakaköy") Under the Republic of Türkiye Tlos became a designated archaeological site administered jointly with the modern Yakaköy village. Continuous Turkish-Italian excavation since 2005 has revealed the theater, stadium, baths, and the major rock-cut funerary monuments. ## Landmarks - Tomb of Bellerophon (built 400 BC) The Tomb of Bellerophon is a rock-cut Lycian temple-tomb of the fourth century BCE carved into the cliff below the acropolis, with a relief on the porch wall showing the hero Bellerophon riding Pegasus to slay the Chimera. The relief is the principal surviving image of the Lycian mythological identity that linked Tlos to the legendary king Bellerophon. - Roman Theater (built 150 AD) The Roman theater of Tlos was built in the second century CE on the slope below the acropolis with capacity for roughly 2,500 spectators. The structure was substantially repaired after the 240 CE earthquake through the benefactions of Opramoas of Rhodiapolis. - Stadium (built 150 AD) The Roman stadium of Tlos lay on the plain below the acropolis with a track of roughly 150 meters and stepped stone seating along both flanks. The stadium hosted the games of the imperial cult during the Antonine period when Tlos held the title of Lycian metropolis. - Kanlı Ali Ağa Fortress (built 1770 AD) The Ottoman fortress on the summit of the Tlos acropolis was built in the late eighteenth century by the local notable Kanlı Ali Ağa as a personal fortified residence reusing the ancient citadel walls. The surviving stone tower documents the continuous reuse of the strategic mountain site from the Bronze Age to the late Ottoman period. ## Population History - 1500 BC: 500 - 800 BC: 1,500 - 300 BC: 3,000 - 0 AD: 5,000 - 200 AD: 8,000 - 500 AD: 4,000 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1500 AD: 1,000 - 1800 AD: 800 - 2025 AD: 600 --- # Toprakkale, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/toprakkale Founded: 714 BC Ended: 590 BC Coordinates: 38.52, 43.4 ## Description Toprakkale is the modern name of the late Urartian fortress and royal city of Rusahinili Qilbani-kai, occupying a rocky outcrop above the eastern Lake Van plain just east of the older Urartian capital at Tushpa (modern Van Castle). Founded by King Rusa I around 714 BCE near the end of his reign, the site served as the principal royal residence and ceremonial center of the late Urartian Kingdom, complementing rather than replacing Tushpa across the Van rock. The upper city enclosed the principal temple of the storm god Haldi, the royal palace, large grain storage facilities, and an elaborate cistern system carved into the bedrock. The fortress was destroyed in the Median conquest of Urartu around 590 BCE and the upper city was not reoccupied. British Museum excavations under Hormuzd Rassam in 1877 and Istanbul University investigations under Afif Erzen from 1959 recovered extensive bronze, ivory, and gold artifacts now distributed across the Hermitage, the British Museum, and the Museum of the Ancient Orient in Istanbul. ## Historical Rulers - 714 BC – 590 BC: Urartu (known as "Rusahinili") Rusa I founded Rusahinili Qilbani-kai around 714 BCE on the rocky outcrop east of Tushpa as the principal royal residence and ceremonial center of the late Urartian Kingdom. The fortress was destroyed in the Median conquest of around 590 BCE that ended the Urartian state and the upper city was not subsequently reoccupied. ## Landmarks - Temple of Haldi (built 710 BC) The upper citadel at Rusahinili enclosed the principal temple of the storm god Haldi of the late Urartian Kingdom. The temple foundations, dedicatory cuneiform inscriptions, and substantial bronze fittings recovered in the 1877 Rassam excavations document the high-classical phase of Urartian religious architecture. - Royal Palace (built 710 BC) The royal palace at the upper citadel housed the late Urartian kings as the principal alternative residence to the older Tushpa rock. The complex produced an exceptional inventory of bronze candelabra, decorated votive shields, and ivory carvings that document Urartian artistic peak. - Cistern System (built 710 BC) An elaborate cistern system carved into the bedrock beneath the upper citadel supplied water to the royal complex through the dry summers of the Van basin. The cisterns and channels are among the most extensive Urartian hydraulic installations known archaeologically. ## Population History - 714 BC: 2,000 - 680 BC: 3,000 - 640 BC: 2,500 - 600 BC: 1,500 - 590 BC: null --- # Tosya, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/tosya Founded: 395 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.0146, 34.0349 ## Description Tosya — Byzantine Doceia (Greek Δοκεία) and Theodosia (Θεοδοσία) — is a town in Kastamonu Province on the historic east-west route across northern Anatolia, in the Devrez river valley between the Ilgaz and Kös mountain ranges. The site emerges in Byzantine sources from the fifth century onwards as the fortified town of Doceia, an episcopal see in the southern Pontic foothills on the trade routes between Constantinople and the eastern frontier. Under successive Danishmendid, Seljuk, Ilkhanate, Candaroğlu, and Ottoman rule the town — now Tosya, from the Turkified form of Doceia — developed as one of the principal Anatolian caravan stops between Constantinople, the Black Sea coast, and the eastern provinces. The town was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire by Bayezid I in 1392 and became famous for its rice production (Tosya pirinci) and copper-utensil bazaars through the Ottoman and Republican periods. The catastrophic North Anatolian Fault earthquake of 26 November 1943 destroyed much of the historic urban fabric, killing several hundred residents and forcing a substantial post-war reconstruction. Modern Tosya is the district seat of Tosya ilçesi within Kastamonu Province with about 40,000 inhabitants, retaining its historic role as the principal commercial centre of the upper Devrez valley between Çankırı and Kastamonu. ## Historical Rulers - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Doceia") The town is first attested in the early Byzantine period as the fortified settlement of Doceia (Δοκεία), also styled Theodosia (Θεοδοσία) in some sources, in the southern Pontic foothills of the Devrez valley. Doceia served as a Byzantine episcopal see of the Honoriad ecclesiastical province and a regional commercial station on the trade routes between Constantinople and the eastern frontier, until the Seljuk advance after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. - 1071 AD – 1174 AD: Danishmendid Beylik After the Seljuk victory at Manzikert in 1071, the Turkmen Danishmendid dynasty established its rule over north-central Anatolia and incorporated the Devrez valley into its beylik. The Turkified form of the Byzantine name Doceia gradually became Tosya during this period of Turkmen settlement. - 1174 AD – 1243 AD: Sultanate of Rum The Anatolian Seljuks absorbed the Danishmendid domains under Kilij Arslan II in 1174 and incorporated Tosya into the unified Anatolian Turkish state. The town continued as a small caravan stop on the route between Konya and the Black Sea coast until the Mongol victory at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243. - 1243 AD – 1309 AD: Ilkhanate After the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243, the Sultanate of Rum became a Mongol vassal and Tosya was effectively administered by Ilkhanate-appointed governors. As Ilkhanid authority weakened in the late 13th century, the Candaroğlu Turkmen beys carved out an independent principality across the Paphlagonian highlands. - 1309 AD – 1392 AD: Candaroğlu Beylik The Candaroğlu (Isfendiyarid) Beylik centred on Kastamonu incorporated Tosya from around 1309 as one of its principal inland towns of the Devrez valley. The beylik held Tosya for nearly a century as a regional commercial and caravan centre until Bayezid I's Ottoman annexation in 1392. - 1392 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Bayezid I annexed Tosya from the Candaroğulları in 1392 and incorporated it into the Ottoman Empire as a kaza of the Vilayet of Kastamonu. Under five centuries of Ottoman rule the town developed as a principal caravan stop on the Constantinople-Erzurum trade road, famous for its rice production (Tosya pirinci), its copper utensils, and the seasonal silk and grain bazaars that drew traders from across northern Anatolia. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the founding of the Republic in 1923, Tosya became a district (ilçe) seat within Kastamonu Province. The catastrophic North Anatolian Fault earthquake of 26 November 1943 destroyed much of the historic urban fabric and forced extensive reconstruction, and the modern town has grown to about 40,000 inhabitants as the principal commercial centre of the upper Devrez valley between Çankırı and Kastamonu. ## Landmarks - Tosya Bedesten (built 1550 AD) An Ottoman covered bazaar built in the mid-16th century to serve the caravan trade through the Devrez valley. The masonry bedesten hosted the textile, copper, and silk trade of the upper Çankırı-Kastamonu road and remains in use as a working bazaar today. - Abdurrahman Paşa Mosque (built 1748 AD) An Ottoman mosque built around 1748 by Abdurrahman Pasha, one of the principal 18th-century imperial mosques of Tosya. The single-domed prayer hall with its slender stone minaret anchored the Ottoman commercial quarter and survives in restored form. - Hacı Çakır Mosque (built 1850 AD) A late-Ottoman wooden-roofed mosque in the historic core of Tosya, built in the mid-19th century by a local notable. The mosque is one of the principal surviving examples of late-Ottoman vernacular religious architecture in Kastamonu Province after the 1943 earthquake destroyed much of the older urban fabric. ## Population History - 395 AD: 1,500 - 600 AD: 4,000 - 900 AD: 3,000 - 1071 AD: 2,500 - 1300 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 8,000 - 1700 AD: 15,000 - 1900 AD: 18,000 - 1943 AD: 20,000 - 1950 AD: 17,000 - 2000 AD: 32,000 - 2023 AD: 40,000 --- # Trabzon, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/trabzon Founded: 756 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 41.0027, 39.7168 ## Description Trabzon, historically known as Trapezus and Trebizond, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities on the Black Sea coast. Founded as Trapezus around 756 BCE by Greek colonists from Sinope, itself a daughter colony of Miletus, the city took its name from the table-like (trapeza) plateau on which it stood and grew into a major Pontic port. Under the Komnenoi after the Fourth Crusade it rose to prominence as the capital of the Empire of Trebizond (1204-1461), the longest-lived of the Byzantine successor states, ruling the southeastern Black Sea coast until Sultan Mehmed II's conquest. Under Ottoman and Republican rule Trabzon has continued as the principal city of the eastern Black Sea region, with around 850,000 residents in the modern metropolitan area today. ## Historical Rulers - 756 BC – 546 BC: Hellenic Civilization (known as "Trapezus") Founded as a colony of Sinope, itself a colony of the Ionian Greek city of Miletus, Trapezus took its name from the table-like (trapeza) plateau on which it was built. The autonomous Greek polis served as a key trading post within the wider Hellenic colonial sphere of the Pontus, linking the Black Sea coast with the interior of Anatolia and the Caucasus. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Trapezus") After Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia, Trapezus came under nominal Achaemenid Persian suzerainty as part of the broader satrapal system of Anatolia. The city retained considerable local autonomy and Xenophon's Anabasis records the welcome the Greek mercenaries received at Trapezus on their return from the Persian interior in 400 BCE. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Trapezus") Following Alexander the Great's defeat of the Achaemenids, Trapezus nominally fell within the Macedonian sphere, although Alexander's campaigns largely bypassed the eastern Black Sea coast. After the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE the wider Pontic region was reorganized into the new Kingdom of Pontus. - 281 BC – 64 BC: Kingdom of Pontus (known as "Trapezus") Trapezus was incorporated into the Hellenistic Kingdom of Pontus founded by Mithridates I, prospering as a port within the Pontic realm. The city continued to grow under Mithridates VI Eupator until the kingdom's defeat by Rome in the Third Mithridatic War. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Trapezus") Following Pompey's defeat of Mithridates VI, Trapezus was incorporated into the Roman sphere as part of the province of Bithynia and Pontus. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Trapezus") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. It became an important naval base and the principal Roman port on the southeastern Black Sea, particularly under Hadrian, who improved its harbor for the classis Pontica fleet. - 395 AD – 1204 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Trapezous") Under Eastern Roman administration Trapezous remained a vital Byzantine frontier port and military outpost on the eastern Black Sea. It withstood Arab raids and Seljuk pressure while continuing as a hub of long-distance trade with Persia, the Caucasus, and Central Asia, until the Fourth Crusade's sack of Constantinople in 1204 ended the unified Byzantine state. - 1204 AD – 1461 AD: Empire of Trebizond (known as "Trebizond") After the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople, the Komnenoi princes Alexios and David founded the independent Empire of Trebizond with the help of their kinswoman Queen Tamar of Georgia, establishing the longest-lived of the Byzantine successor states. Trebizond became the wealthy capital of this Komnenian state, flourishing on Silk Road commerce with the production of the great Hagia Sophia fresco programs, until Sultan Mehmed II captured the city in 1461. - 1461 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Sultan Mehmed II captured Trebizond in 1461 after a long siege, ending the Komnenian state and incorporating the city into the Ottoman Empire as the seat of the Eyalet (later Vilayet) of Trabzon. It remained an important Ottoman commercial and administrative center on the Black Sea, with a brief Russian occupation during the First World War from 1916 to 1918. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye With the proclamation of the Republic in 1923, Trabzon became the seat of its eponymous province in modern Türkiye. The city has since developed into a major regional port, university center, and gateway for trade with the Caucasus and Iran, with around 850,000 residents in the modern metropolitan area today. ## Landmarks - Trabzon Castle (built 300 BC) Originally constructed during the Hellenistic period and expanded under Roman and Byzantine rule, the citadel runs across the table-like plateau that gave Trapezus its name. The inner citadel served as the seat of power for the Empire of Trebizond and later as an Ottoman administrative center. - Sumela Monastery (built 386 AD) Founded according to tradition by two Athenian monks, Barnabas and Sophronios, in 386 CE and built dramatically into the cliffs of the Pontic Mountains at 1,200 meters altitude. The monastery served as a major pilgrimage site and repository of religious art throughout the Byzantine and Trebizond periods. - Hagia Sophia of Trebizond (built 1263 AD) Built during the reign of Emperor Manuel I of Trebizond as the church of an imperial monastic foundation, its frescoes are among the finest surviving examples of 13th-century Byzantine art. Converted to a mosque after the Ottoman conquest, used as a museum during the 20th century, and reconverted to a mosque in 2013. - Atatürk's Villa (built 1890 AD) Originally built as a private mansion in the late Ottoman period, later gifted to Atatürk and donated to the Turkish state. It is now preserved as a museum showcasing early Republican-era history and Trabzon's role in the War of Independence. ## Population History - 756 BC: 3,000 - 100 AD: 20,000 - 500 AD: 25,000 - 1200 AD: 35,000 - 1400 AD: 40,000 - 1600 AD: 30,000 - 1800 AD: 45,000 - 1900 AD: 60,000 - 2000 AD: 225,000 - 2024 AD: 850,000 --- # Troy, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/troy Founded: 3000 BC Ended: 1200 AD Coordinates: 39.9578, 26.2384 ## Description Troy (Wilusa in Hittite records, Ilion to the Greeks, Ilium to the Romans) is the famous Bronze Age and classical city on the mound of Hisarlık in northwestern Anatolia, near the entrance of the Dardanelles. The site was continuously occupied across nine major archaeological strata from around 3000 BCE to the end of the Roman period — Troy I through Troy IX — each layer rebuilt over the ruins of its predecessor, sometimes following destruction by fire, earthquake, or war. Troy VI and VIIa are most plausibly identified with the city of the Homeric Iliad, while Troy VI itself is the Wilusa of Hittite diplomatic records, a Late Bronze Age kingdom on the western frontier of the Hittite world. After a long decline through the Byzantine period the site was largely abandoned by 1200 CE; the small modern village of Tevfikiye about 1 km to the east is a separate Turkish-era settlement. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 1700 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Troy I-V") Continuous occupation across strata Troy I to Troy V, dominated by indigenous Anatolian cultures with growing trade contacts across the Aegean and Anatolia. Schliemann's so-called 'Priam's Treasure' actually dates from this Early Bronze Age layer (Troy II, around 2400 BCE), more than a millennium before Homer's Troy. - 1700 BC – 1180 BC: Wilusan Kingdom (known as "Wilusa") Troy VI was a major rebuilding with massive ashlar walls, identified by most scholars with the Wilusa of Hittite diplomatic records — a frontier kingdom on the western edge of the Hittite Empire, in contact with the Mycenaean Greek world (the Hittite 'Ahhiyawa'). Probably destroyed by earthquake around 1280 BCE and rapidly rebuilt as Troy VIIa, which shows signs of crowded defensive occupation including large storage jars embedded in floors and narrowed streets consistent with a city under siege. Troy VIIa was destroyed by fire around 1180 BCE, the most plausible layer for the Trojan War tradition preserved in Homer. - 1180 BC – 950 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Troy VIIb") After the destruction of Troy VIIa, the site was reoccupied by a reduced, mixed population — local Anatolians together with Balkan migrants whose distinctive knobbed-ware pottery resembles material from southeastern Europe. The post-collapse phases continued through the broader Aegean Dark Age at a much-reduced scale. - 950 BC – 700 BC: Aeolian Civilization (known as "Ilion") Aeolian Greek migrants from mainland Greece resettled the site, naming it Ilion. The Homeric epics, composed in this Aeolian-Ionian cultural milieu, fixed the memory of the Bronze Age city in Greek tradition. Aeolian Ilion was a modest country town centered on the Athena cult on the acropolis. - 700 BC – 546 BC: Lydian Kingdom (known as "Ilion") Ilion fell within the western sphere of the Lydian Kingdom under the Mermnad dynasty, remaining a small Aeolian Greek town within a Lydian-dominated political landscape. The cult of Athena Ilias continued through this period as the city's principal religious institution. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Ilion") Ilion was absorbed into the Persian Empire after Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia, administered as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia. Xerxes is said to have visited Ilion on his way to invade Greece in 480 BCE, offering sacrifices to Athena at the temple. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Ilion") Alexander the Great visited Ilion in 334 BCE, sacrificed at the Temple of Athena, and reportedly took weapons said to date from the Trojan War. He promised to refound the city on a grander scale; only a fraction of these plans was realized in his short reign, and after his death Ilion passed through Antigonid and Lysimachian control until Anatolian power consolidated under the Seleucids in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Ilion") Under the Seleucid kings, beginning with Antiochus I and II, Ilion was refounded in earnest as a Hellenistic city with new walls, civic buildings, and an enlarged Temple of Athena. After the Roman defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea reassigned the region to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. - 188 BC – 133 BC: Kingdom of Pergamon (known as "Ilion") After the Treaty of Apamea, Ilion passed to the Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon. Eumenes II expanded the city and rebuilt its sanctuary as part of the broader Pergamene cultural revival of the Trojan tradition. - 133 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "Ilium") Ilium was incorporated into the Roman province of Asia, and Roman propaganda emphasized the city's role as the legendary ancestor of Rome via Aeneas — Julius Caesar visited and granted the city special privileges in honor of his claimed Trojan descent through the gens Julia. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Ilium") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Augustus then refounded the city as Ilium Novum, building on its mythological status as the cradle of the Roman people, with new theaters, baths, and a refurbished Temple of Athena; Constantine briefly considered it as a candidate site for the new imperial capital before choosing Byzantium in 324 CE. - 395 AD – 1200 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "Ilium") Ilium continued as a small Byzantine bishopric and minor settlement through the early Byzantine centuries, declining through repeated earthquakes, shifting trade routes, and finally Turkic raids. The site was essentially abandoned by 1200 CE; Sultan Mehmed II later visited the ruins after his 1453 conquest of Constantinople and reportedly claimed Trojan descent for his Turkish dynasty. ## Landmarks - Troy Citadel Walls (built 1700 BC) The massive ashlar fortifications of Troy VI define the citadel's enduring outline, up to 5 meters thick at the base and originally over 9 meters high. The walls feature the famous battered (inward-leaning) stone courses and projecting towers that distinguish Troy VI-VII from earlier and later layers, and most of the standing walls visible at the site today belong to this Bronze Age construction. - Scaean Gate (built 1300 BC) Principal western gate of Troy's defensive walls. In Homer's Iliad, this is the gate where Hector says farewell to Andromache and where he is eventually slain by Achilles, and the archaeologically identified gate corresponds to the South Gate of Troy VI. - Temple of Athena Ilias (built 700 BC) Temple dedicated to Athena Ilias on the acropolis, originally an Aeolian Greek shrine refurbished by Alexander the Great in 334 BCE and again by Augustus as part of the Roman-era Ilium Novum project. It remained the principal cult center of the city throughout its classical history. - Bouleuterion (built 200 BC) Hellenistic council house where Ilion's civic assembly met, located on the plateau just south of the citadel. Foundations of the rectangular building and parts of its tiered seating survive. - Roman Theater (built 100 BC) Semi-circular theater on the eastern slope of the citadel, originally built in the late Hellenistic period and substantially enlarged under the Roman Empire as part of the Ilium Novum building program. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 1,000 - 2400 BC: 3,000 - 2000 BC: 4,000 - 1700 BC: 5,000 - 1300 BC: 8,000 - 1180 BC: 500 - 950 BC: 800 - 700 BC: 2,000 - 500 BC: 3,000 - 300 BC: 4,000 - 1 AD: 5,000 - 100 AD: 6,000 - 200 AD: 5,000 - 400 AD: 3,000 - 600 AD: 2,000 - 800 AD: 1,000 - 1000 AD: 500 - 1200 AD: null --- # Tyana, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/tyana Founded: 1600 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.8475, 34.6122 ## Description Tyana, known in Hittite cuneiform records as Tūwanuwa and in Iron Age Luwian as Tuwana, is an ancient city of southern Cappadocia continuously occupied since the Late Bronze Age at the site of modern Kemerhisar in Niğde Province. The city emerged as an important Hittite trading town around 1600 BCE, became the capital of a Luwian-speaking Neo-Hittite kingdom in the early first millennium BCE under kings including the celebrated Warpalawa (c. 738-715 BCE) whose İvriz rock relief is a foundational monument of Neo-Hittite art, and was annexed by Sargon II of Assyria around 712 BCE. In the Greco-Roman period Tyana ranked as the second city of Cappadocia after Caesarea (modern Kayseri), and is famous as the birthplace of the 1st-century CE Pythagorean philosopher Apollonius of Tyana; under Caracalla it gained the status of Antoniana colonia Tyana. The Roman Emperor Valens divided Cappadocia in 372 CE and made Tyana the capital of Cappadocia Secunda, and the surviving monumental Roman aqueduct still spans the plain south of Kemerhisar. After the Arab and Seljuk Turkic conquests the urban centre shrank to the village of Kemerhisar, which today is a small town of around 25,000 inhabitants overlying and adjacent to the ancient city, while archaeological work continues to reveal Roman, Late Antique, and Byzantine remains including a 1600-year-old octagonal church identified in 2020. ## Historical Rulers - 1600 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Tūwanuwa") Tūwanuwa first appears in Hittite cuneiform records around 1600 BCE as an important trading town and provincial centre within the Hittite Empire, controlling the routes between the central Anatolian plateau and Cilicia through the Cilician Gates. The city continued as a Hittite imperial possession until the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1180 BCE. - 1180 BC – 712 BC: Kingdom of Tuwana (known as "Tuwana") Following the collapse of the Hittite Empire, Tuwana emerged as an independent Luwian-speaking Neo-Hittite kingdom controlling the Cilician Gates trade route. Under King Warpalawa around 738-715 BCE the kingdom reached the peak of its political and cultural influence, commissioning the celebrated İvriz rock relief that depicts Warpalawa before the storm and vegetation god Tarhunzas and ranks as one of the masterpieces of Neo-Hittite monumental art. - 712 BC – 612 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Tuwana") Sargon II of Assyria annexed Tuwana around 712 BCE during his suppression of regional Anatolian revolts, ending the Neo-Hittite kingdom and incorporating the city as an Assyrian province. Tuwana continued as a Neo-Assyrian regional centre until the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE. - 612 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "Tuwana") After the fall of Assyria the city passed to the Neo-Babylonian Empire, though Median influence over central Anatolia was also significant during this period. Tuwana continued as a regional centre on the Cilician Gates route until the Achaemenid conquest. - 539 BC – 333 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Tuwana") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Anatolia incorporated Tuwana into the Achaemenid Persian Empire as part of the satrapy of Cappadocia. The city continued as a regional administrative centre under Persian governors throughout the long Achaemenid period. - 333 BC – 322 BC: Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great's defeat of Darius III at Issus in 333 BCE brought the city into the Macedonian sphere, and the Greek form Tyana increasingly replaced the older Anatolian name. The brief direct Macedonian period ended with Alexander's death and the subsequent reorganization of Cappadocia under the Ariarathid dynasty. - 322 BC – 17 AD: Kingdom of Cappadocia Under the Ariarathid and later Ariobarzanid kings of Cappadocia, Tyana ranked as one of the most important cities of the Hellenistic kingdom, second only to the capital Mazaca-Caesarea. The city retained its strategic role on the Cilician Gates and continued under royal protection until the Roman annexation under Tiberius. - 17 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire Tiberius annexed Cappadocia as a Roman province in 17 CE, and Tyana developed into one of the wealthiest cities of Roman Anatolia, gaining the status of Antoniana colonia Tyana under Caracalla. The famous Pythagorean philosopher Apollonius of Tyana was born here in the 1st century CE, and the monumental Roman aqueduct and pool date from this period. Valens divided Cappadocia in 372 CE and made Tyana the capital of Cappadocia Secunda. - 395 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire Under the Eastern Roman Empire Tyana continued as the metropolitan see of Cappadocia Secunda and a regional centre on the Cilician Gates frontier facing the Arab caliphates after the 7th century. The city was sacked by Arab forces under Maslama in 708 and again under al-Abbas in 832, but Byzantine administration was restored each time until the Seljuk advance after Manzikert. - 1071 AD – 1276 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Kemerhisar") After Manzikert the Anatolian Seljuks took Tyana and the surrounding Tuwana plain, beginning the Turkic-Islamic transformation of the region. The classical urban centre shrank dramatically and the small Turkmen-Greek mixed settlement around the surviving Roman fortifications became known as Kemerhisar — 'arched fortress' — after the prominent Roman aqueduct arches that anchored the village. - 1276 AD – 1468 AD: Karamanid Beylik (known as "Kemerhisar") After Seljuk fragmentation the Karamanid Beylik of Konya extended its rule over the Tuwana plain from around 1276. Kemerhisar continued as a minor Turkmen-period village within the Karamanid realm, with the Roman aqueduct and city ruins gradually becoming a quarry for local construction. - 1468 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Kemerhisar") Mehmed II's annexation of the Karamanid Beylik in 1468 brought Kemerhisar into the Ottoman Empire as a village within the Sanjak of Niğde. The settlement remained a small agricultural community throughout the long Ottoman period, occasionally visited by European travellers and antiquarians from the 18th century onward who recorded the surviving aqueduct and other classical remains. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Kemerhisar") Under the Turkish Republic Kemerhisar continues as a small town in the Bor district of Niğde Province, with a population of around 25,000 in the early 2020s and the official designation of belediye since 1957. Major archaeological work on Tyana has intensified from the late 20th century onward, including the 2020 discovery of a 1600-year-old octagonal Late Antique church beneath the ancient pool, and the Roman aqueduct remains the principal monument of the surviving ancient city visible across the modern town. ## Landmarks - İvriz Rock Relief (built 730 BC) Although carved at İvriz some 50 km south-southwest of Tyana, the monumental rock relief commissioned by King Warpalawa of Tuwana around 730 BCE is the defining cultural monument of the Neo-Hittite kingdom centred on Tuwana. It depicts the king worshipping the storm and vegetation god Tarhunzas amid grain and grape iconography, in a 4.2-metre-tall relief with accompanying Hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions identifying both figures. - Roman Aqueduct of Tyana (built 100 AD) The Roman aqueduct of Tyana, built in the 1st-2nd century CE, carried water from springs on the slopes of the Bolkar mountains to the urban core and gave the medieval and modern Turkish town its name Kemerhisar — 'arched fortress'. Substantial sections of the multi-arched stone aqueduct survive in the plain south of the village and form the most visible Roman monument of the site today. - Roman Pool of Tyana (built 100 AD) A rectangular Roman-era reservoir enclosing the sacred spring of Tyana, with surviving stone walls and surrounding structures restored in recent excavations. The pool was central to the city's Roman urban infrastructure and gave Tyana its long Hellenistic and Roman reputation as a wealthy aquatic and cult centre. - Octagonal Late Antique Church (built 425 AD) Identified in 2020 during excavations near the Roman pool, the rare octagonal Late Antique church dates to the 5th century CE and represents one of the few surviving examples of this unusual ecclesiastical plan in central Anatolia. The find documents Tyana's role as the metropolitan see of Cappadocia Secunda after Valens's administrative reorganization. ## Population History - 1600 BC: 2,000 - 1000 BC: 5,000 - 700 BC: 8,000 - 200 BC: 12,000 - 200 AD: 25,000 - 500 AD: 20,000 - 800 AD: 8,000 - 1100 AD: 3,000 - 1500 AD: 2,000 - 1800 AD: 3,000 - 1950 AD: 8,000 - 2020 AD: 25,000 --- # Uşaklı Höyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/usakli-hoyuk Founded: 2000 BC Ended: 600 AD Coordinates: 39.8133, 35.0529 ## Description Uşaklı Höyük is a prominent archaeological mound located near Büyüktaşlık village in the Sorgun district of Yozgat Province, central Turkey. Recent Italian-Turkish excavations under MAIAC have revealed monumental architecture including a large temple complex and palatial structures dated primarily to the Late Bronze Age. The site has been proposed as a strong candidate for the Hittite city of Zippalanda, an important religious center associated with the storm god cult, with seal impressions, ritual ceramics, and proximity to Mount Daha reinforcing this identification. After the Hittite collapse the mound was abandoned for several centuries before a renewed Iron Age occupation in the 8th-6th centuries BCE, followed by late Roman and Byzantine occupation phases through the 6th century CE. The modern village of Büyüktaşlık lies on the adjacent plain, not on the mound itself, which is now administered as an archaeological site. ## Historical Rulers - 2000 BC – 1600 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Uşaklı Höyük") During the Middle Bronze Age the mound was occupied by local Anatolian communities whose material culture is consistent with the wider central Anatolian milieu of the period. The settlement gradually grew into a regional center prior to its integration into the emerging Hittite political sphere. - 1600 BC – 1180 BC: Hittite Empire (known as "Zippalanda") Under the Hittite Empire the site developed into a provincial center widely identified with Zippalanda, a cult town devoted to the storm god. Monumental temple architecture, palatial buildings, and seal impressions point to direct administrative and religious ties to the Hittite state, with occupation ending around the empire's collapse at the close of the Late Bronze Age. - 800 BC – 547 BC: Phrygian Civilization (known as "*Uşaklı Höyük") After several centuries of abandonment following the Hittite collapse, the mound was reoccupied during the Iron Age within the eastward-expanding Phrygian cultural sphere of central Anatolia, whose reach east of the Kızılırmak is confirmed by the nearby Phrygian foundation of Kerkenes (Pteria). Iron Age deposits dated to the 8th-6th centuries BCE attest to a renewed but reduced occupation as a small rural settlement. - 547 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Uşaklı Höyük") Following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia in 547 BCE, the central Anatolian plateau was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire as part of the Cappadocian satrapy. The mound continued as a modest rural settlement under Persian administration, with archaeological evidence sparse for this phase. - 334 BC – 278 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Uşaklı Höyük") Alexander the Great's Anatolian campaign brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. The mound continued as a low-level rural settlement until the Celtic Galatian migration of 278 BCE reshaped central Anatolian sovereignty. - 278 BC – 25 BC: Galatian Kingdom (known as "*Uşaklı Höyük") From 278 BCE the broader Yozgat plateau came under the Celtic Galatian Trocmi confederation centered to the east. The site continued as a small rural settlement within the Galatian sphere until Augustus's annexation of Galatia as a Roman province in 25 BCE. - 25 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Uşaklı Höyük") After Augustus's annexation of Galatia in 25 BCE, the area was incorporated into the Roman province of Galatia. Substantial Roman-period occupation on the mound is attested from the 2nd century CE onwards, indicating a renewed phase of settlement after the thinner Iron Age and Hellenistic occupation. - 395 AD – 600 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Uşaklı Höyük") Under Eastern Roman administration the site continued as a rural Byzantine settlement on the Cappadocian plateau. Late Roman and Byzantine deposits attest occupation through the 6th century CE, after which the mound was effectively abandoned and the population shifted to the surrounding plain where the modern village of Büyüktaşlık later developed as a separate settlement. ## Landmarks - Great Temple Complex (built 1350 BC) A monumental temple at Uşaklı Höyük features symmetrical halls, altars, and ceremonial ceramics, aligning with descriptions of Zippalanda’s weather god cult in Hittite texts. - Palatial Residence and Sealings (built 1300 BC) A large complex with multi-room architecture and seal impressions, suggesting administrative oversight and state integration under the Hittite Empire. - Orthogonal Street Network (built 1300 BC) Excavations revealed a well-planned street grid, aiding mobility and administrative control within the Late Bronze Age city. ## Population History - 1400 BC: 3,000 - 1200 BC: 1,500 - 1180 BC: null - 800 BC: 400 - 500 BC: 500 - 1 AD: 300 - 200 AD: 600 - 500 AD: 500 - 600 AD: null --- # Van, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/van Founded: 860 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.504, 43.339 ## Description Van, founded around 860 BCE as Tushpa by Sarduri I on the eastern shore of Lake Van, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities of Anatolia. As the capital of the Urartian Kingdom (Biainili) the city grew around the great basalt citadel of Van Kalesi, and after the Urartian collapse around 590 BCE it was held in succession by the Achaemenid Persians, Alexander's Macedonians and the Seleucids, the Artaxiad and Arsacid Armenian dynasties, Sasanian Persia, the Arab caliphates, the Armenian Kingdom of Vaspurakan under the Artsruni dynasty, Byzantium, the Seljuks, the Ilkhanate, successive Turkmen confederations, the Safavids, and the Ottoman Empire. The historic lower city directly below Van Kalesi was destroyed during the Defense of Van of April-May 1915 and the subsequent Russian and Ottoman struggles for the city through 1918, and the reconstructed urban core shifted about five kilometers east of the ancient citadel — the present-day metropolitan centre of Van, capital of Van Province with a population of roughly 525,000. The Urartian citadel rock with its royal tombs and Xerxes inscription, together with the abandoned lower city of Eski Van immediately below the citadel, are today administered as an archaeological area within the modern city. ## Historical Rulers - 860 BC – 590 BC: Urartu (known as "Tušpa") Founded around 860 BCE by Sarduri I as the capital of the Urartian Kingdom on the great basalt rock above Lake Van. Successive Urartian kings, including Argishti I, Sarduri II, and Rusa I, fortified the citadel, dug the rock-cut royal tombs and the cuneiform Sardursburg foundation inscription, and made Tushpa the political, religious, and military centre of Biainili until the kingdom's collapse around 590 BCE under combined Median and Scythian pressure. - 590 BC – 331 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Tushpa") After the brief Median ascendancy that followed Urartu's collapse, the site was incorporated by Cyrus the Great into the Achaemenid Empire from the mid-6th century BCE and continued as a regional centre on the Armenian highland. Persian cuneiform inscriptions by Xerxes I are still visible on the rock face of the citadel. - 331 BC – 301 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Tushpa") Alexander the Great's defeat of Darius III in 331 BCE brought Tushpa into the Macedonian sphere, and after his death it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Seleucid consolidation in 301 BCE. - 301 BC – 190 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "Tushpa") Under the Seleucid kings the eastern Armenian highland was nominally part of the empire but increasingly administered by local Armenian satraps. Following the Roman defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea recognised Greater Armenia as an independent kingdom under Artaxias I. - 190 BC – 387 AD: Kingdom of Armenia Under the Artaxiad and later Arsacid Armenian dynasties Tushpa, now widely called Van, was a major fortress and provincial centre of the kingdom — first of Greater Armenia and from the 1st century CE of its vassal-arsacid successor state. The city retained its strategic role on the Lake Van basin until the Roman-Sasanian partition of Armenia in 387 CE assigned the eastern half (including Vaspurakan and Van) to Sasanian Persia. - 387 AD – 628 AD: Sasanian Empire After the partition of Armenia, Van fell to Sasanian Persian administration as part of Persian Armenia (Persarmenia). The city remained a fortified provincial centre until Heraclius's eastern campaigns briefly returned the region to Byzantine control in 628 CE. - 628 AD – 640 AD: Byzantine Empire Heraclius's victory over Khosrow II ended the great Roman-Sasanian war and Byzantine forces reoccupied Van briefly as part of the restored eastern provinces. The recovery was short-lived, as Arab armies overran the region within twelve years. - 640 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "Wan") Arab forces conquered Van during the early Islamic expansion across Armenia and incorporated the city into the new caliphal province of Arminiya. The fortified rock continued as a military and administrative centre under the Rashidun caliphs. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "Wan") Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, Van remained an Arab provincial centre in the Armenian frontier zone, with a mixed Armenian Christian and Arab Muslim population around the citadel. - 750 AD – 908 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "Wan") Under Abbasid administration Van continued as a provincial centre of Arminiya, with Abbasid central authority weakening from the 9th century onward as local Armenian noble houses — including the Artsruni — accumulated power across Vaspurakan. - 908 AD – 1021 AD: Kingdom of Vaspurakan Gagik Artsruni was crowned king of Vaspurakan in 908, founding the Artsruni Armenian kingdom with Van as one of its principal centres alongside Aghtamar on the lake island. The kingdom was a flourishing centre of Armenian art and architecture — including the surviving 10th-century Church of the Holy Cross at Aghtamar — until the last Artsruni king Senekerim-Hovhannes ceded Vaspurakan to the Byzantine Empire in 1021 in exchange for lands in central Anatolia. - 1021 AD – 1071 AD: Byzantine Empire After the Artsruni cession of 1021 Van came under direct Byzantine administration as part of the theme of Vaspurakan. Byzantine control lasted until the Seljuk advance after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, fought in the very lake basin where Van stands. - 1071 AD – 1240 AD: Seljuk Empire After Manzikert Van passed under Seljuk and successor Turkmen control, governed for over a century by the Shah-Armens (Ahlatshahs) and later by Seljuk-associated Khorezmid and Ayyubid governors. The Mongol invasion of the late 1230s brought this phase to an end. - 1240 AD – 1335 AD: Ilkhanate The Mongol Ilkhanate of Iran absorbed Van during the campaigns of Chormaqan and his successors, ruling the city through Mongol-Armenian governors. Van remained a regional centre on the Lake Van basin until the Ilkhanate dissolved in 1335. - 1335 AD – 1467 AD: Kara Koyunlu After the Ilkhanid collapse Van passed under the Kara Koyunlu ('Black Sheep') Turkmen confederation that came to dominate Azerbaijan and eastern Anatolia from Tabriz, with successive rulers maintaining the citadel as a frontier base until their defeat by their Aq Qoyunlu rivals in 1467. - 1467 AD – 1502 AD: Aq Qoyunlu Uzun Hasan's Aq Qoyunlu ('White Sheep') confederation took the Lake Van basin from the Kara Koyunlu and held Van until the rise of the Safavids at the beginning of the 16th century. - 1502 AD – 1548 AD: Safavid Iran Shah Ismail I incorporated Van into the new Safavid Empire of Iran. The Safavid garrison held the city through the Ottoman-Safavid wars of Selim I and Suleiman the Magnificent until the Ottoman conquest in 1548. - 1548 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire Suleiman the Magnificent captured Van from the Safavids in 1548, making it the seat of the Eyalet (later Vilayet) of Van — one of the great Ottoman provinces of eastern Anatolia with a mixed Armenian, Kurdish, and Turkish population. The historic lower city below Van Kalesi was destroyed during the Defense of Van in April-May 1915 and the subsequent Russian and Ottoman fighting through 1918, and the reconstructed urban core was rebuilt about five kilometres east of the ancient citadel under late Ottoman administration before the proclamation of the Republic in 1923. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye Under the Turkish Republic Van became the capital of Van Province and the principal urban centre of southeastern Anatolia on Lake Van. The reconstructed city, centred about five kilometres east of the original Van Kalesi citadel, grew steadily through the 20th and 21st centuries to a metropolitan population of around 525,000, with the historic citadel and the abandoned old lower town preserved as the archaeological core of the modern city. ## Landmarks - Van Citadel (Van Kalesi) (built 840 BC) The fortified Urartian acropolis cut into and built atop the long basalt rock above Lake Van, originally raised by Sarduri I in the mid-9th century BCE. The citadel preserves Urartian cuneiform inscriptions, the Sardursburg foundation text, royal rock-cut tombs of the Urartian kings, monumental gateways, and successive Achaemenid, medieval Armenian, Seljuk, and Ottoman additions that together document nearly three millennia of strategic occupation. - Urartian Royal Rock Tombs (built 800 BC) Monumental chambers cut into the south face of the citadel rock for the Urartian kings, including the great rock tomb traditionally attributed to Argishti I that bears one of the most important Urartian historical inscriptions. The tombs were systematically reused and partly damaged in later periods but survive as the principal funerary monuments of the Urartian dynasty. - Xerxes Inscription (built 480 BC) Trilingual cuneiform inscription of the Achaemenid king Xerxes I, carved into a polished panel on the south face of the citadel rock around 480 BCE. The inscription, in Old Persian, Elamite, and Babylonian, is the westernmost monumental Achaemenid royal inscription and signals the integration of Tushpa into the Persian imperial cult. ## Population History - 860 BC: 3,000 - 700 BC: 15,000 - 590 BC: 8,000 - 300 BC: 8,000 - 1 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 15,000 - 950 AD: 25,000 - 1500 AD: 25,000 - 1800 AD: 30,000 - 1900 AD: 80,000 - 1914 AD: 50,000 - 1918 AD: null - 1927 AD: 4,000 - 1950 AD: 25,000 - 1980 AD: 120,000 - 2000 AD: 290,000 - 2025 AD: 525,000 --- # Xanthos, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/xanthos Founded: 1200 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 36.3568, 29.322 ## Description Xanthos was the principal city of ancient Lycia, known in the native Lycian language as Arnna, on the lower Xanthos river in southwestern Anatolia. Famous in antiquity for two episodes of mass self-destruction by its inhabitants — first against the Persian general Harpagos in 546 BCE and again against Brutus's army in 42 BCE — the city left an extraordinary record of indigenous Anatolian funerary monuments fused with Greek and Roman architectural forms. Under the Lycian League it shared the federal sanctuary at neighboring Letoon, and under Roman rule it flourished as a regional center until late antique decline and final medieval abandonment of the urban site. The modern Turkish village of Kınık sits directly beside the ruins in the Kaş district of Antalya Province, descended from continuous small Turkmen and Ottoman habitation, and the joint Xanthos-Letoon archaeological complex was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. ## Historical Rulers - 1200 BC – 546 BC: Lycian Civilization (known as "Arnna") Xanthos, known in the native Lycian language as Arnna, emerged as the principal seat of the indigenous Lycian polity in southwestern Anatolia after the collapse of the Hittite Empire. The city developed a distinctive funerary and political culture, with local dynasts ruling from the acropolis and overseeing the broader Xanthos valley until the arrival of Persian forces in the mid-6th century BCE. - 546 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire Following the Persian general Harpagos's campaign in western Anatolia, Xanthos fell after fierce resistance, with ancient sources describing the mass self-destruction of its defenders who burned the acropolis with their families inside. The city was incorporated into the Achaemenid satrapal system, although local Lycian dynasts continued to administer it under Persian overlordship and adopted increasingly Hellenized cultural forms reflected in monumental tombs such as the Harpy Tomb and the Nereid Monument. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire Xanthos passed peacefully into the hands of Alexander the Great during his Anatolian campaign, and Lycia as a whole submitted to Macedonian authority. The city retained many local institutions and passed through the Wars of the Diadochi until Anatolian control consolidated after the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE. - 281 BC – 197 BC: Ptolemaic Kingdom For most of the 3rd century BCE Lycia and Xanthos were held by the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt, who used the Lycian harbors as the eastern flank of their thalassocracy across the eastern Mediterranean. Greek language, civic forms, and koine inscriptions came to dominate Xanthos under Ptolemaic patronage, even as local Lycian dynastic traditions persisted in funerary and religious monuments. - 197 BC – 188 BC: Seleucid Empire Following Antiochus III's western campaign, Lycia and Xanthos passed briefly into the Seleucid sphere. The interlude was short-lived: after the Roman defeat of Antiochus at Magnesia in 190 BCE, the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE reassigned Lycia to the island republic of Rhodes. - 188 BC – 167 BC: Rhodian Peraea Under the Subject Peraea granted by Rome to Rhodes at the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BCE, Xanthos and the surrounding Lycian cities were administered from Rhodes for the next two decades. Rhodian rule was deeply resented across Lycia and ended in 167 BCE when Rome curtailed Rhodian power following the Third Macedonian War. - 167 BC – 43 AD: Lycian League Following Roman recognition of Lycian autonomy in 167 BCE the cities constituted themselves as the Lycian League, with Xanthos one of its leading members holding a triple vote in the federal assembly. The League minted federal coinage and maintained the federal sanctuary at neighboring Letoon, and the league survived as a Roman protectorate until 43 CE, although in 42 BCE Brutus's army stormed Xanthos during the Roman civil war and many inhabitants chose mass death over capture. - 43 AD – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Xanthus") Emperor Claudius incorporated Lycia as a Roman province in 43 CE, later combined with Pamphylia under Vespasian. Xanthos was rebuilt after the civil-war destruction and flourished as a regional center with theatre, agora, and imperial cult, leaving substantial remains from the 1st to 4th centuries before late antique decline set in. - 395 AD – 1207 AD: Byzantine Empire Under Eastern Roman administration Xanthos served as an episcopal see within the province of Lycia, and basilicas were built within the old urban fabric. The city declined steadily through the Arab naval raids of the 7th-9th centuries and the broader contraction of inland Lycia, until the Seljuk conquest of the southern Anatolian coast under Kaykhusraw I in 1207 ended Byzantine rule. - 1207 AD – 1321 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "Kınık") Following the Seljuk conquest of the Lycian coast, the Xanthos valley passed to the Sultanate of Rum and the urban core of the ancient city was effectively abandoned. A small Turkmen village known as Kınık formed directly beside the ruins, reusing antique blocks from the antique funerary and civic monuments in its houses. - 1321 AD – 1423 AD: Teke Beylik (known as "Kınık") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum, the western Antalya region including Kaş passed to the Teke Beylik centered at the coastal city of Antalya, controlling the borderland between Teke and Menteshe territory. Kınık persisted as a modest rural settlement under Teke rule until Ottoman annexation in the early 15th century. - 1423 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Kınık") Following the final Ottoman annexation of the Teke Beylik, Kınık was incorporated into the Ottoman provincial system as a small Turkish farming village in the sancak of Teke. The community remained small and agricultural throughout the long Ottoman period, incorporating spolia from the antique monuments into local construction. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Kınık") Under the Turkish Republic Kınık has continued as a small village in the Kaş district of Antalya Province, with roughly 1,000 permanent inhabitants engaged in greenhouse agriculture along the Eşen River. French archaeological excavations of the adjacent Xanthos and Letoon sites began in 1950 under Henri Metzger, and the joint Xanthos-Letoon UNESCO World Heritage Site was inscribed in 1988. ## Landmarks - Harpy Tomb (built 480 BC) A distinctive Lycian pillar tomb standing 7.5 meters tall, originally topped with a burial chamber decorated with marble reliefs depicting mythological scenes (now in the British Museum). The 'Harpy Tomb' name derives from the birdlike creatures shown carrying away souls of the dead, and the monument exemplifies the synthesis of native Lycian funerary tradition with imported Greek artistic forms. - Nereid Monument (built 380 BC) An elaborate Lycian dynastic tomb built to resemble an Ionic Greek temple about 13.5 meters tall, with sculpted Nereids placed between its columns. Commissioned by the Lycian ruler Arbinas, it reflects the deep Hellenization of Lycian elite culture in the late Achaemenid period, and its surviving sculptures and architectural elements are now housed in the British Museum. ## Population History - 1200 BC: 2,000 - 400 BC: 25,000 - 0 AD: 15,000 - 200 AD: 30,000 - 600 AD: 10,000 - 1000 AD: 2,000 - 1400 AD: 200 - 1700 AD: 400 - 1923 AD: 600 - 2020 AD: 1,000 --- # Zeugma, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/zeugma Founded: 300 BC Ended: 1300 AD Coordinates: 37.0562, 37.8715 ## Description Zeugma, an ancient city on the banks of the Euphrates River, was a major Greco-Roman settlement known for its strategic location, trade routes, and stunning mosaics. It flourished under Roman rule but declined due to invasions and changing trade dynamics. Much of ancient Zeugma is now underwater due to the Birecik Dam construction in 2000. ## Historical Rulers - 300 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire Founded by Seleucus I Nicator as a twin city (Seleucia on the Euphrates and Apamea) at a strategic crossing point of the Euphrates. The settlement served as a key node on trade routes between the Mediterranean and Mesopotamia under Seleucid rule. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic Incorporated into Roman territory following Pompey's reorganization of the East in 64 BCE, the city — now commonly known as Zeugma (Greek for 'bridge' or 'crossing') — reached its peak as a frontier city of the Roman Empire. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. Garrisoned by the Fourth Scythian Legion guarding the Parthian and later Sasanian border, the wealth of its merchants and officers produced the celebrated mosaics that survive today. A Sasanian sack in the mid-3rd century devastated the city, but it persisted in reduced form through the late Roman period. - 395 AD – 640 AD: Byzantine Empire Came under Eastern Roman (Byzantine) administration after the division of the empire. The site continued to decline through the Byzantine period, and the once-major frontier city was reduced to a small settlement by the time of the Arab conquest. - 640 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate The Arab conquest of upper Mesopotamia in the 640s brought Zeugma into the Rashidun Caliphate. The Euphrates frontier zone changed hands and the long-diminished urban centre was reduced to a small settlement on the new caliphal northern frontier. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate Under the Umayyad Caliphate based at Damascus, the Zeugma area was incorporated into the Jund Qinnasrin frontier district. The site persisted as a much-diminished settlement on the Byzantine border. - 750 AD – 944 AD: Abbasid Caliphate Under Abbasid administration Zeugma persisted as a minor town on the upper Euphrates. Repeated Byzantine raids and contested control by local emirates whittled away the urban core through the 9th and 10th centuries. - 944 AD – 1085 AD: Hamdanid Dynasty Sayf al-Dawla's Shi'a Hamdanid dynasty took Aleppo and the northern Syrian frontier in 944, drawing the Zeugma area into the long Hamdanid-Byzantine wars. Through the late 10th and 11th centuries the surrounding region passed under Mirdasid and Marwanid successor emirates until the Seljuk advance. - 1085 AD – 1300 AD: Seljuk Empire Incorporated into Seljuk territory after the Turkic expansion into Anatolia and northern Syria. The site was largely abandoned as an urban center during this period, leaving only ruins by the late medieval era. ## Landmarks - Euphrates Bridge (built 250 BC) A major bridge spanning the Euphrates River, crucial for trade routes connecting East and West. - Temple of Dionysus (built 100 BC) Dedicated to the god Dionysus, this temple was an important religious site in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. - Roman Military Garrison (built 50 AD) Housed thousands of Roman soldiers, particularly the Fourth Scythian Legion, who were stationed here to guard the eastern frontier. - Poseidon Villa (built 150 AD) Elaborate Roman villa known for its stunning mosaics depicting Poseidon and various sea creatures, exemplifying the artistic sophistication of Roman Zeugma. - House of the Gypsy Girl (built 200 AD) Luxurious Roman villa featuring exceptional mosaics, including the iconic 'Gypsy Girl' (Gaia) mosaic now housed in the Zeugma Mosaic Museum. ## Population History - 300 BC: 15,000 - 0 AD: 20,000 - 200 AD: 30,000 - 400 AD: 25,000 - 600 AD: 12,000 - 800 AD: 8,000 - 1000 AD: 5,000 - 1200 AD: 2,000 - 1300 AD: null --- # Zincirli Höyük, Türkiye URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkiye/zincirli-hoyuk Founded: 3000 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.1036, 36.6786 ## Description Zincirli Höyük is a multi-period tell in the fertile Karasu valley of southeastern Anatolia, located in the Islahiye district of Gaziantep Province in modern Türkiye. Occupation began in the Early Bronze Age around 3000 BCE and continued through the Middle and Late Bronze Ages within the orbit of north Syrian and Hittite networks before the site contracted at the 1200 BCE Bronze Age collapse. After roughly three centuries of low occupation, Aramean settlers refounded the mound around 900 BCE as Sam'al, capital of the kingdom of Bit-Gabbari. Under rulers such as Kilamuwa and Panamuwa, Sam'al flourished as a fortified Aramean city famous for its bit-hilani palaces and bilingual Aramaic–Phoenician monumental inscriptions, before annexation by Tiglath-Pileser III in 720 BCE incorporated it into the Neo-Assyrian Empire. The urban center disappeared with the collapse of Assyrian power in the late 7th century BCE, but the fertile valley sustained a continuous small rural settlement at the tell through the successive Achaemenid, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Islamic, Seljuk, and Ottoman periods. The modern village of Zincirli sits at the same location and gave the mound its name; intermittent German archaeological work since the 1880s and the resumed Chicago–Tübingen Zincirli Expedition from 2006 continue to investigate the Bronze and Iron Age levels adjacent to the inhabited village. ## Historical Rulers - 3000 BC – 2000 BC: Early Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Zincirli Höyük") The earliest occupation at the mound consisted of small Early Bronze Age communities in the fertile Karasu valley. Material culture aligns with broader north Syrian–southeast Anatolian traditions of the period. - 2000 BC – 1600 BC: Middle Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Zincirli Höyük") During the Middle Bronze Age the site continued as a regional settlement within the orbit of north Syrian polities, participating in the trade networks that linked Anatolia, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. - 1600 BC – 1200 BC: Bronze Age Settlement (known as "*Zincirli Höyük") In the Late Bronze Age the area fell within the broader sphere of the Hittite Empire and its north Syrian vassals. Occupation appears reduced and the site declines with the wider Late Bronze Age collapse around 1200 BCE. - 1200 BC – 900 BC: Iron Age Settlement (known as "*Zincirli Höyük") Following the systemic Late Bronze Age collapse around 1200 BCE urban occupation on the mound ended and the tell remained largely empty for some three centuries. Regional power shifted southward into the orbit of emerging Aramean polities before Aramean settlers refounded the mound around 900 BCE. - 900 BC – 720 BC: Kingdom of Bit-Gabbari (known as "Sam'al") Aramean settlers refounded the long-quiescent Bronze Age mound as the capital of the kingdom of Bit-Gabbari, known in its own inscriptions as Sam'al. Under rulers such as Kilamuwa and Panamuwa the city became a prosperous fortified center, famed for its bit-hilani palaces and bilingual Aramaic–Phoenician monumental inscriptions. - 720 BC – 600 BC: Neo-Assyrian Empire (known as "Sam'al") Following its annexation by Tiglath-Pileser III and the subsequent reorganization under Sargon II, Sam'al was incorporated as a province of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. The city retained administrative importance until the collapse of Assyrian power in the late 7th century BCE. - 600 BC – 539 BC: Neo-Babylonian Empire (known as "*Zincirli") After the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire and the collapse of urban Sam'al, the surrounding Karasu valley passed under Neo-Babylonian control. The tell continued in low-level rural occupation. - 539 BC – 334 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "*Zincirli") Cyrus the Great's conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE brought the Karasu valley under Achaemenid Persian rule as part of the satrapy of Across-the-River (Eber-Nari). The site continued as a small rural settlement under Persian administration. - 334 BC – 281 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "*Zincirli") Alexander the Great's conquest brought the region into the Macedonian sphere, after which it passed through the Wars of the Diadochi. The tell remained a small rural community through this period of transition. - 281 BC – 64 BC: Seleucid Empire (known as "*Zincirli") Under the Seleucid kings the area was integrated into the broader Hellenistic Syrian realm. The Karasu valley supported continuous low-level village settlement on the tell while the urban center of Sam'al lay buried beneath. - 64 BC – 27 BC: Roman Republic (known as "*Zincirli") Pompey's settlement of the East in 64 BCE brought the region under Roman authority as part of the province of Syria. Under the Roman Republic the city was integrated into the new provincial system until the Augustan Principate of 27 BCE. - 27 BC – 395 AD: Roman Empire (known as "*Zincirli") Under the Augustan Principate from 27 BCE and the long imperial peace, the city continued under Roman provincial administration. The tell remained a small rural community on the agricultural margin of Roman Syria. - 395 AD – 636 AD: Byzantine Empire (known as "*Zincirli") Under Eastern Roman administration the Karasu valley continued as agricultural countryside of the Antioch hinterland. The rural settlement on the mound persisted through the late Roman and early Byzantine periods. - 636 AD – 661 AD: Rashidun Caliphate (known as "*Zincirli") Following the Arab conquest of Syria the Karasu valley was incorporated into the Rashidun Caliphate's province of al-Sham. Local rural settlement continued unchanged. - 661 AD – 750 AD: Umayyad Caliphate (known as "*Zincirli") Under Umayyad administration from Damascus, the Karasu valley remained part of the Syrian provincial system. The tell continued as a small rural community. - 750 AD – 1071 AD: Abbasid Caliphate (known as "*Zincirli") Under Abbasid rule the valley fell within the Cilician-Aleppine frontier zone, contested at times with Byzantine Anatolia. The rural settlement on the mound persisted through the long Abbasid period. - 1071 AD – 1308 AD: Sultanate of Rum (known as "*Zincirli") After the Seljuk advance into Anatolia, the Karasu valley passed into the Sultanate of Rum's sphere. The rural community continued under Anatolian Seljuk and then Mongol Ilkhanid suzerainty. - 1308 AD – 1516 AD: Mamluk Sultanate (known as "*Zincirli") After the dissolution of the Sultanate of Rum the southeastern Anatolian frontier passed under Mamluk control, contested at times with various Turkmen beyliks. The village on the tell continued as a small agricultural community. - 1516 AD – 1923 AD: Ottoman Empire (known as "Zincirli") Following Selim I's conquest of Mamluk Syria, the Karasu valley became part of the Ottoman Aleppo Vilayet. The village name Zincirli eventually attached to the mound, and German archaeological campaigns rediscovered the buried Iron Age city beginning in the 1880s under Felix von Luschan. - 1923 AD – present: Republic of Türkiye (known as "Zincirli") Since the founding of the Turkish Republic Zincirli has continued as a small village in the Islahiye district of Gaziantep Province. Archaeological work resumed under the Chicago–Tübingen Zincirli Expedition in 2006 and has investigated the Bronze and Iron Age levels of the tell adjacent to the inhabited village. ## Landmarks - Hilani I Palace (built 900 BC) A prominent palace structure featuring a columned portico and ornate decorations, indicative of the city's prosperity during the Iron Age. - City Fortifications (built 900 BC) Double-walled fortifications with over 100 towers, enclosing the city and reflecting its strategic importance. - Kilamuwa Stele (built 830 BC) An inscribed stone stele erected by King Kilamuwa, detailing his achievements and the city's history. ## Population History - 3000 BC: 500 - 2000 BC: 1,000 - 1600 BC: 800 - 1200 BC: null - 900 BC: 5,000 - 800 BC: 6,000 - 700 BC: 7,000 - 600 BC: 500 - 500 AD: 200 - 1500 AD: 200 - 2020 AD: 300 --- # Merv, Turkmenistan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/turkmenistan/merv Founded: 500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 37.6608, 62.1922 ## Description Merv was one of the great cities of the Silk Road, located in the Murghab river oasis in the Karakum desert of present-day Turkmenistan, about 30 km east of the modern town of Mary. Founded around the 6th century BCE as an Achaemenid Persian provincial centre called Margiana — Persian Margush — it grew under successive Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, Sasanian, Umayyad, Abbasid, Samanid, Ghaznavid, and Seljuk rulers into one of the largest cities of the medieval world. Under the Great Seljuks in the 12th century, when it served as the imperial capital and the seat of Sultan Sanjar, scholars have estimated its population at up to half a million, briefly making it the largest city in the world. The Mongol army of Tolui besieged and sacked Merv in 1221 in one of the most catastrophic massacres of the 13th-century invasions, reportedly slaughtering most of the population; the city's elaborate irrigation system was destroyed and the urban fabric never recovered. Smaller Timurid and Persian-era settlements followed at adjacent sites within the Merv oasis, beginning with Abdullah Khan Kala built under the Timurid governor Shahrukh Mirza around 1409 some three kilometres southwest of the ruined Sultan Kala, then the Persian Bairam Ali Khan Kala in the 18th century, and the Russian-era town of Bayramaly founded in 1884 five kilometres south of the medieval ruins. These five superimposed urban centres — Erk Kala, Gyaur Kala, Sultan Kala, Abdullah Khan Kala, and Bairam Ali Khan Kala — were inscribed together as 'State Historical and Cultural Park of Ancient Merv' on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999, reflecting their shared identity as a single continuous oasis settlement that has shifted within a few kilometres over millennia. The 188-year gap between the 1221 Mongol sack of Sultan Kala and the 1409 Timurid refoundation falls within the archive's adjacent-cluster continuation threshold, and the modern Turkmen city of Bayramaly with roughly 80,000 inhabitants is treated as the contemporary continuation of the Merv oasis tradition. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Margush") The earliest historically attested phase of Merv is the fortified Achaemenid administrative centre of Margush at the Erk Kala citadel, a 12-hectare walled enclosure mentioned in the Bisotun inscription of Darius I. Margush served as the principal centre of the satrapy of Margiana, controlling irrigation and caravan traffic along the southern fringe of the Karakum. - 330 BC – 160 BC: Hellenistic Successor Kingdoms (known as "Antiocheia Margiana") After Alexander the Great's conquest of the Achaemenid empire, the city was refounded as Alexandria Margiana and later as Antiocheia Margiana under Antiochus I Soter, who enclosed a much larger urban area in the rectangular Gyaur Kala walls. Under the Seleucids it became one of the principal Hellenistic centres of Central Asia, with Greek civic institutions and contact with the wider Hellenistic world. - 160 BC – 224 AD: Parthian Empire (known as "Marv") Under the Arsacid Parthians Merv became a major frontier centre on the eastern edge of the empire, controlling Silk Road caravan traffic and minting its own coinage. The city served as a base for Parthian campaigns against the Yuezhi and the Kushans further east and grew into a multi-ethnic mercantile hub. - 224 AD – 651 AD: Sasanian Empire (known as "Marv") After Ardashir I overthrew the Parthians, Merv passed to the Sasanian dynasty and became the seat of a marzban governing the eastern frontier. The Christian Church of the East established a metropolitan see at Merv around 420, and the city hosted important communities of Zoroastrians, Buddhists, Manichaeans, and Nestorian Christians alongside its mercantile economy. - 651 AD – 821 AD: Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates (known as "Marv") After the Arab conquest of 651, the last Sasanian shah Yazdegerd III was killed near Merv, and the city became the eastern capital of the Umayyad Caliphate in Khorasan. The Abbasid revolution under Abu Muslim began in Merv in 747 and the city served as the de facto capital of Caliph al-Ma'mun between 813 and 819, with vast new Islamic libraries, observatories, and madrasas added to the existing Sasanian urban core. - 821 AD – 1153 AD: Tahirid, Samanid, Ghaznavid, and Seljuk Empires (known as "Marv") Through the Tahirid, Saffarid, Samanid, and Ghaznavid centuries Merv flourished as the principal Khorasani city, and under the Great Seljuks from 1037 it became the imperial capital. Sultan Sanjar founded the new walled enclosure of Sultan Kala southwest of Gyaur Kala and built his domed mausoleum within it, while population estimates for the early 12th-century city run as high as 500,000, briefly making Merv the largest city in the world. - 1153 AD – 1221 AD: Khwarazmian Empire (known as "Marv") After the Oghuz Turkmen revolt of 1153 weakened Seljuk authority at Merv, the city passed to the Khwarazmian shahs based at Gurganj. It continued as a major economic and intellectual centre under Khwarazmshah Tekish and his successors, hosting astronomers including Sharaf al-Din al-Muzaffar al-Tusi, until the Mongol invasion. - 1221 AD – 1409 AD: Mongol Empire — sack of 1221 and oasis remnant (known as "Marv") In February 1221 the Mongol prince Tolui, son of Genghis Khan, besieged Merv. The city surrendered after several days and Tolui ordered a systematic massacre estimated by Persian chroniclers at hundreds of thousands of dead — almost certainly exaggerated but reflecting a genuine demographic catastrophe. The Sultan Kala enclosure was reduced to ruins and its irrigation works destroyed, but small remnant occupation persisted in the broader oasis under successive Chagatai khanate and early Timurid administrations before formal rebuilding began at an adjacent walled site in the early 15th century. - 1409 AD – 1884 AD: Timurid and Safavid Empires — Abdullah Khan Kala and Bairam Ali Khan Kala (known as "Marv") In 1409 the Timurid governor Shahrukh Mirza founded the walled enclosure of Abdullah Khan Kala roughly three kilometres southwest of the ruined Sultan Kala, reviving the Merv oasis as a Timurid administrative and commercial centre. After Timurid decline the city passed under the Safavid, Khivan, and Bukharan khanates, with the Persian Nadir Shah's general Bairam Ali Khan building the further walled enclosure of Bairam Ali Khan Kala in the 18th century. The oasis remained a small but continuously inhabited centre on the Karakum fringe throughout the early modern period. - 1884 AD – 1991 AD: Russian Empire and Soviet Union — Bayramaly (known as "Bayramaly") After the Russian Empire annexed the Merv oasis from the Khanate of Khiva in 1884, a new administrative town named Bayramaly was founded five kilometres south of the medieval ruins, with a Trans-Caspian Railway station inaugurated in 1888 transforming the oasis into a major cotton-producing centre. Under the Soviet Turkmen SSR the town grew with extensive irrigation and cotton-processing industry, and the medieval ruins to the north became the focus of Soviet and later international archaeological excavation. - 1991 AD – present: Turkmenistan (known as "Bayramaly") Since Turkmen independence in 1991, Bayramaly has continued as a city of roughly 80,000 inhabitants in Mary Province, the modern continuation of the Merv oasis. The State Historical and Cultural Park of Ancient Merv to the north was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999 and is administered together with the inhabited town as a single oasis-wide cultural landscape. ## Landmarks - Erk Kala citadel (built 500 BC) A 12-hectare oval-walled citadel of the Achaemenid period founding-city, rising about 27 metres above the plain. Erk Kala remained a fortified inner enclave through the Seleucid, Parthian, Sasanian, and early Islamic periods and contains the earliest stratigraphic sequence at Merv. - Gyaur Kala walls (built 270 BC) The roughly square 4-kilometre-circuit walls of the Hellenistic Antiocheia Margiana enclosing some 340 hectares around the original Erk Kala. Built under Antiochus I Soter in the early 3rd century BCE and continuously reused through the Sasanian period, the walls remain among the most impressive surviving Hellenistic-era fortifications in Central Asia. - Greater Kyz Kala and Lesser Kyz Kala (built 600 AD) Two large Sasanian and early Islamic 'corrugated' fortified residences immediately outside the Gyaur Kala walls, with distinctive vertical fluted exterior surfaces. The Greater Kyz Kala measures roughly 38 by 43 metres and stands two stories tall; both buildings are characteristic examples of an architectural form found only in the Merv oasis. - Sultan Kala walls (built 1050 AD) The southwestern Seljuk enclosure adjoining Gyaur Kala, founded under Malik-Shah I in the late 11th century to house the new imperial capital. The roughly 5-kilometre wall circuit enclosed palaces, the great Friday Mosque, madrasas, and dense markets, and was the focus of the population estimated at half a million in the early 12th century. - Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar (built 1157 AD) The domed funerary mausoleum of the last great Seljuk sultan Ahmad Sanjar, completed shortly after his death in 1157 in the centre of Sultan Kala. Its 38-metre-tall double-shell dome on a square base was a landmark visible across the Karakum and a major influence on subsequent Timurid and Mughal mausoleum architecture; it survives largely intact and was conserved by UNESCO campaigns in the 2000s. ## Population History - 500 BC: 10,000 - 200 BC: 50,000 - 200 AD: 80,000 - 600 AD: 100,000 - 800 AD: 200,000 - 1100 AD: 200,000 - 1150 AD: 500,000 - 1220 AD: 200,000 - 1221 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 15,000 - 1800 AD: 20,000 - 1900 AD: 25,000 - 1991 AD: 60,000 - 2020 AD: 80,000 --- # Kyiv, Ukraine URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/ukraine/kyiv Founded: 482 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 50.4501, 30.5234 ## Description Kyiv is the capital of Ukraine and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities of Eastern Europe. According to East Slavic legend it was founded in 482 by the brothers Kiy, Shchek and Khoryv with their sister Lybid on the wooded hills above the Dnieper, although archaeological evidence places urban formation in the 6th to 7th centuries. As capital of Kievan Rus from 882, Kyiv became the political and spiritual heart of the early East Slavic world; Vladimir the Great's baptism in 988 made it the cradle of Eastern Slavic Christianity, and the reign of Yaroslav the Wise saw a golden age commemorated in Saint Sophia Cathedral and the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra. The Mongol sack of 1240 shattered the city, which then passed through Lithuanian, Polish-Lithuanian and Cossack hands before incorporation into the Tsardom of Russia after the Pereyaslav Agreement of 1654. Briefly capital of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1917 to 1921, Kyiv became the seat of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1934, suffered Nazi occupation and the Babi Yar massacre during the Second World War, and emerged in 1991 as capital of independent Ukraine; it remains the political, cultural and demographic centre of the country through the Orange Revolution of 2004, the Maidan Revolution of 2014, and the ongoing war following the Russian full-scale invasion of 2022. ## Historical Rulers - 482 AD – 882 AD: Early Slavic Settlement Legendary founding by the brothers Kiy, Shchek and Khoryv on the hills above the Dnieper, traditionally dated to 482. Through the 6th to 9th centuries the site grew from scattered Slavic hamlets into a fortified river-trade hub on the route from the Varangians to the Greeks, paying tribute for a time to the Khazar Khaganate. - 882 AD – 1240 AD: Kievan Rus Oleg of Novgorod seized Kyiv in 882 and made it the capital of Kievan Rus, declaring it the mother of Rus' cities. Vladimir the Great's baptism in 988 Christianised the realm, and the reign of Yaroslav the Wise from 1019 to 1054 marked a cultural and architectural golden age. Fragmentation among rival princes weakened the city before the Mongol army under Batu Khan stormed and sacked it in December 1240. - 1240 AD – 1362 AD: Mongol-Tatar Yoke After the devastating sack of 1240 Kyiv was reduced to a small tributary town under the suzerainty of the Golden Horde. The population collapsed, the metropolitan see eventually relocated, and the city stagnated for more than a century under nominal Mongol overlordship while local princes administered a depopulated hinterland. - 1362 AD – 1569 AD: Grand Duchy of Lithuania Grand Duke Algirdas of Lithuania defeated the Tatars at the Battle of Blue Waters around 1362 and incorporated Kyiv into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Under Lithuanian rule the city slowly recovered as a regional centre of trade and Orthodox culture, retaining its Rusyn legal and religious traditions. - 1569 AD – 1654 AD: Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth The Union of Lublin in 1569 transferred Kyiv from Lithuania to the Polish Crown within the new Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Kyiv Mohyla Academy was founded in 1632 as a major centre of Orthodox learning, and tensions between Orthodox Ruthenians, Polish nobility and the Cossacks culminated in the Khmelnytsky Uprising of 1648. - 1654 AD – 1917 AD: Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire The Pereyaslav Agreement of 1654 between Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky and Tsar Alexis brought Left-Bank Ukraine and Kyiv under the Tsardom of Russia, confirmed for Kyiv by the Treaty of Andrusovo in 1667. Within the Russian Empire after 1721 Kyiv grew into a major provincial capital, university town and centre of the sugar and rail industries during the nineteenth-century industrial boom. - 1917 AD – 1921 AD: Ukrainian People's Republic Following the Russian Revolution of 1917 the Central Rada proclaimed the Ukrainian People's Republic with Kyiv as its capital. The city changed hands repeatedly during the Russian Civil War among Rada, Bolshevik, German, Hetmanate, Directorate, White and Polish forces before Soviet power was consolidated by the Peace of Riga in 1921. - 1921 AD – 1991 AD: Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic Kyiv became part of the Ukrainian SSR within the Soviet Union, with the republican capital transferred from Kharkiv to Kyiv in 1934. The city endured the Holodomor of the early 1930s, Nazi occupation from 1941 to 1943 with the mass killings at Babi Yar, and extensive postwar Soviet reconstruction that produced new boulevards, metro lines and monumental ensembles such as the Motherland Monument. - 1991 AD – present: Independent Ukraine With Ukrainian independence in 1991 Kyiv became the capital of a sovereign state. The Orange Revolution of 2004 and the Maidan Revolution of 2013 to 2014 centred on Maidan Nezalezhnosti reshaped the country's political trajectory, followed by Russia's annexation of Crimea and war in the Donbas in 2014 and the ongoing full-scale Russian invasion launched in 2022. ## Landmarks - Saint Sophia Cathedral (built 1037 AD) Byzantine-style Orthodox cathedral commissioned by Yaroslav the Wise to commemorate his victory over the Pechenegs and to serve as the principal metropolitan church of Kievan Rus. Famed for its mosaics and frescoes, it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1990 together with the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra. - Golden Gate of Kyiv (built 1037 AD) Monumental fortified gateway built by Yaroslav the Wise as the principal ceremonial entrance into the walled city, modelled on the Golden Gate of Constantinople. Ruined after the Mongol sack of 1240, it was reconstructed in 1982 for the 1500th anniversary of Kyiv's legendary founding. - Kyiv Pechersk Lavra (built 1051 AD) The Monastery of the Caves, founded in 1051 under Yaroslav the Wise by the monks Anthony and Theodosius, became the foremost centre of Orthodox monasticism, theology and chronicle-writing in the East Slavic world. Its hilltop ensemble of cave churches, refectories and bell tower above the Dnieper was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1990. - Saint Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery (built 1108 AD) Medieval monastery founded by Sviatopolk II Iziaslavich and renowned for its gilded domes overlooking the Dnieper. Demolished by Soviet authorities in 1936 to clear space for a planned government complex, it was rebuilt in its original form between 1997 and 1999 as a symbol of post-Soviet Ukrainian revival. - Saint Andrew's Church (built 1754 AD) Baroque church designed by the Italian architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli and completed in 1754 atop Andriyivskyy Descent. Built on commission from Empress Elizabeth of Russia, it is one of the finest expressions of Russian Baroque architecture in Kyiv and a defining feature of the old town skyline. - Motherland Monument (built 1981 AD) Monumental 102-metre titanium statue inaugurated in 1981 as part of the Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War. One of the tallest statues in the world, it dominates the right bank of the Dnieper and was rededicated in 2023 with the Soviet emblem on its shield replaced by the Ukrainian trident. - Maidan Nezalezhnosti (built 1991 AD) Central square of Kyiv, renamed Maidan Nezalezhnosti or Independence Square in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Site of the Orange Revolution of 2004 and the Revolution of Dignity of 2013 to 2014, it has become the symbolic civic heart of modern Ukraine. ## Population History - 482 AD: 1,000 - 882 AD: 10,000 - 1037 AD: 50,000 - 1200 AD: 50,000 - 1240 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 10,000 - 1654 AD: 15,000 - 1850 AD: 70,000 - 1900 AD: 250,000 - 1939 AD: 850,000 - 1944 AD: 180,000 - 1989 AD: 2,600,000 - 2014 AD: 2,900,000 - 2020 AD: 3,000,000 --- # London, United Kingdom URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/united-kingdom/london Founded: 47 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 51.5074, -0.1278 ## Description London was founded by the Romans as Londinium around 47 CE, shortly after the Claudian invasion of Britain, and became the capital of Roman Britain with a peak population of roughly 60,000 in the 2nd century. After the Roman withdrawal in the early 5th century the walled city contracted sharply, while an Anglo-Saxon trading settlement called Lundenwic grew up to the west; King Alfred re-occupied the Roman walls as Lundenburh in 886 after Viking raids. Following the Norman conquest of 1066 William the Conqueror began the Tower of London around 1078, and the city served as the continuous capital of England, then of Great Britain from 1707 and the United Kingdom from 1801. London survived the Great Plague of 1665 and the Great Fire of 1666 and was rebuilt under Christopher Wren, whose St Paul's Cathedral was completed in 1710; the Industrial Revolution made it the largest city in the world by 1825 and the administrative heart of the British Empire. After heavy Blitz damage in 1940 and 1941 the city was rebuilt, and today it is a global financial center with roughly nine million inhabitants in the city proper and around fourteen million in the metropolitan area. ## Historical Rulers - 47 AD – 410 AD: Roman Empire (known as "Londinium") Founded as Londinium shortly after the Claudian invasion of 43 CE, the city became the provincial capital of Roman Britain. It was sacked during Boudica's revolt around 60 CE, rebuilt with a forum, basilica, amphitheatre and stone walls, and reached a peak population of roughly 60,000 in the 2nd century before contracting during the late Roman period. - 410 AD – 600 AD: Sub-Roman Britain and early Anglo-Saxon kingdoms (known as "Londinium") After the Roman administration withdrew around 410 the walled city saw severe depopulation, though recent scholarship favors a continuous low-level occupation around the walls rather than total abandonment. The area passed through sub-Roman British and then early Anglo-Saxon control as the kingdoms of Essex and Kent contested the lower Thames. - 600 AD – 886 AD: Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of England (known as "Lundenwic") An Anglo-Saxon trading settlement called Lundenwic developed in the 7th century roughly a mile west of the Roman walls, in the area of modern Aldwych and Covent Garden. The settlement was nominally under the East Saxon kings but came under increasing Mercian and later West Saxon overlordship, and was repeatedly raided by Vikings in the 9th century. - 886 AD – 1066 AD: Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of England (known as "Lundenburh") In 886 King Alfred the Great re-occupied and re-fortified the old Roman walled city as Lundenburh, moving the population back inside the walls and re-establishing a defensible burh against Viking attack. Under his successors London grew as the largest town in the kingdom and a key royal and ecclesiastical center, becoming the de facto capital by the reign of Edward the Confessor. - 1066 AD – 1216 AD: Norman and Angevin Kingdom of England After his victory at Hastings in 1066 William the Conqueror was crowned at Westminster Abbey and began constructing the Tower of London around 1078 to dominate the city. The Norman and Angevin kings confirmed extensive civic liberties, and the city's commercial and administrative role expanded alongside the new royal palace and abbey complex at Westminster. - 1216 AD – 1485 AD: Plantagenet Kingdom of England Under the later Plantagenets London consolidated its position as the political, judicial and commercial capital of England, with its merchant guilds gaining substantial autonomy. The city suffered severely from the Black Death in 1348 and 1349 and from the unrest of the Peasants' Revolt in 1381, but recovered as the dominant English market and port. - 1485 AD – 1603 AD: Tudor Kingdom of England Tudor London grew rapidly as the seat of an increasingly centralized monarchy, the headquarters of the Church of England after the 1530s, and the principal English port of the early Atlantic trade. Theaters, including the Globe, flourished on the South Bank under Elizabeth I, while the city's population expanded well beyond the medieval walls. - 1603 AD – 1707 AD: Stuart Kingdom of England and Commonwealth Under the Stuarts London was the focal point of the English Civil War in the 1640s and the seat of the Commonwealth and Protectorate, before the Restoration of 1660. The Great Plague of 1665 killed roughly a quarter of the population and the Great Fire of 1666 destroyed most of the medieval City, after which it was rebuilt in brick and stone under Christopher Wren and other surveyors. - 1707 AD – 1801 AD: British Empire Following the Acts of Union with Scotland in 1707 London became the capital of the new Kingdom of Great Britain and the metropolitan hub of an expanding overseas empire. The 18th century saw the rise of the Bank of England, the East India Company headquarters and major rebuilding around St Paul's Cathedral, completed in 1710. - 1801 AD – 1922 AD: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland After the Acts of Union of 1801 London served as the capital of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and as the administrative heart of the British Empire. The Industrial Revolution and railway expansion drove explosive growth, making it the largest city in the world by around 1825 and reaching roughly 6.5 million people by 1900. - 1922 AD – present: United Kingdom From the secession of the Irish Free State in 1922 London continued as the capital of the United Kingdom. The city suffered heavy damage and civilian casualties during the Blitz of 1940 and 1941, was rebuilt in the postwar decades, and re-emerged as a leading global financial center with around nine million residents in the city proper and roughly fourteen million in the wider metropolitan area. ## Landmarks - Westminster Abbey (built 1066 AD) A great Benedictine abbey church rebuilt by Edward the Confessor and consecrated in 1065, with the present Gothic structure largely rebuilt from 1245 under Henry III. It has been the coronation church of English and British monarchs since 1066 and a major royal burial site. - Tower of London (built 1078 AD) A Norman royal fortress begun by William the Conqueror around 1078, with the central White Tower as its keep. It has served as royal palace, prison, treasury and armory, and is one of the most enduring symbols of English royal power. - Buckingham Palace (built 1703 AD) Originally built in 1703 as Buckingham House for the Duke of Buckingham, it was acquired by the Crown in 1761 and converted into a palace under George IV in the 1820s. It became the official London residence of the British monarch in 1837 under Queen Victoria. - St Paul's Cathedral (built 1710 AD) The English Baroque cathedral designed by Christopher Wren to replace the medieval cathedral destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. Construction ran from 1675 to 1710, and its great dome has dominated the City of London skyline ever since. - British Museum (built 1852 AD) Founded in 1753 as the first national public museum in the world, with its present Greek Revival main building completed in 1852 to designs by Robert Smirke. Its collections span ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, Rome and beyond, and it remains one of the most visited museums globally. - Elizabeth Tower (built 1859 AD) The clock tower at the north end of the Palace of Westminster, completed in 1859 and renamed Elizabeth Tower in 2012. Its great hour bell, popularly called Big Ben, has become one of the most recognizable symbols of London and the United Kingdom. - Tower Bridge (built 1894 AD) A combined bascule and suspension bridge across the Thames near the Tower of London, completed in 1894 to provide a new river crossing for the expanding docks of east London. Its twin Gothic Revival towers and roadway that lifts for shipping have made it an iconic image of the city. ## Population History - 47 AD: 1,000 - 100 AD: 30,000 - 200 AD: 60,000 - 400 AD: 10,000 - 600 AD: 1,000 - 800 AD: 5,000 - 1000 AD: 10,000 - 1100 AD: 15,000 - 1300 AD: 80,000 - 1400 AD: 50,000 - 1500 AD: 50,000 - 1600 AD: 200,000 - 1700 AD: 575,000 - 1800 AD: 1,000,000 - 1825 AD: 1,300,000 - 1900 AD: 6,500,000 - 1939 AD: 8,600,000 - 2000 AD: 7,200,000 - 2020 AD: 9,000,000 --- # Skara Brae, United Kingdom URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/united-kingdom/skara-brae Founded: 3180 BC Ended: 2500 BC Coordinates: 59.0488, -3.3429 ## Description Skara Brae is a Late Neolithic stone-built village on the Bay of Skaill, on the western coast of Mainland Orkney in Scotland. Occupied from roughly 3180 to 2500 BCE, it predates Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids of Giza and is one of the most completely preserved Neolithic villages anywhere in Europe — eight to ten clustered houses linked by covered passages, each with built-in stone furniture including box-beds, dressers, hearths, and storage boxes. The settlement was abandoned around 2500 BCE for reasons that remain unclear, possibly linked to encroaching sand, and then lay buried beneath the dunes for some four thousand years. A violent storm in 1850 stripped away the overlying sand and exposed the ruins; systematic excavation followed under Vere Gordon Childe between 1928 and 1930, with continued conservation today by Historic Environment Scotland. The site is nicknamed the 'Scottish Pompeii' for its extraordinary state of preservation and was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999 as part of the Heart of Neolithic Orkney, together with Maeshowe, the Ring of Brodgar, and the Standing Stones of Stenness. ## Historical Rulers - 3180 BC – 2500 BC: Late Neolithic Orcadian Community (known as "*Skara Brae") A small Late Neolithic farming and fishing community on the Bay of Skaill builds and continuously inhabits a cluster of stone houses linked by covered passages. The settlement is part of the wider Orcadian Neolithic cultural sphere that also produced Maeshowe, the Ring of Brodgar, and the Standing Stones of Stenness. Society is stateless and kin-based, with no evidence of centralized political authority. The village is abandoned around 2500 BCE, for reasons still debated by archaeologists — possibly the gradual encroachment of wind-blown sand, climatic change, or shifting social and economic patterns across late Neolithic Orkney. ## Landmarks - Covered Passages (built 3100 BC) A network of narrow, low, stone-lined alleys roofed with slabs links the houses of Skara Brae into a single connected complex. The passages allowed inhabitants to move between dwellings while sheltered from the harsh Orcadian wind and rain, and they help give the village its distinctive village-under-one-roof character. - House 7 (built 3000 BC) The best-preserved of the Skara Brae dwellings, House 7 is a roughly square stone-built room entered by a low passage that could be barred from the outside. It contains a central hearth flanked by two stone box-beds, a stone dresser set against the wall opposite the entrance, and small built-in storage compartments and watertight tanks set into the floor. Its layout has become the type-plan for Neolithic Orcadian domestic architecture. - House 1 (built 3000 BC) One of the larger and more elaborately furnished houses in the village, House 1 follows the same single-room plan as House 7 — central hearth, box-beds on either side, and a stone dresser opposite the entrance. The internal stone fittings survive almost intact and illustrate the standardized domestic layout shared across the settlement. - Stone Hearths and Dressers (built 3000 BC) Because suitable timber was scarce on treeless Neolithic Orkney, the inhabitants built almost all of their furniture in stone. Central rectangular hearths, two-tiered stone dressers facing the entrance, box-beds flanking the fire, and small storage cells set into the walls survive in situ in most of the houses and provide an exceptionally complete picture of Neolithic domestic life. ## Population History - 3180 BC: 30 - 3000 BC: 50 - 2800 BC: 80 - 2600 BC: 60 - 2500 BC: null --- # Cahokia, United States URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/united-states/cahokia Founded: 700 AD Ended: 1350 AD Coordinates: 38.6553, -90.0606 ## Description Cahokia was the largest pre-Columbian city north of Mexico, the political and ceremonial heart of Mississippian culture along the floodplain east of the Mississippi River near present-day Collinsville, Illinois. After a Late Woodland village phase beginning around 700 CE, the site underwent a sudden urban transformation around 1050 CE — often called the Mississippian Big Bang — when planned plazas, more than 120 earthen mounds, and a large residential grid were laid out within roughly a generation. At its early-twelfth-century peak the city housed an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 people, making it larger than contemporary London and challenging the common misconception that pre-Columbian North America lacked dense urban civilization. Its monumental works include Monks Mound, the largest earthen pyramid in the Americas, the Woodhenge timber circles that functioned as a solar calendar, the Grand Plaza, and Mound 72 with its elite and mass burials. The city declined through the thirteenth century and was effectively abandoned by about 1350 CE for reasons still debated, including climate stress, environmental degradation, resource depletion, and internal political conflict; the population dispersed into successor Mississippian and later Native American communities across the midcontinent. The modern name comes from the unrelated Cahokia subtribe of the Illini Confederacy encountered by French missionaries in the late seventeenth century, who themselves did not build the mounds. The site was preserved as Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site and inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1982. ## Historical Rulers - 700 AD – 1050 AD: Late Woodland and Emergent Mississippian communities (known as "*Cahokia") Small Late Woodland villages occupied the American Bottom floodplain from about 700 CE, gradually consolidating during the Emergent Mississippian phase as maize agriculture intensified and population concentrated around the future Cahokia site. By the late tenth century, larger nucleated settlements with early platform mounds had appeared, setting the stage for the dramatic urban transformation of the mid-eleventh century. The original Mississippian name of the place is unknown, so the modern label is used with an asterisk. - 1050 AD – 1200 AD: Mississippian Cahokia polity florescence (known as "*Cahokia") Around 1050 CE Cahokia underwent a rapid reorganization sometimes called the Mississippian Big Bang: existing villages were leveled and replaced by a planned ceremonial center with Monks Mound, the Grand Plaza, mound groups, and residential precincts. The polity functioned as the dominant Mississippian center, exerting cultural and probably political influence across much of the midcontinent through chiefly elites, mound-and-plaza ritual, shell-bead economies, and exchange networks reaching the Gulf Coast and the Great Plains. Peak population in the early twelfth century is estimated at 15,000 to 20,000 within the central precinct and its immediate suburbs. - 1200 AD – 1350 AD: Mississippian Cahokia in decline (known as "*Cahokia") From the late twelfth century onward, Cahokia entered a long decline marked by the construction of a defensive stockade wall around the central precinct, episodes of rebuilding, and steady demographic loss. Possible drivers debated by archaeologists include prolonged droughts and flooding linked to Medieval Climate Anomaly variability, deforestation and soil exhaustion in the surrounding bottomlands, declining maize yields, and internal political and social conflict. By about 1350 CE the central precinct had been effectively abandoned, with surviving populations dispersing into successor Mississippian polities across the Midwest and Southeast. ## Landmarks - Monks Mound (built 1050 AD) The largest earthen pyramid in the Americas, rising about 30 meters in four terraces and covering a base of roughly 5.6 hectares. Built and expanded in successive stages from about 1050 CE on the north side of the Grand Plaza, it supported a large timber structure on its summit interpreted as the residence and ceremonial platform of Cahokia's paramount leader. The mound takes its modern name from a short-lived community of Trappist monks who briefly farmed its terraces in the early nineteenth century. - Grand Plaza (built 1050 AD) A massive engineered open space south of Monks Mound, roughly 19 hectares in area, deliberately leveled and surfaced around 1050 CE during the Mississippian Big Bang. It served as the central ceremonial and political stage for public gatherings, games such as chunkey, and rituals tied to the surrounding mound groups. - Mound 72 (built 1050 AD) A ridge-top mound southeast of Monks Mound that contained one of the most striking elite burials in North American archaeology: a central male interment on a bed of more than 20,000 marine-shell beads, accompanied by retainers, sacrificial victims, and caches of finely worked arrow points. The mound is interpreted as evidence of pronounced social hierarchy and ritualized violence at early-twelfth-century Cahokia. - Woodhenge (built 1100 AD) A series of large timber circles built west of Monks Mound during the twelfth century, with successive versions ranging from roughly 75 to over 140 meters in diameter. Their geometry aligned with key solar events including the solstices and equinoxes, marking them as a solar calendar used by Cahokian priests and elites to track the agricultural and ritual year. - Twin Mounds (built 1100 AD) A paired platform-and-conical mound complex at the southern end of the Grand Plaza, mirroring Monks Mound at the opposite end and framing the central precinct. The arrangement is interpreted as part of Cahokia's planned cosmological layout, with the conical mound likely associated with mortuary functions for high-status individuals. - Cahokia stockade wall (built 1175 AD) A massive wooden palisade roughly 3 kilometers in circumference enclosing Monks Mound, the Grand Plaza, and adjacent elite precincts, built in the later twelfth century and rebuilt several times. Its construction marks a shift toward fortification and probably reflects rising internal or regional conflict during Cahokia's decline. ## Population History - 700 AD: 500 - 900 AD: 2,000 - 1050 AD: 5,000 - 1100 AD: 15,000 - 1200 AD: 10,000 - 1250 AD: 5,000 - 1300 AD: 1,000 - 1350 AD: null --- # Washington, United States URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/united-states/washington Founded: 1790 AD Status: Still active Coordinates: 38.9072, -77.0369 ## Description Washington, the federal capital of the United States, was established by the Residence Act of 1790 signed by President George Washington, on land ceded by Maryland and Virginia along the Potomac River. French engineer Pierre Charles L'Enfant designed the city's monumental plan in 1791, and the federal government formally relocated from Philadelphia in 1800. The city was burned by British forces in August 1814 during the War of 1812 — the White House, Capitol, and Treasury were torched and subsequently rebuilt. As the Union capital during the American Civil War (1861-1865), Washington was the political nerve center of the war; President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated at Ford's Theatre in April 1865. In the 20th century the city transformed into a modern global capital, hosting the 1963 March on Washington where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the 'I Have a Dream' speech. Today Washington anchors the Smithsonian museum complex, the National Mall, and the seat of all three branches of the U.S. federal government. ## Historical Rulers - 1790 AD – present: United States Federal District Established by the Residence Act of 1790 as a federal district on the Potomac River, on land ceded by Maryland and Virginia. Pierre Charles L'Enfant designed the city plan in 1791, and the federal government moved from Philadelphia in 1800. The city was burned by British forces in August 1814 during the War of 1812 — the White House, Capitol, and Treasury were rebuilt afterward. Washington served as the Union capital throughout the American Civil War from 1861 to 1865, with Lincoln assassinated at Ford's Theatre in 1865. The Organic Act of 1871 unified the district under a single municipal government, and the Home Rule Act of 1973 granted limited local self-government, though Congress retains ultimate authority. The 1963 March on Washington marked a defining moment of the Civil Rights Movement. Washington continues today as the seat of all three branches of the U.S. federal government. ## Landmarks - White House (built 1800 AD) Official residence and workplace of the President of the United States, designed by Irish-born architect James Hoban and completed in 1800. Burned by British forces in August 1814 during the War of 1812 and reconstructed by 1817. Subsequent expansions added the West Wing in 1902 and the East Wing in 1942. - US Capitol (built 1800 AD) Seat of the United States Congress on Capitol Hill, originally designed by William Thornton with the cornerstone laid in 1793 and first occupied in 1800. The British set fire to the building in 1814; reconstruction followed and the iconic cast-iron dome was completed during the Civil War in 1866. - Smithsonian Castle (built 1855 AD) The original red sandstone headquarters of the Smithsonian Institution on the National Mall, designed by James Renwick Jr. and completed in 1855. Now serves as the visitor center and administrative heart of the Smithsonian museum complex, the world's largest museum, education, and research network. - Washington Monument (built 1888 AD) A 169-meter marble obelisk on the National Mall honoring George Washington, first president of the United States. Construction began in 1848 but was halted by funding shortages and the Civil War; the monument was finally completed in 1884 and opened to the public in 1888. It remained the tallest structure in the world until the Eiffel Tower surpassed it in 1889. - Lincoln Memorial (built 1922 AD) Neoclassical memorial at the western end of the National Mall honoring President Abraham Lincoln, designed by Henry Bacon with a colossal seated statue by Daniel Chester French. Dedicated in 1922, the memorial served as the backdrop for Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' speech during the 1963 March on Washington. - Jefferson Memorial (built 1943 AD) Neoclassical domed memorial along the Tidal Basin honoring President Thomas Jefferson, designed by John Russell Pope and dedicated in 1943 on the 200th anniversary of Jefferson's birth. Houses a bronze statue of Jefferson and inscriptions drawn from his writings, including the Declaration of Independence. - National World War II Memorial (built 2004 AD) Memorial on the National Mall between the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial honoring the 16 million Americans who served in World War II. Designed by Friedrich St. Florian and dedicated in 2004, it features 56 granite pillars, two triumphal arches, and the Freedom Wall with 4,048 gold stars representing American war dead. ## Population History - 1790 AD: 3,000 - 1800 AD: 8,000 - 1850 AD: 52,000 - 1900 AD: 278,000 - 1950 AD: 802,000 - 1980 AD: 638,000 - 2000 AD: 572,000 - 2020 AD: 690,000 --- # Bukhara, Uzbekistan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/uzbekistan/bukhara Founded: 500 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.7681, 64.4556 ## Description Bukhara is one of the great Silk Road cities of Central Asia, located in the Zarafshan River oasis of southern Uzbekistan some 250 kilometres west of Samarkand. Settlement on the central Ark citadel has been traced archaeologically to at least the 6th century BCE, and the city appears in Achaemenid Persian sources as Bukhara within the satrapy of Sogdiana. Under successive Achaemenid, Macedonian, Greco-Bactrian, Kushan, Hephthalite, and Sasanian rulers it served as a regional centre of Sogdian commerce. After the Arab conquest of 709 under Qutayba ibn Muslim, Bukhara became one of the principal cities of Khorasan and reached its first peak under the Samanid Empire (819-999), which made the city its capital and patronised the great revival of classical Persian literature and learning — the polymath Avicenna (Ibn Sina) was born and educated in Bukhara around 980. Under the Karakhanid, Khwarazmian, Mongol, and Timurid dynasties the city remained a major centre of Islamic scholarship and the Naqshbandi Sufi order founded here in the 14th century became one of the most influential brotherhoods in the Islamic world. As capital of the Khanate (later Emirate) of Bukhara from 1500 to 1920, the city's old urban core was monumentalised with the surviving madrasas, mosques, and trading domes that today form the UNESCO-inscribed historic centre. Russian conquest of 1868 made Bukhara a Russian protectorate, the Soviet Bukhara People's Soviet Republic followed in 1920, and since Uzbek independence in 1991 the city has continued as the seat of Bukhara Region with a population of roughly 280,000 inhabitants and an extensively preserved old town that was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993. ## Historical Rulers - 500 BC – 329 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Bukhārak") Settlement on the central Ark citadel of Bukhara is attested archaeologically by at least the 6th century BCE, when the city was incorporated into the Achaemenid satrapy of Sogdiana as a regional administrative and commercial centre on the Zarafshan oasis. Sogdian-speaking inhabitants engaged in caravan trade across Central Asia. - 329 BC – 125 BC: Macedonian and Greco-Bactrian Kingdoms (known as "Bukhārak") Alexander the Great's eastern campaign of 329-327 BCE brought Sogdiana under Macedonian control following the defeat of the Sogdian resistance under Spitamenes. After Alexander's death the region passed to the Seleucid Empire and later the breakaway Greco-Bactrian kingdom, which mediated Hellenistic Greek and Iranian cultures in the Zarafshan oasis until disrupted by Yuezhi nomadic incursions. - 125 BC – 651 AD: Kushan Empire (known as "Bukhārak") Through the Kushan (1st-3rd c. CE), Hephthalite (5th-6th c.), and Sasanian (6th-7th c.) periods Bukhara continued as a Sogdian commercial city, sending merchants as far as Tang Chinese Chang'an and Byzantine Constantinople. Sogdian Buddhism, Manichaeism, Nestorian Christianity, and Zoroastrianism all flourished in the city's diverse mercantile communities. - 651 AD – 819 AD: Rashidun, Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates (known as "Bukhārā") After the Arab general Qutayba ibn Muslim's campaigns of 709-712 Bukhara was conquered for the Umayyad Caliphate, and the city's population converted to Islam over the following decades. Under Abbasid Caliphate governance from Baghdad and later through the Tahirid governors of Khorasan, Bukhara remained a major regional centre of the eastern Caliphate. - 819 AD – 999 AD: Samanid Empire (known as "Bukhārā") Under the Persianate Samanid dynasty, which ruled Khorasan and Transoxiana from 819 onward and made Bukhara its capital from 892, the city reached its first great cultural peak as the centre of the New Persian literary renaissance under poets such as Rudaki and Daqiqi. The polymath Avicenna (Ibn Sina) was born nearby in 980 and educated in Bukhara's libraries. The cubic Ismail Samani Mausoleum of around 905 is the oldest surviving monument and an early masterpiece of Central Asian brick architecture. - 999 AD – 1220 AD: Karakhanid and Khwarazmian Empires (known as "Bukhārā") After the Samanid collapse Bukhara passed under the Turkic Karakhanid khans, who built the surviving Kalyan Minaret in 1127, and then under the Khwarazm-Shahs based at Gurganj. The city remained a major centre of Islamic scholarship and a key Silk Road entrepôt during these centuries of expanding eastern Islamic learning. - 1220 AD – 1500 AD: Mongol Empire and successor khanates (known as "Bukhārā") Genghis Khan stormed Bukhara in February 1220, slaughtered or enslaved much of the population, and burned the city. Under successive Mongol Ilkhanate and Chagatai Khanate rule, and then under the Timurid Empire from the late 14th century, Bukhara gradually recovered as a regional Timurid administrative and religious centre — albeit overshadowed by Timur's capital at Samarkand — and the Naqshbandi Sufi order was founded here in the 14th century by Baha-ud-Din Naqshband. - 1500 AD – 1868 AD: Khanate of Bukhara (known as "Bukhārā") From 1500 the Uzbek Shaybanid dynasty made Bukhara the capital of an independent Uzbek khanate, succeeded by the Janid and finally the Manghit dynasty (1747-1920) that formalised the polity as the Emirate of Bukhara in 1785. Under these dynasties the historic core was monumentalised with the great madrasas, mosques, and trading domes that survive today, including the Mir-i-Arab Madrasa (1535), the Kalyan Mosque (1514), and the Lyab-i Hauz complex (1568-1622). - 1868 AD – 1920 AD: Russian Empire — protectorate of Bukhara (known as "Bukhārā") Following Russian military victories in the conquest of Central Asia, the Emirate of Bukhara was reduced to a Russian protectorate in 1868 while retaining the Manghit emir at Bukhara. The Trans-Caspian Railway reached the new town of Kagan (Russian Bukhara) outside the historic walls in 1888, drawing some commerce away from the old city while leaving the medieval urban fabric largely intact. - 1920 AD – 1991 AD: Soviet Union (known as "Bukhārā") The Red Army's Bukharan Operation of August-September 1920 overthrew the last Manghit emir Sayyid Alim Khan and established the Bukharan People's Soviet Republic, absorbed into the Uzbek SSR in 1924. Under Soviet administration much of the medieval Jewish quarter and many city walls were demolished but the principal religious monuments were preserved as architectural heritage. - 1991 AD – present: Republic of Uzbekistan (known as "Bukhārā") Since Uzbek independence in 1991 Bukhara has continued as the seat of Bukhara Region with a population of roughly 280,000 inhabitants. The Historic Centre of Bukhara was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993, comprising the Ark citadel, the Poi-Kalyan complex, the Lyab-i Hauz, the major madrasas, the trading domes (toks), and the Ismail Samani Mausoleum, today administered together with the inhabited modern town. ## Landmarks - Ark of Bukhara (built 400 BC) The massive walled royal citadel at the heart of the medieval city, its foundations going back to the pre-Islamic Sogdian period and continuously rebuilt and expanded through every subsequent dynasty. The Ark housed the residence of the emirs of Bukhara into the 20th century and now contains a museum of the city's history. - Ismail Samani Mausoleum (built 905 AD) The cubic brick mausoleum of the Samanid emir Ismail ibn Ahmad, his father, and grandson, completed around 905 in a north-central park of the medieval city. Standing about ten metres on a side with a low dome and lattice-fired brick walls, it is the oldest surviving monument in Bukhara and a foundational masterpiece of Central Asian Islamic brick architecture. - Kalyan Minaret and Poi-Kalyan Complex (built 1127 AD) The 47-metre Kalyan ('Great') Minaret completed under the Karakhanid Arslan Khan in 1127, the tallest building in Central Asia at its construction and a survivor of Genghis Khan's 1220 sack of Bukhara. The minaret is the centrepiece of the Poi-Kalyan ('At the Foot of the Great') square, completed under the Shaybanids with the Kalyan Mosque (1514) and the Mir-i-Arab Madrasa (1535) framing the opposite ends. - Mir-i-Arab Madrasa (built 1535 AD) The Shaybanid theological seminary built under Ubaydullah Khan in 1535 and facing the Kalyan Mosque across the Poi-Kalyan square. The twin-domed Islamic college continued as one of the most prestigious centres of Sunni religious education in Central Asia throughout the Soviet period — when it was one of only two functioning madrasas in the USSR — and remains in operation today. - Lyab-i Hauz Complex (built 1620 AD) A 17th-century ensemble framing a large rectangular hauz (artificial pool) in the southern medieval core, comprising the Kukeldash Madrasa (1568), the Nadir Divanbegi Khanaka (1620), and the Nadir Divanbegi Madrasa (1623). Lyab-i Hauz has remained the principal social and commercial gathering place of the old city for four centuries. ## Population History - 500 BC: 2,000 - 1 AD: 10,000 - 500 AD: 20,000 - 900 AD: 80,000 - 1200 AD: 60,000 - 1221 AD: 5,000 - 1500 AD: 30,000 - 1800 AD: 70,000 - 1900 AD: 75,000 - 1950 AD: 100,000 - 2020 AD: 280,000 --- # Samarkand, Uzbekistan URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/uzbekistan/samarkand Founded: 700 BC Status: Still active Coordinates: 39.6548, 66.9755 ## Description Samarkand, one of the oldest cities in Central Asia, was a key trade hub along the Silk Road and a center of Islamic culture. It remains a major city in Uzbekistan today. ## Historical Rulers - 700 BC – 550 BC: Sogdian Principalities (known as "Afrasiab") The earliest settlement on the Afrasiab plateau was established by Sogdian-speaking Iranian peoples, who organized into small principalities centered on fortified oasis towns. Afrasiab grew as a regional agricultural and trading center in the Zeravshan valley. - 550 BC – 330 BC: Achaemenid Empire (known as "Marakanda") Following the conquests of Cyrus the Great, the city was incorporated into the Achaemenid satrapy of Sogdia. Under Persian administration it became known as Marakanda and developed as a major provincial center linking the empire to its northeastern frontier. - 330 BC – 323 BC: Macedonian Empire (known as "Marakanda") Alexander the Great captured Marakanda in 329 BCE during his campaigns in Sogdia and used it as a base for operations against local resistance led by Spitamenes. The city was briefly held by Macedonian garrisons before being absorbed into the successor states after Alexander's death. - 323 BC – 150 BC: Seleucid & Greco-Bactrian Rule (known as "Marakanda") After Alexander's death the city passed to the Seleucid Empire and later to the breakaway Greco-Bactrian kingdom, which maintained Hellenistic influence in Central Asia. Marakanda continued as a key node on emerging long-distance trade routes connecting the Mediterranean to Inner Asia. - 150 BC – 500 AD: Kushan Empire (known as "Marakanda") Nomadic Yuezhi groups displaced the Greco-Bactrians and founded the Kushan Empire, which absorbed Sogdia and its cities. Under Kushan rule Marakanda flourished as a Silk Road hub, with Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, and Sogdian commercial culture coexisting in the city. - 500 AD – 712 AD: Sasanian & Turkic Khaganates Following Kushan decline the region came under Sasanian Persian and then Hephthalite and Turkic Khaganate overlordship, with local Sogdian Ikhshid rulers retaining day-to-day authority. The city, increasingly known by its Sogdian name Samarkand, reached the height of its pre-Islamic prosperity as the commercial capital of the Sogdian network. - 712 AD – 875 AD: Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates Arab forces under Qutayba ibn Muslim conquered Samarkand in 712, incorporating it into the Umayyad and later Abbasid Caliphates. The city was gradually Islamized, and after the Battle of Talas in 751 it became renowned for early paper production, transferring the technology from China to the wider Islamic world. - 875 AD – 999 AD: Samanid Empire Under the Persianate Samanid dynasty Samarkand became one of the principal cities of an empire that fostered a revival of Persian language and Islamic scholarship. The city grew as a center of trade, learning, and crafts within a polity that helped shape classical Persianate civilization. - 999 AD – 1220 AD: Karakhanid and Khwarazmian Empires Turkic Karakhanids replaced the Samanids and made Samarkand a major capital, sponsoring new mosques and madrasahs. The city later passed to the Khwarazmian Empire, reaching a peak of medieval prosperity before the Mongol invasion. - 1220 AD – 1370 AD: Mongol Empire In 1220 Genghis Khan's armies sacked Samarkand, destroying much of the Afrasiab settlement and massacring or deporting a large part of the population. Under subsequent Chagatai Khanate rule the city was gradually rebuilt on a new site south of the old citadel, though it remained diminished until the Timurid era. - 1370 AD – 1500 AD: Timurid Empire Timur (Tamerlane) made Samarkand the capital of his vast empire in 1370 and lavished it with monumental architecture, drawing craftsmen from across his conquered lands. Under Timur and his successors, especially the astronomer-ruler Ulugh Beg, the city became a leading center of Islamic art, science, and architecture. - 1500 AD – 1599 AD: Shaybanid Uzbek Khanate The Uzbek Shaybanid dynasty under Muhammad Shaybani conquered Samarkand from the last Timurids around 1500, integrating it into a new Central Asian Khanate. Although the political capital shifted to Bukhara, Samarkand remained an important religious and commercial city under Shaybanid rule. - 1599 AD – 1868 AD: Astrakhanid and Manghit Rule Samarkand passed to the Astrakhanid (Janid) and later Manghit dynasties of the Bukharan Khanate and Emirate, during which time the city suffered prolonged decline and at points was nearly depopulated. Despite reduced fortunes, some major monuments such as the Sher-Dor and Tilya-Kori madrasahs were built on the Registan in the 17th century. - 1868 AD – 1917 AD: Russian Empire Russian forces captured Samarkand in 1868 and incorporated it into the new Turkestan Governorate-Generalship. Colonial administration built a European-style 'new city' alongside the historic core, connected Samarkand to the Trans-Caspian Railway, and stimulated population growth and modernization. - 1917 AD – 1991 AD: Soviet Union After the Russian Revolution Samarkand was incorporated into Soviet Turkestan and later the Uzbek SSR, briefly serving as its capital from 1925 to 1930 before the seat moved to Tashkent. Soviet authorities undertook extensive restoration of the Timurid monuments while simultaneously suppressing religious institutions and transforming the urban economy. - 1991 AD – present: Republic of Uzbekistan With the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 Samarkand became part of the independent Republic of Uzbekistan. The historic center was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2001, and the city continues to serve as a major regional capital, cultural symbol, and tourism destination. ## Landmarks - Afrasiab Archaeological Site (built 700 BC) This ancient tell (settlement mound) contains remains of the original city destroyed by Genghis Khan in 1220. Excavations have revealed impressive 7th-century Sogdian wall paintings depicting ambassadors from various nations, religious ceremonies, and hunting scenes. - Shah-i-Zinda Necropolis (built 1100 AD) This 'Avenue of Mausoleums' contains tombs built between the 11th and 19th centuries, primarily for royal women and Timurid nobles. The complex grew around what is believed to be the tomb of Qusam ibn Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad who brought Islam to the region. - Bibi-Khanym Mosque (built 1404 AD) Built by Timur after his campaign in India, this mosque was named after his favorite wife. At its completion, the main dome was one of the largest in the Islamic world. Though largely in ruins by the 19th century, it was substantially restored during the Soviet period and remains an impressive monument. - Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum (built 1404 AD) This elegant monument with its fluted azure dome became the prototype for later Mughal architecture in India, including the Taj Mahal. The interior features intricate gold leaf, jade, and onyx decorations, while Timur's cenotaph is carved from a single block of jade. - Registan Square (built 1420 AD) This monumental public square is framed by three grand madrasahs (Islamic schools): the Ulugh Beg Madrasah (1417-1420), the Sher-Dor Madrasah (1619-1636), and the Tilya-Kori Madrasah (1646-1660). Each features intricate tile work, massive portals, and distinctive minarets, representing the pinnacle of Central Asian Islamic architecture. ## Population History - 300 BC: 30,000 - 100 AD: 50,000 - 800 AD: 80,000 - 1000 AD: 100,000 - 1200 AD: 120,000 - 1250 AD: 25,000 - 1400 AD: 150,000 - 1600 AD: 70,000 - 1800 AD: 50,000 - 1900 AD: 80,000 - 1950 AD: 150,000 - 2000 AD: 370,000 - 2023 AD: 550,000 --- # Great Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe URL: https://www.archaeomap.com/cities/zimbabwe/great-zimbabwe Founded: 1100 AD Ended: 1450 AD Coordinates: -20.267, 30.933 ## Description Great Zimbabwe was the capital of a powerful Shona kingdom in southern Africa, renowned for its monumental dry-stone architecture and its role as a hub of long-distance trade linking the interior gold and ivory sources with Swahili coastal ports on the Indian Ocean. At its height it controlled a wide hinterland and exchanged goods with the wider Indian Ocean world, as attested by finds of Chinese porcelain, Persian glass, and Arab coinage at the site. The city was largely abandoned around 1450 CE, most likely due to environmental degradation, exhaustion of local resources, and the shift of trade and political power northward toward successor polities such as Mutapa and southwestward toward Khami. The ruins were brought to wider European attention by Karl Mauch in 1871; under colonial rule they were the focus of contested and often politically motivated reinterpretations. After independence in 1980 the country itself was named for the site, and Great Zimbabwe was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986. Today it is managed as a national monument and archaeological park rather than a living settlement. ## Historical Rulers - 1100 AD – 1450 AD: Kingdom of Zimbabwe The Shona-speaking Kingdom of Zimbabwe rose from earlier Iron Age communities on the southern African plateau and built its capital here, controlling cattle wealth and the gold trade routes leading to the Swahili coast. The elite organized monumental dry-stone construction (the Hill Complex, Great Enclosure, and Valley ruins) and presided over a stratified society until political and economic power shifted away in the mid-15th century, leading to the site's abandonment. ## Landmarks - Hill Complex (built 1100 AD) Located on a strategic hill, this complex served as the political and religious center of the kingdom. It features elaborate stone structures and provides panoramic views of the surrounding landscape. - Great Enclosure (built 1250 AD) A massive stone wall complex covering nearly 8,000 square meters, featuring intricate dry-stone wall construction without using mortar. The walls reach up to 11 meters high and showcase advanced architectural skills of the Zimbabwe kingdom. ## Population History - 1200 AD: 10,000 - 1350 AD: 20,000 - 1449 AD: 5,000 - 1450 AD: null