ZEUGMA, DEEP HISTORY
From the Paleolithic era to the present day, Gaziantep, formerly known as Ayıntab, has been home to various civilizations. Located on the historic Silk Road, it became a center of trade in the region. It became heroic during the War of Independence, demonstrating exceptional courage and resistance in defending the city against French forces, resulting in 6,317 martyrs. At the invitation of Dalsan Group, one of our country’s companies operating with domestic capital, we visited this historic city, and more importantly, Zeugma and Halfeti.
The greatest opportunity of our visit was to hear about Zeugma directly from Prof. Dr. Kutalmış Görkay, a faculty member of the Department of Classical Archaeology at Ankara University’s Faculty of Language, History, and Geography, who has led the Zeugma excavations for 13 years.
Due to its location on the eastern border of the Roman Empire at that time, we saw, heard, and examined the ancient Greek and Roman influences that have survived to this day, both in the museum and at the excavation site during our visit. In particular, we came across scenes from plays written for the theater of that period in the mosaics and figures that have been brought to light. Seeing the pieces and artifacts displayed in the museum, and more importantly, witnessing them firsthand at the excavation site, in that very geography, gave us goosebumps.
Zeugma, whose name means “bridge” or “crossing,” has taken on a role synonymous with this meaning. Throughout the excavation process, it has served as a bridge for all stakeholders, including archaeologists, ancient historians, anthropologists, topographers, architects, restorers, photographers, Paleolithic researchers, and others from different countries, and will continue to do so.
So how did these studies begin? The studies in Zeugma, an important center in the history of world archaeology, were initiated with the sponsorship of Türkiye İş Bankası. Prof. Dr. Kutalmış Görkay undertook a very difficult task that could only be done with passion and led the way in bringing the studies to where they are today. Not only Mr. Kutalmış, but also our colleague Mr. Sercan Ünal, who served as the project author and architectural consultant for the Belkıs-Zeugma Archaeological Excavations Support Facility, and the excavation team working in the harsh climate and topographical conditions of the region have put in a great deal of effort.
We also learned some nice details at the excavation site. We saw that local people were also part of the excavation team and working there, and we got to know them. For this reason, we were happy to meet these friends of ours, who joined the work years ago and are now perhaps among the few excavation workers in the world, and we were proud as Turks.
We cannot overlook this detail. During the excavation work, we witnessed the destructive and sad consequences of historical artifact smuggling, a painful reality in our country, alongside all the beauty. While some pieces could be recovered through diplomatic efforts with the countries where they had been exhibited until now, it is quite sad to know that countless other artifacts suffered the same fate. We hope and wish that, before it is too late, this theft can be stopped at the ministerial level, and that all legal and administrative measures can be taken at the outset and in a timely manner, so that the values born and existing on this land are not lost.
Finally, it is worth answering the question, “Where does Dalsan fit into all this?” Throughout this process, the Dalsan Group has done a great service by supporting the excavation team during the construction of the support facilities. Will this support continue? At the end of the tour, I can say that we believe that Mr. Bahattin Daloğlu, the General Manager of the company who accompanied us during our visits, will continue this support as far as the conditions allow.
Although excavation work has slowed down this year due to financial difficulties resulting from the economic conditions our country has been experiencing recently, we hope that sponsorship support will continue to increase in the coming months and that we will be able to uncover the many treasures buried in this rich geography…
