Anavarza (Anazarbus)
Triumphal Arch
One of best-preserved Roman arches in Turkey
Provincial Capital
Capital of Roman Cilicia Secunda (4th century)
Armenian Castle
Massive Crusader-era fortress along the ridgeline
Stadium
One of the few surviving Roman stadiums in Cilicia
“Anavarza's sheer scale and preservation make it one of the most important archaeological sites in southeastern Turkey.”
Anavarza (Anazarbus) was a major Roman and Armenian fortified city in Cilicia, known for its triumphal arch, stadium, aqueduct, and massive medieval castle.
read_wikipedia →overview
Anavarza — ancient Anazarbus — is one of the most monumental archaeological sites in southeastern Anatolia, spread across a dramatic landscape where a massive rocky outcrop rises from the flat Cilician plain in Adana province. The site encompasses a lower Roman and Byzantine city and an enormous fortified citadel crowning the cliff above, together spanning over two thousand years of history. The city was elevated by Roman emperor Augustus to the status of "Caesarea," and it eventually became the capital of the Roman province of Cilicia Secunda in the 4th century CE. Its most striking surviving monument is a magnificent Roman triumphal arch, one of the best-preserved in Turkey, which once marked the entrance to the colonnaded main street. The arch's relief carvings celebrate imperial victory and remain remarkably crisp after nearly two millennia. Anavarza also preserves a Roman stadium (one of few surviving in Cilicia), an extensive aqueduct system, a large bath complex, rock-cut tombs, churches, and a vast necropolis. The city's mosaic floors — particularly in the bath complex — rank among the finest in southern Turkey. The enormous castle that crowns the cliff was expanded by the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia in the 12th-13th centuries, when Anazarbus served as one of the Armenian kingdom's most important fortresses. The castle walls stretch along the entire ridgeline, creating one of the largest medieval fortifications in the region. Despite its extraordinary scale and preservation, Anavarza receives a fraction of the visitors of comparable sites.
why_it_matters
evidence
evidence_desc
confirmed
3- Inscriptions confirm the city was renamed Caesarea under Augustus and served as capital of Cilicia Secunda from the 4th century CE.
- Armenian chronicles document Anazarbus as a major fortress of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, expanded under King Levon I in the late 12th century.
- The Roman triumphal arch has been dated to the late 2nd or early 3rd century CE based on architectural and sculptural analysis.
inferred
1- The scale of the aqueduct system and bath complex suggests a large urban population, possibly exceeding 30,000 in the Roman period.
debated
1- Whether the physician Dioscorides, author of the influential De Materia Medica, was from Anazarbus or nearby Tarsus is debated by scholars.
excavation
Cukurova University excavations
led_by Fatih Ermerdi
Systematic excavations uncovered the bath complex with fine mosaics, sections of the colonnaded street, and residential quarters.
Triumphal arch conservation
Major conservation project stabilized and documented the Roman triumphal arch, revealing details of its sculptural program.
Castle survey
Comprehensive architectural survey of the Armenian-era castle documenting construction phases and the medieval fortification system.
more_photos
artifacts
Community Photos
Share your experience
Have you visited this site? Upload your photos to help others discover it.
location
related_sites
sources
- Anazarbus: An Ancient Cilician City — Michael Gough (1952)
- The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia — T.S.R. Boase (1978)
- Wikipedia — Anazarbuslink