A049: Seki Citadel
Aphrodisias Regional Survey
2005-06-07
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Citation
Page reference: Christopher Ratté and Peter D. De Staebler (eds.). Aphrodisias V. The Aphrodisias Regional Survey (Verlag Philipp von Zabern: Darmstadt/Mainz, 2012), 17, 65, 71, 74, 75, 85 - Book catalogue no.: Pottery cat. 1. <http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/92911>
Other Identifiers
A049
Subjects
Citadels and Watchtowers 2: Protohistoric 3: Hellenistic
Description
Local Name: Sivri Tepe, Seki Local Informant: Ahmet Donmez Local Information: Sivri Tepe is also known as Sivri Gece. Ahmet Donmez, an elder from Seki who was a shepherd on these mountains for his entire life, told us that there castle is on the southern slopes of the hill. As you approach to the castle hill, on the slopes of the facing hill, on your left, there were four bluish stone blocks making the corner of a wall. Across from it was a vaulted chamber and a marble quarry about 200m up. Between the two hills runs a river, and there is a platform like flat area with a single standing tree in the middle. He believes there is a room underneath, since if you step on the platform, you can hear that it echoes. He says further that there was a tunnel all the way from Babadağı to the fortress, and that if you had poured in some milk at Babadağı that it would run all the way down to the fortress. He remembers seeing water pipes at the fortress and also from the river all the way down to Gorgoz (old city). ** We were to be led to the citadel by the Imam of Seki, but he took us up the wrong slope (according to our temsilci, he couldnt find it because he had "never been to the site during the day"). Eventually the Imam had to leave in order to sing the call to prayer, and we found the citadel o our own. Latitude: 37.42.09.48 Longitude: 28.50.06.30 Elevation: 1090m Dimensions: 90m by 50m Description: This heavily fortified citadel with a commanding view of the uppermost Morsynus valley is perched on a crag in the foothills of Baba Dağı to the northeast of Aphrodisias. The site slopes downward from northeast to southwest; the whole north side is a cliff, there is a kind of keep at the top, and an outer ring wall along the south, which surrounds an area approximately 90m by 50m. Two massive towers bonded with the wall flank a gate at the northern end of the southeast wall, and two smaller towers abut on the wall at the south corner. Two similar towers float along the slope about 50-60m to the south (8.80m by 8.70m). The walls are built of massive blocks (largest: 2.20m by 0.59m), rimarily of conglomeratic limestone, but others are of a pale blue-ish limestone. The walls are preserved up to four courses high and up to 1.5m thick. The south wall is built in roughly three unequal sections, and the sections meet at 120 degree angles. the west section is about 35m long, the short south section is about 10m long, and the long east section is about 70m long. The gate is about 1.90m wide, and the passage is perpendicular to the outer walls. Additional walls within the fortified area are seen in the surface. ** On the east side are a pair of robber's pit with a large number of pottery fragments, including large jar fragments, in the back dirt. None of the usual forms in local fabrics known from Aphrodisias is found on the site, and in place of the familiar Tan Micaceous Ware is an abundance of the newly recognized "Seki Ware". The ware is used for all types of vessels, but no fragments are clearly identifiable as cooking shapes and none is blackened. The fragments include many ring bases, some quite large (up to Diam. 0.155 m), flat bases, both round and strap handles, and relatively plain rims. A very small amount of TMW was found, along with two tiny body fragments with glossy red slip and a plain rim with a muted black slip. Also found at the site was a fragment of a flat rectangular mortarium with a dense layer of quartz chips set in to the surface. In addition we found a fragment of sharp-edged roof tile with red slip on the upper surface. Occupation at Seki appears to be primarily pre-Hellenistic. Finds: Pottery and tile sherds, inc. large fragments of a thick walled jar. The pottery fragments outside of the area of the robbers' pits were few. ** Systematic pottery collection conducted 26 May 2006
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