Sagalassos, Turkey

Investing in community training to protect one of the best preserved ancient Roman cities

Captured in 332 BC from the Persian Empire by Alexander the Great on his march through coastal Anatolia, Sagalassos was governed by successive members of Alexander’s ruling clique and their progeny: Antigonus the One-Eyed, Lysimachus, Seleucus, and finally the Attalids of Pergamon.

In 129 BC, Sagalassos was incorporated into the Roman Empire yet Hellenistic culture continued to dominate throughout the first century AD, including under the Emperor Hadrian who declared it the regional center of his cult.

By the 13th century, successive epidemics, earthquakes and marauding invaders forced Sagalassos’ population to flee to what is now the Turkish town of Aglasun. Its remote location some 60 miles inland against the sky-piercing Taurus Mountains eluded thieves, preserving these bone-white stone ruins rich with Persian, Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine influences as one of the most intact ancient cities across the Mediterranean, with its vast city center, a well-preserved theater, a Doric temple, thermae baths, agorai, a trio of nymphaeum and a series of exquisitely detailed, colossal statues including the emperors Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius.

Centuries of wild grass, weathering and erosion however left these magnificently crafted, cut limestone structures in various stages of decay. Since teaming up with the Sagalassos Archaeological Research Project of the University of Leuven in Belgium in 2015, Global Heritage Fund has been working with local stonemasons and conservation architects to transform the Aglasun community by investing in this culturally layered historic metropolis.

Together we created a comprehensive Site Conservation Plan centered on repairing the Roman baths and restoring the Upper Agora. Already completed restorations include parts of the fallen Southeast Gate, a Roman arch spanning over three meters and dating from the 1st century AD, its frieze blocks decorated with intricate weaponry motifs, and the Southeast Honorific Column, one of four identical 12 meter pillars at the corners of the agora erected to honor noble family members and dating between the reign of Augustus and Claudius.

Following extensive documentation of the Roman baths, preliminary conservation and restoration work is now underway. Also in progress: our state-of-the-art geo-referenced Site Management Plan to define the site’s legal site status, refine the development vision, and further economic and community development opportunities for Aglasun, home to the living descendants of this ancient city.

Some images courtesy of Bruno Vandermeulen, Danny Veys, Mustafa Gonen, Jason Drury, Orcus Edipoglu, and Sagalassos Archaeological Research Project