"Port of Theodosius"

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Pots and other ancient items are piled up in crates at an archaeological dig in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, June 20, 2006. Turkish archaeologists have discovered an ancient Byzantine port in an area that was planned to be an underground railway station, they announced on Tuesday. They're calling the find the "Port of Theodosius," after the emperor of Rome and Byzantium who died in the year 395 AD, and say the finds here could shed significant light on the commercial life of this ancient city. (AP Photo/Osman Orsal)

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A worker sprays down a 1,000-year-old boat found in an archaeological dig in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, June 20, 2006. Turkish archaeologists have discovered an ancient Byzantine port in an area that was planned to be an underground railway station, they announced on Tuesday. They're calling the find the "Port of Theodosius," after the emperor of Rome and Byzantium who died in the year 395 AD, and say the finds here could shed significant light on the commercial life of this ancient city. (AP Photo/Osman Orsal)

[palimpsest]

Treasure dig threatens Bosphorus rail link
By Sarah Rainsford, BBC News, Istanbul

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4949862.stm


...

Yenikapi on the European side of the city was selected to house a state-of-the-art train station. But when shanty homes were cleared from the site, archaeologists uncovered treasures beneath of a kind never before discovered here.

Archaeologist Metin Gokcay is rejecting all talk of deadlines
Just a few metres below ground, they found an ancient port of Constantinople - named in historical records as the Eleutherios harbour, one of the busiest of Byzantium.

"We've found 43m of the pier so far," chief archaeologist Metin Gokcay explains, pointing to a line of wooden stakes emerging from a green pool of water. He says the Marmaray site has yielded the most exciting finds of his long career.

"We believe there used to be a platform on those sticks - down there is where the horses were unloaded."

"We've also found lots of things that tell us about the daily life of the city in the 4th Century," Mr Gokcay enthuses, standing close to a tunnel he suspects was an ancient escape route.

"We found leather sandals, for example, with strings through the toes and around a thousand candle-holders and hairbrushes. I've done many digs in Istanbul, but there are many things here I've never seen before."

As well as the stone remains of the harbour itself, Mr Gokcay and his team have uncovered perfectly preserved ancient anchors and lengths of rope. Dozens of men are still scrubbing the mud of centuries from hundreds of crates of artefacts, for assessment.

But perhaps the site's most treasured find is stored beneath a large protective tent.

Inside, dozens of jets spray water to preserve a wooden boat that is more 1,000 years old. Its base, about 10m long, was discovered intact beneath what was once the sea.

The dig has uncovered eight boats in total - another first for Istanbul - and archaeologists believe there are more to come.

It's a dream discovery for them, but a nightmare for the Marmaray management.

"It's true I lose sleep over this. I worry we won't make it on time," admits Marmaray Project Manager Haluk Ozmen. He says the dig is only delaying work at the Yenikapi site for now, but warns it will soon affect the entire project.

"The dig is the only thing that can delay the Marmaray project. That's why we're working 24 hours a day to meet our deadline. Everything is in the hands of the archaeologists now."

Engrossed in their task, those archaeologists refuse to be rushed by commercial concerns. Their work was scheduled to finish four months ago, but they now reject all talk of deadlines.

"The Marmaray team cannot spread their cement or tunnel any deeper here until we finish," states a determined Mr Gokcay. "They have to wait for us. And I will continue my work here until the last artefact made by human hands is found. It's impossible to accept anything else."

In addition to the Eleutherios harbour, the dig teams have exposed a long section of the city wall from the days of Constantine I - the first time the wall has ever been uncovered.


See further:

http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/0,1518,415463,00.html

[palimpsest]

The ground is littered with pieces of ancient clay pots and other vessels at an archaeological dig in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, June 20, 2006. Turkish archaeologists have discovered an ancient Byzantine port in an area that was planned to be an underground railway station, they announced on Tuesday. They're calling the find the "Port of Theodosius," after the emperor of Rome and Byzantium who died in the year 395 AD, and say the finds here could shed significant light on the commercial life of this ancient city. (AP Photo/Osman Orsal)

[palimpsest]

Workers rest at the site of an archaeological dig in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, June 20, 2006. Turkish archaeologists have discovered an ancient Byzantine port in an area that was planned to be an underground railway station, they announced on Tuesday. They're calling the find the "Port of Theodosius," after the emperor of Rome and Byzantium who died in the year 395 AD, and say the finds here could shed significant light on the commercial life of this ancient city. (AP Photo/Osman Orsal)



The ground is littered with pieces of ancient clay pots and other vessels at an archaeological dig in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, June 20, 2006. Turkish archaeologists have discovered an ancient Byzantine port in an area that was planned to be an underground railway station, they announced on Tuesday. They're calling the find the "Port of Theodosius," after the emperor of Rome and Byzantium who died in the year 395 AD, and say the finds here could shed significant light on the commercial life of this ancient city. (AP Photo/Osman Orsal)

[palimpsest]

Dig for metro station uncovers long-lost port in Istanbul

Thursday, June 22, 2006


Archaeologists find what they think might be a church, an old gate to the city and eight sunken ships, which archaeologist Cemal Pulak says he believes were all wiped out by a giant storm more than 1,000 years ago

ISTANBUL - TDN with wire services


Turkish archaeologists announced on Tuesday that they have discovered an ancient Byzantine port in an area that was planned to be an underground station for a modern rail tunnel.

They're calling the find the "Port of Theodosius," after the emperor of Rome and Byzantium who died in the year 395, and say the items they're digging up here could shed significant light on the commercial life of this ancient city.

The excavations are being conducted in the Yenikapı area, which is located south of Istanbul's historical peninsula, home to numerous Byzantine and Ottoman structures.

Like Romans, Athenians and other residents of the world's great historic cities, Istanbul residents can hardly put a shovel in the ground without digging up something important.

So far, the archaeologists have found what they think might be a church, an old gate to the city and eight sunken ships, which archaeologist Cemal Pulak says he believes were all wiped out by a giant storm more than 1,000 years ago.

Istanbul Archaeology Museums Director İsmail Karamut, who also heads the Marmaray project excavations, told the Anatolia news agency that the shipwrecks would be displayed at “a subway station museum to be built at the same location,” and that Transportation Ministry officials were working on the project.

Meanwhile, wall sections that are believed to be part of the Constantine Wall were unearthed in the western part of the excavation site, said Karamut.

He added that underground graves dating to the fourth century were also unearthed in the same region.

Karamut said 17 archaeologists, three architects and 150 workers were working in the Yenikapı excavations, which were launched in November 2004.



from Turkish Daily News:
http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=46860