5 June 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

In southern Turkey, the remains of a Roman villa whose floor was decorated with geometrically patterned mosaics were unearthed during construction

Workers working to lay the foundation of a new building in the Defne district of Hatay, southern Turkey, by accident discovered the ruins of a Roman villa, with its preserved geometrically patterned mosaic floor.

A historical structure was encountered during the foundation excavation of the construction to be built on the site of an 8-story building that was destroyed in the scope of urban transformation in December 2021 in the Sümerler District.

Work on the area was halted when it was reported to the Hatay Archeology Museum Directorate, and an inquiry was started.

In the examination carried out by the archaeologists in the area, it was determined that the ruins were the wall of a Roman villa and that there was a floor mosaic with geometric decoration on its floor.

Photo: AA

Ayşe Ersoy, director of Hatay Archeology Museum, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that traces of many artifacts from the Roman period have been discovered in Hatay, which was called Antiochia during the Roman Empire.

Ersoy stated that under the sponsorship of the Defne Municipality, the rescue excavations continue in the area where the remains were found, carried out by a team made up of an archaeologist, an art historian and 11 workers.

“Floor mosaics and wall remains of a Roman villa were unearthed. Based on the ruins and small finds, we determined that this place was inhabited until the 2nd and 5th centuries,” she said.

“Antiochia was settled in a large area between the Orontes River and the Habib-i Neccar Mountains. It was the third largest city in the Roman Empire period after Rome and Constantinople. Its area of ​​spread is very wide. The road of Antiochia, which starts from the Aleppo gate, goes up to the Defne gate, and there are settlements along the way. This is a villa and ruins from that period.”

Photo: AA

Ersoy said that during the excavations, they found that some of the remains of the villa walls and some of the floor mosaics were damaged.

She noted that there was no possibility of expanding the excavation to surrounding sites due to the presence of multistorey buildings in the area.

“In the coming days, we will begin drilling in the adjacent parcel to determine whether the area of historical remains is larger and we will present the matter to the conservation committee. Then, it will be decided whether the artifacts will be moved.”

Cover Photo: AA

Related Articles

‘Lost’ 4,000-year-old wedge tomb rediscovered in Ireland

22 January 2024

22 January 2024

A “lost” 4,000-year-old wedge tomb has been rediscovered in County Kerry, in the peninsular southwest region of Ireland. The megalithic...

A 2,200-Year-Old Monumental Pyramidal Structure Discovered in the Judean Desert

26 March 2025

26 March 2025

In a remarkable archaeological breakthrough, Israeli archaeologists have uncovered a monumental pyramidal structure in the Judean Desert, dating back 2,200...

Neo-Assyrian underground complex discovered under a house in southeastern Turkey

11 May 2022

11 May 2022

An underground Iron Age complex has been found in Turkey that may have been used by a fertility cult during...

The biblical narrative of Sodom may have been inspired by a cosmic meteorite that devastated an ancient city

21 September 2021

21 September 2021

The Bible account of Sodom’s destruction lies at the heart of classic “fire and brimstone” judgment day prophesies. But what...

Neolithic Age Adults and Children Buried Under Family Homes were not Relative

3 May 2021

3 May 2021

An international team of scientists found that Children and adults buried next to each other in one of the oldest...

Mummy of Egyptian pharaoh Amenhotep ‘unwrapped’ for the first time in 3,500 years!

30 December 2021

30 December 2021

Egyptian scientists have digitally unwrapped the 3,500-year-old mummy of pharaoh Amenhotep I. For the first time, a team in Egypt...

Nearly 1,000-year-old Native American canoe recovered from Lake Waccamaw

18 April 2023

18 April 2023

A 1,000-year-old Waccamaw Indian dug canoe was retrieved from Lake Waccamaw near Wilmington, North Carolina after it was discovered by...

Huge Ancient Roman Public Baths in ‘Excellent’ State Discovered in Augusta Emerita

23 July 2023

23 July 2023

In Mérida, Spain, archaeologists have discovered a “massive” Roman bathing site in “excellent” condition. The discovery was found in the...

A new study in Portugal suggests that mummification in Europe may be older than previously thought

3 March 2022

3 March 2022

New research on the hunter-gatherer burial sites in the Sado Valley in Portugal, dating to 8,000 years ago, suggests that...

Rare ivory plaques from First Temple Period were discovered in Jerusalem

8 September 2022

8 September 2022

An extraordinary find was made in Jerusalem: an assemblage of ivory plaques from the First Temple period, one of only...

An 8,000-year-old number stone found in Yeşilova Mound

27 July 2023

27 July 2023

The 8,000-year-old numeral stone, which is thought to have been used while calculating during the Yeşilova Höyük (Yeşilova Mound) excavation...

Researchers excavating the burial site along Caleta Vítor Bay in northern Chile found an Inka Tunic or unku

15 February 2023

15 February 2023

A recently published study, co-authored by a research professor at George Washington University, looks at the Inka Empire’s (also known...

A woman who had brain surgery 9500 years ago will be brought revived

12 September 2021

12 September 2021

A “revival” effort is underway on a woman’s skull unearthed in 1989 during archaeological digs at the Aşıklı Mound in...

Discovery Shedding Light on the Mysteries of Anatolia: 3500-year-old Double-Headed Eagle Seal

21 October 2024

21 October 2024

A grain silo and two different seal impressions, one of which is a double-headed eagle, were found during the excavation...

1500-Year-Old Mosaic Saved in illegal Excavation Operation

3 April 2021

3 April 2021

During the illegal excavation operation carried out in Izmir’s Aliağa district, a monastery built during the Roman period and about...