27 May 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Roman-era structures unearthed in northwestern Turkiye dam site rescue excavations

Rescue excavations at the Reşitköy Dam site in the northwestern Turkiye province of Balıkesir have unearthed Roman structures, including a church, and a baptistery.

The area to be flooded by the dam is located 10 kilometers south of the ancient city of Adramytteion, near the Tahtacı Neighborhood.

Adramytteion Ancient City is situated at the Gulf of Edremit in North Aegean, on the shoreline of Ören neighbourhood of the town of Burhaniye of Balıkesir Province.

Adramyttion (modern Edremit) was a flourishing city in Mysia, opposite Lesbos, overlooking the gulf to which it gave its name. Said to have been founded by Adramys, brother of Croesus, and reported to have been the seat of Croesus before his accession, the city was considered Lydian in origin. In the Roman rearrangement of the area, the city became the seat of administration of customs, portorium.

Photo: Adramytteion Research
Photo: Adramytteion Research

The rescue excavation, which was started about 9 months ago by the Adramytteion Research committee after the surface research between 2015-2016, reached an ancient settlement dating from the late Roman and early Byzantine periods of the 4th to 7th centuries.

A nine-month excavation yielded significant finds, including a church, a baptistery, tombs, agricultural storage facilities, a high-capacity wine workshop, and even ceramic kilns. These discoveries offer a fascinating glimpse into the daily life and industries of this historical city.

Photo: Adramytteion Research
Photo: Adramytteion Research

Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University Archeology Department lecturer Assistant Professor Hüseyin Murat Özgen said that the largest and oldest church known to date in the Edremit Bay region, 15 meters wide and 25 meters high, is located in this region.

Özgen stated that the region where the finds were found is within the sphere of influence of the ancient city of Adramytteion, known as Edremittene, which also gave its name to the Gulf.

Photo: Adramytteion Research

About sixty burials, many of which were multiple burials, and commercial buildings related to agriculture were discovered surrounding the church with the baptistery.

Özgen said, “The two-phase church with a mosaic floor covers a very large area. The church complex yielded a large number of ritual-related material culture products such as ceremonial crosses and hangers, as well as finds from the surrounding graves that provide us with data about the period. 100 meters further on, commercial spaces begin.”

Photo: Adramytteion Research

Özgen said that among the new findings, a wine workshop with a very large capacity was preserved as a cistern with an accumulation basin and a profiled cistern for settling the sediment at the bottom.

During the rescue excavation, archaeologists also found traces of a late Byzantine and early Ottoman area.

Ozgen also noted the discovery of a ceramic workshop and rock-cut tombs on the settlement’s northern side, likely due to the natural deformation of the hill. Interestingly, the excavation team also unearthed an area within the vicinity exhibiting characteristics of both the Late Byzantine and Early Ottoman periods.

Photo: Adramytteion Research

Stating that Resitkoy was abandoned in the 1970s, but there are remains of an older village settlement and mills recorded in the Ottoman Salnames, Ozgen said, “Therefore, by documenting the concrete findings that convey the cultural process here in a multidimensional way, we are making our best efforts together with the Museum Directorate without losing data within the history of the region.”

The artifacts will be exhibited at the Balıkesir Kuva-yi Milliye Museum.

Cover Photo: Adramytteion Research/AA

Related Articles

A Special structure Contemporary to Göbeklitepe found at Gre Fılla Höyük in Eastern Turkey

4 August 2022

4 August 2022

Pit-bottomed structures dating to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic period were found at Gre Fılla Höyük (Gre Fılla Mound) in the province...

A Rock-Cut Temple and Inscriptions from the Neolithic period discovered in Saudi Arabia

6 August 2022

6 August 2022

In a project led by the Saudi Heritage Commission, a multinational team of archaeologists has discovered an 8,000-year-old archaeological site...

The researchers unearthed the earliest evidence of warfare and organized arming in the Southern Levant

28 November 2023

28 November 2023

Israel Antiquities Authority researchers have unearthed the earliest evidence of warfare and organized arming in the Southern Levant, dating back...

Drought unveils sunken basilica in Turkey

14 October 2022

14 October 2022

The sunken basilica remains discovered in 2014 became visible as a result of Lake Iznik’s water withdrawal. Climate change is...

Who will solve the puzzle of Bronze Age tin? Origin of tin ingots from Uluburun shipwreck disputed – the metal may have come from Cornwall

3 October 2023

3 October 2023

The exact origin of tin in the Bronze Age is the Holy Grail of archaeometallurgists: For 150 years, experts have...

Oldest known alphabet unearthed in ancient Syrian city -500 years older than thought

22 November 2024

22 November 2024

Johns Hopkins University researchers uncovered evidence of the oldest alphabetic writing in human history. The writing was etched onto finger-length...

Excavation in Larissa finds a Hellenistic era sanctuary

27 November 2021

27 November 2021

The Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sport reported on Friday the discovery of ancient Greek and Hellenistic era structures at...

2,000-year-old Monumental Tomb of Roman Elite discovered in Apollon Smintheus sanctuary in Türkiye

2 January 2024

2 January 2024

A 2,000-year-old monumental tomb from the Roman era has been unearthed at the Apollon Smintheus Sanctuary in the village of...

A New Picene Prince Tomb Dating to the 7th Century BC with Two Chariots Discovered in Corinaldo, Italy

29 July 2024

29 July 2024

Following the discovery of the so-called ‘Prince of Corinaldo’ in 2018, archaeologists from the University of Bologna have discovered a...

New Discovery Challenges Origins of Iconic Sutton Hoo Helmet: It Could Radically Alter Our Understanding of 7th Century Northern European Power Dynamics

28 March 2025

28 March 2025

A recent find on the Danish island of Tåsinge has sparked a significant reevaluation of the origins of the renowned...

The Discovery of a Bronze Age Game Board in Azerbaijan Challenges the Origin of One of the World’s Oldest Games

30 August 2024

30 August 2024

A new archaeological study revealed that an ancient board of a game, known as “Hounds and Jackals” or the “Game...

Assyrian seal found in the ancient Kef Fortress built by the Urartians

18 November 2024

18 November 2024

An alabaster seal, believed to be from the Assyrian Empire and belonging to a nobleman, was discovered in the ancient...

Analyses of a 2,900-year-old iron chisel from Portugal revealed surprisingly high-quality steel

22 September 2023

22 September 2023

Steel tools were believed to have only become widespread in Europe during the Roman Empire, but a recent study shows...

Oman has recovered an exceptional collection of silver jewelry from a prehistoric grave

7 November 2022

7 November 2022

From a prehistoric grave dating to the 3rd millennium BC in Dahwa, North Batinah, a team of international archaeologists working...

The Oklahoma City Museum of Art will launch “The Painters of Pompeii” on June 26

23 June 2021

23 June 2021

A number of collection highlights will travel to North America for the first time as part of the exhibition The...