Excavations continue in the 2,700-year-old port city of Parion, within the borders of Kemer village in Biga district.
This year, the excavations are being carried out by a team of 25 people, 17 of whom are foreign delegation members, headed by Prof Vedat Keleş, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and Head of the Department of Archeology at Ondokuz Mayıs University.
Underwater work was carried out for the first time this year in the Ancient City of Parion. During these works, the second ancient harbor of Parion was found.
“This was mentioned in ancient sources”
Head of Excavations Prof. said that Parion 2024 season works continue in two sectors with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums and İÇDAŞ. Dr. Vedat Keleş said, “This year is the 20th anniversary of Parion excavations. This is an important source of pride for us.
When we look at 20 years, I think that the Parion excavation has done its part in the past 20 years in terms of excavation, restoration-conservation, publication and training of scientists in the Ancient City of Parion. This year, we took a first step and started underwater studies.
As we all know, Parion is an important port city in the Northern Troas. We already knew that we had a southern port. This was mentioned in ancient sources. We were saying there could also be a northern port.
But this was always a question mark in our minds. “With the underwater studies we started this year, we have determined that this place is also a port,” he said.
Prof. Dr. Keleş stated that Parion was a legion colony and said, “However, this port may have such a feature. This port is slightly smaller in size than the southern port, that is, the commercial port, and its inner part is filled with alluviums accumulated by the stream passing through the city.
This shows us that it may have been a slightly smaller military port. When we say military port, this immediately comes to our mind: Parion, as you know, is a legion colony.
Therefore, there may be a possibility that this place is a military port. “The underwater studies we will carry out in the coming periods will give us more detailed information on this subject,” he said.
“Excavations continue in the theater and agora”
Explaining that excavations continue in two sectors during the excavation season, Prof. Dr. Vedat Keleş: “One is theatre, the other is the agora. Our foreign faculty members work in the Agora sector.
We work in the theater industry. The small number of our workers hinders their work somewhat, but despite this, we try to work as much as possible.
The theater industry is a difficult industry, it is a very destructive industry. Because a city wall was built over the stage building and almost all the seating rows and architectural parts of the Theater were used within this city wall. Therefore, the structure seems to have changed considerably in the late period.
Even though we have some trouble due to this destruction, our work progresses slowly, our friends continue to work devotedly within the means possible. “Apart from this, our restoration work continues,” he said.
“We need to reveal the city”
Prof. said that they want to bring the Ancient City of Parion to its rightful place in a short time. Dr. Keleş said, “There is a lot to be done for this. For example, expropriations need to end and we need workers. Because we are a new, young dig.
The city we excavated is a city with a high rate of destruction. We need to reveal the city. We need workforce for this.
I would like to address local administrations from here. If they support us, at least the support of workers, we can continue our excavations for 12 months without interruption. “We can excavate here for 12 months without interruption, as long as the climate allows,” he said.
