CAPPDOCIA Cappadocia is world famous for its unique tufa rock formations. It was also an important place in the early times of Christianity. In the 2nd century AD the first Christian municipalities were founded and in the 4th century AD Christianity became the state religion. Hundreds of cave churches with splendid frescoes were built. From the 6th century to the 18th century you can compare the different styles of depiction. Other highlights are the underground cities of Derinkuyu and Kaymaklı, the Ihlara Valley, the pottery city of Avanos and the Bektaşi Monastery of Hacıbektaş.
VALLEY OF GOEREME The valley of Göreme with its many churches is one of the most visited places of Cappadocia. Most of the churches were built after the Arab invasions in 11BC. In Byzantine times Göreme became a diocesan town and was purely a monastic community. You can see the Basillus Church from the time before the iconoclastic controversy, the Elmalı Church with a scene of the baptism of Jesus Christ, the Barbara Church with its unusual paintings, the Yilanli Church taking its name from a depiction of a snake. The most important church is the Karalik Church, the ‘dark church’. The church was discovered very late and because very little light entered the church the frescoes have retained their brightness. The frescoes show scenes from the life of Jesus Christ and the Evangelists and are dated from the 11th century. Outside of the museum area of Göreme there is also one of the biggest churches in Cappadocia, the Tokali Church from the 10th century which was enlarged in the 11th century. In the older part of the church you see the story of Jesus Christ and John the Baptist; in the newer part is one of the nicest frescoes from the Macedonian renaissance.
VALLEY OF SOGANLI
After Göreme , the Valley of Soğanlı is the second most important centre of monasticism. The frescoes in the churches are dated from the 9th century up to the 13th century. Some of them could be dated very exactly because of the inscriptions. Altogether there are over 150 churches, some of them submerged or used as dovecots. The most important churches are the Karabas Church dated 1060-1061 and the Barbara Church dated the beginning of the 11th century and are important for dating other churches.
THE UNDERGROUND CITY OF DERINKUYU The underground cities were first built by the Phrygians and were enlarged by the Byzantines. They were conceived as a retreat and could be closed from the inside by large stone doors. Airshafts up to 100 feet deep, wells and storerooms made longer stays possible. Derinkuyu is the biggest excavated underground city and was discovered in 1963. You can visit 11 floors; the other floors are not excavated yet. At the present time Derinkuyu has a dimension of 2000 square feet though it is estimated to have a total dimension of 7000 square feet. The different floors could be blocked off separately and the city was connected to other underground cities with tunnels miles long. It is assumed a population between 3000 and 50000 could have lived in this city.
