Archaeologists uncover 2,000-year-old mosaic in central Türkiye

Archaeological excavations in İzmir’s Bayraklı district have revealed a 5,000-year-old treasure trove of silver jewelry, offering new insights into the ancient city of Smyrna. The discovery, made in 2019 within an Early Bronze Age layer, consists of items such as spiral rings, forehead bands, and jewelry crafted using granulation techniques. The collection weighs approximately 406 grams and was found inside a pot. Aylin Ümit Erdem, head of the Bayraklı excavations and a professor at Ege University, stated the find provides crucial evidence of the settlement’s early economic ties and metalworking capabilities. Similar artifacts have been found in the treasures of Troy, suggesting potential links between ancient settlements. The excavations at Bayraklı Mound, one of İzmir’s oldest settlements, have uncovered traces of an organized urban layout dating back to the seventh century B.C. This includes intersecting streets, public buildings, production areas, wastewater channels, and defensive walls constructed without mortar. The city’s layout features main streets crossed by smaller roads, with designated areas for different functions. This arrangement is viewed as an early example of the grid plan attributed to the ancient Greek urban planner Hippodamus. Athena Street, one of the city’s primary thoroughfares, connected the settlement to a monumental eastern entrance gate and remained in use from the seventh century B.C. until the late fourth century B.C. The nearby Temple of Athena, used since the seventh century B.C., is considered one of the earliest stone temples in western Anatolia. Defensive walls show advanced construction techniques, with three phases of fortification dating from the ninth, eighth, and seventh centuries B.C. These structures feature stone blocks fitted together without mortar, with the eastern entrance having a distinctive gate supported by a single tower and connected to the city via a ramp. Wastewater channels running through homes and a large water channel beneath the ramp leading to the monumental gate were also uncovered. Some terraces in the eastern part of the settlement may have been built to prevent flooding. Evidence of agricultural practices, including wheat, barley, animal bones, grinding stones, and storage vessels, highlights the significance of farming and livestock in ancient Smyrna. Burnt seashells found in hearths and ash deposits suggest that seafood was part of the local diet. Spindle whorls and loom weights made of terracotta and stone indicate textile production, while the silver jewelry points to advanced metalworking skills. Erdem noted that the archaeological findings suggest Smyrna had extensive contact with regions including inland Anatolia, mainland Greece, the Aegean islands, the Balkans, and the Levant coast. The ancient city is also linked to Homer, who some ancient writers claimed lived in Smyrna in the eighth century B.C., when the settlement was located at Bayraklı Mound before moving to Kadifekale. Ongoing excavations in 2026 focus on Bronze Age layers, a large public building from the fourth century B.C., and the city’s northern defensive line. Researchers aim to clarify the settlement’s earliest phases and determine the extent and development of its fortifications.