An Overview of the History and Archaeological Context of Karaman-Karadağ

Abstract

Karadağ which is located in the northern part of Karaman consists of several hills surrounding an elliptical crater hole. There is a large number of historical ruins on these rises of Karadağ. From these ruins related to the religious and military architecture, altar and hieroglyphic tablets which constitutes the most important part of the ruins of the period of Hittites in Mahalaç indicates that Mahalaç has been a holy mountain since the oldest periods. In addition, there is monastery, church and chapel ruins in the locations named Asamadi and Kayasamıç. On the other hand, there are spatial elements belonging to castle and castles on the rises of Karadağ such as Kızıldağ, Candar, Kızılhisar and Başdağ. These castles indicate that the mountain is in a strategic position watching the central passes of Taurus Mountains especially Gülek and Sertavul. All of these clearly show that Karadağ had dual function as both religious and military since the B.C. II. Thousand. In this study, a field of historical ruins in the rises of Karadağ is introduced with some new findings.