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Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Nov 30 2013
Kayseri's carved rock sanctuary to become art gallery
KAYSERÄ° - Anadolu Agency
A 1,700-year-old rocked carved sanctuary in Kayseri's Talas district
will turn into a museum and art gallery to host classics and
traditional arts
Tol Mabet (sanctuary) in the central Anatolian province of Kayseri's
Talas district, which is famous for its historic mansions and
underground richness, will become a museum and art gallery, where
classical works will be displayed. The sanctuary is a carved rock one
and dates back to 1,700 years ago.
Talsa Mayor Rifat Yıldırım said that the rock-carved place, which is
located on Ali Saip PaÅ?a Street, has a unique style of architecture in
the region.
Yıldırım said that they estimated that the sanctuary dated back to the
third and fourth century B.C. and it had undergone restoration many
times to strengthen the structure. He said they had worked
meticulously to restore the sanctuary and expose it to tourism.
Built for safety
`Most probably this place was an underground city built for safety,'
Yıldırım said, and continued: `Arrangements in the structures show us
that it served as a church in history. This is a very strong
structure. We see in this sanctuary what humans can do by carving
rocks. It was built with a magnificent mathematical transaction. As a
result of long-time work, we prepared a restoration project. It was an
abandoned place before the restoration. We won an award from the Union
of Historical Towns. The restoration took nearly four years. This is a
magnificent structure built completely with hand workmanship. This is
why the restoration was very detailed.'
Yıldırım said that the use of such structures should not go against
the purpose of its structuring, and continued:
`This is a sanctuary and needs respect. It should not be seen as a
commercial enterprise. Considering it, we have decided that this place
should be home to culture and art events. We will make an art gallery
to host calligraphy, ornamentation and marbling works. Artistic
performances will be staged here. We also estimate that there are some
hidden structures under this sanctuary. We have not reached them yet
but I think we will. We restored the neighboring structures of the
sanctuary. It had a cost of nearly 1 million Turkish Liras.'
Yıldırım said that Talas also had many historic structures just like
Tol Mabed since Greeks, Armenians and Turks had lived in the district
together through centuries and left a rich heritage.
`We also plan to bring Talas to tourism because every year many
tourists from Athens come to Talas with tour companies because Greeks
immigrated to Greece from here as a result of the population exchange.
They visit the land of their ancestors. We will make use of this
opportunity more,' he said.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/kayseris-carved-rock-sanctuary-to-become-art-gallery.aspx?pageID=238&nID=58733&NewsCatID=385
Nov 30 2013
Kayseri's carved rock sanctuary to become art gallery
KAYSERÄ° - Anadolu Agency
A 1,700-year-old rocked carved sanctuary in Kayseri's Talas district
will turn into a museum and art gallery to host classics and
traditional arts
Tol Mabet (sanctuary) in the central Anatolian province of Kayseri's
Talas district, which is famous for its historic mansions and
underground richness, will become a museum and art gallery, where
classical works will be displayed. The sanctuary is a carved rock one
and dates back to 1,700 years ago.
Talsa Mayor Rifat Yıldırım said that the rock-carved place, which is
located on Ali Saip PaÅ?a Street, has a unique style of architecture in
the region.
Yıldırım said that they estimated that the sanctuary dated back to the
third and fourth century B.C. and it had undergone restoration many
times to strengthen the structure. He said they had worked
meticulously to restore the sanctuary and expose it to tourism.
Built for safety
`Most probably this place was an underground city built for safety,'
Yıldırım said, and continued: `Arrangements in the structures show us
that it served as a church in history. This is a very strong
structure. We see in this sanctuary what humans can do by carving
rocks. It was built with a magnificent mathematical transaction. As a
result of long-time work, we prepared a restoration project. It was an
abandoned place before the restoration. We won an award from the Union
of Historical Towns. The restoration took nearly four years. This is a
magnificent structure built completely with hand workmanship. This is
why the restoration was very detailed.'
Yıldırım said that the use of such structures should not go against
the purpose of its structuring, and continued:
`This is a sanctuary and needs respect. It should not be seen as a
commercial enterprise. Considering it, we have decided that this place
should be home to culture and art events. We will make an art gallery
to host calligraphy, ornamentation and marbling works. Artistic
performances will be staged here. We also estimate that there are some
hidden structures under this sanctuary. We have not reached them yet
but I think we will. We restored the neighboring structures of the
sanctuary. It had a cost of nearly 1 million Turkish Liras.'
Yıldırım said that Talas also had many historic structures just like
Tol Mabed since Greeks, Armenians and Turks had lived in the district
together through centuries and left a rich heritage.
`We also plan to bring Talas to tourism because every year many
tourists from Athens come to Talas with tour companies because Greeks
immigrated to Greece from here as a result of the population exchange.
They visit the land of their ancestors. We will make use of this
opportunity more,' he said.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/kayseris-carved-rock-sanctuary-to-become-art-gallery.aspx?pageID=238&nID=58733&NewsCatID=385