Astra: Traces of an Ancient City in Konya

Located to the south of the Ancient City of Isaura, on Temaşalık Hill, Astra is a large ancient settlement. Rescue excavations and cleaning works carried out by the Konya Museum Directorate revealed a necropolis area and the remains of a church.

From Astra, the important cities of the Isaura State, Isaura and Astanada, can be seen with the naked eye, forming a triangular layout with the Ancient City of Astra. Studies on the city’s inscriptions, first discovered by Sterrett in 1885, confirmed that the settlement was named Astra.

These inscriptions also show that the city had a distinct administrative structure as a settlement connected to Isaura.

The Ancient City of Astra is surrounded by walls built of rubble stone without mortar and was used as a settlement during the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods. Many civil structures from these periods are found on the eastern, southern and northern slopes of the site.

The eastern and western necropolises contain numerous cremation urns, stelae and tomb lions. In addition, relief carved stones, inscriptions, architectural fragments and lion sculptures can be seen throughout the ancient city.