Savatra Ancient City Will Contribute to Tourism

Work on the Roman Theater and the mosaic structure in the ancient city of Savatra, 70 km from Konya city center, are continuing. Mayor Altay said, "Savatra will be one of the most important brands of Konya from now on."

In Konya, the Roman Theater in the ancient city of Savatra and the mosaic structure are being worked on. Konya Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Uğur İbrahim Altay stated that the ancient theater that emerged in the ancient city of Savatra, the last mosaics found and the first stone relief in which the expression Turks were mentioned before 1071 excited them, "We continue our financing in excavation activities. We hope to find much more beautiful things in the coming years. Savatra will be one of the most important brands of Konya from now on."

Karatay Mayor Hasan Kılca said, "Our goal is to take our city, which is already a brand in tourism, forward, and to increase the number of destinations in this sense. This place will be a new destination for tourism."

Konya Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Uğur İbrahim Altay and Karatay Mayor Hasan Kılca met with members of the press in the ancient city of Savatra, where excavation work is ongoing. Following the inspection tour of the Roman Theater and the mosaic area, the Head of Excavation of the Ancient City of Savatra, İlker Işık, shared information about the excavation works.

Stating that the works continue with the support of Konya Metropolitan Municipality and Karatay Municipality, Işık said, "In the first stage, we started excavation works in the theater and we are starting to reveal the seating steps during the excavation works. Here we also encountered a large mosaic base on an area of about 160 square meters. The mosaic is generally intact. According to the finds, late Rome offers early Byzantine examples. We were very happy to encounter the mosaic structure, which is one of the symbols of wealth and nobility and the power of the city. I hope that with the support given by both our Metropolitan Municipality and Karatay Municipality, we intend to bring important works of art to our city and country in terms of cultural assets."

While there is a large mound in the ancient city of Savatra, a military garrison city established on the eastern slopes of Bozdağ National Park on the borders of Konya's Karatay district, its history goes back 5 thousand years. The inscription with the first Turkish name in Anatolia was found in the ancient city of Savatra. In the works started in 2021, excavations are being carried out on the Roman theater and mosaic areas with the support of Konya Metropolitan Municipality and Karatay Municipality.