Linked structures were discovered in the Temple of Mithras in Zervevan Castle, in the Çınar district of Diyarbakır. Which is the last eastern garrison of the Roman Empire, and which is on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List.
Excavations, initiated in 2014 in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Dicle University, continue at the Zerzevan Castle, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on the Diyarbakır-Mardin highway near the Çınar district. New finds and structures are discovered through the excavations carried out. Head of the Excavation Delegation Assoc. Dr. Aytaç Coşkun said, “Before entering the sanctuary, we saw that many buildings were connected with the place where ceremonies were held in the sanctuary, and we intensified our work in this area. While performing rituals in the temple, entrances are made from both corridors and different structures. So we think it has to do with this mystery religion.”
THE FIRST TEMPLE OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE ON THE EASTERN BORDER
The castle, which was the last garrison in the east of the Roman Empire, whose history dates back to the Assyrian period BC, and which has an underground and an aboveground city, was used uninterruptedly until its conquest in 639. The mysterious Temple of Mithras, which was the first temple on the eastern border of the Roman Empire and where ceremonies were held in secret, was also unearthed during the excavations made to date.
In the military settlement surrounded by 1200 meters long walls, there are architectural remains such as a watch and defense tower, a church, an administration building, an armory, and a rock altar in the southern area where public buildings are located. In the north, there are also water cisterns, an underground church, an underground shelter and the best preserved Mithras Temple in the world, in the area where the avenues, streets and residences are located. Outside the walls, the channels providing water to the settlement, offering bowls and stone quarries, and in the necropolis area, rock tombs and vaulted tombs draw attention.
‘WE FOUND NEW BUILDINGS RELATED TO MITHRAS’
It has been revealed that the entrance to the temple was made from different structures during the excavations carried out around the Mithras Temple, where local and foreign tourists showed great interest. Head of the Excavation Delegation Assoc. Dr. Aytaç Coşkun said, “The reason why this place attracts so much attention and arouses so much curiosity is the mystery religion of Rome, Mithras. All their rituals are held in underground temples and in great secrecy. Zerzevan Castle also has one of the best preserved Mithras temples in the world. In this year’s studies, we found new structures related to Mithras, and in fact, we saw that many structures were connected with the place where ceremonies were held in the sanctuary before entering the sanctuary, and we intensified our work in this area. If we look at the connection of the places with Mithras, these are 1700-1800 years old places.
While performing rituals in the temple, entrances are made from both corridors and different structures. That’s why we think it’s related to this mystery religion, and that’s why we continue the excavations in structures associated with the Mithras Temple. Of course, studies are being carried out in different areas, but now we continue to focus a little more on this Mithras Temple, on the newly found structures to the west of Mithras, where this Roman mystery religion is housed, and in connection with it. We’ve uncovered corridors associated with Mithras. Now, when we look at the corridors, there are structures that provide the passage to the temple. These are structures that are covered and that the temple is not visible from the outside and that also covers the temple. We can say that it is a building complex,” he said.
‘WE ARE CONSIDERING COMPLETING THE WORK AT THE END OF THIS YEAR’
Stating that they think that some of the ceremonies were held in these structures, Assoc. Dr. Aytaç Coşkun stated that they aim to complete the work carried out in this area by the end of the year.
Assoc. Dr. Coşkun said, “There is no direct entrance to the main place of worship and probably these must be related to the rituals of Mithras and the newly found structures are multi-room structures. We think that some of the ceremonies were held here. After performing a certain ceremony from here, the entrance to Mithras, that is, the temple, where the actual ceremony was held, is made. Excavations need to be completed in order to fully describe the structure between the Mithras Temple and these structures. There are many stages and different ceremonies in the Mithras ritual. Because it is a mystery religion, it is not revealed much. For this reason, we can say the information about Mithras according to the archaeological findings and legends.
With the studies here, we will look at what ceremonies are held in the temple. We know the ceremonies inside the temple because we have completed the work. There are complex structures connected to the temple and different corridors. This means that perhaps these corridors and these large complex structures must have been used gradually according to the degrees in the temple. In particular, we plan to complete the work on the west of Mithras by the end of this year. There is a shelter structure right next to the temple. In fact, they built a huge structure underground. This shelter structure is a very large underground gallery with 5 ventilations and spiral staircases.
It is a building that can accommodate 400 people. However, we think that because this building is close to the Mithras Temple and is together with these newly discovered complex structures, rituals related to Mithras were also held there,” he said. (Hürriyet)
