Byzantine Studies

Küçükyalı ArkeoPark is the only active urban archaeology site in the Asian side of İstanbul. The archaeological area at Küçükyalı was identified at the end of a survey campaign in the late 1950s as the first Islamicate palace built in 9th-century Byzantium, but further on-site activities were halted for several decades. It was not until 2001 that systematic ar­chaeological activities resumed, in the form of a field survey, when, along with studies of collected data and research, a reassessment of the site’s identification was proposed. What survived along with newly emerged remains at Küçükyalı was newly documented and identi­fied as the monastic complex of Satyros, built by the eunuch patriarch and son of the Byzan­tine emperor Ignatios, between 866 and 877 CE, and known through textual evidence to have been the most lavish of the monasteries built by the patriarch. Today Küçükyalı archaeological site covers an area of roughly 5.000 square meters.

The scientific level of the archaeological work carried out in Küçükyalı ArkeoPark is always kept at the highest level. The results of archaeological excavations carried out by experienced and skilled experts are documented in detail and shared with the scientific community. The needs and the expectations of the residents of the neighbourhood are always kept in the forefront during the participation based “public archaeology” activities which are carried out parallel to the archaeological excavations. Sustainability is the basic principal for archaeological excavations, architectural and landscape design, cultural heritage educations and activities executed with the participation of the residents of the neighbourhood. Moreover, no change on the boundaries of the first degree protected archaeological site and the built environment is envisaged as a result of archaeological excavations and research. For more information: https://kyap.ku.edu.tr/?q=en