rock graves

Story

Located in the Nizip area of Gaziantep, this ancient burial ground guards a thousand years of Anatolian history. Carved into steep rock slopes, these tombs were sacred places where past civilizations laid their dead to eternal rest. The structures cut into the rock consist sometimes of a single chamber and sometimes of multi-chambered rooms connected by intricate passages. Reflecting the burial traditions of the Hittite and earlier periods, these structures have allowed archaeologists to understand the way of life and belief systems of that age. The masterfully carved details on the stone surfaces and the ceramic fragments discovered in the rock chambers reveal the civilization to which they belonged. These silent residents of ancient Nizip continue to carry on a conversation spanning the centuries through the carving marks left upon them. During your visit, by entering the inner chambers through the narrow openings of the rock tombs, you can closely examine the carving craftsmanship on the stone slopes and form a deep connection with the ancient civilizations of Anatolia.