Adiyaman Attractions
Southeast Anatolia
Adiyaman, capital of the province of that name, is situated within the plateau region of southeast Turkey, to the south of the east Taurus mountains. It lies on the western edge of a flat depression, the southeast limit of which is formed by the Euphrates. Although the town, the center of an agricultural area (cotton, apricots, pistachios), has little worth seeing, it makes an excellent base from which to explore the historic Kommagene sites.
Prior to the creation of the Turkish Republic Adiyaman was known as Hisn Mansur (Mansur's Castle), having begun life in 758 as a fortress (thugur) against the Byzantines. It was built under Caliph Marwan by the Omayyad leader Mansur Ben Ga'wana in succession to the earlier Roman town of Perre.
Adiyaman, capital of the province of that name, is situated within the plateau region of southeast Turkey, to the south of the east Taurus mountains. It lies on the western edge of a flat depression, the southeast limit of which is formed by the Euphrates. Although the town, the center of an agricultural area (cotton, apricots, pistachios), has little worth seeing, it makes an excellent base from which to explore the historic Kommagene sites.
Prior to the creation of the Turkish Republic Adiyaman was known as Hisn Mansur (Mansur's Castle), having begun life in 758 as a fortress (thugur) against the Byzantines. It was built under Caliph Marwan by the Omayyad leader Mansur Ben Ga'wana in succession to the earlier Roman town of Perre.
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Nemrut Dagi
The karst mountain of Nemrut Dagi contains a burial mound with King Antiochus' tomb, and impressive terracing on three sides.
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Arsameia on the Nymphaios
This ancient burial site that is believed to be founded in the 3rd C B.C., and the summer residence of the Kommagene rulers.
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Atatürk Baraji
Created in 1975, the Atatürk Baraji is a massive reservoir held back by a dam that is 207m high and 1,100 m long.
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Eski Kâhta (Yeni Kale)
The Eski Kâhta was constructed by Kara Sonkar who was the Governor of Aleppo in the late 13th C.
Ebu-Zer Gaffar Türbesi Mausoleum
Still surviving in the Old Town of Adiyaman are the Ebu-Zer Gaffar Türbesi Mausoleum, dating from the Islamic period, and ruins of the Hisn Mansur fortress from the early Omayyad period, which latter underwent restoration at the hands of the Abbasid Caliph Haroun al-Rachid (786-809). Below the fortress stands the 14th century Great Mosque (Ulu Cami) with three gates and encircling wall.
Göksu Köprüsü
A short distance east of Dikilitas are the remains of a triple-arched bridge (center arch, 31m/102ft, collapsed) over the Göksu, the ancient Singas, a tributary of the Euphrates. Up until the Middle Ages this was an important river crossing on the former military road from Samosata to Zeugma (60km/37mi southwest of Adiyaman).
Kahta, Turkey
(Near Adiyaman)
Kâhta (formerly Kolik), 35km/22mi east of Adiyaman, is the principal town of the district and the starting point for the drive through ancient Kommagene. Being short of hotel accommodation it has found itself increasingly eclipsed by the provincial capital.
Karakus Tapesi
This Kommagene tumulus 47km/29mi northeast of Adiyaman was erected by Mithridates II (36-20 B.C.) for his mother Isias, his sister Laodike (d. 36 B.C., wife of the Parthian King Orodes IV), and his niece Aka. From the original three pairs of columns only four now survive, the southernmost being crowned by an eagle (Karakus = "black bird"), the northeasterly one by a bull. On the northwest side are a toppled lion and a column the inscription on which records details of the tomb.
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