Mus Attractions
Eastern Anatolia (Turkish Kurdistan)
The town of Mus lies at the southern end of a valley beneath the 2,646m/8,678ft Karaçavus Dagi. The valley itself, 20km/12mi wide and 60km/37mi long, is intensively farmed for sugar beet, tobacco and cereals and is irrigated not only by the Murat Nehri, one of the sources of the Euphrates, but also by the Karasu, one of its tributaries. In earlier times the settlement which was dominated by a castle and extended over the lower slopes of the mountain, but the old town was destroyed by a severe earthquake in 1966. It was rebuilt in a safer position, but many of the older buildings in the town had been badly damaged in skirmishes during the Russian occupation.
History
The settlement was established by Armenians in the sixth century as the capital of the Taron kingdom. After a period of Byzantine rule, it was conquered by the Seljuks in the Battle of Malazgirt (1071). In 1260 Mus was destroyed by the Mongol hordes and in 1515 was captured by the Ottomans. During the First World War, it was occupied by the Russians until 1917.
The town of Mus lies at the southern end of a valley beneath the 2,646m/8,678ft Karaçavus Dagi. The valley itself, 20km/12mi wide and 60km/37mi long, is intensively farmed for sugar beet, tobacco and cereals and is irrigated not only by the Murat Nehri, one of the sources of the Euphrates, but also by the Karasu, one of its tributaries. In earlier times the settlement which was dominated by a castle and extended over the lower slopes of the mountain, but the old town was destroyed by a severe earthquake in 1966. It was rebuilt in a safer position, but many of the older buildings in the town had been badly damaged in skirmishes during the Russian occupation.
History
The settlement was established by Armenians in the sixth century as the capital of the Taron kingdom. After a period of Byzantine rule, it was conquered by the Seljuks in the Battle of Malazgirt (1071). In 1260 Mus was destroyed by the Mongol hordes and in 1515 was captured by the Ottomans. During the First World War, it was occupied by the Russians until 1917.
Bingol, Turkey
(Near Mus)
About 100km/62mi to the east of Mus, the town of Bingöl (1,125m/3,690ft) stands above a widening in the Bayram Deresi valley (Bingöl Ovasi) and not far from where the river flows into the Murat (Euphrates). This provincial capital which is inhabited predominantly by Kurds was known as Cevlik (or Cabakçur in old Armenian?) Severe earthquakes in 1966 and 1971 caused considerable damage to the relatively low-lying old town and it has now been rebuilt at a higher level. Only the medieval fortifications have been preserved.
Bingöl Tourist Office
Inonu Mah. Fatih Cad.
Il Halk Kutuphanesi, Mud. Binasi
Bingöl
Turkey
Inonu Mah. Fatih Cad.
Il Halk Kutuphanesi, Mud. Binasi
Bingöl
Turkey
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Kayalidere Kalesi
The Kayalidere Kalesi, ruins of Urartian fortifications which were built as defenses against the Assyrians, can be seen on a steeply rising hillside on the northern bank of the Murat Nehri 45km/28mi north of Mus and about 8km/5mi east of Tepeköy (Hizirköyü). In 1965 Turkish and British archeologists started excavations inside the upper and lower fortification. Finds have included stelae foundations and also a temple with tower, courtyard, store-rooms, rock staircases and rock tombs (six chambers).
Kurucu Geçidi
At weekends in the winter months a ski-lift operates on the 1,800m/5,900ft Kurucu pass 27km/17mi west of Bingöl.
Sights
As well as the old town beneath the fortified hilltop, the Seljuk Arsanli Han caravanserai and the Yildizli Han (Star caravanserai) are worth a visit. Only the elaborately decorated portal remains of the latter. Other places of interest include the Seljuk Haci Seref Camii with a minaret of colored stonework and the Ulu Cami, the oldest mosque in the town, which has been restored on a number of occasions. Dating from Seljuk times, several Ottoman features are visible.
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