Thought to have been called Ani in earlier times, the fortress and small village of Kemah are situated in the valley of the Firat Nehri west of Erzincan, on the river's southern bank. There are remains of an octagonal fortress dating from the Byzantine period, which was when the name Kemach (or Kamakha) first came into use. Kemah was still
walled right up into the 19th century, the citadel being the seat of a local derebey. Relics of an older settlement (Kemah Kalesi) are found on the high rock plateau east of the present village. Ani was the third most important cult center for the worship of the Old Armenian gods and at the start of the Christian era was the site of a temple-fort belonging to King Aramard. There are two interesting mausoleums, Gazi Türbesi and the octagonal Sultan Melik Türbesi (1191), also the Gülablibey Camii (1192), its roof supported by arches carried on twelve wooden columns.