Ainos-Enez (İngilizce)

ENEZ (AINOS)

INTRODUCTION

The town which is known as Enez, or Ainos in antiquity, is situated on

the Aegean coast of the province of Edirne, where the river Meriç (Evros/

Maritsa) joins the sea. You can reach Enez from Keşan (60 km) or from

Ipsala (30 km). It is 270 km. away from Istanbul, and 180 km. away from

Edirne.

Excavations, research and restoration works started during the ye-

ars 1971-1972, under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Afif Erzen, on behalf of the

University of Istanbul. After a break, work started again in 1978, under the

leadership of Prof. Dr. Afif Erzen, and it has continued until the year 1993. I

have been participating in the excavations since the beginning.

With the decision of the Turkish Republic’s Council of Ministers and

the approval of the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the Depart-

ment of Cultural Assets and Museums, the leadership of the excavation

was granted to me in the year 1994.

The modern town of Enez was founded right on top of the ancient city.

For this reason, our work is limited to certain areas only. Even with this

impediment, the remains which have been unearthed through archaeo-

logical excavations and research in Ainos, have made tremendous cont-

ributions to the archaeology not only of Thrace and Anatolia but also to

the archaeology of the Aegean Islands, Greece and South-East Europe.

Excavations and research conducted in Ainos and at the nearby Hoca

Çesme Mound revealed that the first settlement in the area dates back to

the Neolithic period (around 6500 B.C.) and has continued to develop wit-

hout a break throughout the Chalcolithic period, the Bronze Age, the Iron

Age, the Classical Period, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman civilizations,

until [to] our day.

The reasons for such advanced civilizations to bloom in and around

Enez is due to the economic richness of the region; the existence of trade

routes over sea, river and land; and also mainly due to Ainos’s location as

it stands like a natural bridge between Anatolia and Europe.

When it was first founded, Ainos was located by the sea. Since the

river Meriç (Evros/Maritsa) carried silt for centuries, the river mouth and

the river bed have been filled with soil at a rapid rate. As a result, today’s

Ainos is 4.5 km. away from the sea.

At the mouth of the delta, covering a large region which is an area of

attraction with its natural beauty, there lie the Bücürmene, Dalyan and

Taşaltı lakes, which have a positive effect on Enez’s tourism. In the North

of Enez, there lies Gala (Stentoris) Lake and a National Park, the Armutlu

and Sığırcı lakes. These lagoons and other wetlands located around Enez

offer resting and breeding places for different kinds of migrant birds,

which fly here from distant lands.

Travellers who visited Ainos at different times talk about the prospe-

rity of the city situated in the middle of a fertile land and at the mouth of a

river, with its inner harbor protected by walls and towers on three sides.

It is known that this period of prosperity lasted until the Balkan Wars and

World War I. At the beginning of the 17th century, still at a high level of

prosperity, Ainos had the most reliable harbor of the Balkans and was at

the top of the list among the most advanced cities of the region. Written

sources dating to this period record that more than 300 small vessels

travelled to Edirne going up and down the river Meriç (Evros/ Maritsa),

and that trade was established between all the harbors of the Aegean

and the Marmara.

Until recent times, Ainos has produced and traded olive oil, wine, salt,

eel, and various dried seafood. Ottoman archives recorded that the salt

from the region was a good income source for Ainos. Ancient authors tell

us that even though lots of different fruits grew in the region, grapes were

the most delicious among all of these.

This booklet has been prepared as a guide, as an introduction to the

city of Enez (ancient Ainos) through revealing some excavated areas

of the city; to partially intact buildings which have survived to our day;

and to some of the transportable objects unearthed during the scientific

excavations.

We are grateful for the monetary contributions of the Turkish Ministry

of Culture and the Turkish Department of Cultural Assets and Museums.

We are grateful to the Department of Floating Capital Establishment; to

the Chancellery of Istanbul University scientific projects fund; to the Tur-

kish Historical Foundation; to the late governor of Edirne, Mr. Fahri Yücel

who supported our excavations both spi-ritually and monetarily, and in

particular to Mr. Gökhan Sözer the ruling governour of Edirne and to Mr.

Fatih Baysal the local district president of Enez for all their help. We wo-

uld like to thank the Viennese Association of The Friends of Ainos under

my friend and member to my staff Prof.Dr.Karwiese. The English version

was prepared by Mrs. Mengü Acun to who I am much indebted. I also wo-

uld like to send my heartfelt thanks to all the representatives of the Tur-

kish Ministry of Culture who took part in and supported the excavations

during the last 35 years; to all my colleagues for their dedicated efforts;

to all my students and workers who took part in the excavations, and in

particular to Miss Gülnur Kurap who has been my faithful assistant over

the last years. I would also like to thank the Mayor of Enez, Mr. Ahmet Ça-

yır, for his monetary contributions for this book’s publication. I would also

like to thank all past mayors for their support of the excavations.​

HISTORY AND RUINS

Today’s Enez, which was known as Ainos in antiquity, was founded on a

limestone peninsula, on the Northern Aegean shore, 25m. above the sea

level, where the river Meriç (in Antiquity called “Hebros”) reaches the sea.

The Acropolis hill ends with high cliffs at its West and South-West sides, and

towards the side of the mouth of the river Meriç. For this reason, the city

walls have been preserved very well on this side, and a look from the sea

reveals a spectacular view.of the river Hebros (Meriç) [,] and named the city

[“Aeneadea” (Ainos)] Ainoswhich meant either “praise” or “story”.During the

siege that the Persian King Darius initiated against the Scythiansin 513 B.C.

, Ainos came under the rule of the Persian Empire for a brief periodof time.

Ancient historians mentioned that King Xerxes of the Persian Empire [,]passed

through Ainos in the year 480 B.C., during his military campaignagainst Greece

.When the Persians got defeated by Athens and its allies (480/479 B.C.) [,] thecity

regained its independence. Ainos was a long-time member to the Attic-Delos sea

coalition foundedby Athens. During the middle ofthe 4th century B.C., Ainos

cameunder Macedonian rule. Duringthe Hellenistic period, the citystayed under

the rule of the Pto-lemy Kingdom of Egypt. Whenthe Romans conquered Thracein

190 B.C., Ainos was attachedto Rome. After the division of theRoman Empire in

395 B.C intotwo parts, Thrace and Ainos con-tinued their existence under the

Eastern Roman Empire. As the capital of the regionAinos was a very important

tradecenter during the Byzantine era. During the 6th century, theEmperor

Justinianus restoredthe city walls in order to protectit against various Slav raids

​From the ancient written sources we have detailed information regar-

ding the city’s foundation and its lasting importance in the region. The high

cultural level of the city is documented through the finds which are still be-

ing unearthed during the archaeological excavations.

CASTLE (The ACROPOLIS)

The ancient city of Ainos was established on top of 4 hills. Three of these

hills are on the South side, on top of one of which lies the Acropolis. Due to

the destruction caused by the building activity of later periods, it is impos-

sible to point out the exact lines of the ancient city walls. The core of the

ancient city has been formed around today’s castle area.

Without doubt, in Enez city walls, inner harbour, and piers which lie West

of the city walls are some of the most well-preserved and nearly intact

remains which survived to our day.

The castle which was both the acropolis hill and the first settlement of

Enez has two vaulted doors, one at the East and the other at the North side.

The city walls are 740 m. in length, 2m. in depth and reach a height of 25

m. in some places; they are fortified with round, rectangular and polygonal

towers.

The inner harbour which lies on the West side of the castle, is protected

by piers and towers on the North and the South sides. The South pier stretc-

hes 130m. from East to West and is supported by five towers with different

ground plans.​

The remains of the North pier are 80 m. in length, at the end of which

there is a tower with a square ground plan. The remains reveal that the

pier was built during the Hellenistic period and was enlarged with additions

during the Byzantine period.

There is great damage both on the castle walls and also on the piers

Chalcolithic period. On top of this layer, which reveals the earliest settlement

in Enez, finds that date back to the later Greek settlement period have been

unearthed.

Both these layers, and also the black figure and red figure vases found

in the necropoli (see further below), bear testimony to the economic and

cultural relationships between Enez, the mainland Greece, the Aegean Is-

lands, and the western Anatolian cities.

According to the ancient written sources, along with the documents

from the Ottoman archives, Ainos was also producing grain, salt and dried

fish as well as oil and wine.

The works of art which were found in the castle excavations and in ot-

her areas of the ancient city, reveal that Ainos was influenced by the cities of

mainland Greece, of the Aegean Islands, and by Western Anatolia.

Fatih Mosque (Haghia Sophia Church)

The remains of the building that is known as the Fatih Mosque today

used to be the local Haghia Sophia Church which was one of the most im-

portant religious buildings of the Byzantine era. This building is situated on

the South-East side of the Acropolis (Byzantine castle). Its dimensions are

21x38 m. (excluding the aisles). With these dimensions it is larger than the

Middle and Late period churches in Istanbul. The church was converted into

a mosque in the year 1456. Due to its destruction by the earthquake in 1965,

it was abandoned after that year. The middle and the North aisles were

The inner narthex was divided into three sections. The middle section was

covered by a barrel vault and the side sections were covered by cross vaults.

Since the west wall of the inner narthex had collapsed, its shape can not be

identified.​

The Exonarthex, which lies in front of the church, has a colonnaded façade.

It is one of the most interesting parts of the church. Even though it was

built during the same time as the church itself it does not have an organic

connection with the main body of the church. It is most likely that this

section supported a wooden roof. Cubic shaped capitals which were used

at the façade are similar to prototypes from the 6th century. In reality, they

must date back to a later age, such as 9th or 10th century. The capitals have

either crosses or rosettes depicted on them.

The church was built by an alternating wall building technique, by laying

alternating rows of stones and bricks. In this church, this technique takes the

form of an architectural feature, where there are a few rows of cut stones

and a few rows of bricks which were laid behind the cut stones. This type of

wall building technique can be seen in the 11th and 12th century architecture

of Istanbul. The structure of the wall shows the same kind of elegant

workmanship that can be observed at other details of the church. Decorative

shapes formed by the bricks and building details are harmonious with the

church’s counterparts in Istanbul.

These decorations take the shape of a maeander in the apse of the Prothesis;

of herringbone on the half moon surface area of the south of the Diakonikon;

of a zig-zag pattern in the inner apse; and of round shaped crosses in the half

moon area of the North side of the prosthesis. Similar details can be seen

in the Kariye Mosque (Chora) and Zeyrek Mosque (Pantokrator) in Istanbul.

On the plaster of the inner walls, remnants of 19th century ornamental

engraving can be seen. Beneath the late period plaster that has fallen out,

paintings of saints and remnants of other paintings from the Byzantine era

are emerging.​

The door to the left side cell which opens to the Bema survived to our day,

there is the painting of a saint with dark hair, with a halo and with a dark

beard. The figure is wearing a simple orange-red tunic and dates back to

the early Palaiologos period.

A piece of fresco with the painting of four saints on it was found inside the

South arm of the cross. This piece has been taken to the laboratory for

restoration.

Inside the half moon shaped space situated on top of the entrance to the

Naos, there is a scene depicting a figure on a green background. Next

to this figure, on top of a step, there is another figure, presumemably a

depiction of Mother Mary. This scene has partially survived.

Mother Mary wears a dark blue dress and a purple overcoat. The priest

on her left side wears a dark blue tunic, and a blend of green-brown cape.

While holding a book in his left hand, the priest is trying to reach Mother

Mary with his right hand. The top and the left sides of the painting are lost.

On the upper right side of the half moon panel, there is a partially intact

vault. Inside this vault, on a green background, there are the remains of a

fresco with the depiction of human feet and other decorations.

A deep sounding conducted on the outside South wall of the church

revealed structures that date back to an earlier period as well as to the

renovation phases of the church.

During the Ottoman period, the building went through a number of

restorations. A major part of it collapsed after an earthquake in 1965 which

rendered the building unusable.

During the excavations conducted in Enez the frescoes and the engravings

on the walls of the church were restored, thus enabling their protection.

During the past years, columns belonging to the middle aisle were erected

at their original spots.​

Excavations in other parts of the castle revealed a chapel and a villa dating

back to the Middle Ages.

The foundation level of the villa has survived. It is very interesting with its

bathroom (latrina), water well, and shops (magazines).

The foundation is constructed of stones, the upper level of wood. It can be

ascertained from the ruins that the house collapsed as a result of fire. Finds

from different areas of the house, especially the glazed-ware plates and

cups with birds on them found in the latrina, prove that the building dates

back to the 11th and 12th centuries.​

CHAPEL NUMBER 1

On the North-West side of the castle, there is a chapel named Theotokos

Chrysopege. The chapel measures 7 x 10.50 m. and has most of its North

wall still intact. According to the written sources, the chapel was built in the

year 1422. The chapel consists of a nave and an aisle. Its floor was paved

with rectangular limestone slabs, underneath which there are burials.

CHAPEL NUMBER 2 (HAGHIOS GREGORIOS NEOKAISERIAS

CHAPEL)

It is situated in the middle of the castle, north of the private houses which are

still in use today. The chapel lies 1.5 m. beneath today’s surface and consists

of one aisle. It was built in the 12th century. It was enlarged by adding a room

on its West side, during the same century.

On its walls there are frescoes reflecting the provincial art of the same period.

The floor of the room with the aisle is covered by marble slabs, the floor of the

later-added room is covered by terracotta slabs. Inside the chapel there are

three sarcophagi, most likely belonging to the family who built the chapel. On

the North of the chapel, there is a big courtyard. North of this courtyard there

is a street running East-West. Both of these areas are covered by marble

slabs.

PAN CAVE GRAVE CHAPEL (HAGHIA TRIADA)

It is situated outside the castle 15 m. South-East of the vaulted door on

the South pier, the entrance to the inner harbour. On the West wall of the

entry to the cave, inside a niche, dating back to the Hellenistic period there

is a marble relief depicting Pan dancing with two nymphs. The cave got its

name from this relief.

The natural cave was associated with the Pan cult from the beginning.

In the 14th century it was probably converted into an underground burial

chamber and took the name of Haghia Triada. The chapel has one nave

and an aisle on its main axis, with Diakonikon and Prosthesis aisles on

frescoes, black and gray colours were also used frequently.

On the North wall and in the entrance way wall there are two niches for

burning votive candles. The main entrance which was in the middle of the

main aisle in the beginning, had been closed at a later date for reasons

unknown. Another entry way was opened up on the South wall. On the

floor, there are five graves carved out in East-West direction. They all have

different dimensions.

Even though the ceiling was repaired, due to vibrations caused by the

highway that runs over it, crevices and cracks have formed on the ceiling.

The frescoes have been restored.​

ROMAN VILLA

The Roman period villa which is one of the focus points of the Ainos

excavation is situated in the Gazi Ömer Bey District, in a garden liying

opposite the district president lodging’s. The villa spreads out below five

private houses. Excavation can only be conducted in those areas which

were expropriated. Thus, the excavations revealed only some parts

of the middle courtyard, a single room, the kitchen and the bathroom

while other sections of the villa could not be excavated For this reason,

information regarding the ground-plan of the villa is incomplete. Even so,

the finds reveal rather important information.

The mosaic floor found in the courtyard is 6.00 m. long and 1.85 wide.

Both sides of the mosaic end with a wide border band only of white

tesserae. Inside the borders there are bands with maeander figures laid

out gingerly with white and black tesserae. In the area between these,

there are round figures composed of four leaves.

The single room lies in the North part of the villa and measures 2.50

x 4.00 m. The floor is covered by multi-colored stones arranged to

wickerwork design which add an additional beauty to it. A narrow band

with designs of spiral-shaped waves surrounds the panels’ outside.

Beside the architectural pieces belonging to the courtyard, a bronze Nike,

a Serapis head, a dressed woman figurine, other small finds and coins

have been found on the mosaic floor.

ROMAN PERIOD STREET

It crosses the center of the city of Ainos and runs parallel to today’s Bekir

Kara Street. The street that dates back to the Roman period is raised on top

of three herringbone structured vaults and it is covered by large stone blocks.

In order to drain the rainwater, two canals running parallel to the street had

been built on both sides of the street.

Underneath the street there is a sewage system, 0.60 m. wide and 0.80 m.

high. The finds in that area indicate that the Roman period street and the

sewage system run as far as the Meriç (Evros/Maritsa) river.

TAŞALTI NECROPOLIS

It lies on the shoulder of the hill known as Taşaltı, which appears on the left

side as you enter the city of Ainos.

In front of the necropolis there are monumental graves, sarcophagi on

pedestals, and a hero’s monument. Even though the monuments date back

to the 5th and 4th centuries B.C., the sarcophagi among them date back to

the Late Hellenistic, and Early Roman periods. Behind the front burial ground,

on the shoulder of the hill, there are burial layers dating back to the periods

between Early Roman and Early Christianity. Beside important finds from

graves and sarcophagi there are grave stellae (tombstones) with depictions

of banquet scenes on them.

A tombstone worked in high relief, with the scene of a banquet of the dead. Liying on a

kline is an army officer by the name of LUCIUS FABRICIUS. At the head end of the kline, his

wife FABRICIA MAXIMA is sitting. There are servants in the corners below. In the middle

there is a table with a fruit plate; behind, the head of a horse, a snake coiled around a tree, a

shield, a helmet and a poppy can be seen.

HAS YUNUS BEY TOMB (HAGIOS EUPLOS CHAPEL)​

South of Enez, in the Ottoman graveyard, there is a small chapel, referred to

among the townsfolk by the name of Has Yunus Bey, the conqueror of Enez.

This building which has a semicircular plan on the East side, with its apse

covered by a convex semi-dome, must have been built as a burial chapel

during the Byzantine era.

This building has all the major details of a church architecture. Inside, the

chapel is shaped like a cross with arms with nearly identical dimensions of 5.8

m. in the East-West direction, and 5.1 m. in the North-South direction. Since

this ground plan is also reflected on the outside this type of architectural is

called ‘free cross’ in Christian architecture and indicates that it is an example

of the ancient grave monument tradition.

The arms of the cross are covered by barrel vaults, and in the middle a

pendative dome rises.

The dome is 1.65 m. high and is surrounded by four window openings with

the dimensions of 15 x 60 cm. each. On the East side of the building, there is

a convex apse with a semicircle plan, covered by a semi-dome. The ground-

plan of the building, and the overall character of its structure reflect Byzantine

workmanship.

Originally its entrance was on the West side. After it was converted into a

tomb this door was closed and another one was opened up in the North

arm of the cross. Inside the South arm of the cross there stands a simple

sarcophagus.

A quite similar building to this chapel is the Gala Placidia Mausoleum in

Ravenna, which was built in the years 450-452.

Another building which is very similar to the one in Enez, can be seen in

Doclea in Karadağ. Beside these, the same type of chapel can be seen in

Karadağ near Karaman, in Madenşehir and in central Anatolia.

KING’S DAUGHTER BASILICA

It is located in the South East of Enez, West of today’s Taşaltı lake, one of the

two harbours of Enez, in an area called King’s Daughter. The basilica which

is 30 m. long has three aisles and in between these there lies a Pastophorion

each. Recent excavations revealed that the basilica went through 7 building

phases, the earliest of which dates back to the Roman period. In the middle

aisle, below the floor level, a fountain consisting of three niches has been

discovered. Because of 10 gold coins discovered in its foundation level, the

last phase of the basilica is dated to the 12th century. Marble blocks used

in building the basilica have been brought from the islands of Prokonnesus

(Marmara) and Samothrace (Semadirek).

ÇATALTEPE TUMULUS

It is located on the South East side of a 10 m. high hill which lies on the East

side of Enez.

The burial chamber is laid out in a North-West-South-East direction, with its

dromos and its door facing South-East. The vault that covered the ceiling of

the chamber has collapsed into the middle of the chamber. The chamber is

4.70 m. long, 3.25 m. wide and 4.00 m. high to the vertex of the vault.

The North-West wall remains intact up to the setting of the vault. The upper

sides of the other walls have collapsed. In general, the walls are 0.55m. thick.

By placing the first row of stones on the floor back by 1 cm., the second row

by 0.5 cm. behind the first row, 25 cm. wide overlapping step mouldings have

been created. The walls that stand on them rise straight to a height of 2.00 m.

After this height, by narrowing the walls proportionately, semi-circle shaped

barrel vaults have been formed. Where the walls intercepted the mouldings,

a 27 cm. wide moul-ding with three grooves and four bands surrounded the

burial chamber. Some of this moulding survived to our day.

The doorway to the burial chamber is 0.90 m. wide. The dromos which lies in

front of the doorway has only its West wall intact. The fact that no remains of

the other wall have been discovered, tells us that this wall was not completed.

The West wall of the dromos is 4.20 m. long.

As you enter the burial chamber from the doorway, on the right side of the

room there is a sarcophagus built out of large blocks of white marble. It is

buried in between the floor covers, in a North West-South East direction. It is

2.30 m. in length, 0.95 m. in width and 1.30 m. in depth. It is covered by two

gabled lids. One of these lids is larger than the other. Square cross sectioned

channels have been carved out on the corners of the lids to fit unto the body

of the sarcophagus. In order for the lid to have a good fit thin edges have been

carved out on the body of the sarcophagus, also.

On the left side of the chamber there is another sarcophagus built out of lime-

stone, with 12 cm. thick walls. The inner dimensions of this sarcophagus are:

2.40 m. long , 0.70 m. wide, and 1.10 m. deep. This sarcophagus does not have

a lid. Its inside and upper sides have been covered by a thin white plaster

in imitation of marble. It is interesting that neither finds nor any remains of

bones have been discovered inside the sarcophagi. It is highly likely that the

burial chamber collapsed before it was used on the walls.

Trenches that have been dug in intervals at the West and South feet of

the tumulus revealed that a 1 m. high protective wall composed of rubble

stones and mortar surrounded the tumulus.

In the construction of the walls larger stones were used both on the

inside and also on the outside, the gap in between was filled with smaller

stones. The thickness of the walls are not the same all over, they vary

from 60 to 90 cm.

The walls built to prevent landslide show sloppy workmanship. In the

North East of the burial chamber a banquet area and a sarcophagus have

been discovered. Coins and sherds found in the tumulus date the burial

chamber and the banquet area back to the 6 th century B.C.

GREAT SANCAKTEPE TUMULUS

On the slightly hilly land liying to the East of Taşaltı Lake there stands the

great tumulus with a diameter of 100 m. and a height of 25 m.

A tumulus of this size must have belonged to the founder, a king or a prince

of Ainos.

Other than the ruins mentioned above, inside Enez and in the vicinity of Enez

there are other important cultural ruins. Monasteries and other buildings are

witnesses to the financial and cultural wealth of Enez in antiquity.

CASTLE BATH

It is located inside the castle within private property, about 40 m. away from

the city wall. The bath has a rectangular ground-plan with the dimensions

of 10.6 m. x 8 m. At the entrance to the bath, there is a worship area with a

niche; a changing room; three bathing rooms , one with a rectangular, the

other two with square plans; and there is a water tank with a rectangular

ground-plan. The bath which lies in ruins has its walls intact up to the level

of the vaults and the beginning of its dome. The upper parts of the walls

have collapsed. Pointed arches are employed on the doors. the structure

of the walls and its architectural style indicate that it was built during the

Beylik period. It is important since it is the only remains of a building in Enez

belonging to that period

cut stones and has a five-cornered shape outside and a semi-circle

shape inside. It is surrounded by scattered broken marble pieces from the

church.

It was open for traffic until the 18th century, and through this waterway

the Balkans and the Black Sea were accessible. Throughout history, the ri-

ver Meriç (Evros/Maritsa) carried the Balkan and Thracian trade; this lasted

until the silt carried by the river filled out the mouth of the river and rendered

the waterway and the ports unusable. As well as the waterways, there was

a highly advanced highway network in Enez. One of the most important of

these is the Enez-Fere road, still in existence, referred to as the “father killer

walk” among the locals. It was built out of large stone blocks.

The road that starts out from Enez follows the Northern direction

passing through the foot of the Hisarlı Mountain and Gala lake and veers

towards North West at the Döken farm. At this point, passing through Ar-

mutlu and Gala lakes, in Fere it merges with the Via Egnetia, a military and

trade road between Rome and Istanbul. Along this road there are bridges

and stations at intervals.

Other than the ruins described above in and around Enez, there are lots

of other important cultural assets which we could not mention here. The

finds reveal to us that the ancient city of Ainos had continuous settlement

since its establishment; it had floors covered with marble or mosaic hid-

den underneath the earth, Roman period villas with frescoes on their walls,

baths, burial and hero monuments, tem-ples, sewage system, marble or

stone covered streets. Outside the city, mounds indicate Neolithic, Chalco-

lithic,

Bronze and Iron Age settlements in the region; burial monuments,

tumuli, roads connecting cities, bridges, monasteries, and ports, all bearwitness to the fact that Ainos was a great cultural and artistic center.