Despite having excavated only 3% of the underground city of Matiate, experts predict it could be the largest underground city in the world.
Turkish archaeologists have discovered a massive underground city and believe it could become the largest underground city in the world once fully excavated, according to a report by Ancient Origins on April 20. So far, they estimate that only 3% of the total area has been excavated, and new rooms, tunnels, hidden passages, and artifacts are being discovered daily.
Inside the underground city in Midyat, Mardin province, southeastern Turkey on April 18. (Photo: Anadolu Agency)
This underground city is called Matiate (meaning “cave city”), located in the town of Midyat, Mardin province, a region rich in history and culture. Matiate was discovered accidentally when workers found a passage while cleaning out a cave in Midyat. Subsequent excavations revealed many other rooms and tunnels, as well as artifacts and wall paintings. To date, archaeologists have discovered 49 rooms, including places of worship, water wells, and storage areas.
“Matiate has been continuously inhabited for 1,900 years. Initially, this underground city was built as a refuge or hiding place. Christianity was not the official religion here in the 2nd century. Therefore, families and groups who adopted Christianity often took shelter in the underground city to escape Roman persecution,” said Gani Tarkan, director of the Mardin Museum and head of the Matiate excavation team.
“It is possible that the underground city in Midyat is one of the living spaces built for this purpose. Here, we estimate that at least 60,000 to 70,000 people lived underground,” Tarkan added.
Experts working in the underground city in Midyat on April 18. (Photo: Anadolu Agency)
The discovery of underground cave networks in Turkey is not unusual, but a city of the scale of Matiate is still quite unique. Experts predict that Matiate will be the largest underground city ever recorded, despite over 40 complex underground cities having been found in Turkey.
For example, the Derinkuyu underground city in Cappadocia has more than eight levels and reaches a depth of up to 80 meters. Derinkuyu features ventilation shafts, wells, water tanks, living quarters, communal rooms, and tombs, and is protected by heavy stone doors weighing 450 kilograms that can only be opened from the inside. Each level can be isolated from the others, although all are interconnected. The city has over 600 entrances, most of which are hidden.
Gani Tarkan believes that Matiate will surpass any previously discovered underground city. “When the entirety of Matiate is revealed, it will truly be an underground city of global significance. No underground city spans such a large area. The underground city in Midyat will be a unique city in the world,” he stated.
