The Church of St. Nicholas in the southwestern city of Antalya’s Demre, the town where the historical figure known worldwide as Santa Claus once lived and was buried, is moving toward a UNESCO World Heritage nomination as archaeological work gains momentum.
One of the most significant destinations for Orthodox Christians, the site attracts more than half a million visitors annually.
"We are planning the necessary preparations for the St. Nicholas Church to be included in the UNESCO World Heritage list. We are very excited to be carrying out this process in collaboration with the [culture] ministry,” excavation director Ebru Fatma Fındık said.
St. Nicholas was born in Patara, then an important Lycian port city, and later served as bishop of Myra, modern-day Demre, in the fourth century. Celebrated for helping the poor and performing miracles, he became the inspiration for the modern Santa Claus figure.
He died in 365 A.D. and was buried in the church that now bears his name, today preserved as the St. Nicholas Memorial Museum.
Fındık, who leads a 20-member team, described the church as “one of the world’s most prestigious archaeological areas,” requiring meticulous planning, conservation and scientific oversight.
Much of the original church lies under roughly 6 meters of alluvial deposits carried by the ancient river of Myra.
Last year, the site drew global attention after researchers uncovered a previously unknown sarcophagus beneath layers of alluvium deposited by medieval floods and tsunamis.
The tomb is believed to possibly belong to St. Nicholas, though it has not yet been opened.
This discovery will be featured in the upcoming issue of Archaeologie in Deutschland, one of Germany’s most respected archaeology journals, according to Fındık.
This year, excavations focused on the church’s northeast section, where spaces associated with healing rituals, believed in tradition to be linked to St. Nicholas’s reputation as a miracle-worker, were explored.
Researchers uncovered evidence of a collapsed wall caused by historic flooding, along with small finds such as ceramics and coins used to date the layers.
