Covering 150,000 square meters, Bayburt Castle is the third-largest castle complex in Türkiye.
Archaeological excavations have begun at Bayburt Castle, which was used as a secure base for centuries due to its strategic location on the historic Silk Road, bringing new layers of history to light under a project launched by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Located on steep rocks north of the city center, Bayburt Castle was controlled by Roman, Byzantine, Arab and Turkish civilizations throughout history.
Although its exact construction date is unknown, the castle was used both for military purposes and as a residential area.
The castle, Türkiye’s third-largest in terms of settlement area, covers 150,000 square meters. Its surrounding walls stretch for 3 kilometers and reach up to 30 meters in height.
A 51-member team, including academics from Istanbul Medeniyet University, has been working at two separate locations for a month, uncovering new settlement areas as well as numerous historical artifacts.
Bayburt Governor Mustafa Eldivan told state-run Anadolu Agency that new findings were discovered shortly after the excavations began, including new settlement areas and many remains linked to the Ottoman-Russian War.
Noting that archaeological artifacts proving the existence of life at the castle until recent periods had also been found, Eldivan said: “Bayburt Castle has been the subject of Dede Korkut stories and is the third-largest ancient castle in Anatolia in its current form. We want to open this place to history, tourism and our cultural life. Our citizens are very excited about this.”
Eldivan also noted that the excavations are planned to continue for 10 years
Traces of the Ottoman-Russian War
Excavation head Dr. Resul Yelen, a faculty member at Istanbul Medeniyet University’s Department of Art History, said new settlement areas were discovered at two locations where excavations were planned.
Yelen said five structures, including houses and workplaces, were identified during the excavations.
“In one of these structures, we found traces of meals cooked in pottery vessels as well as a tandır [traditional oven]. During our work, we came across traces of the Ottoman-Russian War that took place in 1828. We observed burn marks on the walls and wooden remains. We saw that doors and rooms had been burned. We believe this fire layer was most likely caused by the Ottoman-Russian War in 1828.”
Yelen said some ceramic fragments discovered during the excavations were particularly significant.
“We can date some of these pieces back to 3,000 BC, to the Early Bronze Age. We have also determined that the Karaz culture, centered around the Caucasus and Erzurum, was present in Bayburt as well,” he said.
Yelen added that the team also found pipe fragments known as “lüle,” coins and glass bracelets.
“We found evidence that there was an Ottoman ammunition depot in the castle. Based on the findings, we understood that these were metal cannonballs. Apart from that, we identified ceramic fragments from the Medieval period belonging to the Seljuk, Saltukid and Byzantine periods. We also recovered many ceramic pieces from the Ottoman period.”
Yelen said the team had opened the third of five identified structures and would move on to the fourth within 20 days.
He added that restoration works would also be carried out alongside the archaeological excavations at the castle.
