Derinkuyu is an underground city in Cappadocia, Turkey, cut into volcanic tuff and reaching about 85 metres below the surface. It has 18 levels, with eight open to visitors, although the public route covers only around 10% of the site, and it could shelter more than 20,000 people. An 8 km tunnel links it with Kaymakli. Human bones excavated here date to the 8th–7th centuries BCE, not the Hittite period; they do not date the city's construction, and its original builders remain uncertain. Christians later used and expanded the city as a refuge. The video argues that it began as natural lava tubes and that cooking was done only at night to avoid detection by enemies.
Derinkuyu: 18-level underground city with 20,000 capacity
TürkiyeGeneral
Key facts
- Derinkuyu in Cappadocia, Turkey, reaches about 85 metres below the surface and has 18 levels; eight levels are open to visitors.
- The public route covers only about 10% of the excavated city, leaving most of the network closed.
- Human bones excavated at the site date to the 8th–7th centuries BCE, during the Phrygian period, not the Hittite period.
- The bones date those remains, not the city's construction; the exact construction date and original builders remain uncertain.
- The city had an estimated capacity of more than 20,000 people.
- An approximately 8 km tunnel connects Derinkuyu with Kaymakli.
- The chambers and galleries were carved into soft volcanic tuff using obsidian and metal tools.
- Christian communities later used and expanded the complex as a refuge.
- The video argues that Derinkuyu began as natural lava tubes that people enlarged.
- The video claims cooking was restricted to nighttime to avoid detection by enemies.
Sources
Lost Underground Cityearthdate.org
Around 3,000 years ago, the Hittites began to carve the underground city of Derinkuyu. It was expanded by Christians throughout the Middle ...
Derinkuyu underground cityen.wikipedia.org
Derinkuyu underground city ; Carved volcanic rock · 8th-7th century BC · Phrygians, Byzantines, Christians, Cappadocian Greeks, Armenians.
Derinkuyu: Strange underground city found in man's ...bigthink.com
In 1963, a man knocked down a wall in his basement and discovered a mysterious underground city. The subterranean city is up to 18 stories and ...
Turkey's underground city of 20000 peoplebbc.com
The ancient city of Elengubu, known today as Derinkuyu, burrows more than 85m below the Earth's surface, encompassing 18 levels of tunnels. The ...
Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourismktb.gov.tr
Ministry of Culture and Tourism ... This section contains publications of Publishing Department of Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Derinkuyu Underground City — Depth, Map, Tickets & Tourscappadociatoursbylocals.com
Derinkuyu is a state site, ticketed by the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and the price is set annually
Visiting Derinkuyu Underground City | Metlivimetlivi.com
The site is a network of rooms linked by galleries and tunnels, rather than a sequence of large halls. According to the ministry's description, ...
Derinkuyu Underground City - History and Factshistoryhit.com
Derinkuyu Underground City is the most famous of the Cappadocia subterranean cities built by early Christians and protected by UNESCO.
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