Ürgüp / Urgup Cappadocia

Ürgüp / Urgup Cappadocia

One of the most important centers in Cappadocia Ürgüp is, 20 km to the east of Nevsehir. Like Goreme, Ürgüp also had different names in history: Osiana (Assiana ) in the Byzantine Period; Bashisar during Seljuk Period: Burgut Castle in Ottoman Period; and Ürgüp during the early years of the Republic. The earliest known settlement in the area was on the outskirts of Mount Avla, to the north of the Dams River, which was referred to as ”Tomissos” in antiquity.
The most important remains belonging to the later period are the Roman tombs found in the towns are villages near Ürgüp. Also an important religious center during the Byzantine Period , Ürgüp was a bishopric of the rock-out churches and monasteries found in the villages, towns and valley around Ürgüp. In the 11th century, Ürgüp was an important citadel connecting with Nigde and Konya, important towns of Seljuks. The two buildings from this period are the Altikapili (Six Gates) and Temenni Tepesi (Wish Hill ) tombs found in the town center. The 13th century Altikapili  tomb, housing the remains of a mother and her two daughters, has six sides each with an arched window and no roof. One of two tombs on the Temenni Hill is believed to belong to Seljuk Sultan Ruknettin Kilicarslan IV, although researches think that is unlikely. The tomb was built by Vecihi Pasha in 1268 and is known by the local as ”Kilicarslan Tomb”. The other one is believed to belong to Alaaddin Keykubat III.
Ürgüp became a part of the Ottoman Empire in 1515. It was in the 18th century that Damat Ibrahim Pasha, the Ottoman Grand Vezier, established the governorship in Nevsehir (Muskara). Ürgüp was then administered by the governorship, making it secondary in importance. In his book of history and geography entitled ” Kamus-ul Alam” written between 1888 and 1890, Semseddin Sami mentions seventy mosques, five churches and eleven libraries in  Ürgüp.

Source : Koprus.