ANCIENT HISTORY

Ankara was established around 3000 years ago. Galatians called this city as Ankyra, which means “arrestor, interceptor”. Over time, this term gained the meaning of anchor, used in navigation. It is understood that this term was thought because of the position of the rocky area, where the Castle is located today.

Engürü should also be mentioned among the old names of Ankara. According to the myth, the origin of this name comes from “Engür”, the word corresponding to “grape” in Persian. As a name Engürü describes very well Ankara, with plenty of vineyards and orchards in the past. Ankara and its surrounding are the homeland of grape. It is well-known that best wines are produced in Kavaklıdere of Çankaya.

There are two claims about the founders of Ankara, not one. Experts cannot decide whom to refer for the foundation of Ankara between a famous father and son. According to a myth, the founder of Ankara is Gordias, The Phrygian King. According to another the founder is his son, Midas.

In the Hittite period Ankara had been used as a military garrison. Afterwards, Phrygians have ruled this area and they have established the city.

After 700 BC, we see Lydians as the new rulers of the city. Starting from 547 BC, the city and the region were under the ruling of Persians.

In 333 BC, Alexander the Great has taken the city under Macedonian-Hellene ruling. It is known that Alexander, who cut the famous and legendary Gordian knot with his sword when he failed to disentangle it, stayed at the region for a while. Ankara Castle has been built by the Galatians who came to Anatolia in this period.

In 189 BC, the Roman Commander Vulso has beaten the Galatians and has taken Ankara under Roman ruling. During the time of the Romans, who hegemonized Ankara for long years, important investments have been made to the city. Today, many artifacts from the Roman era, such as baths, temples, city walls, agora, hippodrome, column, theatre can be seen in Ankara. For example, Julian's column, in the Hükümet Square of Ulus is one of them. This column, erected in 362 BC to commemorate the crossing of Roman Emperor Julian across Ankara, has been formed by ribbed stones and has been decorated with a leaf shaped crown. Its location was changed at the beginning of this century, by carrying it to 200 meters to the north. The Roman Bath, whose ruins can still be seen, is considered as one of the three largest baths of its era in the world. This bath of gigantic dimensions with 12 furnaces, which has been revealed as a result of the dig started in 1939, is known to be built at the end of 2nd century AD and at the beginning of 3rd century AD. The presence of a huge hand holding a snake in the bath makes us think that it has been built in the name of Asclepius, The God of Medicine. During the digging performed to reveal the bath, a large amount of coins issued in the name of the Roman Emperor Caracalla and his mother Julia Domna was found. The outer walls of the bath, which has been built on a rubble foundation, was formed by placing four rows of bricks consecutively, whereas inner walls are covered with marble.

Prof. Dr. Akurgal wrote the followings for Augustus Temple located next to Hacıbayram Mosque: The Roman Emperor Augustus (BC 63–AD 14) has delivered four documents to the Priestesses of Vesta, sixteen months before his death. One of them was his will; the second contained his directives about his funeral, the third one consisted of the records concerning financial and military status of the empire, whereas the forth one was describing the works (actions) that he has established during his life. Among them only the fourth one, “indexrerumgestarum”, could reach today as written on the walls of Augustus Temple in two languages, Latin and Hellenic language. On the other hand, the original text, which has been written on two metal plates, placed in front of the emperor’s tomb in Rome had totally disappeared.

As a good coincidence, the pieces belonging to the two other known copies of this epigraph called “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” (the works performed by deified Augustus) were also found in Anatolia. These pieces that are stored now in Ankara Anatolian Civilizations Museum have helped to complete some missing parts of Ankara Temple.

The text in Latin, narrating the pursuits of Augustus, is located on the inner facade of the two side walls of the room called Pronaos (front room). The epigraph starts with the words “Re-rumges tarum divi Augusti” (the actions of deified Augustus), which is located on the wall next to the Hacıbayram mosque with large letters is still readable and occupies a grand portion of the wall. The remaining of the Latin text continues on the inner facade of the wall across it. The Hellenic translation of the Latin text is located on the outer facade of this wall, in other words on the outer side of the temple Wall in the west-east direction.

During ancient history, the acropolis (hill town) of Ankara was located at the area where Hacıbayram Mosque is located now. The city of Ankara was surrounding this holy hill where Augustus and Rome Temple were located. The Roman Bath at Çankırı Street, the Roman Theater at the bottom of the Castle and the Castle itself were within the Roman city’s boundaries. The northern end of the city was going up to the today’s Broadcasting House. As can be understood from the coins and epigraph of the Roman era, the Female God Cybele (goddess of fertility) and the Moon God Men were worshipped in Ankara before the Romans. As we saw in Çatalhöyük, Cybele has been the main god of Anatolian people during the Neolithic era, in other words in the years 7th and 6th thousands BC, she has been the most important god in Phrygians as well. Men is an Anatolian god as well, he is likely to be of Luvian origin. Especially local people in Phrygia and Lydia regions were worshipping him. The God of Moon in Hellenes was female and her name was Selene. On the other hand, Hellenes living in this region were also worshipping Men.

The front facade and entrance of Augustus Temple was not headed to east as in holy Hellenic buildings, but to the west, which indicates that this is a temple belonging to old Anatolian customs, in other words in an era before Hellenes. Christians, who converted Augustus and Rome Temples to church in the Byzantine era, have opened three windows on the southern wall of Cella (big room in the middle), demolished the wall between Cella and Opisthodomos (the room at the back) and converted this place to a Crypt. (Ankara Journal, i. 1. 1990).

Turks have never touched Augustus and Rome Temples; they built Hacıbayram Mosque just next to the church by showing respect and tolerance for it.

Roman era is the era when the city has been repaired and glamorized. Emperor Nero has announced Ankara as a metropolis, in other words, capital. It is clearly written in the epigraph and coins of the era that Ankara is the capital. Another Roman emperor, Caracalla has repaired the walls surrounding the city.

Many artifacts, starting with the findings of stone age and going up to the remains of Roman period mentioned above, are being exhibited in a very valuable structure located at the foot of Ankara Castle, gained with the restoration of two inns and a bazaar and by converting them into a Museum, which is called nowadays as the Anatolian Civilizations Museum.

News