Location of Gordion confirmed

Excavations in Central Anatolia near Ankara at the presumed site of Gordion started in 1950. However, there was no actual confirmation that this assumption was correct – till now, that is. 

In a previous blog (see” Gordion, a name with resonance), I mentioned how Strabo described Gordion as being close to a river. Over the centuries, however, the nearby rivers have shifted, and today’s level is about eleven meters higher. Despite these alterations, today’s excavation site is located southeast of the confluence of the Sakarya and Prosuk Rivers, proving Strabo was right after all. 

When I visited this spot in 2007, I was told that the site might be Gordion – if not, evidently another important Phrygian settlement. There was a big outer city here, something in the style of Troy. The entrance gate had timber walls inside, which should help date it. The ramparts were built of two parallel stone walls, and the space in-between was filled with wood. 

The Cimmerians destroyed Gordion in 696 BC, and the ensuing fires preserved these walls to be covered later with alluvial mud up to four meters deep. Then the Lydians arrived and rebuilt the city, but it was again destroyed by the invading army of Cyrus the Great in 547-546 BC. 

As a satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire, the Persians installed a garrison at Gordion, which was eventually overthrown by Parmenion when he spent the winter of 333/334 BC here. We’ll remember that Alexander marched through Lycia in the south to regroup with Parmenion the following spring. In 278 BC, however, the city was destroyed by the Gauls and totally abandoned by 200 AD. 

Today Gordion is in the news because archaeologists have unearthed a stone with an inscription in the Phrygian language. It has been dated to the reign of Antiochus I, who reigned from 281 to 261 BC. For the first time, the name Gordion is mentioned. The stone was found in what is called the ancient city. 

The text is the longest inscription ever found in Gordion and written in Phrygian. It probably was part of a tumulus burial site. Currently, archaeologists and philologists are studying the inscription to present an understandable text to the public. [For a picture of the inscription, please click on this Arkeonews link]

The earliest Phrygian writing goes back to the 8th century BC, and they based their alphabet on the Phoenician. Later on, they used a version of the Greek alphabet. So far, eleven inscriptions on stone have been discovered and 245 graffiti, mostly on vases. Remarkably, despite this small number, Gordion is the richest source of early Phrygian writing.