Published on February 9, 2023
Since 2008, Katherine Morgan has spent her summers on archaeological digs in Turkey, marveling at both the region’s rich cultural remains and the kindness of the people who live there.
All of this is weighing heavily on archaeologists this week, with a devastating Turkish earthquake centered just eight miles from the dig site and a community that Morgan, an assistant professor of classics at Duke University, knows well.
“These people live very modest lives, and they hosted us for meals and shared everything they had,” Morgan said. “They invited us into their homes and shared homemade bread, tea and food from their gardens. They are incredibly generous. It’s really touching.”
All of the cultural heritage of the region is now under threat. Preliminary reports suggest that many of these museums still stand, but damage may have been done to places we don’t know about yet.
Katharine Morgan
Tragedy in Türkiye and Syria
Professor Kathryn Morgan is helping organize an event in Chapel Hill this weekend to highlight the importance of the region and the support it needs now.
This free public event will be held at 4pm on Sunday, February 12th at the Sancal Turkish Cultural Community Center on East Franklin Street in Chapel Hill.
Speakers will include former U.S. ambassador to Turkey Robert Pearson.
The hard-hit areas in southeastern Turkey are of great significance to archaeologists and historians. Morgan has stayed in the village of Zinjirli Höyük, atop the ancient city of Samar. The site was at its peak between 900 and 600 BC, when it was part of the Assyrian Empire based in present-day Iraqi Kurdistan.
The site contains many ancient palaces and gates made from huge blocks of stone carved with ornate reliefs of mythical beasts, feasts and processions, but recent research has focused on even older remains, dating to around 1650 BC, that may have played a role in the long-distance trade of wine.
“This is a region where we can explore the origins of nations, the origins of agriculture, and even the origins of settled communities. These sites help us begin to understand why and how humans came together to form communities. ,” Morgan said. “How in what circumstances did they create their rules and structures and why is it important to us? Places such as Göbekli Tepe, Arslan Tepe, Tel Taynat. Famous places that can answer these questions The site is located in this region of southeastern Turkey.
And the fate of much of this history remains unknown.
“All of the cultural heritage of this region is currently at risk,” Morgan said. “Preliminary reports indicate that many of these museums are still standing, but there has probably been damage to the sites that we are not yet aware of. Much of the archaeological material is currently inaccessible to anyone. We are waiting for analysis at the excavation site.”
The economic damage would also be significant, Morgan added. Although this area has historically been the least developed in the country, economic investment has recently increased rapidly, particularly in attracting tourists to museums.
“Cultural heritage tourism in particular is an economic lifeline for these communities,” she said.
Learn more about relief organizations working in Türkiye and Syria
Wake at Duke Chapel
More than 100 people gathered outside Duke University’s chapel on Thursday to show solidarity with earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria. In this moving event organized by Duke University students, members of Duke University’s Turkish community will discuss the impact of a series of earthquakes that destroyed 10 cities and left nearly 13 million people homeless in the freezing winter cold. Afterwards, we were able to share our experiences and feelings.
Speakers thanked attendees for their support. Engineering graduate student Mert Gokduman said the hardest part for them was “not being able to be with our families.”
Photo: James Todd
Didem Z. Havrioglu, associate professor of Asian and Middle Eastern studies, addresses the vigil audience in front of Duke Chapel.
