The 300-year-old Armenian monastery of Surp Astvatsatsin (Tomarza Monastery) has completely deteriorated in the Tomarza district of Turkey’s central Anatolian Kayseri province, with merely a few ruined walls remaining. The monastery, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, is situated in Kayseri’s Cumhuriyet neighborhood. Link

The world famous historical rock tombs of Dalyan become more damaged as tourists continue to sit on them while taking photos despite warnings. With a new decision, the tombs will now be surrounded with wire fences. Link

After 2700 years the walls of Urartu Castle have been unearthed in the Ayanis neighborhood of the eastern province of Van. Excavations at the Urartu Castle site, situated 38 kilometers from Van, have been ongoing for 25 years, leading to new discoveries every day. After the discovery of the temple, this year the walls, a defining part of the castle, have been unearthed. Link

A 250-meter-long road built upon the order of a Greek emperor for his wife in the 1400s has been reopened after a series of restoration works on Imbros Island (Gökçeada in Turkish) in the Aegean province of Çanakkale. Link

A 2,200-year-old two-story trade building, which was also thought to be used for cold storage, has been found in the Sagalassos ancient city in the Ağlasun district of southern Burdur province. Link

The first residents of Imbros, known as Gökçeada in Turkish, in the Aegean province of Çanakkale migrated from Anatolia some 8,500 years ago, according to archeological research which has been carried out on the island for the past six years. Link

Restoration work will begin next year at a Genoese castle, which is on UNESCO’s Temporary World Heritage List, in the Black Sea province of Düzce, officials have said. The Culture and Tourism Ministry commenced a project to renovate and reanimate the original appearance of the ancient castle, which was built by the Genoese people 800 years ago, said Cüneyt Yemenici, the mayor of Akçakoca in Düzce. Link

The Kültepe-Kaniş-Karum trade colony in the Central Anatolian province of Kayseri continues to amaze archeologists, with an expert at the dig revealing that tablets citing women’s rights were discovered at the Bronze Age settlement. Link

A scene on an obelisk found during excavations in Göbeklitepe, a 12,000-year-old site in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa, could be humanity’s first pictograph, according to researchers. The scene on the obelisk unearthed in Göbeklitepe could be construed as the first pictograph because it depicts an event thematically. It depicts a human head in the wing of a vulture and a headless human body under the stela,” Şanlıurfa Museum Director and Göbeklitepe excavation head Müslüm Ercan said. Link

Work has been initiated for the ancient Ani ruins, which date back thousands of years, in the eastern province of Kars to receive the status of a UNESCO World Heritage site. Kars Culture and Tourism Director Hakan Doğanay said in the case of its acceptance, Ani would be Turkey’s 16th world heritage site on the UNESCO list. Link