Archaeologists in western Turkey have uncovered a sacred area inside the North Temple of Blaundos (Greek: Βλαῦνδος), an ancient Greek city founded during the Hellenistic period and later shaped by Roman and Byzantine rule.
The discovery is shedding new light on religious practices in a city established by Greek settlers linked to the campaigns of Alexander the Great. Researchers say the findings provide a rare glimpse into how sacred spaces were organized and used in the ancient Greek world.
The excavation, led by the Uşak Museum Directorate, is focused on the temple’s temenos, a sacred zone reserved for priests and closed to the public in antiquity. The area was used for rituals, offerings, and prayer.
A city with Greek roots
Blaundos was founded between the regions of Lydia and Phrygia after Macedonian soldiers were relocated to Anatolia during the Hellenistic period. Over time, the city developed into an important regional center while preserving its military character.
The settlement occupies a naturally fortified landscape near present-day Ulubey in Uşak Province. Surrounded by deep valleys connected to the Ulubey Canyon and accessible through a single entrance, the city enjoyed strong natural defenses.
Archaeological discoveries suggest the site’s history extends even further back. Cylinder seals uncovered during excavations indicate that a settlement may have existed there as early as the second millennium BC during the Assyrian trade colony period.
Temple complex reveals ancient worship
At the center of Blaundos stands a temple dedicated to Demeter, the Greek goddess of agriculture and fertility. About 200 meters (220 yards) from the city gate lies the North Temple, estimated to be around 1,900 years old and the focus of current excavations.
Last season, archaeologists uncovered a marble structure measuring about 12 (39 feet) meters long, 10 meters (33 feet) wide, and 2 (6.5 feet) meters high that had been built over the temple.
Archaeologists in Turkey have uncovered a restricted sacred area inside a 1,900-year-old temple at Blaundos, an ancient Greek city founded during the Hellenistic period. pic.twitter.com/EDoQvGdO51
— Tom Marvolo Riddle (@tom_riddle2025) June 16, 2026
This year’s work is centered on the temple’s inner sacred area, where priests likely conducted religious ceremonies.
“The temenos area is a restricted sacred zone where only priests could enter,” excavation director İlhan Çavuş said. “People would approach the gods through offerings and prayer rather than direct contact.”
Çavuş said worshippers in the polytheistic traditions of the ancient Greek world visited temples dedicated to specific deities depending on their needs, including health, war, and fertility.
Layers of history beneath the city
Researchers have also identified Byzantine-era structures built above earlier Roman and Hellenistic remains. According to Çavuş, later communities often reused materials from older monuments.
“Byzantine builders used spolia from Roman structures and created simpler architectural forms,” he said. “Our goal is to document each layer carefully, from the Byzantine period down to the earliest remains.”
Excavators are documenting and removing later additions to reach underlying layers before restoration work begins.
Researchers say the ongoing excavations at Blaundos could provide valuable insight into religion, architecture, and urban life across successive civilizations that occupied the city for nearly two millennia.
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