On January 2nd and to kick of 2022, I went to look at a mud hill, i.e., Çatalhöyük. A 30min taxi ride from downtown Konya had taken me to a archaeological site in a rural village with gravel roads. And all there was to see was a muddy hill with a large tent on top. Not sure, what that says about my life ;)

The site is free, but guarded. The guard first made me visit the on site museum. He was so kind to turn on the light, but there was little content to illuminate. The exposition reminded me more of an exposition at my high school than of a museum for one of the most important global archaeological sites for early human settlements.

In front of the museum is a replica hut, so I visited that, before making my way up the hill and the tent to see the excavation. The whole hill actually covers the ancient city, but only portions have been permanently excavated. It's strikingly obvious why when you see the open parts: The mud walls are crumbling and the archaeologists are fighting to stabilize them.

The excavated parts under the tent give a good view of the densely populated village. Houses were build wall to wall with garbage dumps in between. And even on top of each other over the centuries. Humans were buried below the houses, possibly in the old houses which is a reason for the rich finds.

You have some sign posting, but I found that the site could be better presented. In addition, the second open component was closed when I came, so I did not see all parts.

Later that day, I went to the Konya Archeological Museum in Konya. The quality of the stuff on display is fine. There are several artefacts from Çatalhöyük. The presentation is (yet again) similar to my high school. I am pretty sure that with more space, better lightening etc. the Konya collection would be quite stunning.

Of the three prehistoric sites I visited in Turkey, I found Çatalhöyük the least interesting. It may have been the cold and wet weather. Or the muddy hill. Or that half of the site was off limit (only one tent was open), but both Arslantepe Mound (for the rock art) and Göbekli Tepe (for everything) impressed me more.

Getting There

Hub for the area is Konya. They have a bullet train connection to Ankara and Istanbul. And bus connections all over the country. However, Konya is on the Anatolian plateau, so travelling by bus from nearby Antalya to Konya takes five to six hours. And, as is common all over Turkey, the bus terminal (otorgar) is way outside of the town, so you will have to take an inexpensive cab to and from town. For larger distances I recommend flying.

To get from Konya to Çatalhöyük, you have two options:

• Take a cab.
• Take a dolmus to Çumra and walk/take a cab.

Cab's are so cheap in Turkey, I would encourage to take a cab. In my case, I had agreed a price (15EUR?) and the taximeter would have been cheaper.

While You Are There

You will probably pass through Konya (Roman Iconium), the first capital of the Ottomans and a tentative site on it's own. The Mevlânâ Museum (Rumi) and the Madrasas are must sees. Two of the madrasas are also part of a separate tentative site: the Anatolian Seljuk Madrasahs. Best Madrasah is Karatay for the cupola.