A 13th-century bathhouse, or hamam, was relocated on Monday to save it from flooding when a new dam opens in southeast Turkey.
A 256-wheeled self-propelled flatbed truck was used to move the 1,500-tonne Artuqid-era hamam three kilometres from its original site to a nearby cultural park in Batman province.
“Six more monuments will also be transported. Hasankeyf will keep its historical identity,” Batman Governor Ahmet Deniz said.
Dam project will flood ancient area
Hasankeyf is 32 kilometres (20 miles) southeast of the provincial capital Batman. Parts of the town will be submerged when the reservoir of the Ilisu dam, now under construction, is filled.
Hasankeyf was declared a heritage site in 1981. There are almost 6,000 caves in the area that contain artefacts of the region’s Byzantine, Christian and Muslim history.
TRT World‘s Sarah Balter has more.
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