Gökburç in Cilicia

 

 

 

     
 

 

The fortified tower of a Roman manor house  
   

Gökburç is the name of a hamlet with relics of a Roman settlement and a manor house. Gökburç is a part of the village Ovacık, one kilometre east of the centre of Ovacık. At this point two paths meet, which continue from the Mediterranean coast to Uzuncaburç. The eastern one comes from Narlıkuyu via the Coryk Caves, the southern one from Atakent, the ancient Corasion.

 
   

 
   

There are few remains of late Hellenistic imperial houses in the village, mostly in polygonal construction. To the west was a fortified, trapezoidal estate. It was fortified by a surrounding wall with towers at three corners, only one of which was preserved at a considerable height of about 18 metres and four storeys.

 
   

The ceilings of the floors consisted of inlaid wooden beams, the staircase was probably also made of wood. The average 60 cm thick walls have narrow slit windows.
The enclosure wall has two doors to the northwest and southeast. A remnant wall on the tower shows that the outer wall had a height of two storeys. The walls inside the farm have been buried except for a few remains; a cistern, which is now used again, is inside.
Building materials are typical for the area hand blocks of limestone, accordingly large stones were used for door frames and lintels.
Since the fortification of farms was established in the 4th century A.D., the estate is also dated to this time.

 
     
     
Photos: @chim    
Translation aid: www.DeepL.com/Translator    
Source: Wikipedia and others