Gordion
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How it came to be
Gordion lies on the Sakarya River about 90 km south-west of Ankara, and its layers span some 4,000 years, from the Early Bronze Age around 2400 BC to the medieval period. It peaked from about 900 to 600 BC as the royal capital of the kingdom the Greeks called Phrygia and the Assyrians called Mushki.
Research shows that King Midas was a historical ruler who reigned from Gordion in the 8th century BC. The citadel gate is the best-preserved Iron Age fortified gate found so far, with masonry still standing about 10 metres high. The burial chamber in the 53-metre Midas Mound, dated to about 740 BC, is described as the oldest standing wooden building in the world.
Alexander the Great is said to have visited in 333 BC and cut the Gordian knot, and newer finds support the account. After more than 70 years of excavation, Gordion was inscribed in 2023.
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