mount nemrut (nemrut dagi)
The Mount Nemrut tomb-sanctuary was probably built for king Antiochus Theos of Kommagene who believed he was a descendant of Apollo, in the first part of the first century BC. The main feature is a tumulus tomb hill about 50 meters high, underneath which it is thought, the tomb itself is located. It is also thought that it will be as rich as any of the tombs of Egypt.
However, you have to be prepared to get up early at about 2.30 if you want to see the sunrise. It's quite a distance from the mountain and it's best if you have your own transport or arrange a guided tour.
Around the Tumulus are two main terraces; the big eastern terrace, and the smaller western terrace. These might have been used for religeous and other ceremonies due to the astronomical and religeous nature of the monument. A bas-relief has been found on the western terrace of a lion and the planets Mars, Jupiter and Mercury as they would have been on july 7, 62 BCE, the possible starting date of the complex' construction.
Big seated statues, 8 to 9 meters high of Antiochus himself, Hercules, Zeus-Orosmasdes associated with the Persian god Ahura-Mazda and a few other greek and Persian deieties along with two lions and two eagles, line these terraces. Since their erection, the heads have toppeled from the bodies which remain at their original positions and lay scattered throughout the site. In more recent times they have been put back at their assumed original positions albeit without the bodies so they can once again face the sunrise and sunset. The arrangement of the statues or in this case heads is known as a hierothesion.
Currently, restoration work is being done on the statues which will continue until at least 2010. There are also plans to move at least some of the monuments to a museum.
The Summit is 2150 meter above sea level and provides a great view of the surrounding mountains and even Ataturk lake. The main attraction is to watch the sunrise from the eastern terrace which give the bodyless heads a beautyful orange hue and adds to the sense of mystery of the place.
If going up Nemrut to see the sunrise, bring warm clothing with you because it can get cold up there even in summer since the summit is at about 2150 meters.
Transport: There ara tours from Kahta that is running to Nemrut Everyday. You can contact to the Mezopotamya Travel +90 416 725 97 26 / +90 532 200 38 56 for the tours. You can take only Tour for 75 Tl per person or 125 tl that is also including breakfast and accomodation in kahta.The tours take you first KarakuÅ Tumulus, Cendere Bridge, Old Kahta Castle, Arsemi and Nemrut. It takes usually whole day and you can watch sun set or sun rise during the tour.OR You can get with a dolmuÅ from Kahta at least to the village of Karadut and maybe a bit more up. From there it's still a 12 km walk up, which you can try to hitchhike. The owner of the Karadut Pension might also hang around at the bus station and offer to take you for 5 TL.
Another way to get to Karadut is to walk to the other otogar, taking the dolmus to "Gargar" and asking to get dropped off in Karadut. It runs about once an hour, maybe once every two hours.
Climate: Till April there's still snow, so you cant see the statues fully. Before April the roads might be blocked.
