Behind A Basement Wall In Turkey, A Man Uncovers An Underground City Eighteen Stories Deep

The evolution of the human race is something that is truly fascinating to me because of all the marvelous feats pulled off by Homo sapiens. We make “new” discoveries about things our ancestors did every day, yet we don’t know everything that happened in history. Just look at this rediscovered underground city in Derinkuyu, Turkey, which is just shrouded in mystery. Surprisingly, it was found hiding behind a man’s basement, and then accidentally unearthed when he was renovating. Read on to find out all the interesting and speculative facts about this enthralling city deep underground! Image credits: Ji-Elle / Wikimedia Image credits: DailySabah / X Picture this: it’s 1963, and just a normal day for a Turkish dude who was renovating his basement and took down a wall, to discover something totally unexpected. It was a room that further led to a whole labyrinth of rooms underground! And that is how the mysterious Derinkuyu city, or the ancient city of Elengubu, came to light and even made it to the UNESCO World Heritage list. What makes it special, you ask? It goes way deep underground; we’re talking over 85 meters down, with a mind-blowing 18 levels of tunnels here, folks. Also, the entrance that the Turk discovered, well, that was just a first. Soon enough, over 600 entrances were also found inside private homes that led to this miraculous place that once housed over 20,000 people. Image credits: DailySabah / X Image credits: DailySabah / X Another surprising aspect of this complex is that so far, only 2,000 square feet have been excavated, when there’s more. In fact, the Cappadocia tourism site mentions that it could actually stretch out to a whopping 7,000 square feet. As for its origins, no one’s totally sure when Derinkuyu was actually built. However, the oldest written mention might be in Anabasis by Xenophon of Athens, around 370 BCE. In it, he talks about people in or near Cappadocia living in underground homes they dug out themselves, way before those famous cliffside caves became a thing. Who actually built Derinkuyu? That’s still a bit of a mystery. A lot of experts think the Hittites got it started, maybe digging out the first few levels around 1200 BCE when they were under threat from the Phrygians. It’s not a baseless theory, as Hittite artifacts have been found inside to back it up. Image credits: DailySabah / X Image credits: Joshua / Flickr That said, most of Derinkuyu was probably built by the Phrygians, these Iron Age pros who really knew their stuff when it came to designing complex underground spaces. Besides, they also had the skills and tools to make it happen. Andrea De Giorgi, an associate professor of classical studies at Florida State University, told the BBC, “The Phrygians were one of Anatolia's most prominent early empires. They developed across western Anatolia around the end of the first millennium BCE and had a bent for monumentalising rock formations and creating remarkable rock-cut facades.” “Though elusive, their kingdom spread to include most of western and central Anatolia, including the area of Derinkuyu.” Derinkuyu also got a major expansion during the Byzantine era, likely by Christians hiding from persecution. It’s thanks to the churches deep underground that this idea is discussed. Even in the 20th century, people may have used the tunnels to escape danger during the Ottoman Empire. Image credits: Joe Wallace / Flickr Image credits: Ahmet KAYNARPUNAR / Wikimedia Life underground in Derinkuyu wasn’t just about hiding; it was pretty full-on. They had everything from stables, cellars, and kitchens to wine and oil presses, chapels, and even schools. A huge 180-foot ventilation shaft doubled as a well, and tons of other shafts kept the air flowing. And at the very bottom, a church was carved right into the rock in the shape of a cross. Every level of Derinkuyu had a purpose. Livestock stayed on the upper floors to keep smells and gases away, and they even helped keep things warm in winter. Deeper down, there were homes, schools, cellars, hangout spots, and even a winery. This proves that it was not just a hideout, but people were clearly ready to live down there for months, maybe even years. Image credits: Nevit Dilmen / Wikimedia Image credits: Nevit Dilmen / Wikimedia After the Greco-Turkish War, a population swap in 1923 led the Cappadocian Greeks of Derinkuyu to leave for good. They took with them the city’s Greek name, Malakopia, meaning “soft,” probably because of the soft local stone, and the knowledge of the underground maze itself. Just like that, after over 2,000 years since it was created, Derinkuyu was left empty and slowly faded from memory. Until, of course, the Turk, who was redoing his basement found it. Image credits: Nevit Dilmen / Wikimedia Image credits: Yasir999 / Wikimedia Derinkuyu wasn’t the first underground city found in the area, and definitely not the last. In fact, Cappadocia’s quite famous for these hidden cities, and Derinkuyu was officially the biggest one. However, in 2014, they uncovered a new underground city in the Nevşehir region that might be even bigger. That’s pretty wild, right? What are your thoughts about it? Were you just as fascinated as we are? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!