Başpınar Religious Buildings: Research History and General Overview

The Mount Nif (Olympus) is located to the east of the Gulf of Izmir (Smyrna), around the borders of the modern districts of Kemalpaşa, Torbalı, Buca and Bornova. Following the first archaeological excursions by Istanbul University between 1999–2001 in the region, the archaeological surveys continued between 2004–2005 with excavations continuing since 2006 with the permission of the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums of the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The first excursions, archaeological surveys and excavations started under the direction of Prof. Dr. Elif Tül Tulunay from Istanbul University and continued under the directorate of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Müjde Peker since 2020. Between the Kemalpaşa and Torbalı district, at a site called Başpınar in Dağkızılca village, near the Byzantine Nymphaion, a group of Byzantine structures were uncovered under the Mount Nif (Olympos) Research and Excavation Project. There is no evidence about these buildings (or their predecessors) mentioned by ancient sources, travelers or modern researchers. Through the excavations, three structures (A, B, and C), dating between the 10th and 13th centuries AD, have been unearthed in Başpınar. The building group, consisting of a large single-apse church (A), angular on the outside and round on the inside, a three-apse church with an opus sectile floor (B), and a small chapel in the south (C), was built adjacent to one another. The use of spolia identified in these structures provides insights into the chronology and multi-layered use of the area before the Byzantine religious buildings. In addition, 43 cist graves, most of which were covered with tiles, were unearthed in and around the structures. The data we have obtained from the research and excavations we have conducted have shown that the Başpınar Religious Buildings, located on a mountain slope in a fertile countryside close to water resources, may be associated with a monastery.