The city of Urfa (Sanli Urfa), dates back to the second millennium B.C. when it may have been the capital of a Human state. It has been known variously as Orrhoé, Orhai, and Osrhoene. One of the early Christian communities developed here. Their language was not Greek but rather Syriac. According to the early church historian Eusebius, the first church in Edessa began when Jesus answered a plea for help from the king, Abgar. Thus the community claims to be pre-crucifixion in its origin.
According to tradition, Nimrod had Abraham immolated on a funeral pyre, but God turned the fire into water and the burning coals into fish.
In the second century A.D. a member of that community, Tatian, produced a Syriac “harmony” of the Gospels which was used in the church there. For fifty years Crusaders held the area in the twelfth century and built a citadel. Within the citadel are two columns on one of which there is a Syriac inscription.
These were part of the winter palace of King Abgar. A spring at the foot of the citadel feeds pools of fish sacred carp, according to Muslim tradition. This tradition also states that Abraham stopped here. No remains of any great antiquity are visible In the city although there is a thirteenth century square minaret and a seventeenth century Islamic religious school, the Adb-er Rahman medresesi.
The mosque built on the site where prophet Abraham is believed to have been born.
I have been visiting Gobekli Tepe for the last 6 years, watching the careful revealing of this very important site. Our tour group ensure we arrive at the optimum time to thoroughly explore G.T. and the surrounding area. They are well versed in the history of the site, land, with reference to other cultures and world history. Good information in…
This the place where all the story begin. To feel the mystic atmosphere and to see the sacred places has to be seen at least one time in life!
Göbeklitepe is the oldest temple in the world.One must visit this place while staying at Sanliurfa. It is a gorgeous place, You may feel yourself that you are in a movie set.
If you visit Sanliurfa you should visit this wonderful place. Read the National Geography about Gobekli Tepe first because there is not much information available at the site. If you don't have your own car, go there with Mustafa, the owner of Hotel Ugur and you will have a wonderful afternoon.
Because everybody was so enthusiastic we visited Göbekli Tepe, although the pictures were not very appealing. The pictures were right. It is only interesting by the fact that it is the oldest settlement found. Therefore it is nice to go there but do not expect a world changing experience. Also do not let yourself be discouraged by the annoying boys…
This is the place of all religions. It is quite exiting standing front while thinking about the parable! And there are lots of important place for archeology and religion closer around such as Gobekli tepe and Harran.
We used Snowball Tours to see southern Turkey and were mainly interested in Mt. Nemrut. Our guide talked us into Gobekli Tepe and it was the highlight of our trip. Our main concern is that this site is seriously underfunded. If this temple is really 2000 years older than the next oldest temple, they should be doing more to excavate…
According to Islam, Abraham was thrown from the adjacent hill into a burning fire. God decided to save Abraham by turning the fire into water and the burning coals into fish.
The result is a lake with the most pampered fish you could ever meet. I had nightmares about these carp. You are given food to feed them and, even…
I would visit this site only for "historic" reasons. I didn't enjoy the fact that there was little signage and that the entrance was split by gender which I find inappropriate considering that all three religions see Abraham as a holly figure.
We've been to Gobekli Tepe in April of 2009. We were on our way from Mardin to Sanliurfa, travelling in Turkey by car/ Guy at the petrol station we stayed to get some fuel told us apout this fantastic place and he was the person, who made us go there. We were very sceptic on our way there, just trying…