Smyrna

Smyrna, İzmir

UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List 2020 

İzmir is called “The Pearl of Aegean” and indeed, once Smyrna and now modern day of İzmir has always been an important political and cultural city. İzmir is the principal city on the western coast of Türkiye. It is the country’s third-largest city after İstanbul and Ankara.  

According to the Yeşilova Höyük excavations carried out in Bornova, the region dates back to the third millennium BCE, and it was one of the strongest cities belonging to the Ionian League. Smyrna had the honor of having Homer as a resident. During the Roman Period, Smyrna was competing with Pergamum and Ephesus over the title of “First City of Asia.”  Bayraklı excavations revealed that this was one of the earliest Ionian settlements on the Aegean. Even the modern town if İzmir is directly on the ancient city, the agora area and the İzmir Museum offer a lot to see to modern day visitor. Kadifekale is also an important part of the city with the great view of the Gulf.