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An excavation at the ancient city of Attouda in Denizli’s Saraykoy district has brought to light not only traces of antiquity but also a personal story from recent decades.
Archaeologists working on Asar Hill found a military dog tag—an identity disc worn by soldiers—belonging to Kudret Top, a resident of Hisar village who lost it while herding some 40 years ago and passed away in 2009. The team traced the name and year on the tag and delivered it to his family, setting up an emotional handover in the village square.
The excavation is conducted under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Türkiye with the leadership of Denizli Museum Director Hulusi Unsal. Scientific supervision is provided by Assoc. Prof. Bilge Yilmaz Kolanci of Pamukkale University’s Archaeology Department, and the work continues within the “Heritage for the Future” project.
Local stakeholders—the Attouda Tourism Solidarity Association led by Tarik Urgan and the Saraykoy District Gendarmerie commanded by First Lieutenant Mehmet Tolgahan Sahin—joined the ceremony to return the tag to Top’s wife, Durdane Top.
Receiving the dog tag, Durdane Top recalled how her husband carried it after his military service and lost it during long days in the hills. “He searched but could not find it,” she said, adding that the keepsake’s return after so many years stirred both surprise and grief.
She noted that her husband completed his service in the mid-1980s, carried the tag for years, and died of cancer in 2009. The family expressed thanks to everyone who helped bring the object home.
Kolanci said the team uncovered the tag on September 18, 2025 during excavations at Asar Hill and identified it as belonging to Kudret Top, born in 1965 in the village of Hisar.
After establishing contact with the family, the team handed the item to his wife. The archaeologist underlined that moments like this show how fieldwork can also bring forward human stories alongside historical data.
The research—known locally as “kazi,” or systematic excavation—continues to shed light on Attouda’s past, including a sanctuary dedicated to Matar, the Phrygian Mother Goddess.
As teams open trenches and document contexts, they also keep an eye out for recent artifacts that speak to village life, ensuring they reach the people to whom they matter most.
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