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Archaeologists have uncovered a vast and remarkably preserved marble-paved square in the ancient city of Magnesia, located in Aydin’s Germencik district in western Türkiye.
The site, dating back 2,400 years, is believed to have served as the city’s main agora—a central public gathering place in ancient Greek cities, typically surrounded by important administrative or religious buildings.
Excavations have been ongoing since 2021 under the supervision of Associate Professor Gorkem Kokdemir from the Archaeology Department of Ankara University.
The team has focused on Magnesia’s largest agora, an area once home to the Temple of Zeus.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Kokdemir explained that their work is part of Türkiye’s "Heritage for the Future Project," coordinated by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The agora, long buried under layers of sediment from earthquakes and floods caused by the nearby Buyuk Menderes River, was covered by nearly four meters of deposit.
Despite this, the excavation team has managed to recover the marble flooring and architectural elements in strikingly intact condition, paving the way for a future visitor route through the site.
So far, around 10,000 square meters of the total 25,000-square-meter agora have been brought to light. According to Kokdemir, “The marble pavement in this entire area has survived completely. This is a major discovery. We’re now approaching half of the entire space, and we plan to expand further toward the southern stoa.”
He noted that columned galleries and enclosed chambers line the agora’s four sides. These rooms are thought to have served as a state archive.
Past excavations by German teams revealed nearly 200 inscriptions from just two of these rooms, suggesting the full site could yield a wealth of historical records once fully unearthed.
Kokdemir emphasized that the agora is not a marketplace but a monumental complex storing the memory of the ancient city.
“Think of this place not as a commercial space, but as the heart and soul of the city—where knowledge of the past was preserved and passed into the future,” he said.
With the project moving forward, archaeologists hope to uncover critical insights into the history of western Anatolia.
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