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Recent excavations at the ancient city of Savatra, in the Karatay district of Konya, central Turkey, have uncovered an impressive altar in the site’s theatre complex, which is believed to date to the Roman period. The altar is decorated with the image of a soldier, a military standard bearing the name of the Aurelia phyle, and a victory wreath. It features a Greek inscription, with translations of the text revealing that the altar was dedicated by Phylarkhos, son of Hermogenes.
Tahir Ceylan said of his experience photographing the site: ‘I am a photographer with a strong interest in night sky photography, particularly long star exposures and Milky Way images. Savatra Ancient City is located approximately 40km from the city where I live, and as soon as I saw the news about the excavations, I knew I wanted to photograph the site at night. Being in such a powerful and evocative place beneath the stars, and imagining life in that period, was a truly special experience. The fact that my interest in archaeology can lead to moments of such visual and emotional beauty makes this work especially meaningful to me.’
The image was chosen as the winner of the CWA Photo of the Year 2026 Competition (sponsored by Hidden History). Turn here to see the runners-up.
Text: Tahir Ceylan & Amy Brunskill / Image: Tahir Ceylan
Please send your images to cwa@world-archaeology.com. They must be high resolution (300 dpi) and in landscape format, ideally 20cm high by 30cm wide.
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