Derinkuyu Underground City

Derinkuyu Underground City is the largest and deepest excavated underground city in Cappadocia.

History suggests that the Hittites first built Derinkuyu Underground City approximately around the year 2000 BCE. The construction expanded during the Byzantine period and was used as protection from Arab attackers.

Carved from soft volcanic rock, it extends down eight levels and could once shelter over 20,000 people. This place is a center of religious activities which had churches and a large cruciform chamber.

Derinkuyu showcases the incredible engineering and survival strategies of ancient Anatolian civilizations beneath the surface of the earth.