The Archaeological Sites of Alaca
Beyond its major excavation sites — Alacahöyük, Eskiyapar Mound and Pazarlı Mound — Alaca district is also home to a number of smaller archaeological sites noted on the official pages of the district governorship and the Çorum Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, none detailed enough on its own to carry a full article. This piece brings them together.
Gölpınar Dam and Köşk Yeri
Located about 1.5 kilometres southeast of the Alacahöyük ancient site, south of the road running from Alacahöyük to the village of Karamahmut. A spring lies northeast of the dam area; to the south, a 110-metre-long dam section was formed by filling roughly 6 metres between two walls with earth. This dam, dated to the Hittite period, was first studied in 1935 by R. Oğuz Arık. Nearby lies a settlement known as “Köşk Yeri”, dated to a later period.
Kalınkaya Quarry
Located just west of the village of Kalınkaya, part of Alacahöyük town, at a spot known as Sekili. This quarry supplied stone for Hittite-period architecture and sculpture, and cut blocks prepared for transport from that era can still be seen there. It continued in use as a quarry in later periods, including Roman times.
The Rock Tombs of Geven Village
Located 8 kilometres north of Alaca, on the Hışır valley. On the valley’s eastern side stand two rock tombs locally known as “Gerdekkaya” or “Kapılıkaya” — a name that should not be confused with the entirely different, separately located monument that official sources on the Çorum–Osmancık highway record as the “Laçin Kapılıkaya Monumental Rock Tomb”. Traces of early settlement are found on the southern slope; storage chambers cut into the rock, near where it approaches the Alaca stream, have been damaged by treasure hunters.
Yatankavak Tumulus
Located 10 kilometres southwest of Alaca, west of the road to Büyükhırka. Two tumuli stand near the village; villagers have levelled the smaller one down to its base, while the second, 10 metres high, remains largely intact. Nearby are a set of “forty steps”, a rock-tomb doorway, an underground dwelling and a spot known as “Bal Kayası” (“Honey Rock”), none of which have yet been studied in detail. Some village houses are built with foundation and corner stones taken from Classical-period and later material.
Gerdek Rock Tomb (Camili Village)
Located 18 kilometres north of Alaca, within the boundaries of Camili village — a separate monument from the “Gerdekkaya” structure at Geven village above, and not to be confused with the Gerdek Kaya Cave in Merkez district either. This three-columned tomb, cut into the rock east of the settlement, dates to the Hellenistic period, the 2nd century BC. Nearby, the old water channels at the entrance to Alaca Valley can also be seen.
Yeşilyurt Rock Tomb
Located at Buzağılık, about 1.6 kilometres southeast of the village of Yeşilyurt. A square entrance has been cut into a rock outcrop at ground level; beyond it, the interior is hollowed into a U-shape, with benches on either side of and opposite the entrance. Roman-period pottery has been found in surveys around the tomb, and its construction technique also shows Roman-period characteristics.
Çıradere Mound
Located within the village of Suludere, the mound was identified and studied from 1954 onward by Rolf Hachmann, whose findings were published in 1957; only a surface survey has been carried out, with no excavation. Based on the pottery collected, the mound is thought — though not conclusively — to date to the Late Chalcolithic–Early Bronze Age I period. A painted pottery group identified at the mound, known as “Çıradere ware”, reflects a decorative tradition also found in small numbers at certain mounds in the Kırşehir and Yozgat areas. (Note: the body text of the Turkish Wikipedia entry states the mound is “8.5 km northeast of Boğazkale”, while both the article’s infobox and the linked village page place it administratively within Alaca district — this contradiction exists in the source itself and should be further verified.)
Visiting
Most of these sites lack a marked visitor route, and some are difficult to reach given the terrain. For the district’s general history, see History of Alaca; for its major ancient sites, see Alacahöyük and the Alacahöyük Museum.