Two more Turkish cultural assets inscribed on UNESCO list

Two more cultural assets of Turkey have been added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List. With the new additions, 85 cultural assets from Turkey have made it to the list.

The historic town of Kemaliye in the eastern province of Erzincan and the Late Antique and Medieval churches and monasteries of Midyat and surrounding area called Tur Abdin in the southeastern province of Mardin have been added to the UNESCO's list, the Culture and Tourism Ministry said in a statement.

The historic town of Kemaliye (or Eğin) is located in the northwest of the Eastern Anatolian Region, and to the southwest of the Erzincan province, which lies in the Upper Euphrates. The east, west, north and south of the Kemaliye settlement are surrounded by mountains.

The Karasu tributary of the Euphrates, which is the longest river of Southwest Asia, flows through the east of Kemaliye. Lake Kadı and some other brooks, which begin in this district and flow into the Karasu River, are the most important water sources, leading to the creation of permanent settlement there.

The construction of the Taş Yol (the Stone Road) above the Karanlık (Dark) Canyon by local people using primitive methods to connect the caravans to the Giresun Port over Central Anatolia began in 1870 and completed in 2002, which meant that its construction lasted 132 years.

This seven-kilometer road consists of 38 tunnels whose heights range from 400 to 500 meters. The Taş Yol is categorized as one of the "most dangerous roads" in the world.

Being located over the Silk Road, caravan routes played a significant role in the change of rulers and invasions of Kemaliye, which became an important trade center within the region in the course of time thanks to the transportation carried...