Sardis and the Lydian Tumuli of Bin Tepe

Brief synthesis Sardis was one of the pre-eminent Iron Age cities of the ancient world. Located in western Türkiye, it was the capital and only city of the Lydians. The Lydians rose to prominence in the 8th-6th centuries BCE, conquering most of western Anatolia and establishing the first empire in the region during the Iron Age. They invented coinage, an innovation that was quickly adopted by their neighbours, with long and widespread impacts on global economies. Located at a crossroads between the Greek world and contemporary Near Eastern cultures, the Lydians established cultural, economic, military, and diplomatic ties to both the Greeks to their west, and the great empires to the east and south, the Assyrians, Babylonians, Egyptians, Phrygians, and others. The downfall of the Lydians despite their wealth, and the perils of the hubris of King Croesus has been reflected in literature since ancient times. The Lydians developed their capital city with a distinctive system of monumental terraces, creating a scheme of urban planning unlike those of the Greeks, Egyptians, or other peoples of the Near East. They protected the city with a regionally distinctive twenty-meter-thick fortification wall. The necropolis of Bin Tepe is located seven to seventeen kilometres north of the citadel of Sardis, which includes more than 119 tumuli. The three large tumuli at Bin Tepe are amongst the largest tumulus tombs in the world, and amongst the first to include features such as the crepis wall and marker stones. Criterion (iii): Sardis and the Lydian Tumuli of Bin Tepe testify to the Lydian civilisation, a native Anatolian people in western Asia Minor during the 1st millennium BCE. The property bears testimony to a vanished culture that had a profound impact on the history of the ancient world though its architecture, customs, and cultural practices. The Lydians had their own language and worshipped a unique pantheon of gods. The city of Sardis had a distinctive urban plan and architecture, and its terracing system served as a prototype for other terraced cities. The tumuli in Bin Tepe are amongst the largest in the world. The Lydians also invented the world’s first coinage, and their rapid expansion was facilitated by immense wealth, based on gold. Integrity The serial property comprised of two component parts includes all the attributes needed to convey its Outstanding Universal Value, including the full extent of the Lydian city of Sardis and the associated tumuli at Bin Tepe. The boundaries are appropriate, and the buffer zones provide protection to the settings of the component parts. The important visual connection between the two component parts will be strengthened once a single encompassing buffer zone has been implemented. The property exhibits overall an adequate state of conservation, supported by ongoing maintenance and continuing research. Authenticity The serial property is a well-preserved archaeological site that retains a high level of authenticity in relation to the Outstanding Universal Value. More than seventy years of excavation and research have revealed a remarkable quality, quantity and variety of archaeological remains with a high level of preservation. Work has been carried out to consolidate excavated structures throughout the Sardis component part. There is a substantial archive of archaeological reports and data, alongside significant artefact collections derived from Sardis. Nonetheless, some past actions have reduced the authenticity of the property, such as some of the reconstructions at Sardis, and looting of the tumuli at Bin Tepe. There are challenges to presenting the Lydian city because of the important structures and layers of archaeological material associated with later civilisations that inhabited it. The wider landscape setting connects the two component parts (and the features they contain) and underpins the authenticity in terms of their location and setting. Protection and management requirements All necessary measures for the protection of the archaeological site and its setting are in place. Each of the component parts is designated as a 1st and 3rd degree archaeological conservation areas by the Izmir No. 2 Regional Council for Conservation of Cultural Properties, ensuring their protection through the provisions of the national Law on the Conservation of Cultural and Natural Property No. 2863 (23 July 1983), as amended by Law No. 5226 (14 July 2004). In addition, some attributes in each of the component parts have been registered individually as cultural properties. Some portions in the southern part of the Sardis component part are not protected to the same level within the national laws. It is encouraged to align the 1st degree archaeological conservation areas with the boundaries of the component parts in future. The buffer zones and wider setting are designated as 3rd degree archaeological conservation areas by the Izmir No. 2 Regional Council for Conservation of Cultural Properties. This protection is also provided by the implementation of strategic national and regional plans, and through plans relating to specific locations. Many of these, including the mandatory regional conservation plans are currently in preparation. Regular maintenance of archaeological features is planned, implemented and monitored through the Sardis Expedition (Harvard Art Museums) conservation programme. A Site Management Plan has been developed to meet the future management needs of the component parts and buffer zones, and to coordinate efforts from many bodies, groups, and individuals. Visitor management actions are planned, as well as improvements to the interpretation of the Lydian elements and of the property as a whole.