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Ankara was an important Roman town
(Ankyra) and has the artifacts to prove
it.
The great Temple of Augustus
and Rome is
now fairly ruined, but still imposing.
The Column of Julian commemorates
a visit of that Roman emperor to
the city, and ruins of Roman
baths remain as well.
All of these remnants are near Ulus
Square (Metro:
Ulus) in the northern part
of the city near the Citadel,
which also has bits of Roman history
in its walls (map).
From
Ulus Square, with
its equestrain statue of Kemal
Atatürk as victorious
commander of the Turkish
Republican armies,
walk uphill, then turn left and walk
north along a sunken portion of old Roman
road to the Column
of Julian (362
AD) by the Ankara Vilayet (provincial
government
headquarters) buildings.
Keep walking uphill, then turn left
and climb the stairs to the Hacı
Bayram Camii, a
popular mosque built beside the tomb
of the
Muslim
saint Hacı
Bayram Veli (1400s).
Right beside the mosque is the
Temple of Augustus and Rome,
with several of the high walls of
its cella
still
standing, and bits of fluted column
drum scattered through the precinct.
A plaque explains (in Turkish and
English) the history of the temple:
it was apparently built on the
site of an earlier (25-20 BC) temple
to
the Anatolian fertility goddess Kybele (Cybele)
and the Egyptian phallic god Men.
Walk downhill to Çankiri Caddesi,
the northern continuation of Atatürk
Bulvarı and the main thoroughfare heading
north. Cross to the west side and walk
north for several blocks to find the
remains of Ankara's Roman baths—not
much to look at these days unless you're
fascinated by bath ruins.
The Column of Julian is
open all the time, for free. For the Temple
of Augustus and Rome and the Roman
baths, there are visiting
hours and a small fee.
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