Oylum Höyük: Bronze Age Palace Mound of Kilis

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1. What is Oylum Höyük?
2. How do you get to Oylum Höyük?
3. When is the best time to visit Oylum Höyük?
4. What is the history of Oylum Höyük?
5. What is Oylum Höyük famous for?
6. What can you see at Oylum Höyük?
7. Common misconceptions about Oylum Höyük
8. Frequently asked questions about Oylum Höyük
9. What do the official records say about Oylum Höyük?

What is Oylum Höyük?

Oylum Höyük is a large artificial mound near Kilis, built up over thousands of years by successive towns on the same spot. It lies on the routes between Anatolia, Syria and Mesopotamia, and the 2002 inventory describes it as a centre where those three cultures met, important not only for Anatolian archaeology but for the archaeology of the Near East as a whole.

For visitors, the mound itself is mainly a grassy hill with excavation trenches. Its interest lies in what has come out of it: a Middle Bronze Age palace destroyed by fire, the remains of people caught in that fire, olive stones around 4,000 years old and finds from the Hittite period. Just southwest of the mound is the 6th-century Mosaic Basilica, which has been roofed and arranged for visitors.

How do you get to Oylum Höyük?

Oylum Höyük is a short drive from Kilis town, close to the Syrian frontier; Hürriyet Daily News puts it about 3 km from the border. That places it within the 10 km zone where the UK Foreign Office advises against all travel, so check your government’s current advice before you go.

There is no public transport to the site. Go by car or taxi from Kilis, ideally with someone local who knows whether the excavation area is open. Gaziantep Airport is the nearest airport, and Gaziantep city is about an hour north.

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When is the best time to visit Oylum Höyük?

Spring and autumn are the most comfortable seasons. The excavation team usually works in the summer months, when you are more likely to see trenches open, but the mound has no shade and temperatures can reach 40°C. Go in the early morning if you visit in July or August.

What is the history of Oylum Höyük?

The 2002 inventory explains that the mound was settled in almost every period because of its strategic position. It shows certain occupation from the Copper Age (Chalcolithic) to the Hellenistic period. The Hittites, a major political power in the Middle Bronze Age, must have used Oylum Höyük on their southern campaigns, and Hittite archaeological finds have been recovered there.

The provincial culture and tourism directorate records that archaeological work in the Kilis area began in 1968, surface surveys were made in 1987 and 1988, and excavation began in 1989 with funding from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Hacettepe University. Later seasons have been led by Atilla Engin, first of Cumhuriyet University and later of Gaziantep University.

The most dramatic results come from the Middle Bronze Age levels. The team uncovered a large building they identify as a palace, with at least three storeys and a private section where the ruler lived with his family. It was destroyed in a severe fire, which Engin attributes to an attack, and the skeletons of two women around 3,900 years old were found in the burnt ruins. Houses and narrow streets surround it, and the dead were buried beneath the floors of houses. In 2018 the team reported olive stones about 4,000 years old together with basalt grinding stones, early evidence for olive-oil production in the region.

What is Oylum Höyük famous for?

• Size. It is regularly described as one of the largest mounds in southeastern Anatolia.
• The burnt palace. A Middle Bronze Age palace destroyed by fire, with its victims still inside.
• Ancient olive oil. Olive stones about 4,000 years old, fitting the province’s reputation for oil today.
• The mosaic basilica. A 6th-century church floor next to the mound, now a covered open-air site.

What can you see at Oylum Höyük?

The mound. A broad, steep-sided hill rising above the olive groves. From the top you can see across the plain towards the border.

Excavation trenches. Depending on the season, sections of the Bronze Age palace and houses may be exposed. Much of the palace is still underground, and the team has spoken of plans to protect it and eventually create an open-air museum on the mound.

The Mosaic Basilica. Southwest of the mound, a three-aisled church of the 6th century with a floor of geometric mosaic in coloured stone, under a steel roof. See our Mosaic Basilica guide.

Finds in museums. Objects from the excavations are kept in regional museums; ask at the Kilis Museum in the old Sabunhane about what is on display.

Common misconceptions about Oylum Höyük

Has Oylum Höyük been proved to be Abraham’s lost city?

What people often assume: In 2013 Turkish and international news outlets reported that the “lost city” where the Prophet Abraham lived had been found at Oylum Höyük, identified as the Bronze Age kingdom centre of Ullis.

What the record says: The excavation director proposed the link, but said at the time that the team was still working on it and that more evidence was needed. No proof has been published that settles the question, so the Abraham connection remains a hypothesis (source).

Frequently asked questions about Oylum Höyük

What do the official records say about Oylum Höyük?

It is a very large mound located between Anatolia, Syria and Mesopotamia. Standing in a strategic position, the mound was settled in almost every period, and for this reason it is of great archaeological importance. As a centre where these three cultures intersect, it matters not only for Anatolian archaeology but also for the archaeology of the Near East. The Hittites, an important political power in the Middle Bronze Age, must have used Oylum Höyük on their southern campaigns, and for this reason archaeological finds belonging to the Hittites have been recovered from the mound.

With the excavations at Oylum Höyük, which shows certain settlement from the Copper (Chalcolithic) Age to the Hellenistic period, the history of the Near East is being illuminated as well as the history of the region. (Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Kilis Provincial Tourism Inventory, 2002)