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The Underground Cities of Cappadocia
Derinkuyu isn’t the only underground city in Cappadocia. In fact, it’s said to be just one of over 200 underground safe havens that have been discovered carved into the volcanic ash rock, which include Kaymakli near Nevsehir and Mazi near Urgup. Some claim that residents at Derinkuyu could visit other underground cities via an immense tunnel network.
As recently as 2015, National Geographic reported the discovery of yet another underground city under a hilltop castle in Nevşehir during the construction of a local housing project. Rivalling Derinkuyu in size, “the site appears to have been a large, self-sustaining complex with air shafts and water channels.” Initial surveys conducted by Nevşehir University appeared to conclude that the site was 113 meters (371 ft) deep and covered five million square feet (460,000 square meters), making it bigger than Derinkuyu.

Who Built the Underground City of Derinkuyu?
Until recently the origin and purpose of the city were unknown. According to the Turkish Department of Culture, the city was built 2,800 years ago in the 8th century BC by the Indo-European Phrygians. It was later enlarged during the Byzantine era, probably by the Christians whom historians believe used it as a hiding place to avoid persecution.
The church that exists in the lowest floor may verify this theory. As recently as the 20th century, it was also used as a place to escape persecution during the Ottoman Empire. Culture Trip explains that the underground city was abandoned from 1923 with the expelling of Christians by the Turkish government and was only rediscovered in the 1960s.

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