The ancient Greek city of Aspendos, located in modern-day Turkey, is perhaps most famous for its grand amphitheater and intricate aqueducts. New findings now suggest that sports—possibly wrestling—might have been part of the spectacle on display at Aspendos. Recently, authorities affiliated with Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism found a previously unknown necropolis, or an ancient cemetery, in the eastern part of Aspendos. Investigations turned up a box-type tomb made of stone slabs, dated to between the 5th and 4th centuries BCE. Inside, researchers found a single individual buried with coins depicting wrestling. Although further analyses are in order, as of now, the team believes this person could have been an athlete and perhaps even a wrestler. The Ministry announced the findings in a statement yesterday. “Aspendos coins with depictions of wrestlers and other finds found in the tomb indicate that the person buried here may have been involved in sports, perhaps even a wrestler from Aspendos,” Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, minister of culture and tourism, said in the statement (translated via Google).
An ancient settlement Aspendos was founded by Greek migrants around 1,000 BCE. The city’s ideal location near the Eurymedon River helped it thrive economically, according to a report on the site by UNESCO. The Aspendos amphitheater and aqueducts are some of the most intact monuments of their type in the world and have accordingly allowed archaeologists to study the cultural and engineering history of the region.
