Bodrum Kent TV have reported
on a presentation to BODTO, the Bodrum Chamber of Commerce, by Prof Mustafa Şahin,
the lead archaeologist, working on the Myndos excavations at Gümüşlük.
During the presentation,
which detailed the work to date, the Professor stated that results from a series
of geophysical surveys identified features below the present ground surface
which indicted that footings, wall lines and roadways of the ancient city still
remain, relatively undisturbed, across a large area of the site, furthermore
recent research suggested that the site may be much older than originally
thought.
Prof Şahin went to say
that once the excavations were completed the site could offer a huge boost to
the local tourist trade, increasing the season from 3 to 10 months; however it
would take many years to complete the excavations under the present regime where
the work was limited to a short period each year during the University summer
recess.
When asked by a local councillor
how much it would cost to employ a team to work on the site for 12 months a
year Prof Şahin estimated a cost of 400 – 500 thousand Turkish Lira (approx 174,000
to 217,000 US $) per annum.
Whilst this may seem a large
sum, Prof Şahin described how the archaeology team excavating the site of Laodicea
(on the Lycus) near the village Eskihisar in the province of Denizli receive an
annual budget of 1.5 million TL.
It’s not clear from the
article if the professor was attempting to secure funding from individual
members of the chamber of commerce or if he was soliciting the chamber’s support
to lobby the Bodrum / Muğla Municipalities for additional funding.
