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Pessinus and the Historic Town of Sivrihisar
Cultural

Pessinus and the Historic Town of Sivrihisar

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Driving along the road between Ankara and Eskişehir, sharp, dark rocks suddenly appear on the horizon; it is these rocks that give the district its name.

Sivrihisar, Eskişehir
Cultural
Radar Editör
October 15, 2026

About Trip

Driving along the road between Ankara and Eskişehir, sharp, dark rocks suddenly appear on the horizon; it is these rocks that give the district its name. Sivrihisar Municipality writes that the town was founded at the foot of a volcanic rock mass that is an extension of Çal Dağı, and that it took the name Sivrihisar, the pointed fortress, from the pointed crags rising into the sky. This trip begins with the ancient city of Pessinus south of the town, then wanders around Sivrihisar itself with its historic houses, its clock tower and its museums.

A crossing point

According to the municipality, Sivrihisar is the largest district of Eskişehir by area. It lies about 100 kilometres from Eskişehir and 135 kilometres from Ankara, on the road linking Ankara, Eskişehir and İzmir; in other words, right in the middle of the passage between Central Anatolia and the Aegean. Most of the district is plain, and its most important river is the Sakarya. Winters are cold and snowy, summers hot and dry.

Its history goes back a very long way. The municipality writes that the painted rock pictures identified by the Eskişehir Archaeology Museum Directorate at the Hisarönü and Balkayası locality show that the area has been settled since prehistoric times, since the Chalcolithic Age. In the Byzantine period the town was known by the names Palia, Spalia and Justinianopolis, and its walls were strengthened in the time of Emperor Justinian I. Sivrihisar came under Seljuk rule in 1074; in the Ottoman period it was a district attached to Ankara, and with the administrative reorganisation of 1915 it was attached to Eskişehir. Occupied during the War of Independence, the town was liberated on 20 September 1921.

Going to Pessinus

The first stop of the trip is 13 kilometres south of the town, in the village of Ballıhisar. The Culture Portal and the provincial culture directorate write that Pessinus was founded on the old Royal Road and that the village now stands on top of the ancient city. The English Wikipedia notes that the city lies in a side valley opening onto the Sakarya River, at an altitude of about 950 metres. Ballıhisar is a short drive from Sivrihisar; you will need a car for the whole trip.

In antiquity Pessinus was known as one of the most important cult centres of the Phrygian mother goddess Cybele. The provincial directorate relates that a black stone, very probably a meteorite, was regarded here as the goddess's emblem fallen from the sky, and that the Romans, in their war against Carthage, carried this stone to Rome in 204 BC and honoured it under the name Magna Mater, the Great Mother. The geographer Strabo also describes Pessinus as one of the largest trading centres of the region.

There is a marked difference between the sources about the city's origin. The Culture Portal, relying on ancient authors, writes that the city was founded in the 8th century BC by the semi legendary Phrygian king Midas. The English Wikipedia, however, states that archaeological research since 1967 shows the city developed around 400 BC at the earliest, and that its Phrygian past remains obscure. It is therefore right to read the Midas tradition as a legend and what the excavations have revealed as the documented history of the city.

What to see at the site

The most impressive remains visitors see today are in the temple area. The Culture Portal writes that the magnificent temple of the city was begun after the death of Emperor Augustus and completed in the reign of Tiberius. The English Wikipedia, drawing on research by Ghent University, reports that the building was a Corinthian temple surrounded by columns, that only its massive foundations survive today, and that recent research identifies it not as a temple of Cybele but as a building dedicated to the imperial cult. Charles Texier, who found the foundations in 1834, had taken it for the temple of Cybele. The large cut stone foundations in the cover photograph convey the scale of this building well.

In front of the temple stretches a theatre shaped area in which spectator seating flanks a central staircase on both sides; the same source points to traces suggesting that spectacles were held here. The colonnaded square in front of the theatre is thought to have been a sports and education building of the Hellenistic period, built at the end of the 2nd century BC. The provincial directorate writes that in the Hellenistic age the temple was repaired and a council building, a stoa, a canal, a theatre and roads were built. Because the Royal Road passing through the city was safe and direct, it was also used in Roman and Byzantine times; remains of the road can still be seen near the ancient city.

The story of the excavations is a long one. Ghent University in Belgium began excavations in 1967 and continued them at intervals until 2008; according to the Culture Portal, the excavations between 2009 and 2013 were conducted by the University of Melbourne in Australia. Besides the temple, the excavations uncovered workshops, houses, an agora and a council building. In 1988, with the support of the Eskişehir Governorship and the contribution of the Eskişehir ETİ Archaeology Museum, an open air museum was set up in the village. Part of the stone finds is displayed in this garden and small pieces in a single storey building; the other finds are in the museum in Eskişehir. Walk slowly around the temple foundations and be sure to stop at the open air display.

Back to town and the clock tower

Back in Sivrihisar from Ballıhisar, make your first task the climb to the town's symbol, the Clock Tower. The provincial directorate writes that the tower was built in 1899 by the district governor of the time, Mahmut Bey, and set on a high rock mass so that it could be seen from every part of the town. The cut stone tower has a clock on each of its four faces; it runs on weekly winding and strikes the hours with a brass hammer. The municipality notes that from the viewing terrace around the tower you can take in a bird's eye view of the town's historic houses and crags, and that the view at sunrise and sunset in particular draws photographers.

Historic houses and the Zaim Ağa Mansion

On the way down from the tower, wander through the historic streets. The municipality likens Sivrihisar, one of the rare settlements to have preserved its old urban fabric to a large extent, to an open air museum of historic houses. The best known of these houses is the Zaim Ağa Mansion. According to the municipality, the two storey mansion in a large garden has a half storey basement beneath it; the walls of the basement and ground floor are of rubble stone, while the upper floors are timber framed with brick and mud brick infill. Entered from the street by a two way staircase faced with reused marble, the mansion has an inner hall plan with rooms placed at the corners, built in divans, bedding cupboards and carved wooden doors. The small squares and stylised pinwheel motifs on the battened ceilings are a fine example of the woodwork of the period. The mansion also entered history as the place where the Council of Ministers met for the first time outside Ankara, on 24 March 1922.

The Ulu Camii in the town is a historic timber columned building that was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2023.

The Kilim Museum and the culture house

To see Sivrihisar's weaving tradition, stop at the Kilim Museum. The municipality writes that the former municipal service building was completed in September 2019 as Türkiye's first hands on kilim museum and opened to visitors in 2020. The two storey museum of about 600 square metres has two exhibition halls and 42 display areas; its inventory was built up through more than a year of fieldwork in Sivrihisar and other parts of Eskişehir. Motifs taken from Sivrihisar kilims are worked into the timber of the museum's facade. Most importantly, here you can watch women weaving kilims on the looms known as ıstar and the younger generation learning the craft. The municipality highlights the five chimney kilim and the pearl earring among the district's handicrafts.

The municipality's Nasreddin Hoca Culture House was also restored and opened in 2020. In a house reflecting traditional mansion architecture, local customs, daily life, handicrafts, regional costume and food culture are presented in themed sections. According to the municipality, the house also introduces the life and witticisms of Nasreddin Hoca, the master of humour born in 1208 in the Hortu quarter of Sivrihisar. The Hoca's anecdotes, built on tolerance and common sense, are among the best loved parts of Anatolian folk culture, and every year in early June the town holds festivities in his name.

The sculpture garden and the surroundings

On the rocky slopes of the town lies the Open Air Sculpture Garden created by the sculptor Metin Yurdanur. The municipality writes that more than a hundred sculptures made by the artist in different periods are displayed in this area, which blends with the natural rock formations. Alongside well known figures of Turkish history and culture, the works include anonymous heroes such as Anatolian women carrying ammunition by ox cart and miners. Walking through the garden in the late afternoon, as the colour of the rocks changes, makes a fine end to the day.

For those with time and curiosity there are two extra stops. South of the village of Böğürtlen stands a Phrygian facade carved into the rock mass called Balkayası; according to the provincial directorate, unlike similar monuments, the geometric decoration on its pediment and front was done in dark red paint. Balıkdamı Bird Sanctuary, about 40 kilometres south of the town, is a wetland of about 30 thousand decares made up of small ponds and extensive reed beds; the provincial directorate describes it as one of the most important resting places for migratory birds.

Practical notes

Check current visiting hours for the Pessinus site, the open air museum and the museums and mansions in town on the pages of the Eskişehir Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism and Sivrihisar Municipality. In Ballıhisar the archaeological site and the village are intertwined, so be quiet when passing in front of houses. The path up to the Clock Tower is steep and stony; wear comfortable shoes. Spring and autumn are the best seasons; at summer noon there is little shade at the site. If you want to buy a kilim or earrings in town, be a buyer who appreciates the value of handwork.

Sources

Location - Pessinus and the Historic Town of Sivrihisar

Trip Info
CitySivrihisar, Eskişehir
TypeCultural
DateOctober 15, 2026
SourceRadar Editör
Radar TürkiyeAuthorRadar TürkiyeVisit SourceGet Directions