Dramatic travertines, blindingly white, at Turkey's foremost mineral-bath spa, near the ruins of Hierapolis.

After Istanbul, we had planned to drive to Denzili to see the famous travertines of Pamukkale (Cotton Castle). But the distance was too far, so we flew instead, arriving at Denzili Cardak Airport by 8.00 am. We immediately went to a car hire firm at the airport run by a wonderful middle aged couple who gave us a fantastic rate and allowed us to return the vehicle in Goreme in Cappadoccia.

I had never heard the word “Travertines” before – they are dense banded rock composed of calcite or calcium carbonate. They are formed by the evaporation of river and spring waters. Actually, it’s a variety of limestone with lighter colour and excellent polish hence it’s often used for walls and interior decorations in buildings. The stunning white calcium pools, which cling to the side of a ridge, have long been one of the most famous picture postcard views of Turkey. They formed into natural pools, shelves and ridges which tourists could plunge and splash in the warm water.

Pamukkale lies 19 km north of Denzili and is Turkey's foremost mineral-bath spa because of its natural beauty: hot calcium-laden waters spring from the earth and cascade over a cliff. As they cool, they form these dramatic travertines pools. The town has been a spa since the Romans built the spa city of Hierapolis around a sacred warm-water spring. The Sacred Pool is still there, littered with marble columns from the Roman Temple of Apollo.

We parked in the large car park and started the walk up to the plateau at the top. From down below, one saw a line of people, like ants, walking at the very top ! There are three entrances to the top and you ca pay the fee at any one of them. When you stand below and look up, the glare from the pure white rock surfaces hits your eyes harshly and you are stunned by the sheer power of the whiteness.

Somewhere deep in the earth beneath Pamukkale and the ancient Roman city of Hierapolis (Holy City) lies a vast source of water heated by volcanic lava. The water dissolves pure white calcium, becomes saturated with it, and carries it to the earth's surface, where it bursts forth and runs down a steep hillside. Cooling in the open air, the calcium precipitates from the water, adheres to the soil, and forms white calcium "cascades" frozen in stone which have now become what we call travertines. 

The water has been bursting forth at Hierapolis/Pamukkale for more than two millennia. The Romans built the spa city of Hierapolis so citizens could come and enjoy the health benefits of the hot mineral water. The beauty of the travertines was just a bonus.

Ancient Hierapolis was apparently founded by King Eumenes II of Pergamon and its name is derived from Hiera, the wife of King Telephos, the legendary founder of Pergamon. The city came under Roman control in 133 BC. In 17 BC. during the reign of Tiberius, a major earthquake nearly destroyed the city and it was rebuilt. Preliminary excavations at Hierapolis were undertaken by a German team towards the end of the last century. Since 1957, excavation and restoration work has been going on under the direction of an Italian group of archaeologists from the University of Lecce.

The ancient city was strung out on either side of a long colonnaded street called the Plateia. Measuring 13 meters wide, this street ran north and south from the southern gateway to the Arch of Domitian in the north. It is paved with huge blocks of limestone. The first structure one encounters on reaching the plateau is the city baths; relatively well preserved. The Roman baths are 2^nd C AD. In the eastern part of the baths is a palaestra measuring around 36 x 52 meters. The palaestra essentially is a rectangular court surrounded by colonnades with adjoining rooms. These rooms might house a variety of functions: bathing, ball playing, undressing and storage of clothes, seating for socializing, observation, or instruction, and storage.

Immediately to the north and south of the palaestra are two big rooms that were reserved for the emperor and ceremonial use. A large hall stretches the length of the western side of the palaestra and this was the gymnasium used by athletes. This salon led into the frigidarium, ( a cold room in an ancient Roman bath). from which one proceeded to the barrel-vaulted rooms of the caldarium (a hot room in an ancient Roman bath).

 So, in effect they had the sauna system long before we even called it that !! 

A small room adjacent to the large hall now serves as a museum in which works discovered in the Hierapolis excavations are on display. Since Hierapolis was principally a luxury resort town it was richly adorned with magnificent sculptures and is well worth a visit.

There is a lot of walking involved. The travertines are in the front and the ruins in the rear. We walked along the main street and saw quite a few ruins. There were many Russian groups and the pool was especially full of them. 

The well preserved theater of Hierapolis commands a magnificent view of the plain below. Construction began in 62 AD by Flavius two years after a large earthquake, and completed in 206 AD. The original theater was located above the northern gate, but when the city was rebuilt during the reign of the Flavian emperors, the theater was relocated here, and the seats from the old structure were used in the work.  It once had a capacity of around 12,000, and adorned with columns and statues which were unearthed during excavations. 

On the backstage walls are marble bas-reliefs. Since the theater has been restored, it is now possible to see the friezes of mythological scenes depicting Apollo and Artemis in their original positions. Thirty rows of the seats of this theater resting against the slope have survived. Originally there were 20 rows in the lower part and 25 in the upper separated by a diazoma. The Martyrdom of St Philip is an octagonal building erected on a square measuring 20 x 20 m. It was built in the early 5th century. Even in its present state of ruin it is an impressive structure. The theatre is still the venue for the annual International Pamukkale Song Festival in June, during which 7,000 spectators can be seated. 

Apollion Temple near the Museum are the foundations of the Temple, constructed on the Plutonium spring and dedicated to Pluto, god of the underworld. It still gives off deadly poisonous gases and in front of the temple, a grate has been installed over the underground entrance to the spring to prevent inquisitive visitors. It was the site of an ancient religious cave, where Apollo met the mother goddess of Cybele, and sources suggest that she descended into the cave without being affected by the toxic fumes. The upper parts of the Temple date back to the 3rd century, and is accessible through a wide staircase. 

The travertine area is really huge – a few football fields wide. After removing one’s shoes, the water feels good on the soles of the feet. The pools are large and separated by natural ridges. 

Hotels were springing up from the 1970s to cater for the large influx of tourists, and shortly afterwards UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Site. But by the 1990s, this took its toll on the state of the calcium pools and restrictions were placed on these travertine terraces. Many hotels were knocked down, visitors are only allowed on major paths around the sites, and must remove footwear to stand on the calcium deposits. This seems to have been a successful move, as the water supply is now used for preservation and some of the damaged calcium deposits have been strengthened. 

We spent nearly the whole day there exploring, walking and eventually buying a really exquisite embroidered table cloth from a small shop near the bus stop. Wonders never cease – who expected to find such a hand crafted masterpiece in such a location. We drove onto to Faraliye for a couple of days after experiencing nature’s wonderful bounty of the travertines and the hot pools. 

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