•Among the 4 most important settlement areas under the reign of the kingdom of Commagene.
•It is named for the bridge of boats (zeugma) which crossed the Euphrates there.
•Originally founded by Seleucos I Nicator, one of the generals of Alexander in 300 BC. King Seleucos almost certainly named the city Seleuceia after himself. At its peak, it had 80,000 people. In 64 BC conquered by Romans, named changed into Zeugma. City on the Silk road connecting Antioch to China, of great commercial importance
•In 265 invasion by Sassanid king Shapur I destroyed it fully, not able to recover, An earthquake followed buried the city beneath rubble. The city never regained prosperity as during the roman times
•Due to Arab raids of 6th cent. city abandoned again
•Village Belkis founded in 17th cent.
•During roman times, it was home to high ranking officials and officers, beautiful art in the form of steles, rock reliefs, statures and altars. Became rich
•At Iskele ustu, 65,000 seal imprints (in clay, known as Bulla) were found in a place which is believed to serve as the archives for the customs of ancient Zeugma. Imprints were used in saling papyrus, parchment, moneybags and customs bales : lots of trade
•Recent excavations and the Legacy of ancient Zeugma
•1987 : frescoes revealed by smugglers
•1992 : watchman reported illegal activity, trench dug by smugglers. Museum team uncovered a villa with magnificent mosaic pavements
•this 1st cent. roman villa consisted of galleries around an atrium with 8 columns and rooms. The mosaic was the marriage of Dionysos to Ariadne. Sadly 6 of the figures portrayed were stolen in 1998.
•Mosaic fragments discovered during construction of the Birecik Dam wall that commenced in 1996, Museum halted the work to excavate. Roman bath and Gymnasium with 36 mosaic panels
•On the clay quarry area in front of the dam wall a large Bronze Age cemetery discovered. 8,000 pottery vessels were found in 320 graves.
•Salvage operations carried out by Nantes Univ.
•Mosaic with the head of Dionysos and Oceanos and Tethys with sea creatures
•Minos bull
•A fountain with its own tank at a depth of 3 m
•Marble figure of Apollo
•9 figures depicting Achilles being taken by Odysseus to fight in the Troyan War
•bronze statue of Mars found among storage jars
•altogether 17 mosaic pavements with walls decorated with colourful frescoes
•ancient Birtha (Roman) and Macedonopolis (religious see) prob. coincide with Zeugma
•bishop of Macedonopolis attended the council of Chalcedon (451 AD)
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