Anatolia, the peninsula that lays in the mid-south of Eurasia, constitutes a large part of the modern day Turkey. In history, Anatolia hosted the main basis of three Empires (Hittites, Eastern Roman Empire and the Ottomans) and various other states and peoples that deeply affected the contemporary civilization (Troy, Ephesus, Gordion, Constantinople, Luvis, Amazons, Crusaders, Seljuks and so on). The home-town of Abraham, seven of the first Churches of Christianity and monumental mosques of various Islamic periods are also rooted in Anatolia. Anatolia is the home-ground of the first temple ever-constructed, the first coin ever-minted, first wine ever-fermented and the first cereals that were tamed and man-planted. It is therefore that Anatolia is rightfully referred to as an “open-air museum and a cradle of civilizations”

Given Anatolia’s unique position in the common cultural heritage of a large segment of the world, it is of no surprise that even on the other cross-end of Eurasia, archaeology of Anatolia/Turkey raises awareness.

In this regard, the Embassy of Turkey is pleased to announce an International Conference, organized and hosted by the Department of Archaeology, Conservation and History at the University of Oslo, between 8-11 October, 2013, at the Cultural Centre Isegran at Fredrikstad, south of Oslo.

The theme of the conference is “Life and Death in Ancient Societies: Asia Minor in the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine Times”. University of Oslo has invited scholars from the natural sciences and the humanities, to discuss how to integrate mortuary and funerary data in order to achieve meaningful interpretations of the past. The participants are expected from Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sweden, USA, and Turkey.

For further information on the cultural heritage of Turkey, please visit:

http://www.goturkey.com