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Kayseri

City in TürkiyeKayseri stands on the high plateau of Central Anatolia, about 1,050 m above sea level, at the northern foot of Mount Erciyes, a dormant volcano that rises to 3,917 m.

What it's known for

Kayseri has been the historical capital of Cappadocia since ancient times. It grew up where trade routes crossed, a place where merchants gathered to form caravans. It is a major furniture-making centre and is known across Türkiye for pastırma, sucuk and mantı.

Fun facts

  1. Its ancient name was Mazaca; in 14 AD it was renamed Caesarea in honour of the Roman emperor Augustus, and the Turks later turned Caesarea into Kayseri.
  2. About 20 km northeast of the city is Kültepe, ancient Kanesh, where Assyrian merchants left some 23,500 clay tablets, the oldest written documents found in Anatolia.
  3. The great Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan was born in Ağırnas, a small town near Kayseri.

Finding it on the globe

Start at Ankara and go southeast: Kayseri is near the very middle of Türkiye, both from east to west and from north to south.

Sources: Wikipedia: Kayseri, Wikipedia: Mount Erciyes, Wikipedia: Kültepe, Wikipedia: Mimar Sinan