Turkey, Italy Ministers Highlight 70-Year Hierapolis Partnership

Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy and Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli met in Pamukkale on October 13 to review bilateral heritage projects. The ministers attended the opening of the 17th Italian Archaeological Missions Symposium at the ancient city of Hierapolis.

Ersoy said the symposium exemplifies a new cooperation model that moves beyond excavation to include conservation, restoration, visitor management, museology, scientific publication and community engagement. He noted that Italian teams have worked at Hierapolis for 70 years and that Turkish scholars from Pamukkale University now join them under the "Heritage for the Future" project.

“Archaeology is no longer just about uncovering a structure or a find; the process that begins with excavation is now handled together with conservation, restoration, environmental planning, visitor management, museology, scientific publication and meeting with the community.”

The Italian ambassador to Ankara, Giuseppe Manzo, Denizli Governor Yavuz Selim Köşger and local officials also joined the talks. A planned concert was cancelled due to heavy rain.

Ersoy described Denizli as one of Turkey's most active provinces for archaeological research and stressed that international partnerships should strengthen Turkish scientific capacity rather than operate independently.