Page 54 - Журнал «Русский Берег» #14-2022

ПРОГНОЗЫ | PREDICTION RUSSIAN COAST | № 6/14 2022

UNDERGROUND CITIES OF CAPPADOCIA
Another mystical place in Turkey is underground megacities connected by
endless tunnels. They consist of dozens of tiers with a huge number of living
quarters. There are cities that can accommodate 20,000 people, they have
many ventilation shafts, hearths for winter heating, wells for collecting water,
places for growing vegetables, warehouses for provisions ... All this is located
Then the story becomes sad. Shahmeran fell in love on the floors going down. It was as if huge twenty-story skyscrapers were turned
with the young man, but over time, the guy got bored deep into the earth.
and wanted to return home. The queen did not hold Researchers attribute the creation of the underground cities of Cappadocia
back her lover, but finally bit him - so that he would to the II-I millennium BC. But there are suggestions that multi-storey tiers
remember the promise not to tell about the road to underground existed five thousand years ago. What race built them is unknown
her kingdom. For many years no one knew about his - no traces of it were found in the excavations. But the presence of narrow
journey. But it so happened that the ruler of the country tunnels and cramped passages suggests that the mysterious creatures were much
fell ill. To recover, the Sultan needed a decoction from ... smaller than ordinary people. Their ability to solve complex technical problems
the body of the queen of snakes. To find Shahmeran, the in the construction of dungeons speaks of high intelligence. Where did they
authorities under the leadership of the vizier conducted disappear to? Perhaps they came to the surface and got lost among us? Or have
a whole investigation. As a result, the secret of the road you gone deeper to avoid meeting people? There is no scientific confirmation
to the snake kingdom was revealed, and the queen of conjectures, but the Cappadocians themselves have no doubt that the first
was captured. Before her death, she taught the young inhabitants of the underground cities were gnomes.
man how to prepare and how to drink the potion from The largest underground settlement in Cappadocia is located under the village
her own body. Shakhmeran ordered him to drink the of Derinkuyu near Nevsehir. The name translates as "deep well". In such a city
decoction himself. The young man complied. Drinking there was everything, as in settlements on the surface of the earth - living rooms
brought death to the vizier, the ruler recovered. The guy and barns, schools and churches, assembly halls and kitchens, bakeries and
after a sip of the broth received all the knowledge of workshops. Even cattle, and he lived underground, in the spacious rooms of
Shahmeran. He became a healer, and the Sultan made the upper floors. At the slightest danger, people went down through a complex
him his vizier. system of stairs and closed the exits with huge stone rounds. It was possible
Myths about the mystical creature Shahmeran to open such exits only with considerable effort. But even once inside the
(Shahmaran) in Turkish culture are reflected in art - the underground labyrinths, the enemies could not pursue the locals for a long time -
image of a snake woman with a crown on her head they were better oriented in the passages and mines.
can be found in Mardin on souvenirs and posters, in Eight tiers of Derinkuyu are open to tourists, where you can wander through
sculpture - in Tarsus (Mersin province) you will be shown the tunnels lit by electric lamps, go down steep stairs, sit down on stone
a pool with a statue of Shahmeran the Snake King . The benches and couches carved into the walls. Imagine yourself as a resident of
first episode of the new Turkish series Shahmaran will be an underground city, moving away from enemies in the pitch darkness of an
released on Netflix in January 2023. underground labyrinth - down to the center of the earth.

The largest underground settlement in Cappadocia is located under the village

of Derinkuyu near Nevsehir. The name translates as "deep well".

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