THE LOCATION OF CAPPODACIA
Strabon, a writer of antiuety, descripes the borders of the Cappadocıan Region, in his 17 volume book '' Geographika'' ( Geopraphy-Anatolia XII.XIII, XIV ) written during the reign of Roman Emperor Agustus.Cappadocia was discribed as a very large area surrounded by Taurus Mountains in the south, by Aksaray in the west,Malatya in the east and all the way uo to the Black Sea coast in the north.Trough, present day Cappadocia is the area covered by the city provinces of Nevşehir, Aksaray, Niğde, Kayseri and Kırşehir.The smaller rocky region of  Cappadocia is the area around Uçhisar, Göreme, Avanos, Ürgüp, Derinkuyu, Kaymaklı and Ihlara.



VOLKANIC ERUPTIONS AND GEOLOGICAL FORMATIONS
Rock Structures
Mount Erciyes Hasandağ and Göllüdağ were active volcanoes in the gelogical perionds. Alongside with many other valcanoes, eruptions of these volcanoes started in the Early Miocene (10 million years ago) and have continued until the present day.
The lava produced by these volcanoes, under the Neogen lakes, formed a layer of tufa on the plateaus which waried in hardness and was between 100 and 150m thick. Other substances in the layer are ignimbrite, soft tufa, tufa, lahar, asy, clay, sandstone,marn, Basalt and other agglomerates.
Plateaus, having been essentially shaped with the lava from the bigger volcanoes, were continuously altered with the eruptions of smaller volcanoes.Starting in the Early Pliocene Period, the rivers in the area, especially Kızılırmak (the Red Rıver), and local lakes contibuted to the erosion of this layer of tufa stone,eventually giving the areaist present day shape.

Formation of fairy Chimneys
The interesting rock formations, known as '' fairy chimneys'',have been formed as the result of the erosion of this tufa layer, sculpted by wind and flood water, runnig down on the slopes of the valleys. Water has found its way through the valleys creating craks and ruptures in the hard rock. The softer, easily erodable material underneath has been gradually swept away reseding the slopes and in this way, cönical formations protected with basalt caps have been created. The fairy chimneys with caps, mainly found in the vicinity of Ürgüp, have a conical shaped body and a boulder on top of it. The cone is constructed from tufa and volcanic ash, while the cap is of hard, more resistant rock such as lahar or ignimbrite.Various types of fairy chimneys, are found in Cappadocia. Among these are those with caps, cones, mushroom like forms, columns and pointed rocks.
Fairy chimneys are generally found in the valleys of the Uçhisar-Ürgüp-Avanos triangle, between Ürgüp and Şahinefendi, around the town of çat in Nevşehir, in the Soğanlı valley in Kayseri, and in the village of Selime in Aksaray.
Another characteristic feature of the area are the sweeping curves and patterns on the sides of the valleys, formed by rainwater. These lines of sedimentation exposed by erosion display a range of hues. The array of color seen on some of the valleys is due to the diffrence in heat of the lava layers .Such patterns can be seen in Uçhisar, Çavuşin / Güllüdere,Göreme/ Meskendir, Ortahisar/ kızılçukur and Pancarlık valleys.



CAPPADOCIA IN THE PREHISTORIC PERIODS
Prehistoric Period
Evidence of Prehistoric cultures in Cappadocia can most easily be found around köşkhöyük/ Niğde, Aşıklıhöyük/ Aksaray and in the Civelek cave near  Nevşehir.
Excavation in these three areas are still taking place.

Civelek Cave
Civelek cave is in the vicinity of civelek village, which is situated 4km west of Gülşehir, in the province of Nevşehir.
The cave is found in the hill known as Gurlek Hill.
Access can be gained by means of a galery which extends downwards for 14 m to the limestone cave.There are many calcite crystal stalagtites, between 5and 15 cm in length, hanging from the sections of the cave ceiling, the main part of which is 22 by 11 m.During excavations carried out by Nevşehir Museum and cave experts from ıtaly, hand made cups,cooking pots of various sizes, spindles and tolls made from stone and bone dating from the Chalcolithic Period ( 5500-3000 BC) were unearthed from the floor of the cave and especially among the collapsed rocks. In addition to this, surface excavations in the surrounding caves unearthed tools made from obsidian and flint. In an attempt to preserve it, Civelek cave is closed to visitors.

Aşıklı Höyük ( mound )
Archaelogical excavations discovered the first brick living quarters in Cappadocia in Asikli Höyük ( mound), an extension of Aksaray' Ihlara Valley settlements. Yellow and pink clay plaster was used in making the walls and floors of the houses, some of the most beautiful and complicated architectural exampless of  fırst  towns.
They buried the dead in the Hocker position, like a fetus in the womp, on the floor of their houses. According to Prof. U. Esin, who researched at Aşıklı Höyük, a population greater that had been previously theorized is revealed by the abundance and density of the settlements in these areas in the Aceramic Neolitic Period, No where else in Anatolia can the unique obsidian tools be found like those from Cappadocian Mound.Figurines, made from lightly baked clay, were unearthed together with flat stone axes wrought in many fine shapes, chisesls and coulters made from copper, ageta and other different kinds of stones. Evidence provided by a skeleton found here indicates thet the earliest brain surgery ( trepanation ) known
in the world was performed on a woman 20-25 years ofage at aşıklı Höyük.Köşk Höyük ( mound )
During excavations at Köşk Höyük, in the vicinity of Niğde, tools and weapones made from obsidian, silica, stone and bone have been found.The most important artifact to be found at this site is the mother goddess statuettes bellonging to the Neolithic and Chalcolithic ages In that age in Anatolia, the Mother Goddes statue, representing abundance and fertility, was both important and widespread.

CAPPADOCIA IN THE HISTORIC PERIODS
Pro-Hittite and Assrian Trade Colenies Periods ( 3000BC-1750BC )
Mining reached its peak of development in Anatolia during the Early Bronze  Age.
Major developments were observed in Northern Anatolia towards the end of this period.
Between 2000BC and 1750BC Assyrian merchants from Northern Mesopotamia formed the first commercial organizations by establishing trade colonies in Anatolia.
The center of these colonies was at Kanesh Kharum near Kültepe in Kayseri province. Another important commercial market place referred in documents is the Kharum Hattush  at Boğazköy.
Anatolia was rich in gold, silver and copper, but lacked tin, essential for the manufacturing of bronze as an alloy. For this reason tin was one of the major trading materials, as well as textile goods and perfumes. The merchants had no political dominance, but were protected by the reginol Beys.
Fortunately for the Assyrian merchants, writing was seen for the first time in Anatolia. From the '' Cappadocia tablets'', cuneiform clay tablets on wich ancient Assyrian was written, it has been learned that merchants paid a 10 % road tax to the Bey, received a 5 % tax to the Anatolian kings for goods they sold. The same tablets tell us that they sometimes married Anatolian women, and the marriage agreements contanied clauses to protect the women from their husbands.
Assyrian merchants also introduced cylinder seals, metallurgy, their religious beliefs Goods and temples to Anatolia. Native Anatolian art flourished under the influence of Assyrian Mesopotamıc art, eventually developing an identity of its own. During the following ages this developed into the fundamentals oh Hittite art.

Hittite period ( 1750-1200BC )
The Hittites, coming from  Europa via the Causcasus, and setting in Cappodacia around 2000BC, formed an Empire in the region merging with the native people of the area. Their language was of Indo-European origin. The capital of the Hittite kingdom was at Hattushash (Boğazköy), and the other important cities were Alacahöyük and Alisar. In the Cappadocia region, engraved stone monuments dating back from the Imperial period can be found near water sources and strategic routes. By means of these rock monuments the routes used by the Hittite kings to reach the southern countries can be determined. Within the borders of Kayseri, located to the south of Mount Erciyes, are the rock monuments of Franktin, Taşçı and İmamkulu, serving several purposes; they were intented to venerate the goods, to show the gratitute of the great King ( Hattusili III ) and queen ( Puduhepa ) to the Goods; as well as to show the extent of the Empire' s power.

Late Hittite Kingdom ( 1200-700BC )
After the Phrypians destroyed all the important towns in central Anatolia eliminating the Hittite Empire, fragments of the late Hittite Kingdoms sprang up around central and Southeast Anatolia.
The late Hittite Kingdom in Cappadocia was the Tabal kingdom which extended ower Kayseri, Nevşehir and Niğde. Rock monuments from thisage, with Hittite hieroglyphics can be found at Gülşehir-Sivasa ( Gökçetoprak ), Acıgöl-Topada, and Hacıbektaş- Karaburna.

Persian Period and The kingdom of Cappadocia (585BC-332BC)
The Cimmerians ended the Phrygian reign in Anatolia, and were then followed by the Medes (585BC). The Persians divided the empire into semi autonomous provinces as ''Satraps'', In the ancient Persian language, Katpaduka, the word for Cappadocia , meant ''Land of the well bred horses''. Since the regilion they were devoted to was the Zoroastrian religion and fire was considered to be divine, the volcanoes in the area, Erciyes and Hasandağ were sacred for them.
The Persians constructed a ''Royal Road'' connecting their capital city to the Aegean region passing through Cappadacio.The Macedonian King Alexander defeated Persian armies twice, in 334 and 332 B.C., and conquered this great Empire.
After bringing the Persian empire to an end, King Alexander met with great resistance in Cappodacia. When Alexander tried to rule the region through one of his commanders named Sabictus, the people resisted and declared Ariarthes, a Persian aristocrat, king. As an industrious ruler, Ariarythes I (332-332B.C.) extended the borders of the Cappadocian kingdom.
The kingdom of Cappadocia lived in peace until the death of Alexander. From then until 17 AD, when it became a Roman province, it fought wars with the Macedonians, the Galatians, the Pontus nation and the Romans.

Roman Period ( 17AD-395AD )
The wars came to an end in 17AD when Tiberius conquered Cappodacia and placed it under Roman rule. After the conquest, the Romans reconstructed the road to the west which was of both commercial  and military significance. During the Roman era the area saw maney migrations and attacks from the east. The area was defended by Roman military units know as '' Legions''.
During the reign of Emperor Septimus Severus Cappodacia's economy flourished, but later the capital, Kayseri (Caesara) was attacked by Sansanid armies from İran.
Emperor Gordianus III ordered the construction of defensive city walls.
During this time some of the first Christians were moving from the big cities to villages. In the 4th century, when Kayseri was a flourishing religious centre, the rocky surroundings of Göreme were discovered and adopting the teachings of St.Basil, Bishop of Caesarea (Kayseri), the Christians began to lead a monastic life in the carved out cliffs and fairy chimneys of Cappodacia.

Byzantine Period ( 397AD-1071AD )
When the Roman Empire divided into west and east, Cappodacia fell under the Eastern Roman Empire. In the early 7th century there were severe wars between the Sassanid and Byzantine armies, and for 6 or 7 years the Sassanids held the area, In 651 Caliph Omer ended the domination of the Sassanids, and the Arap Ommiades began to attack.The long lasting religious debates among sects reached a peak with
the adoption of the Iconoclastik view by Leon III, who was influenced by Islamic traditions. Chiristian priests and monks who were in favour of icons began to take refuge in Cappodacia. The Iconoclastic period lasted over a  century (  726-843 ).
During this time although several Cappodacian churches were under the influence of iconoclasm, the people who were in favor of icons were able to continue to worship comfortably.

The Seljuk Period ( 1071-1299 )
The native land of the Seljuks, established by Seljuk Bey from Oğuz Turks, was central Asia.The Seljuks, who converted to ıslam spreading towards north in the 10th century, tried to extend their power finghting againts the tribes which had not been converted.The defeat and the capture of the Byzantine Emperor Romanos Diogones in 1071 by Alparslan, the great grandson of Seljuk Bey, resulted in the decline of the Byzantine Empire and the beginning of a new era in the history of Anatolia.
In 1075 the Anatolian Seljuk State was founded. In 1082 Kayseri was conquered by Turks and Cappodacia came under Seljuk rule.Anatolia, which was an important region where Christianity had spread, became part of Islamic world which covered a large area; from North Afrika, to Middle Asia and to the Near East. The conquest of Anatolia by Seljuk Turks did not influence the administrative authority of the patriarchy. We know this because in inscriptions from the 13th century found in the church of St George in the Ihlara region, names of the Seljuk Sultan Mesut II and the Byzantine Emperor Andronicus are treadet with admiration. As a result of the decline oh the Anatolian Seljuk state at the end of the 13th century, small beyliks (domains of minor rulers) came into being in diffrent parts of Anatolia. In 1308, the Ilkhanids, of Mongolian origin, invadid Anatolia and destroyed Kayseri, one of the important cities in the Cappodacia Region. Sejuk Sultans were controlled by the Mongolians and could not act independently. From then on, Anatolia was administered by the beyliks founded by different Turkish tribes.

Ottoman Period
The region of Cappodacia was very beaceful also during the Ottoman Period. Nevşehir was a small village in the province of Niğde until the time of Damat İbrahim pasha.At the beginning of the 18th century, especially during the time of Damat İbrahim Pasha, places like Nevşehir, Gülşehir, Özkonak, Avanos and Ürgüp prospered and mosques, külliyes (a collection of buildings of an instituon, usually composed of schools, a mosque,mental instituons, hospital, kitchen,etc.) and fountains were built. The bridge in the centre of the town of Özkonak, which was built during Yavuz Sultan Selim's campaing to the east (1514), is important in terms of being an early Ottoman Period building in the province of Nevşehir.
The Christian people living in the area were treated with tolerance in the Ottoman Period as in the Seljuk Period. The 18th century church of  Constantine Helena in Sinasos-Ürgüp, the century churc built in honor of dimitrius in Gülşehir and the Ortodox Church in Derinkuyu are some of the best examples of this tolerance.