A SETTLEMENT IN THE EAST BLACKSEA: ARET？AS/KHALKER？T？S ISLAND (G？RESUN ISLAND)

The Island of Giresun located approximately 1.6 km to the city of Giresun/Kerasous, one of the significant settlement centers of the Pontus region, is the only island in the Eastern Blacksea region that experienced settlement during the Ancient Era and the Middle Ages. According to the ancient sources, the island was called “Aretias” in the Classical Era, and the name “Khalkeritis” was used for the Island during the reign of Roman Empire. The island which covers an area of 40.000 m2 and has an altitude of 24 m. above sea level, bears remains dating mainly to the Middle Ages. The first archeological excavations in the island was carried out in 2011 and 2012. After an interval in 2013 and 2014, the excavations were restarted by the Giresun Museum management in 2015. Since then, several remains of archtitectural structures have been detected, and the excavations have focused on three different sites; the Chapel and the site with Pitos. In contrast to ruins of the Middle Ages, the tile remains found in the excavations indicate that the history of the island date as far as back to the Classical periods