- Feb 5, 2002
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Excavations in Turkey highlight intriguing history.
Archaeologists believe they have uncovered the location where the sarcophagus of St. Nicholas of Myra (A.D. 270-343) was originally located. Various media were quick to report that the “Tomb of Santa Claus” was discovered, but, in fact, the many and varied resting places of the great bishop and saint have been known for some time, and his remains were translated to Italy more than a thousand years ago.
The new announcement arises from an excavation that finally cleared centuries of sediment at St. Nicholas Church in Demre, formerly Myra, in the Antalya province of southern Turkey. The church itself was built around 520 over a previous church that had likely served as the bishop’s cathedral and later became his resting place for a time.
As sea levels rose in the Middle Ages, the church was flooded and built up huge deposits of alluvial silts that buried much of it. In the 19th century, portions of the church were excavated and expanded under the patronage of Russian Emperor Nicholas I. It was used until 1923, when the Greeks of Demre, most of whom were Christians, were expelled by the Turks, leaving much of the area abandoned.
Continued below.
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Archaeologists believe they have uncovered the location where the sarcophagus of St. Nicholas of Myra (A.D. 270-343) was originally located. Various media were quick to report that the “Tomb of Santa Claus” was discovered, but, in fact, the many and varied resting places of the great bishop and saint have been known for some time, and his remains were translated to Italy more than a thousand years ago.
The new announcement arises from an excavation that finally cleared centuries of sediment at St. Nicholas Church in Demre, formerly Myra, in the Antalya province of southern Turkey. The church itself was built around 520 over a previous church that had likely served as the bishop’s cathedral and later became his resting place for a time.
As sea levels rose in the Middle Ages, the church was flooded and built up huge deposits of alluvial silts that buried much of it. In the 19th century, portions of the church were excavated and expanded under the patronage of Russian Emperor Nicholas I. It was used until 1923, when the Greeks of Demre, most of whom were Christians, were expelled by the Turks, leaving much of the area abandoned.
New Discoveries
Continued below.
The True Story of St. Nicholas
Excavations in Turkey highlight intriguing history.
