Hasankeyif

With its history that spans nine civilizations, the archaeological and religious significance of Hasankeyf is considerable. Some of the city's historical treasures will be inundated if construction of the Ilısu Dam is completed.These include ornate mosques, Islamic tombs and cave churches.

Being adjacent to the Dicle River, Hasankeyf with its madrasas, observatory, health asylum and other educational organisations was the science and culture centre of the region in past.
The foundation date of Hasankeyf is not known exactly. The geopolitical situation in the city strengthens the possibility of its being a very ancient settlement area. There are lots of caverns some of which are being used even today as residences. In the Christian Era, Hasankeyf experienced the rule of the Sasanis and Byzantines. Due to a safe castle having been built by the Byzantines in the 4th century BC, the region had been defended by them for a long time. Hasankeyf was conquered by the Emevis in 639 AD. Later on, the Abbasids, Hamdanis, Mervanis, Artuks, Eyyubis and Ottomans ruled the region respectively. The Artuks period was the golden era of Hasankeyf. There are many historical works remaining from this period
The district, due to its historical assets, has been declared as a natural conservation area since 1981. These historical assets will probably have been under water due to Ilısu Dam in the scope of GAP project in time. Therefore, the rescue excavations for movable historical and archaeological works of art are still being carried on.