Integration of archaeological and geophysical Surveys in Hierapolis of Phrygia (Turkey)

An in-depth analysis of some areas in the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine city of Hierapolis of Phrygia has been carried out using high resolution geophysical methods integrated to the archaeological surveys in order to detect evidence of archaeological features buried under colluvial deposits and to acquire new data of some sectors of the urban area. In particular, three areas were investigated in the northern, central and southern sectors of the ancient city: i) the Northern Agora; ii) the Sanctuary of Apollo; iii) some insulae with houses in the central and southern sectors of the city. Geophysical data were collected in these areas of interest using different surveying methodologies, during different campaigns of activity of the Italian Archaeological Mission: Electrical Resistivity Tomography, Ground Penetrating Radar, Seismic Refraction Tomography, Magnetometry and GEM. All data collected were integrated in the digital archaeological map of Hierapolis, linked to a Geographic Information System (GIS), in order to contextualize the identified archaeological features in the ancient urban plan. In some cases, geophysical measurements were verified during subsequent archaeological excavations. In this paper some results related to the Temple of Apollo are presented.