Asartepe Castle, Atburgazı, Söke

Asartepe Castle, also known locally as Atburgazı Kale, crowns a hill above the village of Atburgazı in the Söke district of Aydın province. Built of rough rubble-work masonry under Byzantine rule, the fortress appears to have remained in use into Ottoman times, overlooking the approaches to the fertile Söke plain below. What survives today is a modest, largely unadorned ruin rather than a grand showpiece, but its hilltop position still gives sweeping views over the surrounding plain, now planted with olive groves that reach almost to the castle walls. Freely accessible and relatively little visited, Asartepe sits within reach of the better-known ruins of ancient Priene, making it a quiet stop for travelers exploring the string of Byzantine watch-points that once overlooked this part of the Aegean coastline.