Tuya Castle

Tuya Castle (Georgian: ტუიას ციხე), in the Turkish part of the historical Samtshe region, is a medieval castle left by the Georgians, located today in the village of Yurtbekler, formerly called Caki, which belongs to the Posof district of Ardahan Province.

History

Tuya Castle is situated 1 kilometre southwest of the village of Caki, which now bears the name Yurtbekler. The Samtshe in which Caki village is located was one of the regions that formed historical Georgia. Indeed, the Ottomans seized this region and the village from the Georgians in the second half of the 16th century. In the Ottoman tax register of 1595, the village of Caki, recorded as three separate villages, had a population composed of Georgians. It is understood that Tuya Castle dates from this period. Archaeologist Sami Patacı has stated that Tuya Castle was built in the Middle Ages. The castle was declared a first‑degree archaeological site in 2014. The name of the castle may derive from the word "tuya" (ტუია), meaning "mazı," which entered Georgian from Greek.

Architecture

Tuya Castle is a smaller structure than the Caki Castle located in this region. Both castles are thought to have served the function of providing security and surveillance for the area. Despite the narrowing on its eastern wing, Tuya Castle, evaluated as having a rectangular plan (16.6 × 13.9 m), was built using small and medium‑sized stones with lime mortar. The walls of the castle are generally collapsed down to ground level. However, the height of the southeast wall reaches 2.5 metres. Parts of the walls on the northern side remain buried underground.