Güzelöz Underground City
- Type
- Rock Settlement
- Status
- Accessible
The Güzelöz Underground City is located on the slope northwest of the old settlement of Güzelöz Village in the Yeşilhisar district, 80–100 meters from the village. The underground city, which has two levels, does not have its original entrance in the collapsed section; the original entrance is a tunnel defended by a stone door in the back wall of a three-room house carved into the rock face approximately 40 meters above this collapsed section. At the lower level, immediately east of the room at the collapsed entrance, lies a double tunnel protected by massive door stones; this tunnel extends eastward towards the village at the bottom of the slope, but is blocked after a short distance. The two door stones at the lower entrance are 1,92 meters in diameter, making them the largest known door stones in Cappadocia. From here, the main tunnel extending northwest has a width and height rarely seen in underground cities; it is approximately 4 meters wide and 2 meters high, continuing for 54 meters with a 20-degree incline until it approaches the upper level. In the final section of the tunnel, there is a 6,5-meter-high chimney that reaches the upper level.
All the rooms and storage areas of the underground city are located on the upper level, accessed through this shaft. There are seven rooms on the upper level; at least five of these were used as storage. The only connection between these spaces is a passageway, protected by a stone door, whose front opens to the surface and leads to the back wall of a house carved into the rock. The number and size of the rooms and storage areas are remarkable. There are no structures in the underground city that could be used as dwellings; there is no blocked gallery on the upper level. It is possible that living spaces are located in the continuation of the blocked tunnel extending towards the village on the lower level, or that one can reach the old village settlements by proceeding approximately 100 meters further after the blocked section.