Many Layers of Turkey

Asia Minor doesn't generate as much ink as it once did. The Anatolian peninsula has changed its name more than a few times during the past 9,000 years (we call it Turkey today), primarily because the region has spawned numerous kingdoms and city-states over the millennia. Troy, Cappadocia, Constantinople (it's Istanbul now, as every They Might Be Giants fan is well aware) — the great cities of antiquity were found here, proving the region has as much claim to the nickname "crossroads of the world" as Times Square does. Thanks to these many overlapping cultures, it's a veritable sandbox of wonders for archaeologists. Alice Fugate, vice president of the Mound City Archaeological Society, discusses the great historical importance of the region in the free, illustrated lecture "Talking Turkey" at 7 p.m. this evening at the Missouri History Museum (Lindell Boulevard and DeBaliviere Avenue; 314-746-4599 or www.mohistory.org).
Tue., Jan. 5, 2010