After 1,800 years, water flows once more in ancient Anatolian fountain

Perge’s Kestros Fountain, inactive for nearly two millennia, will be revived with water, potentially attracting more tourists

The Kestros Fountain, a significant landmark in the ancient city of Perge located in Antalya’s Aksu district, is set to flow with water after nearly 1,800 years.

An experiment conducted in 2022 involved running water through the fountain to assess its current condition. Aytac Donmez, a faculty member and vice president of the Perge excavation project, announced that the fountain and its pool will be operational and flowing with water within the next two months.

Will contribute to tourism

The ancient city of Perge, located 17 kilometers east of Antalya city center, is famous for its architecture and marble sculptures.

The sculptures unearthed during excavations in the ancient city make the Antalya Museum one of the most important sculpture museums. It is thought that the revived Kestros Fountain with water will make a great contribution to tourism.

Holistic restoration work to be initiated

The Kestros Fountain is special because it functioned as both a gate and a fountain, extending toward the acropolis in the north of the city.  The most impressive feature, however, is the 700-meter long canal that runs from the fountain like a pool down the center of a north-south oriented street. According to Donmez, when water starts flowing again, the canal will take on the appearance of a luxurious pool. Importantly, the revitalized fountain will be designed for water efficiency, with the water flowing to the intersection and then back into the canal to avoid any wastage.

Donmez said, “After the water flows from the fountain, we want to implement a holistic restoration work of the fountain, we want to put the sculptures in place. Our goal is to revitalize it, especially by re-flowing water from the fountain. After two months, water will start flowing from the fountain and the pool.”