Determination of historical graves by ground penetrating radar method: Sakarya Field Battle (August 23 – September 13, 1921, Turkey)
Date
2022Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The Sakarya Field Battle was the last phase of the forward operation of
the Greek Asia Minor Army, which started at the end of March 1921.
Although there are contradictory numbers regarding the losses of the
parties in the Sakarya Field Battle in the literature, it is generally
accepted that the Turkish Army lost 5,713 martyrs. The Ground
Penetrating Radar (GPR) method was applied to determine the accuracy
of findings observed on the surface and to determine burial sites.
Geophysical anomalies were detected in 2D profiles from the obtained
results. It was determined that the Turkish side buried the martyrs in
east-west direction, depending on their religious traditions. The
detected anomalies were evaluated in two and three dimensions
and the boundaries of the burial areas and the approximate depths
of the burials were obtained. The results obtained from data processing
techniques showed that the GPR method is suitable for determining
the locations of historical graves on battlefields. The new martyrs
found as a result of the studies are thought to be soldiers whose fate
was unknown, recorded as ‘missing’ in the records.