In 1963, a man renovating his home in Turkey noticed his chickens kept disappearing into a crack in his basement wall, when he dug it open, he found the ancient city of Derinkuyu, an 18-level city 85m underground that could shelter 20,000 people

In 1963, a resident in Derinkuyu, in Turkey’s Cappadocia region, reportedly became curious after his chickens repeatedly disappeared through a narrow opening in the basement of his house. During a house renovation, the resident widened the crack for inspection and stumbled upon a hidden passageway that led to a huge underground settlement. This discovery revealed Derinkuyu, a vast city extending up to 85 meters below the surface of multiple levels, with ventilation shafts, storage rooms, churches, and living quarters that can shelter nearly 20,000 people. BBC noted that the accidental discovery opened a window into one of the world’s most developed underground settlements.

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