Pamukkale

Pamukkale

UNESCO World Heritage Site
Panoramic view of travertine
Official name	Hierapolis-Pamukkale
Location	Denizli Province, Turkey
Criteria	Cultural and Natural: (iii)(iv)(vii)
Reference	485
Inscription	1988 (12th Session)
Area	1,077 ha (4.16 sq mi)
Website	www.pamukkale.gov.tr/en
Coordinates	37°55′26″N 29°07′24″E / 37.92389°N 29.12333°E / 37.92389; 29.12333
Location of Pamukkale in Turkey

Pamukkale, (Turkish pronunciation: [pamuk̚'kalɛ]) meaning "cotton castle" in Turkish, is a natural site in Denizli Province in southwestern Turkey. The area is famous for a carbonate mineral left by the flowing of thermal spring water.^[1][2] It is located in Turkey's Inner Aegean region, in the River Menderes valley, which has a temperate climate for most of the year.

The ancient Greek city of Hierapolis was built on top of the travertine formation which is in total about 2,700 metres (8,860 ft) long, 600 m (1,970 ft) wide and 160 m (525 ft) high. It can be seen from the hills on the opposite side of the valley in the town of Denizli, 20 km away. This area has been drawing visitors to its thermal springs since the time of classical antiquity.^[1] The Turkish name refers to the surface of the shimmering, snow-white limestone, shaped over millennia by calcite-rich springs.^[2] Dripping slowly down the mountainside, mineral-rich waters collect in and cascade down the mineral terraces, into pools below.

It was added as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988 along with Hierapolis.