Erkek Castle

Erkek Castle, locally known as Erkek Kalesi, lies on a hill in a valley between the villages of Dağdibi and Iriağaç (also known as Pernek), in the province of Erzurum in Turkey.

Erkek Castle together with its counterpart Kizkalesi Castle forms a defensive system in a valley where two rivers meet. One river is flowing from the south to the north and the other joins from the east. Erkek Castle is situated on the western bank of the river that is flowing from the south, and Kizkalesi Castle on its eastern bank. Erkek Castle lies only some 500 meters north of Kizkalesi Castle.

I am not sure about the names of both castles. On the internet both names are given to both castles, depending on which website I visited. The name Erkek is sometimes also changed to Oğlan, both these names translate to 'boy' or 'man'. The name Kizkalesi translates to 'Girl's Castle'.

Other than that the castles were active during the Middle Ages and especially in the Byzantine period, I could not find any historical information about these castles. If you know more, please mail me.

Erkek Castle is situated on a hill and has an elongated rectangular plan. The entrance is somewhat in the middle of the western walls. In the southern part of the castle stands the ruin of a building, probably a chapel. The rest of the interior is empty. It is said that both castles suffer from illegal treasure diggers.

Erkek Castle is freely accessible. Not a very spectacular castle but worth visiting if you are going to visit its counterpart Kizkalesi.

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