An Irishman in Northern Mesopotamia
Embark on an extraordinary odyssey through south-east Türkiye with Nicholas Mackey as he guides you through a captivating region embraced by the legendary Euphrates and Tigris rivers – the Cradle of Civilisation.
Here he explores the ancient wonders of Antakya, Dara, Harran, Mardin, Gaziantep and Diyarbakir, peeling back the layers of empires, cultures and peoples that have shaped millennia.
Göbeklitepe and Karahan Tepe, near the contemporary city of Şanlıurfa/Urfa, stand as iconic archaeological landmarks with the promise to revolutionise our understanding of the past. Artefacts from these locations, dating back nearly 12,000 years, challenge established notions of the origins of civilisation.
Praise for An Irishman in Northern Mesopotamia
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"In this book Nicholas Mackey deserves great praise in helping to understand the importance for us all of overcoming differences and living together in harmony, increasingly vital in our troubled world today. This inspiring account of his travels is highly recommended."
Jonathan Shackleton, Antarctic historian and author
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"Enhanced by countless striking photographs, Nicholas Mackey’s account of his trip through south-eastern Türkiye opens a revelatory window on the rich history, austere beauty, and present way of life of this ancient land. Nicholas Mackey is a very personable writer, and seasons his narrative with apposite reflections on his own childhood and youth in Ireland."
Katherine A. Powers, former literary columnist for The Boston Globe
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"I loved the book, what fun and the detail and explanations are fantastic. A joy to read and illustrated beautifully by Mackey with revealing photographs ... that are thought-provoking and make the reader want to know a little more of these ancient peoples."
Homer Sykes, photographer
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"An Irishman in Northern Mesopotamia sits happily in that important hinterland between a literary work, a personal story and a guide book. It is exactly the sort of book a discerning traveller should carry in his Turkish backpack."
Rupert Grey, author of Homage to Bangladesh
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"The detailed content and splendid maps, with text punctuated by snippets of human insight, makes for good reading. Nicholas Mackey's unique insight into this little-known land is exactly the sort of book needed as a guide by the modern-day traveller wishing to go off the beaten track, yet advance on the works of Karl Baedeker."
Tarka King, author of An Irishman Abroad
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"Nicholas Mackey’s story about his travels in Mesopotamia is unlike any other travelogue or diary. His explorations span a region where civilisation itself arguably began. Astronomy, philosophy, music, literature arguably started in these regions."
Professor Chandra Wickramasinghe, MBE, British mathematician and astronomer
Photography
Two bell towers of Mor Gabriel Monastery.
Grand Mosque at sunset with the Mesopotamian Plain in the distance.
Mor Zafaran Monastery.
Passageway beneath the Delikkemer Aqueduct.
Spice shop, Gaziantep. The hanging items are sweet bell peppers.
Statuesque head of King Antiochus, atop Mount Nemrut.
Introducing the book
This is not just an eclectic tale; it will also remain an enduring presence in your mind, while inviting you to rethink the fabric of our shared human history.
Excerpts from An Irishman in Northern Mesopotamia
“Kalkan, a haven of splendour and harmony, where gentle breezes bearing the scents of wild flowers drift down the hillside on their way to the wideness of the turquoise sea on the Lycian shoreline of southern Türkiye. For my wife and I, this sanctuary blessed with tranquillity and friendship serves as a shangri-La, a welcome retreat from life’s tribulations.”
— Kalkan – A home away from home
“You could say this triangle of territory played a unique role in advancing civilisation in both the physical and philosophical senses. A unique version of serendipity was operating in this space where a host of factors – geological, geographical, meteorological, agricultural, social, spiritual and philosophical – somehow coalesced in the ‘right’ way at the ‘right’ time and in the ‘right’ place which enabled this group of people to take tentative steps towards charting a new pathway to a ‘better place’, to finding a more civilised modus vivendi.”
— Piecing together a picture of the distant past
“Murad drew our attention to the Seal of Solomon, an ancient symbol which is reputed to date from the time of the biblical Old Testament, when King Solomon was given a ring by the Archangel Michael in response to a request from the King to be able to keep demons in check. According to legend, if the demons try to follow the direction of the lines in the two interlaced ovals, they will become confused and be condemned to an eternity of being trapped within this ‘knot’.”