Boztepe hill, Trabzon

Boztepe or Mount Minthrion is a hill near Trabzon in Turkey. It is located 3 kilometers southeast of the city center of Trabzon. The Değirmendere Valley lies to the west of Boztepe. The Kaymaklı quarter occupies most of the Boztepe hill.

The area has been religiously significant since ancient times.(Whiting, pg 565) There are four sacred fountains on Bozetepe.

• That of Saint John the Sanctifier is near the summit. On the site is a mosque that was formerly a nineteenth-century church. The church in turn may have replaced a sanctuary to Mithras, which may have been the origin of the name Minthrion.(Bryer, pg 207)
• That of Kaymaklı Monastery is known as the milk fountain.(Bryer, pg 208)
• The Skylolimne is now a mostly-dry lake.(Bryer, pg 200)
• The Dragon's fountain (Δράκοντπήάσον) is near Hoşoğlan village.(Bryer, pg 207) According to legend, Alexios II of Trebizond killed a dragon at the site.

Further reading

• Whiting, Dominic (2001). Turkey Handbook. Footprint Travel Guides. ISBN 1900949857. 
• Bryer, Anthony; David Winfield (1985-03). Byzantine Monuments and Topography of the Pontos (Dumbarton Oaks Studies,20) Two Volume Set. Dumbarton Oaks Pub Service. ISBN 088402122X. 

External links

• map of Trabzon
• Kaymaklı Monastery info at www.trabzon.gov.tr

Coordinates: 40°59′42″N 39°43′52″E / 40.995°N 39.731°E / 40.995; 39.731