The old Armenian quarter of Tarsus

The photograph shows old Armenian houses in the town of Tarsus in Cilicia, abandoned by the Armenian population after the Genocide. Multi-storey stone houses with balconies and wooden shutters line a paved street. Several men are walking along the street, and a car stands in the distance.

Tarsus is mentioned in the Gospel as the birthplace of the Apostle Paul. From ancient times until 1920 the town was inhabited mainly by Armenians, some of whom were killed, some forcibly Islamised and Turkified, while others were deported by the authorities of the Ottoman Empire. In 1923 the leadership of the Republic of Turkey unlawfully confiscated all movable and immovable property of the Armenians.