They do allow digs. Turkey, as a nation, just isn't as enthusiastic about archaeology as one might hope. This might be due to some unfounded perception of the

They do allow digs. Turkey, as a nation, just isn't as enthusiastic about archaeology as one might hope. This might be due to some unfounded perception of themselves as "invaders". To this day, many Greeks, Russians, etc. (mainly Eastern Orthodox Christians) still refer to Istanbul as Constantinople, as though it is under some form of illegitimate occupation. The West also still seems to view the fall of Constantinople as the fault of the Turkish people. Is it hard to blame the average Turkish citizen for being less then enthusiastic about exploring the history of what everyone around them views as somebody else's historical legacy? This all ignores the fact that the Eastern Empire declined steadily for centuries and lost territory to many other peoples besides the Turks, including both Greeks and Europeans. While we may view the conquest of Constantinople as the tragic end of the Roman empire, the fact is that the empire lived on in the institutions of the Ottoman empire and in its people. The Ottoman empire absorbed populations that were once Roman and, although their descendants today may adhere to a different religion, their culturual inheritance is still, in large part, Roman. This alienation of Turkish citizens from their heritage is now causing serious problems. Erdoğan's regime holds commercial interests to be supreme and has not hesitated to throw important sites under the bulldozer over minor delays. Roman ruins are widely viewed, not as the people's heritage, but as a foreign nuisance that is best swept away to make room for the new. This must change.