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Karabuk is located in the Northwestern Black Sea and surrounded by Zonguldak to the west, the Black Sea to the north, Kastamonu to the east, Cankırı to the south. Ucboluk (Ilbarit) Village that located 20 km southeast of Safranbolu district of Karabuk, is a historic settlement founded on the slopes of Soganli Valley. Within the scope of the scientific project "Surveys in Roman and Byzantine Periods of Karabuk Province and its Districts", which started for the first time in 2017, research has been carried out in Safranbolu and surrounding settlements. Through this study, finding the rock-cut tomb, altar and wine presses, columns, double columns, column headings, inscriptions dated to Roman and Early Byzantine Periods and many archaeological data around Ucboluk (Ilbarıt) Village in Soganli Valley were examined and recorded. Archeological artifacts found in Ucboluk Village, which included in the borders of the region called Paphlagonia in history, shed light on the historical, architectural and socio-economic structure of the area from the Roman and Early Byzantine Periods. Ucboluk village and surrounding areas, which attracted the attention of many researchers and travellers since the 19th century such as Leonhard (1915), Gökoğlu (1952), Belke (1996), Dökü (2008), Laflı and Christof (2009, 2012), were examined in detail by us with together archaeological and art history experts for the first time in 2017. When evaluation on historical data of Ucboluk Village, having abundant water resources, which located on the southern slope of the Soganli Valley is considered to be an intensive agricultural activity based on wine production in the region. The finding vine branches and agricultural tools on the rock-cut tombs and grave stalks and especially rock-cut wine presses in Ucboluk (Ilbarıt) and around it, are indicative of this. Within the scope of this paper, the rock-cut tombs previously found and the rock-cut wine presses, rock-cut altar, cross sacred rock structure and architectural plastic artifacts that were first detected by us in Ucboluk village, which is one of the rural settlements in southern Paphlagonia, are evaluated in general perspective. Also, under the light of those finding artifacts, the architecture, the religious and social economic structure of the rural settlements in the region during the Roman and Early Byzantine periods were tried to be identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The late antique, early Byzantine settlement area locates at 12 km. distance to southwest of Karabuk Central District, on a sloping land with an altitude of 700 meters piedmont of Keltepe mountain. This settlement area, called as Zora, Zara, Zopran, Sora, Sopran or some other similar names by the researchers, locates within the boundaries of Akören (Kaleköy) and Zopran today. This area is one of the five central eparchies bounded to Paphlagonia district of Gangra (Çankırı). Various column headers, inscriptions, sculptures, Hellenistic sepulchres and architectural ruins belonging to Roman age are identified there. The settlement area called as Sora since the 4th century is observed by Doublet (1889), Mendel (1901), Gökoğlu (1952), Marek (1993, 2003), Belke (1996) and Umar (2007), and they found out that it used to be called Zobran in the records of 16th century Ottoman archive. Within the scope of this research, Sora is observed in details for the periods of Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman. The life of St. Autonomous, who had came there in the 4th century to proselytize Christianity and became a martyre, their sepulchre constructions, the bishops of the city, architectural plastic works and scriptures are all researched. Moreover, the problem of naming the area which was confusing for many years is tried to be solved by this research beside documenting the present condition of the architectural ruin on their original places. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

7.00 x 8.25 m. measured place which is located between housing ruins in the eastern part of the Metropolis Theatre is called reception hall. This place decorated with colorful mosaics and a wall painting also having a good handcrafted floor is dated back to Roman Empire period. Besides Dionysos, Ariadne, Meinad, and Eros holding a wineglass figures related with Dionysos cult on the mosaic; theatre masks, fish and bird figures all together demonstrate that it could be used as a banquet hall for official invitations during theatre plays. These fish and bird figures have great importance to analyze the nutrition habits of antique cities, especially metropolis, which has few materials that could be read. The various fish and bird figures on the reception hall were examined by expert zoologists to try to identify the factors such as, this fish and birds' species, their habitats and if they were eatable or not. The paper also tries to find out the nutrition habits of Metropolis community using the found data from ancient sources and obtained from this research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]