Under proposals to build an energy-generating dam in mainly Kurdish south-eastern Turkey, the ancient town of Hasankeyf on the Tigris River would be flooded.

The town is thought to date back some 10,000 years, with evidence of Assyrian, Byzantine, Roman, Seljuk Turk and Ottoman cultures still to be found.

Archaeologists, some of whom have studied the area for years, are campaigning to prevent the loss of Hasankeyf's unique heritage.

There are thought to be hundreds, if not thousands, of historic sites in the vast area to be submerged by the reservoir, most of which have barely been surveyed.

The Kurdish village of Cattepe, in the reservoir area, shares a mound with the remains of a fort on the Roman empire's frontier, a Christian church and a prehistoric settlement.

Many local people oppose the proposed dam but the government says it will provide much-needed power, irrigation and jobs. (Images 2-6 are copyright Maggie Ronayne)