# Túrkeve

Túrkeve (formerly Keve, for locals: Túrkevi) is a town of 8,500 people (2017) in Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok County in Hungary. The town is famous for its spa, its festivals (especially the Kevi Sheep Festival) and its gastronomic specialties.

## Understand

The most important memories of antiquity left to us are the so-called kunhalmas. Excavations began in 1985 in and around Tere Hill. The strata of 11 Bronze Age settlements were found. In addition, the objects of use of the people living here also surfaced. Finds from the Tere Hill, circa 1800 BC, are the remains of the northernmost Bronze Age settlement in Europe.

### Climate

Túrkeve is one of the warmest cities in Hungary, but the annual rainfall is one of the lowest in the country.

## Get in

Túrkeve is relatively far from the main roads, yet it is easily accessible from Mezőtúr and Kisújszállás. It is 12-14 km from each of them. Túrkeve is connected to both settlements by road 4202, on which there are also scheduled bus services.
There is no train service.

## See

* Győrffy-farm, Beaded House
* Csörsz ditch (the city's northwestern border)
* There are many mounds around the town:
** Tere mound: The wood palace of Attila Hun is believed to have stood here. Here was found the remains of the most northerly European, settlement from the Bronze Age.
** Bokrosi mound: here was found a conquest-era silver plate purse, what is now kept in the Hungarian National Museum
** Other mounds in Túrkeve: Burkus mound, Csurgó's mound, Central mound, Bachelor (Legény) mound, Great Póhamara's mound, Pásztó's mound, Buga mound, Hermit (Remete) mound, Yellow-bank (Sárga-part) mound, Lőrinc mound Túrkeddi-Big-mound, Vecserke mound, Vénkerti mound, Stone mound, Kender-mound, Double (Kettős) mound, Nameless (Névtelen) mound, Csudabala mound and Stirrup (Kengyel) mound.
* Ecsegpuszta: a living area for the protected Eurasian stone-curlews and Great bustards. Events: May - Shepherd Festival.
* The Reformed church with a coffered ceiling was built in 1755
* The Reformed Pastor's Office, one of the oldest buildings in the city * The Romanesque Roman Catholic church of St. Peter and Paul, also a listed building, built between 1812 and 1822
* Finta Museum, with Bronze Age finds from the area, silver from the Árpádian period, medieval relics of the village of Móric and Csudaballa, works of folk art and works by local artists
* The Town Hall, built in 1899
* The building of Kossuth Street in the Art Nouveau style of the Sándor Petőfi Primary School was built in 1909
* Permanent exhibition of embroidery in the House of Culture (Táncsics M. u. 16)

## Do

* Walking, cycling or horse riding tours.
* Relaxing in Turkeve Spa & Thermalbath, Hotel, Apartments and Camping Complex.
* 47.08120.9351 Körösvölgy Conservation Area (Körösvölgyi Természetvédelmi Terület) (Kunszentmárton, Öcsöd, Szelevény, Mezőtúr, Mesterszállás, Tiszaföldvár). Körös Valley Nature Reserve Exhibition Centre (Mezötúr), Körös Valley's Visitor Centre (Address: Szarvas, Anna-liget 1.; Open: Apr-Oct. Tu-Su 09:00-17:00, Fee: Ft500 (2014), Bicycle rentals: Price: Ft 1,270/day, Ft 390/hour; canoe rental: Ft 400/hour and Ft 1400/day )

## Eat

* Sheep stew from Kevi: Although sheep stew is made elsewhere, and not only in Nagykunság , but also in other parts of Hungary , its túrkeve is unique. The sheep stew from Kevi is made together with other parts of the sheep after scalding the head and legs of the sheep, which is what makes them so special. Professional and amateur chefs from all over the country flock to the Kevi Shepherd Festival in Túrkeve in May every year to compare their knowledge with the locals and to compare different sheep stews from different landscapes.
* Traditional pastoral and peasant dishes were also prepared in Túrkeve, including slambuc, pötyő and watercress.