The Zelve Açık Hava Müzesi (Zelve Open Air Museum) once housed one of the largest communities in the region. Zelve was an important settlement and religious area between the 9th and 13th centuries. Christians moved to Zelve during the Persian and Arab invasions, and Kapadokya's first seminaries to train priests were located at the Zelve monastery.
Zelve was occupied until the 1950s, when residents were forced to evacuate when it became too dangerous to stay because of erosion.