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 Kas
- Antiphellus :
A portion
of the city wall close to the shore displays fine masonry of the
Hellenistic period. The small theatre dominating the landscape
is of the Greek type. It has neither a stage building nor vaulted
substructures. This splendidly preserved structure with its beautiful
ashlars masonry must also have been erected in the Hellenistic
age. Nearby are the remains of an unidentified temple. On the
slope of the hill west of the modern town stands a rock-cut tomb
in an excellent state of preservation. The facade representing
the front of an anta house with pediment is Greek in its architectural
order; however, the tower shape of the structure and the cubic
mass surmounting it, reveal some Achaemenid influences. The interior
is adorned with a frieze depicting 24 female figures. It probably
dates from the 4th century BC. A well-preserved characteristic
Lycian tomb of elegant, slim proportions stands in the town, northeast
of the harbor. It consists of a two-tiered podium and a sarcophagus
with pointed arch and lion-heads on the lid. It most certainly
dates from the 4th century BC.
Limyra
:
The
ruins of Limyra are situated to the north of Finike. The well-preserved
tombs are spread out in groups along the road for several km.
Some of them are adorned with reliefs that reveal strong Greek
influences and date from the 4th century BC. The little theatre
is in a good state preservation and dates from Roman Imperial
times.
Dr. Jurgen
Borchhardt discovered and excavated high on the south slope of
the acropolis of Limyra, a fine heroon, or tomb, that is closely
related to the Nereid Monument. A rock-cut terrace of was the
setting of the heroon. The foundations of the tomb stood on this
terrace. The hyposorion enclosed a tomb chamber, which was accessible
from the south. The long east and west sides had a frieze with
scenes of an ekphora moving south. The superstructure had the
shape of an amphiprostyle temple with caryatids instead of columns,
4 each on the north and south sides. In ancient Ionic tradition,
the caryatids stood on round bases; they carried an architrave
with rosettes and dentils. The sima was adorned with lion -head
spouts. The acroteria are preserved on the north side. At the
corners were female figures in running poses in the style of the
Nereid Monument; the central acroterion was probably a descending
Nike, supported by two female protomes. Statues must have stood
in the inter-columniations, but remnants of a horseman and a warrior
suggest that they were set up in late classical times.
 Demre
(Myra) :
Demre
is a village some three kilometers from the coast and stands near
the site of ancient Myra, famed as the Episcopal seat of St Nicholas,
patron saint of pawnbrokers and sailors, and known to children
as Father Christmas.
(Once Upon A Time There Was A Man ....
The jolly,
fatherly figure of Father Christmas, with his white beard and
pink cheeks, has been eagerly awaited by children at Christmas
for centuries. Did you know that this bringer of gifts and protector
of the poor and needy actually lived in the South of Turkey? In
fact, Saint Nicholas, alias Father Christmas, alias Santa Claus,
was a real person who lived near Antalya
in the warm climate of southern Turkey rather than in the
icy Arctic desert. Born at Patara near Kalkan, he spent most of
his life at Myra at , 140 kilometers southwest of Antalya.
Saint Nicholas
was elected bishop of Myra during the reign of Diocletian and
died here around AD 350. The church of St. Nicholas is not where
he preached, but was first built around his tomb in the 6th century,
and later rebuilt by the Byzantine Emperor Constantine IX in 1043.
The bishop was renowned for his charitable deeds, and after his
death became the most venerated saint of the Orthodox Christian
world, particularly Russia.
When Myra
and its shrine were taken by the Moslems, the relics were translated
to Bari, Italy, where many Greek immigrants resided. Here a new
church was built to house the relics, and Pope Urban II, who held
a council at Bari in 1095, was present at the inauguration. From
this time onwards Nicholas's cult became almost universal in the
West.
His reputation
as a miracle-worker was both cause and effect of his many patronages.
Countries such as Russia, towns such as St. Nicholas at Wade (Kent),
children, sailors, unmarried girls, merchants, pawnbrokers, apothecaries,
and perfumiers all claim him as their patron saint. Some of these
patronages are linked with episodes in his legendary acts. He
was reputed to have given three bags of gold to three girls for
their marriage dowries in order to save them from prostitution.
It seems that this is the basis for the use of three gold balls
as the pawnbroker's sign. The number three appears several times
in his legend, as in the case of three boys whom he is said to
have raised to life after they were murdered in a brine-tub by
a butcher, and in his saving three unjustly condemned men from
death, as well as three sailors near the coast of Turkey. From
his shrine at Bari there came a substance sometimes called 'manna'
or else a fragrant 'myrrh' which explains his patronage of perfumiers:
whatever it may have been, it attracted numerous pilgrims to his
shrine.
Saint Nicholas
was so celebrated that no less than 25 other churches in his name
were built in Istanbul and 45 in Rome, not to mention 40 in Iceland.
In England about 400 churches were dedicated to Nicholas. Also
in England there survive two important iconographical cycles of
his life, on the font at Winchester cathedral and on an ivory
crozier-head at the Victoria and Albert Museum, both from the
12th century. He was probably the most frequently represented
saintly bishop for several centuries.
Perhaps the
most popular result of his cult is the institution of Santa Claus.
Based ultimately on Nicholas' patronage of children with its attendant
custom in the Low Countries of giving them presents on his feast,
it attained its present form in North America, where the Dutch
Protestants of New Amsterdam united to it Nordic folkloric legends
of a magician who both punished naughty children and rewarded
good ones with presents.
The name Nicholas
has been in use in England from Anglo-Saxon times and became very
popular in the 12th century. lt gave rise to numerous names such
as Colin, Nicolson. Nixon. Nicola. Nicolette, among others.
The feast
day of Saint Nicholas has been celebrated throughout Europe since
mediaeval times. The 6th of December is widely celebrated as the
day of Santa Claus, whereas he is also expected on Christmas Eve,
the 24th of December; as well as the New Years Eve by the children
of the world. Saint Nicholas gradually made the metamorphosis
into the red-suited character riding in a sleigh drawn by reindeer;
so different yet with the same kindly heart as the ancient bishop
of Myra. And it seems his name will live on as long as human kind
exists.)
Within the
village of Demre you find a now disused church dedicated to the
saint. It is a heavily restored eleventh-century Byzantine structure
with three apses and a basilica built on the site of an earlier
sanctuary of the same name. The basilica is preceded by an atrium
and a double narthex. A sarcophagus, believed to be the tomb of
St. Nicholas, is early Christian in date. This Saint is perhaps
now better known as Santa Claus, the bearer of gifts to children
at Christmas time.
Nicholas suffered
martyrdom here in 655 and his grave soon became a famous place
of pilgrimage, but in 1072 his bones were stolen by merchants
from Bari, Italy, where they rest today in a church dedicated
to his name.
Myra was one
of the earliest Lycian cities. The site of ancient Myra and the
necropolis are about one and a half kilometers to the north of
Demre. The most notable surviving monument there is a splendid,
2nd century late Roman theatre; this stands below a dramatic cliff
in whose face are hewn some of the most remarkable excellent collection
of rock tombs in Lycia, many of them still decorated with beautifully
carved figures in low relief, usually depicting funerary scenes.
Myra features some of the most impressive and well-preserved Lycian
monuments in the country.
Many of the
tombs have log cabin features carved into the rock, presumably
reflecting the domestic architecture of the period. A few easily
accessible ones have inscriptions in the ancient Lycian language.
Carvings above are mostly in poor repair but the overall effect
of this jumble of the architecture of death is dramatic.
The theater,
like many others in major Roman cities, was later converted into
an arena for gladiator fights and wild animal shows. Many carvings
and inscriptions in the theater are still visible, and cavernous
tunnels and access ways to the side have been cleared. While much
of the seating is intact, the stage building is partly collapsed.
A macabre set of three carved masks, presumably from the frieze,
lies among the jumble of remains in the approach to the theater.
Today Demre
is an important agricultural town on the Mediterranean coast of
Anatolia. Around Demre there are also ruins of Andriake on Cayagzi
beach and Kekova, Simena and Teimussa, which are accessible by
either a short boat ride or a short drive.
Olympus
& Chimaera :
Olympus
The much overgrown picturesque ruins of the ancient city of Olympus
are situated at the mouth and on both banks of a torrential stream,
which flows from east to west into the sea. In the city in ancient
times, the riverbed was constructed of regular stones to form
a channel. It was crossed by a bridge, one abutment of which has
survived. Along the south bank, a well-preserved portion of the
quay may still be seen, built in the fine coursed polygonal technique
and dating from the Hellenistic age. However, the quay betrays
repair work from the Roman and Byzantine periods.
The small,
steep acropolis lying close to the river-mouth bears remains of
late and insignificant buildings. However, the panoramic view
seen from the top of the hill is splendid. A small, much overgrown
Roman theatre also erected on the south bank of the stream, but
is in a poor state of preservation with the exception of one side
of the entrance.
The most attractive
structure at Olympus is the door frame of a temple still in place.
It lies about 150 m. west of the mouth of the river. From the
inscription of a statue-base lying at the foot of the door, we
learn that a statue of Marcus Aurelius stood somewhere in the
temple. The sanctuary, therefore, may have been erected in the
reign of this Emperor
Chimaera
A few km.
to the northwest of Olympus, in mountains some 300 or 400 m. in
height, a flame issues permanently from the ground. This miraculous
natural phenomenon is very impressive at night. Since the Chimaera
was thought to be a fire breathing monster living in Lycia, the
place called Chimaera seems to have been identified in ancient
times with the home of this hybrid figure that came into Greek
mythology from a Hittite source. It must be noted, however, that,
according to Strabo, the scene of the myth of the Chimaera was
the neighborhood of Mt. Kragos, in the western part of the Lycian
land.
Phaselis
:
The
ruins of Phaselis, largely covered by rich vegetation, may be
considered among the most picturesque ancient remains of Turkey.
The city was founded by colonists from Rhodes at the beginning
of the 6th century BC. It had three harbors: one on the north,
one on the northeast, and one on the southwest side of the peninsula.
The buildings still visible on the site are concentrated on the
neck of the peninsula, between the northeastern and southwestern
harbors. A fine paved street connected both of these harbors.
It began near the southwestern harbor, and there stands the gateway,
which was erected in honor of Hadrian's visit. The theatre, much
overgrown, lies on the west side of the paved street; near the
northeastern end is located the agora of the city. South of Hadrian's
gate, a cistern remains of an unidentified temple, as well as
a portion of the city wall that can be distinguished. To the northeast
of the paved street there is a church, and north of this an aqueduct
begins. Stone built and sarcophagus-like tombs are located north
of the city and east of the aqueduct.
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Antalya
has an international airport which may connect you to major cities.
The Airport is 10 km from the city center and is served by inexpensive
flights from Istanbul.
Since
its founding in the second century BC by Attales II, a king of
Pergamum, who named the city Attaleia after himself, Antalya has
been continuously inhabited. The Romans, Byzantines and Seljuks
successively occupied the city before it came under Ottoman rule.
The elegant, fluted minaret of the Yivli Minareli Mosque in the
center of the city, built by the Seljuk sultan Alaeddin Keykubat
in the 13th century, has become Antalya's symbol. The Karatay
Medrese 
Antalya
and its surrounding is an important and noteworthy touristic centre
on the Mediterranean Coast with its perfect climate and splendid
harmony of archaeological, historical and natural beauties, throughout
the year. Daily tours to surrounding touristic areas like Side,
Alanya and Termessos are available, in addition to longer tours
to Pamukkale or Cappadocia or anywhere you would like to go. 
