The city of wonder,

The city of love,

Since I first saw you,

I can’t take my eyes off you, Istanbul!

This is how people feel about Istanbul.

This city that saw many nations, many battles…Numerous brave generals and their soldiers walked through the streets of it. People fell in love, people had quarrels and they brought their children up into this marvellous city.

The Landscape Is Just So Beautiful!

Is there any other city in the world that is bounded by 2 different seas, connected by a stunning blue strait with the Golden Horn?  There’s also  the forests all around. Once the sun shimmers off the water and shines across the whole city, there’s nothing else like it. Moreover, the city of Istanbul connects two continents of Asia and Europe, literally like a bridge. Finding the right word to express the beauty of Istanbul is quite difficult. You should come and experience it in person.

An Ancient  Peninsula Full of History

There is a lot to see in Istanbul.The Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, the Basilica Cistern, Topkapi Palace, the mosques, the museums, the churches, the synagogues.Every street, every shop , every little house has a different story to tell you. You could go for a walk around the ancient streets of this mysterious city for days, may be even for months. What you will get after all

that wandering is nothing but joy mixed with amazing history.

Delicious  Food

There is a saying in Turkey:  The way to one’s heart passes through one’s stomach. You understand how true is this saying when you start tasting delicious cousine of Istanbul. The syrupy and crusty baklava, the breakfast spreads that cover tables and tables, the different types of soups, the kebabs, the pides, the sea food, the street food.. Everything is so fresh and cooked exactly the way you want it. And also the turkish delight.. So yummy. Don’t forget to buy some of those before leaving the city.

The  Joy Of Wandering And Exploring the Unknown

Taking the ferry to the Asian side and back, passing by the Maiden’s Tower, is such an experience that is difficult to put into words without seeing it in person. Walking the streets through numerous parks, climbing up hills and discovering tombs, mosques, churches, and so much more in every spot your visit is a non-stop fun. You never know what to expect next since the city is so full of vibrancy and life. It might be a new friend, a new food, a piece of history you would never know about its  existence – You see one thing and the next thing you see is something totally different. Wander the streets to unsurface the unknown.

The Night Life

Wonderful dinners with views over the Bosphorus, a night at the theater, the opera, the latest pop hit. Catching the latest exhibition in a world-class art museum. You want some jazz and take a sip of your whisky, then a brick building somewhere in Kadiköy. Or may be what you are looking for is a traditional Turkish tavern. Just name it and Istanbul will provide you with the best option to cheer your night.

Turkish Hospitality At Its Best

Every time you visit Istanbul, you will be welcomed with great welcome and hospitality. Every person you come across, every person you meet will treat you as if you were friends like forever. Don’t get tired of free pastries, teas and Turkish delights because these “ikrams” will keep coming nonstop during your stay in Istanbul.

By the way, the mosaics were discovered in 1960 and normally it takes at least 1,5 hour to see the whole museum. You will also love to read the love stories of the mosaics.

What happened to the mosaics?

The mosaics were first discovered  in 1960 but unfortunately five years later, something happened. Bowling Green State University in the U.S took whatever they unsurfaced of the Gypsy girl mosaic back to the U.S.A. However, Turkish archeological team of experts hadn’t fully discovered the Gypsy girl  part of the mosaic yet. Then in 1998, they started to look for the 12 missing pieces of it and finally in 2012, Turkey asked for the missing pieces from Bowling State University. It took another 5 years of negotiation and finally a protocol was signed between the parts for the return of the ‘missing’ pieces. Fortunately, the pieces that were being on display in the university in America were sent back to Turkey on November 27, 2018 to be set back to its original place in Gaziantep.

The Gypsy Girl

At the rear of the museum, there is a darkened room, in which they display the famous “Gypsy Girl.” According to some, it is the face of a young Alexander the Great. However, there is still a controversy over the subject.

How to go there?

The Gaziantep Airport is only  20 km to the city center. There are direct flights through Germany. There are indirect connections to other European countries transferring at Ankara or Istanbul to Gaziantep. There are scheduled intercity coach connections with all cities of Turkey or you could arrange a private shuttle service through your agency.

If you happen to have any questions about the place or on a different subject, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Meeting point of Eastern and Western Civilisations: Heritage of Commagene Kingdom

The Commagene Kingdom reigned the region for about two centuries between 109 BC and 72 AD.It was definitely a great civilisation mixing Macedonian and Persian culture and beliefs.It  also tells us the fact that that Mithridates I Callinicus, the founder of the kingdom had ancestral lineage deriving from both Darius the Great of Achaemenid Empire and Alexander the Great of the Kingdom of Macedon, and that relationship had a bearing on this unifying pprocess. The most powerful kingdom of region was the Commagene for some time. The burial place of female members of Commagene royal family, which is known as the Giant Eagle Royal (Karakus) Tumulus, is adorned with four tall pedestals – today only one of them stand erect with an eagle sculpture on top; the Necropolis of Perre, which was situated in one of the largest settlements (near Pirin Village) where the mosaics on the floor were unsurfaced; Arsameia (Eskikale), one of the temene of the Kingdom where once the palaces were standing, are the other sites to visit for those who wish to learn about that civilisation more closely.

Those who are interested in history of cultures would also find artefacts and structures from other civilisations that survived on this land which cradled various civilisations for thousands of years. One of the oldest Roman bridges in Anatolia is the Severan Bridge (Cendere Köprüsü) from the 1st century AD, which was built by the Commagene Kingdom. The other is the New Castle in Old Kahta, which was believed to be founded in 2nd century BC but extensively rebuilt during the Mamluk Sultane domination of the region.

A Magnificent Sunrise

One of the important reasons of paying a visit to Mount Nemrut is enjoying the sunrise from the summit. King Antiochus, revering his ancestors in Western and Eastern civilisations, erected giant statues of gods on the East and West terraces and cited their names both in Persian and Greek. So you will enjoy watching the unique sunrise together with the statues of gods who have been standing and witnessing it for thousands of  years.

How to Go to The Mount Nemrut

The Mount Nemrut Tumulus is in the province of Kahta that  is about 86 km east of Adıyaman city. There are scheduled flights to Adiyaman Airport from Istanbul and Ankara. Mount Nemrut can best be seen between the months of  April and October.

We, as Magic Map Travel, definitely recommend you to see this magnificent place. If you come up with any questions, please never hesitate to contact us.

But where do these mysterious heads  come from? What is the Commagene Kingdom? Who was King Antiochus I Theos?  Why were they built? Is there any purpose behind them? And why were they erected at this specific spot? It’s one of the few examples in history where we have the remnants of the history and not the memory, so we will set the record correct and find out the history of this land all over again.

What exactly was the Commagene Kingdom?

The Commagene Kingdom was an ancient Armenian one and it was right between Rome and Persian. Moreover,it served as a buffer state in between these two empires. In fact, the kings of Commagene claimed ancestry from Darius I Persia. They were somehow related to the Persians.

Its capital was Samosata and nothing remained from that city. Today we know tiny little information about the place. The valley at the bottom of Mount Nemrut might have been the location for the city. As you can see, even the known history of the kingdom is a little shrouded in history, but it’s reckoned that the kingdom remained relatively independent until 17 AD, when it was conquered by the Roman emperor Tiberius. It regained independence for a couple decades before being incorporated in the Roman Empire once and for all in 72 AD by the emperor Vespasian.

The kings of the kingdom must have been super powerful and wealthy. One can get into this conclusion by looking at the sculptures.

What about  the sculptures?

The sculptures were built by King Antiochus I Theos of Commagene as a tomb-sanctuary for himself. The sculptures are of himself, two lions, two eagles and various Greek, Armenian, and Medes gods, such as Zeus-Aramazd or Oromasdes (associated with Zoroastrian god Ahura Mazda), Hercules-Vahagn, Tyche-Bakht, and Apollo-Mihr-Mithras.

The sculptures themselves show the “East meets West” nature of the kingdom, as the facial features are Greek but the clothing they’re wearing is decidedly more Eastern. They are no longer standing in their original positions, but the scattered effect of the sculpture’s current positions is almost more jarring than if they were neatly in a row as they almost certainly were originally intended.

The site as a whole is massive, with a 49-meter-tall tumulus on site (mound of earth and stones raised over tombs).

Where exactly is this place?

Adiyaman and Malatya are two nearest neighbouring big cities to Mount Nemrut. If you want to see a spectacular sunrise and sunset, Mount Nemrut is definitely a must see since the massive sculptures are bathed in the dawn’s red light, reflect over the marvel of history and the passing empires over these lands. This place has a lot to tell you.

You can either drive there by car, which is the best option, or you can join a tour bus. There are also shared taxis that are called “Dolmuşes” and they will take you all the way to Mount Nemrut.

Göbeklitepe archaeological site is near Örencik village, 15 km northeast of Şanlıurfa aka Urfa, which is one of the most mystical cities of Turkey. It is situated in South East part of Turkey.  It was discovered in 1963. Only 5 percent of the whole site has been unsurfaced so far but the excavation is still going.The city is close to Syrian border. However, that doesn’t mean that it is a dangerous place. The life in Urfa is as safe as the rest of the cities in Turkey. Everyone is incredibly kind and you might even find the hospitality much better than in the tourist beach areas.

Why Göbeklitepe is significant?

Before the discovery of Göbeklitepe also known as Potbelly hill, archeologists thought that temples and religious structures where to be seen only where farming communities presented. However, in Göbeklitepe, temples found are dating back to the era when farming hadn’t started yet. This place is at least 6000 years older than Stonehenge in England and 5.500 years older than the first cities of Mesopotomia. It is believed to be a centre of faith and pilgrimage during the Neolithic Age and also It proves the existence of religious beliefs prior to the establishment of the first cities.

What to see in Göbeklitepe?

This place is considered to be the oldest ruins of Anatolia. It is a temple complex more than a city. It depicts various animal figures, belief systems and sacrificial areas. There is no evidence of people living there, no cooking supplies, no building suggesting that somebody actually lived there. So don’t expect to see somewhere like Ephesus in Izmir or Sobesos in Cappadocia. You will be seeing temple complexes, sanctuaries and spiritual worshipping areas.

There are six of those temples unearthed to date, on the basis of geomagnetic surveys, the total number of those monumental structures is believed to be twenty. There are stone pillars which  are six-metre-tall and  T-shaped carved with reliefs of animals, erected to form circles.

And according to some experts those carvings might be  the earliest three dimensional depictions of animals carved into stones.

This han is perhaps the best preserved of all Anatolian hans, and is one of the most monumental examples of Seljuk architecture. It was built in 1235-41 and was named after its patron, the vizier Celaleddin Karatay. The Karatay Han(Caravanserai)is important, not only for its impressive size and decorations, but for the fact that the charter of the Karatay Foundation provides detailed information about the life of the han.

Construction of this han started during the reign of Alaeddin Keykubad and was continued during that of his son, Giyaseddin Keyhüsrev, in 1240-1241. Karatay gained considerable power during the reign of this weak sultan and must have accumulated an extensive fortune which found expression in the attention paid to the decorative elements of this han.

The han contains an inscription over both of the crown doors. Both inscriptions are carved in marble stone in Seljuk naskh calligraphy. The inscription on the entry to the covered section  reads: “It is Allah the Eternal who owns all possessions. Keykubad, the son of Keyhüsrev, the most magnificent of sultans, head of all Khans, holder and governor of the umma, master of the sultans in the world, father of all conquests”. The inscription in thuluth script over the main crown door leading into the courtyard provides a precise date this time, 638 H (1240) and reads: “This building belongs to God, who is One, Eternal, and Everlasting, August and Magnificent Sultan, King of Kings, the Shadow of God on Earth, Keyhüsrev son of Keykubad, Commander of the faithful in the year 638”. That means that the covered section was built under the reign of Alaeddin Keykubad I (1219-1236). The construction of the han was probably interrupted for a few years after the death of the sultan until the project was revived for the courtyard again by Karatay under Giyaseddin Kayhüsrev II.

Karatay was one of the most powerful of all Seljuk statesmen, he was a devout Muslim and a charitable man. He was a Byzantine Christian of Greek origin who converted to Islam. He served the Seljuk empire for over 40 years (1214-1254). He also built the Karatay Medrese at Konya (1251), where he is buried. He was a friend of Celaleddin Mevlana (Rumi). Travelling monk Bar Hebraeus described him as a good and merciful man, an ascetic who abstained from the eating of flesh, and from the drinking of wine, and from women .

Legend states that Celaleddin Karatay journeyed from Kayseri to see the finished han, and was so overwhelmed by its magnificence that he suddenly turned around and sped away again, afraid that he might become filled with pride, which would deprive him of deserving merit in the eyes of God. Out of fear of this sin, he vowed never again to visit this caravanserai.

DESCRIPTION

The han resembles a fortress from the outside with 6 corner towers and 12 buttresses. The entrance faces south. Decoration of the exterior walls includes rain spouts in the shape of lions and human figures. The ones with human figures used to have a bull’s head on the right side and a lion’s head on the left side.  The walls are built using the rubble wall masonry technique, which consisted of filling two rows of smooth-face stones with a mixture of small pebbles and mortar. The structure has a covered section used for lodging, built first, and an open courtyard lined with service facilities. The courtyard is twice as big as the covered section.

The main crown door shows a combination of figurative, floral, vegetal and geometric patterns. A semi-circular column is located on each side of the crown door opening. The sides facing inwards are covered with figures: a lion on the right side and birds on the left side. The surface of the arch above the columns is decorated with curved branches intertwining with rumi motifs and lotus flowers, with a figurative element of ox heads and small human figures in the middle of the vines. Although the figures are in poor condition today due to erosion of the stones, they can be clearly seen in the old photographs. More human heads can be seen on the left side of the main door, where two heads are placed within the branches of vegetal decoration. A rosette is located on the surface of each spandrel of the crown door. A marble inscription plaque is set at the top of the middle of the crown door.

The mosque is situated to the right of the entrance. It consists of a small domed square room with a mihrab decorated with stalactites and rosettes. The door to the mosque is a mini crown portal. The arch spandrels of the door are filled with circular rosettes filled with vegetal and rumi and engraved letters spelling out “Allah” interspersed in front of them. The mosque has a skylight in its ceiling. Also the foundation deed of Karatay han prescribes that in the place of oil lamps, the usual means of lighting in these buildings, that candles were to be lit all year round from sunset to the morning prayer.

On the left there are three openings leading to different rooms. Some of them may have been used as the treasury for the safekeeping of valuables. The third and last opening on the left side leads into a tomb. A tomb is unusual for a caravanserai. It is decorated with tiles and the frieze of 15 animals including a bird, a deer, a rabbit, a dog, a snake, a wolf, two feline quadrupeds, a bull and an elephant. Only three elephants are known to be represented in Seljuk art: here, on a stone from the Konya city walls, one on a glazed tile in the tepidarium of the Hunat Hatun Baths of Kayseri, and here in this frieze in the Karatay Han.

It is not known to whom belongs the empty sarcophagus located in the tomb. Some researchers have suggested that the cenotaph may belong to Celaleddin Karatay himself. The room has beautiful brickwork patterns.A blue star is painted on the vault above the sarcophagus.

Once you walk out into the courtyard, turn around and look at the rear face of the main portal. There is a stylized ribbon of two confronting dragons along the iwan arch. The dragon, a symbol for wealth and prosperity, is mentioned often in astronomy and cosmology texts of the 13th century.

On the left side of the courtyard there is an arcade with seven spaces in a row, each carried on two piers and covered with a pointed vault. This vaulted arcade was used as a depot, bazaar and stabling area for animals. Many of the stones have holes for tethering animals, and there are feeding troughs in the side aisles.

The right side of the courtyard contains seven enclosed units covered with barrel vaults. The two units on the north are windowless. It is believed that these two small rooms were reserved for dignitaries, and the room immediately to the north of them, opening onto the courtyard, would have been occupied by guards controlling entry. A group of interconnected rooms such as this are not usually seen in hans, and are believed to have been reserved for special guests, such as the sultan or other dignitaries.

The bath in the southeast corner of the courtyard consists of a square dressing room with three skylights in the dome, the caldarium covered with a stalactite dome with five skylights, remains of water pipes and a wall fountain. There are also two private cubicles and a water tank. The bath here is unusual and quite small for such a large han. It could have been reserved for special guests only and not the general visitors. In addition to this internal bath, the foundation charter states that another bath outside the han walls was made for the travelers, but it has not survived.

The crown door of the covered section has an elaborate decorative scheme. It has four borders decorated with different geometric patterns. The arch of the door opening is fitted with three rows of stalactites. A rosette with a braided decoration is set in the corners of the arch above the crown door. The inscription plaque is framed by a border of half-star motifs.

The covered section of the han was built first, before the courtyard. It consists of seven aisles extending in the east-west direction and is formed by two support rows on either side which are carried by two piers. The central nave is covered with a pointed vault. The middle section between the third and fourth piers is shaped like a dome on the interior and appears as a conical lantern dome on the exterior. The dome has small porthole window openings located in the four main directions. Lighting is provided by slit windows on the walls.

One of the most interesting elements of this han is the Foundation Deed that provides many administrative details, including the salary scale of the han’s employees, expenditures for food and heating oil, and the inventory stock. The listed staff of the han included a trustee and his assistant, a superintendent, an imam, a muezzin, a greeter, the han keeper, a cook, a veterinary, a cobbler and a stableman. It clearly sets out the services to be provided by the han to visitors, such as food and drink (1 kg of bread and 250 grams of meat per day, as well as honey halva on Friday nights), soap, medicines, provision of leather for the repair or replacement of shoes, nails for the shoeing of animals, firewood for heat and candles and oil for light…all for free. Hay and barley were to be provided to the animals. It stipulated that olive oil and wood was to be burned for heating, and that the mosque be lit by candles from sunset until the morning prayer. It also stipulated that any person who fell ill on the road or in the han was to receive medical treatment. The deed also prescribes that all comers, Muslim and non-Muslim, free or slave, man or woman, be treated equally.

Pisidia province is in a triangle between Lykia, Phrygia and Pamphilia. It’s a mountainous area with a beautiful view but no access to the sea. Populated by tribes of Pisidians, considered to be barbarians by the Greek. They might have been barbarians but their choice of place for founding a city was truly a fit of genius. Termessos is located in a sort of saddle-shaped valley more than 1000 meters above sea level. It was a sort of invisible watchtower: they could see everything but no-one could see them if they didn’t know where to look. And what’s more, situated like this they were in control of the narrow pass between towering mountains – a gateway to Phrygia. Termessos is what Alexander the Great called the eagle’s nest when he first saw it on his way from Pamphilia to Phrygia in 333BC. And though Alexander himself was called a Macedonian Madman, even he wasn’t mad enough to try and attack a city situated in such an inaccessible place, where his soldiers would have to climb up the steep winding paths only to face the city’s tall fortified walls. It wasn’t worth it, especially since Termessians were not trying to prevent him from going through the pass. The guards were removed and the gateway to phrygia was open, so Alexander moved on and Termessos stayed unconquered. It is still remembered as such and rightly so, because from the strategic viewpoint their position is amazing, they were high on the rock and hidden at the same time. It is, in a word, DEFENCE. They had no need to fight for their homeland, because they made sure from the very start that their homeland was sufficiently defended. It was bulletproof. Or rather sword, spear and slingshot-proof. It might be the reason why they chose the shield as a symbol of their city. As you walk though its ruins, you will notice it on a lot of stone reliefs.

SOLYMIANS – ZEUS SOLYMEUS

The people who founded Termessos called themselves Solymians, supposedly connected with Solymos – the name of the mountain on which they built their “nest”. According to Herodotus they were the original inhabitants of Lycia and occupied the Taurus peaks around Lycia. According to Homer they went to war against hero Bellerophont, whose son Isander was killed in that conflict. And the hero Solymos who they considered to be their ancestor was the son of Zeus and Chaldene. He was a wargod and dwelled on top of the Solymos mountain, much like Zeus on top of Olympos. Although later the narrative changed and the cult of Solymos merged with the cult of Zeus producing Zeus Solymeus – one of the mountain-cults of Zeus – who provided a link between local traditions and Hellenism became the principal deity of the city and carried on into the Roman Imperial period in Asia Minor. It should be noted that even in that period Termessos had an autonomous status within the empire (71 BC Antonius Pius) and continued to mint its own coins not with the portraits of emperors but with either Solymos or Zeus himself. And of course the word “autonomos”. Zeus Solymeus is also mentioned numerous times in the necropolis inscriptions. In the inscriptions grave-robbers are threatened with the punishment from Zeus if they dare disturb the dead.

MAP

If you look at the map of the Termessos, you will see two entrances – from the north and from the south, both of which lead to the city gates in the fortified walls. The road leading up to the Termessos is called King’s Road, built in 2AD.  Looking at the gates, it’s still possible to see how they were locked with a massive wooden bar (30x40cm) that was fitted into the slots in the watchtower walls on either side of the gate (A1). Another interesting thing about the walls to the east of the city gate are inscriptions for divination by dice. The dice in question were actually knucklebones of sheep or goats (astragaloi).  This kind of fortune-telling was widespread in the Hellenistic world and practised by citizens who wanted to get advice from the gods about their daily life, business or travel. It was done like this: inscribed oracles were associated with particular combination of numbers that a person could get by rolling five dice at a time. A person would  pick up five dice, roll them, note the combination of numbers they displayed and look up the relevant oracle. And they try to figure out how it applied to their situation. Or hire a professional diviner for a small fee. The niche next to the inscriptions probably contained an image of Hermes who was the oracles deity.

ENVIRONMENT

It is important to note the environment of Termessos. It is situated in a flat fertile mountain plain. The steep slopes around such plains are often wooded and suitable for sheep and goats to graze on. The soil here is rich and suitable for agriculture. What could be grown in Termessos before that? Probably barley, chickpeas, olives, apples, almonds. Also, Pliny mentions wine from Termessos, so probably grapes, too.

WATER SUPPLY

The hydrology is characterised by low surface run-off but high infiltration which means that springs are a common feature in the region. Termessians took full advantage of this by digging an extensive series of cisterns which provided water supply, drainage and sewage systems for the city. In another valley arm to the east of the city you can even see a canal coming directly from Solymos on the southeast corner quite high in the wall going into the largest of Termessos cisterns called hydrodoheia, which consists of four adjoining rooms with barrel vaulted ceilings. However in the 5the century AD the tectonic activity destroyed the city’s aqueduct and became one of the reasons Termessos was ultimately abandoned. In many places throughout Termessos you will see ancient cisterns which belonged to specific buildings but were also connected with the common system. What is also important to note is that dug up limestone was used as a construction material both for the city of the living (houses) and the city of the dead (sarcophagi) as we will see later.

Fig. 12. Source house. The fact that in the third layer above the apex of the openings are cut holes for a beam layer, proves that the space in front of the openings was covered. This porch might have resembled an ancient Greek nympheum

HADRIAN’S GATE

It’s what the Greeks called propylon, that is a ceremonial gate, possibly with a small temple behind it. In this case it was ionic peripteros, meaning that it surrounded by collonade on all sides.

AGORA

The marketplace, the meeting place, the life and blood of an ancient polis. Termessos agora can be dated back to the 2nd century BC, it was levelled and paved with stone slabs on top of the rocky ground. It’s more trapezoid than rectangular in shape and limited on two sides by the stoas. Stoa is kind of a roofed building open and supported by columns on one side with enclosed shops on the other side. It was a place for the citizens of the polis to meet and talk, could be for business, gossip or philosophical discussions. In fact we find the word “stoa” in “stoicism”, a school of thought that developed under the shade of Athenean (?) stoas. Termessos agora had to I-shaped stoas. The first of them, Attalos Stoa, dates to the 2nd century BC, just as agora, it was 2-storied with Doric order columns. But the most interesting part is that it was gifted to Termessos by the king of Pergamon Attalos II as a symbol of friendship and good will between the two cities. The second stoa is bearing the name of a wealthy Termessian – Osbaros, who paid for its construction. It was built in the 1st century BC, that is to say already in the roman period, and was modelled after the Attalos stoa.

HEROON

Another important element of agora is of course Heroon, which means a monument for a hero or, as in Termessos, a hero’s grave. Here it is located at the south end of Attalos stoa. This type of burial is called chamosoria which means a grave hollowed out in a rock under open sky. And this is exactly what we see here. In a towering rock a round grave is hollowed out with the circular lid fallen and broken in two on the ground. A semi-circular bench (exedra) is carved out on the same rock with a flat platform in front of it, and both of them were definitely intended for congregations, cultic activities and remembrance of the hero. On the west wall of the rock three niches were made for placing objects of veneration and beneath them on the left you can see  a small canal running from a small basin down to the ground. This was a construction for liquid offerings (libations). Once again, I want to say that a burial within the city is unusual and was only reserved for the most distinguished persons. The Greek intra-urban grave as phenomenon existed on mainland Greece from 720 BC onwards with the formation of the Greek polis. In Asia Minor the oldest grave within the city – except the Maussolleion at Halicarnassus – is the one we see here in Termessos. The Pisidians – non-Greek people of Anatolian origin – had practiced Self-Hellenization since the 4th century BCso it’s easy to imagine that they assumed this Greek phenomenon of honouring a prominent citizen with the great privilege of the burial at the city centre.

TEMPLE OF ZEUS SOLYMEUS

The biggest temple in Termessos (N3) was in all probability dedicated to Zeus Solymeus. Its architectural features include a raised terrace, Doric column drums. The interesting part is the two reliefs from the frieze representing Gigantomachy, where we see Zeus and Apollo fighting the snake-legged giants. They bring to mind the famous reliefs decorating the Altar of Zeus Soter in Pergamon. It is not a direct copy, it was probably made by a local artist, and the material used is not marble but limestone, and yet the influence is unmistakable. Which is important because it gives us an idea of Termessos’s good relationship with its neighbours. The most powerful of which at the time was Pergamon.

Another amazing element of this temple is a relief of a priest sacrificing a bull to Zeus. (early 1st century BC). The piece of art was commissioned by the priest Otantes himself and decorating the base for a bronze statue of Zeus Solymeus, which is unfortunately lost. In the relief we see a group of three musicians on the left, mageiros with a bull in the centre and the priest, hydrophoros and a sacrificial ram behind him on the right. How did the ritual take place? The sacrificial animals were led in a procession to the altar probably during a festival as we see the musicians present. The priest would recite the prayer and sprinkle the altar and animal’s head with libation (watered wine), the animal would toss its head in the air which was taken as a sign that it went to sacrifice willingly. Barley grains were then thrown onto the altar and the animal’s forelock was cut off and burnt as an act of consecration. The victim was then stunned with an axe by mageiros and its throat slit and blood collected in a bowl and poured onto the altar. After that the entrails were removed and inspected, and the meat was cut up, large thigh bones wrapped up in fat, sprinkled with libation and incense and then burned on the altar. That was done because the god were thought to derive pleasure and sustenance from the smoke that rose up from the sacrifice. The animals chosen for sacrifice had to be white and free of imperfections otherwise gods could reject the offering.

TEMPLE OF ARTEMIS

Located south of Odeon. It’s an ionic peripteros temple with 6 columns on the front/back and 11 columns on the sides. It can be dated to the late Hellenistic period (133-25BC). Turkish archeologist Ekrem Akurgal dated it to the period of Antonines. Again, there is no direct evidence that this temple was dedicated to Artemis but it is the most likely version due to the stone reliefs found to the east of the temple. Made of limestone, they portray a scene from the myth of Iphigenia, who is about to be sacrificed by her father Agamemnon. Just before setting off to Troy Agamemnon went hunting, killed a deer in the sanctuary of Artemis and got punished by the goddess – no wind to carry his ships to Troy. He was trying to pacify Artemis by sacrificing his own daughter but Artemis didn’t want it and brought a stag to replace Ihigenia at the altar. Again, like the frieze at Zeus Solymeus temple, the Iphigenia relief shows a clear influence of Pergamon sculptural monument. (Some researchers even think that the presence of Iphigenia in Aulis scene suggests that there once was a pair with Iphigenia in Tauris scene, and that in turn could mean that Termessians claimed possession of Artemis Tauropolos sculpture)

TEMPLE N1

Corinthian prostylos, six columns Roman period, 2nd century, possibly dedicated to Asklepeios and Hygieia. Deep and wide pronaos, square naos, Syrian gable.

TEMPLE N2

Corinthian prostylos, four columns, Roman perion, 2nd century AD, possibly dedicated to Ares. Cella on top of a podium, vaulted cellar under the podium.

TEMPLE N4

Corinthian prostylos, 4 columns, Syrian gable, pronaos, naos, a small wide cella, built during the Roman period, dedicated to Artemis, similar to Artemis shrine along Embolos in Ephesos.

TEMPLE N6

Corinthian order, built during the Roman period, the deity it was dedicated to is unknown, but possible candidates are Demeter or Dyonisos.

TEMPLE N7

Extra-mural sanctuary of Artemis. A small structure nearby has recently been identified as dedicated to Pan.

POSSIBLE SHRINE OF LETO

At the cistern D9. As a chtonic deity she was presumed to reside within the cemetary and was supposed to protect the burials. Tombs of the clergy are mostly situated in this area – place of honor, place of protection.

SHRINE OF PAN

Recently discovered in the woods close to the city, has an inscription dedicating to Pan.

GYMNASIUM

Another staple structure of a Hellenistic polis is a gymnasium, where young boys and men got both mental and physical education. In present-day Termessos some parts of the building are hidden underground, thus you can only see the north-eastern part it. The Termessos gymnasium was quite a typical structure, with a large open courtyard which was covered with sand for wrestling and exercising (palaestra) and pillared halls around it, behind which rooms were located. The collapsed temple-like building in the courtyard is also characteristic of a gymnasium —– . It also had its own cistern which is understandable as gymnasiums typically had their own baths with several swimming pools, so a steady supply of water was necessary. (Fig. 13 and cross section of the cistern at the high school) Among the inscriptions found in the building is inscription 52 found in the northeast corner, providing a list of those students (Ephebes) who had won athletic competitions under a certain principal (Ephebarchen). Another one (11?) says that one who also provides care for the high schools put up the image of eros, a clear Proof that Termessos’ platons were aware of the same name as the famous Athenian. As is well known, there was an altar of Eros at the entrance to the academy, and statues of it were therefore common in high schools

KTISTES HOUSE

Near the agora is the large house which is referred to in one of the inscriptions as the house of “ktistes”, that is the founder of the city. Most probably it was poetic exaggeration and it referred not to the actual founder but a wealthy citizen who had done a lot for the development of the Termessos. The architecture reminds of a Roman mansion. Main entrance formed a portal with Doric pilasters and triglyphs. (Fig. 65.) and led into a vestibule that was open to the street. The floor plan includes an atrium of great proportions, the pavement of which has been partially preserved, and in the middle of which there was an impluvium – a reservoir for collecting rainwater; around the atrium there are a number of rooms. Pins and locking holes show the closure of the window with two-leaf wooden shutters. (Fig. 63. Floor plan and view of the house of the Ktistis.P 6 inscriptions. 88)

ODEON

Odeon was a sort of a smaller, often covered amphitheatre. It had less seats, was more exclusive and could be used both for artistic performances and city council meetings, in which case it acted a bouleuterion. The presence of bouleuterion in Termessos is an indicator of a Greek type of government practised in the city which in turn is a sign of successful Hellenisation of the region. Termessian odeon was built on a natural slope in a way that made it 2-storied on one side  (scene) and 1-storied on another. The lower part of the 2-storied facade was plain while the upper part was decorated with Attic-Ionic bases and Doric pilasters – a mix of architectural styles typical for the 2nd century BC in Asia Minor. It was most probably roofed in some way as on the eastern and southern sides there are remains of 11 large windows. There was one door for the spectators but two doors on the sides of the scene for the actors/orators. Early researches found pieces of colored marble within the ruins which means the floor was decorated with mosaic.

THEATRE

Theatre in Termessos is dated to the early Hellenistic period (334-189BC). Unlike most of the structures in Termessos the theater is built not of limestone but of white marble. It is in the immediate vicinity of the agora, The inscription on the main entrance of the theater shows that a statue of Heracles Eitheios (youthful) stood there. Why& Because Herakles was associated with athletic activities and competitions which also took place at the theatre. The theatre is located on a steep slope with a spectacular view of Mount Solymos, it could hold about 4200 spectators. Architecturally, it is a Greco-Roman theatre. Cavea (66m diameter) is horseshoe-shaped and spread on a natural slope but with a section of it built of blocks. The orchestra is circular. (19,8 diameter) The Skene building is free-standing and is not blocking the view. Parodos on the left is open while the one on the right was initially open but was covered with a vaulted ceiling in Roman period connecting cavea to the skene. It’s a proper mix of the two styles.

There are 26 rows of seats in the cavea,  they are divided into two sections by a diazoma (2,40m), 18 rows below and 8 rows above. Interesting detail was the free-standing benches with backrests on the diazoma. The number of stairs (klines) cut into the rows is 6 in the lower section and 10 in the upper section. The top of the cavea was a covered passage (2,40m), which was open on the inside and closed on the outside by a wall. The lower parts of some of the rectangular pillars that supported the ceiling of this passage are still visible. The main entrance to the theater is in the middle of the outer wall ring; here the upper section of the rows of seats is interrupted by a 4 m wide staircase below. There are numerous inscriptions on the seats indicating who they were reserved for. It could be a group of people, like “epheboi” of the gymnasium or a single person, like a priestess. Single names are only found on the rows above diazoma which probably means they were more of a deluxe option. (Seat inscriptions (64) on the 19th on the right on the first stone)

The orchestra was separated from the rows of seats by a parapet of 1,20 m high, which is still preserved at the south end. The skene contains a 3,60 m wide and 29,40 m long interior, which opens to the stage with five doors. The Hyposkenia (Table XI C) is a wall with five openings. The wall between the posts consists of panels and decorated with shields. (Fig. 53.) There are numerous fragments of the pillars that stood on the pedestals and the beams that they carried, among the rubble filling the stage and orchestra. They were smooth and spirally cannulated pieces (Fig. 55) The simplicity of the Skene, with two walls as Paraskenia, corresponds to the somewhat older age.

NECROPOLIS

Termessos necropolis is one of the richest example of  all ancient sites in Turkey thanks to the fact that economically Termessos was blooming during the Roman period (2-3 centuries AD), and the same time its citizens gave a lot of thought to afterlife and attached big importance to it. Number of burials and their variety is much higher than in other ancient cities. Another important difference is that in most of cities necrolopolises were located outside the city walls, close to the city or along the road while in Termessos most of the burials were within the city walls although separated from the city of the living. The biggest necropolis is to the west of the living quarters but the most striking examples of burials are found in the north-eastern part of Termessos, which is less crowded and more private.

There are several types of burials:

Rock-face tombs

Aedicula with sarcophagus 25, 29, 70, 72 /tomb of Amastra vaulted aedicula

Temple-like tombs (3-column corinthian prostylos 74,76 w/Medusa on the gable)

Free-standing sarcophagus

Ostothekes

Graves

Graves, which are the ground burials we are used to today, might be difficult to make out mong all the sarcophagi but they are here, and they were used for burying people who couldn’t afford even the simplest sarcophagus or ostotheke.

Ostothekes are basically small rock-carved boxes with lids where bones and ashes were placed after the cremation. They are normally found on higher ground, be it a tall rock or a platform. Most probably it was done to make them more visible

Free-standing sarcophagi are the most common burial type in Termessos. Some of them were plain, other are decorated with a varying degree of richness. A very common decoration on the sarcophagus fronts are shields with spear/sword or just two round shields with the inscription between them. Other decorations include Medusa Gorgona head, so anyone who would try to rob the tomb, would be turned to stone. Garlands with faces or masks. Animal reliefs with a vessel between them

Both ostothekes and sarcophagi are shaped more or less like houses – rectangular box with a gable roof, some of them even have reliefs of doors on one of the short sides. Which brings us to important point, namely, when the ancients called the cemetary a “necropolis”, they meant exactly that – a city of the dead, a city with neaighbourhoods, and streets and houses – only for  the dead. That’s why we see tombs shaped like houses, whether it is a poor man’s hut or a rich man’s mansion.

The sarcophagi and ostothekes were cut out of the rock in the necroplois itself or in its immediate vicinity. In necrolopolis, (S7) you can see vertically worked rock walls and a block prepared for two sarcophagi, but not yet detached. Two other sarcophagi, already detached, are still in the quarry, one not yet completely hollowed out, the other completely hollowed out, already with the inscription (165) only the sum is missing in the threat of punishment, so that all stages that a sarcophagus has to go through are in front of us here.

Some sarcophagi were placed within a small shrine called aedicula. This kind of burial was reserved for a respected or wealthy person. For example, burial belonging to priestess Armasta looked like this.

A step up from an aedicula is a temple-like tomb with columns.

Rock-face tombs are normally associated with Lycia but they are also present in Termessos and either look like facades of houses (Lycia type) or like acrhed niches (arcosolium). One of those acrosoliums is different especially interesting because it has several crosses incribed on it – a rare glimpse of Christianity in Termessos.

And finally, a burial that is difficult to classify. It is the so called Alcetas tomb. Possibly the most famous burial and it belongs to a person who wasn’t even a citizen of Termessos. His name was Alcetas, he was the brother Perdikkas – one of Alexander’s general. After the death of Alexander he was in conflict with another of his general Antigonos, and asked Termessos for shelter, which the city initially granted. But later on, the elders thought that it would cause trouble and decided to hand Alcetas over to Antigonos. When he realisd his fate, he decided to commit a suicide instead, so the elders handed over his body which was mutilated by Antigonos. In the end, the young citizens of Termessos, apalled by this situation, retrieved the body of Alcetas and buried him like a hero. His tomb is quite complex, on the left there is a relief of a soldier mounted on a charging horse. It’s damaged and the face is missing but his armor looks similar to Alexander’s in the famous mosaic. To the right of him there are details of another soldier – part of the shield, pommel of the sword, greaves, helmet. It’s either badly damaged or unfinished but we can guess that the scultor probably had a battle scene in mind when he started working on it. Yet all these are just decorations. The actual sarcophagus was placed a couple of meters to the right of the relief. It was resting on a kind of bench with lion feet for legs. Behind was a relief of a lattice. And above it – a relief of an eagle catching a snake in its claws. The lid of sarcophagus is missing but judging from other burials of this type, it probably had a sculpture of Alcetas himself in a reclining position, as if resting on a klimakes in his house.