Ancient Sites
Turkey is a modern state whose history contains many names and episodes that still fire the imagination :
1300-1260 BC the Trojan Wars
725 BC King Midas ruled the Phrygians
334 BC Alexander the Great crosses the Dardanelles
56 AD St. Paul stays in the city of Ephesus and writes his famous Epistles
330 AD Constantine rebuilds Byzantium and renames it Constantinople
1299 AD The Ottaman state is formed
Lycia
Southwest Turkey, along and inland from the popular "Turquoise Coast", is the home of the ancient Lycians who were one of the most enigmatic people of antiquity. Although little historical record has been left behind them, what has been discovered reveals a fascinating people culturally distinct from the rest of the ancient world. Around twenty major sites remain today with the Lycians' unusual funerary architecture dominating the breath-taking unspoiled land of Lycia.
Tlos
Tlos is one of the most important historical
sites of Lycia. You can walk right up to, and
inside, the ancient tombs and fortifications,
and enjoy magnificent views across many
miles of countryside.
Xanthos
Xanthos, the ancient Lycian capital, was
buried after an earthquake and is still being
excavated from Roman and Byzantine times.
You will see a magnificent amphitheatre,
several monuments and the ruins of a large
church with some clearly visible coloured
mosaics.
Letoon
Letoon was an important religious centre for
the Lycian people and has remains of
temples to Leto, Artemis and Apollo. It also
has an amphitheatre and the remains of
many buildings.
Lycia links:
Lycia the land of light.