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BEYSEHIR
Beysehir is located on the shore of Beysehir
Lake which is the third largest lake after
Lake Van
and the Salt
Lake, and Turkey's largest freshwater
lake. Beysehir National Park also is Turkey's
largest.
Numerous archaeological remains can be seen
in the area, such as the carved Hittite
monuments of Fasillar (south of Beysehir)
and the unusual Eflatunpinar monumental
fountain (north of Beysehir) which is a 13C
BC relief carving depicting men, women and
animals resembling lions.
After different periods of domination, Beysehir,
after the collapse of the Seljuks
at the beginning of the 14th century, became
capital of the Turkish Esrefogullari
emirate, which itself declined in importance
in Ottoman times.
The most important historic buildings in Beysehir
date from that period and include the Esrefoglu
Mosque (1298). The cedar wood columns
and flat ceiling, the stone and wood carving,
tiling and mosaics are exquisite examples
of Seljuk-style
decoration. Also not to be missed: the Esrefoglu
Kumbet mausoleum, Ismail Aka Medrese, Kuruçesme
Han, and the bazaar.
Other
places of interest in the area is Kubad-Abad
Summer Palace located across the lake
near Gölyaka: it was built by the
great Seljuk sultan Alaeddin Keykubad in
1236 and has remarkable stucco and tiling
decoration. Opposite is Kiz Kalesi
Castle (Maiden's castle) that stands
on one of the 22 islands.
PERGE
The
ancient city of Perge is located 18 km/ 11
miles to the east of Antalya, 11 kms/ from
the sea and 4 kms west of the Aksu river (ancient
Kestros/Cestrus). It was one of the most important
cities in the vast coastal plain known in
Antiquity as Pamphylia.
A text written on a tablet found in the Hittite
capital Hattusa provide proof of Perge's existence
as Parha-a and describe its importance in
the 13th century BC, long before the arrival
of the Hellenic settlers at the beginning
of the 7th century BC. However, according
to ancient tradition it was believed that
the city had been founded after the Trojan
War by the legendary heroes Calchas and
Mopsos and excavations at the courtyard of
honor behind the city gate revealed inscriptions
on statue bases mentioning the names of these
heroes.
There is no further record of the city until
it surrended to Alexander
the Great in 333 BC. From that period,
Perge became an important city and was surrounded
by fortifications. Under the domination of
the Seleucid kings, Perge enjoyed a considerable
freedom and rights of minting. Artemis of
Perge was represented on most of the coins,
because at the time, there was in the city
a sanctuary dedicated to this goddess famous
in the whole Pamphylia. In 188 BC, the city
came under the Roman
domination and went on flourishing and expanding
through the first three centuries AD.
At the time of their apostolic trips through
Asia Minor, St
Paul and his companion Barnabas staid
in Perge.
One of Perge's most celebrated inhabitants
was the astronomer and mathematician Apollonius
(circa 262-180 BC), known as the "Great
Geometer" (Treaty of Conic Sections).
Some
of the archaeological finds from Perge date
from the 5th century BC, however most of the
remains belong to the period of the Roman
Empire when, in the 2nd and 3rd centuries
AD, the city reached its greatest extent and
prosperity. The surviving buildings reflect
the splendours of this period.
The magnificent sculptures, which are displayed
in the Perge section of the Antalya
Archaeological Museum, show the advanced
level reached by the sculpture ateliers of
Perge.
The Archaeological site of Perge includes:
The Theatre was originally a Hellenistic
theatre with a horseshoe-shaped orchestra
modified by the Romans. It had a seating capacity
of 15,000 people. The beautiful frieze depicting
the life of the god of wine and theatre
Dyonisus
has remained in its original location adorning
the stage building (2C AD), while the friezes
representing the local river-god Cestrus,
Centauromachia and Gigantomachia are
now exhibited in the Antalya Archaeological
Museum.
Later, the outer wall of the stage building
was adorned with a Nympheaum of which five
fountain-niches have remained.
The Stadium
is a 2C AD Roman building and is, after Aphrodisias,
the best preserved in Anatolia.The seating
capacity was 12,000. 30 barrel-vaulted rooms
placed under the rows of seats were used as
shops, except one out of three that was used
for access to the stadium.
The
late Gateway and Walls date from the 4th
century AD.
The southern Baths
were Pamphylia's largest and most magnificent
baths. Pergeians cleansed themselves in the
large pool after exercising in the palaestra.
The pool was connected to the frigidarium,
tepidarium and caldarium which were all made
of marble. The statues, that embellished the
complex, are exhibited in the Antalya Archaeoligical
Museum.
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The Hellenistic Main Gate and
the walls are the only pre-Roman
structures dating back to the 3C BC.
The gate is composed of two imposing
round towers. Behind is a horseshoe-shaped
courtyard that was transformed during
the Roman period by Plancia Magna, the
most prominent woman in the city, into
a beautiful courtyard of honor lined
with columns and whose walls were covered
with colored marble : inside the niches
there were many statues including those
of Plancia Magna who was and chief priestess
of Artemis and benefactress of the city.
It is thought that the three-storied
towers were covered with a conical roof.
To the north of the courtyard stood
a triple triumphal arch.
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The Colonnaded Street was 20m/ 65 feet
wide and stretched from the Hellenistic Gate
to the Nympheaum at the foot of the
acropolis. In the middle, there was a water
canal which was used to cool the atmosphere
during the long-lasting hot summers. On both
sides, the street was lined with shops fronted
by a colonnade.
The
Nympheaum
was the monumental fountain built at the end
of the colonnaded street at
the foot of the acropolis. It was one
of Perge's most beautiful edifices. Water
brought from springs flowed into a pool through
an opening beneath a reclining statue of the
river-god Cestrus. From here water flowed
into the canal that ran through the middle
of the colonnaded street. The city was divided
into four sections by two colonnade streets.
The
Agora
was built when the city was enlarged in
the 4th century AD. This square agora
measured 75m
x 75m/
246 x 246 ft and was surrounded by shops and
a wide stoa. The remains of a circular edifice
stand in the center of the agora.
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The
main gate with the twin towers
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The
courtyard of honor
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The
square agora
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Shops
along the colonnaded street
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The
monumental fountain with reclining statue
of the
river-god Cestrus
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The
colonnaded street with the water canal
in the middle
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The
pool in the baths complex
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The
caldarium
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The
horseshoe-shaped stadium
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The
sarcophagi with garlands known as the
Pamphilian type,
are the exclusive production of Perge
workshop
Antalya Archaeological Museum
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The
Centauromachia
and Gigantomachia friezes from the stage
building of
the theatre are exhibited in the
Antalya Archaeological Museum
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KÖPRÜLÜ
CANYON
The 14 kms/ 8 miles long lush canyon is
situated in the Köprülü National Park,
92 km / 57 miles north-east of Antalya.
The national park, a true nature lover’s,
can be reached by a road that snakes along
the Köprüçay River which is suitable
for white water rafting with rapids of levels
1 and 2. Köprüçay River is the Turkish name
for Eurymedon which, during ancient times,
was navigable as far as Aspendus.
The river, emerging from the Taurus Mountains,
flows into the Mediterranean. The one arched
Roman Oluk Bridge spans the Köprüçay
River at a height of approximately 35 m/
115 m. Several fish restaurants can be found
along the river.
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Oluk
bridge on Köprüçay river
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Rafting
and river kayaking on Köprüçay river
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ASPENDUS
Aspendus
(Aspendos) is another major Pamphilian
city and is located near the village of Belkis
50 kms/ 31 miles to
the east of Antalya.
According
to the tradition, Aspendus was founded by
colonists from Argos led by the legendary
hero Mopsos in the 13C BC., near the Eurymedon
river (Köprüçay) which, at the time,
was navigable. Through the centuries, it was
a prosperous city due to the ships that could
reach its walls, thus making maritime trade
easier and active in the whole Mediterranean
sea. In the 6C BC, it was taken by Lydian
king Croesus, and
later came under the domination of Persia.
In 468 BC, the Persians
were defeated during a famous battle that
took place at the mouth of the Eurymedon.
Later, the rich city was punished for not
being willing to pay tribute to Alexander
the Great, and was compelled to show obedience.
Having become a vassal of Pergamum,
the city was rallied to Rome
in 190. Aspendus enjoyed its most prosperous
period when it was incorporated into the Roman
Province of Asia in 129 BC. The city declined
under the Byzantine
rule, then witnessed a short revival under
the Seljuks when,
after various rearrangements, the theatre
was converted into a palace by the Sultan
Giyaseddin Keyhüsrev
II between 1237 and 1240. The place was
finally abandoned in 1261.
The antique
city boasts a magnificent theatre,
famed for its excellent acoustics and beautiful
structure, and an imposing aqueduct.
The
Theatre
of Aspendus is the best preserved Roman theatre
in Asia. Inscriptions in Greek and Latin on
either side of the skene mention that its
construction was commissioned by two benefactors,
the wealthy brothers Curtius Crispinus and
Curtius Auspicatus who dedicated it to "the
Gods of the Country and the Imperial House."
The theatre was built by the local architect
Zenon in the 2C AD, under the reign of Marcus
Aurelius. It has a seating capacity of 20,000
spectators. The cavea, which has a diameter
of 95m/313 feet (it is wider than the stage)
and a height of 30m/ 98 feet, is only partly
built against the hill that formed the acropolis.
The Romans succeeded to create a perfect unity
between the auditorium and the skene (stage
building). A colonnaded arcade surmounts the
upper half of the 39 rows of seats. The stage
building was covered by an overhung roof that
provided shade but also better acoustics.
The stage wall with five windows set in it,
was decorated with 40 columns: ten pairs on
two levels with Ionic capitals below and Corinthian
above, surmounted by pedimented entablatures.
On
a Roman lintel above a door opened by the
Seljuks on the south side of the main facade,
and also below the window beside this door,
several animal (lions, deers) reliefs and
geometrical figures reliefs including a sun
symbol with a human face, have been brought
to light in May 2007. These reliefs were carved
to decorate what had become a sultan's residence.
The tile-work from this period is kept in
the Antalya Archaeological Museum.
Today
the theatre of Aspendus hosts concerts and
other performances as part as the Antalya
Film and Art Festival.
Nearby
the theatre stand the remains of a basilica,
agora, nymphaeum, bouleuterion
and stadium.
The Aqueduct, whose remains can be
seen approximately 2 kms north of the theatre,
is one of the most imposing and also one of
the best preserved Roman aqueducts in Turkey.
Water was brought from sources located 17
kms/ 10.5 miles away in the mountains, within
2 kms/ 1.2 miles of the city through a conventional
aqueduct. In order to cross the valley preceding
the acropolis, the last 2 kms of aqueduct
was a complex hydraulic system consisting
of three inverted siphons and two massive
water towers with a different elevation and
a different bend (angle) in their middle to
change the direction of water flow.
Once the water arrived at the edge of the
acropolis, it was distributed to the richly
decorated Nymphaeum, which stands on
the north side of the agora,
to the baths
and other buildings of the city.
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The
Theatre
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Colonnaded
Arcade
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Stage
Wall
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Detail
of the Stage Wall
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The
Aqueduct and Köprüçay river
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One
of the two
water towers at the entrance of the
village
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