TERMESSOS
...Termesos
is one of the best preserved of the ancient cities
of Turkey. It lies 30 kilometres to the north-west
of Antalya. It was founded on a natural platform on
top of Güllük Da?y, among the surroundig travertine
mountains of Antalya. Concealed by a multitude of
wild plants and bounded by dense pine forests, the
side, with its peaceful and untouched appearance,
has a more distinct and impressive atmosphere than
other ancient cities. Because of its natural and historical
riches, the city has been included in a National Park
bearing its name.
...From the main road,
a steep road leads up to the city. From this road
once can see the famous Yenice pass, through which
wound ancient road that the Termessians called "King
Street" as well as Hellenistic period fortification
walls, cisterns and many other remains. King Street,
built in the second century A.D. by contributions
from the people of Termessos, passes through the city
walls higher up and stretches in a straight line all
the way to the centre of the city. The principal official
buildings lay on a flat area a little beyond the inner
walls. The most striking of these structures is the
agora, which has very special architectural characteristics.
The ruins lying to the north-east of the agora must
belong to the gymnasium, but they are hard to make
out among all
the trees. The two-storey building consisted of an
internal courtyard surrounde by vaulted rooms. The
exterior is decorated with niches and other ornamentation
of the Doric order. This structure dates from the
first century A.D. Immediately to the east of the
agora lies the theatre. Commanding a view out over
the Pamphylian plain, this building is no doubt the
most eyecatching in all the Termessos plain As in
other classical cities, an odeon lies about 100 metres
from the theatre. This building, which looks like
a small theatre, can be dated to the first century
B.C. It is well preserved all the way to roof level
and exhibits the finest quality ashlar masonry. Six
temples of varying sizes and types have been accounted
for at Termessos. A street with wide, shop-lined porticoes
ran north-south through the city. The space between
the columns of the porticoes was often filled with
statues of successful athletes, most of them wrestlers.
To the south, west and north of the city, mostly within
the city walls,there are large cemeteries containing
rock-cut tombs.
...No excavations have
as yet been undertaken at Termessos. |
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