ASPENDOS – BELKIS

This is situated on the hill of an acropolis at a height of 40 metres, right by the side of the river Eurymedon-Köprüçay near the settlement of Serik, east of Antalya. The name of the city in the Luwian/Etruscan language was “Asiawanda” meaning “Country of Horses”. Named Ahhiyawa, or “Asitawada” in the Hittite inscriptions, the history of the city regarded as being within the boundaries of the area; it began as an Acropolis city during about 3000 B.C. The population of the city, which gradually developed and extended beyond the Acropolis, increased with those who returned from the Trojan war in the 12th century B.C. and started to grow. Aspendos was an important trade city because of the convenience of the creek Eurymedon for maritime transportation during the epochs before Christ and the Roman era. The horses bred in the area, salt and cheap wines were the most important export products. As a result of the river gradually being filled with alluvia, marine transportation became impossible and the city remained 6 km inland away from the sea.

The most important work of art surviving from the ancient city of Aspendos is the theatre with a capacity of 12,000, which is understood to have been built by Zenon the Architect as a result of a competition during the Roman era in the 2nd century B.C. The Aspendos Theatre has today been accepted as the best preserved antique theatre with the best acoustics in the world. Entrance into the theatre with the Roman architectural characteristics is through two vomitories on both sides in the form of passageways located between the stage building and the seating tiers. Caveas consisting of a total of 41 tiers are divided into two by diazoma on the 20th tier and magazine chambers have been built on a diazoma where spectators would shop and shelter from the sun. The oval shape of the lower cavea tiers and the annexation of 40 arched galleries, equal in height to the stage building, to the uppermost cavea ensured the optimisation of sound acoustics within the theatre. The carving of some names in the form of gravures on the cavea benches shows that there were regular customers of the theatre. The spectators, after passing the vomitories, could come to the 24m. diameter orchestral court and, from there, reach the upper tiers through 10 steep stone-cut stairs between the caveas. On top of the vomitories, the imperial boxes belonging to the city administrators can be seen. The internal face of the stage building is decorated with columns, with 20 Corinthian capitals at the bottom and 20 Ionic capitals at the top, and these columns are ornamented in-between with niches of various sizes embellished with marble plates and figured reliefs. Statues of Gods and the Roman emperors occupied these niches. On top of the stage building, the relief of Bacuss, God of entertainment and wine, is visible. Actors finishing their preparations in the chambers of various sizes within the stage building appeared, through one big door in the middle and 4 small doors at the sides, on a wooden podium 2 metres high established over the orchestra and performed their plays on this podium. Theatrical plays were generally performed by three people in ancient times and there was a chorus behind the actors consisting of a maximum of 20 people wearing the masks of animal-gods and various mythological heroes. Women were forbidden to take part in the plays. The fact that theatre initially appeared in the name of Bacuss, God of entertainment and wine, through street festivities during vintage times shows that it was a godly rite in its origin. Therefore, during the Hellenistic era theatre actors were respected with a godly faith. Yet during the Roman era, performers were considered as nothing but humiliated actresses. The first play performed at the theatre was tragedia and everybody, including the emperor, and every point could be criticised during the play. The actors, descending down the wooden podium at the end of the play, started a mutual discussion with the spectators and the dialogues on the points criticised continued for hours. It was also the case that the theatres were largely popular among the lay people in ancient times and that the spectators, paying stones or metal chips to enter into the theatre, sometimes spent their entire day there. The Aspendos theatre preserved its true theatrical character during the Byzantine epoch, never having been turned into an arena where bloodshed games were exhibited. The theatre, which served as an outdoor church during the late Byzantine epoch, was used as a caravanserai in the wake of capture of the area by the Turks in the 12th century and until recently, thus surviving the present times in a sound condition. The Antalya Music and Film Festival gala is performed here every year. On the acropolis hill rising behind the theatre gallery, an agora encircled by a double row of columns in the middle and, to the north of this, the remains of a building belonging to the city administration measuring 16 m in height with 5 niches on the façade, are visible. The wall projection of the building is carried by a pair of columns and it is thought that this place was also used as a single-basin fountain. To the South of Agora, it is thought that there used to be a magazine with shops inside the big rectangular structure. It is understood that, to the South of this structure, there was a waste water canal within a vaulted corridor. To the North of Agora, the quadrangular structure with walls measuring 2 m in height was used as an Orthodox Basilica annexed to the magazine building during the Byzantine epoch. To the West of Agora, a complex of small shops lined next to each other with a gallery behind and, in front of these shops, a Stoa thought to have been covered with a block of architrave rising above the columns are visible. The shops are two-storey, with the second storeys carried by the columns. The acropolis city gate situated at the northern hillside of the acropolis exhibits the Roman architectural characteristics. Immediately to the North of the theatre is the Stadion built upon arches. The stadion, of which the western side was built into the acropolis hillside, rises above vaulted galleries in the east. It is understood that in the stadion with a seating capacity of 10,000, races with single chariots drawn by the horses bred in Aspendos were highly popular. To the east of the Stadion is a tomb house with a sarchophagus visible inside. Advancing from this tomb house towards the aqueducts it is possible to see the sarcophagi embellished with various figures. A little further on one notices the tombstones with names engraved in the Luwian/Etruscan language, which are embellished with various Anatolian flower motifs. Another of the most important remains of the ancient city Aspendos surviving up to this day is the Aqueduct carrying spring water from the Taurus mountains and valleys at a distance of 25 km from the city. These water conduits, functioning on the principle of combined containers, were built upon aqueducts of 15 m on level plateaus and 30 m on certain points and were at places built double-storeyed, with high towers added at turning points. These aqueducts are considered today among the best examples of the Roman era aqueducts in the world. Over Eurymedon/Köprü Çay there is a bridge with foundations built of block stones during the Roman epoch which was later rebuilt by the Seljuks with eight pointed arches upon ruined foundations. It was in front of this bridge that the Persians were defeated in the sea battle fought against the league navy under the command of Cimon in 469 B.C. and, thus, the league navy stated to consist of 800 galleys won the first great sea victory in the world. After this victory the Persians were also defeated in the wars fought on land in Anatolia and they started to retreat from Anatolia. Today there are touristic shopping centres and trout restaurants on the banks of the Creek.

---

Links to
- Wandering in Antalya
- Wandering in Turkey
- the Hitchhiker's guide of the Elftowners
- Where should I visit

Brought to you by [banu]