Pydnae
36°19′59″N 29°13′54″E / 36.333176°N 29.231701°E
Pydnai Ancient Greek: Πύδναι | |
Location | western end of Patara Beach |
---|---|
Region | Muğla, Turkey |
Type | fort |
Area | 4 acres (1.6 ha) |
Site notes | |
Condition | Ruined |
Public access | Yes |
Pydnae (
The ruins, rediscovered by European
History
Pydnae was a
The fort was built to protect the coast closest to Xanthos, the most important city in Lycia. Situated close to a mountainous promontory, the location protected ships from the dangerously strong winds and currents of the Lycian coast. The nearby small stream flowing into the sea would have been valuable as a fresh water source, which is not very common on the coasts here. Geomorphological studies have shown that Pydnae was originally on the edge of the coast, as was the nearby fort of Bükses. Both forts acted as a form of coastal defence.[11][note 2]
Both the fort and the swampy region between Xanthos and the sea acted to protect the city. In the late Roman period, Xanthos was connected to the shore by means of an important road that circumnavigated the swamp, the presence of which is indicated by a 3rd century military boundary stone in the nearby village of
There is a
Discovery
The site's existence was first mentioned in the modern period by the Irish
Pydnae was also identified by
In 1842 the British Army officer William Martin Leake recognised the fortification as Pydnae.[21] The fort was described by the explorers Edward Forbes and Thomas Abel Brimage Spratt in the same decade:[2]
From the theatre we rode across a very flat marshy plain, to a short but deep and sluggish stream, called the Uzlan river, which, like many of the streams of the lower part of Lycia, springs full grown out of the base of the mountains. It runs a course of about three miles, and there is a bridge built over it. Uzlan is a small scala[note 4] of two or three houses, and a rendezvous for Greek sailors. Near it are some massive hellenic walls, as if fortifying a point of rock. Beyond it is the fortress described and well figured by Fellows as Cydna. It is beautifully built, and in fine preservation. The walls are crowned with battlements, which, however, are not part of the original architecture, but subsequent additions, constructed apparently during the middle ages. In the original wall the Cyclepsean and regular styles are mingled. Loop-holes are placed at intervals. Within this fine fortress are the remains of a Christian church.
— Edward Forbes; Thomas Abel Brimage Spratt, Travels in Lycia, Milyas, and the Cibyratis, in company with the Late E. T. Daniell (1847)
The English
Archaeology
The German archaeologists Otto Benndorf and George Niemann were among those 19th–century scholars who published a description of the ruins at Pyndae. They recorded that the fortress had one entrance on the east side and another on the north; the towers had doors, an upper floor accessible from the wall parapet, and loopholes. They observed that at seven places around the perimeter there were narrow steep stairs up to the wall. The undergrowth made it difficult for them to explore the interior, and they found no remains of occupation, except the ruins of a church in the east corner. The church, a small east-facing basilica with a nave that was measured to be 15 feet (4.6 m) wide, and made of rubble with mortar. The archaeologists failed to find the inscriptions said to have been seen by Fellows.[23]
The French archaeologist Jean-Pierre Adam has shown that a tower at Xanthos resembles the stonework at Pydnae, which he dates to the 3rd century BC, and has attributed the same date to most of the Xanthos rampart.[24] However, according to the French archaeologist Jacques Des Courtils, the sites have notable differences: Pydnae was built in one homogeneous phase, but the tower at Xanthos shows evidence of having undergone alterations at different times. Des Courtils notes that at Xanthos there is both a semi-circular tower and a round tower, and that those at Pydnae are quadrangular. He speculates that Pydnae was built in the 2nd century (when the round tower of Xanthos was constructed), and suggests that Pydnae may have been part of an important defence program, that included the reinforcing or restoring of the defences of Xanthos and the building of a new fort located near the shore.[25]
Based on evidence from construction techniques, the Turkish archaeologist Cevdet Bayburtluoğlu has dated the fortification to the 1st century or first part of the 2nd century AD.[20] There is also evidence of an aqueduct at Pydnae.[26] The fort's inscriptions are Byzantine.[6]
Description
Pydnae has a total area of 4 acres (1.6 ha). It is located close to the western end of Patara Beach, on the side of a low hill. The defensive walls of the fort-like structure are 3 feet (0.91 m) thick,[27][6] and more than 300 metres (980 ft) long. Some of the 11 towers and seven stairways are more than 10 metres (33 ft) high. The walls are still in a good condition, with battlements and a parapet still extant. All the walls are constructed using close fitting polygon-shaped blocks; the only building in the interior is a small church.[6][14]
The walls at Pydnae are built from closely-fitting
The Lycian Way, a 540 kilometres (340 mi) way-marked footpath around the coast of Lycia from Fethiye to Antalya, passes through the two entrances to Pydnae.[28] The area away from the path, both around and within the site, is overgrown with trees and bushes.[29]
Notes
- ^ Also referred to as or Kydna or Cydna,[1][2] Kydnai,[3] and Pydna.[4] The local Turkish name used for the ruins is Gâvurağli ("Infidel's Fold").[5][6]
- ^ The remains of the fort of Bükses is near Karadere, 100 metres (330 ft) from the road that passes through the village. The surviving ruins consist of 5–6 metres (16–20 ft) high walls, built from large stones. The fort, which has not been excavated, has been dated to the 5th century.[12]
- ^ The inscription was searched for in the 1940s, but it was not found.[18]
- ^ A scala (Italian: scala ("stairs")) is a landing stage.[22]
References
- ^ a b Smith 1870, p. 681.
- ^ a b Forbes & Spratt 1847, p. 17.
- ^ a b Bayburtluoğlu 2004, p. 264.
- ^ a b Farrington 1995, p. 65.
- ^ a b c Slatter 1994, p. 141.
- ^ a b c d Bean, G.E. (2022) [1976]. "Pydnai (Özlen) Turkey". The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- ^ "About: Kydna/Pydnai, Gâvur Ağlı". Digital Atlas of the Roman Empire. Lund University. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
- ^ Talbert 2000, p. 65.
- ^ Clow 2000, pp. 31, 26, 42–43.
- ^ "Ptolemaeus, Geography (II-VI)". ToposText. 2019. p. § 5.3.5. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
- ^ Des Courtils 2003, p. 128.
- ^ Des Courtils 2003, pp. 126–127.
- ^ Des Courtils 2003, p. 129.
- ^ a b c Des Courtils 2003, p. 127.
- doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/9268. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ Fellows 1841, pp. 159–161.
- ^ Fellows 1841, p. 160.
- ^ Bean 1978, p. 64.
- ^ "Early exploration". Aphrodisias Excavations Project. 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
- ^ a b Bayburtluoğlu 2004, p. 265.
- ^ Benndorf & Niemann 1884, p. 124.
- ^ Slatter 1994, p. 140.
- ^ Benndorf & Niemann 1884, p. 125.
- ^ Des Courtils 1994, pp. 289–290.
- ^ Des Courtils 1994, pp. 294–296.
- ^ Farrington 1995, p. 109.
- ^ Bean 1978, p. 63.
- ^ Clow 2000, pp. 26, 31.
- ^ Clow 2000, p. 43.
Sources
- Bayburtluoğlu, Cevdet (2004). Lycia. Antalya: Suna & İnan Kıraç Research Institute on Mediterranean Civilizations. ISBN 978-97570-7-820-3.
- ISBN 978-05100-3-205-0.
- OCLC 312437440.
- Clow, Kate (2000). The Lycian Way. Ankara: Upcountry (Turkey) Ltd. ISBN 978-09539-2-180-5.
- Des Courtils, Jacques (1994). "Nouvelles données sur le rempart de Xanthos". Revue des Études Anciennes (in French). 96 (1–2). Istanbul: 285–298. ISSN 2540-2544.
- Des Courtils, Jacques (2003). Ksanthos ve Letoon Rehberi. Dünya kültür mirası kentlerinden (in Turkish). Istanbul, Turkey: Ege Yayınları. ISBN 978-97580-7-056-5.
- Farrington, Andrew (1995). The Roman Baths of Lycia: An Architectural Study. British Institute at Ankara. ISBN 978-19120-9-066-2.
- OCLC 1038777615.
- LCCN 05010095.
- Slatter, Enid (1994). Xanthus: Travels of Discovery in Turkey. London: Rubicon Press. ISBN 978-09486-9-531-5.
- OCLC 847907716.
- Talbert, Richard J.A., ed. (2000). Barrington Atlas Map-by-Map Directory. Princeton, New Jersey: ISBN 978-06910-4-945-8.
Further reading
- Adam, Jean-Pierre (1982). L'architecture militaire grecque. Paris: Edition Picard. pp. 115–165. ISBN 978-27084-0-061-0.
- JSTOR 1797993– via JSTOR.
- JSTOR 1797994– via JSTOR.
- Texier, Charles (1865). The Principal Ruins of Asia Minor. London: Day. OCLC 4622827.
External links
- Stadiasmus Maris Magni, translated into English, at Topostext, in which Pydnae is mentioned.