4.08.2023
5 Dakika
The Mediterranean coast of Türkiye is surrounded by numerous ancient cities with ruins that attract millions of people every year, offering visitors a unique journey through time. Some of these ancient cities, adorned with rich evidence of the way of life of people centuries ago, represent a very remarkable part of our common historical heritage by containing an infinite number of historical and cultural values.
The archeological site of Patara, located between Fethiye and Kalkan in Antalya, is one of those great ancient cities with its many values. One of the oldest lighthouse ruins in the world is located in Patara, which houses the parliament building of the historic Lycian League and is in a way the capital of the League. The ruins of many monuments worth seeing, such as the Roman Triumphal Arch, the Ancient Theater, the Temple of Corinth, the Baths of Vespasian and the Granarium (granary from that period), are also the hometown of St. Nicholas, known throughout the world as Santa Claus.
The impressive features of the ancient city, near which is the Patara beach, one of the longest beaches in the world, where caretta carettas have been breeding for hundreds of years, are innumerable. However, in this article we will focus on one particular feature of Patara that makes it a unique threshold where mythology and reality open up to each other. Could this unique ancient city, the capital of the Lycian League and the hometown of Santa Claus, also be the birthplace of a mythological god?
It is known that Patara was an important center of prophecy in ancient times, where the cult of Apollo was of great importance. Homer, the great poet of mythological narrative, reports that Apollo was born on the island of Delos. Let us try to convey this moment of birth, which has a dramatic scene in the mythological narrative, as we have learned from Homer.
Leto, the daughter of the Titan, pregnant by Zeus, feels she must find a safe place to give birth because she fears the wrath of Hera, whom she knows is jealous and angry because she is with Zeus. Fearing the same wrath, no settlement wants to open its doors for Leto to give birth. Leto, who finally finds shelter in Delos, agonizes for 9 days and 9 nights at the foot of a date palm because Hera has captured Eileithyia, the goddess of childbirth, and keeps her away from Leto, who needs her. The goddesses gathered at Leto's side send their intermediary Iris to ensure the arrival of the goddess of birth. Thus, Apollo, the god of light, is born among the date palms and by a sacred lake.
According to Homer, this birth story takes place in Delos, one of the most important centers of the cult of Apollo. However, neither the date palm mentioned in the story nor the lake right next to the date palm exist in Delos. In fact, it is highly doubtful that date palms can grow on the rocky island of Delos. However, in Patara, one of the most important centers of Apollonian belief, there is a date palm just like in Delos, and a lake next to the date palm, as in the narrative. The study of the trees of the Leto palm in Patara shows that they are at least 2000 years old. The fact that Letoon, an ancient city in Muğla dedicated to his mother Leto, is nearby supports the idea that the date palm in Patara could be the place where Apollo is said to have been born. The Leto palm, which overlaps almost exactly with the descriptions of Apollo's birth in ancient sources, is probably the only point in the world where mythology and reality are so close.
If you want to see the Leto Palm, which is believed to be the place where ancient goddesses stepped, where a god opened his eyes to the world, and if you want to capture the feelings of a believer who wants to see the sacred sites of antiquity, you should definitely visit Patara.
