Antalya Syedra Archeological Site

ANTALYA SYEDRA ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE

The ancient city of Syedra has located about 20 km. southeast of Alanya district of Antalya, on a mountainous area just west of the small coastal plain fed by the Sedre Stream. The city has developed in two different areas. The first is about 400 m above sea level. It is the summit of the hill called Asar Tepe and its high slopes (upper city), and the other is the sloping area extending from the south-southwest slopes of the hill overlooking the Mediterranean Sea to the coastline (Lower City). Due to its location on one of the most critical points of the transition route on the coastline; the big cities of the fertile Pamphylia Plain in the west must have had close relations and interactions with the strategic cities of Rough Cilicia (Cilicia Trachea) Region in the east. Since the Mountainous Cilicia Region is in an important position in terms of the coastal connection between the Eastern Mediterranean and Anatolia, Syedra, which is located on an important isthmus on the coastline and has a large port area, has also been a part of Cyprus, Egypt and other cities since much earlier dates. It is inevitable that he established relations with the Eastern Mediterranean civilizations by sea. As a matter of fact, this coastline was on an important maritime trade route in the Bronze Age, and as in other nearby cities of the region, findings dated to the Bronze Age were found off the Syedra Harbor. However, neither archaeological nor historical information about the history of Syedra and the settlements in its vicinity until the Hellenistic Period is yet sufficient. Because the city is located on the border of the Pamphylia and Kilikia regions, it is sometimes referred to as the city of both regions and even the Isauria Region. However, if we look at the settlement model, epigraphic data, and information from ancient sources, the city of Syedra more reflects the character of Rough Cilicia (Cilicia Tracheia) Region. Although its administrative position is open to discussion, when it is examined technically and culturally, it is understood that it is in close relationship and similarity with the coastal cities in the east (Western Rough Cilicia), such as Iotape, Selinus, Antiochia, and Cragum, and Anemurium, rather than its west.

During the reign of Emperor Tiberius, the city began to mint its own coin with the name "Syedreon". It is seen that the minting of coins continued until the reign of Emperor Gallienus (253-268 A.D). The plan and technical features of the structures that can be observed today show that Syedra lived its heyday between the 2nd and 4th centuries AD. Apart from architectural remains, epigraphic findings from these periods also confirm this. According to research on the capacity of its cisterns, it has been suggested that around 4,000-5,000 people may have lived in Syedra during this period. It is understood from the inscriptions that Syedra sided with the Emperor in the struggle of the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus against Pescennius Niger in 194 A.D. Contemplate the character of structures such as baths and tombs, it is observed that there was intense construction, especially in the second half of the 3rd century AD. The military activity in the eastern provinces of Rome during this period must have had an impact on this situation. It is understood from the tomb inscriptions found in some cities of Western Rough Cilicia that retired soldiers settled in the region. Obviously, these people also influenced the development of cities. Numerous honorary inscriptions unearthed in the Syedra Sütunlu (Colonnaded) Street are among the indicators of wealth in the late 2nd and early 3rd centuries A.D. The city is included among the cities of Isauria in the state lists between A.D 314-324. The city, which was included in the Pamphylia State with the narrowing of the borders of the Isauria State with the regulations in AD 370, was mentioned as a diocese center affiliated to the Pamphylia Metropolitanate during the Byzantine Period. As in the other mentioned cities, it is understood that religious buildings took an important place in Syedra, especially in the middle ages. After the Arab raids that started in the 7th century A.D, the region came under the control of the Umayyad and Abbasid states, and again under Byzantine rule in the 10th century.

In the 19th century, when epigraphic and historical research on the region increased. Syedra's name is also frequently mentioned in the notes and publications of the trips made since the end of the year. R. Heberdey and A. Wilhelm's travels in 1891-92 are considered to be the first research on the city and its surroundings. Then, the city was visited by J. Keil and A. Wilhelm in 1914. Epigraphic research by G. Bean and T. Mitford in the 1960s constitute an important place. Again on the same dates E. Rosenbaum, G. Huber, and S. Onurkan within the scope of the surface surveys carried out by Onurkan in the region, the main structures and water systems of the city were also researched and published in 1967. In the 1990s, research on the city intensified. F. Hild and H. Hellenkemper's epigraphic studies of these dates are followed by M.H. Sayar's research with the same purpose. In the same years, Architectural detection studies are carried out by G.Huber. All these are architectural and especially epigraphic determination studies and are for the remains that can be seen on the surface. Cleaning and landscaping works started in 1994 by the Alanya Museum continued until 1999. These works were carried out in the main structures such as the Temple, the Sütunlu (Colonnaded) Street, the Acropolis Church, the Spring Cave, and the Harbor.