Imbriogion: Mausoleum Tombs of Demircili

Photos by Jack A. Waldron

Not far from the Corycian Cave, the Temple of Zeus, and the curiously named ancient city of Coryicus, is the ancient site of Imbriogion, located in the village of Demircili.

The village of Demircili is built over ancient Imbriogon, which today still displays the magnificent mausoleums built for rich citizenry of the 1st centuries AD.

The lower mausoleum (pictured above and below) measures approximately 5m x 4m x 6m, and is decorated with attached columns with capitals in the Corinthian order on its corners.

A side view of the lower mausoleum (pictured below) shows the tiles that still protect the inner chamber after nearly two-thousand years.  The mausoleum is missing the two central columns, and the architrave has collapsed.

The mausoleums pictured below are 50 meters further up the road from the Lower tombs.  The tomb on the left measures 5m x 6m x 6m, and was fronted with beautifully ornamented Corinthian columns, of which two remain.

The tomb on the right measures 4m x 4m x 7.5m, and is decorated with columns of both the Ionic order (lower level) and the Corinthian order with fluted columns (upper level).

The mausoleum pictured below is the Imbriogion Mausoleum (36°25'38.8"N 33°56'56.4"E), which is located about 500 meters down the road from the Demircili mausoleums. This two story structure measures approximately 4.5m x 4m x 7.5m, and is similar in design to the mausoleum at Demircili (pictured above, on the right).

Again, this mausoleum is also decorated with columns of both the Ionic order (lower level) and the Corinthian order (upper level).

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Olba: City of Priest-Kings

Photos by Jack A. Waldron

Olba (36°35'05.9"N 33°57'54.2"E) lies four kilometers to the east of ancient Diocaesarea (Uzuncaburc village), was "the capital of a temple state, administered by priest kings from the beginning of the 3C BC".  Pictured above (in the left of the picture) beyond the Olba information sign, is the ancient Nymphaeum (fountain), which stands at the cross-roads that lead to the ancient cities of Diocaesarea, Corycus and Seleucia.  

To the right of the Nymphaeum lies the theater (pictured below), and beyond these is the acropolis of Olba.  The small theater was under excavation when I visit, and appeared to be receiving some re-assembly work.

Many of Olba's upper city towers remain (pictured below, jutting into sky in the right of the photo), and are connected by protective walls. 

To the left and below the towers pictured above, a monumental four story high aqueduct rises above the valley floor.

The aqueduct (36°35'10.0"N 33°58'09.0"E) has partially collapsed, but all of the stone blocks sit in a pile below the remaining arches, so I hope there will be an effort to rebuild this monumental structure in the near future.

The aqueduct once delivered water to the Nymphaeum in the city center (other side of the acropolis from pictured above), which provided the citizens with a fresh water source.

After passing under the aqueduct, a magnificent valley opens with many hidden treasures waiting to be unearthed (pictured below).

It's called the Devil's valley, as water only runs when it rains or when snow melts. The valley runs for 40 kilometers and ends at the sea, where the ancient city of Corycus is located.  

I passed this coastal valley when I was cycling through ancient Corycus, and I sometimes dream about hiking the valley and its 40 kilometers of wonder.

The foundations of houses and other buildings can be found along the walls of the valley (such as the one pictured above).

The valley also contains the ancient necropolis, where numerous rock face tombs and sarcophagi can be investigated.  

Pictured below, a view looking back up the valley at the aqueduct.  You can just make out the flat top of the aqueduct in the far distance, with the acropolis to the left.

As I returned to Uzucaburc, I could see in the distance across the valley the Great Mausoleum (36°34'24.8"N 33°55'58.7"E).  Pictured below, the Great Mausoleum as it can be seen from the ancient theater in Uzuncaburc village, across the valley.

The Great Mausoleum tomb, built in the Doric order and surmounted by a frieze featuring metopes and triglyphs. The tomb lies across a shallow valley from Diocaesarea at 1200 meters above sea-level, and can be seen from the theater of that ancient city (see post for Diocaesarea).  

The mausoleum has a pyramidal roof and stands about 16 meters high (measured 5 meters x 5 meters x 16 meters), and was once topped with a statue of the person buried within, most likely a Hellenistic priest-king who ruled over Olba.

Entrance into the tomb is supposed to be forbidden, however, when I visited, the door was unblocked. Inhumation took place under the stone floor, but unfortunately, robbers had discovered this entrance long ago.  Below, I am sitting in the shade on the base of the tomb.

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Diocaesarea: Temple of Zeus Olbius

Photos by Jack A. Waldron

The Roman city of Diocaesarea (modern Uzuncaburc)(36°34'52.4"N 33°55'31.3"E) was the cult center of greater Olba (Ura), which lies 4 kilometers to the east; both Diocaesarea and Olba lie 30 kilometers north of Silifke.  The Parade Gate (pictured above) that leads down the central colonnaded street, dates from the 1C AD, and originally was six columns across, and two deep, totaling twelve columns in all.  The consoles protruding from the columns once held statues.  Beyond the Parade Gate is the central colonnaded street that ends at the temple of Tyche.  Pictured below, a very old ottoman style house sits next to the Parade Gate, where also sits a stele with a Roman proclamation.

Pictured above and below in Dioceasarea, the temple of Zeus Olbios (Temple of Jupiter), 6 by 12 columns, four of which still bear their capitals sculptured in the Corinthian style; built in 295 BC, it is the oldest peripteral temple in Asia Minor.

Above, a close-up view of the temple of Zeus from the side, showing where a door was installed when the temple was converted into a church during the Byzantine period. Within the temple sanctuary there is a very unique sarcophagus lid relief of three persons, two of the persons are holding the upper arms of two other as to comfort them (pictured below).  

Walking further down the central colonnaded street, you come to the temple of Tyche, which has five of its original six columns standing and crowned with Corinthian capitals (pictured above and below).  

The temple design is extremely unique and rare, as the cella (the chamber that houses the cult statue) sits outside the square plan of the temple some 34 meters behind (pictured above, outside the back of the chamber and pictured below, underneath the chamber).  

As I was sitting in the shade at the back of the chamber of the temple of Tyche writing a poem, two gentlemen saw me and inquired where I was from and what I was doing.  We spoke for a long while (pictured above), and eventually (after fully exploring Diocaesarea) they insisted that I join them to see ancient Olba, which is connected to Diocaesarea, about seven kilometers down the road.  Diocaesarea was the religious and sacred center for the city of Olba.

A second colonnaded street to the right of the temple of Tyche leads to the monumental City Gate (pictured above and below), built under the co-reign of the emperors Arcadius (395-408) and Honorius (395-423) in Constantinople, which has three arched entrances with consoles that held Roman statues.  The gate bears an inscription that mentions the name "Diocaesarea", and the emperors and dates that reigned during it's construction.

Continuing along the road outside the City Gate and through the village of Uzuncaburc, you come to the High Tower, which according to an inscription on the tower, was built by Tarkyares, the son of the priest Teukros.  

The Hellenistic tower was most likely built the late 3C BC to the early 2C BC, and was a part of the city wall and a gate of entry into the city.  The inner tower contained five wooden floors which were further subdivided.  The balcony (pictured above) at 6 meters high would allow access in and out of the city without opening the gate.  

The tower could be used as a watch tower and to protect the temple treasures from bandit attacks and pirates.

The theater of Diocaesarea was constructed under the co-reign of the Roman emperors Marcus Aurelius (161-180) and Lucius Verus (161-169 AD) and lies at the beginning of the central colonnaded street that lead through the Parade Gate. 

As with the theater at Hieropolis Kastabala, the orchestra and lower cavea are buried under accumulated earth.

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Elaiussa Sebaste (Part 1): Roman Theater, Agora, Public Building, and Residential Complex

Photos by Jack A. Waldron

By the time I reached ancient Elaiussa Sebaste (36°28'59.6"N 34°10'25.4"E), I had already been looking for a nice place to camp, and for over 10 kilometers I saw nothing.  However, across the road from the ancient Theater was a crowded noisy dusty picnic and camping area, which was my last choice to spend the night, but it was on the beach.  The ancient North Harbor of the city is the large green patch pictured just the other side of the road, and you can see the Elaiussa Sebaste peninsula rising in the distance, and protecting the harbor from the sea beyond.  

The city plan below shows the Theater in the upper left corner.  The North Harbor, which is now completely filled in with soil, is at the top middle of the plan, and my camp site was on the beach, or South Harbor, which is at the bottom of the plan.  The two harbors are separated by an isthmus that connects the mainland to the large peninsula covering the right side of the plan.

The Theater at Elaiussa Sebaste was built during the 2C AD, probably during the rule of Emperor Marcus Aurelius and/or Lucius Venus.  There are 23 rows of seating, and a capacity of approximately 2,300.  Most of the seating is cut from the rock face of the hill, with the wings being built up with stone.

The area directly surrounding the back of the theater is called the Residential Complex, and I did try access the site, but it is fenced off, and the land between the theater and the Necropolis Road is privately owned, or at least, you have to pass through private land in order to get to it.  There isn't much to see from the back of the theater, but I did eventually make my way to the Necropolis Road.

The name of the original city comes from Ancient Greek, meaning 'oil', and 'Elaiussa' meaning 'many olive trees'.  The city was originally founded during the 2C BCE, on the island, which is now the Peninsula of Elaiussa Sebaste.

Pictured below, we get a full view of the Roman Agora, a Byzantine Church Complex within the Agora, and the Public Building, all of which are located immediately below the theater.  The sea and second harbor can be seen in the top left of the same photo, as well as the large hillside area above the shops in the right of the photo, where many ancient buildings can be seen within the overgrowth.

In the 1C BCE, the city came under the control of Tarcondimotus Philantoniusan, a Roman Cilician client king, who died in 31 BCE.  In 20 BCE, the Emperor Augustus gave the city to Archelaus I of Cappadocia.  By 39 AD, the city came under the control of Antiochus I and his wife Iotape.  On coins minted under Archelaus I, he is a self described builder, and even today, one can see that construction within the site was huge.

It's not clear if there was always an isthmus connecting the mainland to the island, but eventually, the mainland underwent massive development as ordered by Archelaus I, who named the new city Sebaste.  

The name 'Sebaste' is the Greek equivalent to 'Augustus', and so, the new city was clearly dedicated to its main benefactor, the Emperor Augustus.  Thus, we get a city with two names, Elaiussa Sebaste.

The complex pictured above, which includes all of the aforementioned structures, probably saw its first construction during the Imperial Roman Period.  At the entrance to the Agora on either side of the eastern wall of the Public Building, once stood two monumental fountains that are reported to have been built in the shape of lions.  The very tall arched structure in the photo is actually an aqueduct that fed the monumental fountains, and is a section of a whole series of aqueducts between the Lamus River and ancient Corycus, that I will be writing about in a future post.  As mentioned, the water was sourced from the ancient Lamus River (modern Limonlu River), which enters the Mediterranean about ten kilometers to the northeast.  The western wall of the Public Building still stands, and can be seen at the right of the photo above.

These two grave inscriptions were found within the Basilica, and are dated to the Roman period (Mersin Archeological Museum).

At the center of the Agora is a later built Byzantine Church with mosaics from the period.  The entire space was once within the walls of the Public Building.  There are also remnants of a defensive wall.

Pictured above, this is a photo of a section of entablature from a Roman building that was sitting in a small field just opposite the Agora.  Once Cilicia was liberated from the scourge of piracy by Roman Emperor Vespasian in 74 AD, trade routes made Elaiussa Sebaste a main hub for the transport of goods throughout the Eastern Mediterranean.  

After examining the Theater, a section of the Necropolis (pictured above and below), the Agora Public Building Complex, and the North Harbor area, I road over to the beach to set up my tent, though I was a bit shy, because the whole area was crowed with families.  I wanted to search for the Roman Temple, but non of the shop keepers knew where it was, so I lost my motivation to search for it.  After the picnic camp emptied out a bit, I set up my tent and drank some beers.

A nice family sent their little girl over to my tent with a plate full of food, so I went and spent some time with them, eating, chatting, drinking, nice.  As you can see in these photos, the road located above and behind the theater is lined with sarcophagi, but I missed a section of the Necropolis that is located further up the road to the northeast.  

The next morning I passed on trying to find the Roman Temple, but, I did return to ancient Elaiussa Sebaste several years later, and was able to locate and photograph it, which I will write about in a future post.

Someday, I must also investigate a larger portion of the ancient city that is spread over the entire rise of land behind and above the shops opposite the beach.  This area is not mapped for visitors, and is largely owned by locals, but there are many hidden buildings that barely show themselves above the overgrowth on the hillside.  

As mentioned, I also missed a large section of the Necropolis, where there is a group of large well preserved Mausoleums.  It was just one of those days.  If you would like to continue reading about Elaiussa Sebaste, be sure to read Part 2, which looks at the North Harbor and the Elaiussa peninsula, and Part 3, which focuses on the Roman Temple of Elaiussa Sebaste.

*All photos and content property of Jack A. Waldron (photos may not be used without written permission)

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