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Anadolu Agency reports that excavations at the site of Olympos in the current-day region of Antalya revealed new evidence that attests to the site's early Christian history. Inside a building known as Church No. 1, the team uncovered mosaic floors featuring geometric patterns, floral motifs, and Greek inscriptions, some of which bear the names of individuals who are believed to be among the church's early benefactors. "These finds confirm Olympos as one of the richest ancient cities in the Lycia region in terms of mosaic flooring," said excavation director Gökçen Kurtuluş Öztaşkın. Another inscription near the structure's entrance reads, "Only...

The ancient Lycians knew a thing or two about democracy. Two thousand years ago, the one-time rulers of modern-day Turkey's southwestern corner had a fully functioning democratic federation that centuries later inspired America's political structure.While democracies everywhere might be facing turbulent times, another Lycian legacy remains steadfastly present in the Mediterranean region they used to call home. And this one is focused almost entirely around death.Drive around the coast of this beautiful region and you'll never be too far from a spectacular city of the dead – elaborate tombs carved by Lycians into the sides of cliffs overlooking towns, valleys...

The jolly, red-suited Santa Claus who delivers presents on Christmas Eve is a beloved and immediately recognizable figure in much of the world. He is very much a magical, whimsical character, but his origin story has its roots in a real historical person: St. Nicholas of Myra. We know very little of St. Nicholas’ life, but historical evidence does confirm that he was a living, breathing man who lived in the third and fourth centuries CE. While many of the recorded details about St. Nicholas are quite likely embellished — falling more into the realm of myth than reality —...

A Customs Inscription from the Lycian civilization, located in Andriake port in the southern province of Antalya's Demre district, tells about ancient times...The Ancient City of Andriake is 5 km away from the Demre district of Antalya. It was one of the most important ports of Lycia, such as Phaselis and Patara, in ancient times. It is known as the port of the Ancient City of Myra and a settlement formed by it, rather than being a separate city.The inscription, discovered in the vicinity of the largest Granarium in the Mediterranean, named after Emperor Hadrian (Horrea Hadriani), contains information about...

Archaeological teams digging in the ancient city of Limyra in the Mediterranean province of Antalya have announced the discovery of a second synagogue from the Lycian civilization. Researchers initially thought the house of worship was a glass furnace, according to the head of the excavations, Dr. Martin Seyer of the Austrian Archaeology Institute. "We first found a bath and a menorah. After some [further] investigation, we found out that it was a synagogue," he said. Second synagogue in the Lycian city The synagogue in Limyra, which is located in Turunçova in Antalya's Finike district, is the second to be found...

Oenoanda, as well as Cibyra and Bubona, belong to the northern section of the area, which in antiquity was known by the name of Lycia. No populations from mainland Greece ever settled there, but the Greek language flourished in these lands as much as in Ionia and Aeolis. The local population had already ceased using Lycian from the fourth century BC but never stopped emphasizing their origins and traditions. The Lycian people, as they called themselves, considered themselves part of Hellenism, but unique thanks to their Lycian characteristics. The Mediterranean once favored composite, cosmopolitan identities.

There are caves and sarcophagi with pointed arches in Lycia, moreover carved as if they were wooden structures. Many of them were made in the 4th century B.C. As to India, the first cave temples appeared in the middle of the 3rd century B.C. They are the caves at Barabar and Nagarjuni Hills built for Ajivikas by King Ashoka. If there is no connection between the two sites located so far apart, it might be considered only a strange coincidence. However, there exists historical evidence of the eastern expedition by Alexander the Great of Macedonia (reign 336 B.C. - 323...

The Lycian League was mentioned twice in the Federalist Papers, once by Alexander Hamilton, once by James Madison, so it could safely be said that it entered into the history of the formation of the United States. Now, after literally centuries of neglect, teams of Turkish and German archaeologists have been working under the hot sun of this small Mediterranean seacoast town, uncovering some of its treasures. Among them, liberated from the many hundreds of truckloads of sand that covered it, is the actual parliament building where the elected representatives of the Lycian League met. It has rows of stone...