Cremna ( Greek Κρῆμνα), or Kremna, was an ancient town in Pisidia. It is situated in the district of Bucak. It stands in a remote valley on a high plateau dominating the ancient Cestrus River (today Aksu), with limited access and good defensive features. It was first taken by Amyntas, commander of the

Galatia Galatia (; grc, Γαλατία, ''Galatía'', "Gaul") was an ancient area in the highlands of central Anatolia, roughly corresponding to the provinces of Ankara and Eskişehir, in modern Turkey. Galatia was named after the Gauls from Thrace (c ...

n auxiliary army of Brutus and Cassius, who became king of Galatia and Pisidia on going over to the side of Mark Antony. Octavian allowed him to remain king until his death in 25 BC. After this it became a Roman colony, as

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

says; and there are imperial coins with the epigraph COL. IVL. AVG. CREMNA, which stands for ''Colonia Iulia Augusta

elix Elix may refer to: * Əlix, a village in the municipality of Quturğan in the Qusar Rayon of Azerbaijan * John Alan Elix (born 1941) (Elix), an Australian lichenologist See also * Helix (disambiguation) A helix is a spiral-like space curve. Heli ...

Cremnena''. Its first coins appear to have been minted under

Hadrian Hadrian (; la, Caesar Trâiānus Hadriānus ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. He was born in Italica (close to modern Santiponce in Spain), a Roman ''municipium'' founded by Italic settlers in Hispania B ...

. Ptolemy mentions the ''Cremna Colonia'', and according to him it is in the same longitude as Sagalassus. Its water supply posed particular problems and the aqueduct had to include complex and novel solutions. The ''donatio'' given by the emperor

Aurelian Aurelian ( la, Lucius Domitius Aurelianus; 9 September 214 October 275) was a Roman emperor, who reigned during the Crisis of the Third Century, from 270 to 275. As emperor, he won an unprecedented series of military victories which reunited t ...

(270–275) promised a period of great prosperity for Cremna; but in 276 the town was taken by an

Isauria Isauria ( or ; grc, Ἰσαυρία), in ancient geography, is a rugged, isolated, district in the interior of Asia Minor, of very different extent at different periods, but generally covering what is now the district of Bozkır and its surrou ...

n robber, named Lydius, who used it as a base for looting the region, giving rise to the only visit of a Roman Emperor to the region, that of Marcus Claudius Tacitus. Later, the town was inserted in the Roman province of Pamphylia Secunda. The name of only one of its bishops is known: Theodorus, present at the Second Council of Nicaea in 787. No longer a residential bishopric, Cremna is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ), p. 876 At some time in the high Middle Ages the ancient site of the town was abandoned, the population transferring itself to the present village of Çamlık. The ancient site was identified in 1874 and excavations began in 1970.

References

* Smith, William (editor); ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography'' is the last in a series of classical dictionaries edited by the English scholar William Smith (1813–1893), following ''A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'' and the ''Dictionary of Gr ...

''
"Cremna"
London, (1854) * Richard Stillwell, William L. MacDonald, Marian Holland McAllister (editors);
The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites
'
"Kremna"
Princeton, (1976) * Mitchell, Stephen, with Sarah Cormack, Robin Fursdon, Eddie Owens and Jean Öztürk, ''Cremna in Pisidia. An Ancient City in Peace and in War'' (Duckworth Press, London, 1995)

Notes

Gallery

File:KremnaAntikKenti2.jpg File:KremnaAntikKenti3.jpg File:KremnaAntikKenti1.jpg File:KremnaAntikKenti4.jpg {{Authority control Populated places in Pisidia Archaeological sites in the Mediterranean Region, Turkey Former populated places in Turkey History of Burdur Province Catholic titular sees in Asia Roman towns and cities in Turkey Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Coloniae (Roman) Bucak District