Seleucia Sidera ( grc-gre, Σελεύκεια η Σιδηρᾶ, ''Seleukeia hê Sidêra''; la, Seleucia Ferrea), also

transliterated Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one script to another that involves swapping letters (thus '' trans-'' + '' liter-'') in predictable ways, such as Greek → , Cyrillic → , Greek → the digraph , Armenian → or ...

as Seleuceia, Seleukeia, and later known as Claudioseleucia, Greek Klaudioseleukeia, was an ancient city in the northern part of

Pisidia Pisidia (; grc-gre, Πισιδία, ; tr, Pisidya) was a region of ancient Asia Minor located north of Pamphylia, northeast of Lycia, west of Isauria and Cilicia, and south of Phrygia, corresponding roughly to the modern-day province of An ...

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

, near the village of Bayat (old name Selef), near

Atabey Atabey is a town and district of Isparta Province in the Mediterranean region of Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on ...

, about 15 km north-northeast of

Isparta Isparta is a city in western Turkey and the capital of Isparta Province. The city's population was 222,556 in 2010 and its elevation is 1035 m. It is known as the "City of Roses". Isparta is well-connected to other parts of Turkey via roads. Ant ...

Isparta Province Isparta Province ( tr, ) is a province in southwestern Turkey. Its adjacent provinces are Afyon to the northwest, Burdur to the southwest, Antalya to the south, and Konya to the east. It has an area of 8,993 km2 and a population of 448,298 ...

, in the

Mediterranean Region In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin (; also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea) is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and wa ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. Founded by

Seleucus I Nicator Seleucus I Nicator (; ; grc-gre, Σέλευκος Νικάτωρ , ) was a Macedonian Greek general who was an officer and successor ( ''diadochus'') of Alexander the Great. Seleucus was the founder of the eponymous Seleucid Empire. In the po ...

Antiochus I Soter Antiochus I Soter ( grc-gre, Ἀντίοχος Σωτήρ, ''Antíochos Sōtér''; "Antiochus the Saviour"; c. 324/32 June 261 BC) was a Greek king of the Seleucid Empire. Antiochus succeeded his father Seleucus I Nicator in 281 BC and reigned du ...

to protect the military road across northern Pisidia. The city's surname ''Sidera'' (hê Sidêra, Ptol. v. 5. § 4; Hierocl. p. 673), is probably derives from

iron-works An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''. Ironworks succeeded bloomeri ...

in its vicinity. The city minted its own coins, some of which bear the image of the

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

tic

divinity Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine

Men A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chrom ...

, who was worshipped at

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...

. The city was restored by the Roman emperor

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusu ...

, and the name was changed to ''Claudioseleucia''. This name is retained on the city's coins down to the time of

Claudius II Marcus Aurelius Claudius "Gothicus" (10 May 214 – January/April 270), also known as Claudius II, was Roman emperor from 268 to 270. During his reign he fought successfully against the Alemanni and decisively defeated the Goths at the Battle ...

, though in

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...

, the ''

Synecdemus The ''Synecdemus'' or ''Synekdemos'' ( el, Συνέκδημος) is a geographic text, attributed to Hierocles, which contains a table of administrative divisions of the Byzantine Empire and lists of their cities. The work is dated to the reign o ...

'' of Hierocles, and the '' Notitiae Dignitatum'' the name is recorded as Seleucia. The city was

Christianized Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...

early, its

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Eutychius Eutychius or Eutychios ( el, Εὐτύχιος, "fortunate") may refer to: * Eutychius Proclus, 2nd-century grammarian * Eutychius (exarch) (died 752), last Byzantine exarch of Ravenna * Saint Eutychius, an early Christian martyr and companion of ...

being present at the Council of Nicaea in 325

The city is in ruins. Remnants of the

city wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

, a

necropolis A necropolis (plural necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'', literally meaning "city of the dead". The term usually im ...

, and a

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...

can be found.

External links

* 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 ...

''
"Seleucia Sidera"

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, (1854) *Richard Stillwell, William L. MacDonald, Marian Holland McAllister (editors);
The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites
'
"Seleucia Sidera"

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...

, (1976)
Sagalassos IV: Report on the Survey and Excavation Campaigns of 1994 and 1995
page 98 Archaeological sites in the Mediterranean Region, Turkey Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Seleucid colonies in Anatolia Populated places in Pisidia Former populated places in Turkey Geography of Isparta Province History of Isparta Province Buildings and structures in Isparta Province Atabey District {{Isparta-geo-stub