Seleucia ( – also

transliterated Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one writing system, script to another that involves swapping Letter (alphabet), letters (thus ''wikt:trans-#Prefix, trans-'' + ''wikt:littera#Latin, liter-'') in predictable ways, such as ...

as Seleukeia) was originally an ancient Greek city on the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

coast of

Pamphylia Pamphylia (; , ''Pamphylía'' ) was a region in the south of Anatolia, Asia Minor, between Lycia and Cilicia, extending from the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean to Mount Taurus (all in modern-day Antalya province, Turkey). It was bounded on the ...

, in

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

, approximately 15 km northeast of

Side Side or Sides may refer to: Geometry * Edge (geometry) of a polygon (two-dimensional shape) * Face (geometry) of a polyhedron (three-dimensional shape) Places * Side, Turkey, a city in Turkey * Side (Ainis), a town of Ainis, ancient Thessaly, ...

; the site is about 1 km north of the village of Bucakşeyhler (also Bucakşıhler), approximately 12 km northeast of

Manavgat Manavgat is a municipality and district of Antalya Province, Turkey. Its area is 2,351 km2, and its population is 252,941 (2022). It is from the city of Antalya. The Manavgat River has a waterfall near the city. Geography Between the Ta ...

Antalya Province Antalya Province () is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality of Turkey. It is located on the Mediterranean Region, Turkey, Mediterranean coast of south-west Turkey, between the Taur ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. Modern scholars, however, place Pamphylian Seleucia near Şıhlar, north of the mouth of the Peri Su, west of Side. and the remains at this location are rather considered those of

Lyrba Lyrbe (spelled Lyrba in the 1910 ''Catholic Encyclopedia''; ) was an ancient city and later episcopal see in the Roman province of Pamphylia Prima and is now a titular see.''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ), p. 918 ...

. Another name for the city in the Middle Ages was Scandalor, which was documented on

portolan Portolan charts are nautical charts, first made in the 13th century in the Mediterranean basin and later expanded to include other regions. The word ''portolan'' comes from the Italian ''portolano'', meaning "related to ports or harbors", and wh ...

maps. It is situated on a hilltop with steep escarpments on several sides making a strong defensive position.

The site

There are remains of an

agora The agora (; , romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Ancient Greece, Greek polis, city-states. The literal meaning of the word "agora" is "gathering place" or "assembly". The agora was the center ...

containing a row of two-storey and three-storey building façades, a gate, a

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type o ...

, a Roman bath, a

necropolis A necropolis (: necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'' (). The term usually implies a separate burial site at a distan ...

, in addition to several temples and churches. Because of its remote location, the site has not been plundered for building materials and the area is littered with columns and other items like large grindstones for flour making.

References

* Blue Guide, Turkey, The Aegean and Mediterranean Coasts (), p. 496.

External links

* Archaeological sites in Antalya Province Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Seleucid colonies in Anatolia Populated places in ancient Pamphylia Ruins in Turkey Former populated places in Turkey Geography of Antalya Province History of Antalya Province Manavgat District {{Pamphylia-geo-stub