Limyra ( grc, Λίμυρα) ( xlc, 𐊈𐊚𐊎𐊒𐊕𐊁 was a small city in

ancient Lycia Lycia (Lycian language, Lycian: 𐊗𐊕𐊐𐊎𐊆𐊖 ''Trm̃mis''; el, Λυκία, ; tr, Likya) was a state or nationality that flourished in Anatolia from 15–14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It bordered the Mediterranean ...

on the southern coast of

Asia Minor 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 ...

, on the Limyrus River ( grc, Λιμύρος).

History

Already flourishing in the second millennium BC, the city was one of the oldest and most prosperous in Lycia; it gradually became one of the most flourishing trade centres in the Greek world. In the 4th century BC

Pericles, Dynast of Lycia Perikles (Perikle in Lycian), was the last known independent dynast of Lycia. A dynast of Limyra in eastern Lycia BCE, he eventually ruled the entire country during the Revolt of the Satraps, in defiance of the Achaemenid Empire. Rule Pericl ...

supported a rebellion of satraps in Asia Minor against the ruling Persians and adopted Limyra as the capital of the

Lycian League Lycia ( Lycian: 𐊗𐊕𐊐𐊎𐊆𐊖 ''Trm̃mis''; el, Λυκία, ; tr, Likya) was a state or nationality that flourished in Anatolia from 15–14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It bordered the Mediterranean Sea in what is t ...

; subsequently it came under control of the

Persian Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, wikt:𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎶, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an History of Iran#Classical antiquity, ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Bas ...

. The Persians eventually regained rule through

Mausolus Mausolus ( grc, Μαύσωλος or , xcr, ��𐊠��𐊸𐊫𐊦 ''Mauśoλ'') was a ruler of Caria (377–353 BCE) and a satrap of the Achaemenid Empire. He enjoyed the status of king or dynast by virtue of the powerful position created by h ...

, the Carian satrap at Halicarnassus. After

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

ended Persian rule, most of Lycia was ruled by

Ptolemy I Soter Ptolemy I Soter (; gr, Πτολεμαῖος Σωτήρ, ''Ptolemaîos Sōtḗr'' "Ptolemy the Savior"; c. 367 BC – January 282 BC) was a Macedonian Greek general, historian and companion of Alexander the Great from the Kingdom of Macedon ...

; his son

Ptolemy II Philadelphos ; egy, Userkanaenre Meryamun Clayton (2006) p. 208 , predecessor = Ptolemy I , successor = Ptolemy III , horus = ''ḥwnw-ḳni'Khunuqeni''The brave youth , nebty = ''wr-pḥtj'Urpekhti''Great of strength , gol ...

supported the Limyrans against the invading

Galatians Galatians may refer to: * Galatians (people) * Epistle to the Galatians, a book of the New Testament * English translation of the Greek ''Galatai'' or Latin ''Galatae'', ''Galli,'' or ''Gallograeci'' to refer to either the Galatians or the Gauls in ...

and the inhabitants dedicated a monument, the Ptolemaion, to him in thanks. Limyra is mentioned by

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 ...

(XIV, 666),

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 ...

(V, 3, 6) and several Latin authors.

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

had adopted his grandson

Gaius Caesar Gaius Caesar (; 20 BC – 21 February 4 AD) was the grandson and heir to the throne of Roman emperor Augustus, alongside his younger brother Lucius Caesar. Although he was born to Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa and Julia, Augustus' only daughter, Gai ...

in 17 BC (aged 3) as his heir. In 1 BC (aged 19) Gaius Caesar was sent to Syria and in 2 AD he went to Armenia, which the Parthians had recently invaded. Gaius successfully placed a pro-Roman king on the Armenian throne but was seriously wounded after being tricked. In 4 AD, during his return to Rome, Gaius died from his wounds at Limyra.

The Site

The lower city is at the base of the acropolis hill and includes two separate walled areas. The five necropolises dating from the 4th c. BC and before demonstrate the city's importance. The mausoleum of Pericles is particularly notable for its fine reliefs and exquisite sculptures such as Perseus slaying Medusa and one of her sisters. A gate in the western city leads down through a marshy area towards the cenotaph of Gaius Caesar, grandson and heir apparent of Augustus, a massive structure standing on a stone podium and dating from around 4 AD. The Romans cut a theatre into the hill which held 8000 spectators. It was commissioned in the second century AD by an important Lycian benefactor named

Opramoas Opramoas was an important civic benefactor in the 2nd century CE. He is the best known ancient euergete. He was a magnate from the small Lycian town of Rhodiapolis (southern Anatolia, in modern Turkey). His activities are recorded in extensive Gree ...

Rhodiapolis Rhodiapolis ( grc, Ῥοδιάπολις), also known as Rhodia (Ῥοδία) and Rhodiopolis (Ῥοδιόπολις), was a city in ancient Lycia. Today it is located on a hill northwest of the modern town Kumluca in Antalya Province, Turke ...

. Also from this period are a bathhouse with a complex heating system and the

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

d streets. The Roman

Bridge at Limyra The Bridge near Limyra (in tr, Kırkgöz Kemeri, "Bridge of the Forty Arches") is a late Roman bridge in Lycia, in modern south-west Turkey, and one of the oldest segmented arch bridges in the world. Located near the ancient city of Limyra, it ...

, east of the city, is one of the oldest

segmental arch A segmental arch is a type of arch with a circular arc of less than 180 degrees. It is sometimes also called a scheme arch. The segmental arch is one of the strongest arches because it is able to resist thrust. To prevent failure, a segmental arc ...

bridges in the world.Sopheone Pétridès, "Limyra" in ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' (New York 1910)
/ref>

Ecclesiastical history

Limyra is mentioned as a bishopric in ''

Notitiæ Episcopatuum The ''Notitiae Episcopatuum'' (singular: ''Notitia Episcopatuum'') are official documents that furnish Eastern countries the list and hierarchical rank of the metropolitan and suffragan bishoprics of a church. In the Roman Church (the -mostly Lat ...

'' down to the 12th and 13th centuries as a

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdictiona ...

of the metropolitan of

Myra Myra ( grc, Μύρα, ''Mýra'') was a Lycian, then ancient Greek, then Greco-Roman, then Byzantine Greek, then Ottoman town in Lycia, which became the small Turkish town of Kale, renamed Demre in 2005, in the present-day Antalya Province of ...

. Six bishops are known: Diotimus, mentioned by

St. Basil Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great ( grc, Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, ''Hágios Basíleios ho Mégas''; cop, Ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲃⲁⲥⲓⲗⲓⲟⲥ; 330 – January 1 or 2, 379), was a bishop of Ca ...

(ep. CCXVIII); Lupicinus, present at the

First Council of Constantinople The First Council of Constantinople ( la, Concilium Constantinopolitanum; grc-gre, Σύνοδος τῆς Κωνσταντινουπόλεως) was a council of Christian bishops convened in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey) in AD 381 b ...

, 381; Stephen, at the

Council of Chalcedon The Council of Chalcedon (; la, Concilium Chalcedonense), ''Synodos tēs Chalkēdonos'' was the fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church. It was convoked by the Roman emperor Marcian. The council convened in the city of Chalcedon, Bith ...

(451); Theodore, at the

Second Council of Constantinople The Second Council of Constantinople is the fifth of the first seven ecumenical councils recognized by both the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. It is also recognized by the Old Catholics and others. Protestant opinions and rec ...

in 553; Leo, at the

Second Council of Nicaea The Second Council of Nicaea is recognized as the last of the first seven ecumenical councils by the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. In addition, it is also recognized as such by the Old Catholics, the Anglican Communion, and ...

in 787; Nicephorus, at the Council of Constantinople (879-880). In the ''

Annuario Pontificio The ''Annuario Pontificio'' (Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides names ...

'' it is listed as a

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbish ...

of the

Roman province The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...

Lycia Lycia (Lycian language, Lycian: 𐊗𐊕𐊐𐊎𐊆𐊖 ''Trm̃mis''; el, Λυκία, ; tr, Likya) was a state or nationality that flourished in Anatolia from 15–14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It bordered the Mediterranean ...

.''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ), p. 917

Gallery

File:Limyra Roman Theatre 3944.jpg, Limyra Theatre from uphill File:Limyra 5110.jpg, Limyra Theatre File:Limyra 5105.jpg, Limyra Theatre corridors File:Limyra 3748.jpg, Limyra Cenotaph of Gaius Caesar File:Antalya museum march 2012 5689.jpg, Limyra Cenotaph Gaius Caesar in Antalya Museum File:Limyra 3735.jpg, Limyra Ptolemaion File:Antalya Museum feb 2015 6584.jpg, Limyra Ptolemaion relief in Antalya Museum File:Limyra 5182.jpg, Limyra Bee keeping File:Limyra 5123.jpg, Limyra tomb of Tebursseli File:Limyra 5124.jpg, Limyra tomb of Tebursseli decoration File:Limyra 5134.jpg, Limyra Temple-type tomb File:Limyra 5161.jpg, Limyra Sarcophagus of Xñtabura File:Limyra 3965.jpg, Limyra Rock graves File:Antalya Museum march 2013 7714.jpg, Limyra Heroon Pericles in Antalya Museum File:Limyra 5220.jpg, Limyra Roman Bridge

References

{{coord, 36, 20, 34.19, N, 30, 10, 13.87, E, type:landmark_region:TR_source:dewiki, display=title Catholic titular sees in Asia Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Populated places in ancient Lycia Roman towns and cities in Turkey Former populated places in Turkey Finike District