Pednelissus or Petnelissus (both forms are used in ancient writings and on the city's coins, the latter form alone appearing in its later coins) ( el, Πεδνηλισσός) was a city on the border between

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

and

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 Ant ...

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 ...

.''Encyclopedia of the Hellenic World: Asia Minor)'', article "Pednelissos"
/ref>

Location

Writing in about AD 530, Hierocles placed it in the later

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 ...

of Pamphylia Secunda, a reckoning accepted also in the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

's list of

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 archbis ...

s, which thus makes

Perge Perga or Perge ( Hittite: ''Parha'', el, Πέργη ''Perge'', tr, Perge) was originally an ancient Lycian settlement that later became a Greek city in Pamphylia. It was the capital of the Roman province of Pamphylia Secunda, now located in ...

its metropolitan see. Earlier, Strabo (64/63 BC – c. AD 24) placed it in Pisidia and said that it was north of

Aspendus Aspendos or Aspendus (Pamphylian Greek, Pamphylian: ΕΣΤϜΕΔΥΣ; Ancient Greek, Attic: Ἄσπενδος) was an ancient Greco-Roman city in Antalya province of Turkey. The site is located 40 km east of the modern city of Antalya. It ...

. It was near the Eurymedon River, on the southwestern slope of

Mount Taurus The Taurus Mountains ( Turkish: ''Toros Dağları'' or ''Toroslar'') are a mountain complex in southern Turkey, separating the Mediterranean coastal region from the central Anatolian Plateau. The system extends along a curve from Lake Eğird ...

, overlooking the Pamphylian plain.Historic Anatolia, Pednelissos
/ref> The site of the city does not appear to have been identified with certainty; but it is generally believed to be a site near the village of Kozan, Gebiz, Antalya. The ruins of this site are considerable, covering a wide area. Among the better preserved structures are the agora and a

gate-tower A gate tower (german: Torturm) is a tower built over or next to a major gateway. Usually it is part of a medieval fortification. This may be a town or city wall, fortress, castle or castle chapel. The gate tower may be built as a twin tower on ...

. Meagre remains of a Byzantine church can also be found.

History

Polybius gives a detailed account of a war waged against Pednelissus by the neighbouring city of

Selge Selge ( el, Σέλγη) was an important city in ancient Pisidia and later in Pamphylia, on the southern slope of Mount Taurus, modern Antalya Province, Turkey, at the part where the river Eurymedon River ( tr, Köprüçay) forces its way through ...

. Pendnelissus called in the

Seleucid The Seleucid Empire (; grc, Βασιλεία τῶν Σελευκιδῶν, ''Basileía tōn Seleukidōn'') was a Greek state in West Asia that existed during the Hellenistic period from 312 BC to 63 BC. The Seleucid Empire was founded by the ...

ruler Achaeus, who forced Selge to yield under onerous terms. Polybius, ''Histories''
v. 72
/ref> In 102 BC, Pednelissus became subject to Rome. In 50 BC Cicero was governor of

Cilicia Cilicia (); el, Κιλικία, ''Kilikía''; Middle Persian: ''klkyʾy'' (''Klikiyā''); Parthian: ''kylkyʾ'' (''Kilikiyā''); tr, Kilikya). is a geographical region in southern Anatolia in Turkey, extending inland from the northeastern coa ...

and Pisidia and makes mention of Pednelissus. From the time of

Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...

(98-117 AD) to the late 3rd century, Pednelissus minted bronze coins, which seem not to have had a wide circulation.

References

Populated places in Pisidia Archaeological sites in the Mediterranean Region, Turkey Former populated places in Turkey History of Antalya Province Catholic titular sees in Asia Serik District {{Antalya-geo-stub