Kibyra was an ancient city located on a mountainous site, spanning three prominent hills, southwest of modern-day Gölhisar, approximately 110 kilometres from Burdur in southwestern Turkey. It was important in the ancient world due to its strategic location at the intersection of the cultural regions of Lycia, Caria, Pisidia, and Phrygia, and at the crossroads of important north–south and east–west commercial routes. The city prospered and developed during the second half of the 2nd century BC, becoming the political centre of the Kabalia or Kibyriatis region. Most of the buildings standing today were constructed in Roman times, following the city’s destruction by an earthquake in AD 23.
Geographer Strabo (13.4.17) first mentions Kibyra in ancient sources, noting that the city was founded by the Lydians and that its inhabitants spoke four languages: Pisidian, Solymian, Greek, and Lydian. Initially established near Uylupınar Lake, it was relocated to its current site in the 3rd century BC, likely for security reasons. Geographically, Kibyra lies within the Kabalis region (later known as Kibyratis), a cultural crossroads where Lycia meets Pisidia, Caria, Lydia, and Phrygia. The population of Kibyra was ethnically and linguistically diverse. Archaeological and epigraphic evidence from nearby mounds, such as Yusufça and Sorgun, shows that the area has been continuously occupied since the Late Chalcolithic and Early Iron Ages.
Kibyra rose to prominence during the Hellenistic period, coming under the control of the Kingdom of Pergamon in the early 2nd century BC under Eumenes II. Shortly thereafter, it became the leading member of a tetrapolis, known as the Kabalian League, a federation of four cities: Kibyra, Boubon, Balboura, and Oenoanda. The league was dissolved by the Roman commander L. Licianus Murena in 82 BC. Following this, Kibyra was incorporated into the Lycian League and became the administrative centre of the Roman province of Asia. After a devastating earthquake in AD 23, Emperor Tiberius provided financial aid and tax exemptions for its recovery, leading to the city being renamed Kaisareia Kibyra.
Under Roman rule, Kibyra reached its peak of prosperity. It became well-known for its agriculture, animal husbandry trade, and, particularly, its skilled production of ironwork, leather, and pottery. Kibyra was architecturally impressive, built across three hills and featuring monumental structures that highlighted its wealth and significance. Among these structures was a stadium measuring 185 meters in length, capable of accommodating around 10,000 spectators. The theatre, partially hewn into a hillside, had seating for about 9,000 people and showed evidence of a velarium and inscriptions referring to local clans and economic exchange rates. Adjacent to the theatre stood the Odeon, a multifunctional indoor theatre and council hall seating approximately 3,600. This venue was beautifully decorated with coloured marble, statues, and a distinctive Medusa mosaic in opus sectile on its orchestra floor. It is considered one of the best-preserved civic structures in Lycia. Additionally, nearby Byzantine baths featuring hypocaust systems demonstrate the region’s continuous urban development.
The most important finds in Kibyra are a body of architectural reliefs and stelae depicting gladiatorial contests, discovered during excavations by the Burdur Museum on the road to the necropolis east of the stadium. These friezes, which belonged to three different monumental tombs of munerarii, depict various aspects of gladiatorial games, including duels between gladiators and the hunting of animals. Along with reliefs on locally produced oil lamps, these friezes indicate that gladiators played an important role in the social life of Kibyra and that the stadium was used not only for athletic competitions but also for gladiatorial fights and venationes.
The city was repeatedly damaged by earthquakes, notably in AD 417, when a quake severely damaged the stadium and other structures. Despite these setbacks, Kibyra remained a prominent urban centre until its eventual abandonment after the 7th century AD.
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The stadium. Dated to the late 2nd to early 3rd century AD, the stadium was strategically located on the slopes of the main hill, integrated into the urban fabric of Kibyra.The stadium features a single U-shaped sphendone design, accommodating approximately 10,000 spectators.The stadium had 21 rows of seats on the western side, carved into bedrock, while the eight rows on the eastern side were supported by a retaining wall. The stadium was damaged by earthquakes, notably in AD 23 and AD 417, leading to its eventual abandonment.The stadium of Kibyra was accessed from the north through a propylon featuring five arched entrances. The propylon stood 7.94 meters high and spanned 25.35 meters in width. The estimated date of the stadium is based on an inscription found on the propylon and dated to AD 198-211.In-situ relief on the wall of the stadium, likely representing a tropaion (“trophy”) relief showing a male figure with a helmet, breastplate and greaves between two round shields with spears.The excavated 40m-long main street near the Upper Agora, which ran from the stadium to the theatre. It was approximately 800 m long, extending east to west, and was formed of stairs due to the elevation.The colonnaded street of the Upper Agora with stoas and shops on both sides.The colonnaded street of the Upper Agora.A fountain along the colonnaded street of the Upper Agora.The tholos-nymphaeum on the third terrace of the Upper Agora, unearthed during the 2016 excavations. The circular, temple-like fountain structure was dedicated to the nymphs and associated with the city’s water supply system. It was decorated with columns, embossed friezes, and sculptures.A bronze lion head water spout on the Tholos-Nymphaeum.The Tholos-Nymphaeum consists of a circular structure with a central water system made of blocks and two surrounding circular pools. The central structure is covered with a conical roof carried by columns.The Tholos-Nymphaeum was most likely constructed after the earthquake in AD 23. It underwent three phases of use: during the first phase, it featured a single pool and a circular structure with a central water system. A second pool was likely added in the late second and early third centuries AD.Terracotta water pipes surrounding the Tholos-Nymphaeum. The excavations revealed that the structure was not only a fountain but also a castellum that supplied water to its immediate surroundings.The third terrace of the Upper Agora with the Tholos-Nymphaeum.The third terrace of the Upper Agora.View of the Theatre and Odeon from the Upper Agora.The Theatre, built on a natural slope and seating around 8,000 people, dates to the Hellenistic period, but the upper cavea and the two-storey stage building were added in the 2nd century AD.The Theatre.Traces of wooden posts used to carry a velarium to protect spectators from the sun and rain can be seen on the cavea.The Odeon with its colonnaded forecourt paved with black-and-white mosaics.The Odeon was constructed in the 1st century AD and embellished in the 3rd century AD.The cavea of the Odeon has a capacity of 2,500.The orchestra floor of the Odeon with the Medusa mosaic.Kibyra’s captivating Medusa mosaic was made in opus sectile, a technique using thin marble slabs. Unearthed in 2009, the mosaic dates to the 2nd or 3rd century AD.The foundations of the temple of the imperial cult (Kaisarion), a temple dedicated by Quintus Veranius, the governor of Lycia in the Claudian period, to the emperor’s worship. It was built during the reign of Claudius (AD 41-54) and dedicated to Emperor Augustus (as Zeus Patroos Augustus) and his wife Livia (as Nea Demeter Augusta).Dedicatory inscriptions and architectural fragments from the temple of the imperial cult.The Roman Bath Complex, dated to the 1st century AD.Roman Bath Complex.The Golhisar plain at the foot of Kibyra.Basilica Church, a religious building with three naves, a triconch apse, and burial chambers, dating to the 5th century AD.Burial chambers inside the Basilica Church, dated to the 5th century AD.Burial chambers inside the Basilica Church, dated to the 5th century AD.The Main Road leading to the Stadium has a necropolis area on both sides, primarily consisting of sarcophagi.A necropolis on one side of the Main Road leading to the Stadium. Here, two sets of friezes depicting gladiators in various actions were found, belonging to two monumental gladiator tombs that, along with other tombs.The gladiator reliefs from the necropolis of Kibyra in the Burdur Museum.The gladiator reliefs from the necropolis of Kibyra in the Burdur Museum.The Eastern Necropolis, a burial area with different types of tombs built during the Roman Period.Sarcophagi in the Eastern Necropolis.The Eastern Necropolis.
Berns, C., & Ekinci, H. A. (2015). Gladiatorial games in the Greek East: a complex of reliefs from Cibyra. Anatolian Studies, 65, 143–179. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24878381
Kileci, Senkal & Önen, Nihal. (2024). Restoration Works in Kibyra during the Claudian Period: New Inscriptions, τὰ σεβαστὰ ἔργα of the Lycian Governor Quintus Veranius and New Inscriptions Concerning His Family.
Dökü, F. Eray, and M. Can Kaya. “The Architecture and Function of the Stadium of Kibyra”. Adalya, no. 16 (June 2013): 177-201.
Karabacak, Volkan & Yönlü, Önder & Dökü, Eray & Kıyak, Nafiye & Altunel, E. & Özüdoğru, Şükrü & Yalciner, Cahit Caglar & Akyuz, H. Serdar. (2013). Analyses of Seismic Deformation at the Kibyra Roman Stadium, Southwest Turkey. Geoarchaeology. 28. 531-543. 10.1002/gea.21456.
Claros was an ancient Greek sanctuary situated on the coast of Ionia between Smyrna and Ephesus. It belonged to the city of Colophon and was a significant centre of prophecy, as in Delphi and Didyma. The sanctuary contained a temple and oracle of Apollo, who was worshipped here as Apollo Clarius. People from far and wide visited this place to seek guidance and prophecies until the end of the 4th century AD. Hadrian visited the sanctuary and contributed considerably to the temple’s reconstruction.
The cult centre at Claros was a complex devoted to multiple deities, including Artemis, Leto, Dionysus, and Apollo. It was part of the territory controlled by the Ionic city of Colophon, one of the oldest of the twelve cities of the Ionian League. The religious area was constructed around a freshwater spring during the Archaic Period, but there is evidence of a pre-Greek use of the site with a possible Hittite origin. The first known construction is a round altar that dates back to the second half of the 7th century. It was later replaced by a large rectangular altar measuring 14.85 × 6.05 m. In the middle of the 6th century AD, a marble temple was built for Apollo around the spring. Artemis also had her own precinct and a smaller altar measuring 3.50 × 150 m. Later, in the 3rd century AD, construction began on the new altar and the new temple of Apollo, which had a crypt-like adyton from where the oracle delivered his prophecies.
Claros, alongside Didyma, was one of the two major oracular centres in western Asia Minor during the Graeco-Roman period. However, the origins of cultic activity Claros is the oldest in the region. The earliest mention of Claros is in the Homeric Hymn to Apollo (see here) from the 7th century BC. During this period, several altars and a marble temple dedicated to Apollo were constructed near a sacred spring. Later, in the 3rd century BC, various significant structures and cult statues of Apollo, Artemis, and Leto, along with a larger Doric Temple of Apollo, were built.
Larger-than-life seated statue of Homer from the Sanctuary of Apollo at Claros. İzmir Art and Sculpture Museum.
During the 7th century BC, an ancient Sacred Way connected Claros with Colophon and Notion. This route was used for several centuries, at least until 294 BC. The road was decorated with Kouros and Kore statues on both sides. Near the main altar, an impressive array of statues honouring Roman officials lined the Sacred Way in Claros. Some of the individuals commemorated included Pompey, Cicero, and Octavian, who was likely honoured after his Actium victory. Other honorees were Sextus Appuleius II, the half-nephew of the Roman emperor Augustus, L. Valerius Flaccus, the governor of Asia in 61/2, his father (consul 86 BC), and his uncle C. Valerius Flaccus, who was Asia’s governor in the 90s.
Kouros statue from the Sacred Road that connected Claros with Colophon and Notion. Dated to the Archaic Period. Izmir Museum of History and Art.
The oldest piece of information about the function of the Temple of Apollo in Claros dates back to the Hellenistic Period. According to the Greek historian Pausanias, Alexander the Great had a dream in which he was directed to establish a new city at the base of Mt. Pagos (Smyrna). The Smyrnaeans asked for the interpretation of the dream from the Apollo oracle at Claros, and the oracle replied with a prophetic phrase: “Thrice and four times happy will those men be, who are going to inhabit Pagos beyond the sacred Meles.” As a result, New Smyrna was founded, becoming one of the most prosperous cities in Asia, while the old city of Smyrna was abandoned.
The oracular sanctuary of Apollo Clarius was a sacred place for devotees and visitors seeking divine wisdom and insight. According to inscriptions and literary texts, there were special nights on which consultations would occur, and people would gather at the temple of Apollo. During these nights, a procession of consultants would take place, sacrifices would be made, and hymns would be sung to seek answers from the divine. The Lesser and Greater Claria were two significant festivals that took place every fifth year in the Hellenistic Age, attracting visitors and generating substantial revenue for the sanctuary.
During the early days of the Roman Empire, the Clarian oracle became very popular, attracting a large number of visitors who sought its counsel. The prophecies were highly regarded by rulers, individuals and cities, and their fame was worldwide. For instance, some towns addressed famine and field infertility issues, others about coping with plagues or pirate and bandit attacks. Individuals and delegations from the entire Eastern Mediterranean and beyond sought the oracle’s guidance at Claros.
Head of Apollo from Claros. Dated to the Late Hellenistic Period. Izmir Museum of History and Art.
In AD 18, Germanicus visited the oracle during his travels in the East and received a shocking prediction. The seer predicted that he would soon meet his end. This prediction came true just a year later when he passed away in Syrian Antioch (Antakya) at the young age of 34. Tacitus, a Roman historian who had likely visited the same oracle himself ten years prior as proconsul of Asia, described the procedure for receiving an oracle. He was surprised to discover that, unlike Delphi, no priestess was present but a male priest who spoke on behalf of Apollo (Tac. Ann. 2.54).
The oracular sanctuary consisted of various buildings, such as the temple itself, an altar, treasuries, and other structures that were associated with the oracle’s activities. The temple was built between the 4th and 3rd centuries BC on the site of an earlier sacred building and was restored during the reign of Hadrian. The new temple was constructed on a five-stepped platform with dimensions of 26 × 46 m and had six columns on the narrow sides and eleven on the long sides.
Plan of the Temple of Apollo at Claros.
The rectangular-shaped temple had sides measuring 26 and 46 meters. There were 11 columns on the longer sides and six on the shorter ones, all in the Doric order. The diameter of the drums of these columns was up to 1.6 meters, and archaeologists have discovered seven capitals and around 150 drums. The temple complex included a sacred spring and a cave where the oracle would deliver prophecies in a trance-like state. After an oracle was pronounced, the believers wrote a votive and memorial text referencing the priests and praising Apollo. Over time, hundreds of inscriptions covered the temple’s columns, steps and walls, making it one of the largest corpus of surviving Greek inscriptions.
Model of the Temple of Apollo Clarius and the Altar.
Numerous monuments were constructed during the Roman Period, and recent excavations have revealed that the sanctuary underwent significant modifications during the first half of the 2nd century AD. Hadrian played a vital role in restoring the temple. A fragmented dedication of the temple of Apollo mentions Hadrian as the dedicator. The emperor visited Ionia in AD 124 and 129. The decision to restore the temple at Claros was likely taken during one of these visits, while the terminus post quem for the restoration of the temple is December 135. However, the temple was still not completed thirty or forty years after Hadrian’s death. Pausanias (7.5.4) mentions that the sanctuary of Apollo at Claros, along with that of Didyma, were unfinished buildings.
Hadrian is known to have supported oracles, and during his reign, Delphi saw a short-lived revival via his patronage. Hadrian’s visit to Claros suggests his profound interest in religious and cultural sites. He likely participated in rituals, made offerings, and sought advice from Apollo’s oracle.
Restitution of the Hadrianic inscription. Αυτοκράτωρ Καΐσ[αρ θεού Τραιαν]οΰ Παρθικού ύός θεού Νέρβα υίω[νός Τραϊανός Αδριανός Σεβαστός, άρχιερεύς μέγιστος,] δημ[αρχικής εξουσίας το (–), αύ]το κράτωρ το δε[ύτερον, ύπατος] το (τρίτον), ‘Ολύμπιος και Πανελλήν[ιος και Πανιώνιος — ]The eponymous prytanis (local magistrate) of Colophon was responsible for the efficient functioning of the shrine and simultaneously served as the eponymous official of Claros. Two inscriptions evidence that Hadrian agreed to be the eponymous prytanis. Lucius Aelius Caesar, Hadrian’s first adopted son, also held the prytany.
Claros gained increased prominence after the Antonine Plague of AD 165-180 when many eastern cities consulted the oracle in response to the disease. The oracle, along with the other Greek oracles, must have been closed in AD 395, when the emperor Theodosius banned its operation. Later, a strong earthquake destroyed the temple and the remaining buildings.
The sanctuary was discovered in 1907 by a German scholar named C. Schuchhard. Excavations started in the 1950s under the direction of Louis Robert, who uncovered the oracular chamber below the temple and several inscriptions related to its operation. Today, the ruins of Claros offer a glimpse into the religious practices and beliefs of the ancient world, preserving the legacy of this once-thriving sanctuary dedicated to the god Apollo. Above the ground, one can see the foundations of the temple and fragments of the colossal sculptures of a seated Apollo, accompanied by Leto and Artemis, which were over seven meters in height.
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The Proplyon. The monumental gate that led into the sanctuary.The Katagogeion (hostel) is located south of the Sanctuary of Apollo. It contains twenty rooms, including a kitchen and a bathhouse. The Katagogeion was an inn for visitors who sought consultations with the oracle.A well-preserved exedra, a semicircular recess where visitors sat and conversed, with lion claw ornamentation.
View of the ruins of the Doric Temple of Apollo from the south, with the base that held the colossal statues of Artemis, Apollo, and Leto in the foreground.View of the ruins of the Doric Temple of Apollo from the southwest.
View of one of the two arched subterranean sacred rooms.View of one of the two arched subterranean sacred rooms with the colossal statues of Apollo, Artemis and Leto in the background.View of the ruins of the Doric Temple of Apollo from the southeast.Column drums of the Temple of Apollo.Part view of the ruins of the Doric Temple of Apollo.The Monumental Altar of Apollo.Hellenistic building dedicated to Artemis.The Hellenistic altar to Artemis.Three fragments from Hadrian’s dedication to the Temple of Apollo Clarios. Dated to between December 135 and December 136. ΑΥΤΟΚΑΤΩΡΚΑΙΣ ΚΡΑΤΩΡΤΟΔΕTwo fragments from Hadrian’s dedication to the Temple of Apollo Clarios. Dated to between December 135 and December 136. ΟΥΠΑΡΘΙΚΟΥΥΟΣΘΕΟΥΝΕΡΒΑΥΙΩ ΤΟ.Γ.ΟΛΥΜΠΙΟΣΚΑΙΠΑΝΕΛΛΗΝSquare honorary monuments of the Flaccus Family and L. Valerius Flaccus and honorary columns of Sextus Appuleius and Menippos.
Corinthian column dedicated to Sextus Appuleius, son of Octavia, stepbrother to the emperor Augustus, and proconsul of Asia.Greek inscription dedicated to Sextus Appuleius. The inscription reads: ‘People honours Sextus Appuleius who is the founder of the city and is elected as proconsul for the second time.’ Ό δήμος Σέξτον Άππολή- ιον τον άνθύπατον το δεύτερον, κτίσ- την γεγονότα της πόλεως.The Exedra of Roman Magistrates.Hellenistic Sundial dedicated to Dionysus. The original is in the Izmir Archaeological Museum.
Small Exedra with two dedications.Dedications on stone pillars.Inscribed statue base.
following hadrian photography 