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Tlos (Τλώς) was one of the oldest and largest Lycian cities. Its ruins lie in a spectacular setting in modern-day Turkey, just four kilometers from the Saklıkent Gorge.

Tlos, Turkey
Tlos

 

History of Tlos

Tlos, originally known in Lycian as Tlawa, was an important city as early as the 15th century BC. Around 540 BC, it was conquered by Median general Harpagus on behalf of the Persians and absorbed into the Persian Empire. The Persians ruled until the late 4th century BC and the city became prosperous during that time. It took its Greek name during the Hellenistic period, which lasted until 190 BC, when the Romans put it under the control of the island of Rhodes.

Tlos
Tlos

Tlos was granted autonomy as a Roman protectorate in 168 BC as one of the six principal cities of the Lycian League. In 43 AD, Lycia became a Roman province under Emperor Claudius, and Tlos bore the title of “very brilliant metropolis of the Lycian nation”. The city was leveled by an earthquake in 141 and rebuilt by Opromaos of Rhodiapolis and another wealthy benefactor. Another earthquake caused severe damage in 240. During the Christian period, Tlos became an important bishopric.

Tlos
Tlos
Tlos, Turkey
Tlos

The site was rediscovered in 1838 by British archaeologist Charles Fellows (1799-1860) and explored by Thomas Spratt (1811-1888). The first scientific survey of the city was conducted in 1992 by Akdeniz University. Excavations began in 2005 and continue today.

Stairs and gate near the entrance to the archaeological site at Tlos, Turkey
Stairs and gate near the entrance to the archaeological site
Gate
Gate


 

Visiting Tlos

Tlos is open daily and admission for foreigners is €3 (as of April 2024). If you don’t have your own car, you can take a minibus from Fethiye to Yakaköy and walk the four kilometers up to the archeological site. It’s also possible to hire a taxi for the day and combine your visit with the Saklıkent Gorge. I recommend spending about one to two hours visiting the site. Visit the official website for more info.

Ticket booth
Ticket booth

 

Stadium

The first feature of the ancient city you’ll come to is the Stadium. It’s a large open space at the foot of the Acropolis. It was first built during the Hellenistic period and was modified during the Roman period. The original length of the stadium is unknown.

Stadium at Tlos, Turkey
Stadium
Stadium at Tlos, Turkey
Stadium

The Stadium had a seating capacity of 2,500. Seats were cut directly into the natural bedrock. There are nine rows of seats and a parapet on the west side with a horizontal walkway above the seats. Only a 148 meter stretch of the seats exists today.

Seating area at the Stadium at Tlos, Turkey
Seating area
Seating area at the Stadium
Seating area

In the center of the Stadium is a pool running parallel to the track. It measures 72 x 8.3 meters and is 1 meter deep. A fountain sits on the north end of the pool, and there’s a one meter wide drainage system around it to prevent overflowing. The pool indicates the Stadium was also used for social and ritual activities.

Pool at the Stadium
Pool
Fountain at the Stadium
Fountain

The north, south, and east sides of the stadium area were surrounded by a colonnaded portico. The east side also served as a street lined by shops from the Agora.

Stadium at Tlos, Turkey
Stadium
Stadium at Tlos, Turkey
Stadium
East side of the Stadium
East side of the Stadium


 

Necropolis of Tlos

The Necropolis is on the slopes of the Acropolis. It was used continuously from the Classical period onwards. It consists of two types of tombs.

Necropolis at Tlos, Turkey
Necropolis

 

Rock-Cut Tombs

First are the rock-cut tombs. They were reserved for the most important burials and have impressive façades. Some were meant to imitate the traditional wooden architecture of Lycia while others were made to look like temples. Many are decorated with carvings while others include various architectural elements.

Rock-cut tombs in the Necropolis
Rock-cut tombs
Rock-cut tombs in the Necropolis
Rock-cut tombs
Façade of a rock-cut tomb in the Necropolis
Façade of a rock-cut tomb

Rock-cut tombs were sometimes used as family tombs. The interiors include stone beds for placement of the bodies. Offerings and bones from previous burials were swept into pits in the center. Tombs were also reused in later periods. For example, during the Roman period, brick beds were built to replace the stone beds.

Façade of a rock-cut tomb in the Necropolis
Façade of a rock-cut tomb
Burial chamber of a rock-cut tomb in the Necropolis
Burial chamber
Roman period burial chamber of a rock-cut tomb in the Necropolis
Roman period burial chamber

 

Sarcophagi

The other type of tomb in the Necropolis is the sarcophagus. The Lycian sarcophagi have rounded lids while the Roman type have triangular lids. Some were placed on podiums.

Sarcophagi in the Necropolis at Tlos, Turkey
Sarcophagi
Sarcophagus in the Necropolis
Sarcophagus


 

Acropolis of Tlos

The Acropolis borders Tlos on the west side. It was the most important part of the city and the location of the ruler’s palace beginning in the Early Classical period.

Acropolis of Tlos, Turkey
Acropolis
Acropolis
Acropolis
Walking up to the Acropolis of Tlos, Turkey
Walking up to the Acropolis

The Acropolis contains traces of structures from the Classical period through the Late Ottoman period. They can be seen walking up to the summit as well as on the flat part on the west side.

Column with a Greek inscription on the Acropolis
Column with a Greek inscription
Summit of the Acropolis of Tlos, Turkey
Summit
Summit of the Acropolis of Tlos, Turkey
Summit

A fortification wall was built around the Acropolis in the first half of the 5th century to protect a new settlement on the south slope. The settlement expanded beyond the wall in the 11th century. The wall is visible from the Small Bath.

City walls around the Acropolis
City Walls

 

Ottoman Mansion

The most recent structure on the summit of the Acropolis is a mansion built in the early 19th century by notorious Ottoman feudal lord Kanlı Ali Ağa. It was used as his winter residence and contained a fortress with barracks. Stones from ancient buildings on the Acropolis were used in its construction.

Ottoman mansion on the summit of the Acropolis of Tlos, Turkey
Ottoman mansion
Ottoman mansion on the summit of the Acropolis
Ottoman mansion
Walls of a building from the Ottoman mansion on the Acropolis
Walls of a building
Ottoman mansion on the Acropolis
Ottoman mansion

One of the most interesting structures is a rectangular building on the northwest side of the summit with what appears to be a chimney on the north side of the building. If I had to guess, it’s the Ottoman barracks. It’s not labeled anywhere at the site. If anyone can identify the building, please let me know.

Rectangular building on the Acropolis of Tlos, Turkey
Rectangular building
Rectangular building on the Acropolis
Rectangular building
Ottoman mansion on the Acropolis
Ottoman mansion
Ottoman mansion on the Acropolis
Ottoman mansion

 

Views from the Acropolis

Lastly, there are fantastic views of Tlos and the surrounding countryside from the summit of the Acropolis. I took the photo at the beginning of this post as well as other features of the archaeological site from there.

View from the Acropolis
View from the Acropolis
View from the Acropolis
View from the Acropolis
Archaeological site from the Acropolis of Tlos, Turkey
Archaeological site


 

Agora

The Agora sits between the Stadium and Theatre. It was the commercial, political, administrative, social, and cultural center of the city. The Agora existed during the Hellenistic period, but most of the blocks date to the 2nd century and the Roman period.

Agora
Agora

The west side of the Agora featured two-story shops bordering the Stadium. The first floor was open to the Stadium while the second floor was open to the Agora.

Shops adjacent to the Stadium at the Agora at Tlos, Turkey
Shops adjacent to the Stadium
Shops adjacent to the Stadium
Shops adjacent to the Stadium

The Agora has not yet been excavated so the architectural features are not fully apparent. Archaeologists also believe the area was repurposed in the Early Byzantine period. A modern road also cuts through the middle of the Agora.

Shops of the Agora
Shops
Shops of the Agora
Shops

 

Basilica

A short walk along the road through the Agora leads to the Basilica. It was built during the Early Byzantine period and modified during the Middle Byzantine period. The doors that opened to the narthex and atrium stand on the north side of the building.

Basilica at Tlos, Turkey
Basilica
Doors to the narthex (left) and atrium (right) of the Basilica
Doors to the narthex (left) and atrium (right)
Doors to the atrium (left) and narthex (right) from inside the narthex of the Basilica
Doors to the atrium (left) and narthex (right) from inside the narthex
Doors from the narthex to the nave of the Basilica
Doors from the narthex to the nave

The Basilica measured 84 x 33 meters on a cross-shaped plan. There was a central nave flanked by aisles on each side separated by two rows of columns. Eight windows each on the north and south walls provided natural light. At the east end of the nave is the apse.

Nave of the Basilica at Tlos, Turkey
Nave
Apse of the Basilica at Tlos, Turkey
Apse
Right aisle of the Basilica at Tlos, Turkey
Right aisle
Left aisle of the Basilica at Tlos, Turkey
Left aisle

The walls of the nave were covered in plaster and decorated with frescoes while the floor was covered with mosaics. The mosaics had geometric designs. Finally, there was a small chapel attached to the south wall. It was the last addition to the building.

Bases of the columns separating the right aisle of the Basilica
Bases of the columns separating the right aisle
Bases of the columns separating the left aisle of the Basilica
Bases of the columns separating the left aisle


 

Temple of Cronus

A few steps south of the Basilica is the Temple of Cronus, which is one of the best preserved buildings at Tlos. It was built in the 2nd century in the Corinthian order and sits on a podium measuring 15.67 x 7.78 meters. The podium is 1.89 meters high and the temple is accessible via 7 steps on the north side.

Temple of Cronus at Tlos, Turkey
Temple of Cronus
Temple of Cronus at Tlos, Turkey
Temple of Cronus

The temple was 10 meters high. The pronaos measures 5.14 x 3.07 meters and had a door that opened to a cella measuring 6.97 x 5.23 meters.  The original floor slabs were removed for use in the Basilica. The friezes were decorated with floral designs and the pediments on the north and east sides had lion’s head waterspouts.

Rear of the Temple of Cronus
Rear of the temple

 

Great Bath

The Great Bath is one of two bath structures at Tlos. It was built in the Early Roman period and renovated in the 2nd and 3rd centuries. In the 11th century, the Great Bath was converted to a church.

Great Bath at Tlos, Turkey
Great Bath
Great Bath from the northwest
Great Bath from the northwest

The Great Bath consisted of three adjoining rooms. The room to the east was the cold room (frigidarium). It was entered through a monumental gate. The apse at the end has seven arched windows with views of the valley to the south as well as a small pool. During the Byzantine period, the cold room was used as a cemetery.

Cold room of the Great Bath
Cold room
Cold room of the Great Bath at Tlos, Turkey
Cold room

Two doors on the western wall provided access to the warm room (tepidarium), while the third room on the west was the hot room (caldarium). Both the warm and hot rooms used a system that heated the rooms from the floor and the side walls. After the Great Bath became a church, the hot room was the narthex and the warm room was the nave.

Hot room of the Great Bath at Tlos, Turkey
Hot room
Hot room
Hot room


 

Small Bath

The Small Bath sits nearby. It was built in the Early Roman period and restored after earthquakes in 141 and 240. The Small Bath also has three rooms. The east room is understood to be the cold room because there’s no heating system.

Small Bath at Tlos, Turkey
Small Bath
Small Bath
Small Bath

The room through the arched gate is the warm room. It contains three arched windows on the west wall overlooking the Stadium and Acropolis. There’s evidence of a heating system in the floor and walls.

Warm room of the Small Bath
Warm room
Warm room and gate to the cold room of the Small Bath
Warm room and gate to the cold room
Windows in the warm room of the Small Bath at Tlos, Turkey
Windows in the warm room

Finally, a gate in the center of the warm room opens to the hot room. It’s much smaller than the cold and hot rooms. An arched gate on the north wall of the hot room opens to a palaestra measuring 63 x 45 meters. It was surrounded by a colonnade on all four sides and contained dressing rooms and a fountain on the north and south sides.

Small Bath at Tlos, Turkey
Small Bath


 

Theatre of Tlos

The Theatre of Tlos is on the east end of the archaeological site. It’s one of the best preserved structures in the city. Construction began in the Hellenistic period. It was restored in the 1st century BC and several times after during the Roman period.

Theatre of Tlos, Turkey
Theatre of Tlos
Theatre of Tlos, Turkey
Theatre of Tlos

The Theatre was built into a slope and had a three-story stage building. The façade of the stage building contained floral and figural decorations. The diameter of the orchestra is 20.5 meters.

Stage building of the Theatre of Tlos, Turkey
Stage building
Stage building of the Theatre of Tlos, Turkey
Stage building

The entrances to the auditorium are via two vaulted passages on the north and south sides. Two more vaults provide access to the horizontal walkway dividing the auditorium into two sections. The lower part of the auditorium contains 20 rows of seats, while the upper one has 16. Stone seats reserved for VIPs are above the horizontal walkway. There was also a small temple on the top level of the auditorium.

South side leading to the entrances of the Theatre
South side leading to the entrances
Seating area of the Theatre of Tlos, Turkey
Seating area
Seats of the Theatre of Tlos, Turkey
Seats
Seats of the Theatre of Tlos, Turkey
Seats

 

Map of Tlos

Author

Owner of Paisadventure. World traveler. Chicago sports lover. Living in Colombia.

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