The ancient city of Myra is located in modern-day Demre, a district of Antalya. Its port settlement, Andriake, lies about 5 km to the southwest. The city’s Lycian name is thought to have been Muri, possibly derived from the myrrh tree (Commiphora myrrha), used in the production of Myra oil (myrrh).
According to Strabo, Myra was one of the six major cities in the Lycian League, each possessing three voting rights. Thanks to its strategic port, Andriake—an important point on the Mediterranean trade routes—and the fertile lands surrounding it, Myra developed into a wealthy and populous metropolis. It served as the principal mint of the region and led a sympoliteia formed with Tyberissos and Teimiusa during the Late Hellenistic period. Myra retained its metropolitan status through the Byzantine period, emerging as Lycia’s most important political center with the rise of Christianity.
St. Paul visited Myra and Patara in the 1st century BCE during one of his missionary journeys. However, the city gained its greatest fame from St. Nicholas, who, although born in Patara, established his church in Myra in the 4th century CE to promote Christianity.
The first modern traveler to document Myra and the harbor of Andriake was Luigi Mayer, who visited between 1776 and 1794 during his travels through the Ottoman Empire. The first comprehensive archaeological surveys were conducted by Jürgen Borchhardt between 1965 and 1968. Regular excavations began in 2009 under the direction of Nevzat Çevik.
The ancient city and its port owe both their existence and decline to the Myros River. The fertile delta formed by the river’s alluvial deposits supported ancient Myra and continues to support modern Demre. However, this same sediment eventually silted up the city and blocked the entrance to Andriake harbor, contributing to their abandonment. Today, Demre lies atop 4 to 9 meters of alluvial fill covering ancient Myra.
Archaeological evidence dates back to the dynastic period. The acropolis is situated on a 140-meter-high hill west of the Myros River. The summit is encircled by fortification walls bearing traces from the dynastic through the Byzantine periods. A rock-cut space measuring 25 x 15 meters within the acropolis is thought to have served as a meeting place.
All buildings on the plain date from the Roman and Byzantine periods. The Roman theater, built atop a Hellenistic predecessor, is the largest in Lycia, with a capacity of 11,000 spectators. Two other well-preserved Roman structures include the nymphaion and the baths. The Church of St. Nicholas was likely constructed on the site of the former Roman agora.
The most impressive architectural group in Myra is its collection of rock-cut tombs from the dynastic period. The city features three necropolises:
– The Sea (Western) Necropolis, west of the theater;
– The Southern Necropolis, east of the theater;
– The River (Eastern) Necropolis, east of the acropolis, overlooking the Myros Stream.
In total, 104 rock tombs have been documented, most dated to the 4th century BCE. Among the 23 inscriptions, 13 are in Lycian and 10 in Greek. Despite typological variations, almost all the tombs are of the “house-tomb” type distinctive to Lycia, featuring rock façades that imitate wooden architectural elements.
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Eastern (River) Necropolis of Myra
The Painted Tomb
Located in the River Necropolis of Myra, the Painted Tomb is arguably the most famous of the city’s many rock-cut tombs. Both the interior and the exterior sides of the tomb feature life-sized reliefs of human figures, carved with striking realism. The tomb’s owner is depicted in civilian attire, surrounded by eleven other figures, likely members of his family. Notably, the tomb lacks the typical warrior or hunting scenes that are common in other Lycian tombs.
The tomb is dated to between 360 and 340 BCE. During Charles Fellows’ visit in 1840, the artist George Scharf made color drawings that reveal the reliefs were originally painted in vivid colors—some traces of which are still visible today. One particular relief, showing a naked boy, was located on a pillar of the tomb chamber façade at the lower level. This piece was removed in the 19th century and is now on display at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens.
The Lion’s Tomb
Located in the River Necropolis of Myra, the Lion’s Tomb stands out from other rock-cut tombs due to its distinctive Ionic temple façade. It is named after the relief on its triangular pediment, which depicts a lion and bull in combat.
Above the tomb entrance, a frieze illustrates the tomb owner and his family in a classical funerary symposium scene, a common motif in Lycian burial art. On both sides of the door, there are plaster half-columns adorned with reliefs of lion heads. Engraved on the sides of these lion heads are depictions of “Artemis Myrrh,” the goddess of plants associated with Myra.
Borchhardt dates the tomb to the third quarter of the 4th century BCE.
Southern Necropolis of Myra
Western (Sea) Necropolis of Myra
Hurttuweti’s Tomb
Located in the Sea Necropolis of Myra, Hurttuweti’s Tomb is notable for its rock reliefs carved on the exterior. It is understood that this tomb, along with two others directly beneath it, belonged to the same family. A Lycian inscription (TL 94) found on one of the lower tombs identifies the builder as Hurttuweti.
In the life-size reliefs, Hurttuweti is depicted reclining on a kline (a banquet couch), accompanied by two female figures—likely his wife and daughter—at his bedside. To the left of this scene, four warrior or hero figures appear, possibly representing Hurttuweti himself, suggesting that he may have been a nobleman of Myra.
While scholars agree that the tomb dates to the 4th century BCE, there is some debate about the precise timeframe. Borchhardt proposes a date in the third quarter of the century, whereas Seyer suggests the second quarter.
References:
Borchhardt, J. 1975. Myra – Eine lykische Metropole in antiker und byzantinischer Zeit, 1st Forsch 30, Berlin.
Çevik, N. 2021. Lykia Kitabı: Arkeolojisi, Tarihi ve Kültürüyle Batı Antalya, Türk Tarih Kurumu, Ankara.
Çevik, N. 2016. ‘The City Breathing Myrrh: Myra’, in From Lukka to Lycia: The Land of Sarpedon and St. Nicholas, eds. H. İşkan & E. Dündar, 224-237, İstanbul.
Fellows, C. 1841. An Account of Discoveries of Lycia: Being a Journal Kept During a Second Excursion in Asia Minor, London.
Fellows, C. 1847. Lycia, Caria, Lydia, illustrated Mr. George Scharf with descriptive letter-press by Sir Charles Fellows, London.
Mayer, L. 1803. Views in the Ottoman Empire, London.
Seyer, M. 2008. ‘Das Grabmal des Hurttuweti in Myra’, ÖJh 77, 335–362.
Texier, C. 1849. Description de l’Asie Mineure, Vol.3, Paris.
Tıbıkoğlu, H. O. 2021. Myra Kaya Mezarları, Unpublished PhD Thesis, Akdeniz University, Antalya.
Image sources:
L. Mayer, 1803
L. F. Cassas, 1808 (© Victoria and Albert Museum)
C. Fellows, 1841, 1847
C. Texier, 1849
Reha Özer, 2022
Bora Bilgin, 2022, 2024
Tayfun Bilgin, 2022, 2024
Ertuğrul Anıl, 2024