Hoyran is a small settlement located on a hill at an altitude of 500 meters, south of Hoyran village, about 4 km inland from the coast. The site contains ruins dating from the dynastic period to the Byzantine period. Ancient sources do not mention the settlement, and no inscriptions discovered so far provide information about its name. Therefore, the ancient name of the settlement remains unknown. It may possibly correspond to a settlement called Sorouda, which is mentioned only in Byzantine-period sources from this region.
Despite its small size, the settlement features notable funerary monuments, particularly from the dynastic period. Benndorf and his team were the first to visit and document the ruins in 1881. On the hill, which is enclosed by castle walls, there are remnants of buildings carved into the bedrock. The necropolis, containing many sarcophagi, lies between the present-day village and the acropolis. In addition, well-crafted rock tombs—some bearing Lycian inscriptions—can be seen on the slopes.
This unidentified settlement in Hoyran is believed to have been within the territory of Kyaneai. However, Tlepolemos of Myra is mentioned in a Hellenistic-period tomb found near the tomb of Ta’s son (see below), far from the necropolis area. This tomb, whose base was carved into the bedrock, was constructed in the form of a rectangular prism using large stone blocks—quite different from traditional Lycian tomb architecture.
Hoyran Tomb (Tomb of the Son of Ta)
About 1 km north of the acropolis lies one of the most remarkable rock-cut tombs from the dynastic period in Hoyran. It is a traditional Lycian tomb featuring a wooden imitation façade. The pediment on the arch-shaped roof and the belt beneath it are decorated with reliefs. There are also four Lycian inscriptions (TL 74) located at the tomb entrance, on the pediment, and beside the reliefs. The name of the tomb’s owner is not fully legible, but the inscriptions identify him as the “son of Ta.”
Given the tomb’s location—quite far from both the main settlement and the necropolis area—and the presence of nearby structures carved into the rock, Borchhardt suggests that this tomb may have belonged to a local landlord rather than a dynast of Hoyran. The tomb is dated to the first half of the 4th century BCE.
References:
Benndorf, O. & G. Niemann. 1884. Reisen in Lykien und Karien (Reisen im südwestlichen Kleinasien I), Viyana.
Borchhardt, J., G. Neumann & K. Schulz. 1984. Das Grabmal des Sohnes des Ta aus Hoyran in Zentrallykien, ÖJh. 55, 68–131.
Çevik, N. 2021. Lykia Kitabı: Arkeolojisi, Tarihi ve Kültürüyle Batı Antalya, Türk Tarih Kurumu, Ankara.
Marksteiner, T. 1995. ‘Die befestigte Siedlung von Hoiran’, in Lykische Studien 2 – 1991 (AMS 18), 205 – 228, Bonn.
Petersen, E. & F. Von Luschan. 1889. Reisen in Lykien Milyas und Kibyratis. Reisen im Südwestlischen Kleinasien II, Wien.
Image sources:
O. Benndorf & G. Niemann, 1884
E. Petersen & F. Von Luschan, 1889
Tayfun Bilgin, 2022
Bora Bilgin, 2022, 2023
Reha Özer, 2023