The city of Neisa is located on the Meryemlik hill near the Sütleğen village of Kaş. Although it was a relatively small settlement, Neisa was a member of the Lycian League and, in the 2nd century BCE, minted coins in its own name.
The city is mentioned in the Patara Road Monument, which indicates that it lay at a crossroads connecting routes from Xanthos and Kandyba to Elmalı. The prominent Dionysii family of the city produced several Likyarchs during the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE.
To date, no systematic excavations have been conducted at Neisa. Most of the limited visible remains date to the Roman period. The earliest surviving structures are the Hellenistic city walls. The best-preserved building is a small theater with 22 seating rows. Other visible remains include three bath complexes, as well as several sarcophagi and mausolea. The main street, with its well-preserved stone paving, may also have functioned as a stadium. Neisa was established in a forested area of the Taurus Mountains, far from the coastline. The city’s prosperity is thought to have derived largely from forestry. Ancient sources indicate that the region was once rich in valuable cedar trees.
References:
Çevik, N. 2021. Lykia Kitabı: Arkeolojisi, Tarihi ve Kültürüyle Batı Antalya, Türk Tarih Kurumu, Ankara.
Şahin, S. 2007. “Zwei Holzfaeller und der Wald in der Kartapis bei Neisa,” Gephyra 4, 37-45.
Takmer, B. & M. Oktan. 2013. “Parerga zum Stadiasmus Patarensis (11): Die lykische Stadt Neisa,” Gephyra, 20, 50-93.
Images:
B. Takmer, 2013
Bora Bilgin, 2022
Tayfun Bilgin, 2022
Reha Özer, 2022