Myra Archaeological Site

Myra, between Kaş and Finike on the Antalya coast, was for a time the capital of the Lycian civilisation. Its story begins with tombs carved into the cliff face and runs down to the sea at Andriake Harbour. It kept its fame through the Middle Ages thanks to Saint Nicholas, who was bishop here. The city took its name from the Myros River, today's Demre Stream, and one of the six leading cities of the Lycian League, with three votes.

Water for the town came through a canal system carved into the rocks beside Demre. In the end, the same stream that gave the city life buried it in silt, as happened at many ancient cities. After Arab raids between the 7th and 9th centuries, Myra was captured in 809 and lost its importance. Its high point came in AD 408 to 450 under Theodosius II, when it was capital of Lycia and its port Andriake helped it prosper in trade.

The necropolis is the highlight. The Roman theatre sits below the rock tombs, and the reliefs on the tombs on both sides and in the river necropolis are worth close attention; the theatre is one of the few ancient theatres of its type to survive in such good shape. The city's coins show Artemis in the form of Cybele, the oldest goddess of Anatolia, and Myra was also known as a place of the Great Mother Goddess.