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Places to go
HALICARNASSOS
Halicarnassos developed in the region of the castle, where there used to be a tiny town called Zephyria. According to legend, its founder was called Anthes of Troezen, the son of Poseidon. The Aiolloes, Ionians and other later comers to the Aegean, the Dorians, formed a union between the six cities in the region.
The growth of Halicarnassos was jump started in the era of the Carian satrap Mausolus. Mausolus was aware of the opportunities of possessing a port city and formed the city according to the Hellenic tradition. Halicarnassos was blessed by being one of the few cities in the region not to be struck by earthquakes during the period of Roman rule and was twice blessed by being the birthplace of the historian Herodotus. In 1291, Bodrum was captured by the Menteşe Turks, in turn falling to the Ottomans in 1424, being made part of the province of Menteşe.
The Mausoleum: The Mausoleum was completed in 350 BC after the death of the Carian satrap Mausolus by his wife and sister Artemisia II, the actual construction being done by the architect Pytheos. The monument tomb was in the centre of Halicarnassos, rising over a large plot of land, with sections of the walls bearing inscriptions and was decorated with statues. In its centre are Ionian columns and the inner walls were covered with reliefs. On the top of the pyramid there was a chariot drawn by four horses, with the figures of the King and Queen riding in it. The famous sculptors Skopas, Leokhares, Bryaksis and Tomotheos worked on the status and reliefs. As can be seen, the city had its heyday in terms of art at this time and its most famous work of art has passed into all languages with the word "mausoleum". At his death, Mausolus was cremated in a huge fire and, after some gifts were left in the burial chamber, the tomb was closed with a huge rock. On the staircases of the monument there were bones of animals sacrificed as part of the ceremonies to mark his farewell.
In the 15th century, the Knights Hospitaller of St John, then based in Rhodes, came to the region and demolished much of the mausoleum, using the stone to build the castle, named after St Peter. In 1857, Charles Newton conducted excavations for the British Museum and gathered what was left and transferred the finds to the museum. In recent years, excavations and modern research have been conducted by the Dutch archaeologist Christian Jeppesen, with his finds being put on display in the museum under the monument. The Mausoleum can be reached by following the Gümüşlük road and then onto the road that turns at the Tepecik Mosque.
Some sections of the walls of the Mausoleum can be seen around the Myndos Gate on the Gümbet road. The part of the castle that has survived was built by the last of the Knights of St. John with the permission of Sultan Çelebi Mehmet, with work beginning in 1402. The stones that were dislodged from the Mausoleum in an earthquake, as well as others taken by the knights, were used in the building of the castle. Each of the castle’s towers were named after the nation of knights that defended it: giving us the French, Italian, German, Spanish and British towers. The castle now serves as Turkey’s Museum of Underwater Archaeology, the only such museum in the country.
The ancient settlements on the Bodrum Peninsula
Besides the ancient city of Halicarnassos there are 12 other ancient settlements on the peninsula. These cities are Pedasa, Telmossos (Gürece), Termera and the Castle of Aspat, Müsgebi (Ortakent), the old and new Myndos, Uranion, Madnasa, Sibda (Side), Yeni (New) Karyanda, Syangela, Theangela, Kindye (Sığırtmaç), Eski (Old) Karyanda, and Bargylia. A large proportion of these are Leleg settlements. During the reign of the Halicarnassos’ King Mausolus II the citizens of six of these cities were forced to migrate to Halicarnassos while those of Myndos and Syangela were moved to other places and the cities rebuilt in the Hellenistic style. Thus, instead of the having a scattered and weak population, Halicarnassos was made stronger and prosperous. Barring the ancient city of Bargylia, most of what remains from these settlements are parts of walls and towers. The settlements are generally on hills and mountains. A visit to one or all is recommended to those interested in archaeology and for those who want to discover nature by walking. We should mention that the view is much more impressive than the ruins. (For details for these walking paths section see the Bodrum guide pages.)
Pedasa is four kilometres away as the crow flies, on the top of a hill covered with trees. As there is no road and you can only get there on foot. For those who are interested this trip will give them a pleasant hike and great satisfaction. The ruins can be seen on the top of the hill, within a circle of 150 metres in diameter. The remains are generally of the walls and the inner castle. To the south and south east of this area you can see tombs in the style of the Lelegs.
Telmossos is on the Bodrum-Turgutreis road, three kilometres past Ortakent. The site is in the village of Güirece, which is two kilometres before the turn for Gümüşlük, with the hill where the remains are to be found to the north of the main road. You can see remains of the Hellenistic period, mainly the towers of the city’s walls. The historian Herodotus say that there was the Temple of Apollo here and that is was famed for its oracles. However, no traces of the temple have survived.
Müsgebi in Ortakent was also a Leleg settlement. During the excavations conducted in the necropolis of this city, pottery from the 15th and 13th centuries BC from Mycea was unearthed.
The Aspat Kalesi (Castle of Aspat) is on the top of the conical hill facing Aspat Cove in Akyarlar. The ancient settlement of Termera is two kilometres further along on Asarlık Hill, one kilometre from the village of Mandra. You can only walk there. However, you can get to Mandra by car by following the road from the village of Gürece where Telmossos is located.
The city of Termara is like the other Leleg cities, with very few traces or ruins that have survived to our time. The inner castle on the top of the hill is completely destroyed, though some part of the lower wall is standing.
Eski Myndos (Old Myndos) was also a Leleg city. Its ruins are located on Bozdağ Hill, one kilometre inland from Kadikalesi. There is no road to the hill and walking up takes about an hour. On top you will the ruins of the city walls and the remains of a square building. The view from the top, which encompasses the whole of modern Gümüşlük and a large part of the peninsula, is extremely impressive. The people of Old Myndos were relocated to New Myndos during the rule of Mausolus II.
Yeni Myndos (New Myndos) is intertwined with the village of Gümüşlük. The city was not much added to after the reign of Mausolus II and was almost forgotten in the Roman period. This is another reason why little remains from the city, as is the case with some other ancient cities on the peninsula. The walls that surrounded the city can be also seen from the islet Gümüşlük. If from Turgut Reis you follow the road to Gümüşlük and drive for one kilometre, at the side of the road you can see tombs hewn into the rock.
Three kilometres to the south west of Yalıkaval, on the two hills above the village of Geriş, there are the ruins of the Leleg settlement that was believed to be Uranion. On the top of the hill near the shore there is the ruins of a mausoleum, walls and towers.
On one of the hills that face Türkbükü and Gölköy is Madnasa (Kökpınar Tepesi) and the other hill Sibda/Side (Karadağ). In both cities there are the remains of walls and towers from the acropolis and some ceramic and pottery pieces. In order to get to Sibda you have to turn off the road to Yukarı Gölköy and go to the village of Belen by car. By walking from Belen for 40 minutes you get to the ruins of a church and a castle. Another 40 minutes walk gets you to Karadağ where the ruins of Sibda are to be found. While the ruins are not very spectacular the view that gives you a panorama of the peninsula are.
In the Gulf of Gökova region, on the hill above the Alazeytin district of the village of Çiftlik, there are the ruins of the ancient city of Syangela. You get to the ruins after a 20 minute walk through olive trees from the end of Alazeytin. All that remains from the ancient city are ruins of houses and other buildings. From the hilltop you can see the Gulf of Gökova and Orak Island.
The city of Theangela, where Maudolus II relocated the people of Syangela, is on a hill one kilometre from the village of Pınarbelen, along the Mumcular-Bodrum road. The path leading from the village to the hill is very steep and the walk takes some time. It is recommended to take a guide from the village. However, the ruins at the top are worth the effort. If you feel energetic, if it is not too hot and you have the time, this trip of exploration might be interesting.
Kndye: The ancient site is near the Milas-Bodrum road, past the turn for Güllük on the hillside between the villages of Kemikler and Sığırtmaç. Little remains of the ancient city of Kndye apart from rough stone walls.
If you head towards the Gulf of Güllük and get to the edge of the peninsula and the Cove of Varvil you will find the ancient city of Bargylia. The site where there are remains is four kilometres off the main road. You can get there by four wheel drive, though it is much easier to get here by boat from Güllük. At the site of the ancient city, which had its heyday during the Hellenistic and Roman eras, you can see the columns, the walls of a Roman temple, an altar with reliefs, a small part of a theatre, the ruined foundations of a stoa, fragments of a Roman era aqueduct, city walls and the town’s cemetery.
There is talk about some ruins from the ancient city of Karyanda on Salih Island opposite Güvercinlik. It is claimed that Yeni Karyanda (New One) was located on the site of the current settlement of Gölköy. However, there are no remains to prove that these were the locations of these ancient cities.
German Version
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