Xanthus

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or Xanthos

Ancient city of Lycia, Anatolia.

Situated near the mouth of the Xanthus (modern Esen Cayi) River in present-day southwestern Turkey, its ruins include a theatre, temples, and tombs. A number of pieces were taken for the British Museum. The ancient city was twice besieged and destroyed: in 540 BC by the Persians of the Achaemenian dynasty and in 42 BC by the Romans. The ruins were designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1988.

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frieze: tomb frieze in the acropolis of Xanthus

More on "Xanthus" from the 32 Volume Encyclopædia Britannica:

Xanthus - principal city of ancient Lycia. It is situated on a cliff above the mouth of the Koca (Xanthus) River in what is now western Turkey. The early history of Xanthus is unclear: although it is mentioned in early Lycian inscriptions, no Bronze Age remains have been found within the city. According to the Iliad, the Lycians, led by the hero Sarpedon, were the most prominent allies of Troy in the ...

Fellows, Sir Charles - English archaeologist who discovered ruins of the cities of Lycia-in antiquity a region of present-day southwestern Turkey-and transported a large number of marble sculptures to England.

Lycian alphabet - writing system of the Lycian people of southwest Asia Minor, dating from the 5th-4th centuries BC. The Lycian alphabet is clearly related to the Greek, but the exact nature of the relationship is uncertain. Several letters appear to be related to symbols of the Cretan and Cyprian writing systems. The script has 29 letters (6 vowels), with several sounds not represented in Greek. The most ...

Fethiye - town, southwestern Turkey. It lies along a sheltered bay in the eastern part of the Gulf of Fethiye on the Mediterranean Sea that is backed by the western Taurus ranges. Fethiye's enlarged port is an outlet for the minerals and timber of the region. The hinterland is a major centre of chromium mining. Fethiye stands on the site of the ancient Lycian city of Telmessus, whose remains include ...

Harpy - in Greco-Roman classical mythology, a fabulous creature, probably a wind spirit. The presence of harpies as tomb figures, however, makes it possible that they were also conceived of as ghosts. In Homer's Odyssey they were winds that carried people away. Elsewhere, they were sometimes connected with the powers of the underworld. Homer mentions one Harpy called Podarge (Swiftfoot). Hesiod mentions ...

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