Patara Örenyeri

About Patara Örenyeri

Patara was the capital of the Lycian Union and appears as Patar in Hittite texts of the 13th century BC. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism explains that it survived for centuries because it was the only point in the Xanthos Valley open to the sea, and it was known as a port for storing and shipping Anatolian grain to Rome. It also matters in Christian history: St Nicholas was born here, and St Paul is known to have taken a ship to Rome from Patara. In the early 2nd century BC the Seleucid kingdom took control of the city. Patara remained the capital when Lycia became a Roman province in 43 AD and when it was joined with Pamphylia in 74 AD, served as a judicial seat for Roman governors and a naval base linking the eastern provinces, and was famous as a centre of the oracle of Apollo. In the Byzantine period it was an important Christian centre, and its bishop Eudemos was Lycia's only signatory at the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. Visitors enter through a well-preserved Roman triumphal gateway which, according to its inscriptions, was built around 100 AD by the regional governor. West of the arch is a necropolis with Lycian-style sarcophagi. The theatre, at the southern end of the city against Kurşunlu Hill, was rebuilt after an earthquake in 147 AD, and next to it is the bouleuterion, the assembly building of the capital. Other remains include the Vespasian Bath, a Corinthian temple, the main street, harbour buildings, the granary built by Hadrian and his wife Sabina in the 2nd century AD, and water channels that brought water from about 20 km away. The site lies near the Lycian Way, beside Patara beach, an 18 km stretch of sand dunes where loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) nest. It is open every day; when checked in November 2026 the Ministry listed hours of 08:00 to 19:00, with the ticket office closing at 18:30. MüzeKart is valid for Turkish citizens and an audio guide is available.