Ancient City of Myra

Myra was one of the main cities of Lycia and lies near modern Demre, two kilometres from the sea. The name appears in the sources from the fifth century BC, while its heyday came in Roman times, when the city received the status of metropolis of the province. The rock necropolis is cut into the sheer cliff directly above the theatre: the tombs repeat the forms of wooden Lycian houses with beams, ridges and columns, and some of the facades are decorated with reliefs showing their owners and scenes of farewell. The stone used to be painted, and traces of the paint are still found today. The theatre was rebuilt after the earthquake of 141 at the expense of Opramoas, a wealthy local man; it held more than ten thousand spectators and has kept its rows of seats, vaulted galleries and many fallen blocks with masks and plant ornament. Nicholas of Myra served here as bishop, and his church stands in the centre of Demre. Excavations of recent years have uncovered, beneath the deposits of the Myros river, another and earlier theatre of Hellenistic times. A single entrance leads to both the necropolis and the theatre, but the climb up to the tombs themselves is closed, and they are viewed from below.

On the map