Kekova Simena History

The history lying on the world-famous Kekova Island near Demre District of Antalya and in the sea is brought to light. The land and sea history of the "Dolichiste Ancient City" at the western end of Kekova Island and the "Sunken City" to the north is being investigated. Konya Selcuk University Faculty of Literature Department of Underwater Archeology Dr. Erdogan Aslan, an underwater archaeologist from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism Kenan Beşaltı, and a team of 5, including three archeology students, are working in two ancient cities. Sunken City, one of the two settlements on Kekova Island, is 700 meters long. There are Roman and Byzantine structures in the form of terraces up to 3-4 floors in the ancient city. The second settlement area on Kekova Island is Dolichiste Ancient City, located in Tersane Bay to the west of the island. There is a tower, harbor and harbor structures from the Hellenistic Period identified in this ancient city. There are three large churches and two chapels in the ancient city. Working Group Chair Dr. Erdogan Aslan, stating that they are continuing their work in Tersane Bay, said, “We are drawing out the plans of the settlement here, the city. On the other hand, as an underwater team, we conduct underwater researches in and around the harbor of this place. Here, there is a structuring starting from the Hellenistic Period, mainly in the Christian period. "We have now identified about 150-200 residences, workshops, cisterns and urban patterns." In the region east of Kekova Island, at a depth of 13-20 meters, BC. Stating that they identified Rhodes-type amphoras from the 3rd century, Dr. Erdoğan Aslan said, “Also, M.S. We found a large number of Byzantine amphoras from the 5th-6th century. According to these amphoras, we guess that a ship departing from Rhodes and coming to Myra sank here ”.