The port of Aydıncık

The ancient city of Kelenderis is located on the territory of today's district town Aydıncık Due to the fact that Kelenderis is still continuously populated, few relics of past times can be found, since they were always built over by the respective successors.

All visible ruins date from Roman or later times. Near the port are the ruins of thermal baths, a theatre or a bouleuterion, remains of fortification walls and cisterns as well as an agora.

According to the head excavator, Kelenderis belonged to the Pirindu region with the capital Kiršu, which is mentioned in a Babylonian text concerning a campaign in Rauen Cilicia. Pomponius Mela, an ancient geographer, describes in the years 43-44 AD the foundation of the city by Ionian settlers from Samos. Vases of the Eastern Greek type, which were found during excavations in Kelenderis, also speak in favour of this. The finds of the excavations are exhibited in the Anamur and Kahramanmaraş museums.

In 1992, a mosaic measuring 3.0 x 2.8 metres was uncovered during the excavation work. It dates from the 5th to 6th centuries. It shows the port of Kelenderis. Today the mosaic is covered and, like the entire excavation area, fenced in. Therefore, it is very inadequate for outsiders to take photographs. In the archaeological museum in Silifke a holistic picture is exhibited.

Roman tomb construction

In the centre of Aydincik a Roman tomb in the form of a tetrapylopn from the 2nd century has survived the times. This mausoleum was probably built towards the end of the second century AD. The identity of the man buried here is unknown.

The mausoleum consisted of three main parts. The burial room was on the ground floor. Between the columns was a middle floor, which could have carried a statue of the deceased. The roof is crowned by a pyramid and supported by four columns with stylized Corinthian capitals. The top of the pyramid was lost.