Side Antique Theater, Turkey: description, photo, location on the map, how to get there. Antique side - open-air museum Photo attraction: Antique theater Side
On the way from Antalya to Alanya is the resort region of Side. This is a favorite holiday destination for European tourists, especially Germans. Hotels here - for every taste. The beaches are mostly sandy with a gentle and comfortable entrance to the sea. The climate is dry. The sea is very warm, by the end of summer it warms up to 28-29 degrees, which is especially attractive for families with small children.
If you are going to spend your holidays in the Side region and are fond of history and archeology, you will enjoy a walk through Ancient Side, an ancient city founded in the 7th century BC. e. and flourished in the era of the Roman period, where monuments of ancient culture have survived to this day.
For our family vacation in Turkey, definitely, it was the resort of Side. We were attracted by absolutely everything in this region. And I really wanted to walk around the ancient city, to get into the atmosphere of ancient times. And we have accomplished what we set out to do. I will say right away that we did not limit ourselves to one trip.
To get to Ancient Side, take a taxi from your hotel, or you can take a dolmush (local public transport). You won't have to travel long. From anyone resort village region of Side to the ancient city - just a few minutes drive. Therefore, such a trip is quite possible to carry out with children.
If you go by taxi, tell the driver - Antik Side. You will be stopped near the ruins near the ancient amphitheater. Dolmushi go to the final stop of Side. The fare depends on the distance. During our last trip to Side in 2010, a one-way taxi from the village of Colakli to Ancient Side cost 15 euros or $ 20. A dolmush ride per person cost 1.75 euros ($2.5 or 3 lira). It is more convenient to land at the final stop of the dolmush - you can see more without returning back from the theater. Therefore, if you are going by taxi and want to go to the final one, warn the driver.
Final stop in Side:
A few tips for tourists regarding independent travel in Side by public transport:
- For any trip outside the hotel, take your travel voucher just in case.
- In dolmushes it is better to pay with lira - it is more profitable.
- Usually drivers understand German well, and English is not bad. Know the location of hotels (in their area). You can ask if you forgot where to get off. But in Russian, most likely, they will not understand you.
So what does it represent ancient city Side? What is he?
Antique Side is a large area ancient city with destroyed or dilapidated buildings and structures, preserved columns, an ancient amphitheater and other archaeological excavations, a beautiful promenade in the "pirate" style, narrow streets, shopping malls, a cozy beach and a small port. Here is the whole Antique Side. It is impossible to come here for one or two hours, as if visiting a single sight. For history buffs, a day is not enough to enjoy a walk.
If your arrival in Side fell on the hot summer months, do not forget to take drinking water, sunscreen and protect your head from the sun. Without all this, the walk will not bring pleasure. On the territory of the ruins, there is almost no place to hide from the sun. And, of course, at noon it is better not to take such a walk.
I propose to look with the help of photographs at those historical sights of Side that have survived to this day.
City plan:
Decoding of attractions:
Side was surrounded on the land side and on the sea side by city walls. To this day, the city walls (City Walls) from the land side have been preserved in good condition:
And in this place there were the main city gates of Side (City Gate). Now there are only ruins:
Triumphal Arch (Triumphal Arch):
Fountain next to triumphal arch, in the niches of which sculptures of the emperor Vespasian and others were exhibited statesmen(Monument of Vespasian):
Archaeological Museum, the building of which used to be the Agora Bath. The photo also shows the ruins of a fountain with three pools, around which statues of Athena, Apollo and Hermes stood on pedestals (in this moment exhibited in the museum):
You can walk along the street where there used to be houses (presumably shops). These objects are called Houses:
And these are ruins. big house rich resident of Side (House):
The ruins of the temple of Dionysus (presumably) against the background of the amphitheater:
View of the Agora (Commercial Agora) - trading area, which at a certain point in time also served as a slave market (slave market):
The ruins of a Byzantine building that served, presumably, as a hospital:
View of the city square (State Agora), where official and protocol events were held:
One of the three columned streets of Side (Colonnaded Street):
Nymphaeum (The Monumental Fountain Nymphaeum) - a monumental water source with a pool in the city walls. A close copy of this monument was built in Italy by Septimius Severus.
And this attraction is one of the most important and well-preserved to us - the amphitheater (Theatre). It was built in the 2nd century and was the largest theater in Pamphylia (as the coastal region in the southern part of Asia Minor was called in ancient times). The theater seated about 18,000 spectators.
Entrance to the territory of the Theater is paid, it cost 10 liras in 2010. Only lira was accepted at the box office of the amphitheater. There is an exchange office nearby in a shopping area not far from the theater, where you can easily exchange even rubles for lira.
After visiting the ancient monuments, you can head towards the embankment and take a walk along the quiet streets of Side. There are low-rise brick and wooden residential buildings, some houses have hotels, some have cozy cafes.
Of course, after a walk under the sun, we ordered freshly squeezed orange juice in one of the cafes with great pleasure. The Turkish family - the owners of the cafe - were very friendly with us. The cafe didn't even look like a cafe. Rather, we seemed to be visiting a Turkish family, where we were treated to juice. It was such a feeling.
Not far away - shopping pavilions, which are located around the place where one of the columned streets of Side used to pass:
And now we are on the coast street. There are many cafes, restaurants, souvenir shops. And what is especially nice, it is green here, there are palm trees and other trees, you can relax in the shade. Here is the spirit of pirate times. I would call this street "pirate". Stylized cafes and lively little monkeys perfectly convey the atmosphere of the past, when back in the 1st century BC. e. pirates from Cilicia captured the city and maintained their power over the city until the Roman general Pompey dealt with them.
On the "pirate" street were the most affordable prices in cafes and restaurants. A glass of freshly squeezed orange or pomegranate juice here cost only $1. In the malls, prices were 1.5-2 times higher.
The promenade overlooks the sea and Side beach.
To relax on the small sandy beach of the ancient city of Side, just go down the stairs to the sea, right from the coastal street. The entrance to the sea on this beach is sandy, there are many stones on the shore and in the water, which gives the beach a special flavor. Swimming in the sea, admiring beautiful views ancient city. Indeed, s Here you feel the atmosphere of a European seaside city.
Wonderful seaside street leads to next monument ancient period- Temple of Apollo (2nd century AD). Five columns (the only thing that survived from the entire temple) of ivory color stand right on the shore just a few meters from the blue mediterranean sea. This is such a beautiful essay! You can take wonderful pictures. This attraction is under the protection of the Turkish government and is one of the main attractions of the resort of Side.
Nearby are the ruins of the Temple of Athena:
Here you can sit on the rocky shore and admire the ships passing by. It is especially nice to indulge in romance in the evening and watch the sunset.
Nearby is the port - Big harbor. Here you can rent a small yacht for 1-4 families. In 2010, an hour trip on a yacht without meals cost about $80 (or 50 euros). With meals for 3 families - $ 150. They also offered a day trip with a stop at the Manavgat River.
We remember Side with joy and slight sadness - it was very good here and sometimes you want to again come back to these places! And although there are still many interesting things in the world where you would like to go, why not return to where you really liked it!
The Roman theater, approximately 100 meters in size, is the oldest ancient theater in Side, dating back to the 2nd century AD. The theater was built on the site of an even more ancient Hellenistic theater.
The entrance to the theater was carried out through the landings through the covered galleries. The theater was built to accommodate up to 18 thousand spectators on its territory. Such indicators make it possible to boldly assert that the theater was the largest in the entire province of Pamphylia. The rows of the theater are formed in the form of a semicircle with a diameter of 120 meters, and a horizontal passage divides them into even parts. The stage was previously decorated with friezes about Dionysus.
Next to the theater and baths organized Antique Museum. Today, the remains of Medusa heads and the masks of Tragedy and Comedy, which were used in ancient times for theatrical performances, have been preserved from the props of the theater.
Basilica at the Roman theater
The Basilica of the Roman Theater is located west of the columned Harbor Street. This is one of the best preserved monuments of Byzantine architecture in the architectural and historical complex in Side.
The basilica was built in the Byzantine canon and dates back to the fifth century AD. The building is divided into three sections, which is typical for buildings of the basilica type. The plan of the basilica, as in many similar buildings of the same period, is a cross inscribed in a square. Unfortunately, the roof of the building has collapsed, so it is quite difficult to get an impression of the full appearance of the building.
You can get to the architectural and historical complex in Side by taking a regular bus to the Side Otogar stop.
Entrance to the complex is free.
In Side, the remains of the Roman theater, which could accommodate almost 20 thousand spectators, have been preserved. It was built in the middle of the 2nd century AD. The building has elements that distinguish it from other theaters built earlier. It was built completely different from that of the Hellenes - on the side of a mountain, but in the Roman style - on a flat platform, the seats are held on vaulted arches, the arches themselves are on the foundation. Spectators entered it through the covered galleries and climbed to their own row on the stairs. The stage and vaults were decorated with statues and tiles. All that remains today are the masks of Tragedy and Comedy, the chipped heads of Medusa scattered around the stage.
In Roman times, gladiator fights with predatory animals were held here, as well as staging naval battles for which the stage was filled with water. For security purposes, a 1.5 m high wall was built around the stage. In the 5th-6th centuries, the theater became a Christian church.
Near the theater in a semicircular building is an antique public toilet for 24 places with sewerage.
Have you ever noticed that real architectural monuments only become more attractive with time? Even a house built in the century before last, and which has not seen repairs for decades, is sometimes many times more beautiful than a newly minted monster, the repair of which was forgotten to be done this year. Time, like nothing else, can sharply expose both beauty and ugliness. But the architectural masterpieces of not even past centuries, but of past millennia, are especially attractive, since they contain not only the beauty of external and internal forms, but also the strength, spirit, memory of past centuries. Few things in the world can compare with the energy of such places. And today I want to talk about one of those places. This is an ancient Roman theater in Turkish Side, a theater that was once the largest in Pamphylia.
I already told you where we first met architectural masterpieces Side of ancient times. Now we had a good night's sleep, had a nice Turkish breakfast, talked to the owner and his many cats, and then set off to conquer the city. Well, since we lived almost next to the ancient Roman theater, it became the first object of our daily study.
The heyday of the city of Side fell on the Roman era, it was under the Romans that it became an important trading and political point of Pamphylia. This southern region of Asia Minor became part of the empire after 133 BC. Construction began to flourish. At that time, the Romans had advanced technologies, they limited the use of hewn stone and widely used concrete, which made it possible to build solid structures for more than a short time and at lower labor costs. In which, however, the Romans did not lack, the slave trade flourished. And the Roman legionnaires were not only soldiers, but also builders.
In 175 AD, during the reign of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, who was also, concurrently, also a philosopher, a representative of late Stoicism, a huge theater was erected in Side, which could accommodate up to 18 thousand spectators. A colossal number, even by today's standards. This is the population of a small town. Even the most big theaters modern times are limited to 6-7 thousand spectator seats, and here it is almost three times more (a head start ancient theater only modern stadiums can give). Moreover, the structure of the theater allows all this crowd to be accommodated quite comfortably, and the acoustics even now allow you to hear everything that is said below from the very top row.
As for the theater in Side, it was built on a Hellenistic basis, as they say in various sources, so perhaps there used to be a small hill here. Nonetheless, most of already a Roman building is supported by arched covered galleries. The structure is also typical of theaters of that time. The space of the audience rows is a theatron, divided into two equal parts by a diazom (a semicircular passage between the upper and lower rows). There are 29 rows at the top and the same number at the bottom. It is clear that the most eminent and wealthy Roman citizens sat closer to the orchestra, that very semicircular space in the center where all the action took place. Now we would call it a stage.
But the ancient skena (where the modern word scene came from) had a slightly different function. Skene was a building that, like a wall, was opposite the audience rows, and, as it were, cut off part of the orchestra, which is why it formed an incomplete circle. Various decorations were attached to the skene, if they played a tragedy, then it was usually some kind of temple or palace, if a comedy, then a simple dwelling, if a satire, then views of nature, caves, trees. Here, in the skene, the artists changed their clothes and waited for their performance.
Already at a later time, part of the action moved from the orchestra to the proskenion, a small protruding part of the skene with a flat roof. Proskenion towered somewhat above the orchestra. But as for the Roman theater in Side, at that time gladiator fights were much more popular than the tragedies and comedies of Greek authors.
This was the era of the emperor Commodus, who came after Marcus Aurelius Antoninus in 177 AD. The emperor simply adored gladiator fights, at that time fights were held not only among male gladiators, but also among female gladiators, dwarf gladiators. Moreover, Commodus himself fought in the arena, where he spent 735 fights. And the province did not lag behind Rome, cruel spectacles were also constantly arranged here, these were ordinary battles, and battles with large predators, and various marine performances. The orchestra had the ability to fill with water and turn into a kind of pool.
It was a cruel time when gladiators died in the arena, when slaves were thrown, for the whim of the crowd, to be eaten by lions ... And now, when you stand on the upper steps of the ancient Roman theater, the pictures of the past for a moment open before you, and now you already see the filled rows of spectators , the roar of the crowd, the rattle of swords resounding from below, rushing at their ruthless opponents of the lions, in a crazy frenzy ... But another moment and again emptiness, the hot midday sun of Turkey and ancient stones, the memory of which we are simply not allowed to realize ...
previous parts.
Side theater location on the map:
The easiest way to get there is on foot if you live in Side itself. And it's even more interesting, because. meet literally at every turn unusual monuments and ancient ruins.
But if your hotel is located far from the theater, then you can take any minibus that goes to, and from there you can walk for 5 minutes. Well, or the easiest and most expensive way is by taxi.
3. Photo walk through the ruins of the ancient theater
And now let's finally see what the ancient theater looks like.
This is how the theater looks from afar from the side of the road - you can’t approach the theater here, it is surrounded by a fence:
I can’t understand this in any way, but for some reason in Turkey it is customary to use ancient ruins for modern purposes - for example, to open a shop in an ancient theater or to have a cafe:
Store shelves right in the ancient ruins:
It all looks a little strange and ridiculous:
But let's leave the ethical side of the issue, let's go to see the theater! At the entrance you need to buy a ticket and go through the turnstile:
All tickets in Turkey are issued in a standard way - only the price and the name of the object change:
Entrance to the theater:
Metal supports are installed everywhere - apparently, there is a risk of collapse:
Plan-scheme of the ancient theater:
We go out to the main platform - here it is the theater in all its glory:
View of the stage - much has been destroyed, but some columns and interesting bas-reliefs have survived:
View from the other side - there is no way to get to the top rows, it's too high and there are no stairs:
But you can go down - however, the stairs are quite steep and collapsed in places, so be careful:
Amphitheater stairs:
Destroyed part of stairs and danger warning:
Look at the right side of the theater - you can see how badly the stairs are destroyed, the steps seem to have flown out:
On the left - the preserved part, on the right - more destroyed:
View of the stage - once there was a solid wall with columns:
Surviving bas-reliefs of comedy and tragedy masks:
Some patterns are quite elegant:
The most interesting pieces are made of white marble, scattered in random order, it’s a pity now it’s hard to understand how it all looked in reality:
Fine Work:
It seems that local archaeologists simply collected different pieces around the area and made them in random order, but earlier, maybe everything looked completely different, the details of white marble stand out too much:
Strange, but for some reason it is forbidden to use a tripod on the territory of the amphitheater. Moreover, there are no such rules anywhere, but as soon as we got a tripod, the guard asked him to remove it. Therefore, only such shots were made:
This is how the audience of the theater used to sit - you can close your eyes and imagine yourself for a second in their place - the theater is filled with the most different sounds, shouts, the crowd around and all the seats are filled, and on the stage brave gladiators fight with saber-toothed tigers ... You open your eyes, and around again silence and silence:
4. Conclusions, impressions and videos
Despite the rather high cost of visiting, the amphitheater is a must-see! We have already visited several other ancient theaters in other cities of Turkey, but this one is by far the most impressive and well-preserved.
For a visit the theater will leave no more than 30-40 minutes, you won’t be able to climb the ruins themselves, you can only go down to the stage and walk along it. The fences have already been installed. But from the highest point, cool views of other sights of Side open up and you can even see a piece of the sea. If you choose where to go - to a theater or a museum, then it is definitely better to go to the theater. There are few people here, so you can take great pictures and sit in silence, enjoying the atmosphere of antiquity.
And finally, a short video about the Side amphitheater:
By the way, if you are just going to Side, but have not yet chosen a hotel, then I advise you to look at the hotellook search engine website (there you can find the best deals from 40 booking systems) or choose one of these hotels with a good rating:
