Termessos – big stones

Saturday, 14 June 2014

Antalya, the Turkish coastal resort town, has three nearby archaeological sites – Aspendos, Perge and Termessos. After the impressive restoration work I’d seen at Sagalassos, Termessos was a real contrast. This was a ruin in a truly ruined state.

As we drove up to the site from Antalya the weather became steadily worse as we climbed into the clouds. Everything is massive, huge stones, colossal walls, towering entrance gates, it’s incredibly impressive, even though we see everything through a misty haze. The theatre in particular was near invisible, you couldn’t see the stage from the upper tiers or from one side to the other. Let alone Antalya down on the coast which is said to be visible on a clear day.

◄ The intricately cut stone blockwork reminded me of Inca sites in Peru