Patara (modern Kelemiş, Turkey)

14-37 CE, (Tiberus)

Cavea Width: 84 meters
Orchestra Width: 23 meters

Patara (modern Kelemiş, Turkey). Hellenistic theatre type built during Imperial Roman times (Tiberius (14-37 CE); NE facing Cavea width: 84m. Ima cavea: 16 or 17 rows in 8 cunei. Suma cavea: 14 rows in 16 cuni. Rests against hillside.  2 radial vaulted passageways provide cavea access from behind theatre. Orchestra width: c. 23 m; rectilinear scaenae frons with 5 doorways and 2-storey columnatio. The theatre was damaged by earthquake in 141 CE; repaired and renovated under Emperor Antoninus in 147 CE with conversion of orchestra into arena, improvements and decorations to the scene; enlargement of the cavea, and a velum (fabric awning) over the seating. Capacity 5,500/6,850; (Frank Sear)

Patara (Antiquity), Theatre

Author: Aristodimou Georgia. Translated by Kalogeropoulou Georgia and Karioris Panagiotis (30/6/2008). Encyclopaedia of the Hellenic World, Asia Minor. 6/12/2002. URL: < http://www.ehw.gr/l.aspx?id=5727 > Accessed April. 25, 2024. Reproduced with permission of the author.

Summary:

Theatre at Patara, Turkey: Theatre of the Greek type, within Patara’s territory (modern Kelemis, Gelemis) in Lycia in south Turkey. It was built in Imperial times (1st-2nd cent. AD) with a southeast orientation. It features a cavea of great dimensions and a three-storey skene with five doorways, from which the ground floor and the first floor are preserved. The cavea is buttressed by corner towers and there was a temple on its top. The construction was completed under Tiberius (14-37 AD). The theatre had suffered damage due to an earthquake but it was rebuilt in 147 AD by Quintus Velius Titianus and his daughter, who funded the reconstruction of a new skene from foundation and the 11th row of seats at the upper of the cavea. (Georgia Aristodimou)

1. Location

The theatre is the most prominent amongst the architectural remains on the city of Patara, in the Roman province of Lycia. It is built on the northeast side of a hill (Kursunlutepe) within the boundaries of the city. Facing northeast, it is located towards the centre of the ancient city and the harbour. Nowadays, it is gradually being covered with sand.1

2. Architectural design

It is a theatre of the Greek type. The cavea (auditorium), measuring 84 m. in diameter without the corner towers, has a shape larger than a semi-circle. It is constructed on a natural slope, taking advantage of its inclination. The necessity to even out the different level of the ground led to the use of auxiliary substructures for the construction of the lateral parts (retaining walls). The points where the cavea meets the retaining walls are buttressed by corner towers lower than the theatre in height. As architectural features, they appear more connected with the outer wall of the cavea than the retaining wall. The structures which form the bases for the retaining walls feature vaulted passages in radial lay out for the access of the audience. These passage-ways lead to the diazoma, in the center of the second and seventh cercis of the lower part of the cavea. Their semi-cylindrical roof steps on a podium which ends to a cornice.

The cavea is divided into two parts (maeniana) by a perimetric aisle. The lower part (ima cavea-maenianum) is divided by 9 stepped passageways into 9 sections of seats (cunei). There must have been 16 rows of seats for that part of the auditorium (three of them have been covered with sand). The upper part of the cavea (summa cavea-maenianum) is divided into 16 cunei and comprises 14 rows of seats with a broad recessed space for the feet of the spectator. At the upper end of the cavea there was a perimetric aisle, 0,71 m wide, for the movement of the audience. This passageway provided access to a temple which was built at the upper end of the cavea. The spectators entered the theatre through several points: through the parodoi in the lower part of the auditorium (ima cavea), directly from the hillside for the upper part (summa cavea) and through the two vaulted passageways which begun at the outer part of the perimetric wall of the cavea and led to the perimetric aisle which divided the upper and the lower part of the auditorium. From that point the audience could move upwards or downwards, using the steps, without disturbing the seated spectators.

The scene was of orthogonal plan2 and had three floors: the first (hyposcenium) followed the Doric style and remains in situ. The scene had a façade with five doorways, decorated with architraves and cornices. The doorways were not of equal size. The central one was bigger while the others were gradually getting smaller, in both height and width, in perspective to the central door. There were two more doorways in the side walls of the scene, one on each side. Two walls remain from the parascenium (one on every short side) which project 10,30 m. from the façade. They reach up to the retaining walls, so they define the proscenium, whose architectural features of the façade are not preserved and the estimate of its depth is impossible. In the walls of the proscenium there were two big doorways which were kept closed when there was not a performance to prevent any access. Behind the scene, a portico (porticus post scaenam) with pillars and openings (doors or windows) provided shelter for the audience in the event of bad weather or during intermissions.

3. Building techniques

Local limestone was used for the construction of the auditorium and the scene. The masonry is of the pseudoisodomum technique. The corner ashlars are joined together without mortar. Their external surface is rough. The same technique was used for the construction of the outer wall which surrounded the cavea. However, at the upper part, the masonry is less regular and there are a few signs of repairs. The lower part seems to belong to an earlier period, testified by the smaller dimensions of the corner ashlars. The same pseudoisodomum has been applied to the corner towers and the retaining walls. Only at the point which corresponds to the perimetric aisle, two series of bigger stones appear. The retaining walls follow at their upper end the inclination of the auditorium and they are cut in an L shape, so that they are perfectly joined together.3

4. Chronology

The architectural plan of the theatre is of the Hellenistic type but its construction is dated to Imperial times. The cavea was completed under Tiberius (14-37 AD). This is testified by a dedicatory inscription preserved on a scene wall, which reports Polyperchon of Demetrius as the donator, archpriest and prophet of Apollo.4 Extended repair works took place the Antonine times after the serious earthquake of 141 AD, which caused great damage in several Lycian cities. There is a monumental inscription,5 built in the northwest side of the scene, which informs us that Quintus Velius Titianus from Patara funded the construction of the entire scene, the eleventh row of seats (and perhaps the eleventh cercis) in the upper part of the cavea (suma cavea), as well as of a tent (velum) over the cavea and perhaps of other drapes. We are also informed that his daughter , Velia Procla, completed the renovation and adorned the theatre with sculptures and marble inlays. All these were dedicated to the Emperor Antoninus Pius, gods Sevasti and to the gods of the land and the city in 147 AD.

5. Preservation

Nowadays, the theatre is in a rather good condition. The lower part of the cavea, the orchestra and the proscenium are covered with sand, while the scene is almost hidden in trees.6 Until the 19th century the illustrations7 of the time testified an even better state of presrvation. No excavations have been carried out so far.

Footnotes:
1. Fahri Işiki, Patara: The history and ruins of the Capital City of Lycian League (Antalya 2000), pp. 130-134.

2. Its overall dimensions are: length 39,40 m, width 4,63 m, width of the walls 0,90 m.

3. Cf. the similarity of this particular feature with the theatre at Pinara.

4. TAM, II, 420. De Bernardi Ferrero, D., Teatri classici in Asia Minore 2 (Roma 1969), p. 131, fig. 196, App. II, pp. 208-209, no. 10. The inscription is written on the scene wall, above the door of the hyposcenium.

5. TAM, II, 420. De Bernardi Ferrero, D., Teatri classici in Asia Minore 2 (Roma 1969), p. 131, App. II, pp. 210-211, no. 12.

6. Bean, G. E., Lycian Turkey- An Archaeological Guide (London 1978), p. 87, fig. 10.

7. Dilletanti, Antiquities of Ionia, and the photographs by W. Burger taken in 1881.

Construction and Renovations

• The theatre was originally built during the Hellenistic period but was constructed in Imperial Roman times, specifically during the reign of Emperor Tiberius (14-37 CE), with Polyperchon of Demetrius as the donor, who was also archpriest and prophet of Apollo
• The theatre suffered significant damage from an earthquake in 141 CE, which affected several Lycian cities
• Following the earthquake, a major renovation was undertaken in 147 CE under Emperor Antoninus Pius.
  • Quintus Velius Titianus funded the construction of the entire scene building at the Patara theatre. The renovation project was undertaken in 147 CE under Emperor Antoninus Pius, as documented in a monumental inscription found on the northwest side of the scene building. The inscription indicates that Quintus Velius Titianus funded not only the scene building but also the eleventh row of seats in the upper cavea (seating area) and the velum (fabric awning system) that provided shade for spectators After his death, his daughter Vilia Prokla completed the renovation work that her father had started Archaeology Magazine.

Recent Excavation and Restoration Work

• 1836: Charles Texier (French archaeologist) – First formal exploration of the site
  Charles Texier explored Patara in 1836, documenting its major monuments, including the theatre (Patara Excavations).
• 1838: Charles Fellows (British archaeologist) 
  Charles Fellows visited the site in 1838 and provided additional accounts of the ruins, supplementing Texier’s earlier work (“Patara (Lycia)”).
• 1981: Prof. Dr. Fahri Işık (Akdeniz University) – First proposal to begin excavations
  Prof. Dr. Fahri Işık submitted a proposal in 1981 to begin excavations at Patara. Although the initial application was denied, efforts resumed later and led to the 1988 excavations (Selikya Travel).
• 1988–2008: Prof. Dr. Fahri Işık (Akdeniz University) – Director
  Directed the excavation work from its official beginning in 1988 until 2008 (Patara Excavations).
• .2009: Prof. Dr. Havva İşkan Işık officially became the head of the Patara excavations Hurriyetdailynews2020:
• 2020: President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan declared 2020 “The Year of Patara,” which intensified the excavation and restoration efforts at the site, including at the theater Daily Sabah
• September 2020: The restored ancient theater became open for various artistic and sporting events, according to Prof. Havva Işkan Işık Daily Sabah

Dr. Fahri Işık (1988-2008) and Prof. Dr. Havva İşkan Işık (2009-present) from the Department of Classical Archeology at Akdeniz University have led the excavation of the ancient city of Patara under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism Tskb

Bibliography / Resources:

“Ancient City of Patara Excavations.” Patara Excavations, Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism, www.patara.gov.tr/en/excavations. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

“Ancient Theater in Turkey’s Patara to Host Artistic, Sporting Events.” Daily Sabah, 28 Sept. 2020, www.dailysabah.com/arts/ancient-theater-in-turkeys-patara-to-host-artistic-sporting-events/news. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

“Archaeological Excavations in Ancient City of Patara.” Archaeology Magazine, vol. 73, no. 4, July–Aug. 2020, pp. 42–48. Archaeological Institute of America. https://archaeology.org/news/2020/06/02/200602-turkey-patara-theater/

Bean, G. E. Lycian Turkey: An Archaeological Guide. London–New York, 1978.

Benndorf, O., and G. Niemann, editors. Reisen im südwestlichen Kleinasien. Vol. 1, Wien, 1884.

Ciancio Rossetto, P., and G. Pisani Sartorio, editors. Teatri Greci e Romani: Alle Origini del Linguaggio Rappresentato. Roma, 1994.

De Bernardi Ferrero, D. Teatri Classici in Asia Minore II: Città di Pisidia, Licia e Caria. Roma, Studi di Architettura Antica, 1969.

—. Teatri Classici in Asia Minore IV: Deduzioni e Proposte. Roma, Studi di Architettura Antica, 1974.

Fahri Işık. Patara: The History and Ruins of the Capital City of the Lycian League. Antalya, 2000.

Fellows, Charles. A Journal Written During an Excursion in Asia Minor. John Murray, 1839. https://eng.travelogues.gr/collection.php?view=350

Fiechter, E. R. Die Baugeschichtliche Entwicklung des Antiken Theaters. München, 1914.

Foss, Clive. “The Cities of Pamphylia in the Byzantine Age.” Cities, Fortresses and Villages of Byzantine Asia Minor, edited by Clive Foss, Variorum Reprints Collected Studies IV, Aldershot, 1996, pp. 1–62.

“Historic Patara Theater Reopens After Restoration.” Hürriyet Daily News, 12 Oct. 2020, www.hurriyetdailynews.com/historic-patara-theater-reopens-after-restoration-158207. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

Neppi-Modona, A. Gli Edifizi Teatrali Greci e Romani: Teatri, Odei, Amfiteatri, Circhi. Firenze, 1961.

“Patara (Lycia): Historical Overview.” Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Civilizations, edited by Robert Smith, Routledge Academic Press, 2018, pp. 324–329.

“Patara Archaeological Project: History and Findings.” TSKB Cultural Heritage Studies, Turkish Industrial Development Bank, www.tskb.com.tr/en/sustainable-banking/tskb-surdurulebilirlik/cultural-heritage/patara. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

“Patara: The Capital of Lycia.” Selikya Travel, www.selikyatravel.com/destinations/patara-ancient-city. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

Sams, G. K. “Investigations at Patara in Lykia, 1974.” Archaeology, vol. 28, no. 3, July–Sept. 1975, pp. 202–205.

Sear, Frank. Roman Theatres: An Architectural Study. Oxford University Press, 2006.

Society of Dilettanti. The Antiquities of Ionia. Vol. 3, John Murray Publishers, 1840.

Texier, Charles. Description de l’Asie Mineure: Faite par Ordre du Gouvernement Français de 1833 à 1837. Didot Frères, 1839–1849.

“Turkey Declares ‘Year of Patara’.” Daily Sabah, 13 Jan. 2020, www.dailysabah.com/turkey/turkey-declares-year-of-patara/news. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.