Milas

In Milas (ancient Mylas) we will take a break from the commercial coast and cities crowded with tourists. It's typical, surrounded by chains of mountains, Turkish agricultural town, with approx. 30 thousand. residents, it has a peculiar charm, which owes to the great Tuesday market, which is taking place here (although even on a normal day, the marketplace is swarming with traders), introducing a slightly eastern climate to the city. Besides, Milas is an old town, where an episode in Turkish history took place.

Mylasa was the first capital of the historical land of Caria (southwestern part of Asia Minor), from approx. 4th c. p.n.e. Previously, the rulers of Caria ruled from Becin Kale Hill, a little further to the south. The seat of the court was transferred to Milas by a certain Hecatomnos, but it did not enjoy this status for long, because the eldest son of Hecatomnos, Mausolus, in turn, founded a new capital at Halicarnassus (Bodrum today). Even so, Mylasa continued to grow, the city was an important trading center in both Hellenistic times, and Roman. W 40 r. p.n.e. suffered from the siege of the rebellious Roman Parthian troops led by Labienus. Having captured Mylase Labienus, he burned it to the ground. The city was quickly rebuilt under Augustus, who, according to the inscription, financed this project, for which the Mylesians built a temple in his honor. In Byzantine times, Mylasa was the seat of an archbishopric in another ancient city – Aphrodisias. Conquered at the beginning of the 14th century. by the Turkmen Mentese Dynasty, Mylasa became the capital of one of their provinces. W 1425 r. Milas Province became part of the Ottoman Empire.

Places, which are worth seeing

There is not much to see in Milas, but because the sights are scattered all over the city, it may take us more than half a day to visit them all.

The rubber case (roman tomb) it is undoubtedly the most important ancient monument, which remained in Milas. We'll get to him, going west from the Gumuskesen Cad. i Mantese Cad. The distance from the intersection to the tomb is about one kilometer. The Turkish name of the monument means more or less "silver box", and it was given because of the shape of a tomb-mausoleum that actually resembled a chest. In turn, the adjective "silver" came from here, that it was built of white marble, which intensely reflects the sun's rays, the tomb was once blind (today marble is gray) passers-by. The building is dated to the 1st century. p.n.e. – 2nd century. n.e. The storied structure consists of a burial chamber and people standing on it 12 Corinthian columns (corner ones are in the shape of pillars) supporting the pyramidal roof of the building. It is accepted, that in its basic shape it resembles the famous mausoleum of Halicarnassus, of which little remains today. Of course, it was supposed to be a replica on a much smaller scale.

Moving back to the city center, we go straight all the time Gumuskesen Cad., which after the intersection with Mentese Cad. becomes Kadiaga Cad. At its end is an intersection with Cumhuriyet Cad. We go a bit to the left and immediately take the first right. This narrow street will lead us (on the way we will pass the Eski Hamam bathhouse) do Grand Mosque (Great Mosque). The building comes from 1378 r., and its structure was modeled on the Byzantine churches. The mosque is divided into three aisles, of which the middle one is the main prayer room vaulted with a large dome. An unplastered and unpainted pillar draws attention (there are eight of them in total), which probably comes from some ancient building. Many ancient elements can be seen in the walls outside. We will find capitals here, portals, cornices with Greek inscriptions, etc..

The muezzin entered the small minaret through straight lines (not winding) stairs, which is a bit unusual, when you consider the standards of Islamic architecture. The walls of the mosque are supported by elegant buttresses. Passing under one of them (south), we come to the street, where the Archaeological Museum stands on the other side, open every day (except Saturdays and Sundays) in hours. 8.00 – 12.00, 13.00 – 17.00, introduction: 0,7 USD, students: 0,4 USD. In front of the museum, in a small garden, Roman sarcophagi are on display, parts of ancient portals, as well as tombstones from Seljuk times. The museum's collections mainly contain exhibits related to Mylasa, but also with nearby Euromos (tooth. lower) and Labranda. These include. interesting statues, reliefs and everyday objects.