Nation

On the south side of the Northern Agora you can see the remains of the bouleuterion, which the inscription says, was to be built in the middle of the 2nd century. p.n.e. It was entered through the gate, flanked by Doric columns. The porticoes surrounding the courtyard on three sides were also supported by such columns. From the courtyard, you entered the roofed boardroom, housing approx. 1300 people.

Going north along a street called the sacred road (this is where the procession went to the Temple of Apollo in Didim), between the agora and the Ionian. hundred, we will come to the gate, through which you entered the area of ​​the lion's port. Right outside the gate, on the left side, there are remains of the so-called. port stoa. It was built in Roman times, was long on 150 m, and the Doric colonnade counted 75 columns. The hall was the commercial center of the city, there were plenty of shops adjacent to it. Going straight ahead, we will pass the ruins of a Roman bath from the 1st century. p.n.e. and we come to two lion statues, which port owes its name to. They were standing on the quay, serving as a talisman and demonstration of the city's power.

We go back to the city center. On the west side of the harbor there are remains of a once magnificent monument, placed in memory of Augustus' victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at Actium in 31 r. p.n.e. A fine relief on the frieze of the structure has survived to this day, depicting the mythical tritons (originally half-man-half-fish, the late serpent-horse-human body). Going south, approx. 200 m, we will come to the so-called. the southern agora, which is the civil and administrative center of the city. It measured approx. 200×165 m, it was surrounded on all sides by Doric halls, and two entrances, in the form of propylons, they were built into the north and west stoa. The Agora is dated to the 2nd century. p.n.e.

Even further south there is a monument from the Seljuk times – Meczet Ilyas Bey Mosque, erected in 1404 r. by order of the emir of the Mentese dynasty, llyas Beya. The mosque combines many elements from the ancient city. Its brick dome, which is the vault of the prayer hall, has a diameter 15 m. Complex (college) it consisted of madrasah and hamam. Today it is no longer used, because the village of Balat has moved further south over time.

To the west of the southern agora we come across the well-preserved ruins of Faustina's baths. They were named after the wife of Emperor Marcus Aurelius and are dated to the period of his reign, that is on 2. half. 2nd century. The bathhouse palester was surrounded by a Corinthian colonnade and decorated with many statues, of which the lion and the river god Meander are preserved on the site; the rest of the sculptures are in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum.

West of the baths, on the other side of the asphalt road, you can see the ruins of the stadium and the West Agora. The stadium is dated to the middle of the 2nd century. p.n.e. (rebuilt in the third century). Its length is approx. 190 m, and the width 30 m. It housed 15 thousand. viewers. There is not much left of the agora, or at least little has been discovered yet. Today there is an Ottoman cemetery on its territory.

After going back to the road, do not go back to the cash register left, let's just head right (this way it will be closer to the main road). We can walk along the way (if the renovation has already been completed) to a small museum, open at. 8.30- 17.30 (with an hour break at noon), introduction: 1 USD, students: 0,4 USD. We will see here a collection from the local excavations, which is not very impressive to the imagination. The most interesting are sarcophagi and ancient ceramics.