Olympos is the second most important harbour city after Phaselis on the southern coast of Antalya. The city takes its name from Mount Tahtalı, one of the western extensions of the Taurus Mountains 16 kilometres to the north, with a height of 2,375 metres. It is within the borders of Beydağları-Olympos National Park. Although the exact date of foundation is unknown, Olympos, mentioned in the Lycian Union coins minted in 167-168 BC, is one of the six cities with three voting rights in the Lycian Union.
It represented the east of Lycia in the Union. Most of the ruins of the city that have survived to the present day are covered with trees and bushes in the forest and belong to the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods.
The ruins of Olympos that have survived to the present day are generally located at the mouth and on both sides of a river that flows rapidly from east to west towards the sea. In the ancient period, the river bed dividing the city in two was enclosed in a canal and both sides were used as piers and connected to each other by a bridge. Today, one leg of the bridge is still standing.
On the south bank, the polygonal moulded wall of the Hellenistic Period and the section next to it indicating Roman and Byzantine repairs can be seen. The small and steep acropolis near the river mouth contains the remains of late buildings. The small theatre with Hellenistic foundation and Roman repairs on the south bank of the river is quite dilapidated, but one side of the entrance is well preserved.
Source : https://www.kulturportali.gov.tr/
