The 1998 Pisidia Survey Project. a Preliminary Report of Work at “Melli”
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BaBesch 74 (1999) The 1998 Pisidia Survey Project. A Preliminary Report of Work at “Melli”. L. Vandeput, V. Köse and S. Aydal INTRODUCTION transport of commodities and formed an important factor in the economic prosperity of the cities. After a one year gap, a team from the University of During the final years of the survey, Mitchell con- Leuven under direction of L. Vandeput continued centrated on the careful recording of the remains of the Pisidia Survey Project, initiated by S. Mitchell some smaller cities in the south of Pisidia, includ- of Swansea University in the early eighties. ing Ariassos, Panemoteichos, Kodrula and Sia. Of Mitchell’s was the first larger-scale scientific pro- these, Ariassos, Sia and Panemoteichos (Fig. 1) are ject to concentrate on this mountainous region in situated on the southernmost fringes of the Taurus southern Asia Minor since the pioneering activities mountain range, south of which the ground drops of the Polish count Lanckoronski1 a hundred years steeply to the much lower level of the Pamphylian earlier. Indeed, the area received little attention from plains10. A “missing link” in this range of small 20th century scientists and was usually considered to cities in southern Pisidia is “Melli”, situated slightly be the homeland of warlike barbarians2. Mitchell’s more to the northeast (Fig. 1) and it is here that the work vastly improved our knowledge of the area new Pisidia Survey picks up. Our small team con- through a detailed recording of the visible ruins of sisted of Sabri Aydal (Antalya Museum), P. Cosyns several cities. By thoroughly examining both larger (K.U.Leuven), T. Debruyne (K.U.Leuven), V. Köse cities3 and smaller sites4 in southern Pisidia, the first (K.U.Leuven, University of Cologne), Th. Robinson outline of the pattern and history of urban settlement (Oxford University), L. Schouten (Leiden Univer- could be reconstructed. Large-scale excavations at sity) and Dr. L. Vandeput (K.U.Leuven)11. Ünal Sagalassos and an interdisciplinary survey of this Çınar of Antalya Museum was our representative city’s territory helped from the early nineties from the Turkish government and provided valuable onwards to place the results of the Pisidia Survey assistance at many occasions, for which we are Project in a proper archaeological and historical grateful. framework5. It has become clear that, while the Pisidians may well have earned their warlike reputation, they were by no means barbarians. Hellenisation of the region 1 Lanckoronski, 1892. appears to have been much more intensive than 2 Mitchell 1991a, 122. It should be noted, however, that some prior assumptions allowed, and from the Hellenistic specific topics were investigated since the 1950s cf. Mitchell 1998, 238-240. period onwards, Pisidia was a region of cities and 3 The survey started at Pisidian Antioch, the main Roman city states, a situation which was maintained till at colony in the region. For the final report, see Mitchell and least the 6th century AD6. The monumentalisation of Waelkens 1998. After this, the survey concentrated on the public centres started from the 3rd century BC remains at Sagalassos and Cremna, of which the final report is also available cf. Mitchell 1995. For Sagalassos, see Waelkens onwards and by the 1st century BC, many centres 1993, 37-81, with references to earlier work. and certainly the larger cities could provide their 4 Mitchell 1991b (Ariassos); Mitchell 1994 (Panemoteichos, inhabitants with the necessary infrastructure for reli- Kaynar Kale); Mitchell 1995 and 1996 (Sia, Panemoteichos, gious, political and social needs7. The cities in Kaynar Kale); Aydal et al. 1997 (Panemoteichos); Aydal et al. 1998 (Sia, Kaynar Kale). Pisidia knew their greatest prosperity during 5 For the preliminary reports of the excavations and survey of Imperial times, however, as is clearly reflected by Sagalassos, see Sagalassos I to V (Acta Archaeologica the increasing development of the monumental cen- Lovaniensia Monographiae 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10). tres of the larger cities, which were adorned with 6 The Pisidia survey mainly focussed on urban development but detailed survey of the territory of Sagalassos also yielded infor- additional public facilities. An important condition mation on smaller villages and individual country houses, see for classification as a “city” according to Roman Mitchell 1998, 238, 245-248; Waelkens et al. 1997a, 11-102. Imperial standards was thus fulfilled by all larger 7 Mitchell 1998, 243; Waelkens et al. 1997b. centres in Pisidia8. Besides the urban centres, we are 8 Mitchell 1993, 80; Bauer 1996, XV. 9 Mitchell 1998, 239-242. also much better informed about an elaborate and 10 Compare with Mitchell 1993, map 5. dense road system, which linked the Pisidian cen- 11 Th. Robinson and L. Schouten accomplished the study of the tres with the rest of Asia Minor9. This allowed the domestic architecture at Sia to the south. 133 Fig. 1. Map of Pisidia (after Mitchell 1993, map 5). 134 The city of “Melli” (Fig. 1) is located c. 1 km from The fortifications still encircle the entire city despite the present village, Kocaaliler about 26 km south of having collapsed especially on the east side. To the the town of Bucak in the province of Burdur. In east, south and west, the city walls follow the con- antiquity, Cremna and Sia were the neighbouring tour of the edge of the plateau whereas on the north cities to the north and south respectively. The side the wall crosses the plateau. The remains of ancient name of the site is not known but Bérard well-constructed towers still flank the main city gate suggested “Milyas”12, mainly because of the simi- and traces of at least one more tower were identi- larity with “Melli”, the previous name of fied in the north wall, the side from which the city Kocaaliler. Bean13 expressed doubts on this identi- was most easily accessible. The masonry of the for- fication but recent studies on the epigraphical mate- tification wall shows some variation. Most of the rial by Horsley and Mitchell14 failed to clarify its southwest range is composed of large and well- ancient name and, in spite of some new finds dur- assembled blocks, sometimes placed in irregular ing the first survey campaign, it remains unknown. courses16 with smaller slabs often inserted for lev- The ancient site occupies a high, rocky outcrop in elling. Other wall stretches are built up of smaller, the vicinity of a small plain with arable land. irregular stones (Fig. 4), which occasionally seem Immediately behind the site, the land rises steeply to have been kept together with mortar. The first and the flat area gives way to high peaks in all direc- type of masonry is reminiscent of other Hellenistic tions. The ruins are concentrated around the peak of fortification walls17. It bears close resemblance to the outcrop (Fig. 2), on two small plateaus of which the well-preserved city and acropolis walls of the higher one slightly tilts towards the east. The rel- nearby Sia and with fortifications of several other, atively level plateau ends abruptly in steep slopes to smaller hilltop sites in Pisidia18. The fortifications the east and west, allowing no habitation at these of these sites are dated to the 2nd and 1st century sides. To the south, the plateau is bordered by a BC19. Apart from these smaller fortified cities, traces small peak with equally steep slopes. To the north of similar walls were also found in several of the and northwest, however, the land slopes gently and larger cities in Pisidia. Those at Cremna20, which it is from this side that the ancient road curves up were extensively rebuilt before the siege of the city to the site, then and now. Before reaching the actual in AD 278, are in a much better state of preserva- city, the road passes an extensive necropolis and tion and at least some of the visible remains date to ends at the city’s fortifications. the Hellenistic period. Some of this masonry has Because of its location on a stony outcrop, only lit- been linked to the extensive building programme of tle erosion material has gathered amongst the ruins King Amyntas (39-25 BC), but it cannot be so that these remain well visible despite having col- excluded that some wall stretches are older. Other lapsed. Nowadays, the site is heavily overgrown stretches of the walls at “Melli” are built up of with dense shrubbery. We envisage a total of three smaller, irregular stones, similar to the walls at seasons to plan all the remains at “Melli”. During Ariassos which have also been dated to the the first campaign, work concentrated on the estab- Hellenistic period21 and to particular stretches of the lishment of a topographical map of the site and state fortifications at Cremna and Sagalassos22. plans of two major monumental complexes, a tem- We may assume that construction of the fortifica- ple and the agora. Research on these and other tions started at the time of the foundation of the city remains will continue next year. 12 Bérard 1892, 436-438. 13 Bean 1960, 79. THE TOPOGRAPHICAL MAP AND THE FORTIFICATIONS 14 Horsley and Mitchell 1999, nr. 148-165 (in press). 15 For Sagalassos and several smaller Hellenistic cities on its Our main aim was to produce a 1:1000 topograph- territory, (e.g. Taç kapı and Sandalion), see Waelkens et al. 1997a, 21-34, Figs 7-21; Loots et al. 1999 (in press). The same ical map of the site (Fig. 2). We succeeded in map- goes for Cremna, Kodrula and the small cities along the south- ping all remains within the fortifications, corre- ern border of the Taurus mountain range (e.g.