Rock Tombs in Antalya, Turkey

Turkiye (Turkey)
Myra
Antalya-Turkiye

the sender writes, 'These rock tombs are in Myra, in Antalya, which are built in Lycia time.'

postmarked in 2008 with a Turkiey Cumhuriyet! stamp


Demre (Myra) Antalya : Demre was one of the most important cities of the Lycian civilisation. Demre was a place of settlement from the 5th century BC. Rock tombs, theatres and the Church of St. Nicholas (said to be the original Santa Claus) are the most interesting sites in the town today.

Antalya is a city on the Mediterranean coast of southwestern Turkey. It is the capital city of Antalya Province.
It is unknown when the site of the future city was first inhabited. Excavations in 2008 in the Doğu Garajı district of Antalya have uncovered remains dating to the third century, B.C, suggesting that the city was founded earlier. Later Antalya became part of the Roman Republic in 133 BC when King Attalos III of Pergamum willed his kingdom to Rome at his death and the city grew and prospered in the Ancient Roman period. Christianity started to spread in the region after 2nd century. Antalya was visited by Paul of Tarsus, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 14:25-26), (wherein Antalya is referred to as Attalia). St. Paul and St. Barnabas went to Antalya and sailed from there to Antioch after preaching in Pisidia and Pamphylia.