Uzuncaburç (Diocaesarea-Olba), Travel Guide in Photos

Uzuncaburç - Diocaesarea: Tenple of Zeus Olbius

The remote village of Uzuncaburç (Tall-ish Tower, High Tower) is located high in the Taurus Mountains at about 32 km from Silifke. Once it was the ancient temple-city of Olbia also called Olba and was a centre of worship to Zeus Olbius. This site, originally the Zeus Cult Centre, was separated by the Romans from the Hellenistic city of Olba and was given a city-state status with a new name Diocaesarea in 72 AD. The Zeus temple , high tower, and mausoleum date from the Hellenistic Olba kingdom while the city gate, colonnaded street, fountain, and temple of Tyche are from the Roman period. The temple of Zeus Olbios dates from about 300 BC and is an example of Corinthian architecture. . It was converted into a church by the Byzantines.Another sanctuary is the temple of Tyche, the godess of chance, which dates fromthe second half of the first century AD Only five marble columns joined by a architrave remain of it. Th three-arched city gate dates from the 5^th century AD. There are no remarkable remains from the Byzantine churches. The 22 meter Hellenistic High Towerfrom which Uzuncaburçderived its name was once part of the city wall. It is believed that it also played a role in an ancient signalling network using reflecting sunlight on polished shields to relay messages.The necropolis, just outside the modern village, was used in Greek, Roman and Byzantine periods..