About Elaiussa Sebaste
On the coast at Ayaş, Elaiussa Sebaste was a lively commercial centre of Roman Cilicia, with a peninsula between harbours, a theatre, agora and well-preserved necropolis. Excavations reconnect buildings once covered by dunes with the city plan.
History
Elaiussa developed as an island-like coastal settlement in Hellenistic times. In the late first century BCE, King Archelaus of Cappadocia expanded it and added the name Sebaste in honour of Augustus. Maritime trade and oil and wine production supported Roman prosperity, when the theatre, agora and baths were built. Large basilicas followed when it became a bishopric in late antiquity. Silting harbours and changing regional conditions contributed to abandonment.
Highlights and principal structures
- Theatre
- Agora and great bath
- Harbours
- Temple
- Byzantine palace
- Basilicas
- Necropolis with monumental tombs
Historical period
Hellenistic–Roman–Byzantine