In 2011, following a joint project with the University of
Hamburg, Uludağ University Archaeology Department announced that they had
identified the possible site of the theatre.
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- Tavşan Adasi / Rabbit Island Excavations
- Archaeological Survey 2004
- Excavations in 2005 and 2006
- Geophysical Surveys
- The “Lelegian” Wall
- The Theatre
- 52 Column Bases and the Stadium
- The Marble Quarry at Bozdağ
- 19th Century Visitors
- Gümüşlük a Neutral Haven in October 1943
- The Beginnings of the Modern Village
- Myndians in History
- Tales From The Balcony
- Links
- About Us
Saturday, 29 March 2014
Sunday, 23 March 2014
New page added The "Lelegian" Wall
Apart from the obvious misnomer, as most academics seem to agree that it isn’t a Lelegian structure, there seems to be no obvious purpose for wall which runs down the spine of the headland, Kocadağ. However we came across a paper presented at a seminar held at the Free University of Berlin in 2005 where Professor Mustafa Şahin of Uludağ University proposed that the wall may pre date Mausolus’ Myndos by several hundred years.
Apart from the obvious misnomer, as most academics seem to agree that it isn’t a Lelegian structure, there seems to be no obvious purpose for wall which runs down the spine of the headland, Kocadağ. However we came across a paper presented at a seminar held at the Free University of Berlin in 2005 where Professor Mustafa Şahin of Uludağ University proposed that the wall may pre date Mausolus’ Myndos by several hundred years.
Thursday, 20 March 2014
TALES FROM THE BALCONY
One enchanted evening
It started
out as the type of evening Gümüşlük delivers
on a regular basis. Hardly a breeze was blowing from the sea, which was bathed
in moonlight. The only sounds that could be heard were the soft lap of the
waves landing on the beach just a few steps from Hera restaurant, soft music
wafting from the jazz cafe down the beach, and the murmur of people talking
while enjoying their meals and drinks. After visiting for nearly 20 years we
try very hard not to take these evenings for granted.
Hera
regularly set tables on the beach next to the sea, which makes for a more
secluded meal and for some people it’s very romantic.
We had
just finished our meals in Hera when Güven the waiter came past carrying a menu for
a couple who had been seated at a table by the sea.
‘I am
bringing romantic news with a meal tonight’ said Güven
‘What’s the news?’ we asked.
‘It is
a secret, please do not tell’ Güven said.
‘After their meal he will ask her to marry him, I shall take him their drinks
with a box that contains a ring’
Discretely,
my wife and I, along with Dave who had joined us sat waiting for the romantic news.
The
couples meal was coming to its romantic conclusion, dishes had been taken away
and Güven passed us carrying a tray of drinks
and a small box. The box was opened and, as the question was being asked, Güven pointed overhead, we all looked up into the
night sky.
A
fireball of immense size had suddenly appeared, streaming behind it a fan like
tail. It made its way across the sky toward the horizon before disappearing as
if into the sea. Those who saw it that night had never seen anything so huge
and so clear. Some of us wondered if it was a disaster involving an aeroplane.
During that night, and the next day we
enquired if anyone else other than those at Hera had seen it, no one had. We
looked into all the local and national media, nothing. To this day we have
never been able to find out what it was we had seen that night. All we know is
that some couple had the most marvellous romantic evening, and I would guess,
that no woman since has had such a cosmic display of light appearing in the
night sky as she was being proposed to.
Gulsum Ken
Tuesday, 18 March 2014
Two pithoi burials in the Gümüşlük area excavated by staff
from the Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology
Thursday, 13 March 2014
Gümüşlük October 1943
A while ago
while running a Google search for some other village related info I found a reference
to an allied warship, HMS Hurworth, which had sank off the Island of Kalymnos in
Oct 1943.
HMS Hurworth By Royal Navy official photographer
[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
|
Following this lead I discovered that Hurworth was one of two ships that
struck mines that night. The second ship, HHelMS Adrias,
was badly damaged but managed to make its way to the neutral harbour of Gümüşlük
as did some of the survivors from HMS Hurworth.
HHMS Adrias By Royal Navy official photographer
[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
|
Wednesday, 5 March 2014
Ken has produced a short video,
available on YouTube, to accompany the Bozdağ Quarry page.
Monday, 3 March 2014
Visitors In The 1800s
It’s not unusual when reading about
Gümüşlük’s history to see a comment along the lines of: early visitors to the site reported the
presence of a stadium and theatre but neither survive today.
The man generally credited with
proposing that Gümüşlük was the possible site of Mausolus’ Myndos was Captain Francis Beaufort following his survey of the coast line in 1811/12.
In 1836 Beaufort, now a Rear Admiral
and British Hydrographer to the Navy, dispatched HMS Beacon under the command
of Lieutenant Commander Thomas Graves on a survey of the Mediterranean.
1n 1938 Lt Cdr Graves surveyed and
produced a chart of the Gümüşlük peninsular and included on it the position of
the archaeological remains visible at the time. As far as we are aware all 19th
century references to the stadium and theatre date back to naval chart produced
from Lt Cdr Graves’ survey.
A new page has been added that contains
a brief summary of Beaufort’s visit, Graves’ chart and comments by a few other
visitors in the 1800s
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