Letoon

Letoon is thought to be the cultural center of the Lycian city-states. Because at that time, national festivals were held here. The name Letoon comes from legends. Zeus, the king of the gods, falls in love with Leto, and from their union, Leto becomes pregnant with twins. Fearing Zeus’ jealous wife, Leto runs away and comes to Delos. Leto, who gave birth to her children Apollo and Artemis, flees to Lycia, to the Anatolian shores in order to get away from Hera. The wolves he meets on the way guide him to the Xanthos River. In gratitude, Leto dedicates the river to Apollo and gives the name “Lycia”, derived from the word “lykos”, meaning wolf in Greek, until then known as “Termilles”. To the north of Letoon, there is a Greek planned theater belonging to the Hellenistic period. The doors to the east and west of the theater, whose stage is not standing, are decorated with Doric friezes. The theater largely reminds me of the Patara theater.
During the excavations, inscriptions that can shed light on the history of Lycia were found among the temple ruins. The most important of these is the inscription describing Alexander the Great’s visit to Letoon. M.S. in the city There are no traces of remains from the 8th century. It is estimated that the city was abandoned due to the beginning of Arab raids and the brutal attitude of Christianity towards pagan structures.