Olympus and the Chimarea

Though a very ancient city, the early history of Olympus is shrouded in mystery. We know it was an important Lycian city by the 2nd century B.C., and that the Olympians worshipped Hephaestos (Vulcan), the god of fire. No doubt this veneration sprang from reverence for the mysterious Chimarea, an eternal flame which still springs from the earth not far from the city. The town declined in the 1st century B.C. until the arrival of the Romans in the 2nd century A.D.. In the 3rd century pirate attacks brought impoverishment. In the Middle Ages, Venetians, Genoese and Rhodians built fortresses along the coast, but, by the 15th century Olympus had been abandoned.

Today the site is fascinating, not just for its ruins that are fragmentary and widely scattered amidst the thick greenery of wild grapevines, flowering oleander, bay trees, wild figs and pines, but for its site, just inland from a beautiful beach along the course of a stream which runs through a rocky gorge.

The Chimarea take its name from the myth of Bellerophon. The Lycian King, Lobates, sent Bellerophon to kill the fire-breathing monster, part lion, goat and serpent. With the aid of the winged horse Pegasus, he succeeded, and returned, after completing other tasks set by Lobates, to Xanthus where he married the king's daughter and became heir of the Lycian throne. Carried away by his success, Bellerophon tried to ride Pegasus up to Mount Olympus; for his presumption, he earned a great thunderbolt from Zeus.

The coast between KUSADASI and BODRUM: St. JOHN'S HERITAGE
The coast between BODRUM and MARMARIS: the “TURQUOISE COAST”
The coast between MARMARIS and FETHIYE: the ROUTE OF ST. PAUL
The coast between FETHIYE and KAS: the LYCIAN COAST
The coast between KAS and ANTALYA: the “COAST OF LIGHT”