1. After the part of the coast opposite[188] to Rhodes, the boundary of
which is Dædala, in sailing thence towards the east, we come to Lycia,
which extends to Pamphylia; next is Pamphylia, extending as far as
Cilicia Tracheia, which reaches as far as the Cilicians, situated about
the Bay of Issus. These are parts of the peninsula, the isthmus of which
we said was the road from Issus as far as Amisus,[189] or, according to
some authors, to Sinope.
The country beyond the Taurus consists of the narrow line of sea-coast
extending from Lycia to the places about Soli, the present Pompeiopolis.
Then the sea-coast near the Bay of Issus, beginning from Soli and
Tarsus, spreads out into plains.
The description of this coast will complete the account of the whole
peninsula. We shall then pass to the rest of Asia without the Taurus,
and lastly we shall describe Africa.
2. After Dædala of the Rhodians there is a mountain of Lycia, of the
same name, Dædala, and here the whole Lycian coast begins, and extends
1720 stadia. This maritime tract is rugged, and difficult to be
approached, but has very good harbours, and is inhabited by a people who
are not inclined to acts of violence. The country is similar in nature
to that of Pamphylia and Cilicia Tracheia. But the former used the
places of shelter for vessels for piratical purposes themselves, or
afforded to pirates a market for their plunder and stations for their
vessels.
At Side,[190] a city of Pamphylia, the Cilicians had places for building
ships. They sold their prisoners, whom they admitted were freemen, by
notice through the public crier.
But the Lycians continued to live as good citizens, and with so much
restraint upon themselves, that although the Pamphylians had succeeded
in obtaining the sovereignty of the sea as far as Italy, yet they were
never influenced by the desire of base gain, and persevered in
administering the affairs of the state according to the laws of the
Lycian body.
3. There are three and twenty cities in this body, which have votes.
They assemble from each city at a general congress, and select what city
they please for their place of meeting. Each of the largest cities
commands three votes, those of intermediate importance two, and the rest
one vote. They contribute in the same proportion to taxes and other
public charges. The six largest cities, according to Artemidorus, are
Xanthus,[191] Patara,[192] Pinara,[193] Olympus, Myra, Tlos,[194] which
is situated at the pass of the mountain leading to Cibyra.
At the congress a lyciarch is first elected, then the other officers of
the body. Public tribunals are also appointed for [CAS. 665] the
administration of justice. Formerly they deliberated about war and
peace, and alliances, but this is not now permitted, as these things are
under the control of the Romans. It is only done by their consent, or
when it may be for their own advantage.
Thus judges and magistrates are elected according to the proportion of
the number of votes belonging to each city.[195] It was the fortune of
these people, who lived under such an excellent government, to retain
their liberty under the Romans, and the laws and institutions of their
ancestors; to see also the entire extirpation of the pirates, first by
Servilius Isauricus, at the time that he demolished Isaura, and
afterwards by Pompey the Great, who burnt more than 1300 vessels, and
destroyed their haunts and retreats. Of the survivors in these contests
he transferred some to Soli, which he called Pompeiopolis; others to
Dyme, which had a deficient population, and is now occupied by a Roman
colony.
The poets, however, particularly the tragic poets, confound nations
together; for instance, Trojans, Mysians, and Lydians, whom they call
Phrygians, and give the name of Lycians to Carians.
4. After Dædala is a Lycian mountain, and near it is Telmessus,[196] a
small town of the Lycians, and Telmessis, a promontory with a harbour.
Eumenes took this place from the Romans in the war with Antiochus, but
after the dissolution of the kingdom of Pergamus, the Lycians recovered
it again.
5. Then follows Anticragus, a precipitous mountain, on which is
Carmylessus,[197] a fortress situated in a gorge; next is Mount Cragus,
with eight peaks,[198] and a city of the same name. The neighbourhood of
these mountains is the scene of the fable of the Chimæra; and at no
great distance is Chimæra, a sort of ravine, extending upwards from the
shore. Below the Cragus in the interior is Pinara, which is one of the
largest cities of Lycia. Here Pandarus is worshipped, of the same name
perhaps as the Trojan Pandarus;
“thus the pale nightingale, daughter of Pandarus;”[199]
for this Pandarus, it is said, came from Lycia.
6. Next is the river Xanthus, formerly called Sirbis.[200] In sailing up
it in vessels which ply as tenders, to the distance of 10 stadia, we
come to the Letoum, and proceeding 60 stadia beyond the temple, we find
the city of the Xanthians, the largest in Lycia. After the Xanthus
follows Patara, which is also a large city with a harbour, and
containing a temple of Apollo. Its founder was Patarus. When Ptolemy
Philadelphus repaired it, he called it the Lycian Arsinoë, but the old
name prevailed.
7. Next is Myra, at the distance of 20 stadia from the sea, situated
upon a lofty hill; then the mouth of the river Limyrus, and on ascending
from it by land 20 stadia, we come to the small town Limyra. In the
intervening distance along the coast above mentioned are many small
islands and harbours. The most considerable of the islands is Cisthene,
on which is a city of the same name.[201] In the interior are the
strongholds Phellus, Antiphellus, and Chimæra, which I mentioned above.
8. Then follow the Sacred Promontory[202] and the Chelidoniæ, three
rocky islands, equal in size, and distant from each other about 5, and
from the land 6 stadia. One of them has an anchorage for vessels.
According to the opinion of many writers, the Taurus begins here,
because the summit is lofty, and extends from the Pisidian mountains
situated above Pamphylia, and because the islands lying in front exhibit
a [CAS. 666] remarkable figure in the sea, like a skirt of a mountain.
But in fact the mountainous chain is continued from the country opposite
Rhodes to the parts near Pisidia, and this range of mountains is called
Taurus.
The Chelidoniæ islands seem to be situated in a manner opposite to
Canopus,[203] and the passage across is said to be 4000 stadia.
From the Sacred Promontory to Olbia[204] there remain 367 stadia. In
this distance are Crambusa,[205] and Olympus[206] a large city, and a
mountain of the same name, which is called also Phœnicus;[207] then
follows Corycus, a tract of sea-coast.
9. Then follows Phaselis,[208] a considerable city, with three harbours
and a lake. Above it is the mountain Solyma[209] and Termessus,[210] a
Pisidic city, situated on the defiles, through which there is a pass
over the mountain to Milyas. Alexander demolished it, with the intention
of opening the defiles.
About Phaselis, near the sea, are narrow passes through which Alexander
conducted his army. There is a mountain called Climax. It overhangs the
sea of Pamphylia, leaving a narrow road along the coast, which in calm
weather is not covered with water, and travellers can pass along it, but
when the sea is rough, it is in a great measure hidden by the waves. The
pass over the mountains is circuitous and steep, but in fair weather
persons travel on the road along the shore. Alexander came there when
there was a storm, and trusting generally to fortune, set out before the
sea had receded, and the soldiers marched during the whole day up to the
middle of the body in water.
Phaselis also is a Lycian city, situated on the confines of Pamphylia.
It is not a part of the Lycian body, but is an independent city.
10. The poet distinguishes the Solymi from the Lycians, when he
despatches Bellerophon by the king of the Lycians to this second
adventure;
“he encountered the brave Solymi;”[211]
other writers say that the Lycians were formerly called Solymi, and
afterwards Termilæ, from the colonists that accompanied Sarpedon from
Crete; and afterwards Lycians, from Lycus the son of Pandion, who, after
having been banished from his own country, was admitted by Sarpedon to a
share in the government; but their story does not agree with Homer. We
prefer the opinion of those who say that the poet called the people
Solymi who have now the name of Milyæ, and whom we have mentioned
before.