Side — Pirates of Cilicia

Side reached its peak in the 1st century BC under Roman rule, after Pompey the Great expelled the Cilician pirates in 67 BC. The Roman theater, built in the 2nd century AD, bears witness to this renewed prosperity with its 15,000 spectators who came to applaud performances in this major cultural center of the Mediterranean coast. Visible from the main paved street, this colossal monument immerses you in the atmosphere of the great port cities of the Roman Empire.

The ancient agora of Side, dating from the 2nd century AD, reveals the intense commercial activity that animated this Mediterranean city. Its rectangular structure with columned gallery runs along the main street leading to the port, accessible on foot in a few minutes from the theater. The nerve center of trade during the Roman golden age from the 1st to 3rd centuries AD, this marketplace testifies to the intense port activity before the progressive silting of the harbor that would mark Side's decline.

The ancient port of Side, the main Mediterranean outlet in the 1st century BC, hides a dark history: center of captive trade and pirate stronghold before Pompey's intervention. Located on a peninsula and connected by the main street to the theater about 1 km on foot, this harbor gradually silted up from the 3rd century AD. In the 10th century, it became a nest of Arab pirates again, as described by the Byzantine historian of the time and geographer Idrisi in 1150.

The Temple of Apollo at Side raises its Ionic columns near the ancient port, remains from the 2nd century AD built during the brilliant Roman period. Erected in honor of Pompey after 67 BC, this sanctuary on the port peninsula symbolizes Roman pacification after centuries of Cilician piracy. The neighboring Byzantine basilica, dating from the 5th-6th centuries AD, testifies to the Christian transition after Roman decline and Arab invasions of the 10th century, its remains excavated since 1947 by Turkish archaeologists.

Your journey through Side's necropolis, extending along the access roads to the site, reveals rock-cut tombs and sarcophagi from the 2nd century BC to the 3rd century AD. Excavations revealed 560 silver coins from the 2nd century BC, sold in 1986, testifying to the wealth accumulated by this city between piracy and legitimate trade. You leave with a unique understanding of a Mediterranean city that experienced all faces of ancient history: from the first Hittite colonists of the 7th century BC to Arab invasions, passing through the Roman golden age.