# Letoon > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Letoon > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Letoon.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letoon > Source revision: 1308397205 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Lycian sanctuary settlement on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey Letoon Error {{native name list}}: an IETF language tag in |tag1= is required (help) Hellenistic theatre Interactive map of Letoon Type Sanctuary complex Location Kumluova Region Muğla Province, Turkey History Built Late 6th century BC Abandoned 7th century Site notes Website turkishmuseums.com UNESCO World Heritage Site Type Cultural Criteria ii, iii Designated 1988 (12th session) Reference no. 484-003 Part of Xanthos-Letoon **Letoon** or **Letoum** ([Turkish](/source/Turkish_language): *Letoon*, [Ancient Greek](/source/Ancient_Greek_language): Λητῷον) in the [Fethiye](/source/Fethiye) district of [Muğla Province](/source/Mu%C4%9Fla_Province), Turkey, was a sanctuary of [Leto](/source/Leto) located 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) south of the ancient city of [Xanthos](/source/Xanthos), to which it was closely associated, and along the Xanthos River. It was one of the most important religious centres in the region though never a fully-occupied settlement. Letoon was added as a [UNESCO World Heritage Site](/source/List_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_Turkey) in 1988. ## History Letoon was the religious centre of [Xanthos](/source/Xanthos) and the [Lycian League](/source/Lycian_League). [Inscriptions](/source/Inscription) found at the site indicate that it was where [Lycian](/source/Lycia) rulers declared their decisions to the public. It was continuously occupied from the 8th century BC to the end of the Roman period of occupation.[1][2] The site was dedicated to the worship of the Letoids—the Greek goddess [Leto](/source/Leto), and her twin offspring, [Artemis](/source/Artemis) and [Apollo](/source/Apollo). According to a myth, Leto was drinking at a lake in Lycia whilst fleeing with her children Apollo and Artemis from the anger of the goddess [Hera](/source/Hera). When local peasants tried to drive her away, she rebuked them and transformed them into frogs.[2] Leto may have been identified with an early [Luwian](/source/Luwians) goddess whose cult was located with Letoon. The Letoids were designated as the Lycians' national gods.[2][note 1] The sanctity of the site is the purport of an anecdote related by the 2nd century Greek historian [Appian](/source/Appian) concerning [Mithridates VI of Pontus](/source/Mithridates_VI_of_Pontus), who was planning to cut down the trees in the [sacred grove](/source/Sacred_grove) for his own purposes during his siege of Patara, but was warned against this [sacrilege](/source/Sacrilege) in a nightmare.[4] The site remained active through the Roman period. It was [Christianised](/source/Christianised_sites) by the construction of an [basilical](/source/Basilica) church.[5] ## Archaeology [Archaeological](/source/Archaeological) finds at Letoon date to at least the 6th century BCE, and pre-date the [Greek](/source/Ancient_Greece) [cultural hegemony](/source/Cultural_hegemony) in [Lycia](/source/Lycia).[6] The sanctuary was connected to Xanthos by a road that led up from [Patara](/source/Patara_(Lycia)) to the south.[7] The foundations of the three [Hellenistic](/source/Hellenistic) temples dedicated to Leto and her children have been [excavated](/source/Archaeological_excavation) since 1962, under the successive direction of the French [archaeologists](/source/Archaeologist) [Henri Metzger](/source/Henri_Metzger), Jacques Des Courtils and [Emmanuel Laroche](/source/Emmanuel_Laroche).[2] Since then, excavations have uncovered most of the site's ruins, most of which are located under the [water table](/source/Water_table) of the River Xanthos.[7] The temple of Leto was successfully reconstructed in its original setting between 2000 and 2007 using original pieces found during excavations carried out since 1950s.[1] As of 2004[\[update\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Letoon&action=edit), the stadium has not been located.[8] ### Letoon trilingual Main article: [Letoon trilingual](/source/Letoon_trilingual) In 1973, a [stele](/source/Stele) was discovered at the site.[2] The stele's inscription, dated to 337 BCE, features texts in the [Lycian language](/source/Lycian_language), [Ancient Greek](/source/Ancient_Greek) and [Aramaic](/source/Aramaic). The so-called [Letoon trilingual](/source/Letoon_trilingual) is now conserved in the [Fethiye Museum](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Fethiye_Museum&action=edit&redlink=1) [[tr](https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fethiye_M%C3%BCzesi)].[1][9] It contains regulations for the establishment of a cult at Letoon. The text has contributed greatly to a greater understanding of the Lycian language.[2] The text is unusual in not being an [epitaph](/source/Epitaph) unlike most Lycian texts.[10] ## Description The north portico The three temples Letoon is located south of the village of [Kumluova](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kumluova&action=edit&redlink=1) [[tr](https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumluova,_Seydikemer)] (previously known as Botisullu),[11] in the [Fethiye](/source/Fethiye) district of [Muğla Province](/source/Mu%C4%9Fla_Province), Turkey.[12] The site is 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) southwest of the site of Lycia's most important city, Xanthos.[2] The Greek geographer [Strabo](/source/Strabo) located Letoon ten [stades](/source/Stadion_(unit))—more than one mile (1.6 km)—from the coast, a figure considered by the English archaeologist [George Ewart Bean](/source/George_Ewart_Bean) to be correct, considering the probable change in the position of the coast line since [Classical antiquity](/source/Classical_antiquity).[13] The complex is dominated by three 4/5th century BC temples. The central temple was dedicated to Artemis. The other two temples, which are Greek, were dedicated to at least one of the other Letoids.[2] The *[nymphaeum](/source/Nymphaeum)* (which supplied a source of fresh water), is early 2nd century or later. It occupied the site of a Hellenistic structure built over a spring.[2] Spring water used to emerge from the *nymphaeum*, flanked by a pair of [exedras](/source/Exedra); of the remains, only those dating from the 3rd century are visible.[14] The remaining ruins remain largely intact and unaffected by tourism or modern building.[1] ## Historical importance The River Xanthos estuary Letoon was added as a [UNESCO World Heritage Site](/source/List_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_Turkey), along with Xanthos, in 1988. According to [UNESCO](/source/UNESCO), the archaeological sites at Xanthos and Letoon represent “the most unique extant architectural example of the ancient Lycian Civilization”. UNESCO has acknowledged that the Lycian rock inscriptions are the language's most important texts, and have a crucial role in helping to understand both the ancient Lycian people, their civilization, and their long-lost language.[1] Letoon is a 1st degree archaeological site and so subject to conservation legislation. It is within an Environment Protection Zone under the responsibility of the Turkish Ministry of Environment and Urbanization. The Regional Conservation Council approved a Conservation Plan in 2006.[1] The architecture influenced that of other Lycian cities such as [Patara](/source/Patara_(Lycia)), [Pınara](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=P%C4%B1nara&action=edit&redlink=1), and [Myra](/source/Myra).[1] Visually affected by [greenhouses](/source/Greenhouse) which surround it, Letton is also threatened by seasonal rising of the [water table](/source/Water_table). The construction of water channels in 2006 acted to mitigate the effect during excavation works. The Turkish government has begun to control the surrounding environment and address issues relating to the preservation of the monuments, such as the management of visitors to the site, and to raise local awareness of its importance.[1] ## Notes 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** A claim for an early [Lycian](/source/Lycia) cult of [Apollo](/source/Apollo) centred in the plain of the River Xanthus was provided by two [Greek myths](/source/Greek_mythology) connected to an [eponymous](/source/Eponymous) hero, [Lycus](/source/Lycus_(mythology)). One myth originated from the [Telchines](/source/Telchines), the [autochthonous](/source/Autochthon_(ancient_Greece)) inhabitants of [Rhodes](/source/Rhodes), who may have colonized the region at the time of [Deucalion](/source/Deucalion)'s flood; The other involved an [Athenian](/source/History_of_Athens#Antiquity) brother of [Aegeus](/source/Aegeus) who introduced the [cult](/source/Cult) of Lycaean Apollo. [Folk etymology](/source/Folk_etymology) made Lycus the Athenian [colonizer](/source/Colonization) of [ancient Lycia](/source/Ancient_Lycia).[3] ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-UNE_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-UNE_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-UNE_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-UNE_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-UNE_1-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-UNE_1-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-UNE_1-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-UNE_1-7) ["Xanthos-Letoon"](https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/484). [UNESCO](/source/UNESCO). Retrieved 11 May 2023. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-7) [***i***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBryce2009416_2-8) [Bryce 2009](#CITEREFBryce2009), p. 416. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEGrimal1996264–265_3-0)** [Grimal 1996](#CITEREFGrimal1996), pp. 264–265. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Appian, *Mithridates*, 27, noted by T. R. Bryce, "The Arrival of the Goddess Leto in Lycia", *Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte*, **32**1 (1983:1–13). p. 3 and note 9. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEGreenhalgh200985_6-0)** [Greenhalgh 2009](#CITEREFGreenhalgh2009), p. 85. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEDusinberre2013219_7-0)** [Dusinberre 2013](#CITEREFDusinberre2013), p. 219. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBean197860–62_8-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBean197860–62_8-1) [Bean 1978](#CITEREFBean1978), pp. 60–62. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBayburtluoğlu2004264_9-0)** [Bayburtluoğlu 2004](#CITEREFBayburtluoğlu2004), p. 264. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Tur_10-0)** ["Muğla: Letoon Örenyeri"](https://web.archive.org/web/20150915214236/http://www.muze.gov.tr/tr/muzeler/letoon-orenyeri) [Mugla: Letoon Ruins] (in Turkish). Turkish [Ministry of Culture and Tourism](/source/Ministry_of_Culture_and_Tourism_(Turkey)). Archived from [the original](http://www.muze.gov.tr/tr/muzeler/letoon-orenyeri) on 15 September 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBean197822_11-0)** [Bean 1978](#CITEREFBean1978), p. 22. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBayburtluoğlu2004262_12-0)** [Bayburtluoğlu 2004](#CITEREFBayburtluoğlu2004), p. 262. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEClow200045_13-0)** [Clow 2000](#CITEREFClow2000), p. 45. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBean197863_14-0)** [Bean 1978](#CITEREFBean1978), p. 63. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBayburtluoğlu2004263_15-0)** [Bayburtluoğlu 2004](#CITEREFBayburtluoğlu2004), p. 263. ## Sources - Bayburtluoğlu, Cevdet (2004). *Lycia*. Antalya: Suna & İnan Kıraç Research Institute on Mediterranean Civilizations. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-97570-7-820-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-97570-7-820-3). - [Bean, George Ewart](/source/George_Ewart_Bean) (1978). [*Lycian Turkey: An Archaeological Guide*](https://archive.org/details/lycianturkeyarch0000bean/page/n5/mode/2up). London: Benn. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-05100-3-205-0](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-05100-3-205-0). - Bryce, Trevor (2009). "Letoum". [*The Routledge Handbook of the Peoples and Places of Ancient Western Asia*](https://archive.org/details/TheRoutledgeHandbookOfArchaBook/page/n3/mode/2up). New York: Routledge. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-415-39485-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-415-39485-7). - Clow, Kate (2000). [*The Lycian Way*](https://archive.org/details/lycianwayturkeys0000clow/page/n1/mode/2up). Ankara: Upcountry (Turkey) Ltd. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-09539-2-180-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-09539-2-180-5). - Dusinberre, Elspeth R. M. (2013). [*Empire, Authority, and Autonomy in Achaemenid Anatolia*](https://books.google.com/books?id=_Eb5fIvwS6oC). Cambridge: [Cambridge University Press](/source/Cambridge_University_Press). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-11070-1-826-6](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-11070-1-826-6). - Greenhalgh, Michael (2009). [*Marble Past, Monumental Present: Building with Antiquities in the Mediaeval Mediterranean*](https://books.google.com/books?id=9xMAlL8OBhcC). [Brill Publishers](/source/Brill_Publishers). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-90041-7-083-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-90041-7-083-4). - [Grimal, Pierre](/source/Pierre_Grimal) (1996) [1951]. [*The Dictionary of Classical Mythology*](https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofclas0000grim/page/n3/mode/2up). Oxford, New York: Blackwell. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-06312-0-102-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-06312-0-102-1). ## Further reading - Bayburtluoğlu, Cevdet (2004). *Lycia*. Antalya: Suna & İnan Kıraç Research Institute on Mediterranean Civilizations. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-97570-7-820-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-97570-7-820-3). - [Bean, George Ewart](/source/George_Ewart_Bean) (1948). ["Notes and Inscriptions from Lycia"](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-hellenic-studies/article/abs/notes-and-inscriptions-from-lycia/0D3C5E749E1B8C58839CB3211DAD56DA). *The Journal of Hellenic Studies*. **68**: 40–58. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/626299](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F626299). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [626299](https://www.jstor.org/stable/626299). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [163625751](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:163625751). - Erdek, Şehrigül Yeşil (2008). "The Lifting of a Mosaic from the Site of Letoon and Its Replacement with a Replica". In Greenberg, Mark (ed.). [*Lessons Learned Reflecting on the Theory and Practice of Mosaic Conservation : Proceedings of the 9th ICCM Conference, Hammamet, Tunisia, November 29-December 3, 2005*](https://books.google.com/books?id=CrxQAgAAQBAJ) (in English and French). Los Angeles, California: [Getty Conservation Institute](/source/Getty_Conservation_Institute). pp. 397–403. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-89236-920-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-89236-920-1). - Le Roy, Christian (1984). ["Le Létôon de Xanthos en Lycie (Turquie). La lutte d'un sanctuaire contre l'évolution du milieu naturel"](https://www.persee.fr/doc/bagf_0004-5322_1984_num_61_499_5439) [The Letôon of Xanthos, in Lycia. The struggle of a sanctuary against the evolution of its environment]. *Bulletin de l'Association de Géographes Français* (in French). **61** (499): 41–44. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.3406/bagf.1984.5439](https://doi.org/10.3406%2Fbagf.1984.5439). - [Metzger, Henri](/source/Henri_Metzger) (1966). ["Fouilles du Létoon de Xanthos (1962-1965)"](https://www.jstor.org/stable/41005434). *[Revue Archéologique](/source/Revue_Arch%C3%A9ologique)* (in French). Nouvelle Série, Fasc. 1 (1): 101–112. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1266-7706](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1266-7706). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [41005434](https://www.jstor.org/stable/41005434). - [Metzger, Henri](/source/Henri_Metzger) (1979). [*Fouilles de Xanthos*](https://archive.org/details/lasteletrilingue0006unse/page/n6/mode/2up) [*Xanthos Excavations*] (in French). Vol. 6: La stèle trilingue de Létôon. Paris: C. Klincksieck. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-22520-2-109-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-22520-2-109-5). - Oner, Ertug (1999). ["Letoon ve Çevresinde (Eşen Çayı Deltası) Paleo-Jeomorfolojik Araştırmalar"](https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/ecd/issue/4884/66960) [Paleo-Geomorphological Surveys in Letoon and Its Surroundings (Eşen Stream Delta)]. *Aegean Journal of Geography* (in Turkish). **10** (1). İzmir, Turkey: 51–82. - Webb, Pamela A. (1996). [*Hellenistic Architectural Sculpture: Figural Motifs in Western Anatolia and the Aegean Islands*](https://books.google.com/books?id=lTS2zl10EHYC). Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-02991-4-980-2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-02991-4-980-2). ## External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Letoon](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Letoon). - [Canadian Epigraphic Mission at Xanthos-Letoon](http://www.xanthos.hst.ulaval.ca/eng/index_eng.html) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210607060707/http://www.xanthos.hst.ulaval.ca/eng/index_eng.html) 2021-06-07 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine), website of the research project on Xanthos and Letoon by [Université du Québec à Montréal](/source/Universit%C3%A9_du_Qu%C3%A9bec_%C3%A0_Montr%C3%A9al) and [Université Laval](/source/Universit%C3%A9_Laval), including downloadable published works - [Images of Letoon](http://www.pbase.com/dosseman/letoon) from PBase.com - [Images of Letoon](https://turkeyphotoguide.com/letoon) from Turkey Photo Guide - [Letoon Archaeological Site](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ij6AXV8LYFI) (Official video from Turkish Museums (on [YouTube](/source/YouTube))) - [Letoon](https://www.lycianmonuments.com/letoon) at Lycian Monuments v t e Lycian League Votes: 3 Xanthos Patara Myra Pinara Tlos Olympos Votes: 2 - Votes: 1 Sympolity of Aperlae, Simena, Isinda, and Apollonia Votes: ? Amelas Antiphellus Arycanda Balbura Bubon Cyaneae Dias Gagae Idebessos Limyra Oenoanda Phaselis Phellus Podalia Rhodiapolis Sidyma Telmessos Trebenna Associated locations Letoon v t e World Heritage Sites in Turkey Aegean Aphrodisias Ephesus Hierapolis / Pamukkale Pergamon Sardis and the Lydian Tumuli of Bin Tepe Black Sea Hattusa Safranbolu Central Anatolia Çatalhöyük Divriği Great Mosque and Hospital Gordion Göreme National Park and Cappadocia East Anatolia Ani Arslantepe Mound Marmara Bursa and Cumalıkızık Historic Areas of Istanbul Selimiye Mosque and its Social Complex Troy Mediterranean Xanthos / Letoon Southeastern Anatolia Diyarbakır Fortress and Hevsel Gardens Göbekli Tepe Mount Nemrut Multiple regions Wooden Hypostyle Mosques of Medieval Anatolia Turkey portal Category Authority control databases International VIAF GND Geographic Pleiades Other Kulturenvanteri monument [36°19′55″N 29°17′23″E / 36.33194°N 29.28972°E / 36.33194; 29.28972](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Letoon¶ms=36_19_55_N_29_17_23_E_) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Letoon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letoon) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letoon?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.