The Preliminary Archaeological Field Survey in Hypaipa

Abstract

This study presents the preliminary description and evaluation of the architectural remains (namely, the city walls surrounding the acropolis and the lower city; the theater on the western skirts of the acropolis, the three bridges spanning the Uludere stream, the rock-cut tombs located on the northwestern and northeastern peripheries of the city) identified in the ancient city of Hypaipa during the field survey in the summer of 2012. Hypaipa, on which we do not have any detailed knowledge except for a few references in ancient sources and in some traveller records, is regarded as one of the cities in the Lydian region. The city whose foundation is presumed to date back to the Lydian period (the last quarter of the 7th century B.C. to the first half of the 6th century B.C.) had a distinct status because of its Persian temple dedicated to the Persian goddess Anahita. With particular reference to this temple, Hypaipa was mentioned in a number of ancient sources along with Hierocaesareia. In addition to its temple, Hypaipa was also famous for Arakhne, one of the well known mythological figures in the antiquity. Hypaipa appears to be a rather developed settlement, particularly in the Roman period. Moreover, the rock-cut tombs that we discovered to the north of the acropolis dating back to the 6th century BC constitute the earliest findings of the 2012 field survey in Hypaipa carried out by our team, providing further evidence for the significance of the site in connection with the Lydian and Persian archaeologies.