Gemiler Adasi
| Gemiler Adasi | ||
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| Waters | Mediterranean Sea | |
| Geographical location | 36 ° 33 '12 " N , 29 ° 4' 10" E | |
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| length | 1 km | |
| width | 400 m | |
| Residents | uninhabited | |
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The Gemiler Adası is an island off the Turkish coast near the city of Fethiye . There are several ruins of churches and buildings on the island that were built between the 4th and 6th centuries. Archaeologists believe that this is where the original tomb of St. Nicholas of Myra lies.
geography
The small island is located around 9 kilometers south of Fethiye only around 100 meters off the Turkish coast. It is uninhabited and rocky. On the long north coast there is a small landing stage in shallower waters. The rest of the coastline is rocky and steeply sloping.
Attractions
The Byzantine ruins of five churches, which were built between the 4th and 6th centuries, are partly connected by a 350-meter-long processional path. In addition to the churches, the ruins of around 40 buildings and 50 Christian graves have also been preserved. One of the churches was carved directly into the rock at the highest point on the island. Wall frescoes and mosaic floors have remained recognizable to this day.
Archaeologists believe that the island was the site of the tomb of St. Nicholas could be. The Turkish name Gemiler Adası means "boat island " and could refer to St. Point out Nicholas, who is the protector of seamen. Already in the Middle Ages the island was named St. Nicholas Island by seafarers. Experts assume that Nicholas could have been buried in the church carved into the rock. His name is immortalized several times on the walls. His body is said to have been there until the 650s, when the residents had to flee from an approaching Arab fleet. They then went to Myra , which is around 25 kilometers to the east.
tourism
The island is the destination of many excursion boats, most of which start from Ölüdeniz , but private yachts can also moor in the port. In summer a small restaurant takes care of the visitors.
Web links
- Father Christmas' Mediterranian Island Escape , BBC (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f David Keys: Santa's tomb is found off Turkey: Academics claim to have found where St Nicholas was buried. David Keys reports , The Independent, December 17, 1993.
- ↑ Gerald Eskenazi: The Boating Report; Cruising Along the Turkish Coast, Comfortably , New York Times, June 28, 1998.
- ↑ Gemile Island ( Memento of the original from August 7, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Fethiye Museum, accessed March 26, 2017
- ^ Pam Neville: Viewing history from the shoreline , New Zealand Herald, August 21, 2008.
