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Seleucia (Çevlik)
Unless otherwise indicated, pictures on this page © Marco Prins and Jona Lendering. Photos can be downloaded and used for non-commercial purposes, but you have to acknowledge Livius.
The city walls of Seleucia. Photo Jona Lendering. Seleucia was founded in 300 by Seleucus I Nicator, the founder of the Seleucid empire. It was to be the capital of his realm and the equal of Alexandria. At the same time, Antioch was founded. However, the Seleucids temporarily lost Seleucia to the Ptolemies after the Laodicean War (a.k.a. Third Syran War; 246-241) Antioch became the most important city in the Seleucid empire. These are the city walls of Seleucia.
Seleucus I Nicator. Bust at the Louvre, Paris (France). Photo Marco Prins.
Seleucus I Nicator, the founder of Seleucia. This bust is in the Louvre museum in Paris.
The necropolis of Seleucia. Photo Marco Prins. The necropolis of Seleucia. Somewhere over here must have been the tomb that was intended as the mausoleum of Seleucus, who was assassinated in 281 by Ptolemy Keraunos. According to Appian of Alexandria, "Philetaerus, the prince of Pergamon, bought the body from Keraunos for a large sum of money, burned it, and sent the ashes to his son Antiochus I Soter. The latter deposited them at Seleucia-by-the-Sea, where he erected a temple to his father on consecrated ground, to which ground he gave the name of Nicatoreum." (Syrian War, 63).
The necropolis of Seleucia. Photo Marco Prins. A late-antique tomb.
The necropolis of Seleucia. Photo Marco Prins. The necropolis of Seleucia.
Bridge across the channel dug by Titus. Photo Marco Prins. Bridge across the channel that was, according to Flavius Josephus, dug by Jewish slaves, working under orders of the Roman commander Titus, who had captured Jerusalem in 70 (other POWs were sent to Rome, where they had to build the Colosseum).
Channel of Titus. Photo Marco Prins. Channel of Titus. It is almost 1400 meters long and a part of it runs through a tunnel. The tunnel was designed by engineers of the Tenth legion Fretensis and was used to prevent salination of the port.
The channel and tunnel of Titus. Photo Marco Prins. The channel and tunnel of Titus.
The channel and tunnel of Titus. Photo Marco Prins. In the tunnel of Titus. It is a very impressive work of Roman engineering.
The channel and tunnel of Titus. Photo Marco Prins. The channel and tunnel of Titus.
Inscription recording the construction of the channel and tunnel of Titus. Photo Marco Prins. Inscription recording the construction of the tunnel of Titus. It was not finished until the reign of Antoninus Pius (138-161). The last workers were legionaris of IIII Scythica and XVI Flavia Firma from Samosata.
Statue of Lucius Verus from Seleucia, now at the museum of Antakya. Photo Marco Prins. Statue of the Roman emperor Lucius Verus (161-169) from Seleucia, now at the museum of Antakya.

Here is a satellite photo.
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