Harpasa (Esenköy)

HARPASA (Esenköy), ancient Caria / Asia Minor, modern Turkey.

COORDINATES: About 37º46’12.56’’N / 28º21’03.79’’E

TIPOLOGY: Greek theatre. Not urban.

DATE: End of II B.C.

TRANSFORMATIONS:

CAPACITY: 2.500 spectators.

CAVEA: Facing north-west.  58 m. diameter. Built against slope. It had about 30 rows of seats but only 8 are visible divided in 6 cunei. Upper rows of seat were rectilinear.

ORCHESTRA:

STAGE BUILDING:

LOCATION: It´s little below ancient Acropolis, in the hill close to modern Esenköy, 12 klm. south from modern Nazilli.

MY BEDSIDE TABLE: Yilmaz, Yasar; “Anadolu Antik Tiyatrolari”. Istanbul, Yem Yanin, 2010. // Sear, Frank; “Roman theatres: an architectural study”. Oxford University Press, 2006.

OUT OF PRINT: The day I visited Harpasa´s ancient theatre was a great exciting day for me. I proposed that day to visit three ancient theatres of which I never had been any picture and did not exactly where they were: Harpasa, Orthosa and Bargasa, so it was going to be a rainy day full of unknowns and adventure.  I started very early the day looking for Harpasa´s one, it was not difficult to find it, only an extended walk by the hill in Esenköy. After I drove to Donduran for find Orthosa´s Greek theater, that was quite difficult to find and I will tell when I do Orthosa´s review, I only will tell the wonderful experience drinking tea in Donduran’s cantina before being hours looking in the field for the little theatre remains; In the evening I drove to Haydere for finding Bargasa´s ancient theatre, I found the ancient city, spending hours, but I did not find the theatre although, like I could see in Yasar Yilmaz book, “Anadolu Antik Tiyatrolari”, I were walking on it, in the deep wood... anyway, another of the million reasons for returning to Turkey.