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Loryma  THE three cities of the island of Rhodes (Lindos, Kamiros and Ialysos) had probably started to absorb territory on the mainland opposite (the ‘peraia’) at least as early as the fifth century BC. Loryma (Bozukkale – ‘broken fortress’) and the peninsula on which it lies were among the earliest of these possessions. The three old cities combined to form a new capital on the northern tip of the island in 408 BC. The powerful unified state, enjoying a position athwart the major trade routes east-west and north-south, became one of the major commercial powers in the Greek world, particularly after the conquests of Alexander the Great opened up Egypt and the East to Greek exploitation in the late fourth century BC. The harbour at Loryma on the mainland opposite Rhodes is exceptionally safe in all weathers, and this doubtless prompted the Rhodians to protect it with the impressive elongated fortress which is the principal feature of the site. Probably dating to the fourth century BC, the fortress measures 320m by 30m with walls some 2.5m thick built of regular ashlar blocks and protected by eleven towers. Inside are two cisterns, but no other constructions have been identified: the place seems to have had a purely military function. An inscription on a rock altar at the eastern end of the fort shows that it was sacred to Zeus Atabyrios, a form of the deity known only from Rhodes; a more informal inscription just outside the walls nearby declares that ‘this place is sacred’, and invites speculation that it was inscribed by an offi cer warning his men not to relieve themselves in a holy place.


From the shore to the fortress is a fairly easy climb of 10-15 minutes. There are fi ne views over to Rhodes from the walls, and one can walk along their top for almost the entire circumference, although this is not recommended for those who suffer from vertigo. The remains of a third century BC temple of Apollo, some walling, and a cistern belonging to the small town of Loryma can be seen at the base of its acropolis hill north across the bay. The site was occupied as late as the tenth century AD, for an arsenal (hoplotheke) is recorded there then, and until recently the harbour was known as Oplosika Bükü, ‘Arsenal Bay’.


Two incidents from the fourth century BC are recorded at Loryma. In 395 the Athenian admiral Konon gathered his fleet there before sailing out to defeat the Spartans at a great battle off Knidos. Ninety years later, Demetrios the son of Antigonos the One-Eyed (one of the generals who succeeded to Alexander the Great's empire) gathered his forces in the same place before laying siege to the city of Rhodes in an attempt to bring the island into his father’s domain. The Rhodians resisted valiantly and after a year Demetrios gave up, earning for himself the derisive nickname Poliorketes (‘Besieger’). The Rhodians used the money raised from the sale of his siege-train to erect the Colossus in commemoration of their victory.

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