RHO´DIA
RHO´DIA (
Ῥοδία: Eth.
Ῥοδιεύς), a town of Lycia, situated in the mountains on the north of Corydallus. (
Steph. B. sub voce Ptol. 5.3.6;
Phot. Bibl. 176.)
At the time when Col. Leake wrote his work on Asia Minor (p. 186) the site of this town was not yet ascertained, and Sir C. Fellows did not examine the district; but the inscriptions which have since been found fix its site at the place now called
Eski Hissar. (Spratt and Forbes,
Travels [p. 2.713]in Lycra, i. pp. 166, 181.)
The town had a temple of Asclepius, and its citizens are not called, as Stephanus Byz. asserts,
Ῥοδιεῖς, but
Ῥοδιαπολῖται or
Ῥοδιοπολῖται, whence it appears that Pliny (
5.28) correctly calls the town Rhodiopolis.
A plan of the numerous remains of this town is given by Spratt, according to whom it was not surrounded by walls: the theatre stands nearly in the centre, and is small, having a diameter of only 136 feet; but many of the seats remain, and the basement of the proscenium is perfect.
In the front of it is a terrace, with seats along the parapet. Remains of churches show that the place was inhabited in Christian times.
There are also traces of an aqueduct.
The town being situated on a lofty eminence, commands an extensive southern prospect.
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L.S]
