İasos
An ancient harbour city on the Güllük gulf near Milas, once an island, lived in since the Bronze Age.
The Turkish name
İasos
At a glance
- Where
- Kıyıkışlacık, Milas
- Settled from
- The Bronze Age
- Excavated by
- Italian teams, since 1960
Read more
This page was written from these sources.
- Iasos ↗Wikipedia · Checked 2026-09-23
The story
Iasos stands at the head of a small cove on the Güllük gulf, in the Kıyıkışlacık neighbourhood of Milas. The city first stood on an island, which is now joined to the mainland. Its people said it was founded by settlers from Argos, and it grew rich on fishing and the fish trade.
Excavations show people lived here from the Bronze Age, with Minoan and Mycenaean pottery in the lowest layers. Italian archaeologists have dug here since 1960. Visitors see city walls, a medieval castle whose walls carry fourteen towers, an agora, and a Roman tomb the locals call the Saat Kulesi, the clock tower.
The theatre dates to the 2nd century BC. In 1887 many of its stones were taken away to build the harbour of İstanbul, and only part of it survives.
