Photo: Lycian Temple Tombs at Caunos, Turkey

The Lycian people were some of the most independent peoples in Asia and were the last to be incorporated into the Roman conquest of Asia Minor. They fought fiercely to defend their territory, and they created magnificent tombs for their miitary leaders and Kings. They built several styles of tombs. These temple tombs were built to resemble temples and contained a room-like crypt behind the facade, carved out of the soft volcanic rock. Once a seaport, the Dalyan River silted the harbor and these ruins are several miles inland from the Mediterranean along the Turquoise Coast of Turkey.