The Theater of Diocaesarea

The Theater of Diocaesarea is located in the ancient city of Diocaesarea, which is located in the Uzuncaburç district, 25 km north of Silifke today. This is the administrative center of the Priest Kingdom of Olba in the Hellenistic Period and a Rough Cilicia city that increased its importance with the Roman Imperial Period and stood out with its sanctity. Diocaesarea has been a remarkable city in terms of its location, place in history and cultural and human richness. Especially the fact that Rough Cilicia is a central city and has urban features that are not frequently encountered in mountainous areas; It is of great importance for the Ancient World as it has Zeus Olbios, one of the great Hellenistic sanctuaries. Theater of Diocaesarea, on the other hand, draws attention with its well-preserved structure. The scaenae building of the Diocaesarea Theater is dated to 164 AD with its inscription. The scaenae building is in corinthian order. It was a two-storey building. The data obtained show that the first floor of the building with its cavea was built in 164 AD, and the second floor was built during the Severan Period between 193-235 AD. The first floor of the building and the cavea were built in the model of a Roman theater in 164 AD. During the Severan Period, the second floor of the sscaenae building was built. On the second floor, construction and design features that have not been seen before in the history of architecture have been identified. These practices also constitute the phases of the building in the Roman Imperial Period. Diocaesarea Theater, which underwent a series of changes and new repairs in the Late Antiquity, the last phase of use of the theater, remained in use for approximately 600 years. In this study, the building has been evulated as a whole, its architecture, sscaenae decorations, phases and design features have been evaluated in detail and presented with restitutions.