Construction materials and techniques in the religious buildings of Olympos Ancient City in the Early Byzantine Period

This study is concerned with construction materials and techniques used in the religious buildings of Olympos Ancient City in the Early Byzantine period. This thesis comprises six of the religious buildings in the ancient city dating back to the Early Byzantine Period. Three of those buildings, situated in the northern part of the city, are Episcopal Church and Baptistery in the same area, as well as Necropolis Church. The other three are in the southern part: Harbour Basilica, Slope Settlement Church on the lower part and Slope Settlement Church on the upper part. In the context of this study, architectural descriptions of these religious buildings along with the strands of materials and building techniques used in the masonry wall construction as well as other architectural components are elaborately introduced based on our own research and observations. Besides, differences in materials and techniques seen in the religious buildings during the urban transformation period of the site are delineated. Last but not least, by comparing the materials and techniques of the religious buildings in question with their counterparts in the ancient city and in the Lycia region, the problem of determining the date of the buildings is addressed and attempted to be solved. Keywords: Olympos, Lycia, Byzantine, Church, Material, Technique.