As you will already be aware from studiously reading and retaining our Brief History of Fethiye Fethiye's 5th century B.C. rock tombs were the final resting place for important members of Lycian society - and they were not put in their alone - depending on the individual standing of the departed, significant to vast riches were buried alongside them - the Lycians believed these would be necessary items to take into the next life.

Well actually, not at all. It would be impossible to know when the tombs were ransacked - but it most certainly wasn't in any of our lifetimes. In the 18th Century, a French expedition lead by the Marquis de Chabert set off to chart the eastern Mediterranean including Turkey - and amongst the party were artists who made copper engravings as records of the journey - which ultimately became the hand painted illustrations for the volumes that would chronical their findings. Along the way they recorded the Tombs at "Telmessus".

The expedition departed in 1776 and the volumes published in 1782 - so the date given to the image of 1778 appears accurate. Closer inspection proves one thing:

Fethiye Rock Tombs - Empty in 1778 and Empty Today!