Hierapolis

Hierapolis is an ancient Greco-Roman spa city in Denizli Province built as a thermal town and formally founded around 190 BCE by Eumenes II. It is famous for the adjacent white travertine terraces of Pamukkale formed by mineral-rich hot springs.

Key attractions within the archaeological park include a well-preserved Roman theatre, an extensive necropolis, bath complexes and the remains of civic buildings, alongside the thermal pools where visitors can see submerged ancient columns (often called Cleopatra’s Pool). The travertine terraces themselves are a major natural and visitor highlight.

Hierapolis grew under Hellenistic and Roman rule as a healing and pilgrimage centre built around thermal waters, later remaining an important episcopal city in late antiquity. Excavations and conservation have exposed extensive public architecture and funerary areas.

The ruins and terraces sit immediately above the modern spa and tourist town of Pamukkale, in the Denizli region of southwestern Turkey.

• Founding date: The ancient city was founded as a Hellenistic spa town by Eumenes II around 190 BCE and developed under Roman rule as a major thermal centre.
• UNESCO listing: Hierapolis and the adjacent Pamukkale travertines are inscribed together as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

What to See #

• Roman theatre: A large Roman theatre with preserved seating and stage area that remains a visible focus of the archaeological park.
• Necropolis: A vast necropolis of tens of thousands of tombs and sarcophagi stretching along the slopes below the city ruins.
• Travertine terraces (Pamukkale): The travertine terraces of Pamukkale are immediately adjacent and are formed by mineral-rich thermal waters depositing white calcium carbonate over many millennia.
• Thermal baths and antique pool: A restored thermal bath complex and an ancient pool-often called Cleopatra's Pool-where submerged columns lie in the water near the archaeological ruins.