Yeşilyurt

You can reach the town of Yeşilyurt, which is 14 kilometers from the provincial center, by minibuses departing every hour from the Muğla bus station. The town is famous for its weaving. It bears traces of the ancient city of Pisye, dating back to 1500 B.C. The original form of the name, which took the form Pisye during the Hellenization period, is most probably Pissuwa from the Luwian language. Until recently, Yeşilyurt was called Pisi Köy, or Pisi Köyü, thus preserving the name of the ancient city in a form adapted to Turkish pronunciation.

The first written document related to the ancient city of Pisye dates to 196 B.C. This document tells that the Rhodian general Niagoras took back this settlement from the Macedonian king Philip V together with İdyma and Kyllandis. The hill on which the Acropolis of Pisye is located lies about 1,5 kilometers south of the town of Yeşilyurt. There are some foundation and wall remains here. In addition, on the hillock about 2 kilometers to the north of the town, around the foot of which your approach road winds, the place the locals call Aslanlı is full of pottery and earthenware fragments. Even a few worked stones from ancient structures can be seen. Perhaps there was an outer quarter of the ancient city here. Within the town, even in old buildings and in ordinary places such as mosque walls, reused pieces from the structures of the ancient city can still be encountered, though only rarely.

For 200-250 years, sericulture and hand weaving of silk have been practiced in the town. The woven fabrics that are on the verge of being forgotten have been offered for sale for the last ten years by Muğla El Sanatları Limited Şirketi (MELSA), established by the Muğla Governorship. Since cotton yarn, sheep's wool, ready-made wool and pure silk are used as raw materials in these local fabrics, they are very healthy. Because their heat permeability is low, garments made from this fabric are preferred in both summer and winter. The local people produce the silk themselves for silk fabrics, and the wool themselves for woolens. Woven fabrics, clothing, etc. belonging to the region can be purchased in the town, as well as from shops in central Muğla and from the sales outlet of MELSA Ltd. Şti, where production is carried out under the governorship.

Places to Visit in Muğla Address: Muğla/Merkez