Chimera
The eternal flames of Chimera Turkey
The perpetually burning flame of Chimaera is located in the hills above
Çirali, about 5km from Olympos. The fire burns in a natural vent in the ground
and can be seen at night with the naked eye from far out in the sea. It can be
extinguished by heaping it with earth, but reignites itself in a few minutes.
The most interesting thing about these flames is that they are fueled from
material that is NOT organic. These are the only flames of this kind.
The ancient Lycians saw these flames as the breath of the Chimaera, a fire-breathing dragon. According to Hemer in the Iliad, Bellerophon (who is from TLOS), to whom the gods granted beauty and manhood, was falsley accused of seducing Anteia the wife of Proetus. Proetus sent Bellerophon to his father-in-law, the Lycian King, Iobates, to be put to death. But Iophon, unwilling to kill Bellerophon, set him to kill the fire-breathing monster, part lion, goat and serpent. With the aid of the winged horse Pegasus, he succeeded, and returned, after completing other tasks set by Lobates, to Xanthos where he married the king's daughter and became heir of the Lycian throne. Carried away by his success, Bellerophon tried to ride Pegasus up to Mount Olympus; for his presumption, he earned a great thunderbolt from Zeus.
At the northern end of the beach, a small village of some two dozen pensions and modest hotels has grown under the name of Çirali. The perpetually burning flame of Chimaera is located in the hills above Çirali. The fire burns in a natural vent in the ground and can be seen at night with the naked eye from far out in the sea. It can be extinguished by heaping it with earth, but reignites itself in a few minutes. The ancient Lycians saw in it the breath of the Chimaera, a fire-breathing dragon.
TIP: You can hike/run from Olympos to Chimera. It's a nice 3 mile hike on a good road. It will be dark when you are done the visit so take the shuttle back with the rest of the group.
Also see Olympos
The ancient Lycians saw these flames as the breath of the Chimaera, a fire-breathing dragon. According to Hemer in the Iliad, Bellerophon (who is from TLOS), to whom the gods granted beauty and manhood, was falsley accused of seducing Anteia the wife of Proetus. Proetus sent Bellerophon to his father-in-law, the Lycian King, Iobates, to be put to death. But Iophon, unwilling to kill Bellerophon, set him to kill the fire-breathing monster, part lion, goat and serpent. With the aid of the winged horse Pegasus, he succeeded, and returned, after completing other tasks set by Lobates, to Xanthos where he married the king's daughter and became heir of the Lycian throne. Carried away by his success, Bellerophon tried to ride Pegasus up to Mount Olympus; for his presumption, he earned a great thunderbolt from Zeus.
At the northern end of the beach, a small village of some two dozen pensions and modest hotels has grown under the name of Çirali. The perpetually burning flame of Chimaera is located in the hills above Çirali. The fire burns in a natural vent in the ground and can be seen at night with the naked eye from far out in the sea. It can be extinguished by heaping it with earth, but reignites itself in a few minutes. The ancient Lycians saw in it the breath of the Chimaera, a fire-breathing dragon.
TIP: You can hike/run from Olympos to Chimera. It's a nice 3 mile hike on a good road. It will be dark when you are done the visit so take the shuttle back with the rest of the group.
Also see Olympos