Lagina

An ancient sanctuary in Caria (modern Turgut, southwestern Turkey) containing a monumental temple of Hecate built in the 2nd century BC, measuring 21.3 by 28 meters with Corinthian columns. The temple's four sculpted friezes depict the Gigantomachy, Zeus's birth, a Roman-Amazon pact, and a league of Carian cities, now housed in Istanbul's Archaeological Museums. A sacred road connected Lagina to the city of Stratonicea 15 km away, along which annual pilgrimages and a Key-Carrying ceremony by young girls were conducted. First investigated by Charles Newton in 1856, and later excavated by Osman Hamdi Bey in 1891-1892; restoration efforts re-erected the ancient columns in 2020.