St. Peter Castle, Bodrum

Bodrum Castle (Bodrum Kalesi), located in southwest Turkey in the city of Bodrum, was built by the Knights Hospitaller starting in 1402 as the Castle of St. Peter.
Sir Thomas Docwra was one time captain of the castle. In 1522 when faced by attack from Sultan Suleiman, the Grand Master of the Hospitallers ordered the Castle to be repaired. In desperation, the Hospitallers broke open the Mausoleum, finding all sorts of elaboratedly adorned marble blocks and carvings which they admired but nevertheless destroyed, using the debris as building material. They also discovered the sarcophagus of Mausolus, but this was stolen during the night. The Knights Hospitaller were soon defeated and driven from Bodrum. Some decorative slabs have been found in the ruins of the Castle, one slab has turned up in Genoa.
In 1846 Lord Stratford de Redeliffe, the British Ambassador to Constantinople take twelve slabs showing a combat between Greeks and Amazons. Sir Charles Newton conducted excavations and removed a number of stone lions in 1856. Presently, these are all to be found at the British Museum.
The size of the castel is 180X185 m.All the towers in the castle has a name the highest one is called French Tower and its 47.50 m high.The rest of the towers are called Italian,german,english and the tower of snakes.In the XIX siecle the castle was used as prison Under the chapel there are 14 water tanks.

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the ancient glass collection @ bodrum kalesi, located inside a very dark room. the ancient glass collection is one of the four biggest ancient glass collections in the world.

unguentariums, small and really cute jugs and vases, various stones and precious rocks dating back around 2nd to 4th AD.

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type of ceramic vase with two handles and a long neck narrower than the body. used by the ancient Greeks and Romans as the principal means for transporting and storing grapes, olive oil, wine, oil, olives, grain, fish, and other commodities.

there's a large collection of amphora inside the castle of st. peter or bodrum castle, dating back as far as the BC times. these vases were a part of the museum of underwater archelogy and recovered from several ancient shipwrecks of roman merchant vessels.

most of them are in good shape, some with corals that have accummulated around it.

interesting for vases enthusiasts.

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aside from the nightlife and the marina, i think the st. peter's castle is the main attraction of bodrum, also known as bodrum castle or bodrum kalesi was built by the Knights Hospitaller in 1402 . there're a lot of stuff to see inside, outside and around the castle.

walk along the marina and it's located at the far end. we paid TL10, the castle houses the Museum of Underwater Archaeology, so abundant in artefact discoveries of ancient shipwrecks in the Aegean Sea like amphora vases dating back to BC which i find interesting (well, i was imagining how many ancient people held these water vases while i was scanning the collections). then there's this dark room where they're keeping small ancient cute glasses kept well and illuminated by really dark lights, some precious stones too.

the view at the top of the castle is breathtaking.

the castle is really worth a visit.

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You can't miss this prominent Castle in Bodrum's Harbour. It is built on a peninsula between two bays, but this was not always the case, originally, it was completely surrounded with water. Construction on the Castle began in 1402. This Castle was considered very important, so the Vatican sent Christians here to help with the work.

In 1409, the Papal Office, issued a decree stating that all those who helped in the construction would receive a guaranteed reservation in Heaven!!

By using materials from the Mausoleum, the 1st walls were completed in 1437.
The Castle was built to defend Bodrum, which it did, not always successfully until the end of World War 1. This was the last Christian stronghold in Antolia. In 1961, the Castle became a Museum.
It is easy to get around as there are arrows on the ground showing you which direction to go. There is also a SHORT TOUR, or a LONG TOUR TRAIL to follow.
Make sure you allow plenty of time, as I was here quite a while and didn't get to see all because of some being closed. It was disappointing that they were.

Well worth visiting, has lovely view in all directions and interesting history.
Entrance to it is on the Harbour side that leads to the Ferry Terminal.
Open daily.......... CLOSED MONDAYS
OPENING HOURS..................9 -12 & 2 - 7PM
ADMISSION IN 2009..............10 T/L

I was there on opening time, and not all the museums were open. The attendants were only just arriving!

THE SNAKE.... Sacred symbol of healers.
It was marked on statues of Asclepious (the God of Health) in ancient mythology. It is believed that the Snake emblem, emblazoned on the tower, marks a former place of healing. It is thought, that this Snake Tower, may have been an Infirmary, used by the Knights of the Hospital of St. John.
Inside now, it the Secret Museum, with displays of artifacts on Birth, Life & Death.

The SACRED SNAKE OF ANCIENT TIMES, Is a symbol that represents, MEDICINE, POWER, SIN, DEATH, SEXUALITY AND PRODUCTIVITY.

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Located in the S.E. corner of Bodrum Castle, this Tower is known by other names, such as "Lion Tower" and "St. Catherines Tower" Its construction was financed by contributions from England. The Tower is regarded as one of the most important, well preserved monuments to be built outside of England.
It has three stories. The bottom, used to be the Dungeons. The hall, which is reached through the northern entrance, has the Royal Coat of Arms of Henry IV of England mounted above it. Inside, there is Medieval attire and a huge table.
In modern times, sometimes a Banquet is held here. The staff dress in Medieval attire, and period music is played!

Glass objects dating from 1400BC to 1100 AD are displayed in a small hall in the former Chapel of the Castle. On display, is glass found from Shipwrecks and Ancient sites in the region. The rare pieces are displayed in specially lit cabinets to get the best effect. It is really well done, and there are some beautiful pieces.

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This exhibition located in Amphora park in the Castle grounds, displays all kinds of very old utensils that were used for storing and transporting goods. Made out of Clay, each piece has an identifiable design, this has helped Archeologists to trace trading patterns. Most of the handles are embossed with the sign of the manufacturer, such as, a Rose for Rhodian, a Crab for Coan, and so on. The Urns were used for Olives, Wine, Olive oil, Grains, and anything else that needed storage. Amazing that so many have been found in very good condition. The containers were found mostly from Shipwrecks, and a few were found on land.
The pointed bottoms were unusual. This was done so they could be closely packed and stacked in the hulls of ships, with matting between them to stop them from breaking. This design allowed a greater number to be carried on the ships, sometimes, over a 1000 pieces, thus making the vovage a very profitable one. These were some of the 1st pieces put into the museum. They were found by Bodrum sponge divers.

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The fortress St. Peter Castle is the most famous building in Bodrum, and is located at the edge of the harbour. It got it's St. Peter, the Liberator, because it served as a refugee place for Christians. The construction started around the 1400's.