Kilistra Ancient City

This Ancient City is located 45 kilometers south-west of Konya, in the town of Hatunsaray (Lystra), in the Gökurt Village of Meram. Kilistra, which was the scene of intense settlement in the Hellenistic and Roman periods and grew rapidly in the Early Christian Period, gained an architectural texture similar to Cappadocia over time. Kilistra stands out because it is an important place in the life of St. Paulus and contains valuable examples such as churches, chapels, monasteries, watchtowers, shelters, ancient roads, ceramic workshops in terms of architecture. It is located on the historical Royal Road (Via Sebaste). Strategically important, Lystra is one of the five centers in the southern ends of the Roman Empire where Emperor Augustus made a military colony. In the same period, the majority of the people of Lystra joined the new religion of Saint Paulus and Barnabas, who traveled Anatolia (49-56 AD).