Out on the wind-lashed Tekir Burnu – the Cape Krio of antiquity – Knidos was one of the most fabled and prosperous cities in ancient times, famous for its school of medicine. Its strategic location astride the main shipping lanes of the Mediterranean helped produced a cosmopolitan city, which was also once home to the cult statue of Aphrodite by Praxiteles, the first large-scale, freestanding nude of a woman (modelled by the famous Athenian courtesan, Phryne) – unfortunately only the circular foundation of this remains.

The hilly site is extensively terraced, with numerous retaining walls and stairways. Of Knidos’s public buildings, the best preserved is the Hellenistic theater, which overlooks the south anchorage.  There are two Byzantine basilicas, one with extensive mosaics, overlooking the north harbor. You can take a self-guided tour by following the arrow-signs that direct visitors to the other places of interest. The ruins are impressive because of their size and the grand setting. Large tracts remain unexcavated, although more is uncovered each year, leaving the ruins an overgrown romantic jumble of huge rock blocks and shards of pottery.