Hacımusalar Höyüğü and Ancient Choma

Hacımusalar Höyüğü is a mound situated 15 to 20 kilometers southwest of the Elmalı district in Antalya province, positioned between the villages of Hacımusalar and Beyler. Also known as Beyler Höyük, the mound measures 350 by 300 meters with a height of 13 meters, originally located on a fertile plain beside a lake that was drained in the 1970s.

In antiquity, the settlement was known as Choma (Ancient Greek: Χῶμα), located in the interior of ancient Lycia. According to Pliny, it stood on the Aedesa River, while Ptolemy lists Choma as one of the four cities of Milyas in southwestern Anatolia, placing it near Candyba.

Surface surveys at the mound were conducted starting in 1949 by M. S. F. Hood and M. Mellink. Systematic excavation work began in 1994 under the direction of İlknur Özgen from Bilkent University.

The settlement shows signs of continuous occupation from the Neolithic period to the Middle Byzantine era. The strata identified during excavations include the Early Bronze Age, Roman, and Byzantine Iron Age.

Early Bronze Age architecture has been uncovered in trenches on the western slope of the mound. This architectural layer consists of megaron-like structures comparable to those found in Troy and other Western Anatolian Early Bronze Age sites.

Excavations in this sector yielded red and black burnished pottery fragments, terracotta figurines, a seal, spindle whorls, loom weights, and bronze pins.

At the center of the mound, a Byzantine church featuring mosaic floors and wall paintings was discovered. Described as a three-apse structure with a cemetery to its south, the church spanned 600 square meters even in its initial layout.

Ancient episcopal lists identifying Hacımusalar as a bishopric center support these architectural findings. Located in the Roman province of Lycia, the diocese was a suffragan of the metropolitan see of Myra.

Historical records preserve the names of several bishops associated with Choma. Pionius attended the First Council of Constantinople in 381, Eudoxius participated in the Council of Ephesus in 431 and the Council of Chalcedon in 451, and Nicolaus attended the Photian Council of Constantinople in 879.

Excavations revealed that the settlement was surrounded by a well-fortified wall. However, the fortifications were not renewed during the Byzantine period, a circumstance attributed to the site functioning primarily as a religious center inhabited by clergy.

Another Byzantine church excavated on the western side of the mound has suffered considerable damage due to illicit digging and the removal of construction materials.

Several excavated structures and architectural remains of the ancient city remain visible to visitors today.