The colorful Skylla Group statues from the Hellenistic period, uncovered during the ongoing excavations at the ancient city of Laodicea in the Pamukkale district of Denizli, have excited archaeologists due to their original paints having been preserved to the present day.
Significant remnants have been unearthed during the ongoing excavations at the ancient city of Laodicea, located in the Pamukkale archaeological site and built in the 3rd century BC as one of the cities of Anatolia. This year, during the excavations in the area of the West Theater of the ancient city, the statue of Asclepius, the god of medicine in Greek and Roman mythology, and the head of the statue of his daughter Hygieia were found. Now, during the restoration excavations of the theater stage building, colorful Skylla Group statues reflecting the Baroque style of the Hellenistic period and preserving their original paints have been discovered. These statues, which have excited archaeologists, have been added to the inventory; the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, shared these significant remnants on his social media account.
In his post, Minister Ersoy stated, "Our 'Legacy to the Future' initiative, which is the most comprehensive and ambitious project in Turkish archaeology, continues to bear fruit. During the ongoing restoration work of the stage building as part of the Legacy to the Future Laodicea project, unique and colorful Skylla Group statues have been discovered. These extraordinary statues are very important as they are rare artifacts reflecting the Baroque style of the Hellenistic period and have reached us with their original paints. I wholeheartedly thank the excavation team working on the project."