SOLI POMPEIPOLIS ANCIENT CITY

Archaeological evidence points to a human presence in the area as early as 7000 BC at the Yumuktepe mound, 9 km northeast. The earliest known Luwian settlements and fortifications in Soli date to the 15th century BC, and the city was an active port from that time onwards.[3] Soli may have functioned as a port city of the Kingdom of Kizzuwatna, but this is debatable.[4] The region was under the control of the Hittite Empire between the 14th and 13th centuries BC, and Mycenaean bronzes and ceramics found indicate trade with the Aegean.[5][6] Following the end of the Bronze Age, the Mycenaean Civilization and the Hittite Empire collapsed. Hittite hegemony in Cilicia also ended, and Soli may have been subjected to attacks by the Sea Peoples. During the dark period between 1200 BC and 800 BC, drought, famine, and epidemics prevailed in Anatolia. Archaeological studies show that this "destruction layer" was filled with burnt and broken pottery, followed by a gap in human settlement.[3]