The fortress located in downtown Silifke District, Mersin, looks like a Middle Ages fortress due to renovations it underwent. However, it is claimed that it was settled during the Hellenistic and Roman Periods as well.
The construction was started by the same architect with Korykos Fortress. Along with Korykos, this fortress served as an accommodation space for those who set off from Istanbul for pilgrimage.
There are arched galleries, cisterns, warehouses and remains of other structures present in the oval-shaped, 185 meters-tall fortress, which was surrounded by moats.
In his Seyahatname, Evliya Celebi states that the fortress had 23 bastions, a mosque and around 60 houses. Some of the structures were built in the 7th century and some others were built in the 11th century.