Arykanda was a rich but remote city built upon five large terraces high on a mountain slope, today located near the small modern village of Aykiriçay on the Elmalı-Finike road.

Arycanda is known to be one of the old Lycian cities, as its name ends with -anda, indicative of its Anatolian origin; dating as far back as the 2nd millennium BC.

Archaeological evidence suggests it became a town in the third century BC, when it gained typically Greek monuments including an agora, bouleuterion, a small stadium, temples and eventually a beautiful theatre.

[3] It had no city walls to defend it, only a single watchtower at the highest point of the town being a potentially defensive feature.

In 2017 an prestigious Roman house overlooking the city with eight large rooms and dating from the 5th c. AD was discovered[6] which was destroyed by a fire in 435.