Who built the ancient rock tombs in Anatolia, Turkey?

The tombs were built in about 350 BC by the Lycians, a group of people who lived in this region of Turkey thousands of years ago. Carved into the side of a Turkish mountain are what look to be the entrances to countless temples, but are in fact the ornate facade of ancient Lycian tombs. The Lycians believed that their dead were carried to the afterlife by magic winged creatures and thus they placed their honored dead in geographically high places such as the cliffside.

The originality of Lycian art is special among that of ancient Anatolia, expressed especially in its funeral architecture, reliefs and sculpture. Though is was impacted by a variety of foreign influences, it retained a typically Lycian character.

One thing that sets Lycian tombs apart from Hellenistic tradition is that whereas in Hellenistic culture the dead were placed outside of liveable areas (often flanking main roads into the cities), Lycian tombs are often integrated right into cities.