Ionians arriving from the nearby islands and Western Anatolia built bases (emporium) to manage the trade oriented activities at Kelenderis as well as Nagidos. Antique sources also show that the city was Colonized by people of Samos. Kelenderis enjoyed its first splendour during the 4th and 5th milleniums BC. During this period, Kelenderis was the furthest east located member of the Attik - Delos Marine Union which was established under the leadership of Athenians against the Persians. Rich graves discovered during the excavations show that the city had developed relations with the western world without becoming estranged to the eastern culture. Kelenderis was in a political coalition with the kingdom of Ptolemayos which was established in Egypt during the Hellenistic era, and faced severe difficulties under the pressure from the piracy of the 1st century BC. Kelenderis also took part in the military actions arranged by Romans against the pirates, and enjoyed its second high period when the Romans achieved the security of the Mediterranean marine trade routes. During the Middle Ages, the city was dominated first by Byzantium and then the Seljuks and until the beginning of the 20th century was an important port for marine transportation between Anatolia and Cyprus.
The number of remains reaching us from the Ancient Kelenderis are very few. City walls are from Middle Ages. The Port Bath was most probably built during 4th or 5th centuries. The theater apparently belongs to the Roman era. In the graveyards of the city, rock graves, vaulted graves and pyramid roofed monumental graves can be seen spanning a period from 6th millenium B.C up to the 4th century. The majority of the items displayed at the museum are from these graves. The floor mosaic discovered in 1992 is an exceptional example in depicting the panaroma of the city as it stood in the 5th century.