The inscription published here for the first time was recovered by chance during routine work in the Hisariçi quarter of Alanya in 2007. The limestone lintel, on which the inscription is engraved, was reused in the wall of a cistern. The inscription is now housed at the Alanya Archaeological Museum. The beginning of each of its three lines is missing, thus depriving us of important information.The inscription in medieval Greek is as follows:[...] to fortify and protect the ciftyj in all directions, against the incursions of the barbarians[.. J of the enemies... accomplished it rapidly and with great enthusiasm[.. J named [...], that his inheritance may go again to his inheritors as their rights; year of6078 (=AD 1199), month of DecemberhThe inscription commemorates the repair of the city's fortifications by a person whose name and position are mentioned in the missing part. According to the inscription, the patron hurried in order to complete the work on the fortifications in the face of the approaching 'barbarian' threat. As this inscription from Alanya is certainly dated to 6078 of the Byzantine calendar, which corresponds to A.D. 1199, what were the historical conditions in Asia Minor in general and at Kalanoros in particular? Who repaired the city's fortifications? And who was the enemy threatening the city?This was a Byzantine province of strategic importance, well worth controlling for their own purposes; for the Seljuks it was the only way to set sail on the open seas; for the Armenians it was a matter of national death or life in the bosom of a new state. On the other hand Cilicia and its neighbouring lands had fertile land and important ports on trade routes. Controlling this area meant controlling the routes from Central Asia as well as the sea trade in this part of the Mediterranean Sea. The inscription does not seem not to be an imperial one of the Byzantines. It cannot have originated from a Byzantine strategos because it wishes that the heritage (i.e. the city and its environs) of the patron might pass onto his heirs. As a rule, however, a Byzantine military governor could not pass his position and rights to his heirs.The Chronicle by Constable Smpad (1208-1276) of the Kingdom of Lesser Armenia sheds light on the chaotic political situation of the region. Kalonoros was an Armenian suzerainty under Leon I, outside the sphere of Byzantine rule, and was ruled by a baron called Kyr Vart already in 1198. As a baron he had the right to pass on his land and titles to his heirs, which makes the wish in the third line reasonable.Who were these barbarians, so frightful? As the inscription is in Greek, they could not be the Byzantines. Naturally, the term 'barbarians' did not point to the Armenians because Kalonoros was ruled by an Armenian. Therefore the only choice is the Seljuks - which is further supported by the chronicle of the Armenian historian.