WHAT WE WILL SEE IN EPHESUS?
Stadium
The Stadium was located to the south of the Vedius Gymnasium. The
spectators' seats on the south was resting on the slopes of the
Mount Pion (Panayirdag). The seats on the northern section were
placed on the heightened vaulted galleries. There was a monumental
entrance gate to the Stadium on the west. Its last shape was mainly
given and enlarged during the Roman Emperor Neron's reign in the 1st
century A.D. As all Roman stadiums from the classical era, it was
planned in a U-shape then.
But none of the pieces of seating tiers were kept. They were used
the restorations of the other buildings in Ephesus and also in the
construction of the Basilica of St. John.
It was first built in the Hellenistic Age. It was purely used for
ceremonies and sports activities. But during the 3rd and 4th
centuries other than the sports activities and ceremonies, gladiator
and wild animal fights became very popular especially in Roman
Period. It is known that certain families, such as the Vedius, owned
gladiator schools.Also Christians were persecuted here and were
thrown to the lions. So when Christianity became the official
religion of Romans in 413 AD. they destroyed it and built the
Persecution Gate also as a symbol of these sufferings.
Church of Mary - The Double Churches
This Roman building is dated to the 2nd century A.D as the ‘Hall of
the Muses’. It was used as an education and cultural center. After
the christianity became the official religion of Rome, they
converted this building into a basilica. It was the first church
dedicated to the Virgin Mary.
It was 260 m. in length, and was built with columns in the form of a
fine basilica with baptistry. After it was partly destroyed, the
western part formed a domed basilica, and when this too was ruined,
the eastern part of the old basilica was turned into a church. So it
is also called as the Double Churches. The baptistry of this church
is the best preserved in Asia Minor.
The Third Ecumenical Council was held in Ephesus, Asia Minor, in 431
under Emperor Theodosius II, grandson of Theodosius the Great. It is
also known as the Council of Ephesus. Approximately 200 bishops
attended. Here, the divine character of Christ and the Virgin Mary
was discussed. Nestorius (380-451), the founder of the school of
Antioch and the Patriarchate of Istanbul, rejected the divine nature
of Christ and regarding Mary not as the mother of God but as the
mother of a human being. The Alexandrian school, on the other hand,
claimed the more mystical, more traditional view that Mary was the
mother of God and in the end Nestorius was sent exile. So at this
counsil it was decided that Christ had a double nature as God and
man, and the Virgin Mary was theotokos, god-bearer.
It was the first church dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Also the house
of Mary is over Panaya-Kapulu mountain, is the most beautiful
natural residence in this region.
Arcadian Street (Harbor Street)
This street is situated between the Harbour Baths and the great
theatre. Entering from the port, traders and sailors would first
arrive in this street. So it was designed gorgeous with marbel slabs
and colonnades. It was constructed in the Hellenistic Period, but
then was restored during the reign of the Emperor Arcadius (395-408
AD.), from whom it takes its present name.
The street was 530 meters long and 11 meters wide, and on both sides
of the street there were shops and galleries, and gates in the form
of monumental arches. There were four higher columns with the
statues of four apostels on the top.
It was one of the three lighted street at that time along with Rome
and Antioch.50 streetlights lit up its colonnades and water,
sewerage channels ran beneath the marble flagstones.
The first building near the theatre is called the Theatre Gymnasium.It
is a Second Century AD building with two floors and numerous rooms.It
was used for sports ground.
At the entrance of the port there were the Port Baths or the Harbour
Baths.They were built in the year 2 AD.The Baths are also called the
Baths of Constantine, for they were restored by Constantine II
(337-361). It was one of the largest building with 160 m wide, 170 m
long and 28 m high.
Theatre
This is the most magnificent structure in Ephesus ancient city. The
Great Theatre is located on the slope of Panayir Hill, opposite the
Harbor Street, and easily seen when entering from the south entrance
to Ephesus. It was first constructed in the Hellenistic Period, in
the third century BC during the reign of Lysimachos, but then during
the Roman Period, it was enlarged and formed its current style that
is seen today.
It is the largest in Anatolia and has the capacity of 25,000 seats.
The cavea has sixty six rows of seats, divided by two diazoma (walkway
between seats) into three horizontal sections. There are three
sections of seats. In the lower section, Marble pieces, used for
restoration, and the Emperor's Box were found. The seats with backs
,made of marble, were reserved for important people. The audience
entered from the upper cavea.
The stage building is three-storied and 18 meters high. The facade
facing the audience was ornamented with relieves, columns with
niches, windows and statues. There are five doors opening to the
orchestra area, the middle one of which is wider than the rest. This
enhanced the appearance of the stage, giving it a bigger, monumental
look.
The theatre was used not only for concerts and plays, but also for
religious, political and philosophical discussions and for gladiator
and animal fights.
Marble Road
It is the road starting form the great theatre to the Celsus Library,
which is the portion of the sacred way that leads past Panayirdagi
to the Temple of Artemis. The construction of the marble road dates
to the 1st century A.D, and it was rebuilt in the 5th century. The
western side of the road is enclosed by the agora wall, and on the
wall is a higher platform, which was constructed during the reign of
Nero. It was built over the wall, for pedestrians.
On the marble road, there are some drawings believed to be an
advertisement of the Brothel. This advertisement is known as the
first advertisement in history. There is a footprint on the
advertisement, one finger showing the library, and other showing the
brothel. The known explanation of this sign is that the footprint
shows that one should turn at that point; the woman's head
symbolizes the women waiting in the Brothel and the heart shows that
the women are eager for love. The busts and statues of the important
people were erected along the road, and the letters from emperors
were carved into the marble blocks to let people read.
Commercial Agora
Being the most important trade center of Ephesus, Agora was built in
the third century B.C in the Hellenistic Period, but the ruins date
from the reign of Caracalla (211-217 C.E)
It is in the form of a square, each side 110 meters, and surrounded
completely by columns. The Agora has 3 gates, one from the front of
the theatre on the northeast, the other one opening to the harbor on
the west and the third one from the Celsius Library. The north side
of the Agora is left open, and the other three sides are surrounded
by a portico, in which there are rows of shops. At the center of the
Agora was a sundial and a water-clock.
The Gate of Mazeus and Mythridates
The gate with three passage ways at the right of the Celsus Library
was built in 40 A.D by the slaves Mazeus and Mythridates for their
emperor, Augustus, who gave them their freedom.
The passages are vaulted, the front side of the vault facing the
Celsus Library is made of black marble, while the other side is
white. A Latin inscription with inlaid letters made of bronze is
still visible on one side of the structure. Part of the inscription
states: "From the Emperor Caesar Augustus, the son of the god, the
greatest of the priests, who was consul twelve and tribune twenty
times; and the wife of August Livia; the son of Lucus, Marc Agrippa
who was consul three times, Emperor, and tribune six times; and the
daughter of Julio Caesar Augustus, Mazeus and Mythridates to their
master and the people."
The small area in front of the gate was used as an auditorium. The
steps around the gate, in front of the library and the round
pedestal were used as seats. In Byzantine Period, the walls in the
small area were built when the city walls were reduced in length.
Celsus Library
This library is one of the most beautiful structures in Ephesus. It
was built in 117 A.D. It was a monumental tomb for Gaius Julius
Celsus Polemaeanus, the governor of the province of Asia; from his
son Galius Julius Aquila. The grave of Celsus was beneath the ground
floor, across the entrance and there was a statue of Athena over it.
Because Athena was the goddess of the wisdom.
The scrolls of the manuscripts were kept in cupboards in niches on
the walls. There were double walls behind the bookcases to prevent
the them from the extremes of temperature and humidity. The capacity
of the library was more than 12,000 scrolls. It was the third
richest library in ancient times after the Alexandra and Pergamum.
The facade of the library has two-stories, with Corinthian style
columns on the ground floor and three entrances to the building.
There is three windows openings in the upper story. They used an
optical trick that the columns at the sides of the facade are
shorter than those at the center, giving the illusion of the
building being greater in size.
The statues in the niches of the columns today are the copies of the
originals. The statues symbolize wisdom (Sophia), knowledge (Episteme),
intelligence (Ennoia) and valor (Arete). These are the virtues of
Celsus. The library was restored with the aid of the Austrian
Archaeological Institute and the originals of the statues were taken
to Ephesus Museum in Vienna in 1910.
There was an auditorium ,which was for lectures or presentations
between the library and the Marble Road, was built during the reign
of the Emperor Hadrian.
Brothel
A peristyle house on the corner of Curetes Street and the Marble
Road is known as the brothel, because in the excavations, a statue
of Priapus with an oversize phallus was found in the house. The
statue is now presented in Ephesus Museum.
The construction of the building dates to the Trajan (98-117 A.D.)
It has two entrances, one from the Marble Road and one from the
Curetes Street. It has a hall on the first floor , and on the second
floor there are number of small rooms. On the west side of the house
there is a reception area with colored mosaics on the floor,
symbolizing the four season. The chamber next to it is the bath of
the house with an elliptical pool. On the floor of the pool, there
is a mosaic describing three women eating and drinking, a waitress
standing, a mouse and a cat nibbling crumbs.
Latrines
They were part of the Scholastica Baths and built in the 1C AD. They
were the public toilets of the city. There was an entrance fee to
use them.
In the centre, there is an uncovered pool and the toilets are
aligned along the walls. The columns surrounding the pool supported
a wooden ceiling. There was a drainage system under the toilets.
Fountain of Trajan
Built in around 104 C.E, it is one of the finest monuments in
Ephesus. It was constructed for the honor of Emperor Trajan, and the
statue of Trajan stood in the central niche on the facade
overlooking the pool.
The pool of the fountain of Trajan was 20x10 meters, surrounded by
columns and statues. These statues were Dionysus, Satyr, Aphrodite
and the family of the Emperor. They are now presented in Ephesus
Museum. The restoration has not been finished yet.
The Baths of Scholastica
It was built in the First Century and restored in the Fourth Century
by a rich Christian lady called Scholastica. On the left of the
eastern entrance, you can see her statue without head.
The original structure was thought to have been three-storied but by
the time the upper two stories collapsed. The baths have two
entrances, one from the Curetes Street, which is the main entrance,
and the other from the side street. When you enter you see first the
dressing room (apodyterium) with ten cabins,then cold room (frigidarium)
with its pool,and then the warm room (tepidarium) to relax, and
finally the hot room (caldarium) with its developed heating system.The
second floor was used for masseage and scrubbe as a therapy.
It was used not only to bathe but also to socialize and discuss the
topics of the day.The importance of discussing in the bath is well-known
and effective developing of Roman philosophy.
The custom of Roman baths was continued during the Byzantine era and
with the arriving of the Turks reached its heyday.During the times
of the Ottomans, it won another dimension.It is recommend you to
visit one of the traditional Turkish Bath to feel this culture.
Temple of Hadrian
It is one of the best preserved and most beautiful structures on
Curetes Street. It was built before 138 A.D by P.Quintilius and was
dedicated to the Emperor Hadrian, who came to visit the city from
Athens in 128 A.D The facade of the temple has four Corinthian
columns supporting a curved arch, in the middle of which contains a
relief of Tyche, goddess of victory. The side columns are square.
The pedestal with inscriptions in front of the temple, are the bases
for the statues of the emperors between 293-305 CE, Diocletian,
Maximian, Constantius I, and Galerius; the originals of the statues
have not been found yet.
Inside the temple above the door, a human figure, probably Medusa
stands with ornaments of acanthus leaves. On both sides there are
friezes depicting the story of the foundation of Ephesus - Androklos
shooting a boar, Dionysus in ceremonial procession and the Amazons.
The fourth frieze portrays two male figures, one of which is Apollo;
Athena, goddess of the moon; a female figure, Androkles, Herakles,
the wife and son of Theodosius and the goddess Athena. The friezes
that are seen today are copies, and the originals are displayed in
Ephesus Museum.
Emperor Hadrian was one of the Five of Good Emperors. The Five Good
Emperors is a term that refers to five consecutive emperors of the
Roman Empire— Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus
Aurelius. The term is first coined by the political philosopher,
Niccolò Machiavelli in 1532. Publius Aelius Hadrianus was born on 24
January AD 76, probably at Rome, though his family lived in Italica
in Baetica. Emporor Trajan was his cousin. Hadrian was schooled in
various subjects particular to young aristocrats of the day, and was
so fond of learning Greek literature that he was nicknamed Graeculus
("Little Greek").Hadrian was active in the wars against the Dacians
and reputedly won awards from Trajan for his successes. Due to an
absence of military action in his reign, Hadrian's military skill is
not well attested, however his keen interest and knowledge of the
army and his demonstrated skill of administration show possible
strategic talent.
Hadrian appears to have been a man of mixed sexual interests. The
Historia Augusta criticizes both his liking of goodlooking young men
as well as his adulteries with married women.It is belived that he
tried to poison his wife. When it comes to Hadrian's homosexuality,
then the accounts remain vague and unclear. Most of the attention
centres on the young Antinous, whom Hadrian grew very fond of.
Statues of Antinous have survived, showing that imperial patronage
of this youth extended to having sculptures made of him. In AD 130
Antinous accompanied Hadrian to Egypt. It was on a trip on the Nile
when Antinous met with an early and somewhat mysterious death.
Officially, he fell from the boat and drowned.
Hadrian died in 138 on the tenth day of July, in his villa at Baiae
at age 62. However, the man who had spent so much of his life
traveling had not yet reached his journey's end. He was buried first
at Puteoli, near Baiae, on an estate which had once belonged to
Cicero. Soon after, his remains were transferred to Rome and buried
in the Gardens of Domitia, close by the almost-complete mausoleum.
Upon the completion of the Tomb of Hadrian in Rome in 139 by his
successor Antoninus Pius, his body was cremated, and his ashes were
placed there together with those of his wife Vibia Sabina and his
first adopted son, Lucius Aelius, who also died in 138. Antoninus
also had him deified in 139 and given a temple on the Campus Martius.
Ephesus Terrace Houses
Ephesus terrace houses are located on the hill, opposite the Hadrian
Temple. Also called as "the houses of rich", important for the
reason give us information about family life during the Roman period.
They were built according to the Hippodamian plan of the city in
which roads transected each other at right angels.
There are six residential units on three terraces at the lower end
of the slope of the Bulbul Mountain. The oldest building dates back
into the 1C BC and continued in use as residence until the 7C AD.
Ephesus terrace houses are covered with protective roofing which
resembles Roman houses. The mosaics on the floor and the frescos
have been consolidated and two houses have been opened to the public
as a museum.
They had interior courtyards (peristyle) in the center, with the
ceiling open. They were mostly two-storied, upper stores have
collapsed during time. On the ground floor there were living and
dining rooms opening to the hall, and upstairs there were bedrooms
and guest rooms.
The heating system of the terrace houses were the same as that in
baths. Clay pipes beneath the floors and behind the walls carried
hot air through the houses. The houses also had cold and hot water.
The rooms had no window, only illuminated with light coming from the
open hall, so that most of the rooms were dim. The excavations of
the terrace houses started in 1960. The restoration of the two of
the houses have been finished and can be visited today.
Curetes Street
It is one of the three main streets of Ephesus between The Hercules
Gate till to the Celsus Library.This street took its name from the
priests who were called as Curetes later.Their names were written in
Prytaneion.
There were fountains, monuments, statues and shops on the sides of
the street. The shops on the south side were two-storied. Ephesus
had many earthquakes, in which many structures including the Curetes
Street were damaged. These damages especially on the columns were
restored by the new ones, but after the earthquake in the 4th
century, the columns were replaced by the other ones brought from
different buildings in the city. The differences between the design
of the columns can be seen today. The street has its appearance from
the 4th century.
There were also many houses on the slope.These were used by the rich
of Ephesians.Under the houses there were colonnaded galleries with
mosaics on the floor were located in front of the shops with a roof
to protect the pedestrians from sun or rain.
Hercules Gate
Located towards the end of the Curetes Street, it was called the
Hercules gate because of the relief of Hercules on it. It was
brought from another place in the fourth century AD to its current
place, but the relief on it dates back to the second century AD.
Only the two side of the columns remain today and the other parts of
it have not been found. The relief of the flying Nike in the
Domitian Square is thought to also be a part of this gate.
The Heracles Gate narrowed the access to the street, preventing the
passage of vehicles.We can understand that from the Fourth Century,
the street had become a pedestrian area.
In these reliefs Heracles was depicting with the skin of the Nemean
lion in myhtology. The Nemean lion had been terrorizing the area
around Nemea, and had a skin so thick that it was impossible to kill
it. Finally he wrestled the lion to the ground, eventually killing
it by thrusting his arm down its throat and choking it to death.
Heracles was the god of power and strenght.
Memmius Monument
This Monument is situated on the north side of the Domitian Square.
It was constructed during the reign of Augustus in the 1st century
A.D by Memmius, the grand son of dictator Sulla. One can see the
figures of his father and grandfather on the blocks today. The
structure has four facades, in the 4th century A.D, a square
fountain was built on the northwest facade.
Dictator Sulla was a hero for the Romans in Ephesus.When the taxes
were too high in Ephesus they were fed up with the yoke of Rome.They
needed a miracle and it was Mithridates of the Pontic Empire on the
Black Sea Coast.His famous motto was ‘Asia for Asiatic’. He killed
80,000 Romans with his army.Three years after his revolt, the Roman
army, under the command of Sulla, conquered Mithridates and brought
security.This monument was built to remind this conquer in 87BC
Temple of Domitian
Located to the south end of the Domitian Street, it is the first
structure in Ephesus known to be dedicated to an emperor. It was
built on a high and wide terrace set by 50x100 meters in size, on
vaulted foundations. The northern size of the terrace seems to be
two-stories high, reached by stairs. The stairs are still visible
today.
The temple, built in pro-style plan, had eight columns on the short
side and thirteen columns on the long side, and four additional
columns in front of the cella. At the northern side there was an u-shaped
altar, which is now displayed in Izmir museum.
It was in the reign of Domitian that an emperor gave permission to
built an Emperor Temple; that is the permission to be the 'neocoros'
for the first time, which was a great honor for a city.
When the unpopular emperor was killed by his servant, public quickly
took vengeance and erased his name from many inscriptions. However
in order to not lose its neocoros status , the Ephesians re-dedicated
the temple to Vespasian, the father of Domitian.
Prytaneion
Behind the basilica is the Prytaneion, where religious ceremonies ,
official receptions and banquets were held. The sacred flame
symbolizing the heart of Ephesus was kept constantly alight in the
Prytaneion. The construction of the building dates to the 3rd
century B.C, during the reign of Lysimachos, but the ruins of the
complex dates to the Augustan age.
The four-cornered pit in which the sacred fire is burned is a relic
from the reign of Lysimachos. The front of the building is four
columns, beyond the columns is a courtyard surrounded by a portico,
and on the north is the center of the building, the ceremonial hall,
and its side rooms. The eternal flame was here in the center of the
ceremonial hall, the red color on the floor determined the location
of the flame. Towards the back, there was a large area with wooden
roof, the base of an altar is still recognizable today.
The double columns on the corners of the hall held up the wooden
roof. During excavations, archeologists found 2 artemis statues,
which are now presented in Ephesus museum.
Odeon (Bouleuterion)
This building has the shape of a small theatre with the stage
building, seating places and the orchestra.It had double function in
use. First it was used as a Bouleuterion for the meetings of the
Boulea or the Senate. The second fuction was the Odeum as a concert
hall for the performances.It was constructed in the 2nd century A.D
by the order of Publius Vedius Antonius and his wife Flavia paiana,
two wealthy citizens in Ephesus.
It had a capacity of 1500 spectators. It had 3 doors opening from
the stage to the podium. The podium was narrow and one meter higher
than the orchestra section. The stage building was two-storeyed and
embellished with columns.The podium in front of the stage building
and some parts of the seating were restored. The Odeon used to be
enclosed with a wooden roof.
Two councils administrated Ephesus. These were Demos or the
parliament which was open to the public was taken place in the great
theatre and the Bouleia which gathered in this small theatre. The
members of the boulea were chosen from the aristocratic class of
Ephesians. The most important decisions and city matters were
discussed here.
State Agora
The agora on the southern part of the Basilica is the State Agora,
and was built in the Roman Period in the first century B.C. This
agora was used not for commerce but for business, it played an
important role as a meeting place for the governmental discussions.
During the excavations in the northeast corner of the Agora were
found a great number of graves from the 7th-6th centuries B.C and a
stone-paved road, and a archaic sarcophagus of terra cotta. From
this it is understood that in the archaic period this part of the
Agora was used as the necropolis of Ephesus. There is a water
reservoir at the corner of the Agora, which played an important role
in Ephesus. Its water was brought to the city through the Pollio
Aqueduct, the remains of the Pollio Aqueduct can be seen 5
kilometers away, along the Selçuk-Aydin highway.
The agora is 160x73 meters, with stoas on three sides and a temple
in the center, dating from the 1st century A.D The temple was
dedicated to Isis, surrounded by ten columns on the long side and 6
on the short side. It was collapsed during the reign of Augustus and
was not re-built again, as Emperor Augustus' dislike of anything
Egyptian. On the facade of the Temple, there were group of statues
describing the legend of Odysseus and Polyphemos which are now
displayed in the Ephesus Museum.
Magnesian Gate
There were three entrances to Ephesus; The Magnesian Gate (on the
road the house of Mother Mary), the Koressos Gate (at the back of
the Stadium) and the harbor.
Engineer and architect J.T Wood discovered the Magnesian gate around
1869 during his search for the Temple of Artemis. The original
building was possibly erected in the Doric order with a passageway
3.70m wide and an almost square courtyard on the city side.
