Sunday, October 30th, 2011-Day 5 -Ephesus in Turkey was constructed on a river bend, that was eventually made into a harbor on the western coast of Asia Minor.



Before the birth of Christ



5th-3rd millennia Oldest places of settlement in the area around Ephesus.

2nd half of 14th century King Mursilis II. of the Hittites beat Apasa, Myceanaean findings on the Ayasuluk Hill.

11th century Greeks came to Anatolia and called themselves Ionian. Androclus settled in Ephesus where the local peple Carian lived.

9th century Certain existence of the Sanctuary of Artemis.

8th century Cimmerian invasion.

7th century Lydians captured Ephesus.

around 560 Lydian Croesus gained influence in Ephesus : building of the arcaic shrine of Artemis, new layout of the city in the surrounding area.

around 550 Democracy introduced to Ephesians by Aristarchus of Athen.

546 The Median general Harpagus took the conrol of this region and Persian supremacy

466 Ephesus joined the Attaic sea alliance.

356 Herostratus burned the Artemis Temple on the very night when Alexander the Great was born.

334 Alexander the Great liberated all Greek cities and gave priviledges to Ephesians building the new temple

319-281 Ephesus changed its rulerseveral times during the Diadochian wars. The city was renamed as Arsinoeia by King Lysimachus and moved its new side between two mountains.

281 Death of Lysimachus. Ephesus under the rule of the Seleucids.

133 Attalus III bequeathed his kingdom to Romans. Establishment of the Province of Asia.

89/88 The Ephesians welcomed the king of Pontus, Mithridates VI Eupathor, as savior. 80,000 Romans were killed.

84 L. Cornelius Sulla held a trial of the people guilty in 88 BC.

74 First visit of M. Tullius Cicero to Ephesus.

73 L. Licinius Lucullus governor of Ephesus.

41 Mark Antony entered Ephesus with Cleopatra of Egypt. Arsinoe IV, Cleopatra’s sister, was murdered.

29 The geographer Strabo came in Ephesus.

After the birth of Christ



23 An earthquake shook the city and caused much damage; reconstruction partly with imperial help.

52-55 Paul came to Ephesus two times and gave daily talks in the school [auditorium] of Ty·ran´nus for two years.



82 1st temple guardianship (Neokoros), the Imperial Temple of the Flavian dynasty erected.

96 The Temple of Domitian was rededicated to Vespasian.

113-114 Emperor Trajan visited Ephesus.

124, Aug. 29th Emperor Hadrian’s first visit to Ephesus.

262 A major earthquake hit Ephesus.The Artemis Temple was destroyed by Goths.

431 The Fourth Ecumenical Council took place in Ephesus. Mary was declared as Theotokos (Mother of God)

around 530 The pilgrims guide of Theodosius mentioned the Seven Sleepers sanctuary.

Mid 6th century Justinian built the great basilica of St. John

654/655 Arab attacked.

around 1300 Aydinogullari, Turkish tribe domination.

around 15th century Ottoman Empire.

1863-74 J.T. Wood, the British railway engineer came and dug in Ephesus.

1904-05 D.G Hogarth excavated here on behalf of the British Museum.

1921-22 Austrian Archaeological Institute worked.

1995- Austrian archaeologists have been carrying on with Turkish team.



 The number of people living at Ephesus to have exceeded 250,000 , which would have made it the 4th largest city in its day behind Rome, Alexandria and Antioch.



The pilars like the one behind me are beautiful and made out of marble and different types of granite.  I am amazed at their ability to make these pillars so round and smooth.




Architecture of the Roman period




I am thoroughly enjoying this excursion of Ephesus, what history there is here. It is hard to believe that Bill and I are seeing architecture that dates back before Christ.



Ephesus which was established as a port, was used to be the most important commercial center.  It played a great role in Ancient times with its strategic location.  Located on a very fertile valley. It was a religious center of the early Christianity and today Ephesus is an important tourism center in Turkey.

The Tetragonos Agora, the square surrounded by colonnaded porticoes, was created in the 3rd century B.C. over a large flat area, but has been reconstructed several times recycling the existing decorative architectual elements, starting form the first imperial age and up to the 4th century A.D.







Roman sculptures.




Interesting FACT: The famous shoe and sports equipment is named after the Greek goddess NIKE.




Remember  Nike (mythology)the greek goddess who personified victory, also known as the winged goddess.  The Roman equivalent was Victoria.  She was described as the daughter of Pallas (Titan). Nike and her siblings were close companions of Zeus, the dominant deity of the Greek pantheon.  According to the myth, Styx brought them to Zeus when the god was assembling allies from the Titan War agaisnt the older deities.  Nike assumed the role of the divine charioteer, a role in which she often is protrayed in Classical Greek art.  Nike flew around battlefieds rewarding the victors with glory and fame. She is the goddess of strength, speed and victory.




The colonnaded street known as the "Arcadian"  which leads from the area of the theatre to the harbour, was part of the layout of the first Imperial Age.  From the period of emperor Arcadius (398-408 A.D.).  The columns set on round pedestals richly decorated with niches bearing Christian symbols were erected.







The Statues were very well preserved except for this one missing the head, we were not told about this particular statue.
known as the "HEADLESS STATUE".





Greek writings found on this stone.



The Nymphaeum.. of Trajan. The triangular pediment of the central intercoluminiation.  It was dedicated to the emperor Trajan. The sculpture consists of Dionysus, Aphrodite, a Satyr, and statues of the imperial family. Etc.



Another picture of the Nymphaeum...of TRAJAN.




There is a mixture of Roman and Greek Architecture, the Romans used smaller stones to build and their pillars where also different from the Greeks.  There were alot of CATS everywhere in EPHESUS.  They just rome the streets and the tourists feed them whatever snacks they have.




Mosaic found on the floors of the emperors estates.





Emperior 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, Antonius Pius and Marcus Aurelius.  Hadrian was schooled in various subjects particular to young aristocrats of the day, and was fond of learning Greek Literature.  He was active in the wars agaisnt the Dacians and won awards from Trajan for his successes.  He was a man of mixed sexual interests.  The historia Augusta criticized both his liking of goodlooking young men as well as his adulteries with married women.  He tried to poison his wife.  When it comes to his homosexuality accounts remain unclear. Hadrian died 138 A.D at the age of 62
TEMPLE OF HADRAIN- is one of the most beautiful and well preserved structures on the Curetes Street.  It was built before 138 A.D. and was dedicated to the emperor Hadrian, who came to visit the city from Athens in 128 A.D. Inside the temple above the door is a human figure, probably Medusa stands with ornaments of acanthus leaves.  There are friezes depicting the story of the foundation of Ephesus.



Guess what this is?  Medusa from Mythology

Too close for comfort for me.

Yes. these are really public toilets that they used.  Wow, talk about privacy.

The Celsus 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.  The grave of Celsius was beneath the ground floor, across the entrance and there was a statue of Athena over it.  Athena was the goddess of wisdom. The scrolls of the manuscripts were kept in cupboards in niches on the walls. There were double walls behind the bookcases to prevent them from extreme temperature and humidity.  The library held 12,000 scrolls.  It was the thrid riches library in ancient times after Alexandra and Pergamum. 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.  It was restored by the Austrian Archaeological institute and the orignal statues were taken to the Ephesus Museum in Vienna in 1910.

This is the Stadium and we are sitting in the seats on the south resting slopes of Mount Pion. The Stadium was enlarged  during the Roman Emperor Neron's reign in the 1st century A.D.  It is planned in a U-shape.  None of the seating tiers were kept.  They were used for the restoration of the other buildings in Ephesus and for the construction of the Basilica of St. John.  John would preach Christianity in this Stadium, and we were there and imagining what that would have been like to live in those times.

There is a monumental entrance gate to the west of the Stadium.  Its last shape was given and enlarged during the Roman era.

The Theatre one of the largest of the ancient world could seat 25,000 spectators.



Seating in the Theatre is very coarse, so spectators would have been uncomfortable after long periods in the stadium.



The Stadium and its stage were built in the Hellenistic Age. During the 1st century A.D., the building was enriched and enlarged, a new stage was installed with richly decorated columns in two rows.  The Orchestra pit was enlarged and the cavea was built in marble.  The theatre  was purely used for ceremonies and sports activites.  But during the 3rd and 4th centuries gladiator and animal fights became very popular especially in the Roman period.  Christians were persecuted here and were thrown to the lions.  Christianity became the official religion of Romans in 413 A.D. An earthquake struck the city in 262 A.D. destroying much of the theatre.

They gave the tourists a performance of what the shows, dances and fights would have been like (it lasted about 15 min).  It looked so real with the back drop being the roman architecture in the background.

dances

The procession of the Roman emperor and his herim

The soldiers march

more dancing



Roman Soldier.



Gladiator fights



They really made it look like real fighting-WOW!!



This camel and his owner were just outside the shops as we entered to visit the Virgin Marys Shrine.Oct 30th, Sunday-Day 7.

This was so cool to sit on this camel.  We had to pay the man to just sit.  It he had the camel stand then he would ask for more money.  So Bill and I were just happy with this shot.

Camels are very interesting they have quit the attitude and I was always fearful that it was going to spit at us.

Look at the back legs how it tucks them underneath to sit.

Ephesus, Turkey- the place you read about in the scriptures. This is the place Mary lived untill she passed away.

This is where the Roman baths were as we walked to Mary's home.

This statue of Mary was also on the path towards Marys home.

Located on the top of the "Bulbul" mountain 9 km ahead of Ephesus, the shrine of Virgin Mary enjoys a marvelous atmosphere hidden in the green.  It is the place where Mary may have spent her last days, indeed, she may have come in the area together with Saint John, who spent several years in the area to spread Christianity.  Mary preferred this remote place rather than living in a crowded place.

The original 2 story house, which consisted of an anteroom (where today candles are proposed), bedroom and praying room (Christian church area) and a room with a fireplace (chapel for Muslims).  A front kitchen fell into ruins and has been restored in the 1940's.  Today only the central part and a room on the right of the altar are open to visitors.  From there one can understand that this building looks more like a church than a house.

Paul VI was the first pope to visit this place in the 1960's.  Later, in the 1980's, during his visit, Pope John-Paul II declared the Shrine of Virgin Mary as a Pilgrimage place for Christians.  It is also visited by Muslims who recognize Mary as the mother of one of their prophets.  Every year, on August 15th a ceremony is organized to commemorate Mary's Assumption.

The house is a typical Roman architectural example, entirely made of stones.  In the 4th century AD, a church, combining her house and grave has been built. 

Steps leading down from Marys home to where the holy water was pouring out of fountains.

People who would visit would light candles and leave lit in remembrance of her.

Another interesting place is the "Water of Mary", a source to be found at the exit of the church area and where a rather salt water, with curative properties, can be drunk by all.

This wall is filled with white scrapes of paper that people would tie on in remembrance of the Virgin Mary.

Walking back past the Roman baths

Shop at the entrance of the Virgin Marys home.  I just browsed through but did not buy anything.

Tourists shopping in the open shops along the walk way to the Virgin Marys home.

Here I am, just walking around and waiting for our tour group to meet together so we can leave to go to our next destination.

Statue of Mary in Ephesus