This
enclosure for archaeological remains at
Ephesus elegantly reconciles historic
conservation with accessibility for visitors.
The site of a succession of great ancient
civilizations, Ephesus, on the
south-west coast of modern Turkey, embodied
a peculiarly fertile synthesis of architecture
and culture. In 356BC the Greeks built
the Artemesium (a colossal Ionic temple
dedicated to Artemis the fertility goddess)
which was one of the Seven Wonders of
the ancient world. During the 2nd century
BC, Ephesus was the fourth largest city
in the eastern Roman Empire, famous for
its Artemesium, the Library of Celsus
and its medical school.
Quoted from Catherine Slessor's
Housing History.
Ephesus;
Ancient Greek city of Asia Minor, near
the mouth of the Menderes River, in what
is today West Turkey, South of Smyrna
(now Izmir). One of the greatest of the
Ionian cities, it became the leading seaport
of the region. Its wealth was proverbial.
The Greek city was near an old center
of worship of a native nature goddess,
who was equated with the Greek Artemis,
and c.550 B.C. a large temple was built.
To this Croesus, who captured the city,
contributed.
When Lydians attacked their cities, Ephesians defended themselves by tying a rope from The Temple of Artemis. But it was not a good way to defend a city. Croesus of Lydia captured it easily however he did not destroy. The city reached the "Golden Age" and became a good model to the Antic World in culture and art, as well. Building of the Artemission was going on.Croesus had a great respect to Artemis and he donated 36 columns with sculptures in relief. Some parts of these sculptures are in the British Museum today.
From
Lydian control Ephesus passed to the Persian
Empire. The temple was burned down in
the 4th cent. B.C., but rebuilding was
begun before Alexander the Great took
Ephesus in 334. The city continued to
thrive during the wars of his successors,
and after it passed (133) to the Romans
it kept its hegemony and was the leading
city of the province of Asia. The great
temple of Artemis, or Artemis, called
by the Romans the temple of Diana, was
considered one of the Seven Wonders of
the World. From c.100 B.C. to c. A.D.
100 Ephesus was the world capital of the
slave trade.
The
city was sacked by the Goths in A.D. 262,
and the temple was destroyed. The seat
of a church council in 431, Ephesus was
abandoned after the harbor silted up.
Excavations (1869-74) of the ruins of
the temple brought to light many artifacts.
Later excavations uncovered important
Roman and Byzantine remains.
Quoted from The Columbia
Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001.
In
a Christian version of a widespread story,
martyrs immured in a cave near Ephesus
during the persecutions by Decius (c.250).
Long afterward, in the 5th cent., they
awoke (as from sleep) and were taken before
Theodosius II, Roman emperor of the east.
Their story reassured the emperor, who
had been wavering in his faith. The youths
returned to their cave, to sleep again
until Judgment. The story, thought to
be of Syrian origin, was popularized by
Gregory of Tours. Feast: July 27.
Quoted from The Columbia
Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001.
