Day Sixteen (Sunday)

Ephesus, Turkey

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Once we had gone through the House of the Virgin Mary we were given ten minutes to get back to the bus. That was enough time for a quick potty break and not enough time to get distracted by the souvenirs being sold by some of the locals. Back on the bus it was only a short ride to the main archaeological site at Ephesus. Ephesus already existed at the time of the Hittites. It was later conquered by Alexander the Great when he defeated the Persians. A couple hundred years later the Romans took it from the Greeks. Then the Romans lost it to the Goths in 262 AD. After that the city slowly died as the river silted over and the better farmland migrated down into the valley below.

The marketplace

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This was the marketplace of the Ancient Greeks. What makes archaeology very difficult for those excavating Ephesus is the fact that there are so very many layers of history buried underground. As the archaeologists dig they go through Turkish, Ottoman, Medieval tribes, Roman, Greek, Persian and Hittite zones of occupancy. After a fire the Romans might reuse some of the old stone and marble to build a new structure on top of the previous one. The same piece of stone may have been used by the Ottomans who took it from an old Roman building while that Roman's may have taken that same piece from a deeply buried Greek edifice. The Greeks may have borrowed that stone from an earlier Hittite or Persian building or even brought it from elsewhere in Turkey. Like Delphi in Greece, many of the stones and columns were hauled away and used elsewhere over the centuries.

An immense jigsaw puzzle

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This is just a miniscule part of this immense site. There are toppled columns everywhere. We walked more than a mile from end to end of the excavated area and saw broken statues, columns and foundations all along the way. Historians estimate that they have uncovered less than 10% of the ancient city.

Job security for the local archaeologists

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The tour guide's hand is pointing to the acres of land that have yet to be explored by the experts. Most of the area he was pointing to is believed to have been where the homes and farms were located but no one knows for sure.

Main Street

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The main drag through Ephesus was surrounded on both sides by all manner of government and religious buildings. In this part of town we were leaving the market area and headed toward where the docks were once located. I think these columns were part of the Temple of Domitian.

More ruins

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In this area of town we could see the stonework of the Greeks situated a few feet lower than the brickwork of the Romans. During the Roman occupancy Ephesus grew to a population of over 200,000 people. That made it the fourth largest city in the Roman Empire. At one point it was the capital of the Roman\'s Asian Empire. This area was the Prytaneion, the sacred flame was kept. Religious ceremonies and official diplomatic receptions were held here.

Monument of Memmius

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This was a tribute to a great Roman soldier. A fountain once flowed out of it.

Near the Gates of Hercules

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I could have taken a million photos in this interesting town. As it was, I took close to 50 and now forget what many of them were.

The Gates of Hercules

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This is the view looking back at the Gate of Hercules as we started down the Street of Curetes. The figures depicted on the columns are supposed to be Hercules. This was one of the later additions to the city as it was erected in the 4th Century AD.

Street of Curetes

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Now we are headed down the main avenue of Ephesus. It was beginning to get rather hot but the humidity wasn't too bad. A nice cold mead or an amphora of wine would have hit the spot as we headed toward the lower marketplace.

Fountain of Trajan

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This was one of the largest fountains in Ephesus. It was built by the Romans around 110 AD. The pool in front was about 70 ft by 15 ft and was surrounded by a variety of statues dedicated to the gods. Most of them are now in the Ephesus Museum.

Temple of Hadrian

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Another magnificently preserved artifact from the times of the Romans. The figure in the center of the arch in the forfront is Tyche, the goddess of victory. Behind it is a depiction of Medusa. This temple dates from around 138 AD, shortly after the Emperor Hadrian visited the city.

Take a guess

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These are the public toilets. To cover-up the sounds of those struggling in the bathroom, an orchestra played nearby so as to mask the sounds from passers-bye on the street.

The Library of Celsus

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Probably this building and the Amphitheater are the two most famous spots in Ephesus. The Library served two purposes during the reign of the Romans: Beneath its floors is buried Gaius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus, the governor of the province of Asia. The structure was also used as a library where thousands of scrolls were stored in a humidity-free building. Apparently the place is still used today for receptions.

Which way to the whorehouse?

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The anectdote that got the entire tour group's attention was our guide's explanation of this paving stone. The footprint indicates which direction to walk while the picture of the woman next to it indicates a prostitute.

The Great Theater

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This was one of the larget amphitheaters in the Roman Empire. At its peak it could accomodate 25,000 people. From the top rows one could get a birdseye view of the harbor. It was in this theater that St. Paul delivered some of his speeches to the Ephesians.

Harbour Street

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Looking out from the Great Theater one could gaze down on the harbor of Ephesus at the end of this column-lined street.

Looking back at the Great Theater

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Even though we had seen big amphitheaters in Rome, Athens, Delphi, Epidaurus and Pompeii, this edifice in Epidaurus seemed the most awe-inspiring of the lot. The pitch of the seating was so steep that I was afraid to climb to high, but I'm sure that that helped even the folks in the cheap seats see all the action on stage. There were so many broken statues and marble columns laying around that someday in the future they should be able to restore this place very close to its original beauty.

Broken bits of history

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As we were leaving the historic area we passed piles upon piles of broken stones that will hopefully some day be reused in the rebuilding of Ephesus. It was amazing to see this 2000 year old carved stone looking totally uneroded or weathered by time.

Back to Kusadasi

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When we completed our walking tour we were given some time to waltz through a promenade full of souvenir and Turkish trinket shops. We of course could not resist. We spotted a new bell for the collection. They were asking 10 Euros for it. Gail wouldn't pay more than 5. The shopkeeper came down to 7 but Gail wouldn't budge. I said we'd pay 7 if they'd throw in a red fez (hat) for me. The deal was done. Back on the bus we passed through acres and acres of lush agricultural land where the river and harbor of Ephesus once stood. Now this region is the food basket of Turkey where they can get three harvests every year.