Istanbul Trip Overview
The Ancient City of Ephesus is one of the crown jewels of mankind’s greatest cultural and historical heritage. Ephesus is home to one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BCE and destroyed in 401 CE by a mob led by St. John Chrysostom); as well as being one the of the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the Book of Revelation, and the supposed site of writing of the Gospel of John. You will take a walk in the ancient streets, as well as seeing hints of wealthy urban lifestyle at the height of Roman and Greek civilizations.
Additional Info
Duration: 12 hours
Starts: Istanbul, Turkey
Trip Category: Day Trips & Excursions >> Day Trips
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The Ancient City of Ephesus is one of the crown jewels of mankind’s greatest cultural and historical heritage. Ephesus is home to one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BCE and destroyed in 401 CE by a mob led by St. John Chrysostom); as well as being one the of the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the Book of Revelation, and the supposed site of writing of the Gospel of John. You will take a walk in the ancient streets, as well as seeing hints of wealthy urban lifestyle at the height of Roman and Greek civilizations.
Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product
Stop At: The Odeion, Efes Selcuk Merkez, Selcuk, Selcuk Turkey
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.
Duration: 45 minutes
Stop At: Mermerli Yol, Selcuk Turkey
Mermerli Yol, Selcuk Turkey
Duration: 45 minutes
Stop At: Temple of Hadrian, Curetes St., Selcuk Turkey
Temple of Hadrian 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.
Duration: 45 minutes
Stop At: Bibliotheque de Celsus, Efes Selcuk Merkez, Selcuk, Selcuk Turkey
Celsus Library is one of the most beautiful structures in Ephesus. Celcius Library was built in 117 A.D. Celsus Library 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.
Duration: 45 minutes
Stop At: Ephesus Ancient Theatre, Acarlar, 35920 Selçuk/İzmir, Turkey
Ephesus theatre is the most magnificent structure in Ephesus ancient city. The Ephesus 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.
Duration: 45 minutes
Stop At: Meryemana (The Virgin Mary’s House), Sultaniye Mahallesi, Selcuk 35100 Turkey
House of Virgin Mary is 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 crowded place.
The house of Virgin Mary 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. The original two-stored house, which consisted of an anteroom (where today candles are proposed), bedroom and praying room (Christian church area) and a room with fireplace (chapel for Muslims). A front kitchen fell into ruins and has been restored in 1940’s. Today, only the central part and a room on the right of the altar are open to visitors.
Duration: 45 minutes
