Ephesus!

After leaving Patara Beach, my friends and I rode a bus for a few hours until we got to Selçuk (the modern city just outside the ancient city of Ephesus). We went for a walk that evening, and then went shopping for a few hours.

We went and looked around the courtyard of the Mosque of Isa Bey

Phin next to the field where the ancient Temple of Artemis used to be located. The Temple of Artemis was considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the World by ancient writers. You can see the remaining column in the background. (After I got home, I wrote a little bit about the Temple of Artemis on my art history blog.)

Turkish rugs!

The next morning, we woke up early and went to Ephesus as soon as the grounds opened. The crowds were pretty light, at least for Ephesus.

 View of Ephesus with the Library of Celcus in the background. The library façade is the best-preserved architecture on the site.

 The British tourists who took this picture didn't make sure that the ruins were visible in the background. Oh well!

Detail of the coffered ceiling inside the Library of Celcus

The Temple of Hadrian

As we walked around the ruins, I was struck by all of the brightly-colored poppies that were growing among the ruins. I couldn't help but think about this new vibrant form of life was flourishing among the rubble of the past. It was a nice reminder about how life continues.

After seeing Ephesus, we went and visited the Basilica of Saint John. This church is the burial place of John the Evangelist. According to the historian Eusebios, John and Mary returned to Ephesus after being banished from Jerusalem between 37 and 42 CE. The site marks the place where St. John is buried. Although an Early Christian church was constructed in the 5th century at this site, the ruins that we saw there from a middle 6th century monumental basilica (which was constructed by Justinian). Some of the materials for the basilica were collected from the nearby ruins of the Temple of Artemis, which was largely demolished by that the time. So, in essence, we got to see some of the Temple of Artemis, albeit in a completely different form!

After seeing the basilica, my friends wanted to do a bit more shopping. I opted to go and visit the Ephesus Archaeological Museum instead, and I'm really really glad that I did. This museum was one of the highlights of my trip to Turkey. The museum houses two different ancient statues of Artemis as a fertility goddess. The statues have their own room in the museum: they are placed on two different walls, facing each other, with a model of the ancient Temple of Artemis in-between them. I was interested in seeing these statues, since I had done some research on them last year. There were some other interesting things in the collection, too.

The "Beautiful Artemis" statue, 2nd century (Hadrian period). Approx. 5' tall

 Detail of the "Beautiful Artemis." On the inner part of her necklace are Nikes, and a Zodiac belt with symbols on the outer part. Her arms are decorated with lions. On either side of her head are deer, which are the goddess' sacred animals.

 The "Great Artemis" statue, 1st century CE (Trajan period). Approx. 9' 6" tall

Model of the Temple of Artemis

Model of the Great Artemis statue, showing how a cult statue would have been located in the temple

These ionic capitals were flanked on both sides with the head of a bull. I've never seen anything like it before! 

I was struck by these two statues of Augustus and Livia, which were "Christianized" later (note the cross marks that are carved into their foreheads). These statues were found broken in a room of the basilica in the Upper Agora (Ephesus). The room was demolished during the Early Byzantine era, which is probably the same time that these statues were broken and "Christianized."

Detail of Statue of Augustus, c. 1st century AD

Detail of Statue of Livia, c. 1st century CE