Page 8 - The Shores of Jupiter - August '21

Page 8, The Shores
Ephesus … Crown Of Turkish Archeology

By Don Kiselewski, MCC, of Asia.” It became the
D.S., Palm Beach Gardens permanent residence of the
Travel Leaders government of Rome, and
Six hundred years its population swelled to
before St. Paul spoke to the 250,000. St. Paul arrived in
Ephesians in the theater at 53 A.D. to spread the word,
Epheus, the city found its and gained enough followers
origin. Although cloudy in to establish the first Christian
exact history, it has been said church. His efforts did not
that Amazons founded the go without opposition …
city; however, the original not from opposing religious
population was made up of interest, but rather from
Carians and Lelegians. Colorful legends tell the story of an the secular community. It
Apollonian oracle enlisted to help the founders determine seems as though the jeweler The Library of Celsus
the city’s location. Hidden in the mysticism of his reply was Demetrius’ lucrative business
that the city should be located with the sign of a fish and a of selling silver idols of
boar. This seems to be not much of a clue until Androklos, the Artemis was at stake. This led
son of Kodrus (the King of Athens), was frying fish one day, to a showdown in the theater,
on the northern side of Mt. Pion. The fire got out of control where shortly thereafter Paul
and started burning the brush until a boar ran out of the fire headed for Macedonia. Even
to keep from getting cooked, and the city was founded on without Paul, the religion
the location. had taken root and eventually
One of the earliest structures in the city was the Archaic supplanted the worship of
Temple of Artemis built between 564 and 546 B.C. To please Artemis. St. John later moved
his subjects, King Croesus of Lydia, who had conquered the to the city and died there
city, presented the Ephesians with beautifully carved columns (37–48 A.D.).
for the temple, one containing his name. History reflects that In 260 A.D., the Goths
on the night that Alexander the Great was born (356 B.C.), destroyed the city and temple.
Herostratus, a mentally unbalanced citizen, decided to set Under Seljuk and Byzantine
fire to the temple to gain fame, which he accomplished. His rule, Ephesus gradually
actions, as misguided as they were, caused the Ephesians declined and became deserted.
to construct the Temple of Diana in its place … one of the The real cause of this decline
Seven Wonders of the World. Alexander was so impressed is believed to be the silting of
with the structure when he visited Ephesus in 334 B.C. that the harbor, halting navigation.
he offered to pay the entire cost of reconstruction; however, At the same time, Istanbul Roman amphitheater
the Ephesians refused. and Smyrna were rising to
Today, the Temple of Diana (or Artemis) is nothing but prominence in the 3rd and 4th
a huge hole in the earth, partly filled with water that dries centuries. Ephesus retained
up in the summer. It was J.T. Wood, who after searching its position in the church
for seven years, located the temple in 1870. Marble from affairs, as was shown by no
the structure had been removed for hundreds of years and less than six councils that
reused in mosques and public buildings of Constantinople were held there. For some
(Istanbul) and Ayasalouk. In 1904, an English archeologist time in the Middle Ages,
named D.G. Hogarth was allowed to core beneath the altar of Ephesus and Miletus, farther
the temple, where he found the floor of the earlier structures. down the coast, continued to
The real prize was a stone box that he unearthed, containing rival each other as a gateway
gold coins and ivory dating from the time of Solomon. to the interior districts.
Ephesus was different than the other eleven Ionian cities Most of the surviving
that thrived along the western coast of Asia Minor – it was the ruins of Ephesus belong to
only one that did not have a protected harbor near the open the Roman Imperial period.
sea. Although today the Mediterranean has receded more than The structure that has become
three miles from Ephesus, in ancient times a canal led from the symbol of Ephesus is
the harbor to the Cayster river, and from there to the sea. The the façade of the Library
city was the terminal point of one of the greatest highways of Celsus. the two-story
leading to the interior of the country, and the reason for its edifice is intricately carved
commercial dominance. and is located at the major The Temple of Hadrian
Ephesus reached its golden age during the Roman era. intersection of the city. The
Emperor Augustus deemed Ephesus the capital of Asia Minor structure was built from 114 to 117 A.D. by Gaius Julius by archeologists was by carvings found in the marble slabs
and proclaimed it to be “the first and greatest metropolis Aquila for his father, Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus, that pave the streets. A simple footprint carved in the pavement
whose sarcophagus lies in a tomb beneath the library. pointed the way to the facility … it pays to advertise.
The area around the library was apparently the hub of the Ephesus is one of the most impressive and best-preserved
city. Across the street were the Baths of Scholastica, which archaeological sites in the world – it is unique by its
were likewise built in the 1st century and reconstructed in the preeminence as well as its long rich history.
5th. Three stories in height, the structure had a heating system Don Kiselewski writes from his personal experiences,
between the floors that allowed the hot air from open fires having traveled in 122 countries and cruised the oceans,
burning on the outside of the building to warm the interior. seas and rivers of the world. Palm Beach Gardens Travel
All citizens of Ephesus used the facility, both rich and poor. Leaders, his family owned and operated agency, is located
Adjacent to the Baths of Scholastica, just across the street at Mirasol Town Square, 11360 North Jog Road, Building
from the very famous Library of Celsus, was the brothel. It A, Suite 102-6, Palm Beach Gardens. The agency has been
was connected to the library by a short tunnel. As the legends serving the travel needs of the South Florida area for over
go, the men of the city spent many hours going to the library a quarter of a century. Contact him at (561) 694-9696 or
after dinner for “enlightenment.” It’s possible that some may Aussie@PBGTravel.com.
have used this tunnel. The way that the brothel was identified Photos by Don Kiselewski

The remains of Artemision (also known as the Temple of
Artemis or Diana)

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