Greek & Roman Sites in Western Asia Minor

Introduction

These portfolios present photographs of nine Greek and Roman archaeological sites in western Asia Minor: Miletus, Didyma, Priene, Pergamon, Ephesus, Smyrna, Laodicea on the Lycus, Aphrodisias, and Hierapolis.

Located in the regions of Ionia, Aeolis, Mysia, Caria, Lydia, and Phrygia, these cities were founded in diverse historical contexts and achieved prominence at different times. Some sites, such as Miletus, Ephesus, and Smyrna, were already occupied in the Bronze Age, while others emerged as part of the Greek colonisation of the Asia Minor coast during the Early Iron Age. Cities like Priene and Pergamon rose to prominence in the Hellenistic period, whereas Laodicea, Aphrodisias, and Hierapolis reached their peak of prosperity under Roman Imperial rule.

While the portfolios focus on the Hellenistic and Roman Imperial periods, they also encompass earlier Archaic and Classical phases and extend into the Early Byzantine era, underscoring the long, continuous, and complex histories of these sites.

The coastal cities were closely tied to maritime trade across the Aegean. Over time, sedimentation from the Maeander and Cayster rivers gradually pushed the coastline seaward, leaving some ancient harbours stranded inland. This process, combined with seismic activity and political change, had especially severe consequences for cities such as Priene, Miletus, and Ephesus, which lost direct access to the sea at different points in antiquity. The archaeological remains we see today are shaped by these dramatic changes in the landscape.

The religious life of these cities reflects the diversity and syncretism characteristic of Asia Minor. Some cults, such as that of Apollo at Miletus and Didyma, broadly followed Greek religious traditions. The Sanctuary of Apollo at Didyma, home to a renown oracle, was regarded as second in importance only to Delphi. Other cults incorporated strong Anatolian elements. The Artemis of Ephesus, markedly different from the Greek goddess of the hunt, bore the attributes of an Anatolian mother deity often associated with Cybele. At Aphrodisias, the local form of Aphrodite likewise reflected Anatolian iconography. Hierapolis, famous for its thermal springs and association with the underworld, was home to the cult of Hades (Pluto), which coexisted and interacted with the cult of Apollo Lairbenos, an Anatolian deity syncretised with the Greek Apollo, reflecting a fusion of chthonic, healing, and prophetic traditions.

These sites rank among the most important in Greek and Roman archaeology. Many exemplify the grid plan, associated with Hippodamus of Miletus, who systematised and popularised this form of urban design in the 5th century BC. The most celebrated example is Priene, laid out in the second half of the 4th century BC and often regarded as a model Hellenistic city. Because Priene underwent relatively little Roman remodelling, it remains one of the best-preserved examples of an ancient Greek city. By contrast, Pergamon is renowned for its dramatic urban development on steep terrain, and its theatre, constructed on a sharply sloping hillside, exemplifies how Hellenistic architects adapted monumental architecture to challenging topography, employing terraces, retaining walls, and careful spatial organisation to create a strikingly cohesive and functional cityscape.

A defining architectural feature of this region is the Ionic order, which originated in Ionia in the 6th century BC and reached here its purest and most monumental expression. Characterised by volute capitals, fluted columns, and slender proportions, it was favoured for major sanctuaries, several of which achieved pan-Mediterranean fame. The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was among the largest temples ever built in antiquity. The Temple of Athena Polias at Priene, probably designed by Pytheos – the architect of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus – represents one of the finest examples of Classical Ionic architecture. The Temple of Apollo at Didyma, mentioned earlier, is another major Ionic monument in the region.

These cities were major centres of intellectual and cultural life, home to renowned poets, philosophers, and scholars. Smyrna was traditionally regarded as the birthplace of Homer, who was believed to have lived near the Meles River. Miletus played a pivotal role in early Greek philosophy, producing pioneering thinkers such as Thales and Anaximander, while Ephesus was home to Heraclitus and Priene to Bias. Pergamon, under the Attalid dynasty (3rd–2nd centuries BC), emerged as a major cultural hub, supporting scholarship, literature, and the arts on an unprecedented scale. The Library of Pergamon was said by ancient sources to rival that of Alexandria. Laodicea developed a reputation for philosophical activity, particularly associated with the Skeptical school, and Hierapolis was the birthplace of Epictetus, the Stoic philosopher. Galen, one of the most famous physicians of antiquity, was born in Pergamon.

Among the archaeological remains from the Roman period, Ephesus stands out for both its scale and preservation. The Library of Celsus, one of the best-known Roman libraries, and its theatre, among the largest in antiquity, are particularly notable. Hierapolis likewise preserves a monumental Roman theatre, and its North Necropolis is one of the most extensive and best-preserved Roman cemeteries in the Mediterranean. Pergamon, which retained its significance in the Roman era, was home to one of the most important healing sanctuaries at that time (the Asclepieion). It also hosts a vast sanctuary dedicated to the Egyptian gods, known as the Red Basilica, built over the Selinus River in a remarkable engineering feat. The stadium of Aphrodisias is counted among the best-preserved ancient stadia. The city is also celebrated for its prolific sculptural and epigraphic record.

Some of the architectural elements and sculptures from these ancient cities were removed during the 19th and early 20th centuries and are now preserved in European museums. Among the most notable are the Great Altar of Pergamon and the Market Gate of Miletus, both reconstructed in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. Extensive collections from Ephesus are housed in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, and significant material from Priene can be found in the British Museum in London.

Most of these cities played a significant role in Jewish history. Jewish communities were well established across Asia Minor, though only a few ancient synagogues have been archaeologically confirmed, notably at Sardis and Priene.

More important is the Christian connection. Ephesus was an important centre of Pauline activity in the mid-1st century AD and, according to tradition, the Virgin Mary spent her final days near the city. Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamon, and Laodicea are among the Seven Churches of Asia mentioned in the Book of Revelation. In the 5th century, Ephesus hosted two ecumenical councils, and the Basilica of Saint John, built in the 6th century over his reputed tomb, made the city a major pilgrimage centre. Hierapolis is associated with the martyrdom and burial of the Apostle Philip and preserves extensive early Christian remains. From this region also came the two architects of Hagia Sophia, Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles.

Sites

Taken together, the nine sites presented in these portfolios offer a comprehensive overview of the Greek and Roman heritage in western Asia Minor. At many of the included sites, excavations are still ongoing, and several structures that were previously buried or inaccessible appear to have been opened to visitors since.

Miletus

Sanctuary of Apollo Delphinios (Delphinion) | 7th to 5th century BC; 2nd century AD (circular shrine, colonnades & propylon)
Sacred Way | 7th or 6th century BC; 101-102 AD (visible remains)
North Agora | 6th century BC
Lion Harbour | 5th to 4th century BC (harbour); 3rd century BC (lion statues); 1st century BC (Large Harbour Monument); late 1st century AD? (Small Harbour Monument); late 4th century AD (synagogue?)
Theatre | 4th century BC; Hellenistic modifications; early 2nd century AD
South Agora | 3rd century BC (agora); 2nd century BC (storage building); 2nd century AD (Market Gate)
Bouleuterion | 175-163 BC; Early Roman Imperial Era (altar)
Hellenistic Heroon | c. 100 BC
Ionic Stoa | mid-1st century AD; late 1st & early 2nd centuries AD (modifications)
Baths of Capito | mid-1st century AD
Nymphaeum | 79-81 AD; 241-244 AD (upper storey)
Aqueduct | 1st century AD (?); 2nd century AD (renovation)
Humei Tepe Baths | late 1st or early 2nd century AD
Temple of Serapis | early 2nd century AD (?); 3rd century AD (?)
Baths of Faustina | after 178 AD; 3rd century AD (reconstruction)
Roman Heroon | early 3rd century AD

Missing sites: West Agora, Temple of Athena, Stadium & Miletus Museum

Didyma

Temple of Apollo | late 8th or early 7th century BC (first temple); mid-6th century BC (second temple); Paeonius of Ephesus & Daphnis of Miletus, since late 4th century BC (third temple)

Missing sites: Temple of Artemis, Stadium, Theatre, Sacred Way & Altar of Poseidon

Priene

Sanctuary of Athena Polias | Pytheos, c. 350-320 BC & later (temple); late 1st century BC (propylon)
Theatre | late 4th century BC; 3rd century BC; early 2nd century BC (skene, proskenion, seats of honour & Altar of Dionysus); c. 130 BC; 2nd century AD
Agora | late 4th century BC; 3rd century BC; late 2nd century BC (Sacred Stoa)
Walls | late 4th century BC
Upper Gymnasium | late 4th or 3rd century BC; 1st century BC (baths)
Alexandreion | 4th to 3rd century BC (original building); 3rd to 2nd century BC (conversion into a sanctuary)
Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods | 3rd century BC
Bouleuterion | c. 200 BC
Sanctuary of Asclepius | late 2nd century BC
Synagogue | Hellenistic period (original building); 2nd to 4th century AD (conversion into a synagogue)
Bishop’s Church | 5th or 6th century AD

Missing sites: Sanctuary of Demeter, Prytaneion & Lower Gymnasium

Pergamon

Sanctuary of Athena Polias | 4th or early 3rd century BC (temple); early 2nd century BC (North Stoa, East Stoa & Propylon); 2nd century AD (?; South Stoa)
Sanctuary of Demeter | 4th century BC; late 3rd or early 2nd century BC; mid-2nd century AD
Theatre | 3rd or early 2nd century BC
Library | late 3rd or early 2nd century BC
Heroon of the Pergamene Kings | late 3rd or 2nd century BC
Sanctuary of Cybele (Megalesion) | early 2nd century BC
Great Altar of Zeus & Athena (foundations) | early & mid-2nd century BC
Palace V | early or mid-2nd century BC
Temple of Dionysus Kathegemon | 2nd century BC; 2nd or 3rd century AD (reconstruction)
Sanctuary of Hera Basileia | mid-2nd century BC
Gymnasia & Baths | 2nd century BC; mid-1st century BC (West Bath); 1st & 2nd century AD (modifications of the Upper Gymnasium; East Bath)
House of Attalos | 1st century BC
Heroon of Diodoros Pasparos | c. 69 BC
Bath at the Heroon of Diodoros Pasparos | late 1st century BC or 1st century AD
Temple of Trajan (Temple of Zeus Philios) | early 2nd century AD
Via Tecta | c. 10 BC (heroon); early 2nd century AD (covered road)
Asclepieion | 4th century BC (origin of the cult); 120s-130s AD (most surviving buildings); c. 150 AD (Temple of Asclepius); after 175 AD (east columns of the North Stoa)
Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods (‘Red Basilica’) | early 2nd century AD; 5th century AD (conversion into a church)
Bergama Museum

Missing Sites: Upper Agora, Lower Agora, Amphitheatre & Pergamon Bridge

Ephesus

Temple of Artemis | late 8th century BC (first temple); Chersiphron & Metagenes, c. 550 BC (second temple); Dinocrates, Demetrios & Paionios, after 323 BC (third temple)
State (Upper) Agora | 4th century BC (Hellenistic agora); early 2nd century BC (South Stoa); c. 65 BC (paved agora); 1st century BC or early 1st century AD (temple); 11 AD (Basilica Stoa); mid-1st century AD (Chalcidium of the Basilica Stoa)
Commercial (Lower, Tetragonos) Agora | early 3rd century BC (Hellenistic agora); late 1st century BC (Roman agora); early 3rd century AD (restoration); late 4th century AD (restoration); 6th century AD (retaining wall of the northern stoa)
Curetes Street (Embolos) | 3rd century BC; later modifications
Harbour (Arcadian) Street | Hellenistic era; late 4th & early 5th century AD
Marble Street | 3rd century BC (Hellenistic street); 1st century AD (pavement, monuments & Hall of Nero); 5th century AD (renovation)
Magnesia Street | 3rd century BC; 1st or 2nd century AD
Theatre | 3rd century BC; mid-1st to early 2nd century AD (enlargement)
Memmius Monument | c. 50-30 BC
Hydreion | late 1st century BC or early 1st century AD; c. 200 AD; late 3rd or early 4th century AD; 4th century AD
Prytaneion | late 1st century BC or early 1st century AD; 3rd century AD
‘Rhodian Peristyle’ | late 1st century BC or early 1st century AD
Gate of Mazaeus & Mithridates (Gate of Augustus) | 4-3 BC
Terrace Houses | 1st century BC to 7th century AD
‘House of Pleasure’ | 1st century BC or 1st century AD; later modifications
Public Latrines | 1st-2nd century AD
Magnesia Street Nymphaeum | 1st century AD; 2nd century AD (enlargement); c. 340 AD (renovation)
Temple of the Sebastoi (Temple of Domitian) | c. 89-90 AD
Nymphaeum of Trajan | 102-114 AD
Library of Celsus | c. 110-135 AD
‘Temple of Hadrian’ | 117-138 AD; 3rd or late 4th century (frieze)
Gate of Hadrian (Triodos Gate) | c. 117 AD; after 262-270 AD
Bouleuterion (Odeon) | early 2nd century AD; mid-2nd century AD (scaenae frons)
State Agora Baths | 2nd century AD (on the site of a Hellenistic gymnasium)
Theatre Gymnasium | 2nd century AD
Gate of Hercules | 2nd century AD (reliefs); late 4th century AD (gate)
Stoa of Alytarches | late 4th or early 5th century AD (reconstruction)
Church of Mary (Church of the Councils) | before 431 AD; 6th century AD; later alterations
Ayasuluk Basilica | 5th or 6th century AD; later conversion into a cistern
Basilica of Saint John | 4th century AD (original basilica); 548-565 AD (surviving basilica)
Ayasuluk Aqueduct | mid-6th century AD, with spolia from earlier structures
Ephesus Museum

Missing sites: Heroon of Androclos, Baths of Varius (Scholastica), Nymphaeum of Laecanius Bassus (Hydrekdocheion), Fountain of Pollio, Temple of Serapis, Hall of Verulanus, Harbour Baths & Gymnasium, Olympieion, Gymnasium of Vedius & Stadium

Smyrna

Agora | late 4th & early 3rd century BC; after 178 AD (reconstruction)
Paradiso (Kızılçullu) Aqueducts | 79-80 AD, 110-111 AD
Izmir Archaeology Museum

Missing sites: Old Smyrna, Caravan Bridge & more fragmentarily preserved sites around Mount Pagos (Kadifekale)

Laodicea on the Lycus

West Theatre | 2nd century BC
House A | 1st century AD
Peristyle house with oratory | 1st century AD
Stadium | 79 AD
Syria Street | 84-85 AD; 6th-century AD (look)
Stadium Street | 84-85 AD
Nymphaeum of Trajan | c. 113 AD
South Agora: Bouleuterion | 120s-130s AD
South Baths (Gymnasium) | 135 AD
Central Baths | 2nd century AD
North Theatre | 2nd century AD
Temple A | late 2nd century AD; late 3rd or early 4th century AD
Nymphaeum of Septimius Severus | late 2nd or early 3rd century AD; 4th or 5th century AD (Clubhouse of the Greens)
North (Sacred) Agora: Propylon | early 3rd century AD
Church of Laodicea | c. 340 AD
East Byzantine Gate | late 4th century AD

Missing sites: West Agora, Nymphaeum of Caracalla, Roman Bridge & Aqueduct

Aphrodisias

Sanctuary of Aphrodite | 30s BC (cella & porch); 1st century AD (peristasis); early 2nd century AD (court); late 5th century AD (conversion into a church)
Theatre | before 28 BC; 1st century AD; 2nd century AD
Agora & ‘Place of Palms’ | late 1st century BC (north colonnade of the agora); early 1st century AD (Portico of Tiberius); late 1st century AD (Propylon of Diogenes); early 2nd century AD (west colonnade of the ‘Place of Palms’); 6th century AD (south stoa of the ‘Place of Palms’)
Sebasteion | c. 20-60 AD
Stadium | late 1st century AD; late 5th century AD (modifications of the east end)
Tetrastoon | 1st or 2nd century AD; 360s AD
Baths of Hadrian | c. 130 AD
Theatre Baths | 2nd century AD
‘Gymnasium of Gaudin’ | 2nd century AD
Bouleuterion (Odeon) | late 2nd century AD; early 5th century AD (conversion into a palaestra)
Sculptor’s Workshop | late 2nd century AD or later
Tetrapylon | c. 200 AD
Triconch House | c. 400 AD (reuse of an earlier building)
Fountain of Gaudin | 1st or 2nd century AD (?; spolia); 4th to 6th century AD (?; reuse)
Aphrodisias Museum

Missing sites: Civil Basilica, several Late Roman houses, cemeteries & city walls

Hierapolis

Gate of Frontinus (Gate of Domitian) | 84 AD
Frontinus Street (Plateia) | late 1st century AD; 4th to 6th century AD
Frontinus Street Latrines | late 1st century AD
Great Building (Baths) | late 1st century AD
Theatre | early 2nd century AD; early 3rd century AD (scaenae frons & lower cavea); c. 350 AD (conversion of the orchestra into a pool)
North Agora | 2nd century AD; 4th century AD (destruction)
Central Baths & Palaestra | 2nd century AD; late 4th century AD
Olive Oil Press | c. 150 AD
Basilica Baths | 2nd or 3rd century AD; 6th century AD (conversion into a church)
Nymphaeum at the Temple of Apollo | 2nd or 3rd century century AD; 5th century AD
Nymphaeum of the Tritons | c. 230 AD
Church of the Sepulchre of Saint Philip | 4th or 5th century AD
Stairs to the Church & Martyrium of Saint Philip | 4th or 5th century AD
North Byzantine Gate | late 4th century AD
Martyrium of Saint Philip | early 5th century AD
Cathedral | early 6th century AD
Fountain at the Church & Martyrium of Saint Philip | 6th century AD
North Necropolis | 2nd century BC to 5th century AD
Northeast Necropolis
Hierapolis Archaeological Museum

Missing sites: Sanctuary of Apollo, Ploutonion, South Byzantine Gate, Gymnasium at the South Byzantine Gate, South Necropolis, Octagonal Baths, Gate of Saint Philip & Bridge of Saint Philip

Numerous other sites exist in the region. The most notable omissions are Sardis, Magnesia on the Maeander, and Halicarnassus.