Biblical History & An Ancient City


 

 Day 4 – Ephesus (Port of Kuşadasi), Turkey

Thursday, November 6

We arrived in the port of Kusadasi last night about 9 PM

Our tour began at 8:30 AM, leaving by bus to travel about 5 miles beyond Ephesus to the  St. John brought Mary, the mother of Jesus, here to live out her final days after the Crucifixion  the home has been recognised by the Cathoic church as Mary's Home. It is a modest stone building with two rooms one believed to be the living room the other a bedroom.  Unfortunately they do not allow photos inside the building.






There is a beautiful statue of Mary


On the pathwy below the house is a wall where people write notes on cloth pieces and tie to this wall.



Next to the house is an open air church where regular services are held.


After our visit to the home. we proceeded back to toward the port stopping to visit the ancient city of Ephuses.  Entering the ancient city of Ephesus through the upper gate, you see this incredible archiological site, once forgotten, buried for centuries by landslides and earthquakes.  It was discovered in 1887 and to date they have only unearthed 20% of the site. There is a combination of Greek and Roman styled columns and structures on the site. Originally te site of the Temple of Artemis (one of the original Wonders of the Ancient World).  In ancient times Ephesus was seaport, it now sits 6 miles inland from the sea.




Stone with symbol for medicine, indicating that the building on tis spot was a hospital.



On this site was a temple to the Egyptian God Isis.  They determined that the stone columns were red granite which had to be brought from Egypt to build the temple


Ephuses had been occupied by various groups dating bacd to the third century BCE.
It is believed that one of the earliest groups who lived here were the Amazon women.
Later by the Greeks and Romans.

This was a carvine of the Greek God Nike (Romans called her Victoria) the goddess of Victory.


This was the largest fountain in the city and was connected to an aqueduct.




The incredible colonnaded facade of the magnificent Library of Celsus. This extraordinary example of a Roman public building was built to store 12,000 scrolls.







 Near the lower gate you can view a gymnasium (at this point, it is thousands of stones on the ground), one of the educational institutions of the day, and the massive Great Theater built for 25,000 spectators. 



The only cemetary found around the site was a Gladiator's Cemetary.  With only 20% of the site excavated between 1887 and present, they estimate it will take another 600 years to fuly unearth the city.


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