{"id":62141,"date":"2026-04-23T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.turkishairlines.com\/ephesus-ancient-city-in-the-footsteps-of-an-8000-year-old-civilization\/"},"modified":"2026-04-22T16:19:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T13:19:32","slug":"ephesus-ancient-city-travel-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.turkishairlines.com\/en\/ephesus-ancient-city-travel-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Ephesus Ancient City: In the Footsteps of an 8,000-year-old civilization"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A meeting point of civilizations for thousands of years<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Historic Kuretler Street in Ephesus Ancient City, \u0130zmir<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Ephesus\u2019s history dates back about 8,000 years to Neolithic settlements at \u00c7ukuri\u00e7i H\u00f6y\u00fck. Although Hittite cuneiform sources refer to the region as Apasa, the capital of the Arzawa Kingdom, the city\u2019s known history begins with Ionian colonization in the 10th century BC. According to legend, Androklos, son of the Athenian King Kodros, founded the city at the very spot where he hunted a wild boar, guided by the Oracle of Delphi’s prophecy. You can still see a depiction of this legendary moment on the frieze of the Temple of Hadrian, which stands today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout history, Ephesus, the leading city of the Ionian League, was ruled by the Lydian King Croesus, the Persians, and later by Alexander the Great. One of Alexander\u2019s generals, Lysimachus, relocated the city to its current site between Mount Panay\u0131r and Mount B\u00fclb\u00fcl because the harbor was silting up and malaria was spreading. Yet its true golden age unfolded during the Roman period. In 129 BC, when it became the capital of the Roman province of Asia, the city\u2019s population reached 250,000, making it the empire\u2019s fourth-largest city after Rome, Alexandria, and Antioch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Known as the first ancient city built entirely of marble, Ephesus was one of the most advanced metropolises of its time, with aqueducts, a sophisticated sewer system, and monumental baths. Over time, the harbor’s complete silting, along with Gothic and Arab raids, led to its gradual abandonment. Ephesus also holds unique significance for early Christianity; the Apostle Paul lived here for three years, and the Apostle John spent his final years in the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A monument of wisdom in the ancient world: The Celsus Library<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The symmetrical and grand two-story front fa\u00e7ade of the historic Celsus Library in Ephesus Ancient City, \u0130zmir<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Celsus Library, the most iconic structure in Ephesus, was built between AD 110 and 135 by the son of the Roman senator Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus in his honor. Serving as both a library and a monumental tomb, the structure still contains Celsus\u2019s marble sarcophagus, which is enclosed in a lead coffin, beneath its floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ranking as the third-largest library of the ancient world after Alexandria and Pergamon, it once housed about 12,000 parchment and papyrus scrolls in niches along its interior walls. One of its most remarkable features was its double-wall system, an early form of climate control designed to protect the scrolls from humidity and temperature fluctuations. The grand two-story marble fa\u00e7ade, 21 meters wide, is adorned with four female statues representing Wisdom, Virtue, Knowledge, and Thought. Carefully reconstructed in the 1970s by the Austrian Archaeological Institute, the structure remains one of the most striking testaments to ancient engineering and architecture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A massive theater with a capacity of 25,000<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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A bird\u2019s eye view from the seating tiers of the massive Great Theatre in Ephesus Ancient City, \u0130zmir<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Carved into the slope of Mount Panay\u0131r, the Great Theatre of Ephesus is Anatolia\u2019s largest theater, with a capacity of 25,000. Rising to a seating height of 30 meters and featuring a three-story stage building, it is most striking for its flawless acoustics; a whisper from the stage can be clearly heard even from the uppermost rows without amplification. This monumental venue once hosted a wide range of events, from political assemblies to gladiator contests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Widen your world.<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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