- The ancient city of Ephesus is situated in the Aegean region of Turkey.
- It islocated in the town of Selcuk.
- It is 20 minutes away from the city of Kusadasi.
- It is 80 km away from the province of Izmir.
VISIT EPHESUS WITH A PROFFESSIONAL TOUR GUIDE IF POSSIBLE!
- You can easily book a Ephesus tour online. Ephesus is world known ancient site and it is in the list of UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE. Visit it with a proffessional tour guide and listen to the history and the importance of the city from the proffessionals…
WHERE TO START?
-You can start from the upper gate. Most people choose to start from here because it is easier to walk down and you will see the state site of Ephesus firstly you can understand how the city was ruled then after passing the gate of Hercules you will be in the public site and you can learn the daily life of Romans.
-Second choice is to start from the bottom gate. If you don’t want to be in the crowd, if it is not a problem for you to walk upwards you can use the bottom gate, or if you have a whealchair and you don’t want to see the whole city and just to see the biggest and most impressive buildings it is ok to use this gate.
WHAT TO TAKE BEFORE GETTING INSIDE?
- Water
- Hat or Umbrella
- Wear comfortable shoes!
Ephesus is an outdoor place. It will be hard to find shade. So it is hot inside. At the top gate of Ephesus there are many souvenier shops. It is better for you to buy water beacuse it is more expensive inside and there are only two places that you can find water inside. One at the top gate, one is close to the exit. Don’t forget that you will be in the city at least for one hour .
You should take a hat or an umbrella to protect yourself from the sun or you can buy them from those souvenier shops again. Don’t forget to wear comfortable shoes. The way that you will walk is marble and in some places it is uneven way to walk.
IS EPHESUS GREEK OR ROMAN CITY?
-The history dates back to 6000 BC. actually. But these builidng you will see in this site are both from the Greek and Roman times.
WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF EPHESUS?
- It was the 4.largest city in the Roman Empire after Rome, Alexandria and Antioch with its population around 240.000
- The biggest city with its population and the largest commercial center in Asia Minor.
- One of the seven wonders of the ancient world was here which was THE TEMPLE OF ARTEMIS.
- Virgin Mary and St.John came and lived here for a while. Vatican accepts that they both died in Ephesus. The house of Virgin Mary is the pilgrimage site for catolics today.
- St.Paul visited Ephesus in his second and third journeys. The story which is told in Bible about the silversmith Demetrius and about how Paul was judged by the Romans in the theatre takes place in Ephesus.
- The second stage of Wiliam Shakespeare’s story which is Comedy of Errors takes place in Ephesus.
- The most famous gynaecologist of Roman times was born in Ephesus. His name was Soranus.
- Heraclitus was born and lived here. He was one of the philosophers of the ancient world whose most famous statement is “You can not step in the same river twice. Everything is in flux.”
- Terrace Houses are located in Ephesus. They are the best examples of Roman Villas in Turkey.
- The 3.largest library of the ancient world is here which is Celsus Library.
- The only ‘flower of life’ pattern in Turkey is in Terrace houses in Ephesus. There are alot to tell about this pattern.
- The biggest ancient theatre in Turkey with its capacity of 24.000 is in Ephesus.
- The Church of Virgin Mary where the third ecumenical council was held is in Ephesus.