Ephesus Archeological Site

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Ephesus was an ancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia, three kilometers southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of the former Arzawan capital by Attic and Ionian Greek colonists. During the Classical Greek era it was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League. The city flourished after it came under the control of the Roman Republic in 129 BC. According to estimates Ephesus had a population of 33,600 to 56,000 people in the Roman period, making it the third largest city of Roman Asia Minor after Sardis and Alexandria Troas.

The city was famed for the Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BC), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In 268 AD, the Temple was destroyed or damaged in a raid by the Goths. It may have been rebuilt or repaired but this is uncertain, as its later history is not clear. Emperor Constantine I rebuilt much of the city and erected new public baths. Following the Edict of Thessalonica from emperor Theodosius I, what remained of the temple was destroyed in 401 AD by a mob led by St. John Chrysostom. The town was partially destroyed by an earthquake in 614 AD. The city's importance as a commercial center declined as the harbor was slowly silted up by the Cayster River (Küçük Menderes).

Ephesus was one of the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the Book of Revelation.The Gospel of John may have been written here. The city was the site of several 5th century Christian Councils (see Council of Ephesus). It is also the site of a large gladiators' graveyard. The ruins of Ephesus are a favorite international and local tourist attraction, partly owing to their easy access from Adnan Menderes Airport.

Get in

You can walk from Selçuk. Most of the hotels have bikes that you can borrow for a while. It is a 4km walk in a good walking way.
It's also possible to take a taxi, which is relatively expensive, compared to other Turkish transportation.
Most pensions and hotels in Selçuk offer rides to Ephesus. The cheaper way is to go by minibuses (or shared taxi called a Dolmuş in Turkish) which are available every 10-15 minutes from Selcuk central bus station or from Kusadasi Dolmuş stop for TRY5 (Sep 2013). The Kusadasi Dolmuş stop is located at the intersection of Adnan Menderes Blv and Candan Tarhan Blv. The minibus will leave you at around 1km from the lower gate situated downhill near the Great Theatre. If you start at this end (which is perfectly fine) you'll be walking in the opposite direction of the tour groups.

Acces to Selçuk

• By air to Izmir's Adnan Menderes International airport.
• By train (from Izmir airport),
• By bus (from Izmir central bus station) or hotel shuttles to Selcuk. Airport to Selçuk is 55km. A bus or minibus from Kusadasi central bus station also goes about every half hour, or by taxi to, Selcuk, 19km away.
• By cruise ship via the nearby port of Kuşadası, the second busiest port in Turkey after Istanbul. Cruise passengers have two choices: take the Ephesus tours organized by the cruise ship or do the Ephesus tours independently.

Talk

All major languages.(Including Russian, Japanese and Chinese)

Get around

Here is a map of Selcuk - Ephesus


The ancient site of Ephesus is seen entirely on foot. Pathways are signed clearly and easily navigated as you make your way through the archaeological site. The ruins are situated on the bank of a hill. There are two entry/exit points about 3 km apart. Toilets are available at each entry gate but not in the general site. The upper Magnesia gate is the better gate to enter, allowing you to walk downhill to and exit at the lower harbour gate. The entire ruins are easily covered on foot within two hours.

Hours: mid-March to late October, daily, 08:00-19:30; off season, daily 08:00-17:30. Prices: TRY30 (as of July 2014) for general site entry, plus another TRY15 for the Terrace Houses (sheltered by a modern roof, excavated by an Austrian-Turkish team, open to visitors 2006). For TRY20 (+TRY100 deposit, or you can leave a photo ID as a deposit) you can rent an audioguide with 1 hour of commentary on the general site, plus 20 minutes on the Terrace Houses. The TRY100 deposit will be refunded when you return the audioguide at the other end of the site, or return to the same end for your ID.

See:

Great Theater

Built into the slope of Panayır Dağı, this is the Roman reconstruction (41-117 AD) of the earlier theater built by Lysimachus. Though huge, with 25,000 seats, its ingenious engineering gives it excellent acoustics. It's still used for performances and special events.

Harbor Street (Arcadian Way)

The avenue leading from the theater to the harbor was a grand affair, with colonnades, fountains, monuments and even street lights along it, and water and drainage conduits beneath its marble paving stones.

Marble Way

This aptly-named street leads south from in front of the theater to the Brothel and Library of Celsus. West of it are the remains of the spacious Commercial Agora.

Brothel

A lavish building, now in ruins, it stands across from the library, a reminder that prostitution was not looked upon as degrading in some ancient societies. Just outside it, seek the Men's Toilets—immediately recongizable!

Library of Celsus

A technological wonder, with double walls to keep out the damp and moderate the extremes of temperature, it is also perhaps the most beautiful building at Ephesus, finely restored. To the right is the Gate of Augustus, a monumental arch leading to the Commercial Agora.

Curetes Way

This splendid hillside street, starting in front of the Library of Celsus, is longer and even more interesting than the Arcadian Way. Along it you'll find...

Hillside Houses (Yamaç Evleri)

The wealthy of Ephesus resided in these beautiful villas with mosaic floors and classic decoration. After years of painstaking and expensive restoration, they are open to visitors, and are well worth the extra TL15 admission fee you must pay to see them.

Temple of Hadrian

The head of Medusa is the most famous bit of decoration on this fine temple built in 118 AD to honor Emperor Hadrian (and extensively rebuilt several centuries later). Facing the temple across Curetes Way are ten shops. Note the fine mosaic in front of them.

Gate of Hercules

The two-storey structure half-way along the street dates from the 300s AD. A side street leads south to the Museum of Inscriptions.

Odeon

Ephesus's city council met in this fine small theater-like council space. Opposite the Odeon are other badly-ruined structures, including the Prytaneum (city hall) and Temple of Hestia Boulaea. On the other side of some badly-ruined baths is the Magnesia (upper, southern) Gate into the Ephesus Archeological Site.

On the far (eastern) side of Panayır Dağı, the hill holding the Great Theater, are the caves called the Grotto of the Seven Sleepers. You can walk or drive to the grotto, which is actually a Byzantine necropolis (cemetery).

Near the summit of Bülbüldağı ("Nightingale Mountain," the ancient Mt Koressos) to the south of

Ephesus is the House of the Virgin Mary (Meryemana).