Ruins of the city of Miletus in Turkey, Aegean coast resort
Rating: 7,9/10 (432 votes)  Miletus is an ancient Ionian city located on a hill on the banks of the Buyuk Menderes River, near the Aegean coast. The appearance of the Greeks in Miletus dates back to the 16th century BC. The first settlements of the Ionians appeared in the city at the turn of the 2nd - 1st centuries BC. According to traditional legends, the city was founded by Ionian people from Attica. This ancient city is also mentioned in the Iliad. Homer as a city of the Carians. The city's layout was developed by the architect Hippadam – a native of Miletus, which was later taken as a basis for the construction of Roman cities. Miletus received the status of the most powerful and richest city in Asia Minor in the 8-6th century BC. At the same time, it was also a major port city and one of the cultural and political centers of the ancient era. After the capture of Miletus by the Persians, the city was practically destroyed. Centuries later, the city was restored, and in the 2nd century BC it became part of the Roman Empire, after which it gained its former glory. In 51 AD, the city Apostle Paul visited on a Christian mission. However, soon the city ceased to be a commercial port due to the silting up of the riverbed and sand drifts. The city fell into the power of the Seljuks in 1328, after which it gradually reborn into a village. Today, the city has survived only the ruins of several ancient buildings. The main attraction of the city – ancient Theater, dating back to the 4th century BC, which simultaneously accommodated 25 thousand spectators. There is a Byzantine castle built in the 8th century nearby. Particularly noteworthy are the fragments of the city walls, which previously surrounded Miletus with a double ring. Also of interest are the colonnades of the Delphinion temple, an ancient cemetery and a small round foundation – part of the monument erected in honor of the victory of the navy, and the baths of the Seljuk period. Not far from the baths and the temple, you can see the Sacred Road, which previously connected Miletus with Didyme. Today, along the road, often flooded with floods, you can see the Ionic portico dating back to the 1st century AD, enclosing the gymnasium and baths of Capito from the same time, the ruins of a Byzantine church, and a nympheum. There are such historical monuments near the harbor, as the remains of the North agora, the foundation of the gateway to the South agora, the Roman baths of Faustina We also recommend reading Ruins of the city of Aphrodisias in Turkey, Aegean coast resort Topic: Ruins of the city of Miletus in Turkey, Aegean coast resort. |
