Here is a pavement stone on Harbour Street, which leads up to the City. In every age, sailors were keen for company after long periods at sea, no different in ancient Ephesus.
A marble slab engraved with a foot, a broken heart, a small cross and a tiny hole. The foot indicated the direction where a lost soul may find solace for his broken heart. The little cross indicated how exactly the poor sod would find the location of this heavenly pleasure. The little hole would discretely indicate the price of the remedy - enough coin to fill the whole, and the pleasure is all yours.
The brothel was located across from the library and could be reached by an underground passage from the halls of learning to the dens of lechery...all hygienically clean by the way.
This was to enable Roman husbands to indulge in extra-marital pleasures, by telling their wives they would just go out to read the newspaper scrolls in the library, when in fact they were off to much less spiritual pursuits.
Roman water pipes, which brought water to most homes, the baths and the fountains. Public bath had a Frigorium, Tepidarium and a Caldarium....Cold, Warm and Hot Tubs. Floors were heated from steam emitting from lower chambers. They had this heated bathroom floor business down pat!
Goddess Nike, in her typical dress with one breast exposed, in full flight...
Medusa, her head full of snakes. It almost looks like the presend trendy hairdo with all the sculpted snakey curls. Except her hairdo of live snakes was so bad, that anybody who looked at her turned to stone.
Roman public toilets - for men. Underneath the seats a deep trench which was flushed continuously with water. In front another small gutter, where fresh water flowed, so users were able to wash their hands after finishing their business. A rather social affair, as 48 toilets were all situated around a square in an open room.
The library. The most impressive and best preserved building in Ephesus.
The Amphitheatre - one of two in the city - held 25.000 spectators to watch gladiator and wild beast fights, listen to concerts or watch tragedy or comedy, or partake in debate over governmental decisions. St Paul the Evangelist, when he spent six years here, packed the stadium with 30,000 listeners. A great Televangelist of his time, he was a popular kind of entertainment as long as the ratings were good. He was later on crucified - upside down upon his request - and so his career ended.
St John, the Evangelist, however had a much better fate. He lived in Ephesus for a long time and died allegedly when he reached more than a hundred years of age. He is said to be entombed on top of a mountain close to Ephesus, and a massive basilica was constructed to honour the Saint. The remains of the basilica are still visible, and are still impressive even in their diminished state. The footprint is larger than St Peter in Rome or Hagia Sophia in Istanbul
Richly carved Sarcophagus, which was unearthed in the vicinity of Ephesus
Intricately carved marble relief of a roman warrior on horseback. Note that he has no stirrups, those were invented much later
Antique civilizations knew how to manufacture glass. Elegantly blown vases, ewers, glasses and bowls are still perfectly preserved.
and aLegend claims, that the location of Ephesus was envisioned by an oracle to be connected with fire, a fish boar. This relief shows the last bit of the legend, where the hero of the story has been shown the boar of oracle and proceeds to hunt and kill him. The location of the kill is the place of original Ephesus.
Here are a few Amazons, the legendary founders of the City, depending on which version is to be believed.
Heads of Sacred Bulls adorn columns and sarcophagi. Many are surrounded by garlands of flowers and fruit, which sometime flow from a horn of plenty.
A marble statue of Arthemis (Diana) the Goddess of Fertility. Before the Greek and Romans honoured this Goddess, she was already a symbol of similar potency for earlier civilization like the Hittites, and she was called Cybele by them...the Mother Goddess.
She has a multitude of breasts, which some worshippers consider to be testicles of all the animal and human male sacrifices she has received.
A Statue of Arthemis, almost undamaged and perfect was unearthed in Ephesus, she is now in the protective environment of a local museum as it's most treasured procession. Many other finds have been spirited off to museums around the world....but Artemis is still at home.
The detail of her statue are intriguing and detailed. Too much to show in just one photo that does not do her justice.
