PRIVATE EPHESUS TOURS

 

Ephesus, once the most important commercial center of the western Anatolia, is one of the highlights of Turkey that awaits for the exploring tourists.
Reliable Travel offers private tours to and around Ephesus for those looking for something special and intimate. Private tours provide you private guide and driver, flexible itinerary and personilized travel service.
Below you can find the list of  the main sites that you can visit , please choose your sites of interest and feel free to contact us for your own itinerary. We will tailor your tours as you like.
You can also visit our Ephesus page (ephesus page a link ) to get further information on the below sites.
EPHESUS: Ephesus is the best preserved Greco-Roman classical city on the Mediterranean.It was situated south of the Cayster River, and was the site of the Temple of Artemis. Traditionally founded by the Carians, it was one of the 12 Ionian Cities and was involved in the Persian and Peloponnesian wars. It was taken by Alexander the Great in334 BC and prospered throughout the Hellenistic period. It passed to Rome in 133 BC; under Augustus it became the capital of the Roman province of Asia. It was an early seat of Christianity, visited by St. Paul, and the recipient of the Epistle to the Ephesians. The Goths destroyed the city and temple in AD 262; neither ever recovered. There are extensively excavated ruins at the modern site.
TEMPLE OF ARTEMIS: was one of the Seven Wonders of the World and located in Ephesus. Throughout the excavations in Ephesus, the actual location of the temple was presumed in different places. Its ancient cult dedicated to Artemis was famous in antiquity and made ancient Ephesus a much-visited pilgrimage place. Each year one month was considered a holiday and set aside for the religious ceremonious observations.

THE HOUSE OF VIRGIN MARY: It is known with certainty that the Virgin Mary went to Ephesus and lived there for some time. Whether or not she died in Ephesus was not known until Anne Catherine Emmerich's vision.
THE BASILICA OF ST. JOHN: The Basilica of St. John was a great church in Ephesus constructed by Emperor Justinian in the 6th century. It stands over the believed burial site of St. John, who is identified as the apostle, evangelist (author of the Fourth Gospel) and prophet (author of Revelation).
DIDYMA: The word Didyma means "twins" and was associated by some as being the meeting place of Zeus and Leto to have their twins Apollo and Artemis. Didyma was famed as a prophecy center dedicated to Apollo which served a similar purpose as the Delphi of Anatolia. It was not a city but a sanctuary linked to Miletus by Milesians with a 19 km / 12 mi sacred road. However, this road may not have been constructed until the end of the 1C AD. In addition to pilgrimages made by sea, some festivals of drama, music and sports were held there every four years.

MILETUS: Miletus, an ancient city located near the present Akkoy at the mouth of the Buyuk Menderes (Meander) River, owed its importance to its position on trade routes. It was one of the largest cities in Anatolia with a population of between 80,000 and 100,000. Highly prosperous, it founded many colonies and was the home of the 6th century BC philosophers Anaximander, Anaximenes, and Thales, the town planner Hippodamus and architect Isidorus. Miletus seems to have produced geniuses the way Aphrodisias produced sculptors.

PRIENE: Priene is an ancient Hellenistic city located just to the north of Miletus in western Turkey. It was an ancient Greek holy city and the home of an important temple of Athena. Priene's picturesque ruins include several columns of the Temple of Athena, much of the city wall, a well-preserved theater and a council chamber. The ruins are next to the modern town of Güllübahce.

 

PERGAMUM (Pergamon) : Pergamon was a center of Roman authority and a place of persecution for Christians who denied imperial worship. The acropolis is situated high above the plain and has a unique panoramic view. The very narrow and steep theater on the hillside could seat up to 10,000 people. Parchment paper was first produced in Pergamon.

Acropolis;One of the seven churches addressed in Revelation, the city of Pergamum became the center of a large kingdom in the 3rd century B.C. and retained its status as a political and cultural leader into the Byzantine period.


The acropolis rises 1300 feet above the lower city located on the plain of the Caicus River.
ASKLEPION:is a famed ancient medical center built in honor of Asklepios, the god of healing. It was also the world's first psychiatric hospital. The Asklepion gained in prominence under the Romans in the 2nd century AD, but a sacred site existed here as early as the 4th century BC. The Asklepion was more like a modern spa than a hospital: therapy included mud baths, music concerts, and doses of water from the sacred fountain. Galen, the influential physician and philosopher who was born in Pergamum in 129 AD, trained and then later became an attendant to the gladiators here
THE ALTAR OF ZEUS: The Zeus Altar was constructed by Eumenes II (197-159 BC) as a memorial of his victory against the Galatians. The altar had the shape of a horseshoe and was over 100 feet long on both sides. It was composed of four parts, the most striking of which are the high reliefs depicting the war between the giants and the gods.
The Zeus Altar was taken from Pergamon in 1871 and carried to Germany by the German engineer Carl Humann.


RED BASILICA: The massive structure was built in the early 2nd century (under Hadrian) as a temple to the popular Egyptian god Serapis. It was later (4th-5th centuries) converted into a Byzantine church. The Red Basilica was destroyed in the Arab raids of 716 to 717 AD, after which a smaller church was built within the ruins.


APHRODISIAS: The beautiful city Aphrodisias is one of the most interesting ancient cities of Anatolia, with its famous sculpture school.The name of the city is derived from the goddess of love, Aphrodite – called Venus by Romans- , who has her famous sanctuary here.

 

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