With its giant city pool reflecting the splendor of the Roman period, famous Tetrapylon Gate, Sebasteion Temple, stadium, ancient theater and bathhouse, the ancient city of Aphrodisias, located in Türkiye’s western Aydın province, offers a glimpse into the past with structures and sculptures preserved in near perfect condition.
Aphrodisias, the city dedicated to the ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty and pleasure, Aphrodite, is located just a two-hour drive from the world-famous Ephesus. Having bloomed in the fertile valley formed by the Morsynus River in the ancient region of Caria, Aphrodisias was once the meeting ground of not only merchants, like many of the still-standing Greek towns in Anatolia, but also of lovers – star-crossed or not.
Aphrodisias thrived from the second century B.C. until the sixth century B.C. The city was built near a marble quarry so it was not surprising that this city of love was once glistening under the Mediterranean sun thanks to its marble facade. The city was built and named by the Greeks, but later the Romans, who called the goddess of love Venus, adopted the city as a sacred place of love. Subsequently, pilgrims flocked to the city to pay homage to the fairest goddess of them all.
As it was founded near a marble quarry, the sculptures carved in Aphrodisias adorned Greek and Roman cities for centuries. After the fourth century A.D., Aphrodisian sculptors were in great demand for marble portrait busts and statues of emperors, governors and philosophers in the major centers of the Roman Empire. This made the city not only a hub for pilgrims but for artists as well.
When Christianity spread throughout the region, the city maintained its importance. Christians turned the city into a new kind of place of love – a chaster one. However, when the pilgrims stopped coming to the site, the city declined. In the seventh century A.D., a huge earthquake shook the city to the ground, and Aphrodisias was never able to recover.
According to the UNESCO Türkiye website, the ancient city of Aphrodisias is a settlement that reflects the architectural and urban aspects of the Greek and Roman period.
The excavations, initiated in the ancient site under the leadership of Kenan Erim in 1961, are still carried out by professor Roland R.R. Smith.
Smith said: "The visitor who comes here walks on a very interesting and very enjoyable archaeological path. While making this visit, one can examine the plants intertwined with architecture and history. The fact that all the artifacts have been preserved in situ and they are exhibited in the beautiful museum here provides a wonderful experience."