Sardis and Related Topics

Lydia

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Iron Age kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the modern western Turkish provinces of Uşak, Manisa and inland Izmir.

Portrait of Croesus, last King of Lydia, Attic red-figure amphora, painted ca. 500–490 BC.

Tripolis on the Meander is an ancient Lydian city in Turkey.

Büyük Menderes River also known as Maeander is river in Lydia.

The Pactolus river, from which Lydia obtained electrum, a combination of silver and gold.

Early 6th century BC Lydian electrum coin (one-third stater denomination).

Lydian delegation at Apadana, circa 500 BC

Lydia's borders under the reign of Alyattes's son Croesus

Bin Tepe royal funeral tumulus (tomb of Alyattes, father of Croesus), Lydia, 6th century BC.

Croesus at the stake. Side A from an Attic red-figure amphora, ca. 500–490 BC

Lydia, including Ionia, during the Achaemenid Empire.

Xerxes I tomb, Lydian soldier of the Achaemenid army, circa 480 BC

Photo of a 15th-century map showing Lydia

Church of St John, Philadelphia (Alaşehir)

The capital of Lydia was Sardis.

Achaemenid Empire

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Ancient Iranian empire based in Western Asia that was founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. It reached its greatest extent under Xerxes I, who conquered most of northern and central ancient Greece.

The Achaemenid Empire at its greatest territorial extent under the rule of Darius I (522 BC–486 BC)

Map of the expansion process of Achaemenid territories

Cyrus the Great is said, in the Bible, to have liberated the Hebrew captives in Babylon to resettle and rebuild Jerusalem, earning him an honored place in Judaism.

The tomb of Cyrus the Great, founder of the Achaemenid Empire. At Pasargadae, Iran.

The Achaemenid Empire at its greatest extent, c. 500 BC

The Persian queen Atossa, daughter of Cyrus the Great, sister-wife of Cambyses II, Darius the Great's wife, and mother of Xerxes the Great

Map showing events of the first phases of the Greco-Persian Wars

Greek hoplite and Persian warrior depicted fighting, on an ancient kylix, 5th century BC

Achaemenid king fighting hoplites, seal and seal holder, Cimmerian Bosporus.

Achaemenid gold ornaments, Brooklyn Museum

Persian Empire timeline including important events and territorial evolution – 550–323 BC

Relief showing Darius I offering lettuces to the Egyptian deity Amun-Ra Kamutef, Temple of Hibis

The 24 countries subject to the Achaemenid Empire at the time of Darius, on the Egyptian statue of Darius I.

The Battle of Issus, between Alexander the Great on horseback to the left, and Darius III in the chariot to the right, represented in a Pompeii mosaic dated 1st century BC – Naples National Archaeological Museum

Alexander's first victory over Darius, the Persian king depicted in medieval European style in the 15th century romance The History of Alexander's Battles

Frataraka dynasty ruler Vadfradad I (Autophradates I). 3rd century BC. Istakhr (Persepolis) mint.

Dārēv I (Darios I) used for the first time the title of mlk (King). 2nd century BC.

Winged sphinx from the Palace of Darius in Susa, Louvre

Volume of annual tribute per district, in the Achaemenid Empire, according to Herodotus.

Achaemenid tax collector, calculating on an Abax or Abacus, according to the Darius Vase (340–320 BC).

Letter from the Satrap of Bactria to the governor of Khulmi, concerning camel keepers, 353 BC

Relief of throne-bearing soldiers in their native clothing at the tomb of Xerxes I, demonstrating the satrapies under his rule.

Achaemenid king killing a Greek hoplite. c. 500 BC–475 BC, at the time of Xerxes I. Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Persian soldiers (left) fighting against Scythians. Cylinder seal impression.

Color reconstruction of Achaemenid infantry on the Alexander Sarcophagus (end of 4th century BC).

Seal of Darius the Great hunting in a chariot, reading "I am Darius, the Great King" in Old Persian (𐎠𐎭𐎶𐏐𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁𐎴 𐏋, "adam Dārayavaʰuš xšāyaθiya"), as well as in Elamite and Babylonian. The word "great" only appears in Babylonian. British Museum.

Achaemenid calvalryman in the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia, Altıkulaç Sarcophagus, early 4th century BC.

Armoured cavalry: Achaemenid Dynast of Hellespontine Phrygia attacking a Greek psiloi, Altıkulaç Sarcophagus, early 4th century BC.

Reconstitution of Persian landing ships at the Battle of Marathon.

Greek ships against Achaemenid ships at the Battle of Salamis.

Iconic relief of lion and bull fighting, Apadana of Persepolis

Achaemenid golden bowl with lioness imagery of Mazandaran

A section of the Old Persian part of the trilingual Behistun inscription. Other versions are in Babylonian and Elamite.

A copy of the Behistun inscription in Aramaic on a papyrus. Aramaic was the lingua franca of the empire.

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven wonders of the ancient world, was built by Greek architects for the local Persian satrap of Caria, Mausolus (Scale model)

Reconstruction of the Palace of Darius at Susa. The palace served as a model for Persepolis.

Lion on a decorative panel from Darius I the Great's palace, Louvre

Apadana Hall, Persian and Median soldiers at Persepolis

Lateral view of tomb of Cambyses II, Pasargadae, Iran

Plaque with horned lion-griffins. The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Cyrus led a counterattack which not only fought off Croesus' armies, but also led to the capture of Sardis and the fall of the Lydian Kingdom in 546 BC. Cyrus placed Pactyes in charge of collecting tribute in Lydia and left, but once Cyrus had left Pactyes instigated a rebellion against Cyrus.

Turkey

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Transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in Southeast Europe.

Some henges at Göbekli Tepe were erected as far back as 9600 BC, predating those of Stonehenge, England, by over seven millennia.

The Great Seljuk Empire in 1092, upon the death of Malik Shah I

The Second Ottoman Siege of Vienna in 1683 (the First Siege was in 1529) initiated the Great Turkish War (1683–1699) between the Ottomans and a Holy League of European states.

Armenian civilians being deported during the Armenian genocide

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder and first President of the Turkish Republic, with the Liberal Republican Party leader Fethi Okyar (right) and Okyar's daughter in Yalova, 13 August 1930.

Eighteen female deputies joined the Turkish Parliament with the 1935 general elections. Turkish women gained the right to vote and to hold elected office as a mark of the far-reaching social changes initiated by Atatürk.

Roosevelt, İnönü and Churchill at the Second Cairo Conference, 1943.

Anıtkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in Ankara, is visited by large crowds every year during national holidays, such as Republic Day on 29 October.

Istanbul Çağlayan Justice Palace is a courthouse in the Şişli district of Istanbul.

After becoming one of the early members of the Council of Europe in 1950, Turkey became an associate member of the EEC in 1963, joined the EU Customs Union in 1995 and started full membership negotiations with the European Union in 2005.

The Turkish Armed Forces collectively rank as the second-largest standing military force in NATO, after the US Armed Forces. Turkey joined the alliance in 1952.

The 2015 G20 Summit held in Antalya, Turkey, a founding member of the OECD (1961) and G20 (1999).

TAI Anka and Bayraktar TB2 are the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) used by the Turkish Armed Forces.

TCG Anadolu (L-400) is an amphibious assault ship-aircraft carrier developed for the Turkish Navy

Feminist demonstration in Kadıköy, Istanbul on 29 July 2017

Turkish journalists protesting the imprisonment of their colleagues on Human Rights Day in 2016.

Istanbul Pride organized in 2003 for the first time. Since 2015, parades in Istanbul were denied permission by the government. The denials were based on security concerns, but critics claimed the bans were ideological. Despite the refusal hundreds of people defied the ban each year.

Sumela Monastery in the Pontic Mountains, which form an ecoregion with diverse temperate rainforest types, flora and fauna in northern Anatolia.

A white Turkish Angora cat with odd eyes (heterochromia), which is common among the Angoras.

Istanbul is the largest city and financial centre of Turkey.

A proportional representation of Turkey's exports, 2019

Istanbul Airport main terminal building has an annual passenger capacity of 90 million and making it the world's largest airport terminal building under a single roof.

A TCDD HT80000 high-speed train of the Turkish State Railways

Göktürk-1, Göktürk-2 and Göktürk-3 are the Earth observation satellites of the Turkish Ministry of National Defense, while state-owned Türksat operates the Türksat series of communications satellites.

Total fertility rate in Turkey by province (2021)

CIA map of areas with a Kurdish majority

Sancaklar Mosque is a contemporary mosque in Istanbul

The Church of St. Anthony of Padua on İstiklal Avenue, in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul. There are 234 active churches in the city.

Istanbul Technical University is the world's third-oldest technical university.

Istanbul University was founded in 1453 as a Darülfünûn. On 1 August 1933 it was reorganised and became the Republic's first university.

Acıbadem Hospital in Altunizade neighborhood of Üsküdar, İstanbul

Ortaköy Mosque is a good example of the Westernisation of Islamic-Ottoman architecture. Many Baroque architecture elements can be seen in it.

Ottoman miniature which can be linked to the Persian miniature tradition, as well as strong Chinese artistic influences.

Namık Kemal's works had a profound influence on Atatürk and other Turkish statesmen who established the Turkish Republic.

Nobel-laureate Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk and his Turkish Angora cat at his personal writing space

Süreyya Opera House is situated in the Asian side of Istanbul and Atatürk Cultural Center is the main Opera House in the European side of the city.

Referred to as Süperstar by the Turkish media, Ajda Pekkan is a prominent figure of Turkish pop music, with a career spanning decades and a repertoire of diverse musical styles.

Barış Manço was a Turkish rock musician and one of the founders of the Anatolian rock genre.

Turkey won the silver medal at the 2010 FIBA World Championship.

VakıfBank S.K. has won the FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship in 2017 and 2018, and the 2017–18 CEV Women's Champions League for the fourth time in their history.

TRT World is the international news platform of the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation.

The closing ceremony of the annual International Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival takes place at the Aspendos amphitheatre.

Sardis was an ancient city at the location of modern Sart in Western Turkey.

Anatolia

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Large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent.

Europe during the Last Glacial Maximum, c. 20,000 years ago. Anatolia was connected to the European mainland until c. 5600 BCE, when the melting ice sheets caused the sea level in the Mediterranean to rise around 120 m, triggering the formation of the Turkish Straits. As a result, two former lakes (the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea) were connected to the Mediterranean Sea, which separated Anatolia from Europe.

Göbeklitepe were erected as far back as 9600 BC.

Aphrodisias was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site List in 2017

Sanctuary of Commagene Kings on Mount Nemrut (1st century BCE)

Byzantine Anatolia and the Byzantine-Arab frontier zone in the mid-9th century

Mediterranean climate is dominant in Turkish Riviera

Large urban centers included Ephesus, Pergamum, Sardis and Aphrodisias.

Lydian language

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Extinct Indo-European Anatolian language spoken in the region of Lydia, in western Anatolia (now in Turkey).

The Sardis bilingual inscription was the "Rosetta Stone" for the Lydian language.

All but a few of the extant Lydian texts have been found in or near Sardis, the Lydian capital, but fewer than 30 of the inscriptions consist of more than a few words or are reasonably complete.

Ephesus

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City in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, 3 km southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey.

Site of the Temple of Artemis in the town of Selçuk, near Ephesus.

Street scene at the archeological excavations at Ephesus.

Electrum coin from Ephesus, 620–600 BC. Obverse: Forepart of stag. Reverse: Square incuse punch.

Historical map of Ephesus, from Meyers Konversationslexikon, 1888

The Theatre of Ephesus with harbour street. Due to ancient and subsequent deforestation, overgrazing (mostly by goat herds), erosion and soil degradation the Turkey coastline is now 3 - 4 km away from the ancient Greek site with sediments filling the plain and the Mediterranean Sea. In the background: muddy remains of the former harbour, bare hill ridges without rich soils and woods, a maquis shrubland remaining.

The 'terrace houses' at Ephesus, showing how the wealthy lived during the Roman period. Eventually the harbour became silted up, and the city lost its natural resources.

The İsa Bey Mosque constructed in 1374–75, is one of the oldest and most impressive remains from the Anatolian beyliks.

The Preaching of Saint Paul at Ephesus, Eustache Le Sueur, 1649

The Gate of Augustus in Ephesus was built to honor the Emperor Augustus and his family.

Aqueduct near Ephesus – Mayer Luigi – 1810

Tomb of John the Apostle at the Basilica of St. John.

Image of Ephesus on the reverse of the 20 new lira banknote (2005–2008)

Even with these much lower population estimates, Ephesus was one of the largest cities of Roman Asia Minor, ranking it as the largest city after Sardis and Alexandria Troas.

Alexander riding Bucephalus on a Roman mosaic

Alexander the Great

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King of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon.

Alexander III riding Bucephalus on a Roman mosaic

Map of The Kingdom of Macedon in 336 BC, birthplace of Alexander

Roman medallion depicting Olympias, Alexander's mother

Archaeological Site of Pella, Greece, Alexander's birthplace

Philip II of Macedon, Alexander's father

Battle plan from the Battle of Chaeronea

Pausanius assassinates Philip II, Alexander's father, during his procession into the theatre

The emblema of the Stag Hunt Mosaic, c. 300 BC, from Pella; the figure on the right is possibly Alexander the Great due to the date of the mosaic along with the depicted upsweep of his centrally-parted hair (anastole); the figure on the left wielding a double-edged axe (associated with Hephaistos) is perhaps Hephaestion, one of Alexander's loyal companions.

The Macedonian phalanx at the "Battle of the Carts" against the Thracians in 335 BC

Gérard Audran after Charles LeBrun, 'Alexander Entering Babylon,' original print first published 1675, engraving, Department of Image Collections, National Gallery of Art Library, Washington, DC.

Alexander Cuts the Gordian Knot (1767) by Jean-Simon Berthélemy

Name of Alexander the Great in Egyptian hieroglyphs (written from right to left), c. 332 BC, Egypt. Louvre Museum.

Site of the Persian Gate in modern-day Iran; the road was built in the 1990s.

Administrative document from Bactria dated to the seventh year of Alexander's reign (324 BC), bearing the first known use of the "Alexandros" form of his name, Khalili Collection of Aramaic Documents

The Killing of Cleitus, by André Castaigne (1898–1899)

Silver tetradrachm of Alexander the Great found in Byblos (ca 330-300 bc.) (BnF 1998–859; 17,33g; Byblos, Price 3426b)

The Phalanx Attacking the Centre in the Battle of the Hydaspes by André Castaigne (1898–1899)

Alexander's invasion of the Indian subcontinent

Asia in 323 BC, the Nanda Empire and the Gangaridai of the Indian subcontinent, in relation to Alexander's Empire and neighbours

Alexander (left) and Hephaestion (right): Both were connected by a tight friendship

Alexander at the Tomb of Cyrus the Great, by Pierre-Henri de Valenciennes (1796)

A Babylonian astronomical diary (c. 323–322 BC) recording the death of Alexander (British Museum, London)

19th-century depiction of Alexander's funeral procession, based on the description by Diodorus Siculus

Detail of Alexander on the Alexander Sarcophagus

Kingdoms of the Diadochi in 301 BC: the Ptolemaic Kingdom (dark blue), the Seleucid Empire (yellow), Kingdom of Pergamon (orange), and Kingdom of Macedon (green). Also shown are the Roman Republic (light blue), the Carthaginian Republic (purple), and the Kingdom of Epirus (red).

A coin of Alexander the Great struck by Balakros or his successor Menes, both former somatophylakes (bodyguards) of Alexander, when they held the position of satrap of Cilicia in the lifetime of Alexander, circa 333-327 BC. The obverse shows Heracles, ancestor of the Macedonian royal line and the reverse shows a seated Zeus Aëtophoros.

Alexander (left), wearing a kausia and fighting an Asiatic lion with his friend Craterus (detail); late 4th century BC mosaic, Pella Museum

A Roman copy of an original 3rd century BC Greek bust depicting Alexander the Great, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen

A mural in Pompeii, depicting the marriage of Alexander to Barsine (Stateira) in 324 BC; the couple are apparently dressed as Ares and Aphrodite.

The Hellenistic world view: world map of Eratosthenes (276–194 BC), using information from the campaigns of Alexander and his successors

Dedication of Alexander the Great to Athena Polias at Priene, now housed in the British Museum

Alexander's empire was the largest state of its time, covering approximately 5.2 million square km.

The Buddha, in Greco-Buddhist style, 1st to 2nd century AD, Gandhara, northern Pakistan. Tokyo National Museum.

This medallion was produced in Imperial Rome, demonstrating the influence of Alexander's memory. Walters Art Museum, Baltimore.

Alexander in a 14th-century Armenian manuscript

Alexander in a 14th-century Byzantine manuscript

Alexander conquering the air. Jean Wauquelin, Les faits et conquêtes d'Alexandre le Grand, 1448–1449

Folio from the Shahnameh showing Alexander praying at the Kaaba, mid-16th century

Detail of a 16th-century Islamic painting depicting Alexander being lowered in a glass submersible

A Hellenistic bust of a young Alexander the Great, possibly from Ptolemaic Egypt, 2nd-1st century BC, now in the British Museum

A fresco depicting a hunt scene at the tomb of Philip II, Alexander's father, at the Archaeological Site of Aigai, the only known depiction of Alexander made during his lifetime, 330s BC

After an initial victory against Persian forces at the Battle of the Granicus, Alexander accepted the surrender of the Persian provincial capital and treasury of Sardis; he then proceeded along the Ionian coast, granting autonomy and democracy to the cities.

Map of western Anatolia showing the island Patmos and the locations of the cities housing the seven churches

Seven churches of Asia

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The Seven Churches of Revelation, also known as the Seven Churches of the Apocalypse and the Seven Churches of Asia, are seven major Churches of Early Christianity, as mentioned in the New Testament Book of Revelation.

Mosaic in St Mark's Basilica of the seven angels

According to Revelation 1:11, on the Greek island of Patmos, Jesus Christ instructs John of Patmos to: "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven Churches: to Ephesus, and to Smyrna, and to Pergamum, and to Thyatira, and to Sardis, and to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea."

Croesus

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The king of Lydia, who reigned from 585 BC until his defeat by the Persian king Cyrus the Great in 547 or 546 BC.

Gold coin of Croesus, Lydian, around 550 BC, found in what is now modern Turkey

Croesus showing his treasures to Solon. Frans Francken the Younger, 17th century

Silver croeseid issued by King Croesus of Lydia (561–545 BC), obverse: lion and bull protomes

Defeat of Croesus at the Battle of Thymbra, 546 BC.

Croesus vanquished, standing in front of Cyrus

Croesus on the pyre, Attic red-figure amphora, Louvre (G 197)

The composition of these first coins was similar to alluvial deposits found in the silt of the Pactolus river (made famous by Midas), which ran through the Lydian capital, Sardis.

Smyrna