History cont.
With Ionian migrations the cities in the region developed and joined in a confederation under the leadership of Ephesus. However, the region was devastated during the Cimmerian invasion at the beginning of the 7th century BC. Later, under the rule of the Lydian kings 6c BC , Ephesus reached the "Golden Age" and became one of the wealthiest cities in the Mediterranean world .
The defeat of the Lydian King Croesus by Cyrus, the King of Persia, opened the way for the extension of Persian hegemony over the whole Anatolia and the Aegean coast. To break Persion domination the Ionian cities rebelled against Persia but Ephesians avoided destruction by quickly dissociating themselves from the others.
Alexander the Great liberated Ionian cities from the Persians domination and gave them their independence in the year of 334. Ephesus was in great prosperity during the times of Alexander the Great. Ephesus was consisted of two governing systems, democratic and oligarchic. The oligarchic system was violated with the coming of a new ruler, and a rebellion started in Ephesus. The Temple of Artemis was set on fire and destroyed by the supporters of oligarchy in 356BC. Seeing the ruined temple Alexander the Great proposed for repairing. But the Ephesians delicately refused for the reason that "A God can not built a temple for a " God". An Ephesian architect, Dinocrates restored the Temple of Artemis.
In Greek and Roman times, Ephesus was the center of worship of Diana (or Artemis), goddess of the hunt. The city's religious life centered on the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In addition to Diana, it is estimated that as many as 17 gods and goddess were worshipped in Ephesus at one time. The Temple of Artemis was badly damaged by a Goth invasion in 262 AD. It was rebuilt, but not to its former splendor. The new Artemis has been rebuilt in the 2nd century BC. Located on top of the previous one, it had tremendous dimensions: 125 columns of each 17,5 meters high. Unfortunately this one has also been destroyed by fire, reconstructed and again demolished by earthquakes, rebuilt and at last looted by Goths one year later.
The statue of many-breasted Artemis was the symbol of the temple but also of abundance, hunting and wild life. The genuine statue of Artemis, removed during the fire, is today exhibited in the Selcuk Museum. Many copies of this statue found during the latest excavations date back from the Roman period.
Ephesus was controlled by the Romans in 190 BC. The city was given to the Bergamian kings for a time. With the death of King Attalos III in 133BC, the city was re-ruled by the Romans. Ephesus reached to its height and was notorious for its wealth and luxury between 1-4 AD., especially during the reign of Augustus.
The population of Ephesus has been estimated to be in the range of 400,000 to 500,000 inhabitants in the year 100 AD. In addition to the great Temple of Artemis, known as one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. It has been built in the areas of Ephesus on a flat area which has over the centuries turned into a swamp. Today one can only see the ruins of the foundations of this marvelous construction of the Hellenistic Age, entirely made of marble and full of sculptured columns' capitals and shafts. The most beautiful remaining of this temple are today exhibited in the London British Museum. Ephesus also boasted a civic library and a theater, which was the largest in the world, capable of holding 50,000 spectators. Also built in Ephesus around this time were the Roman Baths, including the indoor toilets with running water beneath the latrines.
By the later first century AD, Ephesus had become an important center for early Christianity. The Apostle Paul spent his longest missionary tour in Ephesus. According to Acts, Paul's preaching drew the wrath of the artisans of Ephesus, whose livelihood depended on the Temple of Artemis. The riot occurred in the Great Theater, which still stands. In the book of Revelation, Ephesus was one of the seven churches addressed by Christ.
Ephesus continued to play an important role in Christian history after the time of the apostles. From an early date, St. John was said to have lived and died in Ephesus and pilgrims visited his tomb. In the 6th century, Emperor Justinian built a great basilica over John's tomb, remains of which can be seen today.
Ignatius of Antioch wrote a letter written by to the Ephesians in the early 2nd century AD, John Chrysostom visited in the city in 401, and Ephesus was the setting for the Third Ecumenical Council (431), which resulted in the condemnation of Nestorius and the official approval of the term "Mother of God" (Theotokos) for the Virgin Mary. The council took place in the Double Church of the Virgin, which was probably built shortly before the bishops arrived.
According to a later legend, the Virgin Mary had joined the Apostle John in Ephesus. A house about 7 km from Seljuk, just outside Ephesus, is believed by many Catholics and Muslims to have been the last home of the Virgin Mary. The current structure, known as the House of the Virgin, dates to the 7th century and is believed to be built on the site of her house. It became an official place of Catholic pilgrimage in 1892 and has been visited by the Pope.
By the early Middle Ages, the port of Ephesus had silted up and the city had gone into decline. The remains of the Temple of Artemis sunk into the marsh and disappeared completely from sight. Much of the city was abandoned after the Arab raids of the 7th century, and Ephesus was just a small town when the Seljuk conquered it in 1069.
Artemis was also called Cynthia, from her birth place, Mount Cynthus in Delos. She was Apollo's twin sister, daughter of Zeus and Leto. She was one of the three maiden goddesses of Olympus: the pure maiden Vesta, gray-eyed Athena who cares but for war and the arts of the craftsmen, and Artemis, lover of woods and the wild chase over the mountain. She was the Lady of Wild Things, Huntsman-in-chief to the gods, an odd office for a woman. As a huntress her favorite animal was the stag, because its swiftness gave the best opportunity for her method of capture, which was by her silver bow and arrows and speed of foot.
As Phoebus was the Sun, she was the Moon called Phoebe and Selene (Luna) representing the evening and night, carrying a torch, and clad in long heavy robes, with a veil covering the back of her head. Neither name originally belonged to her.
Phoebe was a Titan, one of the older gods. So too was Selene, a moon-goddess, indeed, but not connected with Apollo. She was the sister of Helios, the sun-god with whom Apollo was confused.
She was worshipped in Athens, Corinth, and Thebes as goddess of strict upbringing, of good fame, of upright mind, and of sensibility in the affairs of ordinary life. She chased and fired her arrows at all wild and unchecked creatures and actions.
In the later poets, Artemis is identified with Hecate. She is "the goddess with three forms", Selene in the sky, Artemis on earth, Hecate in the lower world and in the world above when it is wrapped in darkness. Hecate was the Goddess of the dark of the Moon, the black nights when the moon is hidden. She was associated with deeds of darkness, the Goddess of the Crossways, which were held to be ghostly places of evil magic.
