Ancient Pergamum – One of Turkey’s Most Dramatic Sites (and the seat of Satan)
As usual, the Greeks picked an excellent natural setting for a theater, with a view that extends for miles. The acropolis of Pergamum covers a steep hilltop, and a lot of Greek and Roman civil engineering work went into creating a level building area.
These archways are part of the hillside infrastructure to support the Temple of Trajan and other buildings at Pergamum.
Although
it doesn’t look like much now, these are the ruins of the magnificent
library of Pergamum that once held 200,000 scrolls – rivaling Alexandria
as one of the great ancient libraries.
The
Altar of Zeus was located where the big tree is. The amazing friezes
and other parts of the Altar structure are now in the Pergamon Museum in
Berlin, Germany.
Practicalities: Pergamum is a pretty easy day trip by car from Izmir, about 2 hours (100 km) north. Since Pergamum is at the top of a very steep hill, there is a tram that will take you close to the top, or you can drive through the town and up the hill on a narrow road to find a small parking lot near the top. The entry fee is 20 TL per person and parking was 3.5 TL (about 2 TL to the USD as of July 2013).
Red Basilica
In addition to Pergamum, in the town of Bergama is the Red Basilica (Temple of the Egyptian Gods), which dates to the 2nd century AD and was once covered in marble – it must have been quite a sight then and it still is now. It is huge, and pictures cannot do its immense size justice.
Later on, the Byzantines built a church inside the basilica. This was a place where the Romans worshiped the Egyptian Gods. The entry fee was 5 TL. It’s worth a quick stop here. In addition to these sites, the Asclepieum (or Asklepion, dedicated to the serpent-god Asklepios) an ancient medical center ruin is about 8 km from the acropolis. Time didn’t allow us to stop here either.
References: Signage at Pergamum, DK Eyewitness Travel Turkey and Lonely Planet Turkey.
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