Aspendos - Ancient Ruins above Theatre

Wednesday, 29 July 2015 02:00
Written by Portal Editor

Aspendos – when this world-famous name for ancient buildings is mentioned, everyone thinks of the best-preserved theatre near Manavgat / Side, which is still used for numerous events today.

The Aspendos Viaduct is probably even more famous than the ruined city of Aspendos, as tour buses visit the theatre and viaduct every day. The associated ancient city above the theatre, on the other hand, is almost unknown, especially since it has rarely been examined by archaeologists.

Almost all of the still-standing buildings of the ancient city of Aspendos date back to the Roman heyday of the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, when the city was an important Pamphylian trading centre.

The ruined city is located 46 kilometres east of Antalya on the road to Alanya.

The ancient ruins of the city are accessible after a challenging climb, partly via rocky but easily accessible paths (even in winter after heavy rains) and with sufficient signage, but have hardly seen an archaeologist.

The otherwise largely untouched terrain is only occasionally cleared of undergrowth and bushes.

Ruin Fields from the 12th Century BC

According to Greek records and traditions, Aspendos was founded by settlers from the Peloponnese, originating from the city of Argos.

Evidence of this foundation dates back to the 12th century BC, and Mopsus, known as a seer, is said to have been one of the founding fathers.

Mopsus is also considered one of the founding fathers of Perge. Should excavations ever be carried out in Aspendos, numerous finds from Greek history will surely come to light.

As a former port city, Aspendos was once connected to the sea by the Eurymedon River (now known as Köprüçay in Turkish), thus achieving lasting prosperity.

We had already visited the famous Ottoman bridge for an article and photos, and reported accordingly. This river also entered history as the site of the famous "Battle of the Eurymedon."

In the final battle of the so-called Persian Wars, the Athenian general and naval commander Cimon defeated the Persians there in 466 BC in a double battle on land and sea.

Since then, the Eurymedon has politically marked the division between the eastern Persian sphere of influence and Greek Asia Minor to the west.

Under the new Macedonian ruler Alexander, the Great, Aspendos became tributary after initial resistance.

And then the Romans appear in Aspendos

During the Roman era, Aspendos was able to establish a predominantly good relationship with Rome and reached its greatest prosperity as an important trading centre in the region.

The export of wine, oil, salt, and horses in particular brought Aspendos wealth and prosperity. But first, let's look at the ruined city itself.

Some of the still towering Roman buildings on the Acropolis hill are grouped on three sides around a rectangular square, the so typical Roman agora. In ancient Greece, "agora" referred to the central assembly, market, and festival square of a city. It was a place of encounter, exchange, and political debate.

On the western and eastern sides, the agora, as in many other ancient cities (see Thessaloniki), is bordered by elongated former market halls.

The eastern ruins of these market halls are still visible, about 140 meters long. At the southern end, the agora terminates in an exedra and ends in the north with a massive, 15-meter-high square building.

An exedra is an architectural niche or space, often semicircular, which can either be set into a facade or be freestanding. It can be crowned with a semi-dome and serves as a space for conversation or as a seating area.

The adjoining western building is interpreted as a market hall. The two-story facade of a nymphaeum, a type of fountain house that was probably fed by the aqueduct, dominates the square. Niches for sculptures and projecting cornices for columns and pediments testify to an originally magnificent interior.

The building behind it at the northwest corner probably served as a bouleuterion (council chamber) or ekklesiasterion (hall for the popular assembly).

Furthermore, there is a temple above the stadium; it is still unclear which deity it was dedicated to. Since coins from Aspendos (around 450 BC) depict Athena and Zeus, the temple may have been dedicated to one of these deities.

Water supply of the ancient city of Aspendos – first pressure pipes

In a separate article, we have already addressed the highly intriguing question of this city's water supply: how did the Romans manage to bring drinking water to the city hill?

In addition to numerous cisterns, the water supply was ensured by an aqueduct that is still well preserved today (just studying the aqueduct casts a different light on Roman architecture), which leads from the northern plain to the city. In order to supply the higher parts of the settlement (Acropolis) with water, a triple pressure pipe was laid across the entire plain.

This, thanks to the principle of communicating pipes, ensured that an aqueduct didn't have to be built across the entire plain from the height of the Acropolis, but rather the water pipe could run at a lower elevation.

We followed the route of the aqueduct through the plain several times and even visited the spring in the mountains.

Simply covering the distance between the spring and the city with an aqueduct is a technical marvel, as is still clearly visible in Side.

If we have piqued your interest, take a close look at these aqueducts of Roman construction technology. Even today, they are considered marvels of engineering, dating back 2,000 years before our time.

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