Ephesus Tour with Lunch and Tickets From Kusadasi / Selcuk Hotels

Ephesus, was the second largest city in the Roman Empire over 250.000 people in the 1st BC. Ranking only behind Rome it was the second largest city in the world. Ephesus was also a harbour city.

Temple of Artemis or Artemision, also known as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek Temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis. It was located in Ephesus and it was one the seven wonders of the world.

The House of Virgin Mary, is a place where according to the beliefs of many people Mary, the mother of Jesus, spent her last years of her life.

The Isabey Mosque, constructed in 1374 – 1375, is one of the oldest and most impressive works of architectural art remaining from the Anatolian Beyliks. The mosque is stuated in outskirts of the Ayasuluk Hills at Selcuk – Ephesus.

The agora on the southern part of the Basilica is the State Agora, and was built in the Roman Period in the first century B.C. This agora was used not for commerce but for business, it played an important role as a meeting place for the governmental discussions. During the excavations in the northeast corner of the Agora were found a great number of graves from the 7th-6th centuries B.C and a stone-paved road, and a archaic sarcophagus of terra cotta.

Hercules Gate located towards the end of the Curetes Street, it was called the Hercules gate because of the relief of Hercules on it. It was brought from another place in the fourth century AD to its current place, but the relief on it dates back to the second century AD.

Vedius Gymnasium is easily seen when entering the Ephesus city from the south entrance. The construction of the gymnasium dates around the second century AD, funded by Publius Vedius Antoninus and his wife Flavia Papiana. They dedicated the gymnasium to Goddess Artemis and to Emperor Antoninus Pius. In Ephesus, gymnasiums were the schools for young people in which one could take lessons for art, sports, literature, drama and speech. The most important and beautiful of these gymnasiums was the Gymnasium of Vedius. The entrance of the gymnasium is on the east, and when entering there is a palaestra (courtyard), surrounded by columns. The hall of emperors is also on the east, with statues and floors covered with mosaics.