Dido, Queen of Carthage

The Roman theatre, built in the 2nd century AD under Hadrian on the ruins of an earlier theatre, later renovated under Septimus Severus, Hierapolis, Turkey by Following Hadrian on Flickr.

The Sanctuary of Hecate in Lagina, dated to the last quarter of the 2nd century BC, Caria, Turkey by Following Hadrian on Flickr.

The Bath-Gymnasium complex at Sardis, late 2nd - early 3rd century AD, Sardis, Turkey by Following Hadrian on Flickr.

The Bath-Gymnasium complex at Sardis, late 2nd - early 3rd century AD, Sardis, Turkey by Following Hadrian on Flickr.

The Theatre at Hierapolis, Turkey

Parrot floor mosaic, 200 BC. Pergamon, Palace V, altar chamber, Turkey. © Photo: Antikensammlung der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin - Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Jürgen Liepe

Library of Celsus in Ephesus, Izmir, Turkey. Built c. 125 AD.

Greek statue of a male figure  2nd cent B.C  Greek Hellenistic period  from Pergamon (Bergama)  Turkey  Istanbul Archaeological museum

The earliest depiction of Kyzikos, son of Apollo

This electrum stater from Kyzikos, Mysia, c. 460-400 BC shows the hero Kyzikos, riding his rearing horse at a gallop to the right. This is the earliest depiction of the Thesslian Kyzikos, the son of Apollo and the founder of the famous city of Kyzikos located at the Sea of Marmara where the tuna fish catch was so important that the animal became the characteristic feature of this city’s coinage. The reverse shows a quadripartite incuse square. A rare and very fine coin.

The entire trade in grain as well as slaves in the Black Sea Region was transacted with electrum coins from Kyzikos such as this for many decades. The site of ancient Kyzikos is located in the modern Balıkesir Province of Turkey. It was located on the shoreward side of the present Kapıdağ Peninsula (the classical Arctonnesus), a tombolo which is said to have originally been an island in the Sea of Marmara only to be connected to the mainland in historic times either by artificial means or an earthquake.

Temple of Athena by sonofwalrus on Flickr.

Tramite Flickr: Behramkale, Turkey.

The Grand Theatre at Ephesus, Turkey.

This theatre was constructed in the 3rd century BCE during the Hellenistic Period, and is able to seat about 25,000 people. 

Photo courtesy & taken by Neil Howard.

Aphrodisias, Turkey

Aphrodisias was a small ancient Greek city in Caria (western Turkey) named after the goddess of love. She had a unique cult image here and was known as Aphrodite of Aphrodisias. According to the Byzantine encyclopedic compilation called the Suda, before being known as Aphrodisias, the city had held three previous names: Lelegon Polis (City of the Leleges), Megale Polis (Great City) and Ninoe.

The city was built near a marble quarry that was extensively exploited in the Hellenistic and Roman periods, and sculpture in marble from Aphrodisias became famous in the Roman world. Many examples of statuary have been unearthed in Aphrodisias, and some representations of the Aphrodite of Aphrodisias also survive from other parts of the Roman world, as far afield as Pax Julia in Lusitania (modern Portugal and part of Spain).

Aphrodisias is in an earthquake zone and has suffered a great deal of damage at various times, especially in the severe tremors of the 4th and 7th centuries. An added complication was that one of the 4th century earthquakes altered the water table, making parts of the town prone to flooding. Aphrodisias never fully recovered from the 7th century earthquake, and fell into disrepair.

The site of Aphrodisias is located near the modern village of Geyre, Turkey.

More about Aphrodisias…

The Acropolis of Pergamon

The earliest material from Pergamon indicates that the site was settled as early as the 8th century B.C. Because of its distance from the sea, however, Pergamon was probably not a Greek settlement and little is known about the earlier centuries. The city is first mentioned in history in 399 BC and at that time it was in the hands of a local Greek tyrant.

The city emerged as a power during the struggle for territorial control following the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC. By the middle of the 3rd century BC Pergamon had been established as an independent state under the leadership of the Attalid dynasty. The power of the Attalids and the city grew as a result of successful battles against the Gauls of central Anatolia and careful political alliances with Rome.

Pergamon was in ancient Aeolis, currently located 26 kilometres (16 mi) from the Aegean Sea on a promontory on the north side of the river Caicus (the modern day Bakırçay River near Bergama in Izmir Province, Turkey).

photo by Manυ

The Polyxena Sarcophagus, Late Archaic, Turkey

This sarcophagus has been dated between 520-500 BC, and was excavated in 1994 in the Canakkale province of Turkey. In it contained the skeleton of a male adult, and the sarcophagus itself is made from proconnesian marble. The artwork on this piece is in low relief and depicts a funeral ritual. There is a scene on one of the panels where it has been interpreted as the sacrifice of Polyxena by Neoptolemos, by the tomb of Neoptomolos’ father, Achilles.

Ancient Roman arches at Pergamon, Turkey (by archer10).