April 21, 2010 (Wednesday)

We woke up to thunder and lightening this morning! Oh, I do hope the sun will pop out later. We get ready to go. Jerry called our friend, John Crider, and finally got to talk to him; found out Lauren had a great time at her high school senior prom, which was answered prayer, since for a long time she did not have a date to the event. Also, Lindsey was named Sophomore English Student of the Year at Samford.

Didyma. Leaving Selçuk for our long haul daytrip down to Didyma on the coast, we stopped by a little market to get some orange juice, two apples, two oranges, etc. for breakfast/lunch. As we drove along, the sun did start to come out! The drive was very nice whenever we came along the Aegean Sea. The shot below was taken on the map where you see the highway first comes out to the coastline past Miletus.

We finally arrived at Didyma. The two main sights to see are the huge but unfinished Apollo temple and the colossal Medusa head that is at the site. Spent a good bit of time there. The Apollo temple, had the project ever been completed, would have been the largest in the world, dwarfing anything ever attempted. Here is an artist’s rendition of the temple in construction.

The shot below is an aerial from directly overhead. (No, Jerry did not climb somewhere to get this one!) The grand foyer entrance is on the right. The temple proper is in the middle, with the  interior courtyard to the left.

The intricate carvings and detail on the base of the columns was stunning. These designs were not the same from base to base either.

Inscriptions indicate “reserved” seating in the temple compound area.

I was particularly happy to find the giant Medusa head, since I had seen this figure on so many brochures and other printed literature and advertisements.

Jerry thought this column capital was significant, as the carvings indicated the principle activity of sacrifice for this temple complex, especially the bull’s head with draped garland.

Miletus. We next retrace our steps and head back up to Milet, ancient Miletus. The city of Miletus is where the apostle Paul stopped on the return trip of the Third Missionary Journey in order to speak to the elders of the Ephesian congregation, whom he had called down to meet with him in Miletus (Acts 20:17–38).

Miletus Theater. We saw the Miletus theater again. The image below is the front of the theater, in which the middle portion, which would have been the back part of the stage, has been lost. The other two images provide perspective to show how large the theater is.

This time around we looked for and found the important inscription, “place for Jews and godfearers,” in the fifth row of the theater in the section to the right of the emperors seating. This inscription indicates that the Jewish population in Miletus was an integral part of the cultural and social fabric of this important Greco-Roman city.

Faustina Baths. We moved past the theater to the area to the west that we missed the first time around. There we were able to find the Faustina baths, which we had missed before.

In particular, the caldarian, or hot bath area, is well-preserved. The original stone carvings of the god Meander and the lion are in the museum in Istanbul. The figures in the bathhouse are accurate reproductions.

Harbor Market. We also surveyed the old market area adjacent to the harbor, the acreage of which is pretty much totally covered in shallow water these days. (Miletus, like Ephesus, had a significant silting problem for its harbor due to the slow-moving river.)

South Agora. The south agora (marketplace) was a significant part of the entire market area of Miletus, and is perhaps the largest ancient marketplace ever found. The warehouses connected to the south agora can be dated to the second century B.C., which means the apostle Paul would have seen them on his entry into the port of Miletus.

Miletus Synagogue. In this general market area is also the speculated location of the ancient synagogue in Miletus. This possible synagogue identification is the middle of the image below, not the ruins on top of the hill.

Miletus Harbor. After catching an overview of the market area and south agora, we next went looking for the old harbor, where Paul and company would have pulled in to port. We found the harbor area. As we walked around, Jerry was able to find the famous harbor monument with its image of Neptune mentioned in ancient sources that refer to the Miletus harbor. The monument originally celebrated the success of Pompey in ridding the Mediterranean of pirates. Later the monument was dedicated to Augustus, who inaugurated and managed Rome’s transition from republic to empire. We studied the harbor monument area and got pictures.

Miletus Lion. However, Jerry also wanted to locate one other famous archeological remain related to the ancient harbor at Miletus—the sole surviving Harbor Lion statue, one of two lion figures that stood guard over the entrance to the Miletus harbor. We started surveying the site for the lion. Jerry knew the lion would not be perched up on a pedestal easy to spot across the fields, because the entire site is submerged as part of a giant bog these days. So, how were we going to have any chance to find the Harbor Lion of Miletus?

As we were pondering our predicament, a wizened old shepherd of small stature must have caught sight of us before we caught sight of him. This shepherd somewhat catches us off guard because he already is hurrying toward us when we finally catch sight of him. He seems to be motioning for us to follow him, so we did. Wow! This little guy walks fast! Jerry was having a hard time keeping up, and I began to lag further and further behind. Jerry later said that he began to get worried about the distance beginning to separate us, but he felt like as long as he could kept me in his line of sight he would keep following the shepherd, who was moving at a furious pace. (We later figured two reasons why he was moving so fast. One reason was the lion was a long way away from where we were, which we did not know at the time. The other reason was he had had to leave his flock behind to come help us, and the good shepherd was not going to leave his flock for long.) We had no clue where he was taking us. He spoke no English, and we spoke no Turkish language. Yet, having only seen us at a distance, he seemed to divine our need immediately and came to help us post haste.

Miletus Shepherd. In some areas, you move around simply by walking the ridge of an embankment, almost like a levee system. Our Miletus shepherd led us down the ridge of one of these levees straight to the lone remaining lion figure that had stood at the old harbor entrance. We never would have found that lion, one, because his shape was almost unrecognizable, worn and rounded after so many centuries unprotected from the elements, and, two, because he was almost totally immersed in the swampy water.

 

After getting us to the spot he knew we were looking for, the shepherd pulled out of his worn and tattered overcoat a crumpled cache of old pictures. They were pictures he had accumulated over the years of himself with others he had shown around the harbor area of the Miletus site. He’s a cute little man. I took a picture of Jerry and him, and we gave him some Turkish lira for his trouble. He bid ado and headed on his way back to his sheep.

Occasionally we could hear his sheep bleating as they paused from their grazing to look up anxiously, not seeing his familiar figure nearby. He would call out to them with a very distinctive tone and pitch, and, even though the shepherd was far away, the moment the sheep heard his voice, they calmly went back to their grazing, reassured once again all was well—“My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). Jerry already was conjuring devotional thoughts based on this wonderful experience. The Miletus shepherd: he knows your need; he knows the way; he leads you there; he makes your day.

Miletus Museum? The journey back to the theater area where we started is a long hike. We finally get back and retrieve our car from the parking area. As we are leaving the Miletus site, we pass by a new building. We stop to find out that this new facility is supposed to house a new Miletus museum. Jerry sees some personnel on the premises, apparently guarding the area, and inquires when the museum will open. One of the attendants understands a little English and responds that the museum should be opening in the fall. Hurray! Another museum to visit—but that visit has to await another trip to Turkey and another journal.

Priene. Now, we’re off to our third and final goal of this long day: the classical site of Priene. We are able to find the site without too much trouble at all. Priene is in the same large valley area as Miletus but right on the ridge of a mountain range. However, getting up to the site is another story altogether. Priene is most unusual, as the site is located pretty far up a steep mountainside from the valley floor. Though the hike up the steep mountainside from the parking area is quite a climb, after several rest stops to give me a breather with my blood pressure problems, we finally arrive. Once up to the top, the hill levels out and getting around the site is actually easy. We visit the small theater that seats around 6500. The theater seating is in very good condition. From the top of the mountainside above the theater, the view of the valley is awesome. Jerry wondered if Miletus were visible down the valley to our right, if he knew exactly where to look, but he was not sure. In any case, this “city on a hill” provides a breathtaking and beautiful view of the vast expanse of the Meander Valley below.

All ancient theaters had an altar to Dionysius. Before special plays and commemorative events, sacrifices were conducted. The name of Dionysius is recognizable in the last line of the inscription on the side of the theater altar at Priene.

Other sights to view are the Athena temple, an agora, and other features typical of an ancient city. The Athena temple is situated dramatically on the hillside because the sanctuary was perched right at the foot of the acropolis, whose sheer walls create quite the stunning backdrop for the temple.

As we are getting ready to leave the site of Priene, we discovered an interesting water “junction” with clay pipes going out in five different directions. The design of a city’s water system was one of the great engineering feats of the Roman world. Unfortunately, the day now is getting long, and we still have to drive back to Selçuk, so we finally have to leave.

Amazon Bistro. We did it! We visited three ancient sites in one day! We headed back to Selçuk. Finally back at our hotel, we take time first to record our pics into the database I am keeping. This database is the premier tool Jerry will use to catalog what images he has and what illustrations they provide and to incorporate those pictures into his classroom lectures. So, the first task at any point in the day and at the end of the day is to keep this database updated. After concluding the database task, we finally can relax. We decide to go to dinner at the Amazon Bistro again, that restaurant near our hotel where we ate the first night and had that wonderful Greek salad. Of course, Jerry had Greek salad again.

Background Music. While we’re eating, a CD is playing tracks for background music. Jerry is quite taken by one particular song beautifully arranged with a gentle tango feel and Greek lyrics. After we eat, Jerry asked our waiter, who also was the proprietor of the establishment, the name of the song. The waiter pulled the CD out of the player, and we can see that the CD has no names—the compilation is homemade. The restaurant owner, however, insisted on giving the entire CD to Jerry. The Turks are very giving. Jerry was somewhat embarrassed. He had planned to find the song on iTunes or somewhere. You almost hate to say you like something, because your Turkish hosts will try to give it to you.

Back in the States Jerry later discovered the song was entitled To Tango Tis Nefelis, performed by the Greek female vocalist, Haris Alexiou. The translation of the lyrics is a little weird, Jerry says, but he still loves the song. Here is a YouTube music video of Haris Alexiou’s arrangement that had struck Jerry in the restaurant at Selçuk.

Perpetual Photographer. On the way out of the bistro, Jerry asked for my iPhone, and at first I did not know why. Then I saw what he saw, the sun setting gloriously over the Artemesian complex of Ephesus, and I realized Jerry had left his camera back at the hotel. I also remembered that the rain that the early morning had threatened never came the entire day. Hooray for my photographer! The day’s ambitious goals fully met, the bistro’s background music in our hands, and the sun’s beautiful goodbye on our minds, we enjoyed the casual stroll back to the hotel.

For a video of the Didyma, Miletus, and Priene action today:

April 20, 2010 (Tuesday)

Ephesus. Up early to head to the Ephesus site, just a few kilometers outside the city of Selçuk where we are staying. We have visited ancient Ephesus two other times, both times on our 2002 sabbatical. While touring Turkey in 2002 on our own by car, we made a stop at Ephesus; later, on that same trip, when in Greece we took a cruise excursion from Athens that included a brief stop at Ephesus along the way. Thus, Jerry already had lots of pictures of various attractions at Ephesus, such as the famous theater, the market, the Acadian Way, the Marble Street, Curetes Street, and the Celsus Library. This time around Jerry wanted to catch two main attractions we had not had time for in earlier trips. One was the recently-discovered gladiator burial grounds, which we failed to see this time as well due to Janet Crisler not performing on her promises to Jerry as he was making sabbatical plans. The other attraction was the famous Roman elite terrace homes along Curetes Street, which we were happy to catch this time around.

Terrace Homes. We arrive at ancient Ephesus just as the site is opening. Ephesus is so beautiful, and the Celsus Library at the foot of Curetes Street is as magnificent as ever. More excavations have taken place since we were here 8 years ago. We headed straight for the terrace homes, paid our fee, went inside the covered archeological dig area, and they are stunningly beautiful. Hollywood does not exaggerate the sets of movies in Roman times. The homes are palatial, exquisite! One of the ongoing and very amazing projects is the largest “jig-saw” puzzle in the world—120,000 pieces of marble are being pieced together to put the dining room walls back in their original decoration. The aristocracy of Rome had the best of everything.

The wall frescoes are just beautiful, even in their deteriorated condition. One can imagine the color and striking impression these would make to visitors.

Marble and mosaics are in such abundance that they seem to be treated like common plaster. Geometric designs are quite popular. The colors are nowhere as rich as in the originals. One cannot tell in these images, but a thick layer of excavation dust has settled over every surface, so what you see as “faded” really is not, even many centuries later.

Famous scenes from Greek mythology are a common theme of mosaic art. Below you see Poseidon, god of the sea, riding the waves.

Here is a closeup of the marble being reconstructed from 120,000 pieces back into its original position on the walls of the Marble Hall.

After taking a good while at the terrace homes, we toured the rest of the site, enjoying many of the sights we had seen before. To illustrate my scholar’s tenacious focus on his objectives, even though we have been here twice before, we wound up staying at the Ephesus site for 5-6 hours, practically the whole day. We concluded our visit by doing some shopping for souvenirs, and got some things we like. We ate a sandwich at an outdoor café, and Jerry got some fresh squeezed orange juice, which he loved.

In the inscription below, Ephesus claims the title “first city” of Asia, meaning the most important or the highest honored city with the highest status. One reason for this claim would be receiving from Rome the title of “temple warden” or official representative of the imperial temple in a region.

The inscription below relates to the emperor Nero, whose name appears at the end of the first line in the letters NEPOY. The word before his name is the word autokratora, which means “emperor.”

Columns comprising the entrance of Hadrian’s Gate had been erected since Jerry and I were there in 2002. This gate stands at the bottom of Curetes Street in its juncture with the Marbled Way just in front of the Library of Celsus.

The bouleterion is the chamber council where the elders and leaders of the city met to decide municipal questions on behalf of the city’s welfare. Only the elite with high social status participated in the meetings at the bouleterion. The best shot of this city chamber actually is from far away at the same level of ground standing in the platform area of the temple of Domitian. Jerry used his high zoom to get this shot.

Jerry then hiked all the way across the site and up the hill to the bouleterion to take the second shot below looking back on the platform area of the temple of Domitian while perched on the top wall of the bouleterion (there goes that monkey again). The broad, flat expanse of the temple complex foundation with its supporting arches can be seen in the middle of the picture.

A closeup of the platform support arches of the Domitian temple complex reveals two solitary columns that have been erected by archeologists. The Domitian temple in Ephesus is important evidence not only for emperor worship in the Roman empire in general but for illustrating the popularity and acceptance of the emperor cult throughout the province of Asia. The strength of the emperor cult in Asia is the historical background for the book of Revelation.

Turning the camera westward from another observation area further down Curetes Street reveals the swampy marshland that now surrounds Ephesus and was the reason for her eventual demise. The Mediterranean sea is now several miles away. The ancient harbor of Ephesus was just to the right of where you see the blue marsh water in this picture.

My favorite spot at ancient Ephesus is the Library of Celsus, whose façade is one of the most recognizable tourism pictures of Turkey. In the picture below, the Library of Celsus is in the top left part of the picture. The Gate of Hadrian is visible just to the left of the library façade. The market place where the silversmith riot took place in Acts 19 is to the right of the library. Just in front of the marketplace is the collonaded Marble Street that runs in front of the Ephesian theater (to the right just out of range of the picture).

Akay Hotel Supper. Back to the hotel to record pictures, charge up everything, do email, call mother, etc. We had dinner again on the roof restaurant at the hotel across the street from ours (Akay Hotel) and ran into Nora from the Crisler library, who is so nice; too bad she doesn’t administrate the Crisler programs. We inquired if Janet Crisler ever was able to put together plans to get out of Europe, of which she had been foiled Monday due to the huge air traffic problems over most of Europe created by the recently-erupted Iceland volcano. Nora said Janet had taken a ferry to the island of Samos in hopes of catching a plane to Athens. From Athens she was hoping to catch an overseas flight to the U.S. to try to make her U.S. appointments. Nora loved my Target hat.

Back in our room, we review the maps for tomorrow’s ambitious day trip trying to take in three ancient sites, starting first at the farthest end on the southern coast of Turkey, Didyma, then back up to Milet (Miletus), and then the classical site of Priene, before finally driving all the way back into Selçuk. Whew! Hope we make it!

For a video of the Ephesus action today:

April 19, 2010 (Monday)

Ephesus Museum. Breakfast at 8 am then off to the Ephesus Museum, not that far from our hotel. The museum has been rearranged and enlarged a little since we last were here in 2002. But, sadly, we learn that the famous gladiator exhibit showing material from the recently discovered gladiator burial grounds of Ephesus has been closed. Oh no! Jerry is devastated. Studying the gladiator artifacts at Ephesus was tops on his list for the whole trip. We still enjoyed the museum’s holdings, especially material related to the emperor Domitian, as well as the contributions of the Pollio family, one of the most famous patron, benefactor families in the history of Ephesus.

Below is the famous goddess, Artemis, worshipped at Ephesus, who had the most famous Artemesian complex in the world. The temple of Artemis was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The silversmiths, whose main business was selling silver Artemis figurines, rioted against Paul and his associates in Ephesus (Acts 19:23–40).

Ephesus had an elite society of the wealthy who lived in the terrace homes along Curetes Street. These homes have been excavated, revealing the opulence of Roman aristocratic life. We will visit one of these terrace homes tomorrow. The museum had a nice display that gave the feeling of the interior of one of these homes.

In one of the terrace homes were found exotic ivory carvings depicting military scenes, which were a new addition to the Ephesus museum. Below is just one panel of this beautifully executed work of art.

One of the most popular decorative styles in elite Roman homes was the mosaic floor. Images reflected social values, typical scenes of elite life, famous philosophers, characters in Greek and Roman myths, and other traditional portrayals.

A coin from Ephesus of the Augustan period depicting Caesar Augustus (27 B.C.–A.D. 14) is followed by the partial remains of a statue of Augustus, the Caesar who ruled the world when Jesus was born.

Friezes from altar area of the Domitian temple in Ephesus are pictured below. The latter part of Domitian’s reign (81–96) is the likely context for the book of Revelation.

The head and a hand is all that survives of a colossal statue of the Flavian imperial dynasty erected in the Domitian temple complex, thought to be either that of Domitian’s brother, Titus (79–81), or of Domitian himself.

The Egyptian gods Isis and Serapis were worshipped at Ephesus, popular among Romans throughout the empire. Isis is depicted in the first image below, then Serapis in the next image, both found in one of the terrace homes.

Medical instruments illustrate a fairly sophisticated knowledge of the healing arts in the Roman world. One is reminded of Luke, the “beloved physician” (Col 4:14).

Stone ossuaries were a common form of burial.

Jerry stands by the base of friezes showing a rare Roman defeat of the Parthians, a highly celebrated event because the Parthians were the great fear of the Roman army on its eastern boarders. Parthians were responsible for one of the most disastrous defeats the Roman army ever endured in the battle of Carrhae (53 B.C.).

Romans used terra-cotta and lead for their pipes. The lead pipe below with its stone sleeve sockets was found in the altar area of the temple of Artemis.

The few remains of a scene that decorated the entrance to the Pollio Fountain, one of the important water sources for the city of Ephesus that was fed by the Pollio Aqueduct we later visited in the afternoon.

Crisler Library. On the way back to the hotel, we stop at the Crisler Library and ring the bell to make our contact we somehow missed yesterday afternoon. A lady finally answers the gate, whom we later find out is called Nora, and Jerry introduces himself. He asks if we might see Janet, explaining that he’s been in email contact with her. Nora shocks us with the news that Janet is in a rush, about to leave for the airport! However, she said she would “check.” Janet comes out in a flurry and welcomes us, but that she has no idea who we are and no memory of making arrangements for us to stay at the Crisler apartment soon becomes obvious. We are silently stunned. All our arrangements were worked out in detail months before we left the States. Jerry can document an email trail with Janet, including the exact cost of the apartment! Though she was supposed to be ready to help us with special permission to see the gladiator graveyard and to get a VIP tour of the Terrace Houses and to put us up with room and board, Janet seems to have not even a smidgen of memory of any of these discussions or arrangements. Instead, she’s supposed to fly to Boston today. All European flights are a mess, however, because of the Iceland volcano issue—she won’t be flying today she finds out!

Jerry and I both seemed to realize immediately without saying a word to each other that no purpose would be served trying to remind Janet of her commitments to us. She is totally preoccupied, completely consumed with trying to make alternate arrangements for getting out of Europe and across the Atlantic to Boston. Janet does take time to offer to show us around the grounds of the Institute (after all, we are there), and we have coffee and cake on the patio. She totally has no idea she’s messed us up royally! Jerry mentions the gladiator exhibit, and she explains that the new curator of the Ephesus Museum inexplicably took the exhibit down! Janet has a young archeologist working for her that she asks to call to see if our seeing the gladiator items in storage can be worked out. (All of this she had told Jerry by email would be arranged before we arrived.) Basically, we have determined that she’s a certified ditz who should not be trying to administrate the Crisler Institute!! She just has no administrative skills and no memory. She showed us a handwritten card catalog she has a staff member working on—yes, handwritten, no less! No computerization of any of her library records!! This Institute obviously is not a well-run place. She also showed us some rare books that she took out of a regular cabinet (not from any kind of fireproof safe). Whew!! What a risky place to keep them. We left our email address in case the viewing of the gladiator items might be worked out, but, actually, we entertain little hope that Janet will get us anything, except recommending that we go off the beaten path to find the Pollio Aqueduct, which we did not know about so had no plans before we came to try to see the site.

Pollio Aqueduct. Janet gave us directions to the Pollio aqueduct, an architectural span over a river bed in a small but steep and deep ravine that few tourists ever see. The remains are located about 5 kilometers outside of Selçuk off the Aydin highway just beyond the upper entrance to the site of Ephesus. Off we go on our own for an unplanned side trip to find an aqueduct unmarked with no trail. Jerry would just love to find this site, as he loves anything Roman, and its direct tie to a major New Testament city would be icing on the cake. It’s a cloudy day—I pray God gives us a little sunshine for Jerry’s sake for taking pictures, since the Janet Crisler debacle over the last two days has left him stunned and near speechless—heartbroken really. We find the path as Janet had described just off the Aydin road and hike down to the aqueduct. It’s really amazing. As we are taking pictures, the sun pops out—thank you, Lord! The aqueduct is called Pollio because an inscription on the aqueduct states that the system was paid for by the Pollio family, one of the great patron families of Ephesus. So beautifully engineered. Of course, Jerry finds a way to climb up the very steep ravine wall to get on top of the aqueduct!! That little monkey! He gets good pictures.

We head back to the hotel and check our email on the lobby computer, hoping against hope to have news from Janet that we will get in to see the gladiator artifacts. Sadly, we only read confirmation that seeing the gladiator artifacts is a “no go”! What a huge disappointment. While we were with Janet earlier, she and Jerry talked about how bringing students to the Institute works, but we are disappointed to learn that she herself handles all those arrangements—that kills that! We are now gun shy and not a little nervous about trusting her for “arrangements” for anything. As long as Janet handles the arrangements, Jerry realizes he is not going to be bringing any student groups to the Crisler Institute and Ephesus as he once had dreamed.

Artemesian. From our hotel, Jerry walked down to the Artemesian, the site of the ancient temple for the worship of the patron goddess of Ephesus, Artemis, and one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. I stayed in the hotel room to rest, record expenses, etc. A good while later, Jerry returned, hot from his late afternoon, long hike. He said he got good pictures in the late afternoon sun. The site is hard to visit because the entire area is swampy, which historically always was the problem Ephesus had with the slow running river constantly silting up her bay. Expensive dredging was a continual battle against the forces of nature. Over the centuries Ephesus finally succumbed.

Part of the modern city of Selçuk is in the background. In fact, our boutique hotel is on the first row of buildings a little to the left of the solitary column.

Archeologists erected one of the original columns of the temple to give an impression of the huge dimensions of the temple complex. The apostle Paul would have walked past this column in his coming and going while ministering for 2–3 years in the city on the Third Missionary Journey.

After Jerry cooled down, we go to dinner at another boutique hotel across the street on the backside of our hotel. Over dinner we muse about Janet and try to make sense of this disappointing let down. Paul spent two to three years in Ephesus, so the site is such an important place for our understanding of Paul and the early Christian movement. Working out something for students to spend time here studying at the Crisler Institute and visiting the site of Ephesus would be great, but we decide working with Janet is just too risky.

After dinner, we walk back across the street to our own little hotel and checked our email one more time on the lobby computer. I then go upstairs and wash out Jerry’s shirt, etc. from today—pretty grimy from the hard climb up the aqueduct ravine wall and the later hot hike to the Artemesian. I then write in this journal, which takes a little while, and it’s off to bed. Jerry, my little monkey scholar, already has fallen asleep.

For a video of the Ephesus action today: