HIERAPOLIS Page 2
HIERAPOLIS ANCIENT PHRYGIAN CITY
Medieval Hierapolis
In the early 7th century, the town was devastated first by Persian armies and then by another destructive earthquake, from which it took a long time to recover.
In the 12th century, the area came under the control of the Seljuk sultanate of Konya before falling to crusaders under Frederick Barbarossa and their Byzantine allies in 1190. About thirty years later, the town was abandoned before the Seljuks built a castle in the 13th century. The new settlement was abandoned in the late 14th century. In 1354, the great Thracian earthquake toppled the remains of the ancient city. The ruins were slowly covered with a thick layer of limestone.
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Agora
Modern excavations
Hierapolis was first excavated by the German archaeologist Carl Humann during June and July 1887. His excavation notes were published in his 1889 book Altertümer von Hierapolis. His excavations were rather general and included a number of drilling holes. He would gain fame for his later discovery of the Pergamon Altar, which was reconstructed in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.
After the large white limestone formations of the hot springs became famous again in the 20th century, it was turned into a tourist attraction named "Cotton Castle" (Pamukkale). The ancient city was rediscovered by travellers, but also partially destroyed by new hotels that were built there. These buildings have been removed in recent years; however, the hot water pool of one hotel was retained, and (for a fee) it is possible to swim amongst ancient stone remains.
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Pamukkale (The Coton Castle)
Significant structures
The Main Street and the gates
The Hellenistic city was built on a grid with streets running parallel or perpendicular to the main thoroughfare. This main street ran from north to south close to a cliff with the travertine terraces. It was about 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) long and 13.5 metres (44 ft) wide and was bordered on both sides by an arcade. At both ends of the main street, there was a monumental gate flanked by square towers built of massive blocks of stone. The side streets were about 3 metres (9.8 ft) wide. Another gate, the Domitian Gate, was close to the northern city gate. This triumphal arch flanked by circular towers consists of three arches and was built by the proconsul Julius Frontinus (84–86).
The town was repeatedly rebuilt following major earthquakes and improved prior to various imperial visits to the healing springs. In addition, Septimius Severus had a number of new buildings constructed in Hierapolis in gratitude for his secretary Antipater, a native of Hierapolis who also tutored the emperor's two sons.
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Northen byzantine gate
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Hierapolis_Southern_Byzantine_gate_from_outside
Frontinus Gate
This is the monumental entrance to the Roman city and leads onto the large plateia, 14 m wide, which crosses the whole settlement, exiting a gate at the opposite side, to connect with the road that goes to Laodicea on the Lykos and then Colossae. It is worth admiring the well preserved structure with three openings, in carefully squared travertine blocks, with elegant arches decorated with a simple cornice moulding, flanked by two round towers that recall Hellenistic city Gates such as that of the Pamphilian city of Perge, near Antalya.
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Hierapolis Frontinus gate
Theatre
The Theatre was probably constructed under the reign of Hadrian after the earthquake of 60 AD.[11] The facade is 300 feet (91 m) long, the full extent of which remains standing. In the cavea there are 50 rows of seats divided into seven parts by eight intermediate stairways. The diazoma, which divided the cavea into two, was entered by two vaulted passages (the vomitoria). There is an Imperial loge at the middle of the cavea and a 6-foot-high (1.83 m) wall surrounding the orchestra.
An earthquake in Hierapolis in the 7th century caused the collapse of the entire building as well as the ultimate abandonment of the city. Since the 18th century, the monument's striking ruins have become a recurrent theme in European travellers’ descriptions and engravings.
Septimius Severus is portrayed in a relief together with his wife Julia Domna, his two sons Caracalla and Geta, and the god Jupiter.
The auditorium consisted of stacked seating with a capacity of 15,000 and was bisected by the main aisle. It featured an imperial box. The lower part originally had twenty rows and the upper part twenty five, but only thirty rows altogether have survived. The auditorium is segmented into nine aisles by means of eight vertical passageways with steps. The proscenium consisted of two stories with ornately decorated niches to the sides. Several statues, reliefs (including depictions of Apollo, Dionysus, and Diana), and decorative elements have been excavated by the Italian archaeological team and can be seen in the local museum.
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Amphitheater_at_Hierapolis
Temple of Apollo & Temple Nympheum
A temple was raised to Apollo Lairbenos, the town's principal god during the late Hellenistic period. This Apollo was linked to the ancient Anatolian sun god Lairbenos and the god of oracles Kareios. The site also included temples or shrines to Cybele, Artemis, Pluto, and Poseidon. Now only the foundations of the Hellenistic temple remain. The temple stood within a peribolos (15 by 20 metres (49 by 66 ft)) in Doric style.
When the Christian faith was granted official primacy in the 4th century, this temple underwent a number of desecrations. Part of the peribolos was also dismantled to make room for a large Nympheum
The Nymphaeum is located inside the sacred area in front of the Apollo temple. It dates from the 2nd century AD. It was a shrine of the nymphs, a monumental fountain distributing water to the houses of the city via an ingenious network of pipes. The Nymphaeum was repaired in the 5th century during the Byzantine era. A retaining wall was built with elements from the peribolos of the Apollonian temple. By doing so, the early Christians cut off the view of the pagan temple. The Byzantine gate was constructed in the 6th century. Now only the back wall and the two side walls remain. The walls and the niches in the walls were decorated with statues. The Italian archaeological team has excavated two statues of priestesses, which are now on display at the local museum.
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temple of Apollo and Temple Nymphameum
Ploutonion
Next to the Apollo temple and within its sacred area is the oldest local sanctuary, Pluto's Gate, a ploutonion which here means a shrine to the Greek god Pluto. This plutonion was described by several ancient writers, including Strabo, Cassius Dio, and Damascius. It is a small cave just large enough for one person to enter through a fenced entrance, beyond which stairs go down and from which emerges suffocating carbon dioxide gas caused by subterranean geologic activity. Behind the 3 square metres (32 sq ft) roofed chamber is a deep cleft in the rock, through which fast-flowing hot water passes while releasing a sharp-smelling gas.
During the early years of the town, castrated priests of Cybele descended into the plutonion, crawling over the floor to pockets of oxygen or holding their breath. Carbon dioxide is heavier than air and so tends to settle in hollows. The priests would then come up to show that they were miraculously immune to the gas and infused with divine protection.
An enclosed area of 2,000 square metres (22,000 sq ft) stood in front of the entrance. It was covered by a thick layer of suffocating gas, killing anyone who dared to enter it. The priests sold birds and other animals to the visitors, so that they could try out how deadly this enclosed area was. Visitors could (for a fee) ask questions of Pluto's oracle. This provided a considerable source of income for the temple. The entrance to the plutonion was walled off during the Christian times[22][23][24][25] and has just been recently unearthed.
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Ploutonion
