| Most viewed - Ancient Sites Photo Gallery |
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Turkey, Colossae158 viewsAnother Anatolian tel awaiting excavation (or perhaps looters if the archaeologists delay too long): this is the site of ancient Colossae in the Lycus valley. Modern Christian pilgrims touring the ‘Seven Churches of Asia’ visit nearby Laodicea but generally ignore this place, which is slightly odd because Saint Paul did address one of his letters to the congregation resident here. Of course, there’s little to see apart from the usual surface scatter of shards. Abu Galyon
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Italy, Rome, Flavian Palace - Domus Flavia (and Circo Massimo)158 viewsThe Flavian Palace, also known as Domus Flavia, is a part of the vast residential complex of the Roman Emperors on the Palatine Hill in Rome. It was completed in 92 AD in the reign of Titus Flavius Domitianus, more commonly known as the Emperor Domitian, and attributed to his master architect, Rabirius. Well known for its grandeur, the Flavian Palace was more commonly used for purposes of state, while the Domus Augustana, an enormous, lavishly ornamented palace south of the Flavian Palace, was the Emperor’s primary residence.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flavian_Palace
by Doug ColdwellJoe Sermarini
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Italy, Populonia - Etruscian necropole157 viewsThis Etruscian necropole is near the town Piombino in the Toscana Italy, this graves are from the 3-2 century before christ.
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Spain, Naveta des Tudons157 viewsPlace: Naveta des Tudons, Menorca
Country: Spain
The Naveta des Tudons is the most famous megalithic chamber tomb in Minorca. It was used between 1200 y 750 BC. It is a collective tomb which contained, when it was discovered in 1975 at least 100 men and different objects like bronze bracelets or bone and ceramic buttons.
The legend says that two brothers were competing for the love of a girl. To decide who would be the chosen one, they started a construction, and the first one to finish it would marry the girl. One of them decided to build the naveta and the other one a well. The time run and when the last stone was going to be placed on the naveta, the other brother shouted: "Water, water!!". Then, the brother who was building the naveta, very angry, threw the last stone (the one that is missing on the top) into the well, killing his brother. Then, feeling remorse for what he had done, he killed himself. It is said that the girl died alone and was buried in the naveta.Viriathus
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Turkey, Dalyan - The rock tombs of Kaunos157 viewsOutside the official Kaunos archeological site, near Dalyan, Turkey there are six rock tombs on the Dalyan river (4th – 2nd century BC). The façades of the rock tombs resemble the fronts of Hellenistic temples with two Ionian pillars, a triangular pediment, an architrave with toothed friezes, and acroterions shaped like palm leaves.Joe Sermarini
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Italy, Rome, Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, sarcophagus 156 viewsPalazzo Massimo alle Terme
there is also great collection of roman coins.J. B.
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Greece, Rhodes156 viewsship carved in the rock on the acropolis of Lindos
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Italy, Palestrina, Ruins of the Sanctuary of Fortuna Primigenia156 viewshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PalestrinaJoe Sermarini
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Turkey, Lystra155 viewsLystra has never been excavated, so the mound you’re looking at is a typical Middle Eastern ‘tel’. However, an inscription was found here (now displayed in the Konya Archaeological Museum) which makes the site identification secure. Lystra has significant New Testament links: Barnabas and Paul while visiting Lystra were mistaken for gods [Acts 14:6ff] and Paul’s companion Timothy was born here [Acts 16:1]. Abu Galyon
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Israel, Megiddo / Jezreel Valley154 viewsA view of the Jezreel Valley in the distance looking out from atop Tel Megiddo. The Jezreel Valley will be the site of the final battle between the armies of God and Satan as prophesied in the Book of Revelation. This photo was taken in June 2012 during a two week trip my wife and I took to Israel and Jordan.
cmcdon0923
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Turkey, Istanbul (Constantinople) The Land Wall154 viewsThe Land Wall of Theodosius stretches for 6.5 km from the Golden Horn to the Sea of Marmara. The first phase (a single wall with towers) was complete by 413; after a major earthquake in 447 the Wall was rebuilt and strengthened (a second outer screen and a moat were added), just in time to discourage Attila the Hun from attacking the city. The fortifications included 96 guard towers, each 18-20 m in height and spaced roughly 55 m apart. The Land Wall remained a formidable defensive barrier until the advent of artillery in the 15th century. Even in ruins, and with vegetables growing in the moat, it's still an impressive sight today. Abu Galyon
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Italy, Rome, Porta San Paolo153 viewsgate in Aurelian wallsJ. B.
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Greece, Rhodes Lindos 153 viewsLindos Acropolis and village
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Italy, Populonia - mosaic, nearly total view152 viewsA famous beautiful mosaic with a ship wreck and many different sea animals, fishes, octopus snail etc.; most animals can be identified. Now in the museum of Piombino
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South Korea, Woraksan - Buddha152 viewsBuddha of the future, he is already more than 1000 years old, but still has a good appearance. The location of this Buddha is a valley in the middle of the Woraksan mountains. Its a great holy place.
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Israel, The Herodium Pool Complex152 views
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Portugal, Algarve, Site of Milreu151 viewsfrigidarium, cold bath. with fishes pax
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Italy, Sicily, Villa Casale151 viewsbuilt 301-325 AD
it was centre of huge latifundium but later it was used for holiday in byzantine and arabic times. It was abandoned in twelfth century.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villa_Romana_del_CasaleJ. B.
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Italy, Ostia - 151 viewsJ. B.
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Italy, Ostia - mosaique151 viewsHippocampsJ. B.
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Israel, The Herodium - Summit Interior View151 views
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Israel, The Herodium - Water Cistern151 views
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Greece, Rhodes Lindos inscription 151 views
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Turkey, Kaunos: The Baetyl Sanctuary151 viewsThe flat terrace above the agora and harbour of Kaunos has a long history of sacred use. In late antiquity a three-nave Christian church was constructed here. Before that (from the first century BCE) the site was a temple and temenos dedicated to Zeus Soteros. Earlier still (perhaps fifth century BCE) is this unusual round structure, built at an angle to the axis of the later temple.
When first uncovered, the structure’s purpose seemed mysterious. But the mystery was partially solved when archaeologists sank a trench underneath the central flat circular slab and found a large, roughly conical baetyl, 3.5m in height resting on bedrock about 6.5m below the present surface. This sacred stone, associated with the eponymous founder of the city, appears as a design on several of the city’s coins.
Note that the inner ring wall is plastered on its interior surface, suggesting that quantities of water (or other liquids) were involved in whatever rituals were conducted here.
Abu Galyon
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Italy, Ostia - theatre150 viewsrebuilt by CommodusJ. B.
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Spain, Torralba d'en Salord149 viewsPlace: Torralba d'en Salord, Menorca
Country: Spain
Torralba d'en Salord is a prehistoric talaiotic settlement located on the island of Minorca between the towns of Mahon and Alayor. Chronologically, it lies between 1000 BC and the Roman conquest. Although it lasted until the Middle Ages.
The large T-shaped monument that is depicted in the photo is called a Taula, and it's probably a sanctuary. A U-shaped wall encloses the Taulas; these precincts are 3000 years old, but the age of its central monuments is unknown. This Taula measures 5 meters tall and it's the largest of its kind.
Viriathus
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Italy, Rome, Pons Fabricius148 viewsOldest bridge in Rome - built in 62 BC and still existing in its original state.J. B.
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Italy, Ostia - mosaique148 viewsJ. B.
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![IMG_0728[1].JPG](albums/userpics/28795/thumb_IMG_0728%5B1%5D.JPG "Filename=IMG_0728[1].JPG
Filesize=122KiB
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Italy, Rome, Colosseum, Inside -- May, 2011148 viewspitbull
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Italy, Sicily, Agrigento - Temple of Juno Lacinia148 viewsThis temple was constructed on a mostly artificial spur. It dates to c. 450 BC, measuring 38.15 x 16.90 m: it is in Doric style, peripteros 6 columns wide by 13 long, preceded by a pronaos and opisthodomos. The basement has four steps.
Current remains (including anastylosis from the 18th Century onwards) consist of the front colonnade with parts of the architrave and of the frieze. Only fragments of the other three sides survive, with few elements of the cella. The building was damaged in the fire of 406 BC and restored in Roman times, with the substitution of clay marble roof tiles with ones and the addition of a steep rise in the area where today can be seen the remains of the altar.
Nearby are arcosolia and other sepultures from Byzantine times, belonging to the late 6th century AD renovation of the Temple of Concordia into a Christian church.
Joe Sermarini
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Italy, Piombino, Museo Archeologico del Territorio di Populonia147 viewsGold found in graves of the ancient etruscan Populonia
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Turkey, Kizilcakuyu (Euromus, Caria) The Temple of Zeus Lepsinos147 viewsThe Temple of Zeus Lepsinos at Euromus was built on the site of an earlier Carian temple in the 2nd century AD during the reign of the emperor Hadrian.Joe Sermarini
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Italy, Piombino, Museo Archeologico del Territorio di Populonia146 viewsAmphora of barrati, a amphora totally of silver found in the sea near Piombino
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Turkey, Istanbul, Rumeli Hisari146 viewsRumeli Hisari means ‘Rumelian Castle’: Rumelia (derived from ‘Rome’) being the Turkish word for the Balkan lands which once belonged to the Roman (Byzantine) Empire. The Rumeli Hisari was constructed in 1452 a few miles north of Constantinople on the European side of the Bosphorus by order of Sultan Mehmet II. Impressively, the whole fortress was built in less than four months. The Rumeli Hisari sits opposite an older, smaller Ottoman fort on the Asian side, the Anadolu Hisari (Anatolian Castle). Together the two forts effectively controlled traffic through the Bosphorus, cutting Constantinople off from the Black Sea and ensuring that an Ottoman army operating on the European side could be supplied from the granaries of central Anatolia. The building of Rumeli Hisari was preparation for the investment and conquest of Constantinople, which took place the following year.
The Rumeli Hisari/Anadolu Hisari forts are built at the point where the Bosphorus is most constricted (about 700m across). This is the same narrows where the Persian King Darius I over 2500 years ago built a ‘bridge of boats’ to transport his army across to attack Thrace (see Herodotus, Histories 4.87f). And these days a modern suspension bridge links Asia to Europe at the same spot, but sadly it rather spoils the view.
Abu Galyon
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Italy, Port facilities of Sybaris146 viewsExcavated remains of the port facilities of Sybaris. These are located on the Casa Bianca site in the easternmost section of the Sybaris archaeological park. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sybaris_port_facilities.jpgJoe Sermarini
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Greece, Rhodes grave of Kleobulos 145 viewsThe grave was used as a chapel in the medieval
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Italy, Rome, Porta San Giovanni144 viewsgate in the Aurelian Wall
gate was built for pope Gregory XIII
(near San Giovanni in Laterano)J. B.
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Italy, Populonia144 viewsEtruscan grave
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Germany, Berlin, The propylon of the Sanctuary of Athena Nikephoros from the Pergamon Acropolis, Pergamon Museum Berlin143 viewsThe monumental gateway, which stood at the northeast corner of the sanctuary, was built by Eumenes II in the early 2nd century BC. The two-storey building, had a porch of four Doric columns (tetrastyle) on the ground floor, above which was a dedicatory inscription by Eumenes to Athena Nikephoros. The upper storey was a balcony with four Ionic columns and fronted by a military frieze depicting armour and weapons. The Sanctuary of Athena Nikephoros, on the southwest corner of the walled citadel on the Acropolis, was one of Pergamon's oldest religious centres, used for the worship of Athena and Nike. The cult of Athena at Pergamon had associations with the city's mythical founder Telephos, the son of Herakles and Auge, who was a priestess of Athena. The Attalid rulers of Pergamon claimed to be descendants of Telephos, and thus of Herakles and Auge.Joe Sermarini
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Portugal, Algarve, Site of Milreu142 viewsdetail of the fishespax
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Italy, Populonia142 viewsEtruscan grave
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Italy, Ostia - 141 viewsJ. B.
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Italy, Rome, Temple of Antoninus and Faustina, with the church of San Lorenzo in Miranda, view from Palatine Hill, May 2005.140 viewsTemple of Antoninus and Faustina, with the church of San Lorenzo in Miranda, view from Palatine Hill, May 2005. The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina is an ancient Roman temple in Rome, adapted as a Roman Catholic church, Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Miranda. It is in the Forum Romanum, on the Via Sacra, opposite the Regia. The temple was begun by Antoninus Pius in 141 and was initially dedicated to his deceased and deified wife, Faustina the Elder. When Antoninus Pius was deified after his death in 161 AD, the temple was re-dedicated jointly to Antoninus and Faustina at the instigation of his successor, Marcus Aurelius. The ten monolithic Corinthian columns of its pronaos are 17 metres high. The rich bas-reliefs of the frieze under the cornice, of garlanded griffons and candelabri, were often copied from the sixteenth through the nineteenth centuries.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Antoninus_and_Faustina Photograph released to the public domain. Joe Sermarini
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Italy, Ostia - mosaique139 viewsJ. B.
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Turkey, Antalya, Hadrian's Gate in Antalya139 viewsHadrian's Gate in Antalya
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antalya
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
Ingo Mehling - 17 May 2012Joe Sermarini
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Turkey, Side, Pamphylia Temple of Apollo 139 viewsThe ruins of the Temple of Apollo at Side, Antalya, Turkey.
The great ruins of Side are among the most notable in Asia Minor. The well-preserved city walls provide an entrance to the site through the Hellenistic main gate (Megale Pyle) of the ancient city, although this gate from the 2nd century BC is badly damaged. Next comes the colonnaded street, whose marble columns are no longer extant; all that remains are a few broken stubs near the old Roman baths. The street leads to the public bath, restored as a museum displaying statues and sarcophagi from the Roman period. Next is the square agora with the remains of the round Tyche and Fortuna temple (2nd century BC), peripteral with twelve columns, in the middle. In later times it was used as a trading center where pirates sold slaves. The remains of the theater, which was used for gladiator fights and later as a church, and the monumental gate date back to the 2nd century. The early Roman Temple of Dionysus is near the theater. The fountain gracing the entrance is restored. At the left side are the remains of a Byzantine Basilica. A public bath has also been restored. The remaining ruins of Side include three temples, an aqueduct, and a nymphaeum.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sunrise_apollo_side.jpg
Photo by Saffron Blaze, via http://www.mackenzie.co
Date: 21 October 2011
Authorization: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.enJoe Sermarini
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Italy, Sicily, Agrigento, Valley of the Temples137 viewsThe Valle dei Templi (English: Valley of the Temples, Sicilian: Vaddi di li Tempri) is an archaeological site in Agrigento (ancient Greek Akragas), Sicily, southern Italy. It is one of the most outstanding examples of Greater Greece art and architecture, and is one of the main attractions of Sicily as well as a national monument of Italy. The area was included in the UNESCO Heritage Site list in 1997. Much of the excavation and restoration of the temples was due to the efforts of archaeologist Domenico Antonio Lo Faso Pietrasanta (1783–1863), who was the Duke of Serradifalco from 1809 through 1812.
The term "valley" is a misnomer, the site being located on a ridge outside the town of Agrigento.
Joe Sermarini
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Turkey, Side, Pamphylia The Commercial Agora137 viewsTurkey, Side, Pamphylia the Commercial Agora
The great ruins of Side are among the most notable in Asia Minor. The well-preserved city walls provide an entrance to the site through the Hellenistic main gate (Megale Pyle) of the ancient city, although this gate from the 2nd century BC is badly damaged. Next comes the colonnaded street, whose marble columns are no longer extant; all that remains are a few broken stubs near the old Roman baths. The street leads to the public bath, restored as a museum displaying statues and sarcophagi from the Roman period. Next is the square agora with the remains of the round Tyche and Fortuna temple (2nd century BC), peripteral with twelve columns, in the middle. In later times it was used as a trading center where pirates sold slaves. The remains of the theater, which was used for gladiator fights and later as a church, and the monumental gate date back to the 2nd century. The early Roman Temple of Dionysus is near the theater. The fountain gracing the entrance is restored. At the left side are the remains of a Byzantine Basilica. A public bath has also been restored. The remaining ruins of Side include three temples, an aqueduct, and a nymphaeum.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Side_Commercial_agora_panorama_2.jpg
Author, Date: Dosserman, 20 February 2015
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Joe Sermarini
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England, County of Kent, Dover: Roman Lighthouse136 viewsA visit to Dover on 20 March 2016, the Roman Lighthouse still stands within Dover Castle, which is still an important port of Britain by the English Channel. The upper 1/3 is a mix of Medieval (when it was used as a Bell Tower) and 19th century restoration (when the Church of Saint Mary, next to it, was also restored). The Lighthouse stands on the "eastern heights". There was another on the "western heights", they both guarded the entrance into the Roman harbour of Dubris (Dover) which was also an important base for the "Classis Britannica".Constantine IV
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Turkey, Erythrai amphitheatre135 viewsErythrai amphitheatre ruins in Turkey, 2009.Joe Sermarini
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Greece, Amphipolis, Lion of Amphipolis - Via Egnatia, west side of the Strymonas river135 viewsAmphipolis is best known for being a magnificent ancient Greek polis (city), and later a Roman city, whose impressive remains can still be seen. It is famous in history for events such as the battle between the Spartans and Athenians in 422 B.C., and also as the place where Alexander the Great prepared for campaigns leading to his invasion of Asia. Alexander's three finest admirals, Nearchus, Androsthenes and Laomedon, resided in this city and it is also the place where, after Alexander's death, his wife Roxane and their small son Alexander IV were exiled and later murdered. Excavations in and around the city have revealed important buildings, ancient walls and tombs. The finds are displayed at the archaeological museum of Amphipolis. At the nearby vast Kasta burial mound, an important ancient Macedonian tomb has recently been revealed. The unique and beautiful "Lion of Amphipolis" monument nearby is a popular destination for visitors.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Loewe_von_Amphipolis.jpg
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International
Date 16 June 2018
Author Neptuul Joe Sermarini
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Spain, Torre d'en Galmés, Menorca - The Cartailhac Circle134 viewsPlace: Torre d'en Galmés, Menorca
Country: Spain
Torre d'en Galmés is situated on a small hill that dominates most of the southern part of the island Minorca. On clear days it is possible to see the mountains of neighbouring Majorca. In prehistoric times it would have been possible to observe a large numbers of talaiotic towns from this position which leads to think that Torre d'en Galmés exercised a position of authority.
The Cartailhac Circle, named in honour of the eminent French archaeologist Émile Cartailhac, author of "Primitive Monuments on the Balearic Islands (1892)", was inhabitated between 250-50 BC. Its external wall is made with flagstones placed vertically on a baseboard.
In the interior, we see the remains of a central patio, with numerous fallen architectural elements (mullions, lintels, pilasters...), and three rooms around it.
To each side of the entrance there is a small covered space, with the roof below the superior level of the stones of the external facade, which seems to indicate that, at least above these spaces, there was a floor.
Viriathus
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Israel, Masada - Walls facing the Roman Seige Ramp134 views
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Turkey, Kaunos - the Theatre133 viewsA nicely proportioned theatre of the Greek type, with 34 rows of seats (18 below the diazoma and 16 above). The two arched entrances are original. Abu Galyon
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Turkey, Perge city overview133 viewsRoman rule of Perge began in 188 BC, and most of the surviving ruins today date from this period. After the collapse of the Roman Empire, Perge remained inhabited until Seljuk times, before being gradually abandoned.
Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Perge_city_overview.jpgJoe Sermarini
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Israel, Hamat Gadar, Ruins of the Roman Baths133 viewsHamat Gader was already a well known health and recreation site in Roman times, mentioned in Strabo, Origen and Eunapius, as well as the Rabbinic literature. Construction of the bath complex began in the 2nd century by the 10th Roman Legion, which was garrisoned in nearby Gadara (modern Umm Qais). The ancient Hebrew name means hot springs of (the ancient city of) Gadara. The Arabic name El-Hamma preserves this, and the name of the tel located near the site, Tel Bani, is a corruption of the Latin word meaning "baths." The empress Aelia Eudocia composed a poem praising the qualities of the multiple springs which was inscribed so that visitors could see it as they went into the pool.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hamat-gader_25.jpg
Photo by Daniel Ventura
Joe Sermarini
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Italy, Ostia - 131 viewsJ. B.
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Italy, Rome, Aqua Claudia, Part of the aquaduct near Basilica of St. John Lateran125 viewsJ. B.
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Greece, Kos, Gymnasium of Kos, archaeologic site in Kos city, Kos island 120 viewsGymnasium of Kos, archaeologic site in Kos city, Kos island.Joe Sermarini
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Turkey, near Denizli, Laodicea on the Lycus120 viewsLaodicea on the Lycus was an ancient city built on the river Lycus (Curuksu), in Lydia, later the Roman Province of Phrygia Pacatiana. It contained one of the Seven churches of Asia mentioned in the Book of Revelation. It is now near the modern city of Denizli. In 2013 the archaeological site was identified as a of World Heritage Site. The existing remains attest to its former greatness. Its many buildings include a stadium, baths, temples, a gymnasium, theaters, and a bouleuterion (Senate House). On the eastern side, the line of the ancient wall may be distinctly traced, with the remains of the Ephesus gate; there are streets traversing the town, flanked by colonnades and numerous pedestals. North of the town, towards the Lycus, are many sarcophagi, with their covers lying near them, partly embedded in the ground, and all having been long since rifled.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Laodicea_(2).JPG
Photo by Rjdeadly, 16 May 2012Joe Sermarini
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Czech Republic, Morava region - Brno - V-shaped ditch of Roman temporary camp119 viewsV-shaped ditch of Roman temporary camp in Brno watching ford crosing on Svratka River in area of Marcoman tribe for while sometimes from 172 - 180 AD in time of Marcus Aurelius' Marcomannic Wars.
Dec 2017 excavated Bohemian
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Italy, Rome, The Column of Marcus Aurelius with Detail Memorializing the "Miracle in the Rain"117 viewsThe Column of Marcus Aurelius in Piazza Colonna. The five horizontal slits (visible in the middle photo) allow light into the internal stairway. The photo on the right shows detail memorializing the "Miracle in the Rain."
On June 11, 173, during the Marcomannic Wars (166–180), the Roman army in Moravia was outnumbered and surrounded by the Quadi, suffering from the extreme heat, out of water, and on the verge of defeat. Dio writes, "many clouds gathered and a mighty rain, not without divine interposition, burst upon them...when the rain poured down, at first all turned their faces upwards and received the water in their mouths; then some held out their shields and some their helmets to catch it, and they not only took deep draughts themselves but also gave their horses to drink...while those on the one side were being drenched and drinking, the others [the Quadi] were being consumed by fire [lightning] and dying." The Romans were soon victorious. Marcus was saluted imperator for the seventh time and the "miracle of the rain" was memorialized on Marcus Aurelius' column. In 174, Marcus Aurelius officially conferred the title Fulminata (Thundering) to the Legio XII Fulminata.
Photos by Adrian Pingstone released to the public domain.
Joe Sermarini
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Syria, The Roman theater of Gabalah (Jableh, Syria)115 viewsJableh (Arabic: جبلة Ǧabla), also spelt Jebleh, Jabala, Jablah or Gabala, is a coastal city on the Mediterranean in Syria, 25 km north of Baniyas and 25 km south of Latakia, with c. 80,000 inhabitants (2008). In antiquity Jableh was an important Roman city, one of the main remains of this period is an amphitheater, capable of housing c. 7,000 spectators. Near the seashores even older remains were found dating to the Iron Age or Phoenician Era. Less than 1 kilometer of the city center lies the ancient site of Gibala, today known as Tell Tweini. This city was inhabited from the third millennium BCE until the Persian period. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JablehJoe Sermarini
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Israel, Scythopolis (Beit She'an)114 viewsScythopolis is the only one of the ten ‘Decapolis’ towns situated within the borders of modern Israel. The classical city was destroyed by an earthquake in 749 CE; its ruins are extensive and quite well-preserved. Prominent in the photo is the colonnaded Byzantine ‘Silvanus Street’ (the excavators named it after a local magistrate mentioned in an inscription as responsible for its renewal) which follows the route of the earlier Roman cardo maximus.
Sythopolis was built in the shadow of the earlier Canaanite city of Beit She’an, where (according to 1 Samuel 31) the Philistines, after their victory on Mount Gilboa, displayed the bodies of King Saul and his sons on the city walls. The vast mound of Tel Beit She’an is conspicuous in the background. Twenty settlement strata have been identified there, the earliest dating back to the Neolithic (5th millennium BCE). A section of the eastern Canaanite city walls has also been excavated and is visible in the photo.
Abu Galyon
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Turkey, Istanbul - the Column of Marcian114 viewsThe column of emperor Marcian, Fatih, Istanbul, Turkey.
The Column of Marcian was dedicated to Marcian, built by the praefectus urbi Tatianus, sometime between 450 and 452. It still stands in modern Istanbul, though the statue of Marcian which originally topped it has been lost. Marcian also had a statue in the Forum of Arcadius, which contained the statues of several of Arcadius' successors.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:20111224_Flavius_Marcianus_Augustus_Column_Fatih_Istanbul_Turkey.jpgJoe Sermarini
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Turkey, İncealiler - Termessos ad Oenoanda108 viewsOenoanda in the upper valley of the Xanthus River, was a colony of Termessos Major, and was also called Termessos Minor. The ruins of the city lie west of the modern village İncealiler in the Fethiye district of Muğla Province, Turkey, which partly overlies the ancient site. An extensive inscription of Diogenes of Oenoanda has been identified from over 300 scattered fragments, apparently from the stoa, varying in size from a few letters to passages of several sentences covering more than one block. The inscription sets out Epicurus' teachings on physics, epistemology, and ethics. It was originally about 25,000 words long and filled 260 square meters of wall. The stoa was dismantled in the second half of the third century A.D. to make room for a defensive wall; previously the site had been undefended.
By Ansgar Bovet - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18861664Joe Sermarini
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Turkey, Priene, The Temple of Athena at Priene107 viewsThe Temple of Athena at Priene was started by Mausolus but completed by Alexander the Great, who hired the great Greek architect Pytheos to complete the design and construction. It is the largest temple in Priene. Pytheos situated the temple so that it had (and still has) a beautiful view over the valley and river below Alexander the Great invested heavily into rebuilding all of the Greek cities of the Ionic league following the defeat of the Persians. This classic Greek temple was done in the Ionic style and had no frieze around the top. Instead, a dentil design sat above the columns and architrave. The statue of Athena that was originally inside the temple was based on the famous statue by Phidias in the Parthenon of Athens.Joe Sermarini
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Turkey, Elaioussa Sebaste, Islands off Cilicia, Theater107 viewsElaiussa, meaning olive, was founded in the 2nd century B.C. on a tiny island attached to the the southern coast of Anatolia (in modern-day Turkey) by a narrow isthmus in Mediterranean Sea. During the reign of Augustus, the Cappadocian king Archelaus founded a new city on the isthmus. Archelaus called it Sebaste, which is the Greek equivalent word of the Latin "Augusta." The city entered a golden age when Vespasian purged Cilicia of pirates in 74 A.D. Towards the end of the 3rd century A.D. however its importance began to wane, due in large part to incursions by the Sassanian King Shapur I in 260 and later by the Isaurians. When its neighbor Corycus began to flourish in the 6th century A.D., Elaiussa Sebaste slowly disappeared from history.
The theater, dating to the 2nd century A.D., is small with only 23 rows of seats, whose steps and decorations unfortunately succumbed to centuries of plunder. Next to the theater is the agora, built in all great probability during the imperial period. At the entrance of the agora, which is surrounded by a semi-destroyed defense wall once rose two monumental fountains in the shape of lions. Inside the agora stands a large church, its floor is covered by sand to protect the mosaic pavement. Elaiussa's only temple stands outside the city on a hill overlooking the sea; only two of the Corinthian columns of this temple, which had 12 on the long and 6 on the short side originally, are standing today. A large bath complex among the lemon groves between the temple and the agora was built with a Roman technique little used in Anatolia. The necropolis is the richest and most impressive of cities of ancient Cilicia. The "Avenue of Graves," located on a hill to the north of the city, preserves close to a hundred graves of various shapes and sizes scattered among the lemon trees. The ancient aqueducts that carried water to the ruins from the Lamos ("Lemon") river also adorn the city’s two entrances. The aqueduct to the west of the city in particular is in relatively good condition. Centuries ago the aqueduct actually ran all the way to Corycus.Joe Sermarini
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Israel, Beth Shean, The Roman Theater104 viewsBeit She'an, better known in English as Beth Shean, is a city in the Northern District of Israel. It has played an important role in history due to its geographical location at the junction of the Jordan River Valley and the Jezreel Valley. In the Biblical account of the battle of the Israelites against the Philistines on Mount Gilboa, the bodies of King Saul and three of his sons were hung on the walls of Beit She'an (1 Samuel 31:10-12). In Hellenistic and Roman times, the city was named Scythopolis and was the leading city of the Decapolis, a league of pagan cities. The ancient city ruins are now protected within the Beit She'an National Park. Joe Sermarini
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Italy, Rome, Colosseum, Flavian Amphitheatre103 viewsHere's yet another pic of the famous Roman landmark, only this time, I used the "Pano" feature on my iPhone, allowing the entire northern half to be viewed. Mark Z
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Scotland, Roughcastle Roman Fort, Lilia103 viewsLilia, which have been found at eight different locations along the 39 miles of the Antonine Wall, are part of its defensive system. The defensive line would have consisted of the ditch, the wall and these lilia, which you might call the ancient Roman equivalent of a minefield.
These deep pits, which would have had something like a sharpened stake in the centre of them, were known as lilia because they apparently reminded the Romans of lilies. They are shown on Trajan's column in Rome and were also described by Julius Caesar in his Gallic Wars.
The lilia pictured above are at the Roman fort of Roughcastle, on the Antonine Wall, a few miles west of Falkirk. *Alex
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Cyprus, Paphos - tomb102 viewsJ. B.
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Turkey, Kursunlutepe - ancient Skepsis, Troas 102 viewsView of the village of Kurşuntepe from the highest point of the site of ancient Skepsis.
Skepsis or Scepsis, an ancient settlement in the Troad, is today the village of Kursunlutepe, near the town of Bayramic in Turkey. The famous library of Aristotle was kept at Skepsis before being moved to Pergamum and then Alexandria. It was also home to Metrodorus of Scepsis and Demetrius of Scepsis. Several times in its history, the citizens of Skepsis were forced to move elsewhere. In 306 B.C., Antigonus evacuated Skepsis and other cities in the area and forced the residents to move to Alexandria Troas. Tradition holds that Saint Cornelius the Centurion, the first gentile convert to Christianity, became the first bishop of Skepsis in the early days of Christianity.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SkepsisJoe Sermarini
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Turkey, Side, Pamphylia Theater 2nd Century AD panorama102 viewsTurkey, Side, Pamphylia, theater 2nd century AD, panorama
The great ruins of Side are among the most notable in Asia Minor. They cover a large promontory which a wall and a moat separate from the mainland. There are colossal ruins of a theater complex, the largest in Pamphylia, built in the 2nd century A.D. Following design it relies on arches to support the sheer verticals. The Roman style was adopted because Side lacked a convenient hillside that could be hollowed out in the usual Greek fashion more typical of Asia Minor. In Greek fashion, the seating (for 15,000–20,000 people) curves 210° vice the usual 180° for a Roman theater. The stage building was ornately adorned but the decorations and the theater are damaged, in part due to a strong earthquake. The theater was converted into an open-air sanctuary with two chapels during the 5th or 6th century (Byzantine times).
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Side_Theatre_panorama.jpg
Author, Date: Dosseman, 21 March 2011
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Joe Sermarini
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Israel, Jerusalem Sep 2016101 viewsSimon
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Turkey, Ephesos, Façade of the Celsus library, in Ephesus, near Selçuk, west Turkey.100 viewsTurkey, Ephesos, Façade of the Celsus library, in Ephesus, near Selçuk, west Turkey.
The Library of Celsus is an ancient Roman building in Ephesus, Anatolia, now part of Selçuk, Turkey. The building was commissioned in the 110s A.D. by a consul, Gaius Julius Aquila, as a funerary monument for his father, former proconsul of Asia Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus, and completed during the reign of Hadrian, sometime after Aquila's death. The library is considered an architectural marvel, and is one of the only remaining examples of a library from the Roman Empire. The Library of Celsus was the third-largest library in the Roman world behind only Alexandria and Pergamum, believed to have held around twelve thousand scrolls. Celsus is buried in a crypt beneath the library in a decorated marble sarcophagus. The interior measured roughly 180 square metres (2,000 square feet). The interior of the library and its contents were destroyed in a fire that resulted either from an earthquake or a Gothic invasion in 262 C.E., and the façade by an earthquake in the tenth or eleventh century. It lay in ruins for centuries until the façade was re-erected by archaeologists between 1970 and 1978.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ephesus_Celsus_Library_Fa%C3%A7ade.jpg
Benh LIEU SONG, 21 June 2010
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Joe Sermarini
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Israel, Beth Shean, Ancient Ruins99 viewsBeit She'an, better known in English as Beth Shean, is a city in the Northern District of Israel. It has played an important role in history due to its geographical location at the junction of the Jordan River Valley and the Jezreel Valley. In the Biblical account of the battle of the Israelites against the Philistines on Mount Gilboa, the bodies of King Saul and three of his sons were hung on the walls of Beit She'an (1 Samuel 31:10-12). In Hellenistic and Roman times, the city was named Scythopolis and was the leading city of the Decapolis, a league of pagan cities. The ancient city ruins are now protected within the Beit She'an National Park. Joe Sermarini
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Italy, National Museum Naples, Marble bust of Hannibal from Capua98 viewsA marble bust, reputedly of Hannibal, originally found at the ancient city-state of Capua in Italy (some historians are uncertain of the authenticity of the portrait). From Phaidon Verlag (Wien-Leipzig) - "Römische Geschichte", gekürzte Ausgabe (1932). Author died more than 70 years ago - public domain.Joe Sermarini
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Iran, Hamadan, the tomb of the biblical Esther and her cousin Mordechai98 viewsThe tomb in the photo, located in Hamadan, is believed by some to hold the remains of the biblical Esther and her cousin Mordechai.
Hamedan, Iran, is believed to be among the oldest cities in the world. Hamadan was established by the Medes and was the capital of the Median empire. It then became one of several capital cities of the Achaemenid Dynasty. Hamadan is mentioned in the biblical book of Ezra as the place where a scroll was found giving the Jews permission from King Darius to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. (Ezra 6:2). Its ancient name of Ecbatana is used in the Ezra text. Because it was a mile above sea level, it was a good place to preserve leather documents. Joe Sermarini
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Iran, Naqsh-e-Rajab, Fars Province98 viewsThe investiture of Ardashir I (left) by Ahura MazdaSchatz
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Israel, Jerusalem Sep 201694 viewsEast JerusalemSimon
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France, Paris, Arena of Lutetia93 viewsThe Roman Arena that was discovered by Théodore Vaquer during the building of Rue Monge, in the 5th arrondissement, between 1860–1869. It was first built in the 1st century AD. Victor Hugo created a preservation committee called "la Société des Amis des Arènes" to preserve it. However in the photo, taken by me in May 2014, can be seen the line of apartments on Rue Monge that cover the remaining third of the Arena.Constantine IV
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Iran, Ardashir I, 224 - 242 AD93 viewsThe investiture of the first Sasanian king, Ardashir I, by Ahura Mazda (left), a rock relief in Naqsh-e-Rostam north of Persepolis.Schatz
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Iran, The Anahita temple in Kangavar (Kermanshahr)89 viewsI found a coin in this location, unfortunately not a Parthian or Sasanian drachm, but a rusty Byzantine bronze follis from the 11th cent. AD. The Silk Road was everywhere!
Schatz
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Turkey, Side, Pamphylia Temple of Tyche on the commercial agora89 viewsThere are two agoras: a commercial one and one, called "State agora." On the commercial one there is a round temple, well-restored, that was dedicated to Tyche. The agora is over 8000 square meters, surrounded by columns, with shops, exedras and latrines and washing places. On it inconceivable numbers of slaves must have been traded, for during part of its history Side was a major center for pirates who stationed their fleet here. In the center stood a temple for the protective goddess of the city, Tyche. The present construction dates from the 2nd century A.D., it was in use in Byzantine times.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Side_Tyche_temple_on_agora_6140.jpg
Author, Date: Dosserman, 20 February 2015
Joe Sermarini
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