When you go to turkey, you need to go and visit the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus.
The Temple of Artemis is one of the 7 ancient wonders of the world and for a good reason. See what you think below.
The Temple of Artemis is four times bigger than the Parthenon and has been described as the biggest temple and worship place for the Greek goddess Artemis.
The Temple of Artemis was built by Croesus, the King of Lydia around 550 BCE and had to be rebuilt after it caught fire in 356 BCE.
Temple of Artemis was famous not just for its colossal size, which was over 110 by 55 meters but for the art that adorned it. The Temple of Artemis was destroyed by Goths in 262 CE and was never rebuilt. The remains of the temple all be it very little is left, and only vendors and tourists visit now. It is free to visit, but you will find locals selling replicas of the temple.
In 1869 the British Museum sponsored an exhibition to the site of the Temple of Artemis and several sculptures and artefacts from the reconstructed temple can be found in the museum today.
The Temple of Artemis Stands High
Standing high in the marsh is the only surviving column which really does give you a feel for the size and how grand the original temple was in its hay day. It is estimated that there were 127 columns like the one remaining, which made up the temple each one of the columns was 60 feet tall and decoratively carved.
On the British Museum exhibition, John Turtle Wood, an architect searching for the temple, did not know its location. He ended up taking six years during which every single year the British museum threatened to cancel the funding. Still, somehow every year he persuaded them to keep funding the search for Temple of Artemis.
Finally, John found a swamp which was believed to be the location of the Temple of Artemis. John started to excavate the entire where the artefacts where found.
The Temple of Artemis was gilded and painted, and according to local legend, many of the sculptures were there to celebrate the Amazons who were thought to have found Ephesus.
Unfortunately, all that remains of the Temple of Artemis is a single column and rubble. Some of the remains are thought to have been used in a mosque nearby, and most of the remainder have been moved to the British Museum.
The first Ephesus settlement was constructed around the Temple of Artemis which was soon destroyed in an earthquake. However the settlers were not deterred, and they decided to build a much bigger, more imposing settlement with the support and help of the Roman Empire.
Ancient history is not my strong point, and at school, I struggled with history and geography, but as I have aged it has become more and more exciting, and I find myself lost when looking at photos of massive structures and statues.
I am not sure if it is the construction and the attention to detail that appeals to me or just the whole grand scale of some of the 7 wonders of the ancient world but either way I have to say I have enjoyed writing about them.
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