【Turkey】The Severely Underrated Ancient City of Sardis

Sardis 2023.10 In terms of quantity and visual appeal, Turkey's ancient cities surpass those in mainland Italy and Greece—this was my primary motivation for revisiting Turkey. After picking up a car at Izmir Airport, this journey would follow the Aegean and Mediterranean coastlines, where ancient cities are most densely concentrated, heading southeast from Izmir to Antalya. The first stop, the ancient city of Sardis, is located about 90 kilometers east of Izmir and was once the capital of the wealthy Lydian Kingdom. The 7th century BC marked the peak of Lydian civilization, when it conquered many Greek city-states in Anatolia and ruled most of the Aegean region. In 546 BC, Sardis was destroyed by Cyrus the Great, founder of the Persian Empire, and later perfectly inherited by Alexander and the ancient Romans, becoming a prosperous Roman town. √ Roman Road and Synagogue: The ancient city is small in scale, laid out around a central square plaza. The southern side of the plaza features a straight row of well-preserved shops, restaurants, offices, and even intact public toilets once used by Jewish merchants. Turning left from the Roman Road leads to the synagogue, where intricate mosaics and colorful stone walls are impressive. The Roman altar at the front features two eagles and back-to-back lions, though the entire synagogue space is now covered by a shelter, making photography challenging. √ Gymnasium: On the western side of the plaza, facing east, stands a striking two-story building. Though heavily restored (almost to the point of looking artificial), it still evokes the structure's former beauty—columns with finely carved straight/serpentine fluting, dazzling Ionic and Corinthian hybrid capitals, exquisite Greek inscriptions, and carved heads. According to the description, this space was actually a Roman gymnasium, and with the adjacent Roman Bath—what an extraordinary quality of life they had! √ Temple of Artemis: About a kilometer away lies the majestic yet unfinished ruins of the Temple of Artemis. Compared to the single remaining column at Ephesus, this temple is far better preserved—its intact foundation clearly reveals the building's layout, while the surviving columns, bases, and capitals give a sense of its staggering scale.