Ephesus (ĕf`əsəs), ancient Greek city of Asia Minor, near the mouth of the Caÿster River (modern Küçük Menderes), in what is today W Turkey, S of Smyrna (now Izmir). One of the greatest of the Ionian cities, it became the leading seaport of the region. Its wealth was proverbial. The Greek city was near an old center of worship of a native nature goddess, who was equated with the Greek Artemis Artemis (är`təmĭs), in Greek religion and mythology, Olympian goddess, daughter of Zeus and Leto and twin sister of Apollo.
..... Click the link for more information. , and c.550 B.C. a large temple was built. To this Croesus, who captured the city, contributed. From Lydian control Ephesus passed to the Persian Empire. The temple was burned down in the 4th cent. B.C., but rebuilding was begun before Alexander the Great took Ephesus in 334. The city continued to thrive during the wars of his successors, and after it passed (133) to the Romans it kept its hegemony and was the leading city of the province of Asia. The great temple of Artemis, or Artemision, called by the Romans the temple of Diana, was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World Seven Wonders of the World, in ancient classifications, were the Great Pyramid of Khufu (see pyramid ) or all the pyramids with or without the sphinx ; the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, with or without the walls; the mausoleum at Halicarnassus; the Artemision at
..... Click the link for more information. . From c.100 B.C. to c.A.D. 100 Ephesus was the world capital of the slave trade. The city was sacked by the Goths in A.D. 262, and the temple was destroyed. The seat of a church council in 431, Ephesus was abandoned after the harbor silted up. Excavations (1869–74) of the ruins of the temple brought to light many artifacts. Later excavations uncovered important Roman and Byzantine remains.

Ephesus

Ancient Ionian Greek city; its ruins lie near the modern village of Selcuk in western Turkey. It was situated south of the Cayster River and was the site of the Temple of Artemis. Traditionally founded by the Carians, it was one of the 12 Ionian Cities and was involved in the Persian and Peloponnesian wars. It was taken by Alexander the Great c. 333 BC and prospered throughout the Hellenistic period. It passed to Rome in 133 BC and under the emperor Augustus became the capital of the Roman province of Asia. It was an early seat of Christianity, which was visited by St. Paul; the Letter of Paul to the Ephesians was directed to the church there. The Goths destroyed the city and temple in AD 262; neither ever recovered. There are extensively excavated ruins at the modern site.

Ephesus

(in ancient Greece) a major trading city on the W coast of Asia Minor: famous for its temple of Artemis (Diana); sacked by the Goths (262 ad)

Ephesus (redirected from Efesos)

Ephesus

Ephesus
(redirected from Efesos)