Serapion, The Temple of Serapis
The
street in the southwestern corner of
the agora leads to the Temple to
Serapis. The cult of Serapis was
originally Egyptian but passed into
Greek and Roman religious life found
fertile ground for growth in
Ephesus, where this temple was
built. Upon first investigation it
was thought that this gorgeous
monumental work was built for
Emperor Claudius (41-54 AD).
However, architectural
considerations and the presence of
certain statues and inscriptions led
to the conclusion that it was in
fact constructed in the 2nd century
for the Egyptian cult of Serapis.
The temple sat on a terrace above the courtyard. Built along prostyle lines, the column capitals found were 1.5 m in diameter, meaning that the columns were as much as 57 tons on weight. The entrance was extremely wide and had a double door. Since the door was metal, it had wheels on the bottom, which a readily visible track in the floor.
Without a doubt the most attractive part of the temple was the façade. It was 15 m. high with 57-ton columns supporting it on either side and had galleries surrounding a entryway courtyard. It is still possible to see the columns and upper parts in front of the temple. The structure was later used as a church. It is easy to see that earthquakes in ancient times did a lot of damage to the temple.
Ephesus sections
- Ephesus Tours
- Basilica of St.John
- The House of Virgin Mary
- Museum of Ephesus
- The Temple of Artemis
- Celsus Library
- Magnesia Gate
- East Gymnasium
- Varius Bath
- Bouleuterion
- Basilica
- Prytaneion
- Upper Agora
- Domitian Fountain
- Pollio Fountain
- Memmius Monument
- Heracles Gate
- Curates Street
- Serapis Temple
- Mazeus Gate
- Lower Agora
- The Marbel Street
- Grand Theater
- Hellenistic Fountain
- Theater Gymnasium
- Harbour Street
- Church of Mary
- Vedius Gymnasium