The artemis temple, a wonder of antiquity
The temple of Artemisa, a wonder of antiquity was located in the ancient city of Ephesus. Today there is nothing practically about him, but we can know him through the reading of these lines.
Location of the Temple of Artemis, a wonder of antiquity.
The temple of Artemisa, was one of the seven wonders of antiquity. It was located 3 kilometers northwest of the old city of Ephesus. Currently the closest city is the city of Sulk, in the province of Esmirna, within the Aegean region. The important port city of Izmir is located approximately 50 kilometers from there the strategic position of the artemis temple on the pilgrimage routes.
The interest of the city of Selcuk, is not so much for their charms for travelers, but because it is a place of way or back towards Ephesus. That is why the city does not have much tourism, rather on the contrary, it keeps the entire essence of a typically Turkish city. Its neighborhoods, its streets, its shops transports the traveler to the deep Turkey.
The origin of the Artemis temple
Artemisa, in Greek mythology, was the daughter of the god Zeus and Melliza sister of Apollo. It was the Greek goddess that embodied fertility, hunting and war. It embodies a virgin goddess who did not like male contact, hence in many places of worship dedicated to this goddess, access to men was not allowed.
She was generally represented outdoors, in wooded areas, accompanied by animals. The dichotomy between being a goddess of hunting and animal protective goddess is curious.
Its temples are usually built in areas far from urban nuclei, in areas in contact with nature. As it happens in this Temple of Artemis of Ephesus. The place where it was located was a swampy area and was often flooded, being often isolated from the city itself.
Construction of the Artemis Temple
The Artemisa temple also known as Artemision was designed by the architect who skewed under the orders of the Crassian King of Lidia who ordered him to lift him in the seventh century to.C.
Construction was based on the canons of classical Hellenic architecture. I had a large rectangular room, called Cella where the imposing statue of the goddess Artemisa was located. It was about two meters high, it was made of wood and was covered with silver and gold.
The roof consisted of two slightly inclined earrings. The pediment were triangular and were profusely decorated with different scenes.
The building was surrounded by two rows of columns, about 127 specifically, which were approximately 18 meters high. Some of them were carved and all appeared with great decorative elements.
The beginning of the decline of the Artemis Temple: Eostrato
Associated with the history of Artemisa there is a name, eostrate. This character caused a fire in the S. IV a.C that managed to destroy the entire temple. Eostrato did it to become famous. From this fact the term eostratism arose that means: ‘the mania that leads to commit criminal acts to achieve renown’.
Artemison was rebuilt. In the year 334 A.C Alejandro Magno himself conquered the city of Ephesus to the Persians and offered to pay the restoration of the temple in exchange for a dedication, but declined his help. The temple, although rebuilt, never recovered the splendor he had in his early years. Little by little it was beginning to decline, which had been one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
With the passage of time it was subject to constant looting. After the Roman invasion from 189 to.C Christianity became strong in place. Gradually the temple of Artemis, a wonder of antiquity, was abandoned. It began to be used as a quarry to extract marbles and use them in the construction of other buildings. Finally at the S. III d.C was destroyed by the Goths.
There are currently very few visible remains of the Artemisa Temple, only 1 of the 127 columns that the original construction remains standing.
Artemis temple functionality
The artemis temple was one of the favorite places of worship. There, the faithful, were going to pay tribute and leave offerings to the goddess. Pilgrimages to get to this temple were made from all parts of the world. Ephesus has always been one of the most important pilgrimage places in the world of antiquity.
The city of Ephesus was very large and famous. It was a commercial meeting point thanks to the proximity to the port of Izmir, in the Aegean Sea. Many of the most important commercial routes of the old world started from here. It was always a place of aggregation and exchange of pilgrim travelers and merchants.
We cannot know the artemis temple in person, but we can still travel to him through archeology and books. Let’s do it and enjoy it.
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