Gymnasium from the Roman Reconstruction

Gymnasium from

the Roman Reconstruction

Located at the foot of Mount Thmolus on the main route connecting the Aegean Sea with Turkey the city of Sardis to the north and west the grandest building in Roman times of Sardis is the courtyard of a completely restored complex. Its design reflects the elaborate architecture of the Xaverian dynasty of the late 2nd and early 3rd centuries. The city's ancient name comes from the Lydian word "sfar" which later became the Persian "sparda" and the Greek "sfard". With its natural fortifications on the banks of the Hermas River (Gediz) Sardis enjoyed many privileges and natural advantages and became the capital of the Lydian kingdom in the 7th and 6th centuries BC.

Two important sites worth visiting are the area around the separate Temple of Artemis (school) about a mile south said to have once housed the Torah scrolls. The remains of the ancient city are scattered over a large area on either side of the main road although they are less well-known than the nearby Celsus Library at Ephesus which is much larger. Although not very well known

Sardis a lesser-visited city is a significant site due to its remote location. The atmosphere is calm and far from the crowds of Ephesus. Modern materials complement the original red bricks on the ruins. Nearby columns with Roman spiral flutes. The marble courtyard in the center of the Gymnasium. Reconstructions in sequence from the Greek and Roman past the ancient capital of Lydia. The church which dates from 200–616 was integrated into Jewish social life. Many prominent citizens were housed in the Roman baths and gymnasium and was rebuilt from damage.

Statue of Artemis

Inside the temple, there is a large central hall and a small room dedicated to religious purposes dedicated to Artemis. It is an altar with elaborately carved Ionic capitals. The rounded bases are made of marble and are decorated on square plinths. The outer colonnade dates from the Roman Empire in the first half of the 2nd century. There is a separate chamber under the rock divided into two rooms, which were combined into a cult for Artemis. It is a peripterous structure surrounded by Hellenistic columns from the 3rd century BC with subsequent restorations and alterations during the Roman period. The fourth largest Ionic temple in the world dedicated to the hunt goddess Artemis for the fertility of gold and silver trade in Sardis.

It became an important temple center in the past from a large treasury that attracted merchants and crowds. The structure was left unfinished in the late 4th century. A small church was built in the southeast corner. The carved cross on the marble wall was abandoned with the advent of Christianity. The ancient Gymnasium has a beautiful composition with buildings decorated in the classical Roman Peripterus style. The structure will be revived with the magnificent churches that were confirmed in the 2nd to early 3rd centuries.