History of ASPENDOS

According to Greek tradition Aspendos was funded by the colonists from Argos who arrived here under
the leadership of Mopsos around 1000 BC. Argos was a city located in the Peloponnese. Most probably
the area of Aspendos had earlier been settled by the local inhabitants, but the city started to develop
only after the arrival of the Greeks.

The significance of Aspendos in the Greek era did not come from its political influences, but from the
well-developed economy which provided great wealth for the city. In these times the Eurymedon river
was navigable from the coast to Aspendos, in the distance of 16 km. The city collected great incomes
from the trade in salt, olive oil and wool. It was also renowned from horse breeding and its horses were
highly valued in the whole Mediterranean region.

Coinage
Aspendos minted its own coins which were widely accepted in the ancient world, thus giving evidence to
the huge importance of the city. In 5th century BC, Aspendos started issuing coinage around 500 BC, first
staters and later drachmas; "the slinger on the obverse represents the soldiery for which Aspendus was
famous in antiquity," the reverse frequently depicts a triskelion. In the 5th and 4th centuries BC,
according to the information provided by the coins, Aspendos was called Estwediya. And the symbols of
the city, visible on the coins, were two naked wrestlers.

The political history of Aspendos is similar to the history of the whole Pamphylia. Firstly, the city came
under the Lydian rule and in 546 BC was conquered by Persians. However, the fact that it continued to
mint its own coins meant that it had a relatively large degree of independence.

The Battle of Eurymedon

In either 469 or 466 BCE, the Persians began assembling a large army and navy for a major offensive
against the Greeks. Gathering near the Eurymedon, it is possible that the expedition aimed to move up
the coast of Asia Minor, capturing each city in turn. This would bring the Asiatic Greek regions back
under Persian control, and give the Persians naval bases from which to launch further expeditions into
the Aegean. Hearing of the Persian preparations, the Athenian general Cimon took 200 triremes and
sailed to Phaselis in Pamphylia, which eventually agreed to join the Delian League. This effectively
blocked the Persian strategy at its first objective.

In 467 BC, Cimon moved to pre-emptively attack the Persian forces near the Eurymedon. Sailing into the
mouth of the river, Cimon quickly routed the Persian fleet gathered there. Most of the Persian fleet
made landfall, and the sailors fled to the shelter of the Persian army. Cimon then landed the Greek
marines and proceeded to attack the Persian army, which was also routed. The Greeks captured the
Persian camp, taking many prisoners, and were able to destroy 200 beached Persian triremes. This
stunning double victory seems to have greatly demoralised the Persians, and prevented any further
Persian campaigning in the Aegean until at least 451 BC. The Battle of Eurymedon ended as Aspendos
became a member of the Delian League, which was managed by Athens.

The Persians regained their control over Aspendos in 411 BC and transformed the city into a military
base. In 389 BC one of the Athenian general named Thrasybulus tried to 'liberate' Aspendos, against the
will of its inhabitants. Hoping to avoid a new war, the people of Aspendos collected money among
themselves and gave it to the commander, entreating him to retreat without causing any damage. Even
though he took the money, he had his men trample all the crops in the fields. Enraged, the Aspendians
stabbed and killed Thrasybulus in his tent. = in this part Althea was 14 and was in Aspendos.

Aspendos remained under the Persian governance until 333 BC.

The City Plan

Theatre
The theatre in Aspendos is considered to be the best preserved theatre of antiquity. The Roman builders
of this structure managed to express the state of ideal balance between the auditorium and the skene
building and, what's more, to the whole theatre matches perfectly into the landscape.

According to a legend, the construction of this theatre resulted from the competition organised by the
ruler of Aspendos. The aim of this competition was to build a structure that will contribute most to the
city's prosperity, and the winner was to be awarded the daughter of the ruler. Two competitors qualified
to the final round. The first of them constructed the system of canals and aqueducts that supplied
Aspendos with running water. The ruler was almost convinced to give him the hand of his daughter but
decided to visit the theatre, built by the second competitor, for the last time. When he stood on the
highest point of the theatre, suddenly a clear voice whispered directly into his ear: 'Your daughter must
be mine!' When he looked around in surprise, he saw the builder of the theatre standing on the scene.
The theatre's acoustics impressed the ruler so much that he immediately decided in favour of its builder.
The wedding took place, naturally, in the theatre itself.

The theatre was actually built in the 2nd century AD, during the reign of the Roman emperor Marcus
Aurelius (161-180 AD), on the basis of the project created by Zeno - a Greek architect born in Aspendos.
The Greek and Latin inscriptions which are placed above the entrances to the skene building state that
two brothers - Curtius Crispinus and Curtius Auspicatus - dedicated this theatre "to the gods of this
country and to the Imperial house".

Despite the fact that the theatre was build in the Roman period, the building displays many features
typical to Greek theatres. The auditorium rests in part against a hillside. Moreover, a horseshoe shape of
the auditorium also is a Greek feature. On the other hand, according to the Roman standards, the
theatre is cut off from the outside world by the skene building. Also the barrel-vaulted substructure is a
typical Roman idea.

Aqueduct 2nd Century AD

One of the best-preserved fragments of a Roman aqueduct in Turkey are situated in Aspendos. The
water was supplied to the city from two sources in the mountains, approximately 17 km to the north of
Aspendos. The water supply system consisted of a canal, bridges and tunnels. The last stretch of the
system, 2-kilometers long, was a complicated system of reverse siphons and water towers that reached
30 meters of height.

The leg between two towers led over the land and was placed on the system of some arcades in order to
compensate for the uneven terrain. These arcades are 15 meters high and their upper part is 5.5 meters
wide. For this reason some scholars claim that a road led there, above the ground, and it was used when
the area was inundated.

Stadium 2nd Century AD

The remains of a stadium from the 2nd century AD are situated on the eastern slope of the acropolis hill
in Aspendos. The stadium is U-shaped and its dimensions are 220 meters in length and 30 meters in
width. Not much is preserved of this structure. Its north-eastern section is in the best condition and
there one can see the fragments of seats and some arches that supported the whole construction. It is
estimated that 8 thousand spectators could be seated in this stadium.

City gates
Three city gates have been preserved until the present times in the area of Aspendos acropolis, among
them the southern gate is in the best condition. Additionally, an arch over the road that led from the
eastern gate to the agora is still standing. Before this arch the road broadens thus creating a small
square. Around it the bases where some statues used to stand are visible. The alley is intersected by the
canal that transported the sewage from the acropolis.

Agora
The main square of Aspendos had trading and political functions. It is situated in the middle of the
acropolis and is surrounded by public city buildings, among them: a basilica, a nymphaeum, a
bouleuterion, a market hall and an exedra. The shape of this agora is irregular and results from the
topographical features of the hill.

Nymphaeum
The only surviving part of a nymphaeum in Aspendos is its facade that resembles the nymphaeum in
Side. The facade is two-tiered and each tier has five niches. The water, supplied by the piping system to
the building, flowed from its middle niches.

The height of the facade is 15 meters and its width - 32 meters. Above the lower row of niches some
fragments of richly decorated beams have survived. In the past the façade was also decorated by an Ionic
colonnade. The nymphaeum was built in the 2nd or the 3rd century AD.

Basilica
This basilica was one of the most important public city building. The eastern part of this building, which
survived in excellent condition to the present day, was used as a political venue and a court. The size of
this rectangular meeting hall is 20 by 25 meters. Two wide gateways, situated on the northern and
southern walls, lead into the building.

Inside three wall niches, where the statues were placed, are visible. The statues of Emperor Hadrian and
a woman, found in this hall, are currently on display in the Archaeological Museum in Antalya.

The western section of the basilica was used for commercial purposes. It was 105 meters long and
divided into a central hall and two naves. Only foundations of this section are in evidence today.

Bouleuterion
Bouleuterion in Aspendos has a form of a roofed hall with rows of seats. There the city council met. The
remains of this building are on the northern side of the nymphaeum. Currently only some fragment of its
walls are visible along with the holes where the wooden roof was assembled.

Market hall
This 70 meters long building consisted of a row of smaller chambers where the shops were located. From
the front side it was decorated by a stoa.

Exedra
This is a curvilinear open recess which in the past provided seats for the public. It was richly decorated
with statues.

Temple
On the north-eastern side of the acropolis hill scant remains of a temple are visible. Its dimensions were
24 on 13 meters, and it represented the peripteros type i.e. it was surrounded around its outside by a
colonnade (pteron) on all four sides of the cella. The Doric columns stood on a stylobate: 11 columns on
its both longer sides and 6 columns on its both shorter sides.

Additionally, some remains of a temenos wall are visible. The scholars have not been able to identify the
deity that was worshipped in this temple.

Baths and gymnasium

Two vaulted structures that are visible along the road that leads to the theatre served, most probably, as
baths and a gymnasium.

Necropolis
This cemetery from the classical period is located on the bottom of the acropolis, on its south-eastern
side. Most of the graves were robbed in the antiquity. One of the most interesting archaeological finds
from the necropolis area is a vessel that was used for mixing water and wine, i.e. a bell krater. This vessel
from the 5th century BC, decorated with red figures, is exhibited in the Archaeological Museum in
Antalya.