As you may have noticed in Travel Booking Turkey tour packages, our country has been the birthplace and thriving grounds of many civilizations. From Ancient Greek city states to Roman Empire, from Byzantine to Ottoman Empire – ever since pre-historic ages, these civilizations have added many cultural treasures on top of each other, eventually building up one of the most historically and culturally diverse countries of all time. For those who are looking to do some research on what to visit during Turkey tours, we have started of a series of blog posts that will go into details of them and make it easier for you to booking a trip in Turkey once you are well informed about what this country has to offer. In this article, we will be beginning with the ancient cities in Turkey which were built by a variety of Greek and Roman civilizations including ancient cities in Turkey.
The first and foremost thing about ancient cities in Turkey that belong to Ancient Greek and Roman cultures that reflect their elegance is their architecture. Affected and formed by thousands of years of background, these cities were so well-built that they managed to outlast modern settlements of present day. That particular building style can be observed even in today’s cities on the west coast of Turkey as seen in our 8 Days Western Turkey Tour. Their main characteristics like ornaments and figureheads represent the long-standing accumulation of natural and historical wealth as you may witness in any one of our Turket travel packages. Out of all of them, the most well-known is deservedly Ephesus ancient city. Starting off as a port-town, Ephesus quickly flourished due to its statistical situation. The amazing wealth they acquired went onto further their progress and science, greatly valuing wisdom which is the embodiment of Greek culture. The most prominent example of this is the Library of Celsus, which has become the symbol of the entire city. Aside from that, Temple of Artemis which is one of the 7 Ancient Wonders of the World and House of Virgin Mary – a place of pilgrimage for Christianity approved by Vatican is proudly housed by Ephesus, drawing millions of visitors every year.
Another majestic example of ancient cities in Turkey is Pergamon. Widely suggested in most of our Turkey tours on Travel Booking Turkey, Pergamon is an ancient city of epic proportions located loosely on the route from Troy to Ephesus. Originally a colonly of Arcadians, the city is often mentioned in the Book of Revelations. As a kingdom of its own, Pergamon was a massive capital as cited by historians and it was very closely located to Assos; another great one of the Seven Churches. Next up on the list of stunning ancient settlements is not one, but three: Priene, Miletus and Didyma. These cities are so closely linked together in virtually every way, they are considered to be “three sisters” and are mostly visited in a ceremonial order. Highly praised as centres of art, Priene Miletus and Didyma also were trade hubs; providing the region with practically every mainstream production material needed to keep the vast economy going. Moving onto a slightly bigger one, Laodicea – located dab in the middle of the ancient Hellenistic regions of Caria and Lydia. Due to its situational essentiality, the city was highly sought-after and well-defended once it was conquered by the Kingdom of Pergamon. The evidence of Greek paganism seen throughout Laodicea coincide with the claims of Saint John. The remaining cities of Symrna, Sardes, Philadelphia and Thyatira constitute the Seven Churches of Revelation as shown in our Biblical Tour Turkey. What these ancient cities have in common is the fact that they are mixes of Greek, Hellenistic and Roman culture – and are a must-see part of most of our tour programmes in Turkey.
There is no better way to satisfy the raging history buff in you, so all you have to do is give us a holler and we will happily set you up with a custom Turkey travel plan which will help you get the most of your time in Turkey with even more than ancient cities in Turkey. As avid travelers ourselves, we believe in sharing the cultural wealth that was passed down to us, with anyone willing to see, hear, touch and feel the still-going life in these major masterpieces.
