Travel Honey, I’m going to the library FollowingMarble Street fromCelsus Library to the GreatTheatre, we discovered one of the oldest advertisements in the world. It depicts a foot pointing to an underground tunnel leading to a brothel, the face of a woman, a heart and a purse. As we strolled past more ruins and pillars, we encountered constant surprises – a relief of a Roman helmet sculpted in stone, a cat snoozing below the remnants of a carved column and ruts from chariots that rattled over the marble streets during the Roman period. The size of the spectacular Great Theatre at the end of Marble Street astounded us. “It seats 25,000 people in 66 rows,” said Dilek. “The bottom row was high above the stage to protect spectators from wild animals during gladiator fights.” She explained that archaeologists estimated the size of Ephesus by multiplying the capacity of the theatre by 10. “That’s how they calculated the population of Ephesus to be 250,000.” Spectators also watched dramatic performances on the stage. In 50 AD, St. Paul preached to the Ephesians here. More recently, audiences watched concerts by Elton John, Diana Ross, Joan Baez, Bryan Adams, Sting and other celebrities at the Great Theatre. What did we find even more amazing than this magnificent amphitheatre? Even after 160 years of excavations, only 23% of Ephesus has been unearthed. Who knows what wonders will be discovered for future generations to enjoy? Great Theatre Brothel advertisement Cat snoozes below remnants of a carved column 22 | www.snowbirds.org
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