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History of Hierapolis
The ancient city of Hierapolis was founded by Pergamum, probably Eumenes II,
in the 2C BC. Hierapolis is believed to derive its name from Hiera, the wife
of Telephus, both being legendary ancestors of kings of Pergamum. Hierapolis
was also interpreted by some as the "holy city". All the surviving ruins of
the city except the foundations of the Apollo Temple date back to the
Imperial Roman period. In 133 BC the city was bequeathed to the Romans
along with the Kingdom of Pergamum by the will of Attalus III. It is also
thought That a large population of Jewish people lived there who contributed
to the expansion of the Christian belief. Hierapolis suffered from frequent
large earthquakes and was restored many times, one of them being a complete
rebuilding by Nero in the 1C AD. |
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The Site;
Hierapolis is among the cities of the ancient world in which the grid-plan
was applied.
The Necropolis is the largest ancient cemetery in Anatolia with
approximately 1,200 graves.
Although in the cemetery there are free-standing sarcophagi and some round
tumuli, the main
attraction is provided by large tomb-enclosures housing three or more vessels
and
often flanked outside by sarcophagi, presumably placed there after the interior
was full.
Hierapolis gives the impression of a large cemetery which, although the tombs
have
been visited by robbers, very large numbers of the structures and also the
vessels are
still in place; only the tomb gates (presumably of bronze or iron) and
decorations have
disappeared. Many of the tombs here were Christian and there is at least
one large Christian basilica,
for the Apostle Philip was martyred here in 1C AD and the faithful wished to
be buried
as close as possible to the holy dead.
The gardens of the tombs in the necropolis were maintained by specifically
established
guilds. It was these guilds’ responsibility to put wreaths at the graves
on special days.
The tomb of the Apostle Philip, the Martyrium was built
in octagonal shape in the 5C,
according to the legend on a spot where he was stoned to death. The
Roman Bath after
the necropolis was originally built in either the 2C or 3C AD. In the
early Christian period,
probably in the 5C it was converted into a Basilica. The Triple
Arch is the northern gateway
to the city and was built in the 1C AD by the proconsul of the Asian Province,
Julius Frontinus
in honor of the Roman Emperor Domitian. It was constructed out of the local
travertine and
flanked by two round towers. It also had an upper story which is no longer
standing.
The Colonnaded Street is 1,190 m / 1,300 yards long with 6-meter-long (20 ft)
walks on either side separated from the street by columns.
The remains of a huge 2C AD Roman Bath serves today as a small
archeological
museum with local finds.
The Sacred Pool which coincidentally contains many ancient column pieces
is located
in the Pamukkale Motel and is not to be missed. This pool may well easily
be the
remains of the original pool of the antiquity near the Apollo Temple. As John
Freely says,
"There cannot be another hotel in the world That has a swimming pool like this."
Somewhere under the surface of the high plateau on which the city was built
there was
a vent of poisonous gases, known to the people of those days as the
Plutonium. It was
a shrine of Pluto, the god of the dead and the underworld. Only a closed room
and a
paved courtyard survived to modern day. Geographer Strabo describes it well:
"The Plutonium was a man-high, very deep opening under a gently sloping hill...t
he vapors were so thick That it was impossible to see the floor...but any living
creature
That enters will find death upon the instant. Bulls for example collapse and die.
We let
some little birds fly in, and they at once fell lifeless to the ground. The
eunuchs of Cybele
are resistant to the extent That they can approach close to the opening and
indeed go in
without having to hold their breath."
The Theater is a 2C AD building in Roman style with many reliefs
depicting scenes representing
the Emperor Septimus Severus and from the life of Dionysus. In the 3C AD it was
thought to be
restored during the reign of Septimus Severus. The seating capacity was 20,000.
In the 4C the
theater was restored again but this time with additional changes in the
orchestra which offered
the possibility of water displays
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