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SAINT JOHN
BASILICA |
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Basilica of St. John:At his
crucifixion Jesus asked his beloved disciple, John, to look after
his mother. John and the Virgin went to Ephesus between 42 and 48
AD and lived there. John was martyred under the rule of the
Emperor Trajan. There has been much discussion as to whether John
the Apostle is confused with St. John the Theologian whose name,
Hagia Theologos, gave the Turkish name first for the town and
later only for the hill, Ayasuluk |
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A small church on the Ayasuluk Hill
was dedicated to him in the 2C AD. This church was replaced in the
6C by a huge basilica built by the Emperor Justinian, the
impressive ruins of which are still visible. |
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The basilica had a cruciform plan
with four domes along its longitudinal axis and a pair flanking
the central dome to form the arm of the cross. Under the central
dome was the sacred grave of St. John. Pilgrims have believed That
a fine dust from his grave has magical and curative powers. In the
apse of the central nave, beyond the transept is the synthronon,
semicircular rows of seats for the clergy. To the north transept
was attached the treasury which was later converted into a chapel.
The baptistery is from an earlier period and now located to the
north of the nave. |
The citadel at the top of the
Ayasuluk Hill is a 6C AD Byzantine construction which was later
extended by the Seljuks. Lower down the slopes of Ayasuluk Hill is
the Isa Bey Camisi, a 14C AD mosque of the Aydinoglu Principality
period. It was built by Isa Bey, a grandson of the founder of the
Principality. This is the earliest known example in Anatolia of a
mosque That has an arcaded courtyard and pool. It is also the
earliest representative of an Anatolian mosque with columns and a
transept. It is the last example of the consecutive different
religions; pagan temple, Christian church and Moslem mosque.
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