16. Pergamum & Thyratira - Day 4 - Pix Added

(Still to add: Turkish culture)

A Quick Introduction to Revelation from Ferrell
 I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. (Rev. 1:9) In all likelihood, John was in exile because of the gospel. The book of Revelation would have been carried by messenger to the seven churches of Asia. The messenger would have traveled 245 miles to reach all seven cities and couldn't have traveled faster than 20 miles per day. Our pace was quicker. There was only one leg we didn't cover on this trip in order to reach all seven cities.

One of the major themes is that Christians may die but they would still be victorius in Christ. History bears this out. Many followers of Christ suffered severe persecution for the next 200 years.

The things in Revelation were to shortly come to pass. The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John, who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near. (Rev 1:1-3)

Take note of the descriptions of Christ in Revelation 1 which are reiterated in the letters to the churches found in Revelation 2 & 3.

The "Free" Restroom Break
It took us a couple of hours to drive to Pergamum. Just outside of the city is an onyx store with nice restrooms. Orhan said at least pretend to shop. HA! Pretend? We didn't have to pretend. The onyx was white, gray, tan/brown and green. There were vases of all shapes and sizes, a table, pears and spheres. You name it. They had it. The pieces were gorgeous. They also served hot apple tea. Yum! One clerk in particular had cultivated the fine art of bargaining. She played her role well. Guess who didn't make it a "free" pitstop.

Pergamum Acropolis
The acropolis of Pergamum is reached by elevator, gondola and a quarter of a mile walk to the top of the hill. We could see the remains of the unexcavated hillside residential areas. Note, Turkey is not the place to pick up a stray potsherd or marble fragment. It's illegal to export any antiquity from Turkey that is older than 150 years.

Current day Bergama as seen from the gondola.

Dr. Dan, Lowell and Larry

Larry and John cracking up. I can't remember if Lowell was the perpetrator or not.

Ferrell & Orhan provide a history lesson in our outdoor classroom. Pull up a column and have a seat.

And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it. (Rev 2:12-17)

This area was occupied from the 7th century B.C. until 7th century A.D. Providing sufficient water has always been the problem for this city. When Alexander the Great died, his empire was divided up between his generals. Lysimachus was given Anatolia and 900,000 gold coins. Lysimachus was followed by his nephew, Phileateurus. Pergamum was a small state. Then in the 2nd century B.C. the Galatians (Gauls) unsuccessfully attacked the city. At this point, this city became a kingdom which extended into central Turkey.

Pergamum was "priviledged" to receive the nod to be a neokoros, a city chosen for a place of emperor worship, three times in its history. The temple of Trajan, which still has a few complete columns, was one of these imperial cult temples.

Temple of Trajan Plan View

The Temple of Trajan.

Off to the side of the temple stands (can I say stands if the statue is legless?) the torso of Trajan.

Ferrell compared the honor of being selected as a neokoros to the honor of being chosen for the Olympics, World Cup or the Superbowl.

The temple's foundations (in the middle ages they became cisterns) are enormous. There are barrel vaulted rooms. Today the marble slabs that lined the walls are tossed aside and you can see holes peppering the walls. The marble was removed by scavangers so they could access the lead water pipes for weapons. It reminded me of the air conditioner copper thieves we have in our area.

Temple of Trajan's foundational archways make picturesque frames.

Theater of Pergamum is the steepest in the world. Some of our group hurriedly walked to the bottom. Why? Why do you climb a mountain? Because it's there : )

Temple of Dionysus, god of wine,  is tucked into the side of the hill at the base of the theater.

White marble stumps are all that remain of the stoa.

The Library of Pergamum, the gray stone walls behind the columns, housed 200,000 parchment scrolls in three rooms. It's contents were given by Mark Anthony to Cleopatra as a wedding gift.

Parchment was first developed in Pergamum. When the Ptolemies refused to export any more papyrus to Pergamum, King Eumenes II commanded that an alternative source be found. Turns out that parchment trumped papyrus because it could be written on both sides rather than just one.

Site of the Temple of Zeus.

I walked down to where the temple of Zeus used to be. What? Yes, the temple is gone. It was taken to Berlin and now is the star of the Pergamum Museum. Other notable pieces in that museum include: the temple of Athena from Pergamum and the marketplace facade from Miletus. Next time you're in Berlin, pay a visit.

Lunch and a Magnum Bar
We sat outside on the covered porch. They had fans overhead that spritzed us with water every so often. Some ordered kebobs while others (myself included) sampled the "home cooking" from the buffet line. Next door was a bookstore that I didn't discover. Instead I found white chocolate Magnum bars outside the natural gas station. Yes, there are some flavors that I haven't yet tasted.

Pergamum: Asclepion
We walked the sacred way known as the Via Tecta in order to enter the Asclepion.  This one kilometer road connected the Asclepion to the city of Pergamum. Patients were examined by the priest doctors (Asklepiedes) at the "Ruined Gate" south of the Roman theatre of Pergamum's lower city before they were allowed to walk to Via Tecta. Patients who were about to die and pregnant women were not accepted. Supposedly on the gate was written "death is forbidden to enter in Asklepeieion as respect to gods." Therefore, when patients were about to die they were left outside the walls of the Asclepion.

The once-covered Via Tecta would protect patients from adverse weather.

Lizard hides in plain sight along the sacred way.

While we enjoyed the shade and breeze of a tunnel that served as a Santorium, Orhan told us about this medical school. When the sick arrived, they stayed a number of days in the dream tunnel while their condition and dreams were analyzed. The dream tunnel is approximately 2,300 years old. Kos, a contemporary of Pergamum, had a similar complex in their city. There were two sections to the Asclepion: 1) Mental, 2) Physical. There was a library, mud baths as well as a theater.

Dream Tunnel

A theraputic mud bath.

The theater was used for music therapy and lectures.

The royal box.

Kelia and Megan enjoy the view.

Linda

Claudius Galen (A.D. 131–201) was born in Pergamum and worked here as well as in Rome.  He was an expert in anatomy, the nervous system and the heart.  Eighty of his original 500 treaties are still found in medical libraries worldwide. Claudius was deified after his death to be Asclepius, the god of medicine and son of Apollo. His symbol is a single serpent wound around a staff. Serpents were used in medical treatment at this facility.

The poppies and wild flowers are in full bloom. I wasn't expecting an allergy attack in Turkey but that's exactly what I got. Tomorrow I'll pack medicine in my carryon just in case.

Poppies.

I've decided that as long as I beat Ferrell to the bus then I'm not technically late. So when I saw him heading off towards the exit I quickly did the same. As the gate neared, I could see Pergamum's acropolis. A pine nut merchant had a stand set up along the sacred walk. He had honey and both regular and roasted pine nuts. Guess what I bought : ) - unfortunately the jar wasn't correctly sealed. So, it had to be discarded.

The acropolis is about 1 kilometer away on the hill

Pergamum Museum
Pergamum's museum is relatively small. Some pieces of note were: a stele with the term Neokoros on it, a model of the temple of Zeus, lampstands that held multiple candlesticks, medicinal instruments, bronze serpent, torsos of soldiers wearing armor. One section is dedicated to preserving Pergamum's culture/lifestyle through costumes, rugs, weapons and diaramas.

Roses were in bloom throughout Turkey.

In the garden was this stele. NEOKOROS is on the fourth line from the top.

Demeter relief from the Demeter Terrace on the Pergamum Acropolis.

Model of the Temple of Zeus

Torso of satyr

Cerberes, the three headed dog watch dog of Hades.

The rod of Asclepius: one snake, no wings

Medical instruments

Lampstand with places for multiple candlesticks.

Armor

Thyatira
And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write, ‘These things says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass: “I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and as for your works, the last are more than the first. Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. And I gave her time to repent of her sexual immorality, and she did not repent. Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds. I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works. Now to you I say, and to the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this doctrine, who have not known the depths of Satan, as they say, I will put on you no other burden. But hold fast what you have till I come. And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations — ‘He shall rule them with a rod of iron; They shall be dashed to pieces like the potter’s vessels’  — ¬as I also have received from My Father; and I will give him the morning star. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’ (Rev 2:18-29)

Nap time en route to Thyatire. You might recall that Lydia, a seller of purple, was from Thyatira. This city was known for its trade guilds.

I must admit I wasn't expecting to find ruins in the middle of a bustling Akaisar city square. All that is uncovered (I'm not sure it's the extent of the ruins as I suspect some of it lies under the buildings that rim the square) from Paul's day is a city street. That's it. It never fails to amaze me how quickly the buildings we construct crumble to dust. The only other walls are from an 8th century A.D. basilica.

Basilica

Ruins of the main road of Thyatira

Fallen arch.

Detail

Ionic column

Ferrell and Paul. The inscription is found.

Inscription.

Elizabeth.

I thought my nephew would have enjoyed watching the resident tortoise scurrying about. Jessica captured a photo of him indulging in his afternoon snack.

Shy tortoise exits stage left.

While everyone else took advantage of free restrooms (yes, these were really free as there wasn't a gift shop attached to the site), I stumbled upon the AS coffee shop. It was amusing trying to communicate with the owner. Coffee. Not ground. Beans. I finally picked up a coffee bean and the connection was made. She even let me take her picture as she measured them out. She offered me a hot cup of coffee after I paid but I declined - I prefer hot chocolate or hot tea. If coffee tasted like it smells, I would be a fan.

Neither of us could speak the others language. No problem.

Packaging the purchase.

Turkish coffee since 1933.

Ataturk Statue beside the road to Izmir.

We were delayed returning to Izmir today. There was a horrific wreck on the other side of the highway. The police had shut down our left lane and rerouted traffic from the other side. Hopefully the people involved survived.

Since dinner I've been playing catch up with my blogging homework. Sharon, thanks again for sharing your laptop! We're leaving tomorrow for our next hotel. So I need to repack my bags tonight while I still have my wits about me. Bags out at 7 and leaving at 8 am. Y'all be good!