Walking the marble streets of Efes near Selcuk

Efes, near Selcuk in western Turkey, preserves an ancient city where marble streets, theatres and monumental façades still dominate the landscape. Founded as a Greek city and transformed under Roman rule, it became one of the principal urban centres of Ionian Asia Minor and later a key site of early Christianity.

Efes as an ancient Aegean city

Efes was an ancient Greek city on the Aegean coast of Ionia, in the area now administered as Selcuk in ?zmir Province in western Turkeyancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia. Over time it developed into the most important Greek city in Ionian Asia Minor, positioned close to the estuary of the river Kaystros where a port could serve inland trade routesimportant Greek city in Ionian Asia Minor. The ruins that visitors walk through lie a short distance west of modern Selcuk, separated from the sea by centuries of river silt.

The settlement history of Efes reaches back far beyond its classical streets. Archaeological work in the wider area has traced continuous human occupation from the 7th millennium BCE at Cukurici Mound through the Bronze Age and into the later Greek and Roman phasescontinuous settlement history from the 7th millennium BCE. In the classical period Efes became a metropolis of Asia Minor, later integrated into the Roman Empire and serving as the capital of the Roman province of Asiametropolis in the delta region of the Kayster. That long history is visible in the mix of Hellenistic street planning, Roman public buildings and later Byzantine and Seljuk remains.

Monumental ruins: Library of Celsus and Great Theatre

Two structures define most first impressions of Efes: the Library of Celsus and the Great Theatre. The library’s façade, reconstructed from original stones in the twentieth century, stands as a multi-storey front of columns, niches and reliefs framing a set of portal openingslibrary and theatre among the best known ruins. Behind this front the original reading rooms and upper floors have not survived, leaving visitors in a paved forecourt where the façade itself becomes the focus.

The Library of Celsus was built in the second century AD as both a library and a funerary monument for the Roman senator Gaius Julius Celsus Polemaeanuslibrary built between 114 and 120 AD. Its reconstruction has turned it into one of the most recognisable building fronts from the Roman world. Nearby, the Great Theatre cuts into the slope of Mount Pion, forming a broad semicircular auditorium around the remains of a multi-tiered stage buildinggrand monuments including the Library of Celsus and the Great Theatre. With seating arranged in concentric rows climbing the hillside, it illustrates the scale that Roman urban entertainment reached in Asia Minor.

Streets, temples and shifting centres

Walking through Efes means following its main thoroughfares. The marble-paved Curetes Street descends through the city, lined by column bases, shop fronts and the remains of fountains, leading towards the library forecourt. Another broad route runs towards the theatre and the area of the commercial agora, where the flat expanse of the former marketplace lies framed by colonnades and the outlines of surrounding structuresmarble streets and commercial agora. Off these main streets side alleys lead into residential quarters including the so?called Terrace Houses, where preserved mosaics and frescoes show domestic decoration in the Roman period.

Efes also holds the memory of the Temple of Artemis, once counted among the Seven Wonders of the World, whose site lies outside the main street grid and survives mainly as foundations and scattered column fragmentsTemple of Artemis as one of the Seven Wonders. Later periods shifted the focus towards Ayasuluk Hill above Selcuk, where Byzantine and Seljuk buildings, including the Basilica of St John, mark the medieval and early modern stages of the settlementAyasuluk Hill and later Ephesus. Taken together, the archaeological area and the hilltop remains show how the centre of habitation moved as coastline, politics and religion changed.

Visiting Efes: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• Efes lies west of Selcuk in ?zmir Province in the Aegean region of Turkey, reached by road from Selcuk and by longer routes from the coastal town of Ku?adas?ancient city near Selcuk and Ku?adas?.
• The archaeological area covers uneven ground with long stretches on marble paving and earth paths, and visiting the theatre area and upper streets involves noticeable gradients and extended walking.
• Efes stands in western Turkey; the official language is Turkish and the currency is the Turkish lira.
• Selcuk lies close to the site and contains the Ephesus Museum, the Basilica of St John and Ayasuluk Hill, providing further context for the ruins at Efes.
• Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.

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Frequently asked questions about Efes

Where is Efes and what kind of place is it?

Efes is the archaeological site of the ancient city of Ephesus near Selcuk in ?zmir Province in western Turkey, preserving extensive Greek and Roman ruins.

What can visitors expect on a visit to Efes?

Visitors walk along marble streets past the Library of Celsus, the Great Theatre, agoras and residential terraces, with later Byzantine and Seljuk remains nearby on Ayasuluk Hill.

What makes Efes distinctive among ancient cities?

Efes combines a deep settlement history, monumental Roman buildings, the memory of the Temple of Artemis as a former Wonder of the World and a documented role in early Christianity.