Wednesday, October 1, 2014, Day 113, Ancient Pergamom
Today, we are in modern day Bergama, originally the ancient city of Pergamon; The name means science, book, love, the respect to human being and natural laws. Very enlightened even for today when there are many who yearn for medieval, biblical laws, disregarding science, pesky facts, and human and natural laws.
"Five different cities, each of them mounted onto the other, five different periods, different cultures. Some remained standing for 300 year, some 200 years until burnt or ruined during the earthquakes or wars, but always to the same place and continued to live for thousands of years on the remains of the previous one.
These cities in five layers, located at an overlooking point of the Bakircay Plain, at the ned of the northwest of Anatolia, for almost 2500 years, is none other than Pergamon..." Tourist brochure, Minister of Tourism
This is a large city with the main ancient ruins of the Asklepion (the first health center of the world and named after the mythological God of Health Asklepion); the Red Hall; and the Acropolis high on the cliffs. What existed here, depicted in models and paintings, must have been both beautiful and sophisticated.
The Asklepion was both a mental and physical hospital where patients were healed with herbs, sport, fitness, theater, music, art, and inspirations. The physician Galinos (Galen) whose teachings and books were used by physicians until the renaissance (1700s) was born in Pergamom. Some of the firsts of Pergamom are:
First parchment paper (made of leather)
First treatment with inspiration (psychotherapy)
First big hospital (Administered by Galen)
First three phases of education (elementary, secondary, and high school)
First medicine with opium
First Christian church
First medical-science pharmacy
First engineering, trigonometry, with the method of the "u" pipe
It is awesome to walk here amongst the ruins of these places of firsts.
The Red Hall is like the Asklepion in that it is in the valley below the Acropolis and the Altar of Zeus. The impressive Red Hall is currently under reconstruction or arrested decay, not sure which. It has been an Egyptian temple, public hall, catholic basilica, mosque and synagog. It is a massive as a ruin, and was supposedly much larger in ancient times.
Today, we are in modern day Bergama, originally the ancient city of Pergamon; The name means science, book, love, the respect to human being and natural laws. Very enlightened even for today when there are many who yearn for medieval, biblical laws, disregarding science, pesky facts, and human and natural laws.
"Five different cities, each of them mounted onto the other, five different periods, different cultures. Some remained standing for 300 year, some 200 years until burnt or ruined during the earthquakes or wars, but always to the same place and continued to live for thousands of years on the remains of the previous one.
These cities in five layers, located at an overlooking point of the Bakircay Plain, at the ned of the northwest of Anatolia, for almost 2500 years, is none other than Pergamon..." Tourist brochure, Minister of Tourism
This is a large city with the main ancient ruins of the Asklepion (the first health center of the world and named after the mythological God of Health Asklepion); the Red Hall; and the Acropolis high on the cliffs. What existed here, depicted in models and paintings, must have been both beautiful and sophisticated.
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| Ancient Statues...Hmmm! |
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| Healing Tunnel with Babbling Water |
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| Theater where drama, music, art healed the spirit |
The Asklepion was both a mental and physical hospital where patients were healed with herbs, sport, fitness, theater, music, art, and inspirations. The physician Galinos (Galen) whose teachings and books were used by physicians until the renaissance (1700s) was born in Pergamom. Some of the firsts of Pergamom are:
First parchment paper (made of leather)
First treatment with inspiration (psychotherapy)
First big hospital (Administered by Galen)
First three phases of education (elementary, secondary, and high school)
First medicine with opium
First Christian church
First medical-science pharmacy
First engineering, trigonometry, with the method of the "u" pipe
It is awesome to walk here amongst the ruins of these places of firsts.
The Red Hall is like the Asklepion in that it is in the valley below the Acropolis and the Altar of Zeus. The impressive Red Hall is currently under reconstruction or arrested decay, not sure which. It has been an Egyptian temple, public hall, catholic basilica, mosque and synagog. It is a massive as a ruin, and was supposedly much larger in ancient times.
The most stunning ruins are the acropolis, theater, and the Altar of Zeus (now on display at museum in Berlin).
We walk through a residential area of Bergama partway up the hill
take a cable car to the top
and spend a sunny morning on the wind swept mountain exploring the ruins of a city that once looked like this as visualized by one artist.
One of the main accomplishments of the Roman era here, is the bringing of water up to the top of this mountain to serve all of the people who came and lived here. Through a syphon system of pipes from a mountainous water source higher than the acropolis, the closed aqueduct undulated over lower mountains and valleys and pushed up to the top during in the early years of the second century AD. It traveled about 35 miles and was constructed of over 240,000 sections of terra cotta and lead pipe! Sophisticated engineering.
We walk through a residential area of Bergama partway up the hill
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| Not sure what the parking fee is for this vehicle. |
and spend a sunny morning on the wind swept mountain exploring the ruins of a city that once looked like this as visualized by one artist.
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More Ancient Relics |
One of the main accomplishments of the Roman era here, is the bringing of water up to the top of this mountain to serve all of the people who came and lived here. Through a syphon system of pipes from a mountainous water source higher than the acropolis, the closed aqueduct undulated over lower mountains and valleys and pushed up to the top during in the early years of the second century AD. It traveled about 35 miles and was constructed of over 240,000 sections of terra cotta and lead pipe! Sophisticated engineering.
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| Part of the closed aqueduct bringing water to Pergamom |
Another engineering feat, is the foundational base of the huge temple of Trojan. There was not enough flat space on the side of the mountain for the altar to be built. The Romans built arched vaults and massive buttressed retaining walls along the cliffside to create the temple's foundation. They still stand firm today.
In addition to sightseeing, we also needed to do some shopping, having run out of dental floss. We had previously looked for floss unsuccessfully in small grocery markets. As we walked through the main street we came across a small pharmacy. We found the floss we needed, and the pharmacist, a man about our age, was curious about us as independent travelers from America. Not many independent American travelers come through Bergama. Because his English and our Turkish were weak, communication was difficult. Another customer turned out to be an English teacher, and he proceeded to translate and then became a participant in the conversation. By this time, the pharmacist has invited us behind the counter to sit, and we are graciously brought tea and coffee.
During the course of the conversation, another Turkish man walks in the shop and on his chest he has a little Turkish flag pin. We have been looking for one to add to Russ's hat collection of country pins.
We inquire where he got his pin. Within minutes, we are escorted to another shop, a jewelry shop, where a very expensive silver lapel pin is presented. The pharmacist's brother and translator explain that it is more expensive than we wish to pay. The jeweler, searches through a little dish and pulls out a souvenir pin which he gifts to Russ with a big smile and refuses to take any money at all. Very sweet. This little exchange, and the making of new friends here in Bergama has been a high point equal to or higher than seeing the ruins. It is the human relationships that make traveling so rich and rewarding.
We inquire where he got his pin. Within minutes, we are escorted to another shop, a jewelry shop, where a very expensive silver lapel pin is presented. The pharmacist's brother and translator explain that it is more expensive than we wish to pay. The jeweler, searches through a little dish and pulls out a souvenir pin which he gifts to Russ with a big smile and refuses to take any money at all. Very sweet. This little exchange, and the making of new friends here in Bergama has been a high point equal to or higher than seeing the ruins. It is the human relationships that make traveling so rich and rewarding.
Day 114, October 2, 2014. Thursday
We drove south today and are now in Selcuk, just on the margin of the old city of Ephesus. Our bedroom is in Alibaba's guest house. It is a large room with Turkish carpets, a king size bed, and a gentle breeze billows out the drapes that are shading us from a brillliant sun and sky.
We arrived her about 2:00 this afternoon and are taking a bit of a rest before walking through town and finding dinner. Tomorrow, we will explore the ruins of Ephesus.
We arrived her about 2:00 this afternoon and are taking a bit of a rest before walking through town and finding dinner. Tomorrow, we will explore the ruins of Ephesus.
All is well with the Worrall Travel R's on the threshold of Ephesus.
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