Ephesos, which lies on the west coast of Turkey, former capital city of the Roman province of Asia and site of one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world, has been since 1895 a site of research for Austrian archaeological science. For its part providing the direct motivation for the founding of the Austrian Archaeological Institute (OEAI) according to international models, Ephesos today still forms the focal point of archaeological research carried out abroad by the institute.

The history of research at Ephesos

In 1863, the English architect John Turtle Wood began to look for the Artemision, one of the Seven Wonders of the world, at Ephesos. After seven years of this quest, on New Year's Day 1869, he encountered the marble pavement of the temple at a depth of almost 7 m. As the expected finds, however, did not come to light, the excavations were discontinued in 1874.
It was the concern of Otto Benndorf, the first Director of the OEAI, to turn Ephesos into an Austrian research site; his initiative was supported on the Turkish as well as the German side. The beginning of work, however, was first made possible by a private citizen, Karl Mautner Ritter von Markhof, who donated 10,000 guilders in April 1895. As was the case with the beginning of research at Ephesos, the entire history of Austrian work at this site remains supported by private patronage.
In spite of a break after the First World War, which had an impact also on the realm of archaeological research, Ephesos remained an Austrian research site, due to a great extent to the wishes of the Turks. In 1926, the resumption of work was once again only possible due to a combined effort of Austrian state authority and private sponsors - John Rockefeller, Jr., and the Emergency Association of German Science. The work was carried forward without public financial support; the investigations undertaken at this time of the Christian sites of the Coemeterium of the Seven Sleepers and the Basilica of St. John provided impetus for financial support.
Similarly difficult was the situation after the Second World War: only eight years after the conclusion of the war did the Austrian researchers return to Ephesos. The Austrian Academy of Sciences, which in 1995 renewed its patronage of work at Ephesos, laid the financial foundations, while the continuation of research was enabled not only by the responsible government ministeries, but also again by sponsors, amongst them the Austrian National Bank, Mautner Markhof, the Basel Foundation "Pro Epheso", as well as donations in the form of equipment.

Work has taken place at Ephesos since 1954 without interruption, and the excavation permission is granted annually by the Turkish authorities. In accordance with the altered profile of archaeological science, today the focal point of activities is not only the extensive uncovering of the ancient ruins, but also the systematic exploration of the differing epochs of the more than one-thousand-year history of the former Metropolis of Asia. As with all research activity of the Austrian Archaeological Institute, interdisciplinary cooperation between archaeology and the neighbouring disciplines of the natural sciences is also necessary in Ephesos: international scientists from the professional departments for historical anthropology, archaeozoology, paleobotany, geology, geophysics and geodesy all appear at Ephesos every year. Conservation and restoration of the find objects and monuments can be added to these cooperative efforts, as the scientific accompaniment of the care of the monuments is particularly important at such a heavily touristed site as Ephesos.

The excavation budget is collected together from government funds, funds from the Austrian Science Fund, the Austrian Academy of Sciences and from donations by private sponsors. Since 1970, the Society of the Friends of Ephesos can be counted amongst the largest patrons of the Austrian excavations. Internationally prominent projects such as the reconstruction of the Library of Celsus were able to be realized through the support of the firm Kallingerbau. Also, recent major projects such as the roofing and conservation of Terrace House 2 or the restoration of Great Theatre were only possible through the active support of sponsors, amongst which can be counted the municipality of Selçuk and Turkish firms (TÜRSAB, BORUSAN).

History and Monuments

The history of the city of Ephesos, which today lies at the silted-up harbour at the mouth of the Kaystros (Küçük Menderes), stretches back to the Neolithic period, achieved its heyday in Greco-Roman antiquity, and experienced a final flowering during the Selçuk dynasty of Aydınoğulları in the 15th century A.D.

The steep hill which is today named Ayasoluk (derived from "Hagios Theologos") was already the central settlement area in the 3rd millennium B.C.; from this location, the modern town of Selçuk stretches away to the south. The Venetian-Ottoman citadel on the highest point, clearly visible from afar, is the most recent of a series of fortifications, of which the oldest was erected during the Bronze Age. This was probably the site of Apasa, mentioned in the Hittite war reports dating to the middle of the 2nd millennium B.C. Of the Mycenaean trading site and the Greek settlement which were founded here, only a few individual graves are known to date.
The first stone-built constructions appeared at the latest in the 8th century B.C. in an apparently earlier sanctuary, on a western spur of Ayasoluk, which at that time bordered the coast. The Lydian king Croesus, who became legendary on account of his wealth, helped with the financing of the largest temple construction of antiquity, the Temple of Artemis Ephesia, which was erected in the 6th century B.C.; this temple remained the most important economic element of the city up until late antiquity on account of its cultic function, its wealth in landed property, the fact that it possessed right of asylum, and served as a bank as well.
Shortly after 400 A.D. this huge temple, extolled as a "Wonder of the World", was destroyed, and a Christian church appeared in its place. Around the middle of the 6th century A.D., the Byzantine Imperial couple Justinian and Theodora erected a seven-domed basilica on Ayasoluk, dedicated to Hagios Theologos John, above an older church building and the tomb of this saint, considered to be the author of the biblical apocalypse. From the 6th century on, the Bishop of Ephesos also resided here, inside the now-fortified settlement; after this, the vast city in the plain was abandoned.
After an interlude of Arabic and Mongol rulers, the Selçuks of the House of Aydın established themselves in Ephesos around 1400; in their honour, the town Ayasoluk was renamed Selçuk under Kemal Atatürk. The last sovereign of the dynasty, Isabey, was responsible for the erection, not far from the Artemision, of a mosque which is remarkably important from an art-historical viewpoint. At this occasion, a bath complex (Hamam) was even erected for the building-workers.

The main attraction for archaeologists and tourists alike are the ruins of the Hellenistic-Roman city, which lie ca. 3 km. distant from Selçuk. At the beginning of the 3rd century B.C., King Lysimachos, one of the generals and successors of Alexander the Great, transferred the city from the Artemision to the side inlet between the hills Preon (today, Bülbüldağ) and Pion (Panayırdağ) as the alluvial deposits of the river Kaystros and the constantly rising sea level had submerged the old settlement and made the harbour impassable. As the most notable monuments from the time of the new foundation, parts of the city wall - which was originally 8 to 10 km. in length - stretching along the ridge of Bülbüldag, and the commando tower, incorrectly known as "St. Paul's Grotto", above the harbour still dominate the silhouette of Ephesos today. For a long time, the elaborate tomb near Belevi, about 13 km. upriver from Ephesos, was believed to be the monumental tomb of the royal founder of the city.
In addition to a number of stretches of streets, the following public buildings have been excavated up until now: the state agora with the bouleuterion (meeting place of the municipal council), the prytaneion (meeting quarters of the highest religious authorities), various sanctuaries of the Roman imperial cult, as well as the Tetragonos Agora (trade market) and the theatre which was constructed for 24,000 spectators. The massive ruins of the five inner-city bath-gymnasium complexes, which were erected and attained their final form between the late 1st and the mid-3rd century A.D., still require further investigation, as do the aqueduct systems which belong to them, and the temple area west of the agora (the so-called Serapeion). The most important building of late antiquity is the cathedral dedicated to the Virgin Mary ("Marienkirche"). This stands on the site of the Olympieion, a temple erected in honour of the Emperor Hadrian, which was leveled down to its foundations in ca. 400 A.D.
The elaborate façade of the city's public library, adjacent to the South Gate of the Agora, was built in ca. 110 A.D. according to the testamentary wishes of Celsus Polemaeanus, former governor of the province and friend of the Emperor Trajan; the library has been reconstructed with the aid of private funds, and, since the completion of restoration in 1978, has become the symbol of the city. The library, which also served as the tomb of its patron, was built across the main road (in antiquity known as the Embolos, today the Kuretenstraße) which was widened in front of the structure in the form of a small piazza. This main road runs in the furrow between the city hills, and links the civic market-place with the commercial agora. The Kuretenstraße was accompanied by colonnades, and furthermore numerous honorific and funerary monuments for outstanding citizens and international personages are interspersed along its length with public fountains and gateways leading to adjoining side-streets. Directly behind, the luxury homes of the highest echelons of Ephesian society were developed, beginning in the early imperial period.
Two of these civic domestic complexes, known as Terrace House 1 and 2 have been systematically and completely excavated since 1960. While the greatest part of Terrace House 1, with a total area of 2,800 m², was taken up by a single residence, Terrace House 2 in contrast was composed of seven multi-storeyed houses, divided over three terraces, each with its own inner courtyard. Due to the exquisite preservation of the building furnishings, including columns, wall paintings, stucco work, marble veneer, and mosaic floors, a protective structure was set up over the entire complex, 4,000 m² in area, a shelter which was able to be completed in June 2000.
Collections in Istanbul (Archaeological Museum), London (British Museum) and Vienna (Ephesos Museum of the Kunsthistorisches Museum) display finds discovered up to the beginning of the 20th century. Since 1906, all finds have remained in Turkey, the land of origin, and are primarily to be seen in the Ephesos Museum in Selçuk, which displays the rich finds of sculpture, architectural elements, inscriptions and small finds from the excavations of the past decades.

Picture Captions
Fig. 1: Otto Benndorf (© OEAI Archive)
Fig. 2: Excavations in the Basilica of St. John (© OEAI Archive)
Fig. 3: Isa Bey Mosque in the early 20th century (© OEAI Archive)
Fig. 4: Mausoleum of Belevi, reconstruction drawing by E. Fossel and E. Theuer (FiE VI [1979])
Fig. 5: State Agora (Photo: G. Wiplinger)
Fig. 6: Library of Celsus (© OEAI Archive)

Bibliography:
Forschungen in Ephesos, Bd. I - XIII (1904-2006).
G. Wiplinger - G. Wlach, Ephesos. 100 Jahre österreichische Forschungen (1995).
P. Scherrer (ed.), Ephesos. Der neue Führer (1995).
St. Karwiese, Groß ist die Artemis von Ephesos. Die Geschichte einer der größten Städte der Antike (1995).
D. Knibbe, Ephesos. Geschichte einer bedeutenden antiken Stadt und Portrait einer modernen Großgrabung (1998).
F. Krinzinger - H. Friesinger (eds.), 100 Jahre Österreichische Forschungen in Ephesos. Akten des Symposions Wien 1995, Archäologische Forschungen 1 (= DenkschrWien 260, 1999).
B. Brandt - V. Gassner - S. Ladstätter (eds.), Synergia. Festschrift F. Krinzinger I (2005).