Pergamum ( Pergamon , dr. Greek Πέργᾰμον ) is an ancient city in the historical region of Mysia in the west of Asia Minor , the former center of the influential state of the Attalids . Founded in the XII century. BC e. come from mainland Greece. In 283-133 BC e. the capital of the kingdom of Pergamon . It reached its peak during Eumenes I (263–241 BC) and Eumenes II (197–159 BC). It was one of the largest economic and cultural centers of the Hellenistic world . His early Christian church appears in the Revelation of John the Evangelist as one of the seven churches of the Apocalypse .
| Ancient city | |
| Pergamum | |
|---|---|
| Greek Πέργᾰμον | |
 Model of ancient Pergamum | |
| Composition of the population | Greeks |
| Modern location | Turkey , outskirts of Bergamo |
Ruins - on the northwestern edge of modern Bergamo in Turkey , 26 km from the Aegean Sea .
Content
History
In ancient Greek mythology, Pergamum was founded by the son of Andromache and Helen (brother of Hector , the first husband of Andromache). The newborn was named Pergamum in memory of the Trojan citadel , which was called Pergamum. After the death of Helena, Pergamum and Andromache moved to Asia Minor, where Pergamum founded a new city, named after its founder.
Under the Attalids in Pergamum, the second largest (after the Alexandrian ) library of the ancient world was collected. According to a legend transmitted by Pliny Varrsky , the invention of parchment took place in Pergamum as a result of the prohibition of the Egyptian Ptolemies on the export of papyrus . Counting 200,000 books at one time, the library was seized and taken to Roman Egypt by Mark Anthony .
Pergamum is mentioned in the New Testament: according to John the Theologian , it is one of the seven churches of the Apocalypse , where the “throne of Satan” is located ( Rev. 2:13 ).
Excavations of Pergamum were carried out by German archaeologists Karl Human and Ernst Curtius in 1878 - 1886 , 1900 - 1906 and subsequent years. The ruins of a Roman city have been preserved on the plain, among which the Red Hall of the times of the “ glorious emperors ” stands out. In 1302 [1] the Byzantine Pergamum was occupied by the Turks of the Karasi emirate, in 1356 this beilik was conquered by the Ottomans. The name of the Turkish settlement located in its place is Bergama .
Attractions
The Hellenistic Pergamum was surrounded by a powerful wall with the so-called Gate of Eumenes . Acropolis dominated the city (built mainly by Eumenes II ), located in a dynamically-picturesque composition on the terraces ; on the upper platforms were the palaces of the Pergamon kings, the arsenal and Trajanium , somewhat lower - the sanctuary of Athena Nicephora . Near the latter in the 2nd half of the 3rd century BC. e. statues remarkable in their realistic expressiveness were installed, including images of the Gauls (sculptor Epigonus , known in marble Roman copies (the Dying Gaul and the Hall of Ludovitsov )). One of the most visible structures was also the complex of the altar of Zeus (II century BC. E.) [2] .
Other city attractions include the library , the temple of Demeter (3rd century BC), and the theater (2nd century BC). One of the most outstanding structures was Asklepium , famous throughout the ancient world.
In Pergamum, one of the oldest showers was discovered. The ruins of a whole complex of showers (beginning of the 2nd century BC) were found during excavations of the gymnasium. Here seven levels of shower units were used. Water poured onto people from above from the main system, and then flowed into another bathing room, reaching the last, from where it got into the bypass system [3] .
The ruins of the temple of Trajan
Antique Theater in Pergamum
Pergamon sculpture: The Dying Gall
" Drunk Satyr " from Pergamum
Notes
- ↑ Byzantium 1220 to 1330 | Byzantine Empire | Constantinople
- ↑ Bartenev I.A., Batazhkova V.N. Essays on the history of architectural styles. - M .: Fine Arts, 1983. - S. 37. - 264 p.
- ↑ James P., Thorp N. Ancient inventions. - Mn. , 1997. - S. 566. - ISBN 985-438-139-0