Laodicea

Last updated on December 4, 2024.

Laodicea on the Lycus (Λαοδίκεια πρὸς τοῦ Λύκου / Laodicea ad Lycum) was an ancient city in Anatolia. It sits near the modern city of Denizli and not too far from the white travertine terraces of Pamukkale and ancient Hierapolis.

 

History of Laodicea

Laodicea was founded by Antiochus II Theos, King of the Seleucid Empire, in the middle of the 3rd century BC. He named the city in honor of his wife, Laodice. The city quickly became very wealthy city because it sat on a major trade route.

In the early 2nd century BC, over 2,000 Jews were relocated to Laodicea from Babylonia by Antiochus III the Great. Many of the city’s residents were Jewish throughout its history.

In 188 BC, the Romans defeated the Seleucids and control of the region passed to the Kingdom of Pergamon. The city was later bequeathed to Rome in 133 BC and its wealth continued to grow. In fact, it made significant contributions to science, literature, sports, and medicine. The city was completely destroyed by an earthquake in 60 AD, and it was so wealthy that the citizens declined imperial assistance and rebuilt it with their own resources.

Even though Laodicea had a large Jewish population, it became an important Christian center in the early Byzantine period. It was also one of the Seven Churches of Revelation. It was mostly abandoned in the early 7th century after another major earthquake leveled the city.

 

Excavations at Laodicea

The first minor excavations took place in 1833 and again in 1843 by Gerhard Weber. From 1961 to 1963, Professor Jean de Gagniers of Laval University in Québec, Canada, unearthed the Caracalla Nymphaeum. In 1992, Turkish archaeologist Haşim Yıldız of the Denizli Museum conducted excavations along Syria Street.

Laodicea has been excavated continuously by Pamukkale University in Denizli since 2002. Work has been rapid and much progress has been made over the years. The city is spread over an area of five square kilometers and much has yet to be excavated. It has been on the UNESCO tentative list of World Heritage Sites since 2013. The ultimate goal is to turn it into a “second Ephesus“, to attract millions of tourists.

 

Visiting Laodicea

The Laodicea archaeological site is open daily from 8am to 8pm. Admission for foreigners is €12 (as of September 2024), with audioguide service available. It’s worth visiting with a guide to understand more about the site. There’s a café a few steps from the East Byzantine Gate.

 

Syria Street

Almost every visitor to Laodicea will start at Syria Street. It was one of the main streets running through the city. Syria Street was a total of 900 meters long and about 400 meters have been excavated so far. The colonnaded street ran from the Syrian Gate in the east to the city center in the west. A row of shops sat behind the colonnades, and several important structures sit along the street.

 

East Baths

Along the unexcavated eastern section of Syria Street are the East Baths. They were built in the 2nd century and stood on the north side of the street. The area just west of the baths may have been an agora.

 

East Byzantine Gate

The East Byzantine Gate welcomes visitors to the heart of Laodicea. The gate was part of a new set of defensive walls commissioned by Emperor Theodosius I and his son Arcadius at the end of the 4th century. By that time, the size of the city had reduced greatly.

On the north side of the street just outside the gate is the East Byzantine Nymphaeum. It was a rectangular fountain measuring 21.5 x 10 meters and was built in the 5th century. Stones from the bed of the Lycus River were used as building materials. The fountain supplied drinking water to citizens living outside the city walls and travelers arriving from the east.

 

House A

A few steps inside the gate is House A. It was a large townhouse excavated between 2006 and 2011. The house had a total area of 2,000 square meters and was the first example of domestic architecture unearthed at Laodicea.

House A features three peristyle courtyards surrounded by 47 rooms and five shops. It was occupied from the 1st through 7th centuries. The alley to the west of the house led to shops and restaurants as well as the Church of Laodicea.

 

Temple A

Next is Temple A, which was built in the 2nd century and destroyed during an earthquake in 494. Temple A was built in the second half of the 2nd century. It was renovated in the late 3rd or early 4th century during the reign of Emperor Diocletian. The temple was originally dedicated to Apollo, Artemis, Athena, and the Roman imperial cult.

After Christianity began to spread through the Roman Empire in the 4th century, Temple A was converted to an archive for the Church of Laodicea. It was destroyed by an earthquake in 494. Architectural material from the temple was then plundered and used in other buildings.

 

Courtyard

The courtyard of Temple A was accessible from the south along Syria Street. There was a double-winged door 2.6 meters wide. The threshold of the door was built with marble slabs while the outer walls were built from travertine blocks.

Three sides of the courtyard were surrounded by colonnaded porticoes. There were 54 columns in all. 15 of the columns have been re-erected.

 

Chapel

During the Byzantine period, a small chapel was built into the steps of the west portico of the courtyard. A fresco can be seen in the apse of the chapel.

 

Prostyle

Seven steps lead up to the prostyle entrance to the naos, which sits on a high platform made of travertine blocks. The steps are covered in marble and are flanked by marble banisters.

The banisters were used as statue pedestals and contain Greek inscriptions. Four columns of the prostyle have been re-erected as well as the doorway.

 

Naos

The naos of Temple A has been reconstructed with a glass floor. This allows visitors to look down at the vaulted chamber that supported the temple.

The chamber was originally used for storing gifts and offerings. After the temple was repurposed, it was used as the archive for the Church of Laodicea.

 

Reconstructed Doorway

Along the street east of Temple A, on the way to the Church of Laodicea, is a reconstructed doorway. During my last few visits, the area behind the doorway had yet to be excavated.

 

Church of Laodicea

The Church of Laodicea is the star attraction of the ancient city. It’s one of the oldest Christian churches in the world.

 

History of the Church of Laodicea

The Church of Laodicea was built during the reign of Constantine the Great in the first half of the 4th century. It soon became an important pilgrimage site. The church was damaged by an earthquake in 494 and later rebuilt. It was completely destroyed by an earthquake in the early 7th century.

An important historic event that occurred at the church was the Council of Laodicea. It was held around 363. During the council, 60 canons were decreed. These canons had an important role in shaping Christianity and on decisions made in future ecumenical councils.

 

Excavation

The Church of Laodicea was rediscovered in 2010 and entirely excavated the same year. When I visited the city for the first time in October 2011, the church was closed to the public and work was ongoing.

11 years later in June 2022, the church was covered with a protective roof and part of the floor had an elevated glass platform. I was impressed with the speed at which the work progressed and didn’t expect to see as much as I did. This goes not only for the Church of Laodicea, but the entire archaeological site.

 

Narthex

The entrance to the church is through the narthex on the west side. There are two doors to the narthex, which is rectangular in shape and measures 29.5 x 3.8 meters.

Inside the narthex there are three doors that open to the nave. One opens to the central nave and the other two open to the north and south aisles. The floor of the narthex contains a mosaic that can be seen through an elevated glass platform.

 

Nave

The nave of the church covers an area of 915 square meters. It’s divided by ten arched piers into a central nave and two side aisles to the north and south. The roof was pitched, the floor was covered in mosaics, and there were frescoes on the walls.

 

Ambo

In the center of the nave is the ambo, which has only survived in fragments. It was made of marble and originally 5.8 meters long. Double stairways on the east and west sides led to a central platform. Three steps survive from the eastern stairway and two from the western one. An inscription on the ambo states it was repaired in 492, meaning it must be the second ambo in the church. The significance of this ambo is very important because the word ambo was first used during the Council of Laodicea.

 

Bema

The bema sits between the apse and the nave. It’s 35 centimeters higher than the floor of the nave and is rectangular in shape, measuring 5.6 x 8 meters. Marble panels decorated with crosses line the bottom between the balusters.

The altar was placed in the center of the bema. A basin beneath the altar collected holy water to distribute to pilgrims in small bottles.

 

Synthronon

The synthronon is attached to the apse and has three steps. It was built with travertine blocks, rubble stones, and bricks, and was faced with marble. The apse itself has a diameter of 8.7 meters and a depth of 4.3 meters.

 

South Aisle

The south aisle contains the most impressive mosaics in the Church of Laodicea. The mosaics cover 176 square meters and are made of black, white, yellow, dark red, light red, light blue, and dark blue stones.

Floral motifs, geometric patterns, crosses, swastikas, and other symbols are used. Each symbol has a different meaning. For example, the three hearts represent Deuteronomy 30:6.

Two cross motifs contain the names of deacons, Polycarpos and Alexander. They act as signatures for the mosaic work.

Also interesting in the south aisle are the four apses located along the walls. These were a new innovation in church architecture. There are also four apses along the wall of the north aisle.

 

North Aisle

The north aisle contains many of the same geometric and floral patterns and designs as the south aisle. A section of the north aisle was reserved for female worshippers.

 

Baptistry

A corridor running along the north side of the Church of Laodicea contained a few more important features. First, on the eastern end is the baptistry. It could be accessed from both the nave and the corridor. In the center is a cruciform baptismal font 3.6 meters long from east to west and 3.2 meters long from north to south. It’s one of the best preserved and oldest cruciform baptismal fonts ever discovered and was once faced in marble.

The pool is one meter deep with a diameter of 1.45 meters. Three steps lead down into the pool from the east and west sides. The person being baptized would walk into the pool from the west and out to the east. The floor of the baptistry was paved with opus sectile. The antechamber to the baptistry was decorated with frescoes on each wall.

 

Mosaic Deposit

In the middle of the corridor, archaeologist discovered a deposit of mosaic tiles. They consist of stone, mother-of-pearl, glass, and brick. It’s believed the pieces were dumped there for easy access in case a repair was needed due to an earthquake.

 

Latrine

Finally, latrines for two people sit along the north wall of the corridor. The floor is paved with terra cotta plaques. Waste was drained directly into the sewer of the street adjacent to the church. The latrine measures 5.7 x 1.4 meters.

 

Peristyle House with Church

The Peristyle House with Church is an important structure in Laodicea. It’s situated north of Temple A and northwest of the Church of Laodicea.

The structure is a house consisting of a peristyle courtyard, two halls with an apse, a bath, a latrine, and 19 rooms for living space. Rooms on the north side of the house were probably used as shops because they opened up directly opposite the North Theatre.

The house was used continuously from the 3rd through early 7th centuries when it was destroyed by an earthquake. It probably belonged to one of the wealthier families of Laodicea and the structure was most likely two stories tall.

 

Church

The east hall with an apse was originally designed as a dining hall or a section reserved for women. It was later converted to a church and has an opus sectile floor.

 

West Hall

The west hall with an apse is larger. It has a niche fountain on both sides of the entrance and a richly decorated section of opus sectile floor.

 

North Theatre

The North Theatre is a few steps from the Peristyle House with Church. It was built during the Hellenistic period after the West Theatre could no longer meet the needs of the city. The theatre was built into the slope of a hill and faces to the northeast. It was made of marble and has yet to be fully excavated and restored.

27 rows of the upper section and 19 rows of the lower section are currently visible. Some of the seating rows collapsed and others were removed for use in the construction of other buildings. It’s unknown how many rows the North Theatre contained, but it’s estimated that it could hold 12,000 people.

The North Theatre was used up until the early 7th century. The names of wealthy families of Laodicea as well as civic associations were engraved on many of the seats to mark their reserved spaces.

 

Mosaic Area

On the way to the West Theatre is a mosaic area that was probably converted to a church in the 4th century. 300 square meters of mosaics have been uncovered. An elevated glass platform has been constructed over the mosaics. I’ll update soon with photos.

 

West Theatre

The West Theatre was built into the slope of a hill in the Hellenistic period. It’s the older and smaller of the two theatres in Laodicea. It faces the northwest making it possible to see the travertine terraces of Pamukkale from the upper rows.

On my first visit to Laodicea in October 2011, the West Theatre was unrestored. In June 2022, the seating of the theatre had been restored and the stage area was being rebuilt. It was very impressive to see the progress. The guide mentioned that concerts and other performances were often held there.

Looking down onto the floor of the West Theatre, it’s possible to spot the VIP box and premium seating for important citizens and officials. The stairs to the stage area have also been reconstructed. Spectators were protected from the sun by an awning mounted on wooden poles, and the holes where the poles were attached are still visible.

Beyond the West Theatre is a whole field that has yet to be excavated. I look forward to seeing the results of future excavations.

 

North Agora

From the West Theatre, I walked to the North Agora. It was one of the most important public spaces in Laodicea. The North Agora, also called the Sacred Agora, was a huge rectangular square occupying 35,000 square meters. It was built during the Roman Imperial period as a sacred area. The Byzantines converted it into an agora in the 4th century during the reign of Constantine the Great.

The North Agora collapsed during an earthquake in the early 7th century. Fragments were taken for use in the construction of other buildings and nomads often used it as a shelter.

 

Central Propylon

The North Agora was accessed on the south side along Syria Street. There were three monumental entrances. One in the west, one in the center, and one in the east. The main entrance was the Central Propylon, which sits directly in front of the northwest corner of the Central Agora.

The Central Propylon was built during the reign of Septimius Severus in the late 2nd or early 3rd century. It was damaged by an earthquake in the late 3rd century during the reign of Diocletian and rebuilt. Another earthquake in 494 caused the Central Propylon to collapse completely. It was rebuilt again and remained in use until the early 7th century.

The Central Propylon has an arched passageway leading to four steps. On either side of the arch were colonnades decorated with reliefs. The doorway provided access to the central part of the North Agora.

 

East Propylon

The East Propylon is opposite the Central Agora. It was symmetrical to the Central Propylon and opened to the east portico of the North Agora. It was built in the 2nd century and collapsed during the earthquake in 494. Like the Central Propylon, it was rebuilt and remained in use until the early 7th century. The East Propylon had marble floors and two doorways.

 

South Portico

Entering the south portico of the North Agora, pay close attention to the marble steps. You might be able to spot an ancient form of backgammon that has been carved into them, as well as other games and figures. On my latest visit in November 2023, there was also a huge mound of dirt that had yet to be removed.

 

Courtyard

The courtyard of the North Agora contained three temples. They were dedicated to Athena, Zeus, and an unidentified deity. Two rectangular pools sat on the east and west sides of the agora, running from north to south. Colonnaded porticoes surrounded all four sides. The temples of the agora were dismantled during the reign of Constantine the Great and the rise of Christianity throughout the Roman Empire.

 

West Portico

Only a few sections of the colonnade from the west portico exist today. They have been reconstructed along with the southern section of the wall.

The southern section of the wall of the west portico contains perhaps the most interesting surviving features of the North Agora. The inner part of the wall is decorated with impressive colorful frescoes.

A covered walkway runs the length of the wall to protect the frescoes that have been painstakingly pieced together by archaeologists. At the south end is an arched entrance with frescoes painted on the underside of the arch.

 

North Church

The North Church sits along what were the north porticoes of the North Agora. Long after the North Agora lost its function as a sacred site, the North Church was constructed as a three-aisled basilica using travertine blocks. It measured 26 x 47.6 meters. The North Church was built after the earthquake of 494 and collapsed during the earthquake at the beginning of the 7th century. Only the foundations of the church have survived to this day.

 

Central Agora

The Central Agora is across the street from the North Agora. It had a rectangular shape covering an area of 112 x 60 meters. The agora was built during the Roman period and functioned into the early Byzantine period.

The Central Agora was surrounded by colonnaded porticoes on three sides. The east and west porticoes led to shops, while the south portico bordered the Central Baths.

In the center of the Central Agora was a monument with a square base measuring 7 ½ meters on each side. It was made of reused marble blocks and had three steps leading up to a column with a Corinthian capital. The column was most likely topped by a statue of an emperor or important official.

 

Central Baths

The Central Baths on the south side of the Central Agora covered an area of 89 x 58 meters and had a triple-arched entrance on the west side. They were built in the 2nd century and damaged during the earthquake in 494. After this, the baths were repaired and used for a different purpose until the early 7th century.

The baths had a caldarium (hot room), tepidarium (warm room), two frigidaria (cold rooms) and two apodyteria (changing rooms). On the western side was a palaestra, where patrons would exercise.

 

Septimius Severus Nymphaeum

Back across the street, between the East Propylon of the North Agora and Temple A, is the Septimius Severus Nymphaeum. It was built with blocks of travertine in the late 2nd or early 3rd century during the reign of Septimius Severus. The structure was destroyed by the earthquake in 494.

The nymphaeum originally consisted of a large pool surrounded on three sides by two-tiered marble colonnaded façades. A niche in the center of the rear wall contained a statue of Athena, while other Greek gods and goddesses filled the other spaces.

Three steps led up to the pool, which measured 41 x 14 meters and had a depth of one meter. The pool was supplied with water from three small fountains with circular bases sitting in front. Statues of lions sat at the east and west corners.

 

Stadium

The stadium sits at the southern end of Laodicea and runs east to west. It was built in 79 AD and dedicated to Emperor Vespasian and Senator Marcus Ulpius Traianus, the father of future Emperor Trajan. Funds for the stadium were provided by a wealthy citizen of Laodicea named Nikostrate.

The stadium was 285 meters long by 70 meters wide. It could hold an estimated 25,000 people. It’s believed to be the biggest stadium in Anatolia but has yet to be fully excavated.

I visited the stadium and the southern part of Laodicea on my very first visit in October 2011. On my most recent visits in June 2022 and November 2023, I was on tours with a private guide and we didn’t have time to walk all the way down to see it. I plan to see the progress on a future visit to the city.

 

South Baths

Finally, just north of the stadium are the South Baths. It was a huge gymnasium and bath complex measuring 133 x 75 meters. The complex was dedicated to Emperor Hadrian and his wife Vibia Sabina when they visited Laodicea in 135. It was used by athletes training in the stadium.

 

Map of Laodicea