Amyzon
Encyclopedia
Amyzon in Caria
(now Mazin, Aydin Province
between the villages of Akmescit and Gaffarlar, in Aegean Turkey
) was an ancient city 30 km south of modern Koçarlı
. Under the Seleucids, Amyzon was one of the cities in the Chrysaorian League
of Carian cities that lasted at least until 203 BCE, when Antiochus III confirmed the privileges of Amyzon. The League had a form of reciprocal citizenship whereby a citizen of a member city was entitled to certain rights and privileges in any other member city.
The city was dismissed by Strabo
as a mere peripolion ('suburb' or 'township') of Alabanda
; Amyzon was mentioned by Pliny
, Ptolemy
and Hierocles
. In the wars among the successors of Alexander, in the third century BCE, the city allied with the less immediately threatening power, first with the Ptolemies, then with the Seleucids. In the second city it concluded an alliance with Heracleia under Latmos
. On one occasion it sent a delegation to the oracle of Apollo at Clarus
. The few coins identified as from the mint at Amyzon are Hellenistic and Imperial Roman.
A stretch of the city wall stands 6 m high (in fact, the terrace wall of the shrine); inside it are a few ruined and unidentifiable buildings, as well as a row of a dozen large vaulted underground chambers, apparently storerooms. There are also Byzantine structures. Outside the city a series of ruined terraces mark the site of the Doric temple
of Artemis
, which dates from the time of the Hecatomnids: an architrave block has been found bearing a dedication by Idrieus
. Numerous other inscriptions abound.
Amyzon was excavated by Louis Robert
. Amyzon was mentioned in the Byzantine lists of bishops; it remains a titular see
in the Roman Catholic Church
.
Caria
Caria was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined the Carian population in forming Greek-dominated states there...
(now Mazin, Aydin Province
Aydin Province
Aydın Province is a province of southwestern Turkey, located in the Aegean Region. The provincial capital is the city of Aydın which has a population of approx. 150,000 . Other towns in the province include the summer seaside resorts of Didim and Kuşadası.-History:Aydın was founded by the ancient...
between the villages of Akmescit and Gaffarlar, in Aegean Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
) was an ancient city 30 km south of modern Koçarlı
Koçarli
Koçarlı is a town and a district of Aydın Province, in the Aegean region of Turkey, from the city of Aydın.-Geography:Koçarlı today is a small town of 6,534 people and although there is an institute of Adnan Menderes University and thus a small student population, the population of the area is...
. Under the Seleucids, Amyzon was one of the cities in the Chrysaorian League
Chrysaorian League
The Chrysaorian League was an informal loose federation of several cities in ancient region of Caria, Anatolia that was apparently formed in the early Seleucid period and lasted at least until 203 BC. The League had its primary focus on unified defense, and secondarily on trade, and may have been...
of Carian cities that lasted at least until 203 BCE, when Antiochus III confirmed the privileges of Amyzon. The League had a form of reciprocal citizenship whereby a citizen of a member city was entitled to certain rights and privileges in any other member city.
The city was dismissed by Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
as a mere peripolion ('suburb' or 'township') of Alabanda
Alabanda
Alabanda – also hê Alabanda, ta Alabanda, Alabandeus, Alabandensis, Alabandenus, and for a time, Antiochia of the Chrysaorians – was an ancient city of Caria, Anatolia, the site of which is now located near Doğanyurt , Aydin Province, in the Asian part of Turkey.The city is located in...
; Amyzon was mentioned by Pliny
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
, Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
and Hierocles
Hierocles (author of Synecdemus)
Hierocles or Hierokles was a Byzantine geographer of the sixth century and the attributed author of the Synecdemus or Synekdemos, which contains a table of administrative divisions of the Byzantine Empire and lists of the cities of each...
. In the wars among the successors of Alexander, in the third century BCE, the city allied with the less immediately threatening power, first with the Ptolemies, then with the Seleucids. In the second city it concluded an alliance with Heracleia under Latmos
Latmus
Beşparmak Mountains is a ridge of many spurs running in an east-west direction along the north shore of the former Latmian Gulf on the coast of Caria, which became part of Hellenised Ionia. The city of Latmus, located on the south slopes of Mount Latmus east of Miletus, was originally a port on...
. On one occasion it sent a delegation to the oracle of Apollo at Clarus
Clarus
Clarus in the territory of Colophon in the Ionian coast of Asia Minor was a much-revered, much-famed cult center described by Pausanias ....
. The few coins identified as from the mint at Amyzon are Hellenistic and Imperial Roman.
A stretch of the city wall stands 6 m high (in fact, the terrace wall of the shrine); inside it are a few ruined and unidentifiable buildings, as well as a row of a dozen large vaulted underground chambers, apparently storerooms. There are also Byzantine structures. Outside the city a series of ruined terraces mark the site of the Doric temple
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...
of Artemis
Artemis
Artemis was one of the most widely venerated of the Ancient Greek deities. Her Roman equivalent is Diana. Some scholars believe that the name and indeed the goddess herself was originally pre-Greek. Homer refers to her as Artemis Agrotera, Potnia Theron: "Artemis of the wildland, Mistress of Animals"...
, which dates from the time of the Hecatomnids: an architrave block has been found bearing a dedication by Idrieus
Idrieus
-Biography:He was the second son of Hecatomnus, and succeeded to the throne on the death of his sister Artemisia in 351 BC.Shortly after his accession he was required by the Persian king, Artaxerxes III Ochus, to provide arms and troops for the capture of Cyprus, a request with which he readily...
. Numerous other inscriptions abound.
Amyzon was excavated by Louis Robert
Louis Robert
Louis Robert was a professor of Greek history and Epigraphy at the Collège de France, and author of many volumes and articles on Greek epigraphy , numismatics, and the historical geography of Greek lands...
. Amyzon was mentioned in the Byzantine lists of bishops; it remains a titular see
Titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular bishop", "titular metropolitan", or "titular archbishop"....
in the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
.