The first establishment of the antique City of
Ephesus within the boundaries of
Selçuk in
İzmir dates back to 6000 BC , to the neolithic age. During the researches and excavations settlements from the
Bronze Age and
Hittite period were found in the tumuluses around
Ephesus (pre-historic tumulus settlements) and on the
Ayasuluk Hill where the castle stands. During the
Hittite periof the city was named “
Aphasas”. The harbour city
Ephesus where also immigrants from
Greece settled moved to the neighbourhood of the
Artemis Temple in 560 BC.
Efes visited today has been founded by
Lysimakhos, one of the generals of
Alexander the Great in the year 300 BC.
Efes which experienced its most glorious days during the
Hellenistic and
Roman Ages had a population of 200.000 as the capitol and the biggest harbour city of the
Asian province.
Efes has changed place during the
Byzantine period again and moved to the
Ayasuluk Hill in
Selçuk.
Ayasuluk which has been invaded by the
Turks in 1330 and became the centrum of
Aydınoğulları started to get smaller and was given the name
Selçuk after the foundation of the
Turkish Republic in 1923. Today it is a touristic place with a population of 30.000 people. On the Road to the the
Ephesus Ruins there stands the
Efes Archaeologic Museum. Here findings from
Roman and
Byzantinium periods are displayed.
