Aizanoi (), as Aezani, was a city in western Anatolia. It was located at the site of the modern village of Çavdarhisar, near Kütahya, on both sides of the Penkalas river, c. above sea level. The city was an important political and Roman economy centre in Ancient Rome; surviving remains from the period include a well-preserved Roman temple of Zeus, a combined theatre-stadium complex, and a round building, probably a macellum, inscribed with a copy of the Price Edict of Diocletian. The city fell into decline in Late Antiquity. In 2012 the site was submitted for inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
History
Settlement in the area is known from the
Bronze Age. The city may have derived its name from Azan, one of three sons of
Arcas and the
nymph Erato, legendary ancestors of the
.
During the Hellenistic period the city changed hands between the Kingdom of Pergamum and the Kingdom of Bithynia, before being bequeathed to Rome by the former in 133 BC. It continued to mint its own coins.
Its monumental buildings date from the early
Roman Empire to the 3rd century.
Aezani was part of the Roman province of Phrygia Pacatiana. It became a Christianity bishopric at an early stage, and its bishop Pisticus (or Pistus) was a participant at the First Council of Nicaea, the first ecumenical council, in 325. Bishop Pelagius was at a synod that Patriarch John II of Constantinople hastily organized in 518 and that condemned Severus of Antioch; he was also at the Second Council of Constantinople in 553. Bishop Gregory was at the Trullan Council of 692, John at the Second Council of Nicaea in 787, and Theophanes at both the Council of Constantinople (869) and the Council of Constantinople (879).[Michel Lequien, Oriens christianus in quatuor Patriarchatus digestus, Paris 1740, Vol. I, coll. 799-800][Sophrone Pétridès, v. Aezani, in Dictionnaire d'Histoire et de Géographie ecclésiastiques, vol. I, Paris 1909, coll. 670-671] The bishopric was at first a suffragan of Laodicea but, when Phrygia Pacatiana was divided into two provinces, it found itself a suffragan of Hierapolis, the capital of the new province of Phrygia Pacatiana II.[Heinrich Gelzer, Ungedruckte und ungenügend veröffentlichte Texte der Notitiae episcopatuum, in: Abhandlungen der philosophisch-historische classe der bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1901, p. 540, nº 321 and p. 558, nº 623.][Darrouzès Jean, Listes épiscopales du concile de Nicée (787), in Revue des études byzantines, 33 (1975), p. 55.] No longer a residential bishopric, Aezani is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.[ Annuario Pontificio 2013 (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ), p. 892]
After the 7th century, Aezani fell into decline. Later, in Seljuks times, the temple hill was converted into a citadel () by Çavdar Tatars, after which the recent settlement of Çavdarhisar is named.
In January 2021, archaeologists led by Dr. Elif Özer from Pamukkale University announced that they had discovered a cache containing 651 Roman coins dated about 2,100 years ago in a jug buried near a stream. Researchers revealed a jug firstly in 2019. 439 pieces of coins were denarius (ancient Roman coins minted on silver), and 212 were Cistophorus, silver coins from Pergamon. Julius Caesar, Brutus, Mark Antony and (young) Augustus are engraved on the mostly well-preserved coins. The find is going on display in the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations.
In August 2021, archaeologists from Dumlupinar University announced the discovery of a statue of Hygieia. The human-sized statue is portrayed with a snake in its arms. The statue was revealed inside the columned gallery which runs throughout the south wing of the agora.
In December 2021, archaeologists discovered a marble statue of Heracles.
Ancient buildings and structures
Temple of Zeus
The Temple of
Zeus, situated upon a hill, was the city's main sanctuary. Ceramic finds indicate local habitation from the first half of the third millennium BC. According to a recent reading of the inscription on the eastern architrave, the temple was dedicated during the reign of
Domitian, in either AD 92 or AD 94/5.
document imperial assistance from
Hadrian relating to the recovery of unpaid rents as well as the
euergetism of Marcus Apuleius Eurykles. Later the Çavdar Tatars carved equestrian and battle scenes on the temple.
The temple is
pseudodipteral, with eight columns at the ends and fifteen along the sides ().
It was damaged by the 1970 Gediz earthquake and has since been restored.
Theatre and stadium
Aizanoi's theatre and stadium are built adjacent to each other and this combined complex is said to be unique in the ancient world.
Separating the two is the stage building.
Construction began after 160 A.D. and was complete by the mid-third century. Inscriptions again attest to the benefaction of M. Apuleius Eurycles.
Baths
Two sets of
thermae have been identified. The first, between the theatre-stadium and the temple, dates to the second half of the second century and includes a
palaestra and marble furnishings. The second, in the north-east of the city, was built a century later; floor
Roman mosaic depict a
satyr and
maenad. Rebuilt a couple of centuries later, it served as the bishop's seat.
Market
Aizanoi is the first recorded place in the world where inflation was calculated and from there spread to other cities of the
Roman Empire. , inscribed with the Price Edict of Diocletian]]
A circular
macellum dating to the second half of the second century is located in the south. In the fourth century it was inscribed with a copy of the Price Edict of Diocletian, dating to 301, an attempt to limit
inflation resulting from
debasement of the
Roman coinage.
[Naumann, Rudolf; Naumann, Friederike (1973). Der Rundbau in Aezani mit dem Preisedikt des Diokletian und das Gebäude mit dem Edikt in Stratonikeia. Tübingen: Wasmuth.]
Colonnaded street and stoa
Recent excavations have revealed the existence of a
stoa, or covered walkway, dating to ca. 400 AD, and colonnaded street. A Temple of
Artemis, dating to the time of
Claudius (41-54), was demolished to make way for the colonnaded street which ran for and led to the sanctuary of Meter Steunene.
Sanctuary of Meter Steunene
A deep tunnel inside a cave, now collapsed, was dedicated to Meter Steunene (an Anatolian Earth Mother goddess). Cult figurines made of clay have been found in excavations, along with two
bothros apparently used for animal sacrifice.
Necropolis
The city's large
necropolis includes examples of door-shaped Phrygian tombstones. Inscriptions give the names of deceased or donor; accompanying decoration includes, for the tombs of men, bulls, lions and eagles, and for those of women, baskets of wool and a mirror.
Museum of Kütahya
Some items from Aizanoi, among them a sarcophagus with an
Amazonomachy, have been removed to the Archaeological Museum of Kütahya.
See also
-
Roman Asia
-
Roman architecture
-
List of World Heritage Sites in Turkey (Tentative list)
External links
