For the last few days we have been
in Izmir, Turkey’s third most populous city. As interesting as modern Izmir is
today, its former name—Smyrna—is just as interesting. My post will focus on the
ancient city of Smyrna, its famous Agora, and the city’s biblical significance.
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The ancient agora next to the modern Izmir. |
Although much of it is now literally under the
current city of Izmir, Smyrna boasted a grand market, a crucial seaport,
temples to Roma, Nemesis, and Athena, and even one of the first Christian
Martyrs. Thought to be the hometown of Greek poet Homer, Smyrna was originally
established in the 11C BC. It was later destroyed in 600 BC but rebuilt by
Alexander the Great in the fourth century BC (although there are multiple
theories regarding its re-founding). Similar to Izmir today, Smyrna was home to
a marvelous agora—a public space for markets and civic activities. The agora in
Izmir is one of the best preserved and most excavated in the Anatolia
peninsula. Because Smyrna was a major
seaport in the ancient world, the market, or bazaar, was very large, hectic,
and most likely contained a wide variety of goods. The one we see today was
built somewhere around 178 AD after previous agoras had been destroyed by
earthquakes.
And because it would have been a popular destination, it had to be big; this
one was likely three levels and contained a considerably large courtyard. Mark
Wilson measures it to be approximately 120x80 meters (or 394x263 feet). And
while there is no doubt there would have been plenty of merchants present in
the agora, Wilson suggests that it was home to
important political activities as
well.
A fun discovery made by
archaeologists was Christian graffiti etched in the walls. Some inscriptions
reference “the Messiah” or reference Jesus as Lord. Some are even simple
markers to let others know they were there—“Claudius was here.” There are even
inscriptions that resemble the modern love-letter graffiti we see today
(“Claudius loves Faustus”). This just goes to show that even though we have
changed so much over the last 2000 years, we really haven’t changed at all.
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Soon this new Graffiti Salon will be open for everyone to see the new discoveries, but right now it's still being prepared. |
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A sneak peak into the salon |
The seaport and its massive agora helped form an
important economic influence that made it the significant city it was. Smyrna
was the fist city to establish a cult of Rome, evidenced by the temple of the
goddess Roma built at the end of the second century AD. This city was in a
constant race with Ephesus and Pergamum to be known as “the first of Asia in
beauty and size.” In terms of power and wealth, Smyrna was quite a formidable
city
that demanded respect both from other
nations and from Caesar.
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As you can see, the marketplace/public square was quite large even by today's standards. | |
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In the ancient world,
there would have been a connection between the name
Smyrna and death. Myrrh, an incense commonly used to mask the odor
of the dead, is a Greek word very similar to Smyrna. So, when one thought of
the city of Smyrna, one must have also made some mental connection to death.
This
is quite a coincidence because the Christian community in Smyrna was supposedly
heavily persecuted. As I mentioned before, this city was home to one famous
execution of the Christian martyr, Polycarp. Rather than offering a pinch of
incense to Caesar and muttering his lordship, Polycarp responded to the threat
of death by fire, “You threaten with fire that burns for a time, and is quickly
quenched, for you do not know the fire that awaits the wicked…Come, do what you
will.”
It
is believed that his death helped fuel and inspire the Church in Asia Minor. Unfortunately
and undoubtedly, Polycarp was not the only Christian to die for his faith. In Revelation
we read that Jesus said to the church in Smyrna, “I know your afflictions and
your poverty….Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer…you will suffer
persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death…”
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Catholic Church in Izmir dedicated to Polycarp |
Persecution was not only coming
from Rome, though. It is likely that even the Jewish community had a hand in
oppressing Christians. John Yeatts suggests this is because Christians were winning
converts from Judaism. More importantly though, at least for the Jews, “they
were afraid of losing [exemption from Caesar worship] if other groups wanted
similar exclusion.”
Even
though the city was wealthy and prosperous, life as a Christian was not.
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AJ expertly deciphering Greek inscriptions |
Like Izmir is today, Smyrna was a thriving community
with a peak population nearing 100,000.
Its economy was fueled in part by its strategic placement near the sea and its
expansive marketplace. It was a prominent city in the ancient world and it was
quite the prize of the Roman Empire. It was also home to one of the most
profound and inspirational deaths in the early Christian Church.
--Chris Williamson
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