ALIVEWHENTRAVELING.COM: OTR in Turkey - Day Two

From Assos we proceeded with out road trip moving to Bergama, where the archeological site of Pergamon is located.

Many years ago, in Berlin, I visited the Pergamon Museum, which takes it name from the reconstructed altar of Zeus which was the most extraordinary building of the ancient Pergamon.

It was not until I started preparing for our trip to Turkey that I realized that the ancient Pergamon was not actually in Greece, but in Turkey. And that very little was left there of the famous alters and the other magnificent buildings that used to enrich the Acropolis.

Founded by the Greeks in the 3rd century BCE, it became a major cultural and political center during the Hellenistic period. The city reached its peak under the Attalid dynasty, which ruled from 281 to 133 BCE. During this time, Pergamon became renowned for its impressive architecture, including the famous Altar of Zeus, and for its extensive library, second only to Alexandria in the ancient world.

The relevance of the library in Pergamon and the ambition to preserve Alexandria's title as the largest library in the ancient world led Egypt to boycott the library of Pergamon, no longer providing the indispensable papyrus. As a consequence, it was here that an alternative to the predominant papyrus was born, with the use of sheep, goat or calf skins instead of plant material, called parchment.

In 133 BCE, the last Attalid king bequeathed Pergamon to the Roman Republic, making it a key part of the Roman province of Asia. Under Roman rule, Pergamon continued to flourish as a center of culture, education, and medical research, with the famous physician Galen practicing there. The city also became an early center of Christianity.

Pergamon's significance declined after the 3rd century CE due to economic challenges and invasions. By the Byzantine period, the city had lost much of its former prominence.

Of the magnificent buildings that occupied the Acropolis, most lie in ruins, even if they can still give an idea of the past grandeur.

Temple of Athena: Only the foundations and some columns of the Temple of Athena remain today. The site is in ruins, but the layout is still visible.
Altar of Zeus: The Altar of Zeus was excavated in the late 19th century and many of its surviving friezes and architectural elements were transported to the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. The original site in Pergamon has the altar’s foundations, but the structure itself is largely gone.
Theatre: The theatre is relatively well-preserved and is one of the most intact structures in Pergamon. The seating area is still visible, though some parts have deteriorated over time. It remains a striking example of ancient Greek theater design.
Library of Pergamon: The library no longer stands, and what remains are mostly the foundations.
Temple of Trajan (Trajaneum): The Temple of Trajan has been partially reconstructed, with several columns re-erected on the Acropolis. It remains a visually striking feature of the site, giving visitors a sense of its original scale and architectural style.

Unfortunately we had just a few hours to spend here, in the worst possible time of the day, when the heat was extreme, so we had to rush through the site, just looking at the main highlights.

Basically the extremely steep Theatre and the Trajaneum are the two main attractions of the Acropolis and to get an idea of what Pergamon should have looked like at the height of its greatness we need to use digital reconstructions.