Bergama @ Travel Turkey

Located on a promontory north of the Bakırçay river, 26km removed from the Aegean Sea, Bergama has a population of about 55,000. The ruins of the ancient city of Pergamon lie to the north and west of the modern city; Roman Pergamon is believed to have sustained a population of approximately 150,000 at its height in the first century AD.

Among Bergama's notable ruins are the Sanctuary of Asclepius (or Asclepeion), a tribute to the ancient Greek demigod of healing, and the "Red Basilica" complex ("Kızıl Avlu" in Turkish), a second century AD construction of the Emperor Hadrian that straddles the Selinus River. The town also features an archaeological museum.

Pergamon was a small settlement during the Archaic Period. Lysimachos, one of the generals of Alexander the Great and who had become the sovereign of Anatolia after 301 B.C., delivered the war expenditures, at the amount of 9000 talents (1 talent is believed to be US$ 7,500 approx.), to Philetarios who was the commander of Pergamon, and the kingdom founded by Philetarios by using this sum of money following Lysimachos's death, flourished and became the most eminent center of culture of the Hellenistic period for 150 years. Eumenes I, Attalos I and Eumenes II were enthroned successively after Philetarios. Eumenes II took acropolis of Athens as an example and had the acropolis of Pergamon adorned with works of art which reflected fine taste, and Pergamon became one of the most graceful cities of the world. Attalos III who succeeded Attalos II, handed over his land to the Romans when he died in 133 B.C.

The museum is in Bergama and Asklepion (the ancient medical complex, hospital) is out of the city. It is comprehended that Asklepion, built in the name of Aesculapius, the god of Health and Medicine, has existed since the 4th century BC. It contains premises such as a small theater with a capacity of 3,500 people, rooms where the patients were cured by the sound of water and music, the temple of Asklepion and the library. Here, the dreams of the patients were analyzed by their doctors (priests) 2000 years before Sigmund Freud did. One of the important personalities of Asklepion was Galen (Galenus) from the 2nd c. AD.

How to get Bergama

There are hourly buses from İzmir to Bergama and regular buses from nearby Ayvalık. The new otogar is an inconvenient seven kilometers south of town. Half-hourly shuttles run there from near the Kızıl Avlu.

Where to Stay in Bergama

- Akroplis Guesthouse. Tel: 0 (232) 631 3420
- Odyssey Guesthouse. Tel: 0 (232) 653 9189
- Böblingen Pension. Tel: 0 (232) 633 2153
- Athena Pension. Tel: 0 (232) 633 3420
- Hotel Anıl. Tel: 0 (232) 631 1830