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Sardis
Columbia Encyclopedia entry: Sardis
Sardissär'dĭs or Sardes–dēz, ancient city of Lydia, W Asia Minor, at the foot of Mt. Tmolus, 35 mi (56 km) NE of the modern Izmir, Turkey. As capital of Lydia, it was the political and cultural center of Asia Minor from 650 B.C. until the death of Croesus (c.547 B.C.). The first gold and silver coins were minted there in the 6th cent. B.C. An almost impregnable citadel, Sardis was nevertheless captured in 499 by the Ionians in the Persian Wars. In 133 it passed to the Romans. After being destroyed by an earthquake in A.D. 17, it was rebuilt by the Romans. The city was destroyed by Timur in the 14th cent. The actual site of the city was not discovered until 1958. Excavations have uncovered the Roman baths and gymnasium, the Greek Temple of Artemis (dating from the 4th cent. B.C.), the walls of the city when it was under Lydian rule, and inscriptions in old Lydian.

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Wikipedia search results for: Sardis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sardis, also Sardes, modern Sart in the Manisa province of Turkey, was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Lydia, one of the important cities of the Persian Empire, the seat of a proconsul under the Roman Empire, and the metropolis of the province Lydia in later Roman and Byzantine times. As one of the Seven churches of Asia, it was addressed by the author of the Book of Revelation in terms which seem to imply that its population was notoriously soft and fainthearted. Its importance was due, first to its military strength, secondly to its situation on an important highway leading from the interior to the Aegean coast, and thirdly to its...more »
Columbia Encyclopedia search results: Sardis
Results 1 - 7  of 7
  • Seven Churches in Asia

    Seven Churches in Asia, addressed in the preface of the Book of Revelation. They are the churches of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia (Lydia), and Laodicea (Phrygia). ...

  • Pactolus

    Pactolus, small river of ancient Lydia, W central Asia Minor (now Turkey), joining the Hermus (modern Gediz) after passing Sardis. It was famous for the gold washed from its sands, a source of...

  • Alyattes

    Alyattes, d. 560 B.C., king of Lydia. During his reign, Alyattes expanded his kingdom. He made peace (585 B.C.) with Cyaxares of Media, continued the Lydian conquest of the Ionian cities of As...

  • Hinsley, Arthur

    Hinsley, Arthur, 1865–1943, English prelate, cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Born in Yorkshire, he attended Catholic schools in England and Rome. He was ordained in 1893 and spent sever...

  • Lydia, ancient country, Asia

    Lydia, ancient country, W Asia Minor, N of Caria and S of Mysia (now NW Turkey). The tyrant Gyges was the founder of the Mermnadae dynasty, which lasted from c.700 B.C. to 550 B.C. The little ...

  • Cyrus the Younger

    Cyrus the Younger, d. 401 B.C., Persian prince, younger son of Darius II and Parysatis. He was his mother's favorite, and she managed to get several satrapies in Asia Minor for him when he was...

  • Xerxes I

    Xerxes I (Xerxes the Great), d. 465 B.C., king of ancient Persia (486–465 B.C.). His name in Old Persian is Khshayarsha, in the Bible Ahasuerus. He was the son of Darius I and Atossa, daughter...

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