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acropolis Review
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acropolis
- Phone: 232/631-0778
- Category: Archaeological Sites
- Location: Pergamum
Fodor's Review:
The most dramatic of the remains of Pergamum are at the acropolis. Signs point the way to the 6-km (4-mi) road to the top, where you can park in the car park across from the souvenir stand -- which sells water, film, and reasonably good picture books containing site maps. Buy your ticket at the gate. Broken but still mighty triple ramparts enclose the upper town, with its temples, palaces, private houses, and gymnasia (schools). In later Roman times, the town spread out and down to the plain, where the Byzantines subsequently settled for good.
After entering the acropolis through the Royal Gate, there are several different paths. To start at the top, pick the path to the far right, which takes you past the partially restored Temple of Trajan, at the summit. This is the very picture of an ancient ruin, with burnished white-marble pillars high above the valley of the Oç Kemer Çayi (Selinos River). On the terraces just below, you can see the scant remains of the Temple of Athena and the Altar of Zeus. Once among the grandest monuments in the Greek world, the Altar of Zeus was excavated by German archaeologists who sent Berlin's Pergamon Museum every stone they found, including the frieze, 400 feet long, that vividly depicted the battle of the gods against the giants. Now all that's left is the altar's flat stone foundation. There's much more to see of the Great Theater, carved into the steep slope west of the terrace, that holds the Temple of Athena: it can seat some 10,000 spectators and retains its astounding acoustics. You can test them by sitting near the top and having a companion do a reading in the stage area.
- Cost: $7
- Open: Apr.-Oct., daily 8:30-6:30; Nov.-Mar., daily 8-5
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