Iasos or Iassos (; el, Ἰασός ''Iasós'' or ''Iassós''), also in Latinized form Iasus or Iassus (), was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

city in

ancient Caria Caria (; from Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; tr, Karya) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid- Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined t ...

located on the Gulf of Iasos (now called the Gulf of Güllük), opposite the modern town of Güllük, Turkey. It was originally on an island, but is now connected to the mainland. It is located in the

Milas Milas ( grc, Μύλασα, Mylasa) is an ancient city and the seat of the district of the same name in Muğla Province in southwestern Turkey. The city commands a region with an active economy and very rich in history and ancient remains, the ter ...

district of

Muğla Province Muğla Province ( tr, , ) is a province of Turkey, at the country's south-western corner, on the Aegean Sea. Its seat is Muğla, about inland, while some of Turkey's largest holiday resorts, such as Bodrum, Ölüdeniz, Marmaris and Fethiye, ...

, Turkey, near the

Alevi Alevism or Anatolian Alevism (; tr, Alevilik, ''Anadolu Aleviliği'' or ''Kızılbaşlık''; ; az, Ələvilik) is a local Islamic tradition, whose adherents follow the mystical Alevi Islamic ( ''bāṭenī'') teachings of Haji Bektash Veli, w ...

village of Kıyıkışlacık, about 31 km from the center of

History

View of agora from bouleuterion of Iasos AvL

Portico on eastern side of agora of Iasos AvL

Sanctuary of Artemis Astias in Iasos AvL

Ancient historians consider Iasos a

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

foundation of

Argos Argos most often refers to: * Argos, Peloponnese, a city in Argolis, Greece ** Ancient Argos, the ancient city * Argos (retailer), a catalogue retailer operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland Argos or ARGOS may also refer to: Businesses ...

, but archaeology shows a much longer history. According to the ancient reports, the

Argive Argos (; el, Άργος ; grc, label=Ancient and Katharevousa, Ἄργος ) is a city in Argolis, Peloponnese, Greece and is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, and the oldest in Europe. It is the largest city in Ar ...

colonists had sustained severe losses in a war with the native

Carians The Carians (; grc, Κᾶρες, ''Kares'', plural of , ''Kar'') were the ancient inhabitants of Caria in southwest Anatolia. Historical accounts Karkisa It is not clear when the Carians enter into history. The definition is dependent on c ...

, so they invited the son of Neleus, who had previously founded Miletus, to come to their assistance. The town appears on that occasion to have received additional settlers. The town, which appears to have occupied the whole of the little island, had only ten

stadia Stadia may refer to: * One of the plurals of stadium, along with "stadiums" * The plural of stadion, an ancient Greek unit of distance, which equals to 600 Greek feet (''podes''). * Stadia (Caria), a town of ancient Caria, now in Turkey * Stadi ...

in circumference; but it nevertheless acquired great wealth, from its fisheries and trade in fish. Iasos was a member of the Delian League and was involved in the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC). After the

Sicilian expedition The Sicilian Expedition was an Athenian military expedition to Sicily, which took place from 415–413 BC during the Peloponnesian War between Athens on one side and Sparta, Syracuse and Corinth on the other. The expedition ended in a devas ...

of the Athenians, Iasos was attacked by the

Sparta Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...

ns and their allies; it was governed at the time by Amorges, a

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

chief, who had revolted from Darius II. It was taken by the Spartans, who captured Amorges and delivered him up to

Tissaphernes Tissaphernes ( peo, *Ciçafarnāʰ; grc-gre, Τισσαφέρνης; xlc, 𐊋𐊆𐊈𐊈𐊀𐊓𐊕𐊑𐊏𐊀 , ; 445395 BC) was a Persian soldier and statesman, Satrap of Lydia and Ionia. His life is mostly known from the works of Thuc ...

. The town itself was plundered on that occasion. It became part of the Hecatomnid

satrapy A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires. The satrap served as viceroy to the king, though with consid ...

in the 4th century and was conquered by

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

. We afterwards find it besieged by

Philip V Philip V may refer to: * Philip V of Macedon (221–179 BC) * Philip V of France (1293–1322) * Philip II of Spain, also Philip V, Duke of Burgundy (1526–1598) * Philip V of Spain Philip V ( es, Felipe; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was ...

, king of

Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an Classical antiquity, ancient monarchy, kingdom on the periphery of Archaic Greece, Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. Th ...

, who, however, was compelled by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

to restore it to Ptolemy V of Egypt. The mountains in the neighbourhood of Iasus furnished a beautiful kind of

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

, of a blood-red and livid white colour, which was used by the ancients for ornamental purposes. Near the town was a sanctuary of

Hestia In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Hestia (; grc-gre, Ἑστία, meaning "hearth" or "fireside") is the virgin goddess of the hearth, the right ordering of domesticity, the family, the home, and the state. In myth, she is the firstborn ...

, with a statue of the goddess, which, though standing in the open air, was believed never to be touched by the rain. The same story is related, by Strabo, of a temple of

Artemis In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified wit ...

in the same neighbourhood. Iasus, as a celebrated fishing place, is alluded to by

Athenaeus Athenaeus of Naucratis (; grc, Ἀθήναιος ὁ Nαυκρατίτης or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; la, Athenaeus Naucratita) was a Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourishing about the end of th ...

. The place is still existing, under the name of Askem or Asýn Kalessi. Chandler (Travels in As. Min. p. 226) relates that the island on which the town was built is now united to the mainland by a small isthmus. Part of the city walls still exist, and are of a regular, solid, and handsome structure. In the side of the rock a theatre with many rows of seats still remains, and several inscriptions and coins have been found there. It seems to have been abandoned in about the 15th–16th century, in the Ottoman period, when a small town was founded nearby named Asin Kale or Asin Kurin, in the

sanjak Sanjaks (liwāʾ) (plural form: alwiyāʾ) * Armenian: նահանգ (''nahang''; meaning "province") * Bulgarian: окръг (''okrǔg''; meaning "county", "province", or "region") * el, Διοίκησις (''dioikēsis'', meaning "province" ...

of Menteşe within the vilayet of İzmir.

Archaeology

Preliminary research was done by the French archaeologist Charles Texier in 1835. A number of ancient Greek inscriptions were removed from the site which were later donated to the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

by the

Duke of St Albans Duke of St Albans is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1684 for Charles Beauclerk, 1st Earl of Burford, then 14 years old. King Charles II had accepted that Burford was his illegitimate son by Nell Gwyn, an actress, and awa ...

. Since then, Iasos and the necropolis have been under regular scientific excavations on behalf of the

Italian School of Archaeology at Athens The Italian School of Archaeology at Athens ( it, Scuola Archeologica Italiana di Atene (SAIA); el, Ἰταλικὴ Ἀρχαιολογικὴ Σχολὴ Ἀθηνῶν) is one of the 19 foreign archaeological institutes headquartered in Athen ...

Doro Levi Teodoro "Doro" Levi (1 June 1899 – 3 July 1991) was an Italian archaeologist who practiced in the Mediterranean countries in the 20th century. Specifically, Levi conducted excavations in Italy, Greece, and Turkey. From 1938 to 1945, Levi w ...

(1960–1972), Clelia Laviosa (1972–1984) and Fede Berti (1984–2011). From 2011 till 2013 the Director of Iasos excavations has been Marcello Spanu . The site of Iasos has been settled continuously since the

Early Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

. In early times, Iasos was influenced by the culture of the

Cyclades The Cyclades (; el, Κυκλάδες, ) are an island group in the Aegean Sea, southeast of mainland Greece and a former administrative prefecture of Greece. They are one of the island groups which constitute the Aegean archipelago. The name ...

islands. During the 1970s, archaeological excavations at Iasus revealed Mycenean buildings (with two "

Minoan The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age Aegean civilization on the island of Crete and other Aegean Islands, whose earliest beginnings were from 3500BC, with the complex urban civilization beginning around 2000BC, and then declining from 1450B ...

" levels underneath them).

"At Iasus, Mycenaean buildings, approximately dated by the presence of LH IIIa ware, have been found below the protogeometric cemetery. Below this again two 'Minoan' levels are reported, the earlier containing local imitations of MM II-LM I ware, the later imported pieces of the Second Palace Period (''AJA''
973 Year 973 ( CMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Spring – The Byzantine army, led by General Melias (Domestic of the S ...
177-8). Middle and Late Minoan ware has also occurred at Cnidus (''AJA''
978 Year 978 ( CMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Battle of Pankaleia: Rebel forces under General Bardas Skleros are defeated ...
321)."

Other archaeological finds cover Geometric,

Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...

and

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

periods, through the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

period. Outstanding remains in Iasos include an

stoa and

Roman villa A Roman villa was typically a farmhouse or country house built in the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, sometimes reaching extravagant proportions. Typology and distribution Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD) distinguished two kinds of villas n ...

Church history

Four of its bishops are known: Themistius in 421, Flacillus in 451, David in 787, and Gregory in 878 (

Michel Le Quien Michel Le Quien (8 October 1661, Boulogne-sur-Mer – 12 March 1733, Paris) was a French historian and theologian. He studied at Plessis College, Paris, and at twenty entered the Dominican convent in Faubourg Saint-Germain, where he made his pr ...

, ''Oriens Christianus'' I:913). The see is mentioned in the ''Nova Tactica'', 10th century (

Heinrich Gelzer Heinrich Gelzer (1 July 1847, in Berlin – 11 July 1906, in Jena) was a German classical scholar. He wrote also on Armenian mythology. He was the son of the Swiss historian Johann Heinrich Gelzer (1813–1889). He became Professor of classical ...

, ''

Georgii Cyprii descriptio orbis romani George of Cyprus ( el, Γεώργιος Κύπριος; Latinized as ''Georgius Cyprius'') was a Byzantine geographer of the early seventh century. Nothing is known of his life save that he was born at Lapithos in the island of Cyprus. He is kno ...

'', nos. 340, 1464), and more recently in the ''

Notitiae Episcopatuum The ''Notitiae Episcopatuum'' (singular: ''Notitia Episcopatuum'') are official documents that furnish Eastern countries the list and hierarchical rank of the metropolitan and suffragan bishoprics of a church. In the Roman Church (the -mostly Lat ...

''. Iasus is listed among the

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbis ...

s of

Caria Caria (; from Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; tr, Karya) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid- Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined ...

in the ''

Annuario Pontificio The ''Annuario Pontificio'' (Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides names ...

''. The titular see has had the following Bishops: * Bishop Salvador Martinez Silva (1940.08.10 – 1969.02.07)Iasos
at GCatholic.org. * Bishop Antonio Laubitz (1924.11.08 – 1939.05.17) * Bishop Gregorio Ignazio Romero (1899.06.19 – 1915.02.21) * Bishop John Joseph Keane (later Archbishop) (1888.08.12 – 1897.01.29) * Bishop Gaetano d'Alessandro (later Archbishop) (1884.03.24 – 1888.03.18) * Bishop Étienne-Louis Charbonnaux, M.E.P. (1844.07.08 – 1873.06.23) * Bishop Ernst Maria Ferdinand von Bissingen-Nieppenburg (1801.12.23 – 1820.03.12) * Bishop Emanuel Maria Graf Thun (1797.07.24 – 1800.08.11) * Bishop-elect Bartolome Gascon (1727.03.17 – ?)

Gallery

File:Iasos 5510.jpg, Iasos Agora File:Iasos Agora frieze 5524.jpg, Iasos Agora Frieze File:Iasos Agora frieze 5526.jpg, Iasos Agora Frieze File:Iasos Agora plan 5496b.jpg, Iasos Agora Plan File:Iasos Bouleuterion 5492.jpg, Iasos Agora Bouleuterion File:Iasos Bouleuterion 5489.jpg, Iasos Agora Bouleuterion File:Iasos Basilica 5505.jpg, Iasos Agora Basilica File:Iasos Necropolis 5501.jpg, Iasos at agora Necropolis File:Iasos Zeus Megistos area 5531.jpg, Iasos at agora Zeus Megistos area File:Iasos museum 5428.jpg, Iasos museum Altars File:Iasos museum 5430.jpg, Iasos museum Altar detail File:Iasos museum 5434.jpg, Iasos museum Altar detail File:Iasos museum 5435.jpg, Iasos museum Altar File:Iasos museum 5437.jpg, Iasos museum Treaty File:Iasos museum 5449.jpg, Iasos museum Capital File:Iasos museum 5452.jpg, Iasos museum Frieze File:Iasos museum 5462.jpg, Iasos museum File:Iasos museum 5469.jpg, Iasos museum

Notes

References

* * Grande Encyclopédie, ''s.v.'' Iasos 20:505. * Fede Berti, Roberta Fabiani, Zeynep Kızıltan, Massimo Nafissi (ed.), ''Marmi erranti. I marmi di Iasos presso i musei archeologici di Istanbul. Gezgin Taşlar. Istanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri'ndeki Iasos Mermerleri. Wandering marbles. Marbles of Iasos at the Istanbul Archaeological Museums. (Istanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri 7.12.2010 – 4.7.2011)''. Istanbul: Istanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri Müdürlüğü, 2010.

External links

Official Web Site

Iasos article at the Perseus Project

Extensive information in Italian by the association excavating in Iasos
{{Authority control Populated places disestablished in the 16th century 1835 archaeological discoveries Greek colonies in Caria Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Former populated places in Turkey Geography of Muğla Province Buildings and structures in Muğla Province History of Muğla Province Populated places in ancient Caria

Iasus In Greek mythology, Iasus (; Ancient Greek: Ἴασος) or Iasius (; Ἰάσιος) was the name of several people: *Iasus (Iasius), one of the Dactyli or Curetes. * Iasus, king of Argos. *Iasus, son of Io *Iasius ( Iasion), son of Eleuther ...

Greek city-states Members of the Delian League Milas District