Library of Celsus, Ephesus
The facade of the famous Library of Celsus at Ephesus (photo © Dick Osseman).
As the poster child for Ephesus, the Library of Celsus, whose two-tiered facade reaches us in a remarkable state of preservation, is immediately recognizable. The library was built between 110 and 135 AD by the Consul Julius Aquila as a mausoleum for his father, Julius Celsus Polemaeanus, governor of the Asian Provinces. Celsus' remains remain surprisingly intact under the apsidal wall.
Three levels of niches indicate that the building had three stories, the upper two levels of which were accessible via a horseshoe-shaped gallery. Scrolls or books were stored in the rows of niches and reading materials were dispensed by a librarian.
In the lower niches of the facade are copies of four statues personifying wisdom, knowledge, destiny, and intelligence, the originals having been taken to Vienna.
The library was abandoned after a fire of unspecified date destroyed the reading room, and around 400 AD the courtyard below the exterior steps was converted into a pool.
The facade collapsed in an earthquake in the 10th century, but was restored and re-erected by F. Hueber of the Austrian Archaeological Institute between 1970 and 1978.
Source: Frommer's Turkey, 3rd ed.
