Travel on the hill, from the first century BC to the seventh century AD.” Now called the Terrace Houses, these dwellings had underground heating systems, toilets, courtyards, wall paintings and mosaic floors. Across Curetes Street, Corinthian columns supported the carved arch of the Temple of Hadrian, which the emperor visited in AD 128. Just beyond it, above the door is a Medusa-like sculpture. “Does it look familiar?” asked Dilek. “Think of the twin-tailed siren on the Starbucks logo and decide for yourself.” From the cool shade of a pomegranate tree at the end of Curetes Street, we viewed the most magnificent building in Ephesus. The restored façade of the two-tiered Celsus Library is more than 16 metres high. “It was the third-largest ancient library in the world, after the libraries in Alexandria and Pergamum,” said Dilek. She explained that the library held 12,000 manuscripts. “The papyrus and parchment scrolls were stored in niches in the walls. They weighed 30 to 40 kilograms each, so slaves moved them from the bookcases to the reading room.” Celsus Library Mosaic street below the Terrace Houses Pomegranate tree Medusa-like sculpture above Temple of Hadrian door CSANews | WINTER 2019 | 21
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