Located in the province of Denizli in western Türkiye, the ancient city of Laodicea, which dates back 5500 years, has hosted tens of thousands of visitors to date.
Laodicea, founded on the southern bank of the Lycus River, was an important trade center and an important Hellenistic city-state.
The city was named after Laodike, the wife of the Seleucid king Antiochus II. The city continued to develop during the Roman period and became one of the most important cities of Anatolia.
Laodikeia also has an important place in the history of Christianity. The Church of Laodicea, one of the seven churches mentioned in the Book of Revelation, is also located here.
The city has one of the largest stadiums in Anatolia. The stadium is 285 meters long and 70 meters wide.
The ancient city of Laodicea, which has a large theater with a capacity of 15000 people and a small theater for 2500 people, was discovered by European travelers in the 17th century. The first scientific excavations were carried out in 1961-1963.
Excavations have been carried out under the direction of Prof. Dr. Celal Şimşek since 2003.
The “Syria” and “Stadium” streets in the ancient city, 1750-year-old frescoed travertine blocks, the 3-meter-long, 1906-year-old statue of Roman Emperor Marcus Ulpius Nerva Traianus, the 2,000-year-old Traian (Trajan) Fountain and the statue of a priest’s head, which is thought to be 2,000 years old, are among the most remarkable historical artifacts.
Recently, the head of the statue of Hygieia, known as the goddess of cleanliness and health in antiquity, was unearthed.
Celal Şimşek, who stated that the ancient city of Laodicea, which was visualized by the Anadolu Agency (AA) team with an FPV drone, is important in terms of being a place where trade, art, culture, sports, literature and medicine were kept alive thousands of years ago, and that the interest of tourists in the city has also increased, stated that more than 117 thousand people visited the ancient city last year and that they expect the number of tourists to exceed 100 thousand for the first time this year.
Since 2015, 606 thousand 662 people have visited the ancient city of Laodicea.
