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SARDIS;
Sardis lies in the territory of Lydia, at the
foot of the Tmolus Mountains and overlooking
the Hermus River plain, where evidence has
been found of human activity as early as the
Palaeolithic period (ca. 50,000 B.C.). By the
late second millennium B.C., a modest
community existed at the foot of the acropolis.
According
to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, the
"sons of Herakles" founded a dynasty
that remained in power for "505 years,
son succeeding father from generation to
generation till the time of Candaules" (from
ca. 1185 to ca. 680 B.C.). By the early 7th
century B.C., Sardis was the capital of a
growing empire, with a distinct archaeological
record.
Suring the Mermnad dynasty (ca. 680-547 B.C.),
the empire reached its greatest geographical
extent, stretching from the Aegean Sea to
central Anatolia.
Herodotus credits the Lydian kings with
the invention of coinage and the
construction of the great royal burial mounds
at Bin Tepe, some 6 miles to the northwest of
the acropolis. Kings Gyges and Croesus were
particularly renowned for lavish gifts
dedicated in Greek sanctuaries. In 547 B.C.,
Sardis was sacked by Cyrus the Great and
remained under Persian control until 334 B.C.,
when it was captured by Alexander the Great.
The city continued to flourish during
Hellenistic and Roman times, when ambitious
construction projects were initiated,
including the temple of Artemis and bath-gymnasium
complex. A section of the bath-gymnasium
complex was later remodeled to accommodate a
synagogue. This synagogue, now partially
restored by the Harvard-Cornell Expedition, is
the largest early synagogue yet excavated in
the Mediterranean world.
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