The word "myrrh" has a double meaning: on the one hand, this is the name of resin, which is one of the components of sacred incense smoking during religious rites. But there is an even more ancient meaning. Many people know that Smyrna is an ancient Ionian city located on the territory of Turkey and having the modern name Izmir.
Holy resin
One of the valuable gifts that it was customary to offer to kings and wealthy nobles from the most ancient times in the East is myrrh, or myrrh. It is a resin flowing from the bark of Styrax trees ( Cistus ereticus ), very odorous and bitter in taste, but possessing antimicrobial and wound healing properties. The named incense was mined in Egypt, Arabia and Nubia.
Old Testament legends say that myrrh is a symbol of the cross suffering of Jesus Christ, as a result of which it is used as an integral part in holy smoking during religious ceremonies.
Since ancient times, this substance was exported to East India and constituted one of the objects of trade, as it was widely used for the incense perfection of the bodies of the dead.
Ancient city
The city with this name was considered the crown of Ionia and the bright jewel of Asia. Ancient legends have survived that Smyrna is a settlement at the mouth of the Meles River on the banks of Asia Minor, in which wealth and fine arts flourish. Although the exact date is unknown, historians believe that this settlement originated more than 3,000 years ago in one of the early periods of ancient Greece.
According to legend, its founder is Tantalum, the son of Zeus and Smyrna, the beautiful Queen of the Amazons. In her honor, the first name was given to the settlement. The Aeolians lived in it, then the Ionians, and the city experienced a flourishing period during the reign of the ancient Romans.
Under Alexander the Great, a port for trade in the Mediterranean was built here, and under Roman rule Marcus Aurelius Smyrna was restored from ruins after another major earthquake.
Over the entire period of existence, Smyrna was partially destroyed by 6 earthquakes, but each time the city revived, like a beautiful bird, the Phoenix. He is also considered the birthplace of an ancient thinker, philosopher and poet Homer, who created the famous works "Iliad" and "Odyssey."
Smyrna during the Ottoman Empire
Over the 3 millennia of its existence, from the period of Ancient Greece to the beginning of the 20th century, Smyrna often passed from one ruler to another. In the era of early Byzantium, the city was a major religious and economic center. The Christian church here was founded by St. the apostle John the Theologian, who made his disciple, Bishop St. Polycarp.
In the XI century. it was conquered by the Seljuk tribes, and in the XII century. The Byzantine Empire regained its power. After its fall, the city passed to the Knights-Johnnites, later it was part of the Nicene Empire.
In 1402, Smyrna was captured by Tamerlane, then by Turkish troops, which marked the beginning of the Ottoman-Turkish period. Under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, the city lived for several centuries (XV-XX centuries) and became its own for residents of various nationalities. The Sultan concluded an agreement with European states, according to which foreigners of any faith could freely conduct free trade here.
Thanks to this policy, Smyrna grew rapidly and became a rich port city, which in the XVIII century was considered the most prosperous in the East.
During the reign of the Ottoman Empire, many mosques were built in the city, beautiful and richly decorated. The most famous among them is the Hisar mosque, dating from the 16th century. It is famous for its magnificent altar and pulpit and was restored in the 19th century.
The Smyrna Massacre
Until the beginning of the 20th century. Smyrna was a multinational, but predominantly Christian city, in which 107 thousand Greeks, 12 thousand Armenians, 23 thousand Jews, 52 thousand Muslims and subjects of various European countries lived. The territory was divided into the upper city, where Christians lived, and the lower - Muslim. Its center was considered the embankment, built up with rich houses in the European architectural style.
After the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I and the conclusion of a peace treaty in 1920, it was decided that Smyrna is a Greek city. However, Turkey refused to acknowledge this fact, as a result of which on September 9, 1922, Turkish troops led by Mustafa Kemal entered the city and looted and murdered the Christian population, which at that time consisted mainly of Greeks and Armenians. Killed about 200 thousand inhabitants.
On September 13th, a huge fire was launched that destroyed that part of the city where Christians lived. The survivors of the pogroms (about 400 thousand refugees) were taken out by American and Japanese ships and received help from the Red Cross.
After all the events, Turkey proclaimed the creation of a republic, and Smyrna was renamed the city of Izmir, which became almost completely Muslim.
Museum City
Ancient Smyrna was one of the 7 main ancient cities. Over the years of its existence, it has survived the power of the Greeks, Romans, Byzantium and the Ottoman Empire. Each period of its existence left a tangible mark in architecture and culture.
Only the ruins of the ancient city survived to our days, which in modern Izmir have become an open-air museum. Agora of Smyrna is located on the southern slope of Kadifekale and was discovered during excavations in 1932-1941. To date, only its northern and western parts are open. Its center is a 160-meter basilica with 3 aisles, divided by rows of columns covered by a roof. The ruins of an ancient amphitheater for 25 thousand spectators, built of marble, the temple of Artemis and the altar of the Greek god Zeus have been preserved in Agora.
Izmir landmarks
The modern city of Izmir is Turkey’s third largest population (about 3 million) metropolis, second only to Istanbul and Ankara. In addition to the ancient Agora described above, here you can find other attractions that will interest tourists:
- Kadifekale Fortress (4th century BC), located on the highest peak within the city, was built under the leadership of General Lysimashos, successor of Alexander the Great. On its walls are preserved Roman and Byzantine bas-reliefs.
- Kemeralti Bazaar (XVIII century), which represents small alleys and squares, shopping centers and workshops. Here you can see and buy a lot of souvenirs and everything else.
- The Kyzylsullu aqueduct, laid in Roman times (II c.) To deliver water from sources to the city.
- The historical Asancer elevator, built in 1907 by engineers from France.
Tourists who come to Smyrna will enjoy the bright eastern port megalopolis with developed infrastructure, industry and many ancient monuments, traces of the turbulent history of this ancient city.