Eastern gate of Philippopolis

Last updated
Eastern Gate of Philippopolis
East gate38.jpg
Plovdiv city center map.png
Archaeological site icon (red).svg
Eastern Gate of Philippopolis
Shown within Plovdiv City Center
Location Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Coordinates 42°08′56″N24°45′21″E / 42.148811°N 24.755862°E / 42.148811; 24.755862 Coordinates: 42°08′56″N24°45′21″E / 42.148811°N 24.755862°E / 42.148811; 24.755862
Type Gate
History
BuilderHadrian
Founded2-4th century AD
Periods Antiquity
Site notes
Excavation dates1970s

The Eastern gate of Philippopolis is one of the three entrances of the ancient city that have been discovered in Plovdiv. The gate was built on the main road to Byzantium and the Bosphorus. Initially constructed in the 2nd century AD during the reign of Hadrian, the gate and the complex around it were completely rebuilt in the 4th century, and partially repaired in the 5th century. The Eastern gate was discovered in the 1970s.

Contents

The Gate

Plan of the complex around the Eastern gate Eastern gate plan.jpg
Plan of the complex around the Eastern gate

After it was rebuilt in the 4th century, the Eastern gate of Philippopolis had one wide central entrance and two narrower side entrances. Two watch towers were built on both sides of the gate for protection during attacks. The gate was built on the widest and most elaborate street of the city which was partly discovered during the archeological works. [1] The 13 metres wide street was covered with large syenite slabs with paved sidewalk on both sides (each 2.6 m wide) unlike any other street in Philippopolis. Richly decorated colonnade in the Roman Corinthian order was aligned on both sides of the street. Wheel ruts can be seen on the syenite pavement indicating busy cart traffic through the gate. Buildings built in the 4th century with elaborate porticoes in the Corinthian style were found on both sides of the Eastern gate. [2] It is presumed that they were either barracks or infirmary, but their purpose is still debatable. Together with the Eastern gate they formed an entire complex.

History

The first structure on the place of the today's Eastern gate was a marble triumphal arch built on the main road to Byzantium in the 2nd century for Hadrian's visit in Philippopolis. In 172 Emperor Marcus Aurelius completed the new section of city walls in this area of the city due to the danger of Marcomannic invasion, extending the old walls from around the Three Hills.

The triumphal arch was left a few dozen metres outside the fortified area where the first eastern gate was built. After Philippopolis recovered from the destruction of the Goth invasion in 251, the old walls were renovated using bricks and stone. The new Eastern gate of Philippopolis was built using the remains of Hadrian's arch. [3] The memorial of the imperial visit from the 2nd century became the biggest and the most important entrance of Philippopolis.

Related Research Articles

Ancient Roman architecture Ancient architectural style

Ancient Roman architecture adopted the external language of classical Greek architecture for the purposes of the ancient Romans, but was different from Greek buildings, becoming a new architectural style. The two styles are often considered one body of classical architecture. Roman architecture flourished in the Roman Republic and to even a greater extent under the Empire, when the great majority of surviving buildings were constructed. It used new materials, particularly Roman concrete, and newer technologies such as the arch and the dome to make buildings that were typically strong and well-engineered. Large numbers remain in some form across the former empire, sometimes complete and still in use to this day.

Cardo North–south street in ancient Roman cities

A cardo was a north–south street in Ancient Roman cities and military camps as an integral component of city planning. The cardo maximus, or most often the cardo, was the main or central north–south-oriented street.

Glanum

Glanum was an ancient and wealthy city which still enjoys a magnificent setting below a gorge on the flanks of the Alpilles mountains. It is located about one kilometre south of the town of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.

Volubilis Partly excavated Berber city in Morocco

Volubilis is a partly excavated Berber-Roman city in Morocco situated near the city of Meknes, and may have been the capital of the kingdom of Mauretania, at least from the time of King Juba II. Before Volubilis, the capital of the Kingdom may have been at Gilda. Built in a fertile agricultural area, it developed from the 3rd century BC onward as a Berber, then proto-Carthaginian, settlement before being the capital of the kingdom of Mauretania. It grew rapidly under Roman rule from the 1st century AD onward and expanded to cover about 42 hectares with a 2.6 km (1.6 mi) circuit of walls. The city gained a number of major public buildings in the 2nd century, including a basilica, temple and triumphal arch. Its prosperity, which was derived principally from olive growing, prompted the construction of many fine town-houses with large mosaic floors.

Arch of Hadrian (Athens)

The Arch of Hadrian, most commonly known in Greek as Hadrian's Gate, is a monumental gateway resembling—in some respects—a Roman triumphal arch. It spanned an ancient road from the center of Athens, Greece, to the complex of structures on the eastern side of the city that included the Temple of Olympian Zeus.

Trajans Forum Monumental square in Rome

Trajan's Forum was the last of the Imperial fora to be constructed in ancient Rome. The architect Apollodorus of Damascus oversaw its construction.

Hadrians Gate Ancient Roman triumphal arch in Antalya, Turkey

Hadrian's Gate or Üçkapılar is a triumphal arch located in Antalya, Turkey, which was built in the name of the Roman emperor Hadrian, who visited the city in the year 130. It is the only remaining entrance gate in the walls that surround the city and harbor.

Hierapolis Ancient Greek city

Hierapolis was an ancient Greek city located on hot springs in classical Phrygia in southwestern Anatolia. Its ruins are adjacent to modern Pamukkale in Turkey and currently comprise an archaeological museum. The site has the Tomb of Philip the Apostle.

Temple of Hadrian

The Temple of Hadrian was dedicated to the deified emperor Hadrian on the Campus Martius in Rome, Italy by his adoptive son and successor Antoninus Pius in 145 C.E. This temple was previously known as the Basilica of Neptune but has since been properly attributed as the Temple of Hadrian completed under Antoninus Pius. With one cella wall and eleven columns from the external colonnade surviving, the remains of the temple have been incorporated into a later building in the Piazza di Pietra, whereby its facade, alongside the architrave which was reconstructed later on, was incorporated into a 17th-century papal palace by Carlo Fontana, now occupied by Rome's Chamber of commerce. While only part of the structure remains, excavations and scholarship have provided us with information regarding its construction techniques and stylistic influences, helping us recreate the building dynamics and significance of the Temple of Hadrian in Imperial Rome.

Roman theatre of Philippopolis Roman theatre in Plovdiv, Bulgaria

The Roman theatre of Philippopolis is one of the world's best-preserved ancient Roman theatres, located in the city center of modern Plovdiv, Bulgaria, once the ancient city of Philippopolis. It was constructed in the 1st century AD, probably during the reign of Domitian. The theatre can host between 5,000 and 7,000 spectators and it is currently in use.

Stadium of Philippopolis

The Stadiumof Philippopolis was the ancient Roman stadium of Philippopolis, built in the 2nd century AD, during the Roman imperial period. It is among the largest and best preserved buildings from the time of the Roman Empire in the Balkan peninsula. At the time the stadium was built, Philippopolis was the capital of the Roman province of Thracia.

Forum of Theodosius Roman forum and triumphal column in Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey)

The Forum of Theodosius was an area in Constantinople. It was originally built by Constantine I and named the Forum Tauri. In 393, however, it was renamed after Emperor Theodosius I, who rebuilt it after the model of Trajan's Forum in Rome, surrounded by civic buildings such as churches and baths and decorated with a triumphal column at its centre.

Odeon of Philippopolis Ancient Roman odeon in Plovdiv, Bulgaria

The Odeon of Philippopolis was the house of the city council of citizens of ancient Plovdiv. It was also used as a theatre due to its appropriate structure. The Odeon buildings had four construction periods: from the 2nd century AD when it was initially built to the 4th century AD when it was abandoned. The existence of such a building in ancient Plovdiv is a sign for the importance of Philippopolis as a cultural and political centre.

Great Mosque of Mahdiya

The Great Mosque of Mahdiya is a mosque that was built in the tenth century in Mahdia, Tunisia.

Philippopolis (Thrace)

Philippopolis is one of the names of the ancient city situated where Plovdiv is today. The city became one of the largest and most important in region and was called "the largest and most beautiful of all cities" by Lucian. During most of its recorded history, the city was known by the name Philippopolis after Philip II of Macedon. Philippopolis became part of the Roman empire and capital of the Roman province of Thracia. According to Ammianus Marcellinus, Philippopolis had a population of 100,000 in the Roman period.

Roman forum of Philippopolis Historic Roman plaza in the city of Plovdiv, Bulgaria

The Roman forum of Philippopolis is a rectangular forum (plaza) surrounded by the ruins of several ancient administrative buildings at the center of the ancient city of Philippopolis. It was the center of public, administrative, commercial and religious life in the ancient city. Meetings, discussions, celebrations and state events were held there.

Nebet Tepe

Nebet Tepe is one of the hills of Plovdiv where the ancient town was founded. The earliest settlements on Nebet Tepe are dated back to 4000 BC. The site was first settled by Thracians, later expanded by Philip II of Macedon and the Roman empire. As the town expanded, Nebet Tepe became the citadel of the town's acropolis. There are remains of the city's walls, towers, and a postern from the time of Justinian leading down to the Maritsa river. Today, the archaeological complex on the hill is one of the most popular tourist sights in Plovdiv and a cultural monument of national significance.

Hisar Kapia

Hisar Kapia is a medieval gate in Plovdiv's old town and one of the most famous tourist sights in the city. The gate was built in the 11th century AD over the foundations of a gate from Roman times. Hisar Kapia is one of the three entrances to the acropolis of ancient Plovdiv. During the rule of the Ottoman empire revival houses were embedded in the remains of the old stone walls around the gate.

Domus Eirene

The House of Eirene is an ancient Roman peristyle house with lavish mosaic floors in Philippopolis, built in the middle of the 3rd century AD in the provincial capital of Thracia. It is named after the image of the Greek goddess depicted in the central mosaic.

Old Town (Plovdiv)

The old town in Plovdiv is an architectural and historical reserve located on three of Plovdiv's hills: Nebet Tepe, Dzhambaz Tepe and Taksim Tepe.

References