Rotunda from the Panayır Dağ

Late-Hellenistic or Roman, 2nd half of the 1st century BCE, made of marble, originally from Panayır Dağ (Pion Hill)

In the late first century BCE, a tower-like monument was erected on the Pion Hill. Its location - both on the hill and within the city - is remarkably prominent and thus it ensured that it could be seen from afar, perhaps even from the ships approaching the harbour.

A two-storey-high central-plan building rises above a square base made of cushioned ashlar; the circular lower storey was enclosed, and the walls of the cella were decorated with twelve half-columns with Doric capitals. Above, a Doric frieze comprising triglyphs rises on the upper storey where the recessed wall is surrounded by a circular columned hall. The entablature featuring a continuous frieze comprising volutes and foliage is surmounted by a low cylindrical parapet.

Both the use of Roman concrete and the unusual, adventurous decor suggest that the building dates from the second half of the first century BCE, i.e. the late Hellenistic period. Its function remains obscure but may be connected to the countless fragments of drinking vessels from the Early Empire, some of them of outstanding quality, found nearby.

Image used in

• Ephesos-Museum