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"I have set eyes on the wall of lofty Babylon on which is a road for chariots, and the statue of Zeus by the Alpheus, and the hanging gardens, and the colossus of the Sun, and the huge labour of the high pyramids, and the vast tomb of Mausolus; but when I saw the house of Artemis that mounted to the clouds, those other marvels lost their brilliancy, and I said, 'Lo, apart from Olympus, the Sun never looked on aught so grand.’" Antipater of Sidon, Greek Anthology (IX.58)
Very little remains of the Temple of Artemis [Diana] today. Its location was discovered in 1869, with ongoing excavations since then. A single, reconstructed column is the primary reminder of the grandiose temple that was so remarkable, it was named one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
The Temple of Artemis did not start out as a magnificent structure. Historians claim the first temple [thought to be built around 800 BC] was a small, primitive structure, merely 8 columns in 4 rows. Over many years, the temple grounds, and temple itself, was expanded by various kings. The “Seventh Wonder” Temple was the brainchild of Scopas of Paros, a famous sculptor of his day. At the time, Ephesus had become one of the greatest cities in Asia Minor and no expense was spared in the reconstruction. The finished product was a temple about 425 feet by 225 feet, with 127 columns, 60 feet in height. To put that into perspective, the great Parthenon on the Acropolis in Athens, is only 230 feet by 100 feet, with 58 columns!
A model of the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus
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Pliny the Elder, a Roman historian, tells an interesting story about the Temple of Artemis and Alexander the Great. As the story goes, Alexander went to Ephesus in 334 BC. At that time, the temple was under construction. He offered to finance the completion of the temple so long as the city would credit him as the builder. The Ephesian fathers didn’t want Alexander’s name carved in the temple, but they also didn’t want to tell him that. According to Pliny they responded, tactfully, “It is not fitting that one god should build a temple for another god.” With that, Alexander didn't press the matter.
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