Bible Synapse
Theatre of Ephesus
Site · 3rd century BC; enlarged c. AD 40–260 · The early church · also called Great Theatre of Ephesus
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- Date
- 3rd century BC; enlarged c. AD 40–260 (the theatre's building phases)
- Found
- Ephesus, near Selçuk, Turkey. The theatre was one of the first buildings cleared by the Austrian excavations that began at Ephesus in the 1890s. Its seating was excavated and restored in the 1970s and again in 1993–98.
- Now
- At the site, Selçuk, Turkey
- Passages
- Acts 19:23–41, Revelation 2:1–7
What it is
A large open-air theatre on a hillside in Ephesus, looking down a colonnaded street towards the old harbour. It was first built in the Hellenistic period and enlarged by the Romans in stages from about AD 40: the stage building was rebuilt under Nero and again under Domitian, and a third tier of seats had been added by the 3rd century. In Paul's day the Roman enlargement was under way. Estimates of its capacity range from about 17,000 to 25,000.
How it connects to the Bible
Acts 19 tells how the silversmith Demetrius stirred up the craftsmen who made shrines of Artemis (Diana). The crowd “rushed with one accord into the theatre”, dragging two of Paul's companions, and shouted “Great is Diana of the Ephesians” for about two hours until the town clerk calmed them. The theatre was the natural place for such a mass meeting. Ephesus is also the first of the seven churches addressed in Revelation (2:1–7).