The so-calles governor´s palace in Ephesos

The `governor`s palace which is situated in the lower city of Ephesus was excavated between 1954 and 1956 by F. MILTNER. Because of his sudden death in 1959 the results of the large excavation area were not published, so that the annual reports in the "Jahreshefte des Österreichischen Archäologischen Instituts" are the only available information today.The complex (about 75 by 50 m) which is one of the very few well preserved monuments with secular character in Ephesus of late antique and Byzantine times falls in two differently aligned parts which are interconnected by a very long narrow hall in the west. Due to its oblique-angled plan and the attempted interpretation as a bath-complex (of `Byzantine type`) F. MILTNER facetiously called the building Sarho? Hamam (bath of a drunkard). But its layout reminds one of the well- known representative buildings rather than of a public bath in late antiquity. Accordingly, W. MÜLLER-WIENER und H. VETTERS suggested an interpretation as a govenors`s palace (consisting of a private bath and rooms with representative character), possibly that of the Byzantine strategos. An exact chronology of the complex has not yet been determined. Due to teichoscopic features the excavator suggested dating the object in the first half of the 6th c. AD; only a few scientists put this proposition into question suggesting that an earlier dating would be rather more likely (cf. for example C. FOSS: 4th c. AD.). The project on hand intends to settle the different questions which have not been clarified till this day. The most important aspects under discussion are the theoretical reconstruction of the building (typology), the date of its creation, the period of continuous use as well as the function(s) of the complex during late antiquity and Byzantine times. But also topographical aspects, i.e. the location within the city, will have to be researched. There are excellent chances to solve the noted questions as former excavations were only concentrated on the removal of the debris (without closer examinations of the findings) in the very centre of the building so that quite a number of sites in and round the monument with intact layers dating to Roman, late antique and Byzantine times, remain to be examined. The analysis of the new materials of these locations most probably will permit the development of a stratigrafic framework and will issue new information concerning Ephesus itself, its economic situation and its trading in post-antique times. The results will be published in the Forschungen in Ephesos.

The investigation of the so-called Byzantine Palace of Ephesus, which was partially exposed in the 1950ies, generated a number of new results. These concern not only the monument itself, which is the only known public building of non-sacred character of Late Antique and Early Byzantine Ephesus. Moreover, plenty of information could be gained that allows to draw conclusions on the city history as well as on topographic and urban aspects of Ephesus. In summary it can be noted that the monument did not represent an over-dimensioned bath of the 6th century, but was already erected as a palace in the first decades of the 5th century. The complex can therefore be seen as part of a comprehensive building programme, which can be detected in large parts of the city after a series of earthquakes in the 3rd and especially in the 4th century. Apparently, after these literarily documented earthquakes, a good opportunity presented itself to accommodate the altered economic, socio-cultural, religious- historical and political standards and to redesign the appearance of the city according to the spirit and the taste of the time as well as to current needs. The numerous damaged buildings of Ephesus, which in many cases could no longer fulfil their original functions, offered an abundance of building material for the reconstruction and new construction of entire city quarters. For example, the temple for the deified Emperor Hadrian (117-138), the so- called Olympieion, lying about 50 m off, seems to be demolished successively, since the isochronal Church of Mary in the southern hall of the holy district was erected to a large extent by parts of this temple as well. The profound changes in the city also become apparent through the partial abandonment of the Imperial street system. The Byzantine Palace, for example, is not only erected over a building richly adorned with frescoes from the Imperial period, but also over a street running from east to west. Geophysical prospections could reveal, finally, that the exposed area of 3.750 m 2 is by no means the whole extent of the palace complex. In fact, numerous rooms to the south were detected, which can probably be interpreted as the so far unknown living and service rooms of the residence. The question of the owner of the palace could not be resolved yet. Because of the topographic situation, the selected decoration and the ground plan, one can only continue to assume the interpretation as a bishop`s palace resp. as the seat of a high ranking administrative official. At the latest during the 9th century the palace seems to be abandoned, because in the 10th century the complex already served as material provider for a lime kiln lying directly on the outside of the southern wall of the reception hall. This chronological approach is also confirmed by a small graveyard at the southern wall of the nave of the palace chapel, which according to the burial offerings was used until the 14th century.