Amorium: Difference between revisions
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=== Antiquity === |
=== Antiquity === |
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That the city had minted its own coins as of some time between 133 BC to 27 BC till the 3rd century AD is evidence of its maturity as a settlement and of its importance during the pre-Byzantine period as well. Amorium then must have been prestigious and prosperous. But early historical records that mention the city are extremely scarce, in fact strictly limited to a reference by [[Strabo]], although it is expected that new discoveries will shed |
That the city had minted its own coins as of some time between 133 BC to 27 BC till the 3rd century AD is evidence of its maturity as a settlement and of its importance during the pre-Byzantine period as well. Amorium then must have been prestigious and prosperous. But early historical records that mention the city are extremely scarce, in fact strictly limited to a reference by [[Strabo]], although it is expected that new discoveries will shed light on the city's [[Roman Empire|Roman]] period and before. |
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=== Byzantine period === |
=== Byzantine period === |
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Revision as of 02:25, 20 August 2013
Ἀμόριον Template:El icon | |
 | |
  Shown within Turkey | |
| Alternative name | Amorion, Ammuriye, Hergen Kale |
|---|---|
| Location | Hisarköy, Afyonkarahisar Province, Turkey |
| Region | Phrygia |
| History | |
| Periods | Hellenistic to High Middle Ages |
| Associated with | Aesop, Michael II |
| Events | Sack of Amorium |
Amorium was a city in Phrygia, Asia Minor which was founded in the Hellenistic period, flourished under the Byzantine Empire, and declined after the Arab sack of 838. Its ruins and höyük (mound, tumulus) are located near the modern village of Hisarköy in the Emirdağ district of Afyonkarahisar Province, Turkey.
Amorium is the Latinized pronunciation of its original Greek name Amorion (Template:Lang-el). Arab/Islamic sources refer to the city as Ammuriye. Although an attractive idea, the name does not derive from the Latin root word of amor 'love', but is generally linked to the Proto-Indo-European ma 'mother', which leads to the conclusion that, at its foundation, the settlement was associated with the Mother Goddess cult, widespread in ancient Anatolia. Under Ottoman rule the site was called Hergen Kale.
History
Its site lies at a distance of 13 kilometers from the district center of Emirdağ, in Afyonkarahisar Province. Excavations on the site are currently being pursued in a five-year plan beginning in 2012 by an international team led by Dr. Chris Lightfoot, a curator from the New York Metropolitan Museum.[1]
Antiquity
That the city had minted its own coins as of some time between 133 BC to 27 BC till the 3rd century AD is evidence of its maturity as a settlement and of its importance during the pre-Byzantine period as well. Amorium then must have been prestigious and prosperous. But early historical records that mention the city are extremely scarce, in fact strictly limited to a reference by Strabo, although it is expected that new discoveries will shed light on the city's Roman period and before.
Byzantine period
The city was an episcopal see (bishopric) as early as 431, and was fortified by the emperor Zeno, but did not rise to prominence until the 7th century. Its strategic location in central Asia Minor made the city a vital stronghold against the armies of the Arab Caliphate following their conquest of the Levant. The city was first attacked by the Arabs in 644, and taken in 646. Over the next two centuries, it remained a frequent target of Muslim raids (razzias) into Asia Minor, especially during the great sieges of 716 and 796. It became capital of the thema of Anatolikon soon after. In 742-743, it was the main base of Emperor Constantine V against the usurper Artabasdos, and in 820, an Amorian, Michael II, ascended the Byzantine throne, establishing the Amorian dynasty. This began the period of the city's greatest prosperity, when it became the largest city in Asia Minor. Its status however as the native city of the reigning dynasty also spelled its doom: in 838, the Caliph Al-Mu'tasim launched a campaign specifically against the city, which was captured and razed.
The city never recovered from the sack, but retained an active bishopric until the 11th century. Following the Battle of Manzikert it was devastated by the Seljuks and a large part of its inhabitants was killed.[2] Emperor Alexios I Komnenos defeated the Seljuks at Amorium in 1116, but the area was never recovered. Amorium remains a titular see of the Catholic Church.
42 Martyrs of Amorium
Following the 838 sack, 42 officers and notables of Amorium were taken as hostages to Samarra (today in Iraq). Refusing to convert to Islam, they were executed there in 845, and became canonized as the "42 Martyrs of Amorium".[3]
Excavations
In 1987 Professor R.M. Harrison of Oxford University conducted a preliminary survey of the site with excavations being started in 1988. From its inception the Amorium Excavations Project has been principally concerned with investigating post-classical, Byzantine Amorium. During 1989 and 1990 an intensive surface survey was conducted of the man-made mound in the upper city. In 2001 Dr. Ali Kaya made a geophysical survey of the church found in the upper city, although a full excavation has yet to be undertaken. The Project is sponsored by the British Institute of Archaeology and funded by grants from various institutions in the United States including the Adelaide and Milton De Groot Fund at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Friends of Amorium.[4]
Notable people
- Aesop (620-560 BC), Greek fable writer (origin disputed among several cities)
- Michael II "the Amorian" (770-829), Byzantine emperor and founder of the Amorian dynasty
Sources
- Ivison, Eric A. (2007). "Amorium in the Byzantine Dark Ages (seventh to ninth centuries)". In Henning, Joachim (ed.). Post-Roman Towns, Trade and Settlement in Europe and Byzantium, Vol. 2: Byzantium, Pliska, and the Balkans. de Gruyter. pp. 25–59. ISBN 978-3-11-018358-0.
- Karolidis, Pavlos (1908). Η πόλις Αμόριον εν τη χριστιανική και μωαμεθανική ιστορία και ποιήσει (in Greek). Athens: Τύποις Π. Δ. Σακελλαρίου.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Kazhdan, Alexander, ed. (1991). Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Oxford University Press. pp. 79–80. ISBN 978-0-19-504652-6.
- Lightfoot, Chris (2006). Amorium: A Byzantine City in Anatolia - An Archaeological Guide. Istanbul: Homer Kitabevi. ISBN 975-8293-80-X.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) [1]
External links
- Excavations in Amorium
- Bishop John explores Turkish Amorion roots (article from St.Augustine Record)
References
- ^ "Chris Lightfoot announces decision to restart fieldwork at Amorium in 2012 with a new 5-year plan". July 19, 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-07.
- ^ Speros Vryonis, The Decline of Medieval Hellenism in Asia Minor and the Process of Islamization from the Eleventh through the Fifteenth Century (University of California Press, 1971), pp. 21
- ^ Template:Fr René Grousset, Les Croisades, Que sais-je ?, 1947
- ^ http://www.amoriumexcavations.org accessed 02/08/08.