Ephesus roman city pictures Ephesus (Turkey) Title: The Theatre Description: The great Theatre is located on the slope of Panayir Hill, opposite the Harbor Street. It was first constructed in the Hellenistic Period, in the third century BC during the reign of Lysimachos, but then during the Roman Period, it was enlarged and formed its current style that is seen today. Being the largest in Anatolia, the theatre has the capacity of 25,000 seats. The cavea has sixty six rows of seats, divided by two diazoma (walkway between seats) into three horizontal sections. There are three sections of seats. In the lower section, Marble pieces, used for restoration, and the Emperor's Box were found. The audience entered from the upper cavea. The stage building is three-storied and 18 meters high. The facade facing the audience was ornamented with relieves, columns with niches, windows and statues. There are five doors opening to the orchestra area, the middle one of which is wider than the rest. This enhanced the appearance of the stage, giving it a bigger, monumental look. The theatre was used not only for concerts and plays, but also for religious, political and philosophical discussions and for gladiator and animal fights. GPS coords: 37.941024606998106,27.34220802783966