Agora of Aigai ancient city comes to light

MANISA

An agora (city square) has been discovered during the excavations in the 2,700-year-old ancient city of Aigai in the western province of Manisa.

While works continue to unearth the agora, located right next to the parliament building, bull-head reliefs and inscriptions related to the god Apollo were also found on the columns in the square during the excavations.

Aigai, located within the borders of the Yuntdağıköseler neighborhood in the Yunusemre district, is one of the 12 Aeolian cities established in western Anatolia. The city was a significant center of trade in the Hellenistic era.

The 2,200-year-old agora was discovered as part of the “Heritage to the Future Project,” carried out by the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums.

Professor Yusuf Sezgin, the head of the Manisa Celal Bayar University (MCBU) Archaeology Department and excavation director, has been involved in the Aigai excavations for 21 years and provided information about the work and the significance of the discovered agora.

Stating that they will uncover the agora, the heart and center of the ancient city, Sezgin said: “This area is where all public buildings are concentrated and where people spend their daily lives. Around the square, there are columned porticos that we call 'stoa.' In this respect, this is a very important area. One of the symbols of Aigai is the agora building in this area. As a result of the work, we will focus particularly on the parts of the building that need restoration and conservation.”

May be related to vowing made to gods 

Sezgin, who noted that the ancient city is 2,700 years old, emphasized that this date corresponds to the construction of the agora and the city's parliament building, and mentioned that they have some archaeological evidence supporting this.

Stating that they came across interesting findings during the excavations in the agora, Sezgin said: “We found bull-headed reliefs under the roofs of stoas [columned porticos], which we are not very familiar with in the ancient world. We think they are important, as these bullheads are usually because they are typically associated with gods. We have found examples of this in several places in the ancient world. It is most likely related to the god of Apollo as we also found inscriptions related to the god Apollo near the area we are working on."

"These types of stoas usually have a very simple architectural structure, but if they are related to a votive offering, it is possible to think that these embossed bullheads are related to a ritual, to the gods. This may be related to a major war or a votive offering made to the gods related to the reconstruction of the city,” Sezgin added.

Excavations in the ancient city of Aigai since 2004 have unearthed tens of thousands of artifacts and ceramic pieces, which were delivered to the Manisa Museum after their restoration in the excavation house.