Ancient city of Aizanoi set to host symphonic concert

KÜTAHYA

A symphonic folklore concert will be organized at the ancient city of Aizanoi in the inner Aegean province of Kütahya on July 22 to promote Aizanoi to the world, the Culture and Tourism Ministry announced in a statement.

Aizanoi is 57 kilometers away from the provincial center of Kütahya and is known as the second Ephesus thanks to its well-preserved Zeus temple, a 20,000-person capacity amphitheater, a 13,500-person capacity stadium, a bath, a street with pillars, a necropolis and the world’s “first stock exchange.”

Melodies from various parts of Anatolia and Azerbaijan will be heard at the concert, which will be performed by the İzmir State Symphonic Orchestra along with Turkish folkloric choruses from the capital of Ankara and the Central Anatolian province of Sivas, read the ministry statement released on July 19.

Chef Burak Tüzün will lead the concert, it added.

The name “Aizanoi” comes from the mythological hero “Azan.” The city is believed to date back to 3,000 B.C. During the Hellenistic era, Aizanoi was seized by the Pergamon Kingdom and Bithynia from time to time. The city later fell under Roman rule but gradually declined in importance in the early Byzantine era.

Archaeologists working at the site in 1971 discovered inscriptions indicating the existence of a stock exchange during the Roman era. According to the inscriptions, a slave’s price was equal to a donkey, while a horse was worth three slaves.

Notably, a round-shaped structure dating back to the second century A.D. contains a copy of a paper from Emperor Diocletian that was written in 301 A.D. outlining regulations on sale prices for goods in the market. Because of the document, many have claimed that Aizanoi possessed the world’s first stock market in its Macellum building.