Sardis
Capital of Lydia and of King Croesus, where some of the first coins were struck. Walk the Roman gymnasium and one of the largest ancient synagogues, then the Temple of Artemis by the Pactolus stream.
Plan your visit
For a first visit at an easy pace.
Opening hours and prices change: see muze.gov.tr (opens in a new tab).
Times are our estimates. Distances are straight lines.
Its place in history
Read the chapter before you go.
Where its treasures are now
Ionic column from the Temple of Artemis
Held abroad; no return
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New YorkFirst coins. Lydian and Ionian electrum coins (lion's head), c. 630–600 BC. Confirmed How sure we are →
First pure gold and pure silver coins. Croeseids (lion-and-bull coins of Croesus) and the Sardis gold refinery, c. 560–546 BC. Qualified How sure we are →
From here
Selçuk
84 km. Ephesus, the Temple of Artemis, Şirince and Priene.
Bin Tepe Tumuli
About 9 km as the crow flies. The Lydian royal cemetery: more than a hundred burial mounds on the ridge north of Sardis.
Troy, Pergamon and Sardis
4 days, 6 places, Çanakkale to Manisa.
Also nearby
- 0 kmSardis Synagogue & Gymnasium
Monumental complex, Roman
- 9 kmBin Tepe Tumuli
Royal necropolis, Lydian
- museumAkhisar Museum
Thyateira finds
- museumManisa Museum
Sardis finds, mosaics
Location precise · Source (opens in a new tab)