Trip Planner: Europe / Turkey / Turkish Aegean Coast / Izmir Province / Selcuk / Bibliotheque de Celsus

Bibliotheque de Celsus, Selcuk

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#2 of 393 in Things to do in Izmir Province

Ruin · Tourist Spot

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Standing on its nine-step platform, Bibliotheque de Celsus was first built in 117 CE as a mausoleum for Roman senator Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus. The two-story facade, which features three pairs of Corinthian columns, resembles the portico of an ancient Greek theater. The richly decorated library was destroyed in a fire in 262 CE, but was restored to the original design during the 1960s and 1970s. Note the statues in the niches between the doors, modern copies symbolizing wisdom, knowledge, intelligence, and virtue. The niches on the interior walls at one time held the scrolls of 12,000 manuscripts. Put Bibliotheque de Celsus into our Selcuk travel tool to see other points of interest to visit during your vacation in Selcuk.

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Bibliotheque de Celsus reviews

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1,753 reviews

By doctorfoxtrot

This is simply the highlight of the visit to the ancient ruins in Ephesus. Aside from that huge theatre of course. Ruins of the facade still makes an impression. And to think that this used to be...

This is simply the highlight of the visit to the ancient ruins in Ephesus. Aside from that huge theatre of course. Ruins of the facade still makes an impression. And to think that this used to be... more »
By 798nh

The most popular attraction at Ephesus and gets very crowded with people taking selfies. Inside is a lot emptier than outside and everything has been removed over the centuries but it’s still...

The most popular attraction at Ephesus and gets very crowded with people taking selfies. Inside is a lot emptier than outside and everything has been removed over the centuries but it’s still... more »

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