Perge (Greek: Πέργη): important city in ancient Pamphylia.
History
Alexander the Great
According to legend, the Pamphylian towns were founded by Greeks in the age after the Trojan War; there may be some truth to this, because we're certain that Mycenaean Greeks migrated eastward, to Cyprus
s.VII: Settlers from the Peloponnese;everybody was living on the citadel (oddly, no traces of the wall have been found)
s.IV: Expansion from the citadel to the plain in the south
Hellenistic city walls surrounded an area of about thirty-three hectares; acropolis nineteen hectares
Competition with Side: which city is the greatest in Pamphylia?
Cult of the local mother goddess, Artemis of Perge, was well-known, but the temple has not yet been identified
Golden age under the Romans: palaestra built during the reign of Claudius (r.41-54) and baths during Septimius Severus (r.193-211); to make room for this building and a new agora, southern wall expanded with some three hectares, bringing the grand total to fifty-five hectares
297: Capital of the newly created province Pamphylia
s.V: Lower town abandoned, citadel still in use
Perge, Severan nymphaeum, Septimius Severus
Perge, Severan nymphaeum, Julia Domna
Perge, Northern nymphaeum, Hadrian
Perge, Agora, West hall, Portrait of a priest
Sculpture
In Perge, many statues and portraits have been found. Much of it is now in the Archaeological Museum of Antalya. Among the examples are two really fine sarcophagi with the Twelve Labors of the Greek demigod Heracles.
