the asklepion

First of all, I wasn't really impressed because I somehow didn't notice a part of the area - it is on the right side and I was looking straight ahead :D however, when I walked through the ruins, I felt wonderfully. The place is amazing and I highly recommend you to visit it off-season or at least not Saturday/Sunday when it is flooded by crowds.

This was pretty impressive. I am a nurse practitioner and my husband is a physician. We truly appreciated the medical history attached to this place. It was built to be a hospital city. I enjoyed walking through the ruins of this place and am grateful that healthcare has evolved somewhat since that time.

Plan to spend a few hours here. Don't rush. There are some wonderful details, including a number of sacred springs. Look for the turtle and frogs, descendants of the ancient inhabitants.

I found the ruins so the Asklepion to be highly educational. Here was one of the world's first operating theaters with stories about what was done where. I particularly enjoyed the whispering tunnels where the very ill walked and were told by invisible voices that they were indeed showing signs of recovery. The ruins are extensive and take a while to complete.

This site has well-preserved ruins of antiquity with a site dedicated to the Greek god of healing. The columns along the road, the theatre, and underground passage, is fascinating.

The Gate 1 tour took us to this site which was very interesting. I was dissapointed that they did not allow for enough tine to visit the Acropolis. They merely pointed to the hill and said a few words. We then proceeded to talk down the long Roman street to the hospital. From there we walked through the healing tunnel to where the rooms use to be. Apparently a patient was give morphine and told to walk through the tunnel at night. As they walked along the tunnel doctors were stationed above ground by the holes in the ceilings. From there they would pretend they were God Asklepion and shout words of encouragement that the patient would be healed. This was said many times as they walked the tunnel and during while the patient was sleeping. This was psychiatric hospital, a spa with a healing water and exercise area and a surgical hospital. They claimed that no one ever died here. Primarily because they would turn away patients that were really sick. This hospital also had a large amphitheater that was used to entertain their very wealthy patients. You are able to walk around freely among all of the ruins. There is a free bathroom and souvenir stands by the parking lot.

I had never heard of this place before - and what a surprise. Don't miss this, it's fantastic! So happy we had time to explore this place.

This was a fairly short stop while on a bus tour of Turkey. It was however very interesting. The idea that back that many years the Romans had ideas on how to treat mental illness was very intriguing.Visit the tunnel it gives you a great perspective of the site.

This place has some fabulous energy. It is visually delightful. The theater is in fabulous shape. You can see the outlines of many of the buildings that created the huge complex. If you have a good guide, you will get a sense of just what an incredibly important part of life this was for sick, rich people. It was the state of the art facility. The ancients had great ideas on how to restore the soul to health. I found it fascinating. As this is a bit out of the way for cruise ships, you don't have the crowds here that some of the other sites see. So you will have plenty of time to browse around at your leisure.

For the Sacredness of all Gods, Death is Forbidden to Enter Asclepion...Keep on walking at the entrance. It seems there is nothing more to see but wait. It is a huge complex. When you construct the ruins in your mind and dream about the life in here I believe you will like it more. I believe you will be attracted to see how they cured the people even before 2 millenium. Fantastic. You can have a virtual visit from the link http://www.muze.gov.tr/Images/muzeler/muze-asklepion-ios/flash/index.html

On the way to Izmir from Canakkale, we visited Asklepion, an ancient Greek Health Spa Center during the Hellenistic period (289-129 BC). It is an interesting site since during that period, modern treatments that have been used for centuries such as psychiatry, psychotheraphy, physiotheraphy, massage, mud bathing, and herbal medicine were practiced there, At the entrance to the site is a marble column with two serpents and a chalice, symbols of healing.The main thoroughfare is the Spiritual Way, a long stretch of columnades (mainly of the Corinthian and Ionian types) where patients are introduced to the site. There is a source of water supposedly having healing power. There is an underground tunnel where patients go through before reaching their rooms. The site even has an amphitheater where the patients are entertained. Asklepion was considered as the first pshychiatric medical center during the ancient time. As such, it is fascinating to visit this site to imagine and contemplate on how the ancients treat mental health even at such an early era. In the distance, one can see the ruins of the Acropolis of Pergamum.

A very nice set of old ruins that has so many little niches to explore making so many little individual sites amongst this large site making for a very nice expedition and very nice site to see in Bergama.

This area is known as one the first hospitals. If you read a little bit about its history (Galen, his treatment methods, how people were treated back then and so on..) you can better understand the area and site. When we were there there was a short play at the theater. It was just lovely we really enjoyed our visit.

Wow, son't miss this. Amazing tunnels and some really well written history. It looks at first as though there is not much to see. Keep on walking,

Interesting ruins with history touching on medical and psychological treatment. Galen worked here. Don't miss the tunnel as it was part of the operation and treatment (and today, if it is hot out, it's a cool shaded walk).