Laodicea's North Theater

Abstract

Laodicea is located at the crossroads of West, Central, and South Anatolia and the west border of Phrygia. The city has two theaters-West and North. The North Theater, especially in the Roman Imperial period with the increase in the city's population and wealth, reflects the importance given to culture and art. However, these two theaters lost their importance rapidly in Late Antiquity as in the entire ancient world. The North Theater was built on hewn, natural ground. It was the second theater built in the Roman Imperial period. The facade and cavea of the theater were completely made of marble; the parodos walls and carrier systems were made of travertine. It faced to the north with a view to the Lycos plain and a lake. Its first construction phase must have started in the reign of Hadrian and completed in the Early Antonine period. It has a curving stage and deep orchestra and was used for water games (kolymbethra). Moreover, the theater has an analemma wall on the south side and related shops. Because of resting directly on the hewn ground, the rows of seats of the theater were heavily damaged due to earthquakes. Continuing excavations have brought to light the existence of inscriptions and a numbering system on the rows of seats. The inscriptions show that leading families, guilds and association administrations had reserved places to sit. The existence of special seats for the union of the purple dyers (porphyrabaphioi) shows that the center of the union was Laodicea. It was an influential and rich union in the region, and even financially supported the construction of some structures in Hierapolis. Moreover, inscriptions on the rows of seats in the theater show that cities of the region like Trapezopolis and Hierapolis also gathered here. This fact indicates that Laodicea was a leading city in the region. The North Theater, despite earthquakes and the necessary repairs that followed, was used continuously from the period of Hadrian to the early 7(th) century AD. After the abandonment of the city due to an earthquake in the reign of Emperor Phocas (AD 602-610), the theater, like other buildings of Laodicea, served as stone quarry until 1990.