The foundations of the Temple of Apollo at Hierapolis remain today. Once the heart of the city, this was where people came to consult the temple's oracle. The adjoining spring, known as the Plutonium, was where people gave sacrifices to the gods. Apparently only the temple's eunuch priests understood the secret of holding one's breath around the toxic fumes that billowed up from Hades, immediately killing the small animals and birds they sacrificed.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
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This ancient spa city's location atop Pamukkale's tourist-magnet travertines is quite spectacular. Founded as a curative centre around 190 BC by Eumenes…
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0.17 MILES
The World Heritage–listed saucer-shaped travertines (or terraces) of Pamukkale wind sideways down the powder-white mountain above the village, providing a…
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26.48 MILES
Added to Unesco's World Heritage List in 2017, this remote site in the Anatolian hinterland trumps many of Turkey's ancient sites for its sheer scale and…
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The Roman theatre is the highlight of Hierapolis, dramatically sitting uphill from the site and overlooking the ruins and mountains beyond. The stage area…
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6.41 MILES
Laodicea was once a commercial city straddling two major trade routes, famed for its black wool, banking and medicines. Cicero lived here for a time and…
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Martyrium of St Philip the Apostle
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The extraordinary octagonal Martyrium of St Philip the Apostle at Hierapolis is built on the site where it's believed that St Philip was martyred. The…
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Housed in former Roman baths, this excellent museum exhibits spectacular sarcophagi from nearby archaeological site Laodicea and elsewhere; small finds…
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The necropolis (cemetery) at Hierapolis rambles across the hills and is one of the most fascinating parts of the ancient city ruins. The path through the…
Nearby Pamukkale attractions
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Hierapolis' scant Byzantine church ruins are a bit of a jumble and difficult to decipher. They're behind the museum.
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This ancient spa city's location atop Pamukkale's tourist-magnet travertines is quite spectacular. Founded as a curative centre around 190 BC by Eumenes…
3. Hierapolis Archaeology Museum
0.13 MILES
Housed in former Roman baths, this excellent museum exhibits spectacular sarcophagi from nearby archaeological site Laodicea and elsewhere; small finds…
0.17 MILES
The World Heritage–listed saucer-shaped travertines (or terraces) of Pamukkale wind sideways down the powder-white mountain above the village, providing a…
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Only a few Doric columns remain from Hierapolis' 1st-century gymnasium, which was one of the social hubs of the ancient city. An earthquake in the 7th…
0.22 MILES
The Roman theatre is the highlight of Hierapolis, dramatically sitting uphill from the site and overlooking the ruins and mountains beyond. The stage area…
0.27 MILES
The first monument you come to if you enter Hierapolis at the south gate is this 5th-century travertine block and marble gate.
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This entrance gate to Hierapolis is about 2.5km up the hill from Pamukkale village.