Memmius Monument

Memmius Monument was built by Memmius who was one of the prominent people of Ephesus in 87 B.C to honor Roman Dictator Sulla. It is one of the few architectural monuments that have survived to the present date at Ephesus and dates back to the late Hellenistic Period. Memmius in Greek and Latin was recorded on the first level of an inscription found during the excavation in 1960.

Regarding the architectural figure of the building, it is thought that a structure above the pedestal had circular niches facing east, south, and west. The caryatids, which carried capitals in the form of baskets were supporting the arches of the niches. The northern side which faces the hillside was probably not decorated or the decoration of this part had been completed.

It was a triumphal monument concerning the Romans’ emancipation from the Pontic armies. On the western side of the structure, a large fountain was erected in the 4th century AD. Located on a square pedestal, the structure originally had four frontages on which the soldiers of Sulla sculptured. The virtues of Sulla were symbolized by the reliefs on the original monument. It had an inscription that referred to dictator Sulla’s capture in 1 BC.