Mastaura in Asia
Mastaura in Asia was a small town that under the Roman Empire was incorporated into the province of Asia I.
It is to be distinguished from the town of Mastaura in Lycia.
Location
Mastaura was situated in the north of Caria, at the foot of Mount Messogis, on the small river Chrysaoras, between Tralles and Tripolis.[1][2] Some sources speak of the town as originally belonging to Lydia, a kingdom into which Croesus (560-546 BC) briefly incorporated Caria.[3][4]
Pliny the Elder mentions the town as dependent on Ephesus as its provincial capital and thus as belonging in his time (1st century AD) to the Roman province of Asia.[5] The geographer Strabo mentions the town as being in the valley of the Maeander River.[6]
The partially preserved theatre of Mastaura, whose cavea is now occupied by an olive grove, awaits excavation.[7][8]
Coinage
Mastaura had the privilege of having a mint and some of its coins are extant.[1][4]
Episcopal see
In the 5th century, Mastaura was a bishopric and was represented at both the Council of Ephesus (431) and the Council of Chalcedon (451).[9][10]
Mastaura in Asia is accordingly included in the Catholic Church's list of titular sees.[11]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 William Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854), entry: "Mastaura"
- ↑ Istanbul Guide, "Carie ... Mastaura & Harpasa"
- ↑ Gideon Nisbet, Greek Epigram in the Roman Empire: Martial's Forgotten Rivals (Oxford University Press 2003 ISBN 978-0-19926337-0), pp. 135-136
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Fitzwilliam Museum, Coins of Mastaura
- ↑ Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Book V, chapter 31
- ↑ Strabo, The Geography, Book XIV, chapter 1
- ↑ Museum of Architecture, "Mastaura Theatre"
- ↑ Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, "Mastaura"
- ↑ Hans Kaletsch, "Mastaura" in Brill’s New Pauly. Retrieved January 2014
- ↑ Greek Travel Pages, "Mastaura (Ancient City) Turkey"
- ↑ Annuario Pontificio (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2013, ISBN 978-88-209-9070-1), p. 925