Terrace House 2 (Ephesus)

Terraced Houses 2 is the name used by archaeologists for a complex of private houses (insulae) in the ancient city of Ephesus in Asia Minor, in present-day Turkey. Its ruins are part of the archaeological site of Ephesus, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.​​​

History

Terraced Houses 2 are the westernmost of the two terraced houses excavated in the city. To its eastern side is the so‑called Terraced House 1. The buildings take their current name from the fact that they were built on embankments on the hillside. The complex, known as Terraced Houses 2, consists of a single block (Roman insula), which was situated along Curetes Street, opposite the Varo baths and the Temple of Hadrian. Its houses date from the late Hellenistic period, in the 1st century BC, and remained in residential use at least until Late Antiquity, in the 4th century AD, and in part until the early Byzantine Empire. From the 3rd century BC, the houses show signs of urban decline as a consequence of earthquakes, and some of the dwellings were turned into workshops.​

The archaeological excavations of Terraced Houses 2 were carried out between 1967 and 1983. It was covered in 1999. Research and restoration work continue.​

Buildings and finds

The size of the block is approximately 4000 m². On the side of Curetes Street, it follows the street orientation in the north, and in the south the Hippodamian plan of the city. The block consisted of six and later seven dwellings built on a slope on terraces. The larger buildings of the block (dwellings 6 and 7) were situated side by side on Curetes Street. They had a peristyle courtyard in the centre, and the other rooms were arranged around it. On the side of Curetes Street, the ground floor of the houses housed shops, a tavern and workshops. The walls of the dwellings were usually decorated with frescoes and mosaics, and the floors were also covered with mosaics. The finds from the neighbourhood are preserved in the Ephesus Archaeological Museum.​​

Housing 1

It was located at the southeast corner of the block. It included, among other things, a vestibule and a courtyard with a peristyle of four pillars. It is especially known for the so‑called Theatre Hall, whose wall was decorated with frescoes relating to the comedies of Menander (The Shaved One, The Sicionians) and the tragedy of Euripides (Orestes). The paintings also include mythological themes, such as the battle of Heracles against Achelous.

Housing 2

It was located at the southwest corner of the block. It had a Doric‑style atrium with four columns and a courtyard called a Rodian peristyle of nine columns and a triclinium, among other things. The housing was decorated with glass mosaics of Dionysus and Ariadne and floor mosaics of Triton, among others.

Housing 3 and Housing 5

Housing 3 and Housing 5 (WE 5) were situated in the centre of the western part of the block. Originally they formed a single housing, but later they were separated. The wall paintings represent, among others, the nine Muses, Apollo, Sappho and famous philosophers.

Housing 4

It was situated in the centre of the eastern part of the block. Its wall paintings represented, among others, the philosopher Socrates and the muse Urania. It is believed to have had the same owners as Housing 6, and at some point between the years 100 and 200 it appears to have served as a commercial premises of the latter.

Housing 6

It was located at the northeast corner of the block. It was the largest dwelling, as only the ground floor measured about 950 m². According to the sketch, in the 2nd century it was owned by C. Flavius Furio Apto, one of the notable citizens of Ephesus, who lived in the area in that century. The courtyard with peristyle of the dwelling had two stories in height. It was surrounded by numerous rooms, including a private basilica with a barrel vault. Furio Apto played a role in the city's cult of Dionysus, and in this context many of the paintings of the dwelling depict mythological themes related to this god.

Dwelling 7

It was located at the northwest corner of the block. It had a ground floor of approximately 900 m². Among other finds, the busts of Livia Drusilla and Tiberius have been discovered. The dwelling was destroyed around the year 262 AD. At least part of it was still in use in the 4th century AD, the date of a wall painting on the theme of the novel *The Metamorphoses* by Apuleius.