Tripolis (Phrygia)
Encyclopedia
Tripolis – also Neapolis, Apollonia, and Antoninopolis – was an ancient city of Phrygia
(also attributed to Caria
and Lydia
, on the northern bank of the upper course of the Maeander, and on the road leading from Sardes by Philadelphia
to Laodicea ad Lycum. (It. Ant.
p. 336; Tab. Peut.) It was situated 20 km to the northwest of Hierapolis
, and is not mentioned by any writer before the time of Pliny
(v. 30), who treats it as a Lydia
n town, and says that it was washed by the Maeander. Ptolemy
(v. 2. § 18) and Stephanus of Byzantium
describe it as a Caria
n town, and the latter (s. v.) adds that in his time it was called Neapolis. Hierocles
(p. 669) likewise calls it a Lydian town. Pliny also states that Apollonia was an alternate name for the city. The city minted coins in antiquity which bore the head of Leto
.
Ruins of it still exist near Yenicekent
(formerly Yeniji or Kash Yeniji), a township in the Buldan
district of Denizli Province
, Turkey
. (Arundell, Seven Churches, p. 245; Hamilton, Researches, i. p. 525; Fellows, Asia Minor, p. 287.) The ruins mostly date from the Roman
and Byzantine
periods and include a theater, baths, city walls, and a necropolis
.
It remains a titular see
of the Roman Catholic Church
, Tripolitanus in Lydia; the seat is now vacant. http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/d3t86.html
Phrygia
In antiquity, Phrygia was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now modern-day Turkey. The Phrygians initially lived in the southern Balkans; according to Herodotus, under the name of Bryges , changing it to Phruges after their final migration to Anatolia, via the...
(also attributed to Caria
Caria
Caria was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined the Carian population in forming Greek-dominated states there...
and Lydia
Lydia
Lydia was an Iron Age kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the modern Turkish provinces of Manisa and inland İzmir. Its population spoke an Anatolian language known as Lydian....
, on the northern bank of the upper course of the Maeander, and on the road leading from Sardes by Philadelphia
Alasehir
Alaşehir, in Antiquity and the Middle Ages known as Philadelphia , i.e. " brotherly love" is a town and district of Manisa Province in the Aegean region of Turkey. It is situated in the valley of the Kuzuçay , at the foot of the Bozdağ...
to Laodicea ad Lycum. (It. Ant.
Antonine Itinerary
The Antonine Itinerary is a register of the stations and distances along the various roads of the Roman empire, containing directions how to get from one Roman settlement to another...
p. 336; Tab. Peut.) It was situated 20 km to the northwest of Hierapolis
Hierapolis
Hierapolis was the ancient Greco-Roman city which sat on top of hot springs located in south western Turkey near Denizli....
, and is not mentioned by any writer before the time of Pliny
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
(v. 30), who treats it as a Lydia
Lydia
Lydia was an Iron Age kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the modern Turkish provinces of Manisa and inland İzmir. Its population spoke an Anatolian language known as Lydian....
n town, and says that it was washed by the Maeander. Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
(v. 2. § 18) and Stephanus of Byzantium
Stephanus of Byzantium
Stephen of Byzantium, also known as Stephanus Byzantinus , was the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled Ethnica...
describe it as a Caria
Caria
Caria was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined the Carian population in forming Greek-dominated states there...
n town, and the latter (s. v.) adds that in his time it was called Neapolis. Hierocles
Hierocles (author of Synecdemus)
Hierocles or Hierokles was a Byzantine geographer of the sixth century and the attributed author of the Synecdemus or Synekdemos, which contains a table of administrative divisions of the Byzantine Empire and lists of the cities of each...
(p. 669) likewise calls it a Lydian town. Pliny also states that Apollonia was an alternate name for the city. The city minted coins in antiquity which bore the head of Leto
Leto
In Greek mythology, Leto is a daughter of the Titans Coeus and Phoebe. The island of Kos is claimed as her birthplace. In the Olympian scheme, Zeus is the father of her twins, Apollo and Artemis, the Letoides, which Leto conceived after her hidden beauty accidentally caught the eyes of Zeus...
.
Ruins of it still exist near Yenicekent
Yenicekent
Yenicekent is a depending township in Buldan district, Denizli Province in southwestern Turkey. The region is notable for its high plains covered with dense and beautiful forests. Yenicekent is also the site of ancient Tripolis of Phrygia.-History:...
(formerly Yeniji or Kash Yeniji), a township in the Buldan
Buldan
Buldan is a town and a district of Denizli Province in the inner Aegean Region of Turkey. Buldan district area neighbors to the east and the south three other districts of the same province, namely Güney, Akköy and Sarayköy, and to the west by the areas of three districts of Aydın Province,...
district of Denizli Province
Denizli Province
Denizli Province is a province of Turkey in Western Anatolia, on high ground above the Aegean coast. Neighbouring provinces are Uşak to the north, Burdur, Isparta, Afyon to the east, Aydın, Manisa to the west and Muğla to the south. It is located between the coordinates 28° 30’ and 29° 30’ E and...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. (Arundell, Seven Churches, p. 245; Hamilton, Researches, i. p. 525; Fellows, Asia Minor, p. 287.) The ruins mostly date from the Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
and Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
periods and include a theater, baths, city walls, and a necropolis
Necropolis
A necropolis is a large cemetery or burial ground, usually including structural tombs. The word comes from the Greek νεκρόπολις - nekropolis, literally meaning "city of the dead"...
.
It remains a titular see
Titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular bishop", "titular metropolitan", or "titular archbishop"....
of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, Tripolitanus in Lydia; the seat is now vacant. http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/d3t86.html