Ephesus: the theatre, the temple, and the silversmiths
The theatre, the cult, the officials called asiarchs and the silversmith trade in Acts 19 are all attested at Ephesus.
Confirmed by the groundExcavated site1st century AD
The theatre where Acts sets the riot still stands, seating some 25,000. The temple of Artemis has been located and its scale confirmed. Inscriptions from the city name the asiarchs, mention the temple wardenship, and attest silver shrine-makers of Artemis as a trade.
…the whole city was filled with confusion… they rushed with one accord into the theatre.
- Found
- Ephesus, Turkey, 1869 — John Turtle Wood and later Austrian excavations
- Now held at
- In place; finds in the Ephesus Museum, British Museum and Vienna
- Language
- Greek
- How it reached us
- Dug up, or still standing where it was built.
What it shows
The setting is confirmed in detail; the riot itself is not independently recorded.
How historians use it
Ephesus is one of the most extensively excavated Roman cities; none of this depends on the biblical text.
In Scripture
Connects to
Sources
- Trebilco, The Early Christians in Ephesus from Paul to Ignatius (2004)
These summaries are written in English for now. Translations follow.