Monumental Structures & Construction Methods
The magnificent public buildings of Ephesus (temples, libraries, agoras, etc.) were built with considerable labor, extended time, and significant cost. For the construction of these grand structures, marble blocks were first cut at quarries and then transported to the construction site on wheeled carts drawn by animals. The rough blocks extracted from the quarry were brought to sculpting workshops near the city, where they were shaped by craftsmen into the forms requested by the architect. The highest quality marble quarries around Ephesus, particularly concentrated around the village of Belevi. Indeed, in one of the ancient quarries in the Belevi area, relief figures carved into the rock by stone masons who cut marble 2000 years ago have even been identified. This shows that the traces left by the Ephesus craftsmen in the marble quarries have reached us today.
Placing the processed and prepared marble blocks into the structure required great engineering skill. Various cranes and rope mechanisms were used, especially to lift massive blocks weighing 10-15 tons to heights of several meters. Ancient sources describe two main methods used for this purpose:
Projection (Handle) Method: When carving the block stone, a special projection of approximately 20-25 cm in length was left in the middle, and later thick ropes were tied to this projection to lift the block upward with cranes. These protrusions acted as handles, allowing the ropes to grip the stone securely.
Groove (Channel) Method: Instead of leaving a projection on the stone block, U-shaped channels (grooves) were carved into the opposite edges, and the ropes were placed and tightened inside these grooves before lifting the block. This allowed the ropes to adhere to the stone securely and perform the lifting safely.
As the structure's framework was formed and marble blocks were stacked atop each other, additional measures were taken for the firm interlocking of adjacent stones. Blocks placed side by side were connected to each other with swallow-tailed iron clamps or rods inserted into grooves left between them. In the upper layers, special sockets were carved into the top surfaces of the lower blocks, and projections (like dowels) that would fit perfectly into these sockets were made on the blocks above them. All these clamp and dowel spaces opened to the exterior surface of the stone blocks through fine channels. Once the blocks were placed, molten lead was poured into these channels, reinforcing the metal clamps from the outside, effectively riveting the blocks together. Thanks to this method, massive marble pieces were interlocked as a single entity without the use of mortar, making them resistant to earthquakes.
A drawing (above) showing the metal clamp system used in ancient construction engineering to bind marble blocks, and archaeological remnants (below). Greek and Roman architects inserted "Π" shaped iron clamps into special recesses carved into the sides of blocks, fixing them with poured lead to keep walls together. This enabled large structures to withstand for thousands of years.
This advanced clamping technique made it possible to construct mortar-free and extremely durable walls in buildings erected in ancient cities like Ephesus. For instance, in buildings such as the Library of Celsus and the Great Theatre, many of the clamped blocks still remain in their original state today. Ancient architects used the combination of iron clamps and lead to create a flexible yet unbreakable connection between blocks; thus, the structure gained resilience against tremors and external effects.
The magnificent public buildings of Ephesus (temples, libraries, agoras, etc.) were built with considerable labor, extended time, and significant cost. For the construction of these grand structures, marble blocks were first cut at quarries and then transported to the construction site on wheeled carts drawn by animals. The rough blocks extracted from the quarry were brought to sculpting workshops near the city, where they were shaped by craftsmen into the forms requested by the architect. The highest quality marble quarries around Ephesus, particularly concentrated around the village of Belevi. Indeed, in one of the ancient quarries in the Belevi area, relief figures carved into the rock by stone masons who cut marble 2000 years ago have even been identified. This shows that the traces left by the Ephesus craftsmen in the marble quarries have reached us today.
Placing the processed and prepared marble blocks into the structure required great engineering skill. Various cranes and rope mechanisms were used, especially to lift massive blocks weighing 10-15 tons to heights of several meters. Ancient sources describe two main methods used for this purpose:
Projection (Handle) Method: When carving the block stone, a special projection of approximately 20-25 cm in length was left in the middle, and later thick ropes were tied to this projection to lift the block upward with cranes. These protrusions acted as handles, allowing the ropes to grip the stone securely.
Groove (Channel) Method: Instead of leaving a projection on the stone block, U-shaped channels (grooves) were carved into the opposite edges, and the ropes were placed and tightened inside these grooves before lifting the block. This allowed the ropes to adhere to the stone securely and perform the lifting safely.
As the structure's framework was formed and marble blocks were stacked atop each other, additional measures were taken for the firm interlocking of adjacent stones. Blocks placed side by side were connected to each other with swallow-tailed iron clamps or rods inserted into grooves left between them. In the upper layers, special sockets were carved into the top surfaces of the lower blocks, and projections (like dowels) that would fit perfectly into these sockets were made on the blocks above them. All these clamp and dowel spaces opened to the exterior surface of the stone blocks through fine channels. Once the blocks were placed, molten lead was poured into these channels, reinforcing the metal clamps from the outside, effectively riveting the blocks together. Thanks to this method, massive marble pieces were interlocked as a single entity without the use of mortar, making them resistant to earthquakes.
A drawing (above) showing the metal clamp system used in ancient construction engineering to bind marble blocks, and archaeological remnants (below). Greek and Roman architects inserted "Π" shaped iron clamps into special recesses carved into the sides of blocks, fixing them with poured lead to keep walls together. This enabled large structures to withstand for thousands of years.
This advanced clamping technique made it possible to construct mortar-free and extremely durable walls in buildings erected in ancient cities like Ephesus. For instance, in buildings such as the Library of Celsus and the Great Theatre, many of the clamped blocks still remain in their original state today. Ancient architects used the combination of iron clamps and lead to create a flexible yet unbreakable connection between blocks; thus, the structure gained resilience against tremors and external effects.