Bergama Red Basilica Archaeological Site

The Red Basilica, or Kızıl Avlu, was built in the 2nd century AD under Emperor Hadrian and was probably devoted to the Egyptian gods Serapis, Harpocrates and Isis. Its sanctuary complex measures about 270 by 100 metres, and the temple itself around 60 by 20 metres, making it one of the most magnificent monuments of Pergamon. Because both temple and great forecourt were built entirely of brick, locals came to call it the "Red Courtyard".

It was placed in the very centre of Roman lower Bergama, reflecting the fascination with Egyptian culture at the time. The forecourt rests on water tunnels laid over the Selinos (Bergama) stream, a major engineering feat. In front of the temple, on the same axis, a propylon projected into the courtyard, and behind it stood a huge temple door framed by heavy marble jambs and probably leaves covered with bronze.

Only the front of the sacred space had windows, so that the back, where the cult statue stood, remained dimly lit. Two tall bases at the rear probably carried a seated colossal statue 10 to 12 metres high, faced with marble. Beneath the podium a cistern and hidden passages run under the main building, and the high priest may have used them to rise inside the hollow statue and speak to the crowd in the god's name. In the early Byzantine period, architectural additions turned it into one of the earliest seven churches in Anatolia.