Library of Celsus

And this was originally known as an amazing Greek city.

Here's the Celsus Library, one of the seven wonders of the world.

And they also have the Temple Diana.

And isn't it interesting that the more elitist a society becomes, the more immoral they become.

Given the limited archaeological evidence of the city, there was some artistic license used by the dev team to fill in the gaps, but they attempted to adhere to real-world influences using surviving artifacts and artwork that fit in the time period to fill in the holes.

For instance, they based the exterior design of the Library of Alexandria on the architecture of the Market Gate of Miletus, the Acropolis of Pergamon, and the Library of Celsus in Ephesus.

Several decorative elements of residential buildings and even the tomb of Alexander are drawn from archaeological sites like Pompeii, and artwork from across the Mediterranean.

While it is not perfect, I think that this is an acceptable compromise that the developers should be commended for, since it is clear that they did put in the effort to find period-appropriate or period-adjacent materials to base their designs around, which is about as good as we can ask for while maintaining the spectacle.

Visiting Ephesus today is an awe-inspiring experience.

The marble paved streets, the gigantic columns rising like witnesses of a bygone civilization, the theaters that could hold up to 25,000 people, and the famous Library of Celsus, whose facade remains almost intact, are a breathtaking sight.

Walking through these ruins is almost like hearing the echoes of Paul's words in the amphitheater, challenging the culture and religion of his time.

It is also a moment of reflection on the book of Revelation, where the church of Ephesus is praised for its perseverance, but warned for having abandoned its first love, a reminder of the importance of keeping the flame of faith alive and burning.

A clerestory window in an Egyptian hypostyle hall at Karnak, dating to about 1250 BC, used stone grilles carved to look like papyrus plants to filter sunlight into the interior.

The Library of Celsus in Ephesus, built around 117 AD, has a facade that uses a clever optical trick.

The central columns are slightly taller than those at the sides, making the building look larger and more imposing than it really is.

Chartres Cathedral was built in just twenty-six years, from 1194 to 1220, an extraordinarily fast pace for a Gothic cathedral.

Number three, the goddess Artemis, her temple was there.

Now, Ephesus had three major-- They have the Library of Celsus, they have the Amphitheatre of Ephesus, and the last one had to do with the docking blocks, their market system and all that.

But this goddess of Artemis, which was addressed in Acts 19, the people worshiped the goddess Diana.

They wanted to beat Paul.

There are remains of a 25,000-seat great theater that would have hosted both plays and gladiator fights.

There's the most memorable and gorgeous Library of Celsus that would have held thousands of scrolls across multiple floors.

And there are even the ruins of an ancient wonder of the world, the Temple of Artemis.

Wait, but you thought there was only one ancient wonder of the world you could still see, the Pyramids of Giza, right? No, no.

It's a city that's highly educated.

It has the Celsus Library that actually has a form of air conditioning to keep the mildew out of the books.

and they had 12,000 books in the library.

It's a city of prostitution and immorality.