Cults in Priene in the light of archaeological and epigraphical finds

From the Hellenistic Period to the end of the Roman Imperial Period, the cults, whose existence was proven in the ancient city of Priene, sanctuaries and structures, cult personnel, rituals, feasts and offerings, and gods and goddesses whose cults are highly probable or only respected constitute the subject of the thesis. In this study, a wide variety of archaeological, numismatic and epigraphic finds from architecture to sculpture, from coins to inscriptions were evaluated in the light of similar examples. The existing gods and cults in Priene, which is one of the most important and best preserved cities of the Ionia region, were examined in a whole for the first time, the origins of the gods, the reasons for their worship, the relations of the cults with the sanctuaries and structures, rituals, cult personnel, the selection of these officials, their duties and responsibilities have been tried to be clarified. In addition to god cults, findings about hero, king and emperor cults were also evaluated. In this regard, archaeological, epigraphic and numismatic finds found in the excavations in the city were examined. It has been tried to reach a possible conclusion from the distribution of the finds obtained from the sanctuaries and different points in the city in Priene. In the first part of the thesis, information is given about the city of Priene, its geographical location and borders, its historical development and research history. In the second part, the cults whose existence was proven in Priene during the Hellenistic and Roman Imperial Periods were discussed and evaluated under the headings of archaeological, epigraphic and numismatic finds. In this second chapter, the Goddesses in the first sub-title, the Gods in the second, the Egyptian Gods Cult in the third, the Cult of Heracles in the fourth, the Cult of Alexander the Great in the fifth, the Roman Imperial Cult in the sixth, and the Domestic Cult in the last sub-title were explained in the light of the finds. In the appendix part of the thesis, the inscriptions found in the city related to the cults were arranged in catalog. Inscriptions and various of archaeological and numismatic materials found in Priene document that the city had similar beliefs and practices with many other cities in the Ionia region during the Hellenistic and Roman Periods, but it also had unique features.