View source for Cyzicus

{{short description|Ancient town in Erdek, Balıkesir Province, Turkey}}
{{about|the ancient town|the clam shrimp genus|Cyzicus (crustacean)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox ancient site
| name = Cyzicus
| native_name = {{native name|grc|Κύζικος}}<br />{{native name|ota|آیدینجق}}
| alternate_name = 
| image = Istanbul - Museo archeol. - Auriga greco - Arcaico, sec. VI aC, da Cizico - Foto G. Dall'Orto 28-5-2006.jpg
| alt = 
| caption = Bas [[relief]] of a charioteer, late 6th century BC
| map_type = Turkey
| map_alt = 
| map_size = 270
| coordinates = {{Wikidatacoord|Q615449|region:TR_type:city|display=inline,title}}
| location = [[Erdek]], [[Balıkesir Province]], Turkey
| region = [[Mysia]]
| type = Settlement
| part_of = 
| length = 
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| builder = [[Pelasgians|Pelasgian]] settlers
| material = 
| built = 
| abandoned = 11th century AD
| epochs = [[Archaic Greece|Archaic Greek]] to [[High Middle Ages|High Medieval]]
| cultures = [[Greeks|Greek]], [[Ancient Rome|Ancient Roman]], [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]]
| dependency_of = 
| occupants = 
| event = [[Siege of Cyzicus]]
| excavations = 
| archaeologists = 
| condition = 
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| public_access = 
| website = <!-- {{URL|example.com}} -->
}}

'''Cyzicus''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|ɪ|z|ᵻ|k|ə|s}} {{respell|SIZ|ik|əs}}; {{langx|grc|Κύζικος|Kúzikos}}; {{langx|ota|آیدینجق|Aydıncıḳ}}) was an ancient Greek town in [[Mysia]] in [[Anatolia]] in the current [[Balıkesir Province]] of [[Turkey]]. It was located on the shoreward side of the present [[Kapıdağ Peninsula]] (the classical [[Arctonnesus]]), a [[tombolo]] which is said to have originally been an island in the [[Sea of Marmara]] only to be connected to the mainland in historic times either by artificial means or an earthquake.

The site of Cyzicus, located on the [[Erdek]] and [[Bandırma]] roads, is protected by [[Turkey]]'s [[Turkish Ministry of Culture|Ministry of Culture]].

==History==

[[File:Naiskos_stele_Cyzicus_Louvre_Ma2854.jpg|left|thumb|275px|Marble, 2nd quarter of the 2nd century BC. From Cyzicus]]
[[File:Cyzicus_amphitheatre_15.jpg|left|thumb|275px|Cyzicus ruins in [[Turkey]]]]
[[File:MYSIA, Kyzikos. Circa 550-500 BC.jpg|thumb|275px|Coin of Kyzikos, Mysia. Circa 550–500 BC]]
[[File:Coin of Cyzicus minted in the Achaemenid Empire.jpg|thumb|275px|Coin of Cyzicus, minted in the [[Achaemenid Persian Empire]]. '''Obv''': bearded Persian archer, testing arrow held in right hand, left hand holding bow, seated on a [[tuna|tunny]]. '''Rev''': Quadripartite incuse square. According to some numismatists, the archer may represent [[Pharnabazus II]]. The representation of the archer later became the canonical form used on the ''drachms'' of the [[Parthian Empire]]]]
[[File:MYSIA, Kyzikos. Early–mid 4th centuries BC. Portrait of Timotheos.jpg|thumb|275px|[[Electrum]] stater of Cyzicus, mid 4th century BC. On the obverse is a possible portrait of [[Timotheus (general)|Timotheos]], wearing a victory wreath, with a tuna fish below.<ref>Leo Mildenberg, "[https://www.jstor.org/stable/43580495 The Cyzicenes, a Reappraisal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181205062229/https://www.jstor.org/stable/43580495 |date=5 December 2018 }}", ''American Journal of Numismatics'', Vol. 5/6 (1993–94), pp. 1–12.</ref>]]
[[File:Mysia Kyzikos AR Tetradrachm LionsHead Pixodarus2D P631.xcf|alt=ancient Greek coin from Cyzicus|thumb|275x275px|Ancient Greek Coin from Cyzicus dated circa 390–341/0 BC]]

===Ancient===
The city was said to have been founded by [[Pelasgians]] from [[Thessaly]], according to tradition at the coming of the [[Argonauts]]; later it received many colonies from [[Miletus]], allegedly in 756 BC, but its importance began near the end of the [[Peloponnesian War]] when the conflict centered on the sea routes connecting Greece to the Black Sea. At this time, the cities of Athens and Miletus diminished in importance while Cyzicus began to prosper. Commander of the Athenian fleet [[Alcibiades]] defeated the Spartan fleet in a major naval engagement near Cyzicus known as the [[Battle of Cyzicus]] in 410 BC. Famed ancient philosopher [[Eudoxus of Cnidus]] established a school at Cyzicus and went with his pupils to Athens, visiting [[Plato]]. Later he returned to Anatolia to his hometown of [[Cnidus]], and died circa 350 BC.<ref>Florian Cajori, [[wikiquote:A History of Mathematics|''A History of Mathematics'']] (1893)</ref> The era of [[Olympiad]]s in Cyzicus was reckoned from 135 or 139.

Owing to its advantageous position it speedily acquired commercial importance, and the gold [[stater]]s of Cyzicus were a staple currency in the ancient world till they were superseded by those of [[Philip II of Macedon|Philip of Macedon]].{{sfn|Hasluck|1911}} Its unique and characteristic coin, the ''cyzicenus'', was worth 28 drachmae.
[[File:Cyzicus amphitheatre 10.jpg|thumb|Cyzicus amphitheatre]]

During the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC) Cyzicus was subject to the [[Athens|Athenians]] and [[Lacedaemon]]ians alternately. In the naval [[Battle of Cyzicus]] in 410 during the [[Peloponnesian War]], an Athenian fleet routed and completely destroyed a Spartan fleet. At the peace of [[Antalcidas]] (387 BC), like the other Greek cities in Asia, it was made over to [[Achaemenid Empire|Persia]].{{sfn|Hasluck|1911}} [[Alexander the Great]] later captured it from the Persians in 334 BC and was later claimed to be responsible for connecting the island to the mainland.

The history of the town in [[Hellenistic]] times is closely connected with that of the [[Attalid dynasty|Attalids]] of [[Pergamon]], with whose extinction it came into direct relations with [[Ancient Rome|Rome]]. Cyzicus was held for the Romans against King [[Mithridates VI of Pontus]] who besieged it with 300,000 men in 74 BC, the [[Siege of Cyzicus]], but it withstood him stoutly, and the siege was raised by [[Lucullus]]: the loyalty of the city was rewarded by an extension of territory and other privileges.{{sfn|Hasluck|1911}} The Romans favored it and recognized its municipal independence. Cyzicus was the leading city of Northern [[Mysia]] as far as [[Troad|Troas]].
[[Image:Mysia map ancient community.jpg|thumb|250px|Cyzicus was a town of Mysia]]

Under [[Tiberius]], it was incorporated into the [[Roman Empire]] but remained the capital of [[Mysia]] (afterwards, [[Hellespontus (province)|Hellespontus]]) and became one of the great cities of the ancient world.

There was a women's cult at Cyzicus worshiping the goddess [[Artemis]], which was called Dolon (Δόλων).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cs.uky.edu/~raphael/sol/sol-entries/delta/1345 |title=Suda, delta, 1345 |access-date=9 September 2021 |archive-date=23 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210723165923/https://www.cs.uky.edu/~raphael/sol/sol-entries/delta/1345 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Medieval===
Cyzicus was [[First Arab Siege of Constantinople|captured temporarily]] by the Arabs led by [[Muawiyah I]] in AD 675. It appears to have been ruined by a series of earthquakes beginning in 443, with the last in 1063. Although its population was transferred to [[Artake]] before the 13th century when the peninsula was occupied by the [[Fourth Crusade|Crusaders]],{{sfn|Hasluck|1911}} in 1324 the metropolitan of Cyzicus was one of three sees in Anatolia which was able to contribute a temporary annual subsidy to the Patriarchate of Constantinople. Following its conquest by the Ottomans it underwent hard times. From a point between 1370 and 1372 until 1387, the metropolitan was empty; Speros Vryonis speculates this was due to financial difficulties. Later in the 14th century, the sees of [[Chalcedon]] and certain patriarchal possessions in Bithynia and Hellespont were bestowed on the metropolitan of Cyzicus.<ref>Vryonis, ''The Decline of Medieval Hellenism in Asia Minor and the Process of Islamization from the Eleventh through the Fifteenth Century'' (Berkeley: University of California, 1971), pp. 299f</ref>

In the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman era]], it was part of the [[kaza of Erdek]] in the [[Brusa Vilayet|province of Brusa]].

== Ecclesiastical history ==
Cyzicus, as capital of the [[Roman province]] of [[Hellespontus (province)|Hellespontus]], was its ecclesiastical [[metropolitan see]]. In the ''[[Notitiae Episcopatuum]]'' of Pseudo-Epiphanius, composed in about 640, Cyzicus had 12 [[suffragan]] [[episcopal see|sees]]; [[Abydos (Hellespont)|Abydus]], [[Baris in Hellesponto]] (between Sariköy and Biga), [[Dardanus (city)|Dardanus]], [[Germa in Hellesponto]] (ruins of Germaslu, Kirmasti, Girmas), [[Hadrianotherae]] (Uzuncia yayla), [[Hisarlik|Ilium]], [[Lampsacus]], [[Karacabey|Miletopolis]], [[Diocese of Oca (Asia Minor)|Oca]], [[Pionia, Mysia|Pionia]] (Avcılar), [[Poemanenum]] (Eskimanias), [[Alexandria Troas|Troas]]. The province also included two autocephalous archiepiscopal sees: [[Parium]] and [[Proconnesus]].

=== Residential bishops ===
Cyzicus had a catalogue of bishops beginning with the 1st century; [[Michel Le Quien]] mentions fifty-nine.<ref name="Le Quien">{{Oriens Christianus|volume=1|article=Ecclesia Cyzici|at=cols. 747–768 }}</ref> A more complete list is found in Nicodemos, in the Greek "Office of St. Emilian" (Constantinople, 1876), 34–36, which has eighty-five names. Of particular importance are the famous [[Arianism|Arian]] theologian [[Eunomius of Cyzicus]]; [[Dalmatius (bishop of Cyzicus)|Saint Dalmatius]]; bishops [[Proclus of Constantinople|Proclus]] and [[Patriarch Germanus I of Constantinople|Germanus]], who became Patriarchs of Constantinople; and Saint Emilian, a martyr in the 8th century. Another saint who came from Cyzicus, Saint [[Tryphaena of Cyzicus]], is the [[patron saint]] of the city. [[Gelasius of Cyzicus|Gelasius]], a historian of [[Arianism]], who wrote about 475, was born at Cyzicus.<ref name="Le Quien"/><ref>v. ''Cyzique'', in [http://booksnow.scholarsportal.info/ebooks/oca2/4/dictionnairedhis13bauduoft/dictionnairedhis13bauduoft.pdf ''Dictionnaire d'Histoire et de Géographie ecclésiastiques''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805130222/https://booksnow.scholarsportal.info/ebooks/Readme.txt |date=5 August 2020 }}, vol. XIII, Paris 1956, coll. 1191–1196</ref>

* [[George Kleidas]], Metropolitan of Cyzicus in ca. 1253–61{{sfn|PLP|loc=11779. Κλειδᾶς Γεώργιος}}
* [[Theodore Skoutariotes]], Metropolitan of Cyzicus in ca. 1277{{sfn|PLP|loc=26204. Σκουταριώτης Θεόδωρος}}
* Daniel Glykys, Metropolitan of Cyzicus in 1285–89{{sfn|PLP|loc=4263. Γλυκύς Δανιήλ}}
* Methodius, Metropolitan of Cyzicus from 1289{{sfn|PLP|loc=17597. Μεθόδιος}}
* [[Niphon I of Constantinople|Niphon I]], Patriarch of Constantinople in 1310–14, was Metropolitan of Cyzicus in 1303–10{{sfn|PLP|loc=20679. Νίφων Ι.}}
* Athanasios, Metropolitan of Cyzicus in 1324–47{{sfn|PLP|loc=388. Ἀθανάσιος}}
* Theodoretos, ''[[proedros]]'' of Cyzicus in 1370–72{{sfn|PLP|loc=7332. Θεοδώρητος}}
* Sebasteianos, Metropolitan of Cyzicus in 1381–86{{sfn|PLP|loc=25063. Σεβαστειανός}}
* [[Matthew I of Constantinople|Matthew I]], Patriarch of Constantinople in 1397–1410, was Metropolitan of Cyzicus in 1387–97{{sfn|PLP|loc=17387. Ματθαῖος Ι.}}
* Theognostos, Metropolitan of Cyzicus in 1399–1405{{sfn|PLP|loc=37071. Θεόγνωστος}}
* Makarios, Metropolitan of Cyzicus in 1409{{sfn|PLP|loc=16261. Μακάριος}}
* [[Metrophanes II of Constantinople|Metrophanes II]], Patriarch of Constantinople in 1440–43, was Metropolitan of Cyzicus in 1436–40{{sfn|PLP|loc=18069. Μητροφάνης ΙΙ.}}
* [[Cyril IV of Constantinople|Cyril IV]], Patriarch of Constantinople in 1711–13, was Metropolitan of Cyzicus before that

Cyzicus remained a metropolitan see of the [[Greek Orthodox Church]] until the 1923 [[Convention Concerning the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations]] emptied it of Greek Orthodox faithful, whether they spoke Greek or Turkish. The last bishop of the see died in 1932.<ref>[http://users.sch.gr/markmarkou/katalog/ecp/kyzikos.htm Μητρόπολη Κυζικού]</ref><ref name=CE>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04598a.htm Siméon Vailhé, "Cyzicus"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190303150758/http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04598a.htm |date=3 March 2019 }} in ''[[Catholic Encyclopedia]]'' (New York 1908)</ref><ref>Heinrich Gelzer, [https://archive.org/stream/abhandlungenbay06klasgoog#page/n567/mode/2up ''Ungedruckte und ungenügend veröffentlichte Texte der Notitiae episcopatuum'', pp. 535, 537], in: Abhandlungen der philosophisch-historische classe der bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1901, pp.&nbsp;529–641</ref> Today it is a titular metropolis of the [[Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople]].

=== Catholic titular see ===

Since 1885, the [[Catholic Church]] lists Cyzicus as a [[titular see]]<ref>''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 {{ISBN|978-88-209-9070-1}}), p. 871</ref> of the highest (Metropolitan) rank, but vacant since 1974. Titular metropolitans were:

* [[Jean-Baptiste Lamy]] (1885.08.18 – 1888.02.13)
* William Benedict Scarisbrick, O.S.B. (1888.09.08 – 1908.05.07)
* José María Cázares y Martínez (1908.04.29 – 1909.03.31)
* Johannes Fidelis Battaglia (1909.07.03 – 1913.09.10)
* Simeón Pereira y Castellón (1913.12.02 – 1921.01.29)
* Giacomo Sereggi (1921.10.14 – 1922.04.11)
* Giuseppe Moràbito (1922.07.04 – 1923.12.03)
* [[Antal Papp]] (1924.07.14 – 1945.12.24)
* Manuel Marilla Ferreira da Silva (1949.05.29 – 1974.11.23)

==Monuments==
The site amid the marshes of Balkiz Serai is known as Bal-Kiz and entirely uninhabited, though under cultivation. The principal extant ruins are the walls, dating from the fourth century, which are traceable for nearly their whole extent, and the substructures of the temple of [[Hadrian]],{{sfn|Hasluck|1911}} the ruins of a Roman aqueduct and a theatre.

The picturesque [[Roman amphitheatre|amphitheatre]], intersected by a stream, was one of the largest in the world. Construction for the amphitheatre began in the middle of the first century until the end of the third. Its diameter was nearly {{convert|500|ft|m}} and it is located at these coordinates {{coord|40|23|54|N|27|53|5|E|type:landmark_region:TR|name=Cyzicus amphitheatre}}, north of the main part of Cyzicus.

The colossal foundations of the temple dedicated to the Emperor [[Hadrian]] are still visible: the columns were 21.35 metres high (about 70 feet), while the highest known elsewhere, those at [[Baalbek]] in Lebanon are only 19.35 metres (about 63 feet). The structure was the largest Greco-Roman temple ever built.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Vermeule |first1=Cornelius C. |title=A Greek Theme and its Survivals: The Ruler's Shield (Tondo Image) in Tomb and Temple |journal=Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society |date=1965 |volume=109 |issue=6 |page=376 |jstor=986138 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/986138.pdf |issn=0003-049X }}</ref> Of this magnificent building, sometimes ranked among the seven wonders of the ancient world, thirty-one immense columns still stood erect in 1444. These have since been carried away piecemeal for building purposes.{{sfn|Hasluck|1911}}

The monuments of Cyzicus were used by the Byzantine emperor Justinian as a quarry for the building of his Saint Sophia cathedral, and were still exploited by the Ottomans.

==Notable people==
* [[Androsthenes of Cyzicus]], 200 BC, accompanied King [[Antiochus III the Great]] to India.
* [[Eudoxus of Cyzicus]], 130 BC, navigator and explorer.
* [[Proclus of Constantinople]], appointed metropolitan of Cyzicus in 5th century but never functioned as such; patriarch of Constantinople and important figure in the development of [[Christology]]
* [[Patriarch Germanus I of Constantinople|Germanus of Constantinople]], early eighth century metropolitan of Cyzicus and later Patriarch of Constantinople and early [[Iconodule|iconophile]] theologian
* [[Gelasius of Cyzicus]], 5th century ecclesiastical writer.
* [[Adrastus of Cyzicus]], a mathematician cited by [[Augustine of Hippo]]
* [[Theophanes the Confessor]], who began his formal religious life at the Polychronius Monastery, located near Cyzicus.
* [[Iaia]], a female painter, sculptor, and ivory engraver, known as ''Iaia of Cyzicus''.
* [[Neanthes of Cyzicus]], rhetor

== See also ==
* [[Balıkesir Province#Ancient sites|Ancient sites of Balıkesir]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==Sources==
* {{EB1911|wstitle=Cyzicus|volume=7|page=720|first=Frederick William|last=Hasluck|author-link=Frederick William Hasluck}}
* {{Catholic|wstitle=Cyzicus}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last1=Trapp |first1=Erich |last2=Beyer |first2=Hans-Veit |encyclopedia=[[Prosopographisches Lexikon der Palaiologenzeit]] |volume=I, 1–12, Add. 1–2, CD-ROM Version |publisher=Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften |location=Vienna |year=2001 |language=German |isbn=978-3-7001-3003-1 |ref={{harvid|PLP}}}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* [http://www.asiaminorcoins.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=487 Ancient Greek coins of Kyzikos]

{{Former settlements in Turkey}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Milesian colonies]]
[[Category:Greek colonies in Mysia]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey]]
[[Category:Roman towns and cities in Turkey]]
[[Category:Former populated places in Turkey]]
[[Category:Geography of Balıkesir Province]]
[[Category:History of Balıkesir Province]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Balıkesir Province]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Balıkesir Province]]
[[Category:Members of the Delian League]]
[[Category:Roman fortifications in Roman Asia]]
[[Category:Defunct dioceses of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople]]