Eski Gediz, Turkey

History

Until 1970, Eskigediz was simply called Gediz. After the town was destroyed in the 1970 Gediz earthquake, it was rebuilt from scratch at a site called Karılar Pazarı on the plain below. The name Gediz was transferred to the new settlement.

The ancient and medieval Kadoi (Ancient Greek: Κάδοι) was located immediately east of Eskigediz, on a hilltop now called Hisarardı Kale. To the east and south of the hill is a plateau which was historically used as a marble quarry; stone from here was used as building material that was later reused as spolia. Remains of an ancient aqueduct are the oldest intact structure at Eskigediz; two ancient marble statues were also reused as spolia in the later Debboy bridge.

Kadoi's earliest known mention was by Polybios in the 2nd century BCE. In Roman times, the town was located in Phrygia Epiktetos, near the border of Phrygia, Mysia, and Lydia. (The sources for this period are Strabo, Stephanus of Byzantium, and Ptolemy.) The 6th-century Synekdemos of Hierokles later mentions Kadoi as part of Phrygia Pakatiane. Kadoi was also a Christian diocese attested consistently from the 7th through 12th centuries in the Notitiae. Until around the 9th century, it was listed as subordinate to Laodikeia, and after that as under Hierapolis until the 12th century.

From the History section of Eskigediz on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.