Sardis

Ancient city in Anatolia, capital of the kingdom of Lydia. Standing close to the junction of major trade routes, it was for hundreds of years an important political centre, as well as the first city to mint gold and silver coins.

It was captured in 546 BC by the Persians, who also made it a centre of government. In 498 it was burned by the Ionians during their revolt against Persian rule. This prompted the Persian king, Darius, to invade Greece in 490. Sardis became part of the empire of Alexander the Great; after his death it was included in the Seleucid empire. From 133 it was part of the Roman empire, and the emperor Diocletian made it the capital of the province of Lydia. As an early centre of Christianity, Sardis was one of the ‘Seven Churches’ addressed in the New Testament Book of Revelation. The others were Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Philadelphia, Laodicea, and Thyatira.