Although Izmir has been fought over many times in the thousands of years it has been inhabited, and suffered particular damage from Greek conquest, Turkish reconquest and a great fire during the Greek-Turkish war of 1922-3, the city has many sites of interest connected to the several civilizations that have ruled it, and some from before these times. A prehistoric site and lake associated with the mythological Tantalus, the ancient Greek settlement of Smyrna which gave its name to the city prior to Ottoman rule, the bazaar and castles constructed by the Ottomans and modern structures from the late Ottoman period that also reflect some European influences on 19th century Turkey.
The Phrygian king Tantalus, a son of Zeus, was said to have suffered eternal punishment in the abyss of Tartarus by being forced to stand in a lake that continually receded below his reach when he wanted to drink, and underneath the branches of a fruit tree that moved beyond his grasp when he wanted to eat. The lake was said to have been Karagöl, the “black lake” at Mount Yamanlar outside of Izmir, and Tantalus was supposedly buried there. His tomb was excavated in 1835, and the mountain is today a popular excursion site.
The ancient Greek amphitheater, where St. Polycarp, a follower of St. John, was martyred in 156 CE, is surmounted by the Kadifekale or “velvet castle”, one of three ancient fortifications in Izmir. This was called Pagos by the Greeks and Pagusby the Romans, and dates from the time of Alexander the Great. Fortifications and an extensive cistern system for water collection were added by Romans, Turks and the Mongol Tamerlane in subsequent centuries. There are two other ancient castles, St. Peter,built during rule by Genoa, and Sancakkale, which controls the narrow strait leading to the port.
The castles were expanded by the Ottomans, who during the 18th century also set upthe large Kemeraltı bazaar quarter that adjoins the Greek Agora outside the walls of the Kadifekale castle. More recent Ottoman construction includes the French-designed clock tower, built on the harbor in 1901 to celebrate the accession of Sultan Abdülhamid; the clock and surrounding fountains were given in 1904 by Germany’s Kaiser Wilhelm II.