Pergamon

Pergamon, which once ruled much of what is now western Turkey, was one of the most advanced cities in the ancient world and its ruins are a marble testimony to this.

Located on a promontory on the north side of the river Bakircay, this Greek colonial city was a relatively small settlement until Lysimachos, general of Alexander the Great, decided to deposit his vast wealth of 9,000 talents of gold there. With each talent weighing as much as a person, this would be approximately £2 billion in today's money.

This vast sum was not squandered by Lysimachos' lieutenant Philetaerus, who used this wealth to found the Attalid dynasty, a rule that lasted between 282 and 129 BC.

The rule is said to have been benevolent for an ancient monarchy, with the Attalids allowing subject states a fair degree of independence, remitting taxes and sending forth skilled artisans.

These same artisans beautified Pergamon, with their handiwork still visible today. Most significant of these remains is the city's Asklepeion, a building dedicated to the god Asklepios and regarded as the world's first hospital. Healing springs would soothe sufferers and many hoped that the god himself would visit them in their dreams to reveal a cure for their ailments.

Pergamon was also renowned for having one of the finest libraries in the Classical world, a collection of 200,000 volumes and second only to the one in Alexandria, a collection that was eventually given to Cleopatra on her wedding. Even when Egypt stopped exporting papyrus, the wily locals devised a new way of printing books, on calf skin similar to vellum known as pergaminus, after the city, from which English gets the word parchment.

As with every Greek city, Pergamon had an acropolis, which is still popular with visitors today. While the great altar to Zeus has been removed to Berlin, visitors still gaze in wonder at the elaborate tombs built for the ancient kings and the monumental gates of king Eumenes II.

The ancient arsenal still remains in the acropolis, while the original theatre also stands as testimony to the Classical city's past glory.

Attalus III, the city's last king, died without an heir, bequeathing Pergamon to Rome to avoid a civil war. This led to more investment and eventually the emperor Trajan (AD 98 to 117) built a large temple. This is being restored to its former glory so that visitors can experience the marble glory as the ancients once did.

However, the same visitors are spoilt for choice for other fascinating sites to visit. Pergamon also boasts a sacred fountain, hospital sleeping rooms for dream analysis, the long subterranean tunnel and a disease treatment centre, amongst others. Tourists looking to seek these out are likely to pass through the modern town of Bergama, which itself has claims to fame with its Ottoman housing.

As with most of the ancient Greek cities, Pergamon is located on the coast and is not far from the island of Lesbos, as well as the golden beaches of the Aegean Sea.