Thyatira

THY-uh-TY-ruh · Modern Akhisar, Turkey

Thyatira is a city of the biblical world, known today as Akhisar, Turkey.

What is known

One of the seven churches of Revelation, rebuked for tolerating a false prophetess (Revelation 2:18-29)
Hometown of Lydia, the "seller of purple" whom Paul converted at Philippi (Acts 16:14) — fitting, since inscriptions confirm the city had unusually many dyers' and purple-traders' guilds

History

Founded: A Hellenistic-era Lydian city known for its trade guilds
Population: Estimated 20,000–30,000 residents in the 1st century AD, a mid-sized trade-guild center
Industry: Textile dyeing, especially purple cloth, and metalworking guilds
Coordinates: 38.9201° N, 27.8363° E

Archaeology

Because ancient Thyatira lies largely beneath modern Akhisar, excavation has been limited to a small open-air site, uncovering an 83-meter colonnaded Roman street and a large apsidal building interpreted as a Roman-Byzantine basilica. Inscriptions confirm Thyatira had more trade guilds — including dyers and wool-workers — than almost any other city in the region, consistent with Lydia's occupation, though no artifact directly names her.

Restored columns of the Roman colonnaded street at Thyatira, Akhisar — source & licence

Ruins of the ancient city of Thyatira, Akhisar, Turkey — source & licence

Scripture references

Acts 16:14
Revelation 1:11
Revelation 2:18-29

On a modern map

Thyatira today

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