Filling a gap in available literature, Professor Henry Matthews brings alive the ancient cities of Aegean Turkey. He passionately explores history from the Bronze Age to the Byzantine era while lucidly explaining architectural principles. He guides readers through rugged mountains and fertile river valleys to twenty-one sites, including Troy, where the walls still stand that resisted Agamemnon's warriors; Miletus, the birthplace of Greek philosophy and science; Priene, whose Late Classical ruins express political and artistic ideals; Pergamon, the dramatic mountain-top metropolis; Aphrodisias, Hierapolis and Ephesus, where brilliant Roman architecture prevails and many surprises await.