Archaeological Survey at Notion / Colophon-by-the-Sea

Notion, also known as Colophon-by-the-Sea, was an ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia. A comprehensive archaeological survey carried out by the University of Michigan and Brown University (2014-21) yielded rich ceramic evidence for the chronology and commercial connections of the settlement, clarified essential aspects of the city plan, provided opportunities for detailed study of major buildings and public works, and shed new light on both the local geology and the modification of the landscape through terracing and stone extraction. These investigations documented a major program of urban development featuring new fortifications and a new city plan in the early to mid-third century BCE, three centuries of prosperous habitation, and the substantial abandonment of the city in the early first century CE. The archaeology of Notion provides vivid evidence for the turbulent history of Ionia in Hellenistic times, and for the different responses of local communities to Roman rule.