November
60s A.D. Starbucks
Guide to Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology: Antalya, Perga, Hania, Rhodes,
Ephesus, Pergamum, Corinth, Thessalonika, Jerash, & Cyprus
Wilson,
Mark. “The Starbucks Guide to Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology.” Biblical
Archaeology. 21 Oct 2014. http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-places/the-starbucks-guide-to-eastern-mediterranean-archaeology/. Accessed 21 Oct 2014.
The Starbucks Guide to Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology
Author Mark Wilson’s collection of Starbucks mugs featuring
archaeological sites. Photo: Mark Wilson.
Participants on my tours buy a variety of souvenirs—olive-wood
crèches in Bethlehem, ceramics in Corinth, carpets in Ephesus and parchment in
Pergamum. These days, however, I usually bring home only one thing—Starbucks
mugs featuring archaeological sites.
On a recent trip to Crete I visited ancient
Kydonia. Walking around the historic port of modern Chania, I saw the familiar
Starbucks symbol. After drinking a cup of Ethiopian blend, I spotted a lacuna
in my collection—Crete. The mug depicted the Minoan palace at Knossos. On this
trip I also picked up the Rhodes mug showing the Doric Temple of Athena Lindia
at Lindos. Paul visited both islands on his journeys (Acts 21:1; 27:7–13).
Starbucks has no shops in either Italy or
Israel, so they are unrepresented in my collection. However, Turkey, Jordan,
Greece and Cyprus are amply represented.
The city mug belonging to my hometown Antalya,
ancient Attalia (Acts 14:25), depicts the temple of Apollo in Side. Only six
columns still stand at the temple, which is now under restoration. A second
Antalya mug depicts the theater at Aspendus (see below), the best-preserved
Roman theater in Turkey. With a capacity of 7,000 persons, it still holds
operatic performances. The back of the mug shows the falls of the Katarrhactes
mentioned by the geographer Strabo, which today cascade over 100 feet into the
Mediterranean Sea. Nearby is Magydus, the seaport of Perga, where Paul arrived in Pamphylia (Acts 13:13).
The theater at Aspendus in Antalya Province, Turkey. Photo:
Mark Wilson.
The Ankara mug shows its ancient citadel with walls dating from the Hellenistic to Ottoman periods. Ancient Ancyra, Turkey’s capital today, was formerly a Galatian center before becoming the capital of the Roman province of Galatia in 25 B.C.E. The colorful mug from Bodrum (ancient Halicarnassus) displays the Castle of the Knights of St. John on the back. Built with stones from the Tomb of Mausolus, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the castle now houses the noted Museum of Underwater Archaeology. Last but not least, the Turkey country mug shows the monumental heads of King Antiochus and some of the Commagenian gods standing on Mount Nemrut. This tumulus, 161 feet tall and 499 feet in diameter, was constructed in the first century B.C.E. and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The free eBook Island Jewels: Understanding Ancient Cyprus and
Crete takes you on a journey to two stunning,
history-laden islands in the Mediterranean. Visit several key historical places
on both islands and discover many of the great objects that have been unearthed
there by archaeologists.
The Cyprus city mug shows the Greco-Roman theater at Kourion.
Situated with its breath-taking view of the Mediterranean, it could seat some
3,500 spectators. The excavations there are now being led by my friend Tom
Davis. A second Cyprus cup shows a rock-cut chamber from the Tombs of the Kings
in Paphos, also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Paul visited Paphos on his first
journey (Acts 13:6).
The Jordan mug shows the Artemis temple at
Gerasa (Jerash) completed during the reign of Antonius Pius. Eleven columns of
the hextastyle portico still stand. Situated on a high point, the temple
dominated Gerasa’s landscape.
On Thessaloniki’s city mug is its iconic
structure—the White Tower. Although dating from the Ottoman period, it still
reminds me of Paul’s multiple visits to the city (Acts 17:1; 20:2–3). Missing
from my Greece collection, however, is the country mug depicting the tholos at
Delphi and the Athens city mug showing the Parthenon. Hopefully on a future
visit I can locate them.
I haven’t visited Egypt or Lebanon yet so more
of the Biblical world still awaits me. Since the Starbucks mugs from these
countries also feature archaeological sites, I look forward to adding them to
my collection. It’s wonderful that this Seattle-based coffee vendor has put the
archaeological wonders of the eastern Mediterranean on its mugs. Coffee
drinkers like me get to appreciate them anew each time we take a sip.
Mark Wilson is the director of the Asia
Minor Research Center in Antalya, Turkey, and is the host for BAS’s tours of
Turkey, including the upcoming “With Paul on the Egnatian Way: Thrace to Illyricum.” Mark received his doctorate in Biblical studies from the University
of South Africa (Pretoria), where he serves as a research fellow in Biblical
archaeology. He is currently Visiting Professor of Early Christianity at Regent
University and Associate Professor Extraordinary of New Testament at
Stellenbosch University. He leads field studies in Turkey and the eastern
Mediterranean for university, seminary and church groups. He is the author of Biblical
Turkey: A Guide to the Jewish and Christian Sites of Asia Minor and
Victory
through the Lamb: A Guide to Revelation in Plain Language. He is a
frequent lecturer at BAS’s Bible Fests.
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