Antioch of Pisidia | Four Things You Must See There

Antioch of Pisidia has some real gems that you must see. We stopped to see this ancient city on a road trip to Sagalassos. In this article, I want to show you. 1.) The actual spot that the Apostle Paul likely gave his famous speech recorded at Acts 14:19-23. 2.) A stone mentioning Sergius Paulus from the book of Acts. 3.) A tour of the nearby town and 4.) Some beautiful stone work that you can see there.

1. The Exact Spot Where Paul Spoke When in Antioch

How do we know it’s the actual spot? The truth is we can’t say that with all certainty. But there is good reason to believe that we know where it was.

First let me show you the spot.

Fourth century Byzantine church.

It doesn’t look like much. It’s the base of an old Byzantine church. It’s location in Google maps is right here.

Sign explaining Byzantine church. English on lower half.

Here is the sign that is standing directly in front of it. If you can’t read it, here it is. I apologize in advance as the English is very bad. I improvised a little…

Central Church (Byzantine Church)

The church, which draws attention with it’s apse opposite Tiberius Square, is named the “Central Church” by researches because of where it is situated. Arundell identified the building as a church. Robinson wrote in his diary on July 5th, 1924 that after the walls were cleaned, they managed to get the latin cross plan of the church and Woodbridge drew a simple plan of the church. The excavations carried out by Taslialan showed that the church was not as small as thought, but wider with an Orthodox plan.

During the excavations Ramsay found an iron medallion from the period of Diocletian with the names Neon, Nikon, and Heliodorus on the obverse and ‘Ephesus of Antioch’ on the front. Ramsay wrote in his article published in 1927 that a smaller apse was found in the south of the church. There they found that a smaller apse, found in the south of the church’s apse, was the church built on the synagogue in which St. Paul gave his famous speech. The church is known as St. Bassus Church today. It was dated to the 4th century AD by Ramsay.”

– Antioch Pisidia sign in front of St. Passus Church

There are several churches in this city, but this one is the oldest – 400 AD. When archaeologists were digging at this site, they found two interesting things.

1. An iron seal that belonged to a church underneath it. It had the names of martyrs that had died at the hands of Emperor Diocletian (244-311 AD).
2. Below that church was the floor of a synagogue. This was the synagogue that existed in the first century. On that mosaic floor they found floral mosaics and a scripture inscribed on it – Ps 42:4.

There is no way of saying for sure that this is the actual synagogue where Paul spoke. But very likely Paul stood on that very floor and delivered his famous speech found at Acts 14:19-23.

2. The Sergius Paulus Stone from Pisidian Antioch

Inside the nearby town of Yavalc, there is a museum of items from Antioch of Pisidia. Among the many beautiful sculptures and inscriptions is one of particular interest to Christians. Here it is.

The name Sergius Paulus is inscribed on this stone.

The Bible mentions Sergius Paulus at Acts 13:7,12. This is the same name in the stone above. This man became a Christian in Paphos, Cyprus.

But it doesn’t mention him ever being in Pisidian Antioch and that is where the above stone comes from.

So what is the connection?

Here is the interesting part. Shortly after Sergius Paulus becomes a Christian in Cyprus, Paul and Barnabas make a b-line up to Pisidian Antioch. It is quite possible that they went to this destination at the urging of Sergius Paulus. As a high ranking official, he no doubt could arrange a welcome and lodging for them.

It’s safe to say that Paul and Barnabas did not just choose random places to go on their missionary tours. Barnabas was a native of Cyprus. Therefore it would make sense for them to break ground there. They would have lodging and friends to receive them.

So could the Sergius Paulus mentioned on the above stone in the museum be the very one that became a Christian in Paphos? Possibly. At the very least, the name here shows it was a genuine Roman name at the time.

3. Yalvac – The Town Built With Stones from Antioch of Pisidia

Among the first archaeologists to excavate in Antioch was archaeologist William Ramsay. His work took place up until about the year 1927. After that, no excavations took place. The site was abandoned.

After that the nearby town of Yalvac used the stones from the site for roads and building projects up until the 1960’s. Therefore to his day you can walk around the town, look at old buildings and spot old blocks, friezes and inscriptions on the buildings.

I highly recommend taking a walk around this small town and trying to spot them.

4. The Beautiful Stones of Pisidian Antioch

Besides this, there is a beautiful aqueduct behind the ancient city. You must drive to it on a well maintained dirt road. It is located here and there is no charge to see it. Every shot is Instagram-worthy.

Aqueduct accessible behind Antioch Pisidia.

Beautiful friezes.

Gladiator training took place at the stadium.

We found a metal ring in the dirt… but left it there of course.

Conclusion

Even though Antioch of Pisidia has only had about 3 percent excavated, it is definitely worth the trip. After about 3 hours we were done. Now we are on our way to Sagalassos.