The Temple of Artemis or Artemision, also known as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to an ancient, localised form of the goddess Artemis. It was located in Ephesus. By AD 401 it had been ruined or destroyed. Only foundations and fragments of the last temple remain at the site.
This model of the Temple of Artemis, at Miniatürk Park, Istanbul, Turkey, attempts to recreate the probable appearance of the third temple.
The site of the temple in 2017
The fame of the Temple of Artemis was known in the Renaissance, as demonstrated in this imagined portrayal of the temple in a 16th-century hand-colored engraving by Martin Heemskerck.
Electrotype of electrum coin from Ephesus, 625–600 BC. Stag grazing right, ΦΑΕΝΟΣ ΕΜΙ ΣΕΜΑ (retrograde, "I am the badge of Phanes").
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Artemis is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. In later times, she was identified with Selene, the personification of the Moon. She was often said to roam the forests and mountains, attended by her entourage of nymphs. The goddess Diana is her Roman equivalent.
The Diana of Versailles, a Roman copy of a Greek sculpture by Leochares (Louvre Museum)
Artémis (Diane), the huntress. Roman copy of a Greek statue, 2nd century. Galleria dei Candelabri - Vatican Museums
Artemis as Mistress of Animals, Parian pottery, 675–600 BCE . Hypothetical restoration (only some parts have been preserved). Archaeological Museum of Mykonos.
Minoan seal from Knossos. A goddess flanked by two lionesses, probably the "Mother of the Mountains", in the presence of her consort or the dedicant.
