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Bulbul Dag or Bülbüldagi, or Mt. Koressos (Nightingale Mountain) is located 9 km ahead of Ephesus and at 9 kilometers away from Selcuk town with a height of 420 meters.
It is believed that the Holy Mother lived until she was 101 years of age and died at this place on Bulbul Mountain. The holy place called "Panaia Capulu" ("Chapel of the Most Holy") was a Greek Orthodox church earlier. In 1881 a French priest, the Abbé Julien Gouyet of Paris, discovered a small stone building on a mountain overlooking the Aegean Sea and the ruins of ancient Ephesus.
Updated Jan 29, 2009
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The "Water of Mary" is a source to be found at the exit of the church area and where a rather salt water, with curative properties, can be drunk by all visitors.
The “sacred” springs located a level below. Pilgrims gather at the sacred springs to imbibe, bathe in, and bottle water from Mary’s spring.
The spring water is available to pilgrims by faucets positioned in four consecutive stone-arched niches in the retaining wall supporting the foundation of the shrine area above.
You can watch my 2 min 36 sec Video clip Meryemana Slide-show with Khachaturian – Suite from “Lancy Ball”.
Written Jan 27, 2009
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The house is a typical Roman architectural example, entirely made of stones. A church, combining the House and the grave of Virgin Mary was built in the 4th century AD. The House was destroyed by many earthquakes.
The red painted line around the current structure indicates the level of the 300 AD structure that was standing at its discovery in 1891.
Entrance fee is 10 TRY ($7.5). Open hours from the morning till the sunset.
You can watch my 3 min 32 sec Video clip Meryemana with Vivaldi – Concerto in Cmaj for two trumpets.
Updated Jan 27, 2009
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Visitors who are going to the House of Virgin Mary can see the seven-foot bronze statue of Virgin Mary with arms raised in a welcoming gesture. It stood at the beginning of the walkway through the house earlier. Now it is located at the road leading to the site at the foot of Nightingale Mountain.
The large statue is made of bronze and weighs approximately 2,500 kilograms. The sculptor Ahmet Bekir Ermin is well known throughout Turkey for his sculpture of Virgin Mary.
Written Jan 27, 2009
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Unfortunately there is no public transportation (bus or dolmus) to the house along the Meriem Ana Yolu (or 35-37 road). So you can get to the place only by excursion bus or by taxi. The road is very picturesque and you won’t be disappointed by views out of the window.
The guide book also suggests reaching the site by walk 5 km from Ephesus. But I don’t know whether it’s a good decision to climb up several hundred meters, haha!
You can watch my 3 min 31 sec Video clip Meryemana-Selcuk road with Ragga Oktay – Cukulata Kiz Turkish pop music.
Updated Jan 27, 2009
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This journey would have been before 1951 an arduous three-and-a-half-hour hike across the plain of Ephesus and up the steep mountainside to Mary’s house. Turkish officials recognized the need for developing road systems to Nightingale Mountain.
In 1948 a nine-kilometer road between Selcuk and Meryemana “Meryem Ana Yolu” was built. Now it allows for ease of travel to the shrine. The road was built by Turkish soldiers. It took three months to complete.
The road ends at a large tree-enclosed parking lot dotted with cars and buses.
You can watch my 4 min 32 sec Video clip Selcuk-Meryemana road with Faruk – Azar Azar Turkish pop music.
Updated Jan 27, 2009
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You can see ribbons with subjects of prayers (Dilek Baglama Yeri) written on them and tied to lattice work just below the house.
A short distance from the spring, a stone wall covered with twelve large metal grids comes into view. The grids are a fairly recent addition installed to hold the strips of cloth and paper Turkish pilgrims traditionally leave at the site.
You may watch my high resolution photo of Meryemana on the Google Earth according to the following coordinates 37° 54' 43.31" N 27° 19' 58.36" E or on my Google Earth Panoramio Dilek Baglama Yeri.
Updated Jan 27, 2009
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Meryemana is situated at the distance of 7-9 km from Selcuk and Ephesus. So I searched Meryemana in the VT database in the Turkish province of Izmir Ili where Selcuk and Ephesus are located. But I failed!
I repeated searching and found that there are two Meryemana in VT database of Turkey. One of them is located in the Giresun Ili which certainly isn’t that very Meryemana I had visited. Another Meryemana is located just in Turkey without mentioning of any Turkish province. I’ve chosen this destination and have built there my page. I’m the only VT here still and don’t know if it is correct…
Written Jan 29, 2009
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Favorite thing: Did Virgin Mary spend here last days and died here? Nobody knows it exactly still. Everybody knows the official version that she lived Jerusalem and died there. Her tomb is located in the Kedron Valley. But if it isn't so? Even Catholic Popes are in hesitation.
Pope Leo XIII visited Meryemana in Turkey in 1896. Paul VI was the first pope to visit this place oficially in the 1960's. In 1967 it has since been accepted that Virgin Mary might spend her last few years in there until she died at the age of 101. Later in the 1980's Pope John-Paul II during his visit declared the Shrine of Virgin Mary has a pilgrimage place for Christians. Pope Benedict XVI also visited Meryemana in 2006.
It is also visited by Muslims who recognize Mary as the mother of one of their prophets. Every year, on August 15th a ceremony is organized to commemorate Mary's Assumption.
Updated Jan 29, 2009
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Favorite thing: A German nun Catherine Emmerich (1773-1824) claimed that she had visions and dreams of Virgin Mary living in a small stone house near Ephesus even though the nun had never left Germany.
Following her descriptions it was discovered the foundations of the house in 1891, which was then verified again in the 20th century.
Written Jan 27, 2009
It is believed by many Christians and Muslims that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was taken to this place by Saint John and lived in the stone house until her Assumption into Heaven according to Catholics...
based on the directions of a reported 19th century visionary, this is the house where st. john the apostle brought the blessed virgin and where she lived until her assumption to heaven. i was truly...
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