Alexandria Troas
also Troas simply, on the sea-coast southwest of Troy, was enlarged by Antigonus, hence called Antigonia, but afterwards it resumed its first name. It flourished greatly, both under the Greeks and the Romans; and both Iulius Caesar and Constantine thought of establishing the seat of the Empire in it.
City on a lagoon of the Aegean coast opposite Bozcaada (Tenedos). Built by Antigonos in 310 B.C., it was called Antigonia until Lysimachos changed its name to Alexandria. Although Strabo barely mentions the city, it must have developed rapidly in the days of Lysimachos and was under Roman domination under the reign of Antiochos. It was reconstructed through the efforts of Augustus, Hadrian, and Herodes Atticus. Later it came under Byzantine rule. In the 17th c. its ruins supplied columns for buildings in Istanbul.
A rectangular fortification wall (2500 x 1700 m) enclosed the harbor, which was suitable for shipbuilding as well as for shelter. No trace remains of the aqueduct built by Herodes Atticus at great expense. It has been suggested that the bath be dated to the time of Herodes Atticus because of the resemblance of its architectural decoration to that of his odeion in Athens. Of the theater only the cavea is visible. The small Doric temple, the stadium, agora, and gymnasium, all known to have existed can no longer be seen.
BIBLIOGRAPHYR. Koldewey, “Das Bad von Alexandria Troas,” AthMitt 9 (1884); W. Leaf, Strabo and the Troad (1923).
C. BAYBURTLUOĞLU