Lydian Empire

Lydian Empire

Geographic Location and Map

The Lydian's geographic location is in Anatolia (Asia Minor) which is now known as modern day Turkey. The Lydian kingdom was surround by three other kingdoms. On the north side they lived in the middle of two valleys called the Hermus and the Cayster.

Advanced Citites

Conclusion

The Lydian Empire began with the falling of the Neo-Hittites and the Phrygians. Some major cities are, Sardis, which is the capital city, Philadelphia, and Magnesia which is not listed on the map. None of these major cities still exist today.

The significance of the Lydian society was not only the invention of coins (coinage) but they also created their own dynasty after the destruction of the Phryigan empire. By living so closely to the Pactolus River, where they mined gold, they were able to become one of hte wealthiest empires known. Also by processing gold the amount of trade they did was even greater. The most significant king was Alyattes (father of Gyges). He developed two good relationships with the Hellenic world, Perianders, and the Tyrant of Corinth. He also constructed two temples and by doing this, the Greek influence was understood in the Kingdom of Lydia.

Time Period

Social Structure

Technology/Contributions

The coinage system was invented by the Lydians somewhere around 700BCE. The coins were made of gold and were a major trade tool. This helped the Lydians trade with neighboring kingdoms. They also produced oils, perfume, and creme for medical and cosmetic uses.

The people of the Lydian Empire were known for living in one of the most wealthiest empires. Throughout empire the were many wealth aristocrats, royal families, and noblemen.The noblemen were the people who owned majority of the land. This land was used for planting food, because it was so fertile. Since the noblemen had most of the land they would use it for breeding horses.

The Lydian Empire began to rise as a Neo-Hittite kingdom after the falling of the Hittite Empire in the late 12th century BCE (1200-330BCE). Throughout most of the 13th century the Lydian empire was at its peak. With the beginning of this empire rose the capital city Sardis and the invention of coinage.

System of Writing

Religion

The Lydian system of writing was know as national alphabetical script which was derived from the Eastern Greek alphabet. Only 100 inscriptions survived as well as a few letters and monographs which were written on marble blocks as seen in the picture. They also used seals and coin legends.

The Lydians don't really have a set religion. We do know that they polytheistic people. In most religions during this time period only men were aloud to publicly display religious practices. But in the Lydian people they had it to were both men and women were priest of the church.

Government

There is not really a known government of the Lydian people.The only few things known was that there were kings who were head of the state. One of the most well-known kings,other than Ayattes, was his son Gyges. He ruled from 716 BCE to 678 BCE. Throughout his reign he helped transform Lydia's military and also founded the Mermnad Dynasty.