A menorah plaque from the center of Sardis

Roman Sardis, like other cities of W Asia Minor, reflects the distinctive cultures of different peoples who had long lived in its vicinity. Of these varied populations, the Jewish community seems to have been especially notable. Written sources cited by Josephus establish the presence of diaspora Jews in Lydia and Phrygia by the end of the 3rd c. B.C., when Antiochus III relocated 2000 families here from Babylon and Mesopotamia. By the Late Republic, their descendants at Sardis and other regional centers are known to have acquired civic privileges and rights. The local prominence of the Jewish community at Sardis was dramatically confirmed in the 1960s by the discovery in the city’s NW region of a large assembly hall, along with inscriptions, menorahs and other artifacts that clearly establish its use as a synagogue in the 4th-6th c. Further evidence of Jewish life has been noted during excavation of nearby houses, shops and streets in this peripheral quarter. The recent discovery of a marble relief plaque depicting a menorah and other symbols near the center is an important addition to the material culture of ancient Judaism in Asia Minor.