Church of St. Jean
The Basilica of St. John (Greek: Βασιλική του Αγίου Ιωάννη του Θεολόγου) was a basilica in Ephesus. It was built in the 6th century by Justinian I on a site where John the Apostle is said to have been buried. It was modeled after the now-demolished Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople.
The basilica is located on the slopes of Ayasuluk Hill, just below the castle, next to the Isa Bey Mosque, near the center of the Selçuk district of İzmir Province, about 3.5 km (2.2 mi) from Ephesus.
Very little is known about the Basilica of St. John; the only source is a small description given by Procopius in one of his works, The Buildings, whereupon Procopius writes
In front of the city of Ephesus, on a steep slope, there was a place of hilly and bare earth, which could not be cultivated, or even if it were cultivated, it would not yield crops, but was altogether hard and rugged. The locals had built a church there early on for the Apostle John, who was called “The Theologian” because he described the nature of God in a way that was beyond the unaided power of man. This church, small and dilapidated because it was so old, the Emperor Justinian had it demolished and in its place he built a church so large and beautiful that, to put it simply, it rivals and in every way resembles the temple dedicated to all the Apostles in the imperial city.
