Cave of the Seven Sleepers

The inscriptions in this cave date from the 1st century, making them the earliest known Christian documents. According to Mecdelli, the Virgin Mary resided in Ephesus and was buried there. An inscription in ancient Greek to the effect that the famous believer known as St Feotini was buried in this cave was observed during excavations carried out by the Austrian team.

It was in this cave that seven young men are said to have gone to sleep during the reign of the Emperor Decius and wakened under the Christian Emperor Theodosius.

The cave is located in Mt Panayir at a point outside the defence walls erected by Lysimachus. The place seems to have been concealed. A different version of the legend appears in the Qur'an.