Turkey, the keeper of ancient Greek and Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman traditions, is famous all over the world for its luxurious palaces of sultans and viziers, great mosques and ancient museums, as well as beautiful lakes and waterfalls, wonderful peaks and flower valleys that are striking in their pristine beauty. However, there is another, more ancient side of Turkey, the cradle of early Christianity. Its heritage can be seen on the territory of ancient cities of the northern coast of the Aegean Sea. The ancient city of Hierapolis the name of which means «Holy City» is one of the silent witnesses of the past. There is a version, according to which the city was named after the queen of the Amazons, the wife of the legendary King of Pergamum and the founder of the city. Hierapolis was founded on the territory of the modern Turkish city of Pamukkale in the 2nd millennium BC and reached its peak in the 1st century when the Roman aristocracy settled on its fertile lands. This period of the history of Hierapolis is evidenced by the ruins of Roman thermal baths and the main tourist attraction - the active Cleopatra’s thermal pool. The source of thermal healing waters is located not far from the pool. The water there is so pure that even children can drink it. Nowadays the ruins of ancient structures and the largest antique necropolis found in Turkey can be seen thanks to the constant archaeological excavations. They began at the end of the 19th century by the German archaeologist Karl Humann and later continued under the guidance of the Italian professor of archeology Francesco D’Andria. There are also ruins of the ancient pagan temple of Pluto which was built in honor of the god of the underworld Pluto, and the largest temple of the city Apollo, erected at the beginning of CE. At that time, Christianity was actively spreading there, but then a tragic event happened - the crucifixion of one of the twelve apostles of Christ Saint Philip. The ruins of the martyrium, which is an octagonal cult structure built on the site of the death of the martyr, can tell tourists about this tragic day.