Made rich by maritime commerce and its colonies, Miletus prospered through Byzantine and Seljuk times, but finally died when its harbor filled completely with alluvium from the Meander River. Though a settlement was known to be here in Hittite times, it was the Ionian Hippodamos who gave Miletus its street grid plan, a revolutionary feature of urban planning that was copied in nearby Priene, and later by all new Roman cities. Isidore of Miletus was one of the two men who changed the course of architecture with the design of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. It was in Miletus that St Paul met with the elders of the church of Ephesus (the Ephesians) before his final journey to Rome. Thales of Miletus (6th-5th century BC), one of the Seven Sages of Greece, has been called "the founder of science," with especially great contributions in the fields of geometry and astronomy. It's the central of the three ancient sites ( Priene, Miletus and Didyma) you can visit on a day trip from Selçuk ( Ephesus) or Kuşadası.
Located on the southern edge of the Meander River flood plain, 22 km (14 miles) south of Priene ( map), Miletus was an important Ionian city for 1400 years, from about 700 BC to 700 AD. Miletus is known for its gigantic 25,000-seat Hellenistic theater, reconstructed by the Romans and perhaps the most impressive theater structure in Anatolia.
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