The Great Theatre of Ephesus was started under Lysimachus in the third century B.C. It could hold twenty-five thousands spectators and was the largest outdoor theatre in the ancient world. The theatre exhibited fights between wild beasts and between beasts and men. Ephesus was the capital of proconsular Asia, which was the western part of Asia Minor. It was colonized principally from Athens. Ephesus was famous for possessing the Temple of Diana, the chief shrine to this pagan god which was also considered one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. For many years during the Roman period Ephesus was the second largest city of the Roman Empire (the largest being the empire's capital city of Rome). In the first century B.C. Ephesus had a population of more than 250,000, making it the second largest city in the WORLD. The Apostle Paul, after staying in the city of Corinth for a year and a half, travels to Ephesus in the spring of 52 A.D. The journey to Ephesus, with friends Priscilla and Aquila, is considered part of what is called Paul's second missionary journey. Although Paul starts the first Christian church in Ephesus he stays only a few months in the city. He returns to Ephesus during his third missionary journey where he resides in and evangelizes the city for almost 3 1/2 years. Sources: Map of Apostle Paul's Second and Third Missionary Journeys, Wikipedia | 
