Iron Age According to
Pausanias, the town was inhabited by
Carians when the Ionian Greeks immigrated there under the guidance of Andræmon, a son of Codrus.
Strabo, however, states that it was colonized by Andropompus () and that it previously bore the name of Artis in
Lydia.
Velleius Paterculus wrote that Greeks from
Athens established the city as well as other cities in
Ionia. Lebedos became a flourishing city thanks to its commerce, and was famous for its
mineral springs, but it was one of the smaller cities of the Ionian League, handicapped by the limited space of its hinterland and a comparatively unsuitable port.
Classical Age In the
Hellenistic period, around 304 BC,
Antigonus I Monophthalmus tried to join the city with
Teos; however, this operation was incomplete and eventually annulled by
Lysimachus, who moved its population to
Ephesus in 292 BC. At some point, the name
Ptolemais (Πτολεμαΐς) was bestowed on the town, probably by
Ptolemy III Euergetes. The poet
Horace in one of his
Epistles (1.11.7–8) describes it as very quiet: 'a small town more deserted than
Gabii or
Fidenae'. He imagines his friend Bullatius contemplating a life of retirement there. Under Roman rule, it flourished anew, becoming the meeting place of the actors of all
Ionia when these were temporarily exiled from Teos, and festivals were celebrated in honour of
Dionysus. Its scanty remains are near the modern town of
Seferihisar. Pieces of attic black-glazed pottery were uncovered in the area during an archeological survey carried out by
Kütahya Dumlupınar University in
Turkey between 2017 and 2019. ==Ecclesiastical history==