Atop the foundations of a ruined house on the wooded slope of Bülbül Dağı (Mt Coressos), thought to be where the Virgin Mary lived, the enterprising Turks let a chapel be built, which receives streams of bussed-in pilgrims and curious tourists. 'Appropriate dress' is required. You may not have space to see much inside the tiny chapel through all the visitors, but note the pale red line on its side after exiting – everything beneath it is from the original foundation.
A 'wishing wall' below the chapel is covered in bits of rag, indicative of Turkic folk custom that visitors have imitated by tying their own bits of cloth, paper, plastic (or anything at hand) to a frame and making a wish. Taps here produce water from a spring.
The house foundations, discovered in 1881 by French priest Julien Gouyet, are 6th-century AD (though certain elements are older). Although legend had long attested that St John brought the Virgin Mary to Ephesus near the end of her life (AD 37–45), it took until the 19th century for conditions to be right for commercialisation. Gouyet claimed to have found Mary's house based on the visions of a 'mystic', bedridden German nun, Catherina Emmerich, and four popes have visited since then (most recently, Benedict XVI in 2006). Although the Vatican has not taken an official position on the case, the late John Paul II did declare Emmerich a saint in 2004, during the frenzy of last-minute sanctifications before his death.
Multilingual information panels exist, and brochures and booklets are available. Mary's House by Donald Carroll is a recommended book. At the entrance are cafes, shops and toilets, and the leafy site is good for a picnic.
The site is 7km from Ephesus' Upper Gate and 8.5km from the Lower Gate. Dolmuşes don't go, and taxis from Selçuk otogar (bus station) are ₺40/70 single/return (including a 30-minute wait).
