Most visitors photograph the Library of Celsus and never notice that the black-and-white marble gate beside it tells a better story. The Mazaeus and Mithridates Gate — the grand southern entrance to the Commercial Agora — was built by two men who had been slaves, in thanks to the emperor who made them free.
Mazaeus and Mithridates served in the household of Augustus and his family. Freed — and evidently freed into prosperity, for imperial freedmen often became powerful agents of their former masters — they funded this triple arch in 4–3 BC and dedicated it, in bronze letters whose sockets you can still trace, to Augustus, his wife Livia, his general Agrippa and his daughter Julia.
Reading the gate
The design deliberately echoes a Roman triumphal arch — the honour usually reserved for conquering generals — repurposed here as a monument of gratitude. The dark stone facing against the pale Library beside it makes the corner one of the most striking compositions in the city; the two buildings are neighbours by accident of centuries, and better for it.
On the inner passage, look for the small Greek inscription warning — in effect — that whoever urinates here will answer to the goddess. Municipal signage has evolved less than one might hope.
