| Abstract
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The Asklepieion of ancient Pergamon is an architecture that reflects the cultural ideals of a civilization that flourished in Asia Minor from the 4th century B.C.E. to 3rd century C.E. This sanctuary is a symbol that manifests political, social, and religious agendas of the people that built it, and is notable in the way it does this. To experience its space is to experience Asklepios, healing, and the authority of Rome. This dissertation is about experience. It is a study of how sacred space is formed, entered, and used by pilgrims seeking the healing attributed to the god Asklepios. It seeks to establish a theory and program for the success of this experience, and argues: (1) that the space of sacred activity communicates the cultural ideals of specific groups of people in specific places and periods in history; (2) that the symbolic programs identified in the space manifest the political, social, and religious agendas of the people that built them; (3) that the space is constructed to facilitate a specific experience to achieve a specific objective; (4) that those objectives are so closely intertwined with each other that the final spatial organization becomes paradigmatic of the experience intended; and (5) that ritual use of the space engages the experience to achieve the final objectives. The goal of the dissertation is to determine how the socio-political agendas of Imperial Rome and the activities that take place within the Asklepieion influence the spatial development of its environment to successfully facilitate the healing process.
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