Pergamum

Pergamum is an inland city about 65 miles north of Smyrna. It had a famous 200,000 volume library. After Ptolemy Epiphanes of Egypt (205-182 BC) cut off the export of papyrus, the researchers of Pergamum developed a paper from animal skins called parchment. This allowed Pergamum to become second only to Alexandria, Egypt in its vast library.
There were many temples in Pergamum. In fact, the great alter to Sater Zeus was considered one of the seven wonders of the world. The people of Pergamum had two main religions:

    Dionysys  - the god of the royal family symbolized by the bull.
    Asclepius - the savior god of healing represented by the snake.
                (Note: snake's involvement in healing in the Old
                       Testament, Numbers 21:6-9).

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   12"To the messenger of the church in Pergamum, write:
         The one who holds the sharp two-edged sword says:
    To the MESSENGER of the church in Pergamum write:
Christ is the author of this letter - Revelation 1:16.
    The one who holds the sharp two-edged sword says:
The Lord will use His sword to fight the BALAAMites (Revelation 2:14) and the NICOLAITANS (Revelation 2:15). This verse may allude to the fact that Pergamum under Roman control was given the rare power of capital punishment (ius gladii). This power is symbolized by the sword.
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