Torbalı is located 45 km west to İzmir and the first settlement area in Torbalı was the antique city Metropolis, which was established on a hill between villages Yeniköy and Özbey on the west of Torbalı Plains.

European travelers J. Spon and G. Wheler are first to mention of Metropolis. These travelers came to the region in 1675 and stated that, the ruins located between Yeniköy and Özbey belong to the ancient city Metropolis.

In the 19th century, A.Fontier, a researcher from Izmir, found out as a result of his studies on inscriptions and on topographic aspects of the region that the ancient names of the Cevlik and Fetrek streams were “Astraios” and “Pyrites”; and he also managed to determine and describe the ruins of the ancient city briefly.

The first detailed scientific work on the history and inscriptions of Metropolis was made by the Austrian scientist J.Keil before World War I. Between 1972-1975 Prof.Dr. Recep Meriç conducted a systematic survey in Metropolis, which was later published in Germany, and in 1989, scientific excavations were initiated under the leadership of Torbalı Municipality. These excavations are supported by Philip Morris Marlbora, Torbalı Municipality and Metropolis Sevenler Derneği (Medoder). Excavations are still carried out by Prof. Dr. Recep Meriç.

Metropolis was founded in the 3rd century BC by Lysimachos’s men during the Kingdom of Selluokos. Metropolis means the city of Mother Goddess. The statue belonging to the mother goddess who gave the city its name (local name Metagallezya) was found in the excavations carried out in the Uyuzdere district. Metropolis developed well during the Hellenistic period (1-2 th century BC), the city was surrounded by magnificent city walls and a temple was built for Ares, the god of war. Metropolis, known to be an important center of the Hellenistic period, has created works of high quality and original sculpture.

During the Roman Empire period, the city developed downwards to the foothills. Some of the ruins of the city surviving today such as the Atrium, the Roman House, the temple of Zeus and the temple of the twelve gods belong to this period. In the Byzantine period, the city, which was an episcopal center, began to shrink due to wars, the city walls were narrowed and the city was limited to the castle, the stoa and the acropolis.

Theater:

Built on a natural hillside, the theater was hosting social, cultural and artistic activities of the city. The theater, all of which is made of marble, consists of the sections for the orchestra, stage building, seating and noble seats if the front row. These seats, which were made for the important guests, clergy and emperors, are some of the best examples of the marble work of the Hellenistic period. Behind these seats there are the reliefs of Zeus's lightning beam and Ares with a shield. The theater, which was first built in the late Hellenistic period and whose stage building was expanded in the Roman Period, has a capacity of 8-10 thousand people. The cavea with seating is divided into two diazomes with a corridor. The edges of the staircase are decorated with lions feet, each with a different pattern. In the 4th century AD the theater lost its function.