Prompted by Edwinus's post, I turned to my Blue Guide: Turkey in search of archaeological details on The Cave of the Seven Sleepers, and found the following (at pages 203-06, in the section dealing with Ephesus):

"Just before you pass through the Byzantine walls look for a track to the lefft which circles Mt Pion. If you are not in a hurry, follow this to the Cave of the Seven Sleepers. Take great care in the area around the cave, as many of the vaults and walls are in a dangerous condition.

"According to a pious tradition, seven Christian youths, who lived in Ephesus during the reign of Decius (249-51), refused to offer sacrifice in the temple of the Emperor and took refuge in a cave on the N slopes of Mt Pion where they fell into a deepl sleep. When they awoke, one of them went into the city to pu5rchase bread. His strange appearance, clothes of antique cut and ancient money provoked much comment. On making discreet inquiries, he discovered to his astonishment that he and his companions had been asleep, not for one night, but for 112 years. A Christian Emperor, Theodosius II, was on the throne and Christianity was the state religion. The Sleepers were buried in the cave and a church was built over their graves. [N.B. The reference to 112 years is preusmably a typo -- to fall within the reign of Theodosius II (408-450), it would have to be at least 162 years and could be as much as 192 years.]

"In religious iconography the Seven Sleepers are named and depicted as follows: SS John, Maximian and Constantine (symbol a club), SS Mortian and Malchus (symbol an axe), St Serapion (symbol a torch) and St Dionysus (symbol a large nail).

"The archaeologists discovered the ruins of a small church above a gallery which was cut into the rock. This contains a number of burial chambers, on whose walls are written prayers and invocations to the Seven Sleepers. Offerings, including terracotta lamps, have been found in the graves of later Christians who were buried around the church and the gallery. Clearly considered a holy place, the site was used up to the late Byzantine period. Graffiti dating from the time of the Crusades have been found here."

A map on page 205 locates the "Necropolis of the Seven Sleepers" east of the Stadium on the opposite (northeastern) side of the hill. Most of the Ephesus with which we as tourists are likely to be familiar (the theatre, the Library of Celsus, the Temple of Hadrian and the street leading uphill from these structures) lie on the western and southern slopes of the hill. When I visited Ephesus in the spring of 1979, I recall the ruins of the stadium and the gymnasium being little visited, and never made it to the Cave of the Seven Sleepers at all.

The detailed information in the Blue Guides is typically taken from the actual archaeological reports, so this information can be regarded as fairly reliable.

Those with an interest in reading more Byzantine Saints' Lives in translation are directed to the Dumbarton Oaks website, where several titles are listed -- click here , and scroll down to "Byzantine Saints Lives in Translation".