Dead Cities - Syria Byzantine Heritage

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About Dead Cities - Syria Byzantine Heritage

The Dead Cities are a group of 700 abandoned settlements in northwest Syria between Aleppo and Hama. They date back to before the fifth century B.C and contain many remains of Christian Byzantine architecture. Important dead cities locations include Qalat Samaan (St. Simeon Cathedral), Qalb Lawza, Qirkbize, Bakirha, Sermada, Al-Dana, Brad, Burj Haidar, Kharab Al-Shams Church, Kalota, Kafar Nabu, Mshabbak, Qatura, Sitt Errum, Turmanin, Al-Bara, Dalloza, Sarjella, Jaradeh, Ruweiha, Refadeh, Turin, Shinsharah and many more.

St. George Monastery, crusaders' castles, Palmyra, Busra, Apamea, Ugarit, Amrit, Maalula, Seidnaya, and other monasteries are not considered Dead Cities heritage. Please don't add them here.

The best or most interesting photos can be found just clicking this link: for medium 240px photos www.flickr.com/search/groups/?q=dead+cities&m=pool&am...
and for thumbnail size photos www.flickr.com/search/groups/?q=dead+cities&w=5972518...

Dead Cities description as to Ignacio Pena (the author permits excerpts from the book to be used), this is the introduction:

The thriving Byzantine Empire produced a particularly fine standard of art and architecture between the 4th and 7th centuries. Many well-preserved examples of this rich archaeological history can be found in Syria. In particular, the legendary Dead Cities of northern Syria were largely unexplored until recently and [this book] provides a fascinating insight into the once-thriving towns, including their markets, houses, halls, bath-houses, churches, temples and tombs. The population of the limestone massifs had boomed as Roman soldiers were encouraged to settle the land and irrigation schemes increased its productivity. Syrian olive oil was exported all across the Mediterranean world and, with a good income and only seasonal farm work, the residents turned their energies to building on an unprecedented scale.

Many of the buildings are family farm-houses or community facilities, but of particular importance are the hundreds of churches which were built. Numerous pilgrims visited the area to pay homage to St Simeon the Stylite and the many other monks and martyrs who inspired them. Carvings and inscriptions remain as a record of the art and beliefs of both pilgrims and local people. Some are devotional phrases or symbols; others commemorate the people who founded churches, hostelries and town halls.

It also includes sites of pagan worship from the same period, and concludes with an examination of the influence of Byzantine art on Islamic and European art, and the eventual decline of the population of the Syrian limestone massifs.