40 Collections
Aleppo
Aleppo is the second city of Syria in importance, after the capital Damascus, but is actually the most populous and commercially significant city in the country. Unlike Damascus, which evolved from a series of small settlements, the origins of Aleppo originate with the tell in the centre of the old city which is now dominated by the citadel.
Creator: Emma Loosley
Date of Visit: February 1997, May 1998
Contributor: Emma Loosley
Rights: Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons
unless otherwise indicated
Ani
Ani once served as the capital city of the medieval Armenian kingdom and now lies just inside Turkey, abutting the border with modern Armenia. Until fairly recently, due to it's proximity to the border with Armenia, the whole city had been off limits to tourists as it lay within a militarised zone. During the 20th century the city was subject to vandalism, looting, deliberate destruction and questionable quality archaeological excavations that have all left their mark on the site and diminished it's splendour and how much could be learnt from it. This vast area is certainly still subject to looting and vandalism but it remains an archaeological and architectural treasure that demonstrates the former glories of the medieval Armenian people.
These images were taken in a single visit made in May 2015.
Creator: Joshua Bryant
Date of Visit: 16th May 2015
Contributor: Joshua Bryant
Rights: Metadata and all media released under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA International licence unless otherwise indicated
Ankara
This region, once an important crossroads in antiquity, fell into decline somewhat during the Ottoman Empire. However, since the small city of Ankara became the capital city of independent Turkey in the 1920's the regions fortunes have fared better. The city's size and population have boomed exponentially since the 1920's.
Much of it's ancient remains have been lost in the drive to develop and modernise the city. There are a few patches of architecture and archaeology that hint at Ankara's long and varied history.
This collection contains only images collected of the Kale and it's defences acquired in May and June 2015.
Creator: Joshua Bryant
Date of Visit: 25th June 2015, 1st May 2015
Contributor: Joshua Bryant
Rights: Metadata and all media released under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA International licence unless otherwise indicated
Antioch and its hinterland
Antioch played a central role in the formation of Christianity and was actually the first city where the epithet "Christian" was used for the followers of the new faith. It was associated with various apostles and other early church leaders and teachers, but much of our knowledge of centrally located monuments rests on textual sources as it is difficult to excavate in the centre of the modern city. On the other hand, a great deal has been learned about the suburbs and satellite towns around the ancient metropolis, such as its port, Seleucia Pieria. The hills around the city supported a number of monasteries and a number of Georgian monks seem to have been particularly drawn the the region from the sixth century onwards.
Creator: Emma Loosley
Date of Visit: 29th January 1997
Contributor: Emma Loosley
Rights: Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons unless otherwise indicated
Type: Architecture
Archaeological and Art Historical Artefacts in Georgian Collections
This collection includes pictures of artefacts that are held in the collections of the National Museum of Georgia. All the major museums in the country come under this umbrella and so the location of each object included will specify exactly which institution holds the item in question. Obviously many objects and collections do not allow photography and the images included in this collection were all taken in contexts where permission was given to take the pictures.
Creator: Emma Loosley
Contributor: Emma Loosley
Rights: Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons unless otherwise indicated
Type: Physical Object
Baalbek
The extant complex of temples at Baalbek dates from the late first century BCE until the second century CE. The site seems to have been initially dedicated to the Phoenician Triad of Baal-Shamash, Anta and Alyn. This was later Romanised and the local deities were then venerated in the guise of their Roman counterparts Jupiter, Venus and Mercury. The site was considered a provocation to Christians and both Constantine and Theodosius were said to have built basilicas within the temples, but no evidence of Christianity is extant today.
Creator: Emma Loosley
Date of Visit: March 1997
Contributor: Emma Loosley
Rights: Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons unless otherwise indicated
Type: Architecture
Bethlehem
Bethlehem in the West Bank is situated roughly 8km to the south of Jerusalem. It is described in the Old Testament as the burial place of Rachel, the wife of Jacob and mother to two of his sons, who died a short distance from the town. It is believed to be the birthplace of King David, who was also anointed as the King of Israel by the Prophet Samuel there. Since the second century, a cave within the town has been venerated as the site of Christ’s birth. This site was enshrined by a church in the fourth century and has undergone numerous remodelling programmes throughout its history. Unfortunately the modern town has been extensively built upon and so very little evidence from the Late Antique period remains.
Creator: Lucy O'Connor
Date of Visit: 1st July to 8th August 2013
Contributor: Lucy O'Connor
Rights: Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons unless otherwise indicated
Type: Architecture
Bosra
Bosra lies to the south of Syria near the Jordanian border. The city is built from the local black basalt giving it a stronger and more brooding appearance than the northern limestone constructions, not least because the hard stone does not lend itself to extensive decorative elements. The city served as an important trading centre that linked Damascus with the cities of the Decapolis, Palestine and Arabia. It figures in the life of the Prophet Mohammad, as he is said to have had discussions with a monk named Bahira, who was a member of the Church of the East, in the city when he led caravans for his first wife, Khadija.
Creator: Emma Loosley
Date of Visit: May 1998
Contributor: Emma Loosley
Rights: Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons unless otherwise indicated
Type: Architecture
Classical Archaeology in Georgia
These entries give information on Classical era sites that have been excavated in Eastern Georgia, specifically sites in and around Mtskheta, the city that was capital of the Kingdom of Kartli until it was moved to Tbilisi in the C6th CE. There is little evidence of Roman occupation in the region compared to the west of the country, but there were still Roman colonies present as far east as the territory of Mtskheta and ongoing excavations are slowly revealing more information of Roman-Kartvelian interaction in the first centuries CE.
Creator: Emma Loosley
Contributor: Emma Loosley
Peter Leeming
Rights: Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons unless otherwise indicated
Type: Archaeology
Comparative Armenian Ecclesiastical Monuments
This collection is not meant to be an exhaustive record of late antique ecclesiastical monuments in the contemporary territory of Armenia. Rather it is a personal (and as such almost certainly idiosyncratic) selection of Armenian ecclesiastical architecture that commentators have argued have been influenced by Syrian architecture or which has been linked to the development of Georgian architecture in some way. It must be underlined that these pictures were taken on a first fact-finding trip to see these buildings in reality, as opposed to reading about them and experiencing them only as floor plans or photographs. This area of research remains a new direction that the writer hopes to explore further at a future date, but any conclusions drawn in this section of the website are very much work-in-progress.
Creator: Emma Loosley
Contributor: Emma Loosley
Peter Leeming
Rights: Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons unless otherwise indicated
Type: Architecture