754 Items
Dayr Tell Ada
Dayr Tell Ada stands on the southern slopes of Jebel Sheikh Barakat (the Mountain of the Old Man of Blessings) and plays a large role in the history of the Syrian Orthodox Church. It was mentioned by Theodoret and other chroniclers as the place where Simeon Stylites began his monastic career, before being expelled for the extreme feats of mortification that he insisted on undertaking. It was a 'dual house' for both Syriac and Greek speakers and had two abbots - one for each language - at the time of Theodoret.
It later became the home of St Jacob of Edessa, who died at Tell Ada in 708 having returned to pack up his fabled library when he moved home to Edessa.
Type: Architecture
Tags: Architecture, Dayr Tell Ada, Edessa, Greek, Jebel Seman, Jebel Sheikh Barakat, Library, Limestone Massif, Monastery, Simeon Stylites, St. Jacob of Edessa, Syria, Syriac, Theodoret
Bab al Hawa
Bab al Hawa means the gate of the winds and is the main border point between Antakya and Aleppo. A late antique monastery stands in no-mans land between the two passport and customs offices.
Type: Architecture
Tags: Aleppo, Antakya, Antioch, Architecture, Bab el Hawa, Late Antique, Limestone Massif, Monastery, Syria, Turkey
Resafa 1997 visit
These images were taken at Resafa in February 1997. It was pouring with rain and this affected the quality of the images, as did the fact that both the black and white images and the slides were developed badly in Syria. The visit was made in the company of Fr. Na'aman, a Rum Orthodox Archimandrite who ministered to all Christians in Raqqa and who appears in some of the images.
Most of the images show the basilica that dominates the city as the most substantial building still extant and that became the centre of the cult of Mar Sarkis (St. Sergius) after the partition of the city under Islamic rule. An early mosque abuts the north side of the basilica, but was not built to the same high standard and now little remains.
The rest of the pictures show the city walls and the Sura Gate (North gate) to the city.
Type: Architecture
Tags: Architecture, Church, Early Islamic, Gate, Late Antique, Martyrium, Mosque, Raqqa, Resafa, St. Sergius, Sura, Syria, Wall
Resafa Pilgrimage 1998
On 7th October 1998 thousands of Syrian and Lebanese Christians converged on Resafa to celebrate the 1700th anniversary of the martyrdom of SS. Sergius and Bacchus (they were fully aware that they were one year late - this was blamed on typical Syrian lack of organisation by those asked to provide an explanation for the belated date). An ecumenical ceremony took place in the basilica and these pictures document this event.
Type: Architecture
Tags: Architecture, Church, Early Islamic, Late Antique, Martyrium, Pilgrimage, Resafa, St. Bacchus, St. Sergius, Syria
Dayr Yakub
Dayr Yakub is a C5th monastery on the edge of the suburbs to the south of Urfa. The monastery is built on the top of a hill above an ancient quarry and clearly appropriated the site of a former pagan sanctuary. The earlier cult complex was also used as a necropolis as well as a place of sacrifice as a Palmyrene-style tomb tower, complete with a Syriac inscription, was incorporated into the later monastery buildings.
Type: Architecture
Tags: C5th, Dayr Yakub, Edessa, Inscription, Monastery, Necropolis, Palmyra, Quarry, Syriac, Syriac Inscription, Tomb Tower, Turkey, Urfa
Soǧmatar
Soǧmatar (also referred to as Sumatar Harabesi) was the centre of an ancient shrine to a deity known as Marilaha (Lord God). This is known from a number of C2nd AD Syriac inscriptions cut into the summit of a high rock outcrop. The approach to this ritual high place also had reliefs of the sun and moon gods cut into the rock. Nearby is a cave, referred to as the Pognon cave after the first European to record the site, with carved images of gods and a number of Syriac inscriptions that was obviously used for some kind of funerary or cult practice, A large circular building that shows some affinities with Zoroastrian 'towers of silence' completes the grouping of monuments, but the exact function of the last mentioned element has yet to be fully understood. What is clear is that this was not a permanently occupied town, but rather a holy place of pilgrimage where the faithful would gather for key festivals. These would be officiated at by priests, but whether these religious personages lived at Soǧmatar all the time or not is unclear.
Type: Inscription
Tags: C2nd, Caves, Figure, Inscription, Marilaha, Sculpture, Soǧmatar, Sumatar Harabesi, Syriac, Syriac Inscription, Turkey
Shuayb
Shuayb is the name given to a ruined late antique town east of Harran. The name comes from the local association of the site with the Prophet Jethro, who is venerated in a small cave shrine (a Roman/late antique funerary chamber) in the ruins. The architectural style is close to that of the Syrian Limestone Massif to the south, but is very simple and lacks the decorative relief carvings often found further south. It is un-excavated so little is known about the site, but the remains still above ground do not include any buildings that are clearly linked to religious practice and there are no unusual monuments or distinguishing features that enable scholars to identify the ancient name of this settlement.
Type: Architecture
Tags: Architecture, Caves, Jethro, Late Antique, Roman, Shrine, Shuayb, Turkey
Bazda Maǧaralari
Bazda Maǧaralari is named for the white rocks quarried at the site. It is located east of Harran and was extensively quarried in antiquity, providing the stone for Harran, Shuayb and a number of other local towns.
Type: Landscape
Tags: Bazda Maǧaralari, Harran, Quarry, Shuayb, Turkey
Harran
Harran is a ruined city in south-eastern Turkey not far from the Syrian border. It dates back many millennia and is believed to be by many people to be the Harran mentioned in Genesis where Abraham and Sarah (then still named Abram and Sarai) settled when they left Ur of the Chaldees. The city remained resolutely pagan throughout the late antique period and was dedicated to the moon god, Sin. Perhaps this was to mark its difference from the nearby Christian city of Edessa, but Harran was later swift to embrace Islam. Today its most significant monument is the extensive ruin of Harran's vast C8th congregational mosque, the minaret of which is still extant.
Type: Architecture
Tags: Abraham, Architecture, C8th, Chaldees, Defensive Network, Harran, Minaret, Mosque, Sin, Turkey, Ur
Samtavisi
Samtavisi is a large C13th church with the remains of a substantial C5th basilica lying directly to the south. This means that they were built side-by-side and raises the question of when the C5th basilica fell out of use and whether the later building was its replacement.
Type: Architecture
Tags: (As)Syrian Fathers, Architecture, C13th, C5th, Church, Georgia, Samtavisi, Shida Kartli, Thirteen (As)Syrian Fathers