The Archaeology of Palmyra, Syria
Ancient Architecture in a Syrian City of the Roman Empire
Nov 6, 2009
The archaeological remains of Palmyra largely date to its heyday and reflect a monumental building programme based on the city’s privileged position in the eastern Roman Empire. At first glance, many of the constructions are typically Greco-Roman. Closer observation of many of the remains reveals distinctly unique details and embellishments which make’s Palmyra’s architecture uniquely its own.
The city contains many fragmented remains of Roman public buildings, such as the Baths of Diocletian, Semitic temples like the Temple of Allat and byzantine churches. Some of the most striking and well preserved remains are:
The Colonnaded Street, Palmyra
The Colonnaded Street was the chief road in Palmyra with many of its main monuments and buildings set about it. It runs for 1km across the city, stretching from east to west.
Built in the Roman period, it appears to be a typically classical feature with its continuous portico of columns running the length of both sides of the street. Yet a number of its features that show that it was not a typically Roman road.
Unlike the main streets of most roman cities, the colonnaded street is not straight. This is because it was a late addition to the city’s plan. A number of monuments were used to mark bends in the street and attempt to correct the visual axis.
The street’s most easterly point is marked by a monumental arch built at the time of Septimius Severus. This is in fact not one but two arches, hinged together at a 30 degree angle. This devise is used to tie in the Temple of Bel with the commencement of the city’s main street, which was impossible to do physically because the temple’s orientation did not match that of the road’s route. The hinged angle of the two arches guides links up the two features visually so that on leaving the street, the temple appear immediately in front of the onlooker instead of off to one side.
The Tetraphylon fulfils a similar function, marking and disguising a bend in the street. Built of Egyptian pink granite, it consists of a square platform with a cluster of four columns at each corner. Each series of columns held a cornice which in its turn held a statue.
The street also has another more subtle difference. Two thirds of the way up each of the street’s columns is a small platform. This was a uniquely Palmyran feature. Each platform was designed to hold the statue of a local notable who had donated towards the upkeep of the city
The Agora
Established in the Hellenistic period, this was the central of business in Palmyra. Here all desert caravans terminated in order to trade. It was also the site of Palmyra’s market as well as the city’s administrative centre.
What remains today is an 84x71 metre courtyard. In its heyday, it would have been surrounded by colonnaded porticos. Dedicatory remains indicate these columns would have been adorned with statues of Palmyran and Roman officials, senators and merchants.
Surrounding the agora were various buildings relevant to its commercial function. As well as a banqueting hall and what may have been a council chamber, there was a tariff hall where duties were paid on goods brought to the city. The main evidence for this comes from the stone tariff tablets dating to 137AD that were found on the spot. The tablets set out taxes paid on goods that passed through the city.
Temple of Baal Shamin
Although the remains of this small temple, situated slightly to the north of the Colonnaded Street were rebuilt to commemorate the visit of the Emperor Hadrian to the city, it represents pre roman Palmyran traditions. Baal Shamin was a Semitic deity, the god of storms and fertility, representing the unique concerns of a desert oasis town. Closed to the public today, it is possible to view the temple forecourt with its six columns through an iron grill. Once again, these columns would have carried statues of local dignitaries.
Camp of Diocletian
Dating to the late third, early fourth century AD and postdating Zenobia’s rebellion, this is one of the latest additions to the city. Despite its name, it is not a simple roman fort but consists of a monumental gateway, a further tetraphylon and a temple of standards. It may have been constructed on the site of Zenobia’s palace. For this reason alone, of all the archaeological remains of Palmyra, it represents the mark of Rome’s dominance on the city.
The most strikingly Semitic of Palmyra’s remains are its tombs and its spectacular temple of Bel.
Sources
Ancient Cities: The Archaeology of Urban Life in the Ancient Near East and Egypt, Greece and Rome (2003) Charles Gates. Routledge: London and New York.
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