Understanding Syria through 40 Monuments

Ross Burns

"Syria, for millennia at the crossroads between East and West, has always been a melting pot of different cultures. In this book, its 4000 year history is told through 40 of its greatest monuments, each treasures of world heritage from the bombastic Roman architecture of Palmyra, to the Great mosque of Damascus, the gem at the heart of the Umayyad Islamic Empire. With extensive illustrations, maps and plans, the book takes the reader on a journey through Syria's past, charting the many wonders that yet remain thanks to the efforts of Syrians, a reminder of how complex a society Syria has always been. For many centuries this was its basic strength; now it is its crucial vulnerability which has left it open to numerous forces happy to help tear it apart. Understanding how Syria has always faced a challenge of finding a balance amidst complexity is an important lesson of which the world constantly needs reminding"--

List of illustrationsAuthor's prefaceMap of Syria1. Bronze Age palace cultures c3000-1100 BC2. Iron Age, a new melting pot 1000-800 BC3. Between Persians and Phoenicians c1000-333 BC4. After Alexander 333-64 BC5. Pax Romana 64 BC-AD 1176. Hadrian and the High Empire 117-3137. Christianity Triumphant 313-6368. Umayyads and 'Abbasids 661-9509. Arabs and Turks 950-110010. Pushing back the Crusaders 1100-126011. Mamluks 1260-151612. Early Ottoman centuries 1516-180013. Late Ottoman centuries 1800-191814. AfterwordReading List and Quotation SourcesGlossary, Abbreviations, Map ConventionsIndex