Temples of the Beqaa Valley

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View across the Beqaa Valley, Lebanon

The Temples of the Beqaa Valley are a number of

Roman Heliopolis. A few temples are built on former buildings of the Phoenician & Hellenistic era, but all are considered to be of Roman construction and were started to be abandoned after the fourth century with the fall of the Roman Paganism.[1]

Historical development

The Basilica of Constantine in 1891 at Heliopolis, formed over the ruins of the "Temple of Venus"

During the early Roman empire the area was chosen to create huge pagan temples of Roman deities, in order to show the "greatness" of the empire of Rome in Phoenicia.

After the end of the first century CE the territory became jointly controlled by the cities of

Byzantine era.[1]

Temple of Bacchus, Baalbek
Temple of Jupiter, Baalbek
Roman temple of Qsarnaba, near Zahle, Lebanon
The column of Iaat in the Beqaa valley, probably a Roman shrine

In the first century the Temples started to be built, using the nearby quarries with famous "

"Monoliths"
.

The

Roman paganism
's temple complex.

With Constantine the Great Christianity was declared officially the religion of the Roman empire and the pagan Temples started to be neglected. Eusebius records that the Emperor Constantine destroyed a temple of Venus 'on the summit of Mount Lebanon'.[2] Later the Bizantines used some materials from the abandoned Temples.

Surveys

Documentation of the temples in the Beqaa Valley area began in the 19th century, with surveys by

epigraphic surveys in 2002 and 2003.[9]

The

Byzantine era.[1]

The temples were often connected with ancient occupational sites. Olivier Callot and Pierre-Louis Gatier argued that several of the temple sites might have been mistaken for monumental

Henry Seyrig, when reviewing Krencker and Zscheitzmann's "Romische Tempel in Syrien" highlighted that "the clue to an important social and economic change that would deserve to be one day the focus of a study". There is still a deplorable lack of a comprehensive study into the history, archaeology, architecture of these buildings and ancient sites, or the religious life of the people who used them.[1]

Temple types

The

Temple of Bacchus at Baalbek.[9][11]

Worship

It was the opinion of

Ancient Roman times.[9]

Heliopolis temple in 1895

Temple groups

George F. Taylor divided up the Temples of Lebanon into three groups:[12]

The Temples of the Beqaa Valley in Taylor's first group included

Kafr Zebad.[9]

Niha Gallery

  • Roman temple of Hosn Niha, Lebanon
    Roman temple of Hosn Niha, Lebanon
  • Roman temple of Hosn Niha, Lebanon
    Roman temple of Hosn Niha, Lebanon
  • Roman temple of Hosn Niha, Lebanon
    Roman temple of Hosn Niha, Lebanon
  • Roman temple at Niha, Lebanon
    Roman temple at
    Niha
    , Lebanon
  • Statue at the Roman temple at Niha, Lebanon
    Statue at the Roman temple at Niha, Lebanon
  • Small lower temple at Niha, Lebanon
    Small lower temple at Niha, Lebanon

Heliopolis (Baalbek) Gallery

  • The largest stone at Baalbek
    The largest stone at Baalbek
  • Sculpture of an unknown God at Baalbek
    Sculpture of an unknown God at Baalbek
  • Roof sculpture of Ceres at Baalbek
    Roof sculpture of
    Ceres
    at Baalbek
  • Sculpture of Mark Antony at Baalbek
    Sculpture of Mark Antony at Baalbek
  • Sculpture of Cleopatra at Baalbek
    Sculpture of Cleopatra at Baalbek

See also

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 978-90-04-16735-3
    . Retrieved 17 September 2012.
  2. ^ Eusebius 'Life of Constantine' III.54
  3. ^ Edward Robinson (1856). Biblical researches in Palestine and the adjacent regions: a journal of travels in the years 1838 and 1852. J. Murray. pp. 433–. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
  4. ^ Sir Charles William Wilson (1881). Picturesque Palestine, Sinai, and Egypt. D. Appleton. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
  5. ISBN 978-0-89236-969-0
    . Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  6. ^ Paul Collart; Pierre Coupel (1951). L'Autel monumental de Baalbek. Librairie Orientaliste Paul Geuthner. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  7. ^ Daniel M. Krencker; Willy Zschietzschmann (1938). Römische Tempel in Syrien: nach Aufnahmen und Untersuchungen von Mitgliedern der Deutschen Baalbekexpedition 1901-1904, Otto Puchstein, Bruno Schulz, Daniel Krencker. W. de Gruyter & Co. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
  8. ^ Tallon, Maurice., “Sanctuaires et itinéraires romains du. Chouf et du sud de la Béqa,” Mélanges de l'université Saint Joseph 43, pp. 233-50, 1967.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j George Taylor (1971). The Roman temples of Lebanon: a pictorial guide. Les temples romains au Liban; guide illustré. Dar el-Machreq Publishers. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  10. ^ Callot, Olivier, and Pierre-Louis Gatier. "Le reseau des sanctuaires en Syrie du Nord." Topoi 9, pp. 665-688, 1999.
  11. ^ a b Henry Ellis (sir); British museum dept. of Gr. and Rom. antiq (1833). The British museum. Elgin and Phigaleian marbles (by Sir. H. Ellis). Charles Knight. pp. 72–. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  12. ^ Map showing the Roman Temples locations

External links

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