In the battered Syrian town of Maarat al-Numan, where households are only simply starting to restore after more than a years of war, a specialist’s shovel struck something unanticipated: an underground burial place unblemished for over 1,500 years.
The discover came throughout restoration operate in Idlib province, where the ruins of 2 ancient burial chambers were exposed below the remains of a property community. Inside were a lots stone burial places, their age betrayed by pottery pieces, glass fragments, and a sculpted Christian cross.
” Based upon the existence of the cross and the pottery and glass pieces that were discovered, this burial place goes back to the Byzantine period,” stated Hassan al-Ismail, director of antiquities in Idlib.
As soon as a crossroads in between Aleppo and Damascus, Maarat al-Numan was a flashpoint throughout Syria’s civil war. Federal government forces retook the town in 2020 after years of rebel control. Much of the city was left in ruins, roofings blown off and streets lined with damaged concrete block.
Now, as homeowners return and restoration inches forward, ancient history is emerging– rather actually. Idlib, long eclipsed by dispute, is among Syria’s many archaeologically abundant areas. “Idlib has a 3rd of the monoliths of Syria, including 800 historical sites in addition to an ancient city,” al-Ismail stated.
The burial place contributes to the tradition of Syria’s northwest, currently home to the so-called Dead Cities– forgotten Byzantine settlements spread throughout the rocky hills, still whispering stories through their falling apart stones.