UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Lebanon

UNESCO's Description

The city of Anjar was founded by Caliph Walid I at the beginning of the 8th century. The ruins reveal a very regular layout, reminiscent of the palace-cities of ancient times, and are a unique testimony to city planning under the Umayyads.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

History

The town's foundation is generally attributed to the Umayyad caliph al-Walid I, at the beginning of the 8th century, as a palace-city. Syriac graffiti found in the quarry from which the best stone was extracted offer the year 714, and Byzantine and Syriac sources attribute the establishment of the town to Umayyad princes, with one Syriac chronicle mentioning Walid I by name, while the Byzantine chronicler Theophanes the Confessor recorded that it was Walid's son, al-Abbas, who started building the town in 709–10. Historian Jere L. Bacharach accepts Theophanes' date. Although earlier materials were re-used, much of the city is built on virgin soil.

After being abandoned in later years, Anjar was resettled in 1939 with several thousand Armenian refugees from the Musa Dagh area.

Economy

Anjar's economy is mostly based on services, with very few agricultural and industrial activities. The biggest private employer is the company "Shams" (literally "Sun"), a local family-run business that started out as a small restaurant in the 1960s.

The municipality is also an important employer. It pays salaries for teachers, public servants, and law enforcement personnel. Unlike the rest of the country, where policing is provided by the central government, Anjar has its own municipal police wearing dark green uniforms and reporting to the municipality instead of the ministry of internal affairs.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q60977 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

This Phoenician city, where a triad of deities was worshipped, was known as Heliopolis during the Hellenistic period. It retained its religious function during Roman times, when the sanctuary of the Heliopolitan Jupiter attracted thousands of pilgrims. Baalbek, with its colossal structures, is one of the finest examples of Imperial Roman architecture at its apogee.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Geography

Baalbek has a mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa) with significant continental influences. It is located in one of the drier regions of the country, giving it an annual average of 450 millimetres or 18 inches of rainfall compared with 800 to 850 millimetres (31 to 33 in) in coastal areas, overwhelmingly concentrated in the months from November to April. Baalbek has hot rainless summers with cool (and occasionally snowy) winters. Autumn and spring are mild and fairly rainy.

History

The hilltop of Tell Baalbek, part of a valley to the east of the northern Beqaa Valley (Latin: Coele-Syria), shows signs of almost continual habitation over the last 8–9000 years. It was well-watered both from a stream running from the Rās al-ʿAyn spring southwest of the citadel and, during the spring, from numerous rills formed by meltwater from the Anti-Lebanons. Macrobius later credited the site's foundation to a colony of Egyptian or Assyrian priests. The settlement's religious, commercial, and strategic importance was minor enough, however, that it is never mentioned in any known Assyrian or Egyptian record, unless under another name.

Economy

The Roman ruins have been the setting for the long running Baalbek International Festival.

Baalbek's tourism sector suffered significantly due to the Lebanese Civil war (1975–1990). After the civil war ended, tourism gradually saw a resurgence, including opera, orchestras. But it was once again disrupted by Israeli bombings of Baalbek during the 2006 war.

After the 2006 war, conservation work at Lebanon's historic sites began in October that year. The ruins at Baalbek were not directly hit by Israeli bombing but the effects of blasts during the conflict toppled a block of stones at the Roman ruins and existing cracks in the temples of Jupiter and Bacchus were feared to have widened.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q178835 (CC0).

Visiting Baalbek

Baalbek بَعلبَك is one of the most spectacular archaeological sites in Lebanon and one of the country's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Baalbeck or 'Heliopolis' as it was known is the site of great ancient temples built by the Phoenicians, the Romans, and other civilisations that have conquered the region and enjoyed the fertile soil of the Bekaa Valley. Some of the most celebrated temples are the ones of Bacchus, the Greek god of wine, and Jupiter, the Roman god of light, of the sky and weather.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Baalbek (CC BY-SA 4.0).

UNESCO's Description

The ruins of many successive civilizations are found at Byblos, one of the oldest Phoenician cities. Inhabited since Neolithic times, it has been closely linked to the legends and history of the Mediterranean region for thousands of years. Byblos is also directly associated with the history and diffusion of the Phoenician alphabet.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

History and archaeology

Situated approximately 42 km (26 mi) north of Beirut, Byblos holds a strong allure for archaeologists due to its accumulations of various strata resulting from countless centuries of human dwelling. The initial excavation was conducted by Ernest Renan in 1860, documented in his work "Mission de Phénicie" (1865–1874). This was succeeded by Pierre Montet's efforts from 1921 to 1924, and later by Maurice Dunand, who continued excavations from 1925 for a span of forty years. Renan's expedition was to "provide the evidence that the city did not move and that Gebeil is Byblos".

Fragments attributed to the semi-legendary pre-Homeric Phoenician priest Sanchuniathon say Byblos was the first city erected in Phoenicia and was established by the god Cronus.

Tourism

Byblos is re-emerging as an upscale touristic hub. With its ancient port, Phoenician, Roman, and Crusader ruins, sandy beaches and the picturesque mountains that surround it make it an ideal tourist destination. The city is known for its fish restaurants, open-air bars, and outdoor cafes. Yachts cruise into its harbor today as they did in the 1960s and 1970s when Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra were regular visitors to the city. Byblos was crowned as the "Arab Tour Capital" for the year 2016 by the Lebanese minister of tourism in the Grand Serail in Beirut. Byblos was chosen by Condé Nast Traveler as the second best city in the Middle East for 2012, beating Tel Aviv and Dubai, and by the World Tourism Organization as the best Arab tourist city for 2013.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q173532 (CC0).

Visiting Byblos

Byblos (بيبلوس), also known by its Arabic name of Jbeil (جبَيل), is an ancient Phoenician city located about 35 kilometers (23 miles) north of the capital Beirut in modern day Lebanon. The city has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is a popular daytrip from the capital.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Byblos (CC BY-SA 4.0).