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<< Our Photo Pages >> Palmyra Valley of the Tombs - Rock Cut Tomb in Syria

Submitted by AlexHunger on Sunday, 06 September 2015  Page Views: 8469

Site WatchSite Name: Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Country: Syria
NOTE: This site is 54.682 km away from the location you searched for.

Type: Rock Cut Tomb
Nearest Town: Palmyra  Nearest Village: Tadmor
Latitude: 34.553300N  Longitude: 38.250340E
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
2 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
3 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
4 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
5

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Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. This tomb from 59 BCE is the oldest tower tomb just outside of Palmyra. (Vote or comment on this photo)
A valley to the West of Palmyra with about 2 dozen tower type tombs and more underground rock cut tombs. The tombs largely served families, like our modern crypts, while some like that of the "Three Brothers" was a commercial funeral operation for persons unable to afford a large monument.

The earliest tomb dates to about 35 BCE while later ones were built about to about the 2nd century CE.
The tower like tomb of Elabel dating to 103 BCE, would have held up to 260 family members, including servants. The commercial underground Tomb of the Three Brothers dating to 135 BCE had room for 450 bodies, including the owners.

Note: 'Islamic State' occupiers destroy Tower Tombs, including the Elahbel tower dating back to AD 103, also the Palmyra Temple of Baal "Intolerable crime against civilization."
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Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tomb of Elabel, a familly tower crypt dating to 103 CE. It had room for 260 people. Outside of Palmyra, a desert trading town. Perhaps the Las Vegas of its day. (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tomb of the 3 Brothers, commercial funeral operators. It had room for 450 customers who couldn't afford their own monument, besides themselves. This underground tomb dates to about 135 CE. Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tomb of the 3 Brothers, commercial funeral operators. It had room for 450 customers who couldn't afford their own monument, besides themselves. This underground tomb dates to about 135 CE. This part of the tomb had Cenotaphs. More are in the Palmyra Museum. Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Plaques of the Tomb of Elabel, a Familly crypt in tower form. Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. This tower tomb dates to 103 CE. There was room for 260 Familly members and servants. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town.

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tomb of the 3 Brothers, commercial funeral operators. It had room for 450 customers who couldn't afford their own monument, besides themselves. This part of the tomb had decorative fresques. This underground tomb dates to 135 CE. Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town.

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. The visible ones are tower shaped, he rest are underground.

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. Cenotaph found in one of the tombs, now in the Palymra Museum. These 2 brothers were dresed in Roman togas to show their cultural orientation. (1 comment)

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. Cenotaph found in one of the tombs, now in the Palymra Museum. This man was prominently shown as dressed in decorated silk Persian Clothes with trousers to make a cultural note vs. Rome.

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Entrance of the underground Tomb of the 3 Brothers, commercial funeral operators. It had room for 450 customers who couldn't afford their own monument, besides themselves. This underground tomb dates to about 135 CE. Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town.

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by h_fenton : View looking East from the top of the Tomb of Elabel along the 'Valley of the Tombs' to the ancient city with the modern town beyond. 15 May 2003

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by h_fenton : view looking west from the top of the Tomb of Elabel. There appears to be some sort of square structure based around a courtyard, possibly with robbed out walls which have been excavated (leaving narrow straight linear trenches) also looks like some of the cells around the courtyard have been excavated. Anyone know any more?

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. The tombs are just outside of town.

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town. View from the Islamic fort on top of the hill.

Palmyra Valley of the Tombs
Palmyra Valley of the Tombs submitted by AlexHunger : Diagram of the Tomb of the 3 Brothers, commercial funeral operators. It had room for 450 customers who couldn't afford their own monument, besides themselves. This underground tomb dates to about 135 CE. Tombs in Palmyra, a desert Oasis Trading town.

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 985m E 79° Palmyra Palace of Diocletian* Ancient Palace
 1.1km E 80° Palmyra Temple of Allat* Ancient Temple
 1.1km ENE 77° Palmyra Temple of Fire* Ancient Temple
 1.8km E 90° Palmyra Temple of Baal Shameen* Ancient Temple
 1.9km ESE 102° Palmyra Temple of Nabu* Ancient Temple
 2.2km ENE 73° Palmyra* Ancient Village or Settlement
 2.3km E 84° Palmyra Museum* Museum
 2.3km ESE 107° Palmyra Temple of Baal* Ancient Temple
 128.2km NNE 21° Resafe* Ancient Village or Settlement
 130.4km WNW 284° Qatna Ancient Village or Settlement
 142.2km WSW 246° Deir Mar Musa al-Habashi* Standing Stones
 150.8km N 3° Abu Hureyra Ancient Village or Settlement
 151.4km WNW 296° Hama National Museum Museum
 151.5km WNW 296° Hama.* Ancient Village or Settlement
 158.5km W 271° Kadesh Tell* Ancient Village or Settlement
 159.9km N 356° Barbalissos Ancient Village or Settlement
 160.1km WSW 247° Yabrud Temple* Ancient Temple
 164.3km W 265° Qamouat el-Hermel Marker Stone
 169.7km NNE 26° Tell Zeidan Ancient Village or Settlement
 171.1km NNE 24° Tal al-Khwaira Ancient Village or Settlement
 173.3km W 263° Deir Mar Maroun Ancient Village or Settlement
 173.9km W 268° Brissa Stele Sculptured Stone
 174.7km NNE 23° Tuttul Ancient Village or Settlement
 177.2km W 273° Beit Djallou Temple of Nemesis Ancient Temple
 179.2km N 360° Jebel Aruda Ancient Temple
View more nearby sites and additional images

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"Palmyra Valley of the Tombs" | Login/Create an Account | 4 News and Comments
  
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Re: Just Something to think about by Anonymous on Friday, 11 September 2015
While difficult to anticipate, we wonder to what extent archaeology, a western discipline, is implicated in these actions, or are they reactions? Archaeology's persistence in making 'spectacular' discoveries disseminated as much in the media as scholarship initiates a process of reification drawing attention to these artifacts' value as icons. Warring parties tussle over such symbolization the same way they do over whose flag symbolically flies over them. Statues and other icons of the loser are typically destroyed by the victors. While we can express our indignities toward this particular destruction, it perhaps might have been better anticipated as a possibility in locations such as this politically unstable in the long run. I think this line of consideration may go far towards explicating why those slighting these icons are also willing to profit from sales of stolen artifacts--its just another way of ransoming the west for funds to further wage war on the west. That is, the actions may be more political rather than religious at the core--anti-western, again emphasizing that archaeology is largely a western discipline grounded on western notions of knowledge. Archaeologists themselves get caught up in internal and external vicious contests over meaning --over who is the interpretive authority.

The text of archaeology contradicts fundamentalists readings of the holy book. This isn't all that different than the situation earlier in the west as the new discipline of archaeology unearthed evidence contrary to literal readings of the Bible. Only then, archaeologists were much more reserved such that the culture was able to remain attached to the past whereas the indignity expressed by us today over the destruction was always apparent to our new protagonists--to the extent that they now reject their own past or the past of their homelands. Only today, the tactics of archaeology are those of the more confrontational culture wars typical of the west for the recent decades, essentially donning the prescribed blinders of science's pleasure to the reality of politics. Was such lack of attachment to the past a factor in the looting of Iraq's museums after the fall of Saddam, when no one looted the mosques? Should we have seen that as a warning signal?

I'm not excusing our adversaries but I sincerely doubt expressing our indignation and calling them criminals is going to do anything productive toward stemming the current war where archaeology in its trenches finds itself inexplicably on the front lines. Indeed, I expect it is counter-productive. But, what else can we do but express what comes natural to us? Do we have alternatives? What we fear is to happen is the political stakes are only going to escalate, bringing more sites into harms way. It's a wound that the weaker forces can effectively inflict on an adversary with superior military forces...and they can see us squirm in agony.

Either the battle, now literal rather than a theoretical contest over meaning, a culture war, must be fought in earnest or ransoms will have to be paid to preserve antiquities if they are not to be continually slighted, broken up, and the remnants auctioned off. Of course, there will be no end to such ransoms and the proceeds will only strengthen the adversary and its willingness to destroy antiquities. Then, ironically, I doubt the west is genuinely attached enough to these relics and sites of the past to wage total war against ISIS and the like?

Therefore, we can only make the near futile suggestion that archaeology might have been more politically astute to the real world situation as they were centuries ago when the dialectic between science and religion hit closer to home. Less aggressive research agendas and media blitzes over discoveries in these lands might have been politically wise rather than adhering stridently to the agenda and ideology of western progress. We didn't have to excavate and package it all up in tourism projects scattered all about these land

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    We've already thought about it Re: Just Something to think about by bat400 on Tuesday, 29 March 2016
    (User Info | Send a Message)
    Didn't see your comment last fall...

    In your waxing philospophical over your tea and bisquit, you've covered all the bases without taking a stand on anything in particular.

    I believe you're implying by "We didn't have to excavate and package it all up in tourism projects scattered all about these lands today," that somehow "the West" controls these sites currently. Are you suggesting that Syria should have seen this coming in 1946 and covered and "unadvertised" their antiquities, so as not to attract attention?
    AlexHunger's comment on the Temple of Baal Shameen references such a wistful wish, but he didn't write about it in the same jaded "told you so" manner you use.

    The only specific thing you seem to say is to call to not buy looted antiquities, and then you frame it as a question. Are you not sure about that?

    You wrote: "Has not archaeology been long implicated in the process of colonialism?"
    Think about Khaled al-Asaad. Then see if you feel certain enough to make that a statement and not a question.
    [ Reply to This ]

Re: Damascus Antiquities Head: Islamic militants destroy ancient tombs in Palmyra by AlexHunger on Sunday, 06 September 2015
(User Info | Send a Message)
Destroying graves is actually against islamic law, regardless of the Religion of the occupier.
[ Reply to This ]

Damascus Antiquities Head: Islamic militants destroy ancient tombs in Palmyra by bat400 on Saturday, 05 September 2015
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Islamic State group jihadists have blown up several of ancient Palmyra's famed tower tombs as they press their demolition of the UNESCO-listed world heritage site, Syria's antiquities chief said Friday.

IS has carried out a sustained campaign of destruction against heritage sites in areas under its control in Syria and Iraq, and in mid-August beheaded the 82-year-old former antiquities chief in Palmyra.

News of the demolition of the tower tombs which date to the first century AD comes after the jihadists' destruction of the ancient shrine of Baal Shamin and the 2,000-year-old Temple of Bel, regarded as Palmyra's masterpiece.

Antiquities director Maamun Abdulkarim told AFP that among at least seven tombs destroyed were the three best preserved and most treasured funerary towers, including the famed Tower of Elahbel.

"We received reports 10 days ago but we've just confirmed the news," he said.

"We obtained satellite images from the US-based Syrian Heritage Initiative, taken on September 2."

All of Palmyra, including the four cemeteries outside the walls of the ancient city, has been a UNESCO world heritage site since 1980. In its listing, the UN agency singles out the tower tombs as the "oldest and most distinctive" of Palmyra's funerary monuments -- "tall multi-storey sandstone buildings belonging to the richest families".

He said the tower tombs were symbols of the economic boom of Palmyra in the first century AD, when it dominated the caravan trade between east and west from its oasis in the desert.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group, IS addressed a letter to Palmyra's residents promising further destruction.

"It pledged to demolish and destroy more heritage, saying that 'everything that is worshipped without God will be destroyed'," the Observatory said.

Gruesome violence and the destruction of priceless artefacts have become hallmarks of IS as it has expanded its so-called caliphate straddling Iraq and Syria.

... Experts say that while the jihadists prize the shock value of demolishing ancient sites, they are also keen to preserve some artefacts to sell on the black market to fund their "caliphate".

For more, see AFP via Yahoo news
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