Temple of Bel, cella entrance (detail), Jean Baptiste Réville and Pierre Gabriel Berthault after Louis-François Cassas, 1799. From Voyage pittoresque de la Syrie, de la Phoénicie, de la Palestine, et de la Basse Egypte (Paris, 1799), vol. 1, pl. 46. The Getty Research Institute, 840011

ONLINE ONLY The Legacy of Ancient Palmyra

ONLINE ONLY



War in Syria has irrevocably changed the ancient caravan city of Palmyra, famed as a meeting place of civilizations since its apogee in the mid-2nd to 3rd century CE. The Romans and Parthians knew Palmyra as a wealthy oasis metropolis, a center of culture and trade on the edge of their empires. For centuries, traveling artists and explorers have documented the site in former states of preservation. This online exhibition captures the site as it was photographed for the first time by Louis Vignes in 1864 and illustrated in the 18th century by the architect Louis-François Cassas. Their works contribute to Palmyra's legacy, one that goes far beyond the stones of its once great buildings.


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