Syria's communities and civilizations – history, sites and heritage
Phoenicians (Arwad and Amrit)
الفينيقيون (أرواد وعمريت)
Civilizations and historical peopleshistorical
Arwad, an island off Tartus, was a Phoenician maritime city with a navy and authority over mainland towns, above all Amrit (Marathus). Amrit preserves the rock-cut Ma'abed temple to Melqart and Eshmun and the tower tombs called al-Maghazil. This is a historical civilization.
Arwad was settled early in the 2nd millennium BC and appears in Egyptian and Assyrian records; Thutmose III took it around 1472 BC. It held a kind of hegemony over the northern Phoenician cities; Amrit served as its continental base until it gained independence in 219 BC.
Sources and details
Amrit's Ma'abed has a court cut from rock measuring about 47 by 49 m with a central cella, dedicated to Melqart of Tyre and Eshmun. Burial chambers near the 'Spindles' tower tombs yielded finds of the 5th century BC.
Under the Persians Arwad joined a confederation with Sidon and Tyre. Arwad sacked Amrit in 148 BC, after which it was largely abandoned.
Sites connected with this community 4
- AmritTartus · Archaeological sites
Amrit (Marathus), Arwad's mainland base with the Ma'abed.
- Amrit MuseumAmrit, Tartus · Museums
Museum at Amrit.
- ArwadTartus · Archaeological sites
Arwad island, the Phoenician city of Aradus.
- Arwad Museum (Arwad Citadel)Arwad island, Tartus · Museums
Museum on Arwad (in the island's citadel).
These categories describe history, language and faith – not exclusive identities. Many Syrians belong to several, and some names refer to civilizations of the past.