Temple of Nabu (Palmyra)

Temple of Nabu

Colonnade of the sanctuary and temple of Nabu
Shown within Syria
Location	Palmyra, Homs Governorate, Syria
Region	Roman Syria
Coordinates	34°32′59″N 38°16′13″E
Type	Religious building
Part of	Palmyra
History
Material	granite, limestone
Founded	1st century CE
Periods	Roman Imperial
Site notes
Excavation dates	1963–1965

The Temple of Nabu (or temple of Nabo, or Nebo) is a ruined sanctuary located in the city of Palmyra, in Syria and dedicated to the Babylonian deity Nabu. It is considered among the most important of the World Heritage Site of Palmyra.

History and description

The construction of the temple dates back to the second half or the last quarter of the 1st century CE; however the oldest structures of the sanctuary, preceding the architecture that reached us, date back to 23 CE and the construction of the porticoes around the temenos continued during the 2nd century CE.

Some bases of the ancient columns of the temple of Nabu

The temple was dedicated to Nabu, the Babylonian deity of oracles, of wisdom and writing, identified in the Greco-Roman pantheon with Apollo or Mercury. It has been observed that the Palmyrenes' devotion to this oriental god testifies to the relative independence of Palmyra from the prevailing Roman cultural model.

When, between the end of the 2nd century and the beginning of the 3rd century, the central section of the Great Colonnade of Palmyra was erected, the northern part of the temenos The trapezoidal plan of the temple of Nebo was modified, but the temple wasn't moved and the colonnaded avenue went around it (it's believed that the traders of Palmyra might have feared negative repercussions from the god if the sanctuary had been moved).

Only a few remains of the ancient sanctuary have survived: the podium on which the temple stood, which measures 180 miles; the bases of the columns that surrounded the main structure of the building; some remains of the external perimeter fence. The temple had a plan structure typical of oriental architecture: the cella was surrounded by a peristyle of 72 Corinthian columns and overlooked an open-air altar facing south; this was accessed from the south through a six-columned propylaeum.

The explorers Robert Wood and in front of the ruins of Palmyra (oil by Gavin Hamilton, 1757)

Overview of the archaeological site of Palmyra. Print by Robert Wood, made in 1753.

The temple of Nabû was discovered, then cleared during the 18th century. The operation takes place during an archaeological expedition. This exploration follows the exhumation of Palmyra of the first urban ruins by merchants from Aleppo, in 1691.

The temple of Nabu was excavated between 1963 and 1965 by a Franco-Syrian archaeological team.

Bibliography

• R. Burns (2009). Monuments of Syria: A Guide. I.B. Tauris. p. 214. ISBN 978-1-8451-1-947-8.
• D. Darke (2006). Syria. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 241. ISBN 9781841621623.
• Touring Club Italiano, ed. (1996). Syria. Guide Verdi Mondo. p. 73. ISBN 88-365-0659-3.

Related Items

• Temple of Bel
• Temple of Baalshamin

External links

• Media related to Temple of Nabu in Palmyra at Wikimedia Commons