VIRTUAL: Prague Heritages

Abstract

In Syrian history, especially at the beginning of Christianity, most of the Phoenician pagan temples were converted to churches. Changing the idol reflected new features of their religious buildings related to the new aspects of worship. People on the Syrian coast built new churches in the same places as ancient Phoenician (Canaanite) temples or adjacent to them. This paper aims to identify and define the architectural features of the ancient churches on the Syrian coast which were initially temples manifested with the local beliefs under the influence of Greek and Roman beliefs, systems, and practices. When the natives turned their temples into churches, numerous extensions were made to the original one-room plan; and architectural grammar and vocabulary got transformed with time. This interpretation is carried out by analyzing the ancient position of the altar and place of priests standing and other parts of the building. Physical site visits were conducted between 2010 – 2019 to four churches of different ages, including Alghnymeyah, Ain Salem, Mzayraha, and Al Syydah churches. The methods adopted in this study include, Archival records, visual documentation, a description approach, and Archeological evidence gathered from(DGAM) the Directorate General of Antiques and Museums in Syria, This study investigates and interprets the features of these religious buildings, which were gradually transformed into churches. They often derive from historic codes or cues that help construct the interpretative image of these ancient religious monuments on the Syrian coast.
Keywords: temple, Church, Syrian Coast, Christianity, abside, altar.