Abstract:

Byblos has played an extraordinary role in the history of the Mediterranean. From c. 3200 BC, it developed into the preeminent port of the region due to its strategic location at the foothills of the cedar forests of Mount Lebanon and its unique ties with the pharaohs of Egypt. An important religious center, Byblos was referred to as a Holy City in Hellenistic and Roman times. The city is synonymous with writing, a legacy that lives on through the Greek word for book. With a history that reaches back nearly 8900 years, this Lebanese coastal city is among the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world.

Byblos: A Legacy Unearthed is the first anthology to be published on this remarkable city. This lavishly illustrated volume encompasses an extensive range of scholarly research, from the earliest archaeological expeditions to the latest discoveries. Its 43 chapters written by leading international experts, examine the city’s history from its Neolithic origins to the Medieval era.

This book is a coproduction between the National Museum of Antiquities (The Netherlands) and the Ministry of Culture/Directorate General of Antiquities (Lebanon).

Contents

Preface
Sarkis El-Khoury and Wim Weijland

Foreword
Tania Zaven

Part I: Exploring Byblos

1. Byblos Excavations, Yesterday and Today
Julien Chanteau and Tania Zaven

2. The Archive of Maurice Dunand: An Itinerary from Geneva to Byblos
Patrick M. Michel

3. Quarrying the Sea
Jeanine Abdul Massih

4. Byblos World Heritage Site: A Refuge for Floral Diversity
Moustapha Itani, Nivine Nasralla, Maryam Sedaghatpour, Michele Citton, Tania Zaven and Salma Talhouk

5. Rescue Excavations and Their Contributions to the History of Byblos
Tania Zaven and Georges Doumet

Part II: The origins of a harbour city

6. The Neolithic of Byblos
Corinne Yazbeck

7. Byblos during the Chalcolithic Period
Kamal Badreshany

8. The Chalcolithic Jar Burials from Byblos
Gassia Artin

9. Byblos during the Early Bronze Age
Michel de Vreeze

10. The First Defensive Systems at Byblos
Ziad Jalbout

11. Tell Fadous-Kfarabida: A Regional Perspective on Byblos
Hermann Genz

12. Byblos and the Early Egyptian State
Karin Sowada

13. The Connections between Byblos and Mesopotamia during the Early Bronze Age as Seen from the Ebla Archives
Maria Giovanna Biga

Part III: The focal point of the Mediterranean Sea

14. Byblos during the Middle Bronze Age
Yasmine Makaroun

15. The Bronze Age Harbour of Byblos
Martine Francis-Allouche

16. The Relations between Byblos and Egypt during the Middle Bronze Age
Hanan Charaf

17. Byblos: Egypt´s Gateway to the Levant and beyond during the Bronze Age
Alexander Ahrens

18. The Tale of Sinuhe: A Glimpse of Byblos from Middle Kingdom Egypt
Richard Bruce Parkinson

19. Byblos and the Mediterranean during the Middle Bronze Age I as Seen from the Mari Archives
Néle Ziegler

20. A New Middle Bronze Age Necropolis on the Byblos Acropolis
Julien Chanteau and Tania Zaven

21. The Early and Middle Bronze Age Deposits at Byblos
Michel de Vreeze

22. The Metal Figurines from Byblos
Camilla Saler and Gianluca Miniaci

23. Weapons, Metals and Identities in Middle Bronze Age I Byblos
Ziad El Morr

24. Faience Animals from the Obelisk Temple
Layla abi Zeid

25. Byblos and the Seals of the Green Jasper Workshop
Vanessa Boschloos

26. The Scarabs from Byblos
Vanessa Boschloos

27. The Byblos Script
Ben Haring

28. The History of Byblos during the Late Bronze Age
Marvan Kilani

29. Byblos and its Architecture during the Late Bronze Age
Marvan Kilani

30. Relations between Sidon and Byblos during the Bronze Ages
Claude Doumet-Serhal

Part IV: Prospering in the shadows

31. Byblos: The Transition between the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age
Marc Abi Abdallah

32. Byblos during the Iron Age
Eric Gubel

33. The History of the Phoenician Inscriptions in Byblos
Hélène Sader

34. Byblos during the Persian Period
Josette Elayi

35. Byblos during the Hellenistic period
Jean-Baptiste Yon

36. The Colonnaded Street of Byblos: A Roman Symbol of Monumentality
Rola A. Saadi

37. Haghia Byblos: Gods and Heroes between Rain, Waves and Waterfalls
Zeina Fani Alpi

38. Byblos and the Tree of the Gods, the Cedar
Anne-Sophie Dalix

39. The Myth of Adonis and Astarte in Byblos and its Hinterland during the Roman Period
Wissam Khalil

40. A Roman and Byzantine Necropolis in Byblos (BYB 418)
Tania Zaven and Georges Doumet

41. Byblos during the Byzantine Period
Frédéric Alpi

42. Ğbayl during the Medieval Period
Hassan el-Akra

43. The Fortifications of Medieval Ğbayl/Byblos
Anis Chaaya

Bibliography