History of Aleppo - Nearby Attractions and Dead Cities

Nearby Attractions and Dead Cities

Aleppo's western suburbs are home to a group of historical sites and villages which are commonly known as Dead Cities. Around 700 abandoned settlements in the northwestern parts of Syria prior to the 5th century, contain remains of Christian Byzantine architecture. Many hundreds of those settlements are located in Mount Simeon (Jabal Semaan) and Jabal Halaqa regions at the western suburbs of Aleppo, within the range of Limestone Massif. Dead Cites were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011, under the name of "Ancient Villages of Northern Syria".

The most notable Dead cities and archaeological sites in Mount Simeon and Mount Kurd near Aleppo include: the Kalota Castle and churches northwest of Aleppo, the Kharab Shams Byzantine basilica of the 4th century, the half-ruined Roman basilica in Fafertin village of 372 AD, the old Byzantine settlement of Surqanya village northwest of Aleppo, the 4th-century Basilic church of Sinhar historic settlement, the Mushabbak Basilica dating back to the second half of the 5th century, the 9th-century BC Assyrian settlement of Kafr Nabo, Brad village and the Saint Julianus Maronite monastery (399–402 AD) where the shrine of Saint Maron is located, the 5th-century Kimar settlement of the Roman and Byzantine eras, the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites of the 5th century, the Syro-Hittite Ain Dara temple of the Iron Age dating back to the 10th and 8th centuries BC, the ancient city of Cyrrhus with the old Roman amphitheatre and two historic bridges, etc.