After two years of intense conflict, concern has been expressed at the damage to Syria’s rich collection of historical monuments. Ross Burns is the author of ‘Monuments of Syria’—for two decades or so now the definitive survey of Syria’s historical sites and buildings. In this lecture, he poses the question whether the fate of Syria’s monuments can be separated from the disintegration of the country’s social fabric.
Ross Burns was Australian Ambassador to Syria in the 1980s and since retiring in 2003 from the Foreign Service has devoted himself to the study of the ancient history and archaeology of the countries of the Levant. He recently completed a PhD at Macquarie University on the origins of the colonnaded axes of the Roman-era cities of the Eastern provinces. In addition to ‘Monuments of Syria’ he has published a history of Damascus (Routledge 2005) and is preparing further studies on Aleppo and on Lebanon. He maintains a website at www.monumentsofsyria.com and is also participating in a project through Oxford University on the conversion of temples to churches/mosques/synagogues over the centuries.