Countless cultural assets were destroyed in the Syrian civil war. The “Syrian Heritage Archive Project” helps in Berlin to receive the reminder. For the first time, an exhibition now gives an insight into this work.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
One of the oldest mosques in the world
The Umayyad mosque of Damascus is one of the oldest mosques in the world. It was built at the beginning of the 8. Century. The mosque is located in the historic old town, listed since 1979 as a Whole, a UNESCO world heritage site. This recording is from the year 2007.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
In the valley of the tombs of Palmyra
The excavations in the ancient oasis city of Palmyra, a UNESCO world heritage site. The picture from the 1981 shows of the Banquet reliefs and architectural parts of a temple tomb, which was excavated from 1981 to 1985, in a cooperation between the German Archaeological Institute and Syrian Antiquity Department.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
An old God temple
The 2000 year-old temple of the God Baal was one of the best-preserved temple in the oasis of Palmyra. His sanctuary, the Cella, was blown up in 2015 from the so-called Islamic state. This is a picture from the year 1963 it is yet to be seen.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
Debris around the citadel
In the 13th century. Century citadel of Aleppo is one of the oldest fortresses in the world and belongs since 1986 to the UNESCO world heritage site. By the war, the environment, as well as parts of the citadel were destroyed. In the meantime, however, it can be visited again.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
Once an intact Ensemble
The surroundings looked around the world famous citadel before the Fight. The Sultaniyya-mosque complex from the 13th century. Century, directly in front of the citadel of Aleppo was destroyed during the war.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
In Aleppo, a world-famous Bazaar
The Bazaar in Aleppo, with its more than 1000 small shops at the heart of the city. By the war in Syria, he was extremely affected. Wide areas of the Bazaar are now devastated.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
Aleppos landmark before the war
A picture from the year 2001, as the citadel of Aleppo was still peacefully over the old town. At the time of the recording, the minaret of the Great mosque equips on, right now.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
The consequences of the fights
Aleppo has become a Symbol of the civil war in Syria. Large parts of the once-thriving economic metropolis are no longer recognizable. The Ibshir Mustafa Pasha-building complex (on the left) and the Bahramiyya-Hammam (right) in Aleppo have been damaged by the fighting. This recording was made in October 2018.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
One of the oldest mosques in the world
The Umayyad mosque of Damascus is one of the oldest mosques in the world. It was built at the beginning of the 8. Century. The mosque is located in the historic old town, listed since 1979 as a Whole, a UNESCO world heritage site. This recording is from the year 2007.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
In the valley of the tombs of Palmyra
The excavations in the ancient oasis city of Palmyra, a UNESCO world heritage site. The picture from the 1981 shows of the Banquet reliefs and architectural parts of a temple tomb, which was excavated from 1981 to 1985, in a cooperation between the German Archaeological Institute and Syrian Antiquity Department.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
An old God temple
The 2000 year-old temple of the God Baal was one of the best-preserved temple in the oasis of Palmyra. His sanctuary, the Cella, was blown up in 2015 from the so-called Islamic state. This is a picture from the year 1963 it is yet to be seen.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
Debris around the citadel
In the 13th century. Century citadel of Aleppo is one of the oldest fortresses in the world and belongs since 1986 to the UNESCO world heritage site. By the war, the environment, as well as parts of the citadel were destroyed. In the meantime, however, it can be visited again.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
Once an intact Ensemble
The surroundings looked around the world famous citadel before the Fight. The Sultaniyya-mosque complex from the 13th century. Century, directly in front of the citadel of Aleppo was destroyed during the war.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
In Aleppo, a world-famous Bazaar
The Bazaar in Aleppo, with its more than 1000 small shops at the heart of the city. By the war in Syria, he was extremely affected. Wide areas of the Bazaar are now devastated.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
Aleppos landmark before the war
A picture from the year 2001, as the citadel of Aleppo was still peacefully over the old town. At the time of the recording, the minaret of the Great mosque equips on, right now.
-
A digital archive for Syria’s cultural heritage
The consequences of the fights
Aleppo has become a Symbol of the civil war in Syria. Large parts of the once-thriving economic metropolis are no longer recognizable. The Ibshir Mustafa Pasha-building complex (on the left) and the Bahramiyya-Hammam (right) in Aleppo have been damaged by the fighting. This recording was made in October 2018.
Bright blue the sky is in the photo, Issam Hajjar 2011 from the famous Umaiyyaden mosque in Aleppo. “It was a clear January day and I was in the old town on the road to take pictures,” recalls the Syrian photographer today. The picture shows the courtyard of the mosque, enlivened by people in the Background, the imposing minaret of the house of prayer that belongs to the world cultural heritage.
View of the former old city of Aleppo, photographed in 2001
Issam Hajjar has made countless such pictures, of buildings and archaeological sites, but also from the simple life in the province. Images that are today of great value. Because they help to preserve the memory of a country that there are so. In some places, only bombed-out ruins. Culture facilities are severely damaged or completely destroyed – as well as the minaret of the Umayyad mosque, which collapsed in April 2013 after heavy Fighting in the city.
A huge digital archive
The photographer, who now lives in Berlin, has passed a part of his collection of pictures, therefore, the “Syrian Heritage Archive Project”. Since 2013, collect German and Syrian scientists images, movies and reports on the cultural and natural treasures of Syria, digitize them and create an archive. If you have old photos or archaeological research: Everything is recorded and systematically sorted.
Many of the buildings around the citadel of Aleppo, are already destroyed; this recording is from 2014
“We have accumulated over the last six years, an incredible volume of data,” says Professor Stefan Weber Museum of Islamic art in Berlin, who initiated the project six years ago. Around 340,000 documents have now come together – the most complete archive on Syria outside the country. “This is a unique treasure.”
Immersed in Syria’s cultural history
A selection from this treasure is now showing the exhibition “the cultural landscape of Syria to Preserve and Archive them in times of war” in Berlin’s Pergamon Museum. The visitors can go around between five different stations with images and films, one each for the cities of Damascus and Aleppo, Palmyra and Raqqa, as well as for the so-called dead cities – rural settlements from the late Roman and early Byzantine period.
Moving, especially photography-couples, showing how a place looked before the civil war and what it has done. A age-old Bazaar road in Aleppo, for example, here met of lively, there is only a pile of rubble. The emphasis of the Show is not on the loss. Rather, to be reminded of what Syria has a thousand-year old cultural heritage is of paramount importance.
Dome houses made of clay in Syria, photographed in 2009
A template for the reconstruction
“It’s also about, to make the Syrians, the yourself clear,” says Karin Pütt, the coordinates of the “Syrian Heritage Archive Project”. A country that was more and is as the devastating civil war, and the last time, hopefully again sometime in the future can build on. Because this is also a goal of the project: continuing to deliver points for a reconstruction of the destroyed substance after the end of the war.
Since 2015 also a photographer Issam Hajjar is the Syrian Heritage Archive project. An activity that is not always easy, because with many images from his home country, as he says, “a whole package of memories”. Nevertheless, the work on the digital archive in Berlin is a matter close to his heart: “To show that diversity has in Syria, is for me a mission in Life.”
-
Attack on the cultural heritage – The destruction of the ISEarlier Today
From the ancient oasis city of Palmyra, which was served by magnificent temples, colonnaded and spas left over. 2015, the IS-terrorist militia made these precious Baal temple to the ground. The Lebanese photographer Joseph Eid, whose paintings are currently exhibited at the Kestner-Museum, holds his photo of 2014 in front of the ruins. UNESCO could not protect the city.
-
Attack on the cultural heritage – The destruction of the ISA Debris Field
Also other parts of the city is actually protected UNESCO heritage site in Palmyra are in favor of the destruction of the marauding ISIS militia to the victim. These recordings were made in March 2016. To reconstruction is not the first to think of.
-
Attack on the cultural heritage – The destruction of the ISPatrols by Palmyra
Meanwhile, the Syrian government-the city of Palmyra troops back to Robert. Since March of 2017 military patrols run daily through the ruins to protect it from further attacks of the IS-terrorist militia, which for the second Time, with the help of Russian air attacks could be repulsed. The image shows the remains of the ancient triumphal arch, which is largely destroyed.
-
Attack on the cultural heritage – The destruction of the ISMar Elian in Syria
The ancient monastery of Mar Elian, which has been built by the Christians to the Southeast of the city of Homs, was also a magnificent building, which was under the protection of the UNESCO world heritage-regulation. Nevertheless, this property of the IS-militia was not spared.
-
Attack on the cultural heritage – The destruction of the ISDestruction and Propaganda
The authenticity of this scene could not be clearly confirmed. The image is a Screenshot from a propaganda video of the terrorist militia “Islamic state” that allegedly shows how the IS-fighters with bulldozers tear down the walls of the monastery of Mar Elian. Meanwhile, the town of al-Qaryatain of the Syrian army recaptured, and the monastery was to be rebuilt.
-
Attack on the cultural heritage – The destruction of the ISAl-Hadra in Iraq
The beginning of 2015, destroyed the IS-militias also rich parts of the ancient city of Al-Hadra – the former capital of the first Arab king – which is seen here before the attack. Thousand-year-old statues from the Assyrian period in the Northern Iraqi city of Mosul and on the site of Nineveh, were also torn down. The historic city of Nimrud must have hit the jihadists with bulldozers.
-
Attack on the cultural heritage – The destruction of the ISBamiyan-the valley: destroyed by the Taliban
In 2001, the Afghan Taliban demolished the Buddha statues of Bamiyan, in the 6. Century have been carved from the red Sandstone. Also, you might not be of the UNESCO or of the world community protected. All that remained were the empty caves. Meanwhile, the 50-Meter-high Dam will be reconstructed with the help of 3D printers.
-
Attack on the cultural heritage – The destruction of the ISTimbuktu in Mali
These minarets out of mud, as you can see in Mali, in this construction, frequently, destroyed the IS troops 2012. Meanwhile, the religious buildings have been built according to the historical model again. The International criminal court in The Hague has made the destruction of a world heritage site, in the meantime, in the case of a process against Islamists, under penalty.