The Christian Quarter, built in the 16th century and located in Aleppo, originates from the Old City and extends to the north. It was home to Christian communities in ancient times and has preserved numerous churches and beautiful residences to this day. Also, the quarter is a reflection of the diversity of cultures and religions: Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Gregorians and others.

Among the many residential buildings with low facades, the building of the Museum stands out noticeably. folk art and traditions, revealing the valuable secrets of the country.

Today, the Christian Quarter surprises with its charm, and some of its old houses have been converted into hotels, boutiques selling Western brands, and chic restaurants.

Citadel in Aleppo

The citadel is a fortress in the center of the city of Aleppo, which was built in 944-967.

The construction of the first fortifications was carried out by the founder of the fortress, the ruler of Aleppo, Saif al-Dola. During crusades the fortress served as a stronghold for both one and the other side.

In the very early XIII century the fortress grew and turned into a rich city. Mosques, palaces, an arsenal, warehouses and many other necessary buildings were located on its territory. The city began to develop outside the walls only after 1516, when the city was captured by the Ottoman Empire.

Unfortunately, the fortress was badly damaged by an earthquake in 1828, the consequences of which are being eliminated in our time.

The fortress is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

What sights of Aleppo did you like? There are icons next to the photo, by clicking on which you can rate a particular place.

Ghost town of Rasafa

The dead city of Rasafa is one of the most interesting sights in Syria. The city is located in the east of the country, near the city of Raqqa. Getting to the city is not easy -public transport is not here, and therefore you can get there by car or taxi on a broken dirt road from Al Mansur or Palmyra, or along the modern Raqqa-Aleppo highway.

In ancient times, the city changed its name several times. The last name of the city in the status of inhabited is Sergiopolis ("City of Sergius"). It received this name due to the events connected with the death of one of the Christian saints, the Monk Sergius, who was brutally murdered in Rasafa during the Diocletian Christian persecution.

Today this city is abandoned. In the XIII century, its inhabitants moved to the city of Hama on the orders of Sultan Baybars.

And although today the city is almost completely hidden under a layer of sand, it makes an indelible impression. By right it can be called one of the most majestic, mysterious and beautiful " dead cities"Syria.

The city is built of marble-like limestone, similar to pink mica, so the city simply sparkles and shimmers in the sunset.

The most significant and interesting monuments Rasafy: city gates, Cathedral, basilica, antique water cisterns, city walls and towers.

There is more than one mosaic museum in Syria, but the museum located in the city of Maarat al-Numan deserves special attention. It has the most diverse and rich exposition compared to others. The building in which it is located is noteworthy - it is a caravanserai built in the 16th century for travelers and merchants.

Territory museum complex occupies several hectares. Here are collected Roman and Byzantine mosaics from the 6th century, brought from the nearby dead cities, floor, wall, depicting animals, mythological heroes and gods, everyday scenes, as well as rare mosaic icons and ornamental fragments. Also here you can see sarcophagi and tombstones, pottery, stone doors tombs.

Photography inside the museum is strictly prohibited, you can only take pictures of the exhibits that are located under open sky, and without a flash - according to the administration of the museum, bright light adversely affects the condition of the mosaics.

Church of St. Simeon

The Church of St. Simeon the Stylite was built by Simeon's disciple, St. Daniel the Stylite, who turned to Emperor Leo the First with a request to perpetuate the memory of his teacher.

However, the church was built under another emperor - Zinon around the 5th century. The building was built in an octagonal shape with a diameter of 30 meters with exedras, and in the middle of the building there is tall pole, on which St. Simeon labored for the last 33 years of the 47 years of being on the pillars. The building is covered with a wooden dome in the form of an octagonal pyramid 40 meters high.

In the 10th century, the temple complex was surrounded by fortress walls with 27 towers, which became the beginning of the emergence of Simeon's fortress. In the XII century, the fortress was captured by the crusaders, and a century later the building fell into disrepair. Numerous pilgrims always came here for a piece of St. Simeon's column, which, it was believed, helped against illnesses.

Archaeological site of Sergilla

The dead city of Serjilla (Serjilla) is located 60 kilometers from Aleppo, near the city of Maarat al-Numan. In addition to Sergilla, a whole network of ancient Byzantine settlements is scattered here, for the most part well preserved. The first houses date back to the 3rd-4th century AD, the flourishing of cities in this area falls on the 4th-6th centuries.

Sergilla attracts tourists and explorers from all over the world. A large-scale archaeological site has been deployed here, excavations continue to this day. On a relatively small area, Roman baths, residential villas, a church built in 372 (the oldest in this region), a necropolis, the tombs of which are carved in stone, oil presses, have been preserved. Also here you can see watchtowers and a tavern building. The reason why the inhabitants left the city is still unknown, but all the buildings have been preserved almost unchanged - in some, only roofs and floors between floors are missing.

In Sergilla, there are organized tours with departure from the hotel, but you can come and wander through the streets of the ancient city on your own.

Al Madinah Market

The Al-Madina market, located in the Syrian city of Aleppo, is considered the largest covered market in the world, with a long history. Most souks (covered markets) have existed here since the 14th century. The 13-kilometer-long market also houses caravanserais designed for merchants to live and store goods, many of which are architectural monuments.

It sells luxury goods from other countries and locally produced goods. Prices are much lower than in the famous Al Hamidiya market in Damascus. In the Al-Madina market, you can buy everything from copper jewelry to expensive silks. The best souvenir from Aleppo is natural olive soap, which is produced by local soap factories with 300-500-year-old traditions. You can find it in one of the parts of the huge market called Suq Al-Saboun.

Since 1986, part of the Old City Aleppo market Al-Madina is on the List world heritage UNESCO. During mortar attacks in 2012, many parts of the market were badly damaged or completely destroyed.

Armenian Apostolic Church of the Forty Martyrs

The Cathedral of the Forty Martyrs, which belongs to the Armenian Apostolic Church, is located on the site of an earlier building (a Christian chapel). The first mention of this cathedral dates back to 1476; the building acquired its current appearance at the beginning of the 17th century. This is one of the numerous temples of the Armenian Apostolic Church located in Syria.

The Cathedral of the Forty Martyrs is notable for the icons of the ancient and modern writing, special place among which is " Last Judgment"(beginning of the 18th century). The design of the cathedral is interesting - it does not have a dome, but there are three altars. The interior of the Church of the Forty Martyrs corresponds to the traditions of Armenian churches - strict, even ascetic, not distinguished by splendor. The temple has undergone numerous renovations. long time it was the spiritual center of the Armenian diaspora in Syria. An entire Armenian quarter has grown up around it, until recently it was lively and prosperous. Now, due to the tense political environment many residents have left. At present, the Cathedral of the Forty Martyrs is one of oldest churches in Aleppo, there is a museum here.

Great Mosque in Aleppo

The Great Mosque in the city of Aleppo or the Umayyad Mosque was built in 715. Here, according to legend, is the grave of Father John the Baptist Zacharias.

The Great Mosque is the oldest and largest mosque in Aleppo.

Particularly noteworthy is the 45-meter minaret, which was restored during the time of Abul Hassan Muhammad in 1090. Unfortunately, during its history, the mosque was destroyed after a fire, which allowed Sultan Nur ed-Din Zengid in 1169 to restore and somewhat expand its area.

The minaret is decorated with carved inscriptions and ornaments. The courtyard is famous for its black and white stone pavement, which forms various geometric shapes.

The most popular attractions in Aleppo with descriptions and photos for every taste. Choose best places for visiting famous places Aleppo on our website.

2016

2008

Aleppo, the second largest city in Syria, was a major economic and industrial center and one of the main tourist attractions of the country.

But four years of war have left much of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Old City in ruins.

After most of rebels began to leave eastern Aleppo, the city came under the control of government forces. At the same time, there is more and more evidence of the destruction and changes that have occurred in the city over the past few years.

Citadel

interactive

2016

2010

The Aleppo Citadel, built in the 13th century, is one of the symbols of the city. But now its walls are dotted with traces of war.

The troops of Bashar al-Assad used the citadel as a defensive structure, so it was often shelled by the rebels.

Great Mosque of Aleppo: 6October2010, 17 December2016 of the year

To the west of the Citadel is the Great Mosque of Aleppo, or Umayyad Mosque, built between the 8th and 13th centuries. Today it lies in ruins. Its minaret, 45 meters high, was destroyed three years ago.

Church and shcolaAsh-Shibani

interactive

2016

2009

The church and school of Ash-Shibani, dating back to the 12th century, after serious restoration work served exhibition center and a venue for cultural events.

Now the center is badly damaged and needs to be restored.

Hammam al-Nahasin:6 October2010, 17 December2016 of the year

Image copyright Reuters

Baths Hammam al-Nahasin were built in the XIII century and are located in the heart of the old market. Before the war, these men's baths were very popular among tourists.

Tshopping center Shaba Mall: 12December 2009, 16 October 2014 of the year

Image copyright Reuters

Destruction was not only Old city. As a result of the fighting, one of the largest shopping centers Aleppo - Shaba Mall.

For some time, the center, according to some reports, was used by militants " Islamic State" as a prison, but then militants of the rival Islamist group al-Nusra Front took over it.

The population of Syria is about 22 million people. Most of the population is concentrated along the banks of the Euphrates and on the coast mediterranean sea. The total population density is 103 people / km². Syria is guaranteed free education from 6 to 11 years old and is mandatory. 12 years schooling consist of 6 years elementary school, three years of general education and another three years special training necessary for admission to the university. Literacy among Syrians over the age of 15 is 86% for men and 73.6% for women. Average duration life - 70 years.

Ethnic composition

Syrian Arabs (including about 400,000 Palestinian refugees) make up about 90% of the country's population.

largest national minority- Kurds make up 9% of the population of Syria. Most Kurds live in the north of the country, many still enjoy Kurdish. There are also Kurdish communities in all major cities.

The second largest national minority - the Armenians, make up 2-3% of the country's population. 75% of Syrian Armenians live in Aleppo, 15% in Damascus.

Circassians also live in Syria, who are descendants of Muslim settlers from the Caucasus, and Turkmens, who are mainly engaged in semi-nomadic cattle breeding and agriculture. Half of the Circassians, before the destruction of the administrative center by the Israelis, lived in the province of El Quneitra, many of whom later moved to Damascus.

Religion

90% of the population of Syria are Muslims, 10% are Christians. Of the Muslims, 87% are Sunnis, the remaining 13% are Alawites and Ismailis, as well as Shiites, whose number has been constantly increasing since 2003 due to the flow of refugees from Iraq. Among Christians, half are Syrian Orthodox, 18% are Catholics (mainly members of the Syrian Catholic and Melkite Catholic Churches).

There are significant communities of the Armenian Apostolic and Russian Orthodox Churches.

Largest cities

Cities of Syria
	Name		Population		Governorate
	Russian	Arabic	Census 1981	Census 2006
10.	Thought	دوما	51.337	114.761	Reef Damascus
3.	Homs	حمص	346.871	798.781	Homs
2.	Damascus	دمشق	1.112.214	1.580.909	Damascus
7.	Raqqa	الرقة	87.138	182.394	Raqqa
1.	Aleppo (Aleppo)	حلب	985.413	1.626.218	Aleppo (Aleppo)
8.	El Bab	الباب	30.008	137.565	Aleppo (Aleppo)
6.	Deir ez-Zor	دير الزور	92.091	252.588	Deir ez-Zor
5.

Aleppo (Arabic Aleppo)- the second largest city in Syria and the capital of the "gray" (ash-Shahba) province.
"Gray" not only in name, but also gray in the absence of greenery.
In the center of the city rises a hill, on which, according to legend, Abraham stopped on his way to Egypt.
The legend also tells that Ibrahim, the prophet of Abraham, lived here, and he had a gray (shahba) cow, he milked the cow and distributed milk to poor people. Every evening these people asked:
"Haleb Ibrahim al-baqr ash-shahba?" - "Did Ibrahim milk a gray cow?"
Hence the name of the city: Aleppo (Khale bash-Shahba).
Now on the hill rises the Citadel, which is the symbol of Aleppo.
Apart from the Arabs Aleppo live a large Armenian colony: the Armenians moved to northern regions after the massacre in Turkey in 1915-16, Aleppo even received the nickname "Mother of emigration").
Aleppo ancient city, the first mention of it refers to early III in. BC Later, the city was conquered by the Hittites, and in the VIII century. BC. came under the rule of Babylon.
The heyday of Aleppo fell on the IV - I centuries. BC. At this time, Aleppo was rebuilt and received the Greek name Beroia. Then the Greek layout of the city took shape, the acropolis appeared, trading area Agora and temples.
During the Roman and Byzantine periods, the layout of the city did not change much.
In 637, the city was captured by the Arabs. Aleppo was major center first the Umayyad provinces, and then the Abbasid Caliphate.
From the 11th century the city became the main center on the famous Great silk road connecting East with West.
The crusaders never managed to capture Aleppo, but in 1401 they could not resist the invasion of Tamerlane's troops.
In 1516 Aleppo became part of the Ottoman Empire. But even this did not affect the economic and intellectual level cities. Allepo stayed for a long time largest city Syria. After the end of World War I, Syria passed from Turkish rule to French mandate.

Citadel.
open
Summer 9.00 -18.00
Winter 9.00 – 16.00
Ramadan 9.00 -15.00
Day off - Tuesday

Citadel. Aleppo. Syria.

Once upon a time there was a Greek acropolis on the site of the citadel, Byzantine church, muslim mosque. The citadel suffered from earthquakes and sieges more than once.
The fortress acquired its present appearance at the end of the 12th - beginning of the 13th century. under the son of Salah ad-Din Malik Zahir Gazi, who ordered to dig a moat and cover the slopes of the hill with stone lining.
The fortress is surrounded by a 30-meter moat. The entrance to the citadel is guarded by two towers. The bridge tower, 20 meters high, was built in 1542 and protects the bridge, based on 8 arches and forming a staircase, under which an aqueduct passed, supplying the fortress with water. The bridge leads to the gate tower, which is the only entrance to the citadel.
The fortress is a grandiose superbly fortified structure. A narrow street runs through the entire citadel, along which there were buildings (little remains of them), underground rooms Byzantine period used to store water, also underground was a prison.

Citadel. Aleppo. Syria.

There were two mosques in the citadel: the small mosque or the mosque of Ibrahim, built in 1167. The mosque stands on the site of the church, and so - on the site of a stone, where, according to legend, Ibrahim liked to rest. The Great Mosque built in 1214 was destroyed by fire in 1240; a stone mihrab and several rooms have been preserved from the original building.

Citadel. Aleppo. Syria.

Citadel. Aleppo. Syria.

preserved throne room Mamluk rulers (XV-XVI centuries). The hall is arranged in the upper tier of the gate tower.

View of the city from the Citadel. Aleppo. Syria.

The busy Jami al-Omawi street leads from the Citadel.

On it is Khan al-Wazir- the largest and most famous caravanserai of Aleppo, built in 1682.

Khan al-Wazir (left) and the Jami al-Fustok Mosque (1349) (right). Aleppo. Syria.

At the end of the street is the main mosque of the city - Mosque of Jami al-Omawi (Umayyad). The mosque was built on the site of Saint Helena in 715, modeled on the Damascus Umayyad Mosque. The building often suffered from fires and destruction, modern building refers to 1169.

Mosque of Jami al-Omawi.

Mosque of Jami al-Omawi.

Near mosques Jami al-Omawi there is a mosque-madrasah Khalyaviya - it was the oldest cathedral Aleppo, erected in the VI century. in honor of Elena - mother Byzantine emperor Constantine.

Aleppo is famous for its covered markets, which cover the Jami al-Omawi Mosque on three sides and stretch total at 9 km. Markets began to take shape in the 16th century. and include shops, workshops, hamams, mosques.

Before the start of the war, in 2010 the Syrian city of Aleppo was the most big cities in the country. More than 4.6 million inhabitants lived here. In 2006, the city won the title of "Capital Islamic culture". In 2012 during civil war Aleppo became the scene of fierce fighting. How much this place has changed and what happened during the hostilities can be clearly seen in our selection of photographs.

As you can see in the photographs, a significant part of the city lies in ruins. And these are not just minor damage to individual buildings, but serious damage, many of which simply cannot be reconstructed. People still live in the city, but their number has decreased significantly. The war is already five years old, the victims number in the tens of thousands, millions of people were forced to flee their homes, leaving behind everything acquired by their families for several generations. The damage caused by the war to Aleppo was considered catastrophic.

Where ancient churches, mosques and fortresses once stood, ruins now lie. Almost all the sights that are on the UNESCO World Heritage List were destroyed or damaged. So, the Great Mosque of Aleppo was badly damaged, and the only minaret of the mosque was completely destroyed. The walls of the Citadel are now riddled with bullet holes, and the famous Al-Madina market has burned to the ground. This once beautiful bustling city has become a symbol of the horrors of the aftermath of war.