Archaeological Virtual Tours: Baalbek

Lebanon's greatest Roman treasure can be counted among the wonders of the ancient world. The largest and most noble Roman temples ever built, they are also among the best preserved. Towering high above the Békaa plain, their monumental proportions proclaimed the power and wealth of Imperial Rome. The gods worshipped here, the Triad of Jupiter, Venus, and Mercury, were grafted onto the indigenous deities of Hadad, Atargatis, and a young male god of fertility. Local influences are also seen in the planning and layout of the temples, which vary from the classic Roman design. Over the centuries Baalbek's monuments suffered from theft, war, and earthquakes, as well as from numerous medieval additions. Fortunately, the modern visitor can see the site in something close to its original from thanks to work in the past hundred years by German, French, and Lebanese archaeologists. Baalbek is located on two main historic trade routes, one between the Mediterranean coast and the Syrian interior and the other between northern Syria and northern Palestine. Today, the city, 85 kilometers from Beirut, is an important administrative and economic center in the northern Békaa valley.

The temple complex of Baalbek is made up of the Jupiter Temple and the Bacchus Temple adjacent to it. A short distance away is the circular structure known as the Temple of Venus. Only part of the staircase remains of a fourth temple dedicated to Mercury, on Sheikh Abdallah hill. There are a number of other Roman remains, Christian sites, and Islamic sites to visit in Baalbek and its immediate neighborhood.