Bosra ash-Sham

Bosrah or Bozrah, is one of the oldest cities in the province of Dara‘a and one of the rich cities in archaeological sites in Syria. It is 137 km south of Damascus. It was built in the region of Hawran, the southern gate of Syria, and was inhabited since old times by Arab tribes. Bosra was mentioned in the Egyptian Tall al Amarneh Correspondences, 14th.century B.C. The many relics of Bosra, carved from the black basalt stones, narrate endless stories about the peoples who passed over its land: stone age people, Canaanites, Aramites, pharaoic Egyptians, Assyrians, Kaldanians, Persians, Greeks, Arab Nabateans, Romans, Byzantines and Arab Ghassanids. Castles, temples, theatres, baths, churches, monasteries and many statues, mosaics,and aqueducts are eternal witnesses on the great feats of our ancestors who settled on its land. Every step on the ground of Hawran will reveal an archaeological surprise to the scholar and to the tourist as well.

In the year 90 B.C. Arab Nabateans settled in Bosra and made it their Capital. When the Romans occupied it in the year 105 A.D. Roman emperor Trajan named it “ Nova Trajana Bostra”, i.e. the new Trajan Bosra. In 106 A.D. Bosra became the provincial capital of the Arabia province, and at the same time a meeting point across the Roman roads called “Recif” connecting the Mediterranean, the Arabian Gulf, Damascus and Palmyra.

In the third century A.D. it was honored by the title of a “Metropolis” and in the 5th. century A.D. Bosra became the capital of the Arab Ghassanid state and a center of an archdiocese where in the year 513 A.D. a magnificent Cathedral was built. Bosra continued its life until Arab Moslem armies, led by khaled Bin el- Walid, conquered it in the year 634 A.D. / 13 Hijira. Since that time it held the name of (Bosra ash-Sham ).

The Nabateans, the Romans, and later the Arab Moslems left many urban edifices

In Bosra:

-Bosra amphitheater: A Roman wonder, still preserving its ancient majestic look. It has seats for 15000 spectators with many doors and back corridors that help evacuate it within 15 minutes. Seats are distributed in certain classifications according to the classes of the audiences:

The upper ruling statesmen, the elite, the Knights and then the commons and the women. One of the wonders of acoustic engineering is achieved in Bosra amphitheater. Any one seated any where in the theater can, clearly,hear the dialogue of the actors on the stage. Today the amphitheater is used as a show place for Bosra International Festival (BIF); an event that takes place every other year. Several countries participate in “Bosra International Festival” by theatrical shows, Concerts and folklore groups.

-Castle of Bosra: According to the Arab historian ( Ibn Asaaker – died 1175A.D- 571H), the castle was built during the rule of the Umayyad and the Abbasid dynasties in order to surround and protect the Roman amphitheater. This changed the whole block into a strong fort. During the Memlouk period three towers were added to the castle as mentioned on a board dated in the twelfth century. Fortifications continued during the reign of king al Adel, brother of Sultan Saladin, and during the rule of Mousa, son of al Adel and until the year 1251. A.D. – Gates of Bosra: There are still three gates preserved in Bosra:

1- Bab al Hawa (city Gate). It was built in the shape of two arches above each other in the 2nd. century A. D.

2- Lantern Gate (Bab al Qandil ). It is known as the arch of triumph. It was built in the 3rd. century A. D.

3- The Nabatean Gate: unique among Syrian antiquities and similar to the gates of Petra in Jordan.

-The fountain: It was a magnificent building that gave water to the inhabitants of Bosra. Only four Corinthian columns still preserved from the building of the fountain..

-The Kalype: A religious place especially built for housing God of Bosra. Only part of a wall and a Corinthian column still exist from the kalype.

– Trajan‘s Palace: A Roman palace concealed by modern houses built around it.

– Roman Baths: These have rooms for clothes, moderate and hot water chambers supplied with air outlets in order to control the temperature inside the rooms.

– The Cathedral: A Byzantine church built in March 513 A.D. with a dome used later as a model for building domes of churches all over the world.

-Monastery of the Monk Bahira: The oldest church in Bosra built in the fourth century A.D. The dome is related to the monk Bahira who heralded the appearance of the prophet Mohamad (pbuh).

-The Omari Mosque: The first mosque built outside the Arabian Peninsula after the Arab Islamic conquest.

– Mosque of Mabrak al Naqa: It was named so on the belief that the she-camel of the Caliph Othman bin Affan (which was carrying the first edition of the Holy Quran to Bilad ash-Sham) sat in that place.

– The Eastern Cistern: The oldest water cistern known up till now. It was built by the Nabateans in the 1st.century B.C.

-The Pilgrim‘s Cistern: Built by the Ayoubids to supply water to the pilgrims and to the moat around the castle.

There are other historical sites in Bosra like Gramushtekin Mosque, St. George mausoleum, school of Abilfidaa‘, the bazaar, the Nabatean column, the Ayoubid Bath, Mosque of Fatima and many others.

Now Bosra has a four stars hotel “Bosra ash-Sham Hotel”.

Bosra had several historical names: Busrana: in the Bronze Age. Bossora, or Bossoura: in the 4th. Century A.D. Bissra: in Aramaic and Nabatean ( which means the fort ) Nova Trajana Bostra: in the Roman period,named by emperor Trajan.

Bosra: in Syriac. Bostra: in Latin during the crusades. Bosra Eski Sham: During the Ottoman occupation. Bosra ash-Sham: Since the Arab conquest to differentiate it from Basra of Iraq. Now it is Bosra.

 

Haifaa Mafalani