Sweida :
Located 128 Km southeast of Damascus the city of Suweida is
the main city of Suweida governorate. It is quite an
important center and has a predominantly Druze and Greek
Orthodox community; it is also the seat of a Greek Orthodox
bishop.
Not much of the ancient ruins of Suweida are still
existing, most were built over and destroyed by the
Ottomans and then the French mandate, who built many
barracks here to watch closely the Druze community after
the 1925 rebellion.
The only ruins left are three ancient columns that used to
be part of a Nabatean temple and the remains of a large
basilica dating back to the 4th century AD.
Suweida museum however has quite a large collection of
interesting mosaics that resemble the ones found in the
Shahba museum. Themes include Artemis taking a bath, and a
banquet scene. There is also a fine collection of statues
sculpted in the black basalt, although not as elegant as
marble statues they deserve just as much credit.
Copyright © Syrian embassy-London 2005