File:Temple of Bel, Palmyra, Syria - 2.jpg

The Temple of Bel is an ancient stone ruin located in Palmyra, Syria. The temple, consecrated to the Semitic god Bel, worshipped at Palmyra in triad with the lunar god Aglibol and the sun god Yarhibol, formed the center of religious life in Palmyra and was dedicated in 32 AD. Aedeen Cremin considers its ruins the "best preserved" at Palmyra. History The temple is built on a hill with stratification indicating human occupation that goes back to the third millennium BCE. The area was occupied in pre-Roman periods with a former temple that is usually referred to as the first temple of Bel and the Hellenistic temple. The walls of the temenos and propylaea were constructed in the late first and the first half of the second century AD. Most of the Corinthian columns of the inner colonnades still show pedestals where the statues of the benefactors stood. Architecture Columns in the inner court of the templeThe temple shows a remarkable synthesis of ancient Near Eastern and Greco-Roman architecture. The temple lies inside a large precinct lined by porticos. It has a rectangular shape and is oriented north-south. It is based on a paved court surrounded by a massive 205 metres (673 ft) long wall with a propylaeum. On a podium in the middle of the court is the actual temple building, the cella. The cella is entirely surrounded by a prostyle of Corinthian columns, only interrupted on the long side by an entrance gate with large steps leading from the court. The cella is unique in the fact that it has two inner sanctuaries, the north and south adytons, dedicated as the shrines of Bel and other local deities. The northern chamber is known for a bas-relief carving of the seven planets known to the ancients surrounded by the twelve signs of the Zodiac and the carvings of a procession of camels and veiled women. The cella is lit by two pairs of windows cut high in the two long walls In three corners of the building stairwells can be found that lead up to rooftop terraces.