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Research atlas for early Christianity. Claims are tagged attested, traditional, or disputed. Copyrighted full texts, including CCEL editions, are not included.

place

Dead Cities

Also known as Forgotten Cities, Massif Calcaire

undated

36.3342, 36.8442 · Wikidata Q393841 P625 (accessed 2026-11-12) · On the map

Hundreds of abandoned late antique villages in northwest Syria with well-preserved churches.

Wikipedia extract

The Dead Cities or Forgotten Cities are a group of 700 abandoned settlements in northwest Syria between Aleppo and Idlib. Around 40 villages grouped in eight archaeological parks situated in north-western Syria provide an insight into rural life in Late Antiquity and during the Byzantine period. Most of the villages, which date from the 1st to 7th centuries, were abandoned between the 8th and 10th centuries. The settlements feature the well-preserved architectural remains of buildings such as dwellings, pagan temples, churches, cisterns and bathhouses. Important dead cities include the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites, Dahis, Serjilla, Ruweiha and al Bara.

CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikipedia contributors. Source page

Sources

  • Dead Cities · Wikipedia contributorsAccessed 2026-11-12 · CC BY-SA 4.0
  • Wikidata Q393841 · Wikidata contributorsAccessed 2026-11-12 · CC0 1.0

Authority files

Related

archaeology · syria · churches

Dead Cities · DeChurched Atlas