Monuments - Aleppo

Aleppo: The second city of Syria. a large metropolitan of northern Syria, claims to be the oldest inhabited city in the world. What made the fortune of Aleppo was its location at the crossing of the east-west axis of the Fertile Crescent near the point where river Euphrates is nearest to the Mediterranean, and the south road between the desert and the range of mountains parallel to the coast. After Istanbul & Cairo, it was, from the 16th to the 18th centuries the third economic center of the Ottoman Empire. This city of about one million inhabitants, at 320 m. in a depression strewed with protruding rocks and extending from the Orontes to the Euphrates, has a stern character that it owes to the dull color of its stones. It is therefore no wonder that it is called in Arabic Esh-shahba, The Grayish...

 Aleppo Museum:

Contains collection of antiquities unearthed in northern Syria, from the Mediterranean (Ras Shamra-Ugarit) to the middle Euphrates, near the point where the river flows into Iraq (Tell Hariri - Mari)... On the Entry impressive basalt statues of the 9th century B.C. Aleppo museum contains master pieces from Ebla, Tell Halaf, Tell Ahmar, Ugarit, 

The Citadel of Aleppo is the most prominent historic architectural site in Aleppo. It was recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986. The Citadel has an elliptical base with a length of 450m and width of 325m, at the top this ellipse measures 285m by 160m with the height of this slanting foundation measuring 50m. The entire mound was covered with large blocks of gleaming limestone that unified the built structure with the hill thus increasing its visual scale. It was also surrounded by a moat filled with water to protect against intruders Although the Citadel is an Islamic landmark, archeological digs have uncovered Roman and Byzantine ruins dating back to the 9th century BC. The Citadel was originally a Neo-Hittite acropolis built on a natural hill; this provided a strategic site for a military fortress to guard and protect the surrounding agricultural areas.

 Grande Mosque:

is the biggest & one of the finest of the city Which contains about one thousand mosques representing 14 centuries. Built in the time of the Omayyad Caliph Suleiman Ibn Abdul Malek, its notable features are the beautiful square minaret, its prayer niche (mihrab), and the pulpit made of ebony inlaid with ivory

They run through 10 kilometres of narrow covered streets. The souks became known by the products sold there. For example, the perfume souk, is Called Souk Al-Attareen And the jewellers Souk, Souk AI-Saagha. Most of them date from the 15th and 16th centuries and can be considered true popular museums.

the visit of Aleppo would be incomplete without an incursion into the Christian quarters which formed part of the northern suburb of the walled city. These essentially residential quarters, where rich Christian bourgeoisie have lived since the 17th century, still retain some old mansions typically oriental in layout. Most are richly decorated and built around a patio with a pond and containing Lemon, orange and lime tree that give a touch of luxury.

They are located near the souks because they were frequented by the merchants. They have tastefully decorated facades, high arched entrances, and huge wooden doors reinforced with metal and copper. The most famous are khan AI-Gomrok, Khan Al-Wazeer, Khan AI-Saboon, Khan Ashouneh, and Khan An'Nahaseen

Aleppo has about 60 bathes (hammam) some of which were built more than 800 years ago. Hammam Yalbugha AL-Naseri, built in the 14th century, was restored by the ministry of Tourism and has been open to the public since 1985