__NOTOC__ Duris (also Dūris, or Dûris (), formally Doris and also known by its

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

spelling Douris) is a village located approximately . southwest of

Baalbek Baalbek (; ; ) is a city located east of the Litani River in Lebanon's Beqaa Valley, about northeast of Beirut. It is the capital of Baalbek-Hermel Governorate. In 1998, the city had a population of 82,608. Most of the population consists of S ...

in the

Bekaa Valley The Beqaa Valley (, ; Bekaa, Biqâ, Becaa) is a fertile valley in eastern Lebanon and its most important farming region. Industry, especially the country's agricultural industry, also flourishes in Beqaa. The region broadly corresponds to th ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

. It is the site of a 13th-century Muslim shrine and a

necropolis A necropolis (: necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'' (). The term usually implies a separate burial site at a distan ...

from the late

Roman Imperial The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

period that is currently undergoing archaeological investigation..

History

An archaeological site which is not on the tell near the village exists southwest of Duris at the north of a

vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

that can be reached via a track from the road to Baalbek. This site was found to contain both

Shepherd Neolithic Shepherd Neolithic is a name given by archaeologists to a style (or industry) of small flint tools from the Hermel plains in the north Beqaa Valley, Lebanon.Fleisch, Henri., Les industries lithiques récentes de la Békaa, République Libana ...

and

Heavy Neolithic Heavy Neolithic (alternatively, Gigantolithic) is a style of large stone and flint tools (or industry) associated primarily with the Qaraoun culture in the Beqaa Valley, Lebanon, dating to the Epipaleolithic or early Pre-Pottery Neolithic at ...

material together, being unusual in this respect. It was found by M. Billaux in 1957 who showed it to two archaeologists who were also members of the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

Henri Fleisch Reverend Father Henri Fleisch (1 January 1904 – 10 February 1985) was a French archaeologist, missionary and Orientalist, known for his work on classical Arabic language and Lebanese dialect and prehistory in Lebanon. Fleisch spent years re ...

and Maurice Tallon. The Shepherd Neolithic material was unpatinated and appeared similar to that of

Maakne Maqne or Maakne () is a town and municipality in Baalbek District, Baalbek-Hermel Governorate, Lebanon. Maqne I Along with Qaa, Maqne I or Maakne I is a type site of the Shepherd Neolithic industry. The surface site was discovered in 1957 by ...

. The larger pieces were patinated to white, appearing to represent different periods. Three Levallois flakes were found in 1966 by

Lorraine Copeland Lorraine Copeland (born Elizabeth Lorraine Adie, 1921April 2013) was a British archaeologist specialising in the Palaeolithic period of the Near East. She was a secret agent with the Special Operations Executive during World War II. Early life ...

Middle Bronze

In the Middle Bronze I (c. 2000-1800 BC), there was a settlement at Tell Douris. While most of the pottery was locally made, there where imports from inland Syria (Homs and Ebla) as well from the south.

Medieval Period

The Qubbat Duris was built in AD 1243 ( 641) during the

Ayyubid The Ayyubid dynasty (), also known as the Ayyubid Sultanate, was the founding dynasty of the medieval Sultan of Egypt, Sultanate of Egypt established by Saladin in 1171, following his abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate, Fatimid Caliphate of Egyp ...

era. Its sarcophagus was raised or left standing to serve as a

mihrab ''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall". ...

, helping to direct

prayer File:Prayers-collage.png, 300px, alt=Collage of various religionists praying – Clickable Image, Collage of various religionists praying ''(Clickable image – use cursor to identify.)'' rect 0 0 1000 1000 Shinto festivalgoer praying in front ...

towards

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

. Its columns were probably removed from the ruins of nearby

and are assembled haphazardly, one being upside-down. In 1838,

Eli Smith Eli Smith (September 13, 1801 – January 11, 1857) was an American Protestant missionary and scholar. Biography Smith was born in Northford, Connecticut, to Eli and Polly (née Whitney) Smith. He graduated from Yale College in 1821 and from A ...

noted ''Duris'' as a

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...

and

Maronite Maronites (; ) are a Syriac Christianity, Syriac Christian ethnoreligious group native to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant (particularly Lebanon) whose members belong to the Maronite Church. The largest concentration has traditionally re ...

village in the

Baalbek District Baalbek District () is an administrative district in the Baalbek-Hermel Governorate of the Republic of Lebanon, having the city Baalbek as its capital. It is by far the largest district in the country comprising a total of . Major towns of the d ...

.Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, 2nd appendix, p
145
/ref>

Gallery

File:Kubbet Duris.png, An engraving of the qubbat with Duris in the background ()

References

Bibliography

* . * . * . * *

External links

Douris
Localiban Populated places in Baalbek District Heavy Neolithic sites Shepherd Neolithic sites Neolithic settlements Archaeological sites in Lebanon {{Lebanon-geo-stub