One cannot address these two recent volumes without mentioning the fate of Palmyra at the hands of IS over the last two years. On 18 August 2015, Khaled al-Assad, the former head of antiquities at Palmyra, was murdered. The period from May to October in that year saw the wilful destruction of many of the city's famous Roman-era structures and monuments, including the so-called Temples of Baal-Shamin and Bel, several of the famous tower-tombs and the iconic arch at the entrance to the colonnade. Even though S.’s Roman Palmyra was written before these atrocities took place, both of these volumes are now part of a new era for Palmyrene studies, in which the next generation of scholars will not be able to see the ruins for themselves.
Scholarly efforts to preserve what remains of Palmyra's material culture, many of which had begun before IS's occupation, are more important now than ever. For instance, the Palmyra Portrait Project – established at Aarhus University by R. Raja and A. Kropp – seeks to compile all known Palmyrene portraits into a searchable online database. The Wisconsin Palmyrene Aramaic Inscription Project, directed by J. Hutton, uses reflective transformation imaging on Palmyrene inscriptions, allowing access to these moveable and adaptable images on an online database. In this way, academic efforts have concentrated on preserving and reinterpreting the material that remains. At the same time, the destruction has led to a wider appreciation of the importance of Palmyra's unique culture and history. Attempts have been made – by the Arc/k project and Creative Commons’ New Palmyra project – to compile 3D models of Palmyrene monuments as they were through photogrammetry. Palmyra has been the subject of news articles, television news items and an increasing number of publications aimed at a wider audience. The two books under review – one aimed at the scholarly community, the other at a wider audience – are important contributions to the evolving discussion of Palmyrene history.
The first thing one notices about the two volumes is that they both feature the same monument on their covers: the famous arch at one end of the colonnade that IS destroyed in 2015. Since its destruction, this arch has remained an important symbol of the city. On 19 April 2016, a replica of the arch – made in Italy using Egyptian marble – was shown in Trafalgar Square; its creators intend to erect the replica at Tadmor near the location of the original. The two volumes display – albeit unconsciously in the case of S.’s Roman Palmyra – this potent symbol of Palmyra's memory under threat.
Roman Palmyra is a reworked version of S.’s doctoral thesis, investigating the emergence of Palmyra as a city and the development of Palmyrene identity. It is primarily a study of the abundant epigraphy from the city, although S. also emphasises the importance of material remains (pp. 17–21). S. evaluates his material with two perspectives in mind: he emphasises the importance of Palmyra's position between the Roman and Parthian Empires while, at the same time, making sure to appreciate Palmyra's distinct culture and the power it wielded over its surrounding territories (pp. 6–7).
The work is divided into eight thematic chapters, dealing with interlinked issues concerning the development of sedentary existence, civic institutions and communal identity at Palmyra. S. is particularly successful in his treatment of tribes in Palmyra. In Chapter 2, ‘Tribes and Tribalism’, he sets out a framework for dealing with the notoriously difficult evidence for tribal groups. He shows that we cannot necessarily determine the extent of tribes – labelled with the Palmyrene terms pḥz, pḥd bny, or the Greek phylē – but still manages to demonstrate the importance of these kinship groups to Palmyrene society. His analysis in this chapter then informs the discussion of family groups in Chapter 4, ‘Mapping Social Identities’, and of civic tribes in Chapter 5, ‘The Civic Institutions of Palmyra’.
S.’s volume draws together a wide range of source material and tackles difficult issues with aplomb. S.’s analysis, however, would have benefited from a greater awareness of the linguistic context of some of his source material. The majority of the epigraphic evidence cited as part of the discussion of tribal groups in Chapter 2 is written in Palmyrene whilst most of the evidence for civic institutions examined in Chapter 5 is written in Greek. The discrepancy between the Palmyrene and Greek portions of inscriptions from the city was noted some time ago in an article by D. Taylor (‘Bilingualism and Diglossia’, in J. Adams et al., Bilingualism in Ancient Society [2002]), who argued that Palmyrene was the language associated with the funerary sphere and matters of kinship whilst Greek was used to refer to public activities and civic governance. S. does not really address this aspect of his source material, and some of his arguments are less convincing as a result. Similarly, his discussion of identity focuses on those who identify themselves as palmyrēnoi, but does not devote enough space to discuss the ramifications of the Aramaic alternative tdmry’ (pp. 122–5).
Although it is no fault of S., the presentation of the book leaves something to be desired. The choice to use endnotes rather than footnotes for this detailed study of epigraphic and literary evidence presents unnecessary obstacles to the reader. The quality of the pictures is unfortunately often rather poor. Some of the more complex images are not of sufficient resolution to be of use and many, maps in particular, suffer for being squeezed onto half a page alongside text.
V.’s contribution is a German translation of the French Palmyre. L'irremplaçable trésor, published in 2015. V. writes as a classical historian who, in the course of his research, has repeatedly come across Palmyra (p. 9). The book, aimed at a wider audience, is an elegy to the lost ‘Queen of the desert’. V. aims ‘meiner Bestürzung über diese unbegreifliche Verwüstung Ausdruck zu verleihen und ein Bild zu zeichnen von dem, was einst die Pracht von Palmyra war und was man künftig noch in Büchern betrachten kann’ (p. 10).
Relatively little has been changed from the 2015 French original. Although the title has changed to the more mournful Requiem für eine Stadt, the book still seeks to demonstrate the uniqueness of Palmyra in much the same way as the French L'irremplaçable trésor. A notable mistake has been introduced to the German translation, which replaces the divine name Bel – as it correctly appears in the French version – with Baal throughout the text.
V. presents an evocative description of Palmyrene society, culture and religion. Some of his observations, however, go against the opinions of Palmyrene scholars. A. Sartre-Fauriat and M. Sartre, in particular, have taken exception to his depiction of Palmyra and have refuted several of his claims in their recent 2016 volume Palmyre: vérités et légendes. I will not go into too much detail regarding their criticisms; Sartre-Fauriat and Sartre are leading scholars in the field, and many of the issues they raise are perfectly valid. We should remember, however, that this volume is an elegy for the city. It is an eloquent – and sometimes quite touching – emotional reaction to the wanton destruction of Palmyra's unique monuments. It perhaps does not warrant the sort of scrutiny that Sartre-Fauriat and Sartre give it.
V.’s work seeks to emphasise Palmyra's uniqueness. It frequently compares Palmyrene traditions to those of its neighbours, both Roman and Near Eastern, and demonstrates what is distinct about the ‘Queen of the desert’. Of particular mention in this regard are his chapters on tribal and civic traditions in the city, ‘Ein syrischer Stamm und eine hellenisierte Stadt’ (pp. 52–6), and on Palmyrene identity, ‘Eine hybride Identität’ (pp. 84–95). On occasion, the volume steps beyond its historical narrative and addresses Palmyra's importance in the modern world. In the chapter on Palmyrene religion, for instance, V. asks ‘Doch warum wurde im August 2015 dieser Baalshamin-Tempel in die Luft gesprengt?’ (p. 102). He attributes the temple's destruction not to religious reasons, but to the esteem with which it was held by western cultures. In this way, V.’s book is a discussion of Palmyra's memory and reception as well as its history.
The two volumes are both welcome contributions to the field of Palmyrene studies. S.’s Roman Palmyra is a valuable scholarly treatment of Palmyrene society and identity; it addresses difficult questions with awareness and sensitivity. V.’s Palmyra is an emotional response to Palmyra's destruction, dealing with its history and – in a broad sense – its memory. Whilst V. is not always correct in his interpretation, his work has an important role to play in current discourse, stirring discussion not just of Palmyra's history, but also of its memory and reception in the modern world.
