Awliya’ Allah Project
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Project name:
Awliya’ Allah Project – Tombs of Muslim Saints in Iqlim el-Kharrub
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Type of site:
Tombs
Location:
Lebanon
Iqlim el-Kharrub Province (now southern part of the Chouf District)Dating:
– Middle Ages (12th–15th century)
– Ottoman period (15th–20th century)
Most interesting finds:
– More than 30 architectural objects in different states of preservation
History of research:
Dates of PCMA mission’s work:
2014–2015
Type of research:
Field prospection
Directors:
Karol Juchniewicz
Co-operating institutions:
– Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology, University of Warsaw
– Directorate General of Antiquities (DGA)
Additional information:
The field prospection was carried out in 2014–2015 as part of the cooperation between the PCMA and the Lebanese DGA. The project, conducted in the framework of the Polish Archaeological Mission in Lebanon, formed an integral part of the comprehensive archaeological survey of the Iqlim el-Kharrub Province, realized since 2000 under the direction of Prof. Mahmoud El-Tayeb.
The project was funded by the Fondation Max van Berchem/Fondation Max van Berchem Award 2014 (additional grant for the 2015 season).
Description of the site and research:
In the framework of the Awliya’ Allah Project, a group of specialists in the archaeology of Islam and documentalists (topographers, engineers, architects, 3D modelers) documented mouments which had never been studied before. These were Muslim shrines connected with the ziyara tradition – the custom of visiting sites associated with particularly holy people.
Conference presentations:
2016 BANEA Conference „Land, Sea, Sky in the Near East”, Lampeter; presentation: “Awliya’ Allah Project”
2015 Conference “Polacy w Libanie”, Warsaw ; presentation: “Awliya’ Allah – kapliczki muzułmańskich świętych w Iqlim el Kharrub”
Juchniewicz, K. (2015). “Awliya’ Allah Project – Surveying Muslim Shrines in Lebanon”, Bulletin Fondation Max van Berchem, No. 29, Décembre 2015, Genève, 3–4.
