Colonnaded Street

In 1996 was made the discovery of 700 sqm of Byzantine mosaics in the Souks area of Beirut, most dating back to the 5th and 6th centuries AD.

The 400-meter-long Colonnaded street was paved with successive layers of mosaics, displaying various geometric patterns and natural motifs.

More than ten shops of a colonnaded "Portico" were discovered during the excavations, each one identified by a Greek letter (Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta…) marked on the mosaic floor.

A reproduction of the salvaged mosaics, with the Greek letters Beta, Gamma and Delta, is integrated into Souk al-Franj near its original location.

The road surface excavated in December 1995 seems to end along the Souk Tawileh line where it turns at an angle of 100 degrees to the north.