Necropolis of Emesa

Excavations begun in August 1936 uncovered a total of 22 tombs before the greater part of this necropolis was made to disappear by 1952 in order to build the municipal stadium known today as Khalid ibn al-Walid Stadium.

The Tomb of Sampsigeramus, of which the remains had been blown up c. 1911 by the Ottoman authorities so as to make room for an oil depot, had also belonged to the necropolis.

1 allow us to date it to the beginning of the first century CE, and to assume that it belonged to a member of the ruling dynasty.

11 and 6 also show that here too were buried individuals connected to the ruling house.

[5] The majority of the artifacts found were heavily influenced by Parthian-Iranian culture, and even Central Asian traditions.

The Tomb of Sampsigeramus , photographed 1907
The Emesa helmet (Tomb 1)