Valley of the Tombs

The Valley of the Tombs (Arabic: وادي القبور, romanized: Wādī al-Qubūr) is a necropolis at the west of Palmyra, Syria.

It is one kilometre long (0.62 mi),[1] and easily recognizable by its tower-tombs, among which the former towers of Atenatan, Kitot, Iamblichus and Elahbel where the earliest finds of silk were made[2] and that were destroyed by ISIS in 2015.

[3] As worded by Anna Witecka, "The tower-tomb of Atenatan is the earliest dated tomb in the Palmyrene necropolis.

and the date of the fall of Palmyra in 273 A.D. must be accepted as the terminus ante quem.

"[4] As described by J. M. C. Toynbee, the tomb "has a facade of limestone blocks and a panelled stone door, composed of two wings that turn on pivots, above which is the slab for a bilingual Greek and Palmyrene (Araméenne) inscription.

Aerial view in 1927
Close-up view of towers in 1927
Close-up view of towers in 2008