Monuments Past and Present - Ancient Sicily & Ancient Lebanon
Ancient Sicily. Monuments Past and Present. By Gaetano Messineo and Emanuela Borgia. (Vision S.r.l., Rome: 2006. Pgs. 72. Illustrations, Overlays, Map, Site Plans. Spiral Bound.) ISBN: 88-8162-147-9.
and
Ancient Lebanon. Monuments Past and Present. By Maria José Strazzulla. (Vision S.r.l., Rome: 2006. Pgs. 72. Illustrations, Overlays, Map, Site Plans. Spiral Bound.) ISBN: 88-8162-142-8.
Reviewed by Rochelle Caviness - March 20, 2006
Ancient Sicily, by Gaetano Messineo and Emanuela Borgia and Ancient Lebanon by Maria José Strazzulla are two new editions to the outstanding Monuments Past and Present series. These are two unique guidebooks that not only provided an unprecedented look back at the archaeology, history, and architecture of these two regions, but these books also include overlays that show how the various monuments, buildings, and archaeological sites looked when they were originally constructed. When you remove the overlay, you can see how the various sites and items look today. Each volume is spiral bound and includes an historical overview of the area under discussion.
Ancient Sicily
Some of the cities and sites discussed in detail in this volume include:
Syracuse - Temples of Athena and Apollo, a Greek theatre, the Altar of Hieron and the Euryalus Fort.
Taormina - a theatre.
Piazza Armerina - Frigidarium and the Basilica.
Agrgento - Temples of Juno Lacinia, Hercules, Zeus Olympios, and the Chthonic Deities.
Selinus - Acropolis, a Temple, and the Sanctuary of Demeter Malophoros.
Segesta - a theatre.
Ancient Lebanon
Some of the cities and sites discussed in detail in this volume include:
The city of Baalbek, and the information garnered from the excavation of the Temple of Jupiter Helipolitan complex which is considered to be on the Seven Wonders of the World.
Byblos, one of the most ancient cities in the world.
Ancient Beirut (Berytus) throughout the ages.
Qala'at Faqra, its Great Temple, and the Tower of Claudius.
Sidon - both its ancient remains and the Crusader Castle located there are discussed.
Bostan esh-Sheikh and its Phoenician sanctuary.
Tyre - including the Al-Bass Necropolis, Hippodrome, and Sanctuary of Apollo.
'Anjar (Ain al-Jarr) in the Bekaa Valley and its Omayyad Palace.
These books contain a wealth of illustrations ranging from images of ancient artwork, statuary, interior and exterior pictures of public and private buildings, to maps and modern artwork depicting ancient events or architecture and photographs of historically significant sites. Additionally the various structures, artwork, and cultural artifacts pictured throughout the texts are discussed in detail.
These books will be of interest to both armchair and foot on the ground travelers, as well as anyone interested in art history, history, and archaeology. These books are jammed-packed with information and are lavishly illustrated. For those who cannot actually go and see these sites in person, these books are some of the best 'next to actually being there' books that I've come across.
Related Reviews:
The Past and Present Series
A guidebooks series consiting of four books, Christian Rome: Early Christian Rome Catacombs and Basilicas, Italy: Monuments Past and Present, Israel: Past and Present, and Jordan: Past and Present - Petra, Jerash, Amman.
Egypt - From Alexander to the Early Christians, edited by Roger S. Bagnall and Dominic W. Rathbone.
An Archaeological and Historical Guide to Egypt - covering the period from Alexander the Great's conquest of Egypt in 332 B.C. through the Arab conquest of Egypt in A.D. 641.
