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53-595: The city administers three villages: Basarabi, Golenți, and Ciupercenii Vechi. It was founded in the 14th century by Genoese colonists . These colonists generally employed large numbers of workmen ( Calafatis ) in repairing ships. This industry gave the town its name. In January 1854, during the Crimean War , when Russian forces were headed up the Danube, Ahmed Pasha , commanding the Turkish forces at Calafat, made

106-534: A bishopric was established in Byblos, and the town grew rapidly. Although a Sasanian colony is known to have been established in the region following the early Muslim conquests of 636, there is little archaeological evidence for it. Trade with Europe effectively dried up, and it was not until the coming of the First Crusade in 1098 that prosperity returned to Byblos, known then as Gibelet or Giblet. In

159-597: A city quarter (or even a single square) with wooden single- or double-floor houses with workshops in the lower floor. Direct territorial expansion of Genoa began in the 13th century with the occupation of Corsica (annexed in 1284 and kept until the 18th century) and northern Sardinia . Genoa remained dominant in the Tyrrhenian Sea after the decisive naval victory against Pisa in the Battle of Meloria (1284). Genoa had also started to form colonies of Ligurians in

212-459: A collection of fossilised fish, sharks, eel, flying fish, and other marine life, some of which are millions of years old. The old medieval part of Byblos is surrounded by walls running about 270m from east to west and 200m from north to south. Byblos Castle was built by the Crusaders in the 12th century. It is located in the archaeological site near the port. Work on the church started during

265-783: A familiar possession of the Embriaco family, who styled themselves as Lords of Gibelet (1100 – late 13th century). Other small colonies were formed in Tartous ( Syria ), Tripoli (Libya), and Beirut (Lebanon). However, the Muslim reconquest in the following century removed Genoese presence from the Holy Land . Genoa also established colonies on the Spanish Mediterranean coast from Valencia to Gibraltar , but these were also short-lived. These colonies consisted usually of

318-485: A hereditary fief, undertaking to pay an annual fee to Genoa and the church of San Lorenzo (Genoa's Cathedral). The Embriaco family's residence, the Byblos Castle , along with the fortified town, served as an important military base for the Crusaders. The remains of the castle are among the most impressive architectural structures now visible in the town centre. The town was taken by Saladin in 1187, re-taken by

371-411: A protected landing place for boats. Dunand discovered around twenty houses although some of the settlement was suggested to have been lost to the sea, robbed or destroyed. Dwellings were rectangular with plastered floors, pottery was usually Dark faced burnished ware with some shell impressions. The Middle Neolithic was a smaller settlement of no more than 0.15 ha (0.37 acres) adjacent to

424-558: A surprise attack on the temporary Russian garrison nearby Cetate , which was under the command of Colonel Alexander Baumgarten  [ ru ; de ] . This diverted the initial Russian attack and allowed Ahmed Pasha to consolidate his forces in Calafat. On 28 January, the Russians under the command of General Joseph Carl von Anrep , reached Calafat and began the siege which lasted until May . Riddled by disease and unable to take

477-410: A total length of 1,971 m (6,467 ft) and its cost is estimated at US$ 200 million. It was officially opened on 14 June 2013. Calafat has several city newspapers. One of them is called Ziarul De Calafat , which is also maintained online; another one is Calafat Live . Calafat is twinned with: Genoese colonists The Genoese colonies were a series of economic and trade posts in

530-454: Is 'Gebul' or 'Jabul'), as they're derivatives of ג־ב־ל ('g-ḇ-l' / 'g- b -l' / 'g-v-l'), which means 'twist as a rope', '(be a, set) border' or 'bound(aria)', which tells us that it is a North Boundary of Canaan. Situated approximately 42 km (26 mi) north of Beirut , Byblos holds a strong allure for archaeologists due to its accumulations of various strata resulting from countless centuries of human dwelling. The initial excavation

583-498: Is an ancient city in the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate of Lebanon . The area is believed to have been first settled between 8800 and 7000   BC and continuously inhabited since 5000   BC. During its history, Byblos was part of numerous cultures including Egyptian , Phoenician , Assyrian , Persian , Hellenistic , Roman , Genoese , Mamluk and Ottoman . Urbanisation is thought to have begun during

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636-697: The 19th dynasty , only to decline during the 20th and 21st dynasties. In addition, when the New Kingdom collapsed in the 11th century BC, Byblos ceased being a colony and became the foremost city of Phoenicia. Although the archaeological evidence seems to indicate a brief resurgence during the 22nd and 23rd dynasties, it is clear after the Third Intermediate Period the Egyptians started favouring Tyre and Sidon instead of Byblos. Archaeological evidence at Byblos, particularly

689-734: The 4th-dynasty pharaoh Sneferu ( fl.  2600   BC) and as Gubla ( 𒁺𒆷 ) in the Akkadian cuneiform Amarna letters to the 18th-dynasty pharaohs Amenhotep III and IV . In the 1st   millennium   BC, its name appeared in Phoenician and Punic inscriptions as Gebal ( 𐤂𐤁𐤋 , GBL ); in the Hebrew Bible as Geval ( גבל ); and in Syriac as GBL ( ܓܒܠ ). The name seems to derive from GB ( 𐤂𐤁 , " well ") and ʾL ( 𐤀𐤋 , " god "),

742-644: The Achaemenid Empire (538–332 BC), Byblos was the fourth of four Phoenician vassal kingdoms established by the Persians; the first three being Sidon , Tyr , and Arwad . Hellenistic rule came with the arrival of Alexander the Great in the area in 332 BC. Coinage was in use, and there is abundant evidence of continued trade with other Mediterranean countries. During the Greco-Roman period,

795-667: The Azov Sea , including Tana ( Azov ), Matrega ( Taman ), Mapa ( Anapa ), Bata ( Novorossijsk ) and others, on the Abkhazian coast, such as Savastopoli ( Sukhumi ), or on the Ukrainian coast, such as Salmastro or Moncastro ( Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi ), Ginestra (now part of Odesa ). During the greatest period of expansion, between the 13th and 15th century , the Republic of Genoa had many colonies and commercial/military ports in

848-576: The Canaanite war god Resheph , but this had fallen into ruins by the time of Alexander the Great . In the Assyrian period, Sibittibaal of Byblos became tributary to Tiglath-Pileser III in 738 BC, and in 701 BC, when Sennacherib conquered all Phoenicia , the king of Byblos was Urumilki . Byblos was also subject to Assyrian kings Esarhaddon (r. 681–669 BC) and Ashurbanipal (r. 668–627 BC), under its kings Milkiasaph and Yehawmelek . In

901-632: The Early Middle Ages , Genoa was a small, poor fishing village of 4,000 inhabitants. By slowly building its merchant fleet, it rose as the leading commercial carrier of the Western Mediterranean, starting to become independent from the Holy Roman Empire around the 11th century. A meeting of all the city's trade associations ( compagnie ) and the noble lords of the surrounding valleys and coasts eventually signaled

954-652: The Grand Serail in Beirut . Byblos was chosen by Condé Nast Traveler as the second best city in the Middle East for 2012, beating Tel Aviv and Dubai , and by the World Tourism Organization as the best Arab tourist city for 2013. The Byblos Wax Museum displays wax statues of characters whose dates of origin range from Phoenician times to current days. The Byblos Fossil Museum has

1007-981: The Lebanese American University (LAU) . The LAU Byblos Campus houses the Medical School, the Engineering School, the School of Architecture and Design, the Pharmacy School, which offers the only Pharm.D. Program outside the United States accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) , the School of Business, and the School of Arts and Sciences. Byblos is re-emerging as an upscale touristic hub. With its ancient port , Phoenician , Roman, and Crusader ruins, sandy beaches and

1060-569: The Mediterranean and Black Seas . Some of them had been established directly under the patronage of the republican authorities to support the economy of the local merchants (especially after privileges obtained during the Crusades ), while others originated as feudal possessions of Genoese nobles, or had been founded by powerful private institutions, such as the Bank of Saint George . During

1113-608: The Pre-Pottery Neolithic B period, approximately 8800 to 7000 BC (Durand's Early Neolithic). Early Neolithic Byblos was a later settlement than others in the Beqaa Valley such as Labweh and Ard Tlaili . It was located on the seaward slope of the larger of the two hills that used to compose ancient Byblos, with a watered valley in between. The original site spread down into the valley and covered an area of 1.2 ha (3.0 acres) providing fertile soils and

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1166-696: The 12th and 13th century, Byblos became part of the County of Tripoli , a Crusader state connected to, but largely independent from, the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem . As Gibelet or Giblet, it came under the rule of the Genoese Embriaco family , who created for themselves the Lordship of Gibelet , first as administrators of the city in the name of the Republic of Genoa , and then as

1219-637: The 3rd millennium BC, the first signs of a town can be observed, with the remains of well-built houses of uniform size. This was the period when the Canaanite civilization began to develop. Neolithic remains of some buildings can be observed at the site. Jacques Cauvin published studies of flint tools from the stratified Neolithic and Chalcolithic sites in 1962. Remains of humans found in Chalcolithic burials have been published by Henri Victor Vallois in 1937. Tombs from this era were discussed by Emir Maurice Chehab in 1950. Early pottery found at

1272-619: The Arabic form of the name is used, it is typically rendered Jbeil , Jbail , or Jbayl in English. All of these, along with Byblos, are etymologically related. During the Crusades , this name appeared in Western records as Gibelet or Giblet . This name was used for Byblos Castle and its associated lordship . The Phoenician City, known to the Greeks as Býblos ( Βύβλος ) and to

1325-727: The Crusaders, and conquered by Baibars in 1266, but it remained in the possession of the Embriacos until around 1300. Having voluntarily surrendered to the Mamluks, the city was relatively spared from looting following its capture. Its fortifications were subsequently restored by Baybars . From 1516 until 1918, the town and the whole region became part of the Ottoman Empire . Byblos and all of Lebanon were placed under French Mandate from 1920 until 1943 when Lebanon achieved independence. The 2006 Lebanon War negatively affected

1378-686: The Crusades in 1115. It was considered a cathedral and was partially destroyed during an earthquake in AD 1170. It was later given to the Maronite bishop as a gift by Prince Yusuf Shihab . The old mosque by the Castle dates back to the Mamluk period, and adopted the name of Sultan Abdulmejid I after he renovated it. In the southeast section of the historic city, near the entrance of the archaeological site,

1431-481: The Danube in the area called Bașcov ( Danube Bridge 2 ), built by the Spanish company FCC . The project of constructing a Danubian bridge in the area of Calafat–Vidin dates back to 1925. Road traffic between Vidin and Calafat was doubling every year, so it became necessary to construct a bridge with four lanes of road traffic, a railway line, a lane two meters wide for bikes and a pavement for pedestrians. The bridge has

1484-670: The Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea in second half of the 13th century. The Genoese presence was not based on military occupation, but on economic "concessions" of Genoese and Ligurian families associated with the local traders and dominant classes. In the eastern Mediterranean, Genoa was greatly advanced by the Treaty of Nymphaeum (1261) with the Byzantine emperor Michael VIII Palaeologus , which, in exchange for

1537-781: The Genoese colonies in Crimea coincided with the Ottoman expansion in the late 15th century. Aside from the Crimean cities, Genoa also lost its lands in the Taman Peninsula , which had belonged to the noble Ghisolfi family. Other losses included the commercial bases of Licostomo in Moldavia and Moncastro near Odesa. The fall of the eastern colonies caused a deep economical crisis which eventually turned into an unstoppable decline for

1590-995: The Muslim Sultanates of Sulu and Maguindanao at the Philippines . The last Genoese colonies disappeared in the 18th century: Tabarka was occupied by the Ottoman Empire (1742), and Corsica was annexed by France after the Treaty of Versailles in 1768. The Republic itself ended in 1797, when it was conquered by the French First Republic under Napoleon and replaced with the Ligurian Republic . Byblos Byblos ( / ˈ b ɪ b l ɒ s / BIB -loss ; ‹See Tfd› Greek : Βύβλος ), also known as Jebeil , Jbeil or Jubayl ( Arabic : جُبَيْل , romanized :  Jubayl , locally Jbeil [ʒ(ə)beːl] ),

1643-644: The New Kingdom pharaohs of Ancient Egypt Around 1350 BC, the Amarna letters include 60 letters from Rib-Hadda and his successor Ili-Rapih who were rulers of Byblos, writing to the Egyptian government. This is mainly due to Rib-Hadda's constant pleas for military assistance from Akhenaten . They also deal with the conquest of neighbouring city-states by the Habiru . It appears Egyptian contact peaked during

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1696-812: The Republic of Genoa as a major European power. It thus moved its interests in the western Mediterranean, establishing flourishing communities in Cadiz and Lisbon . Genoa, in particular, became an efficient banking base of Habsburg Spain ; supplying loans and organizing slave trade as holders of an Asiento . Genoese traders were active in Old Panama one of the main ports on the Pacific, at least until 1671. The Spanish governor of Panama Sebastián Hurtado de Corcuera even recruited Peruvians, Panamanians, and Genoese in Panama to found Zamboanga City after its conquest from

1749-543: The Romans as Byblus , was important for their import of papyrus out of Ancient Egypt – to the extent that " Byblos " came to mean "papyrus" in Greek. The English word " Bible ", therefore, ultimately derives from the Greek name of the city, Βύβλος ('Βύblos / Byblos') , a Greek mumbo-jumble of גְּבָל ('Gāḇal / Gə b al Gobâl'..., that is, 'Gebal' or 'Jebel'), which shares the same root as גְּבוּל ('Gəḇūl / Gā b ūl, that

1802-558: The aid to the Byzantine reconquest of Constantinople, actually ousted the Venetians from the straits leading to the Black Sea. The main Genoese commercial bases were Chios and Mytilene in the Aegean Sea , and Caffa , the major trading center between Mongol-ruled Eastern Europe and Central Asia and Western Europe. Other colonies included Cembalo (modern Balaklava ), Soldaio ( Sudak ), Vosporo ( Kerch ), while other were located on

1855-487: The ancient city by covering its harbour and town walls with an oil slick that was the result of an oil spill from a nearby power plant. Byblos's inhabitants are predominantly Christian, mostly Maronite , with minorities of Armenian Apostolic , Greek Orthodox , and Greek Catholics . There is also a minority of Shi`i Muslims . It is said that the city of Bint Jbeil ("Daughter of Byblos") in Southern Lebanon

1908-472: The birth of Genoese government. The then-born city-state was known as Compagna Communis. The local organization maintained a political and social significance for centuries. The participation of the Genoese Fleet in the Crusades (particularly the conquests of Antioch and Acre ) enriched it enormously. During the First Crusade , the Genoese Republic obtained Acre (one third of the port's incomes) and Gibelet (present-day Byblos , Lebanon ), which become

1961-416: The five Byblian royal inscriptions dating back to around 1200–1000 BC, shows existence of a Phoenician alphabet of twenty-two characters; an important example is the Ahiram sarcophagus . The use of the alphabet was spread by Phoenician merchants through their maritime trade into parts of North Africa and Europe. One of the most important monuments of this period is the Temple of the Obelisks , dedicated to

2014-476: The following century the relationship with the Byzantine Empire were often strained. In 1201 the city also obtained privileges and quarters from the Kingdom of Armenia . Pera fell to the Ottoman forces in 1453, when all of Constantinople was captured. Meanwhile, Chios remained a fief of the Giustiniani family until the Ottoman conquest in 1566. There were some 33,000 descendants of the Genoese colonists in Constantinople and Izmir in 1933. Genoa had also conquered

2067-400: The form of one copper hook, found in a jar. Some jars were lined with white plaster that was applied and self-hardened after firing. Copper appeared more frequently in the Late Chalcolithic period along with multiple burials in tombs and jar handles with impressed signs. According to Lorenzo Nigro , Byblos moved from being a fishermen's village to its earlier urban form at the beginning of

2120-427: The island of Tabarka off the Tunisian coast, which was held by the Lomellini family from 1540 to 1742. Part of the latter's citizens later moved to Carloforte in Sardinia. In addition to its possessions in Crimea, the most important Genoese colonies in the Black Sea area were Taman , Copa , Bata , Maurolaca and Mapa , most of them would survive under Genoese rule until the late 15th century. The decline of

2173-441: The latter a word that could variously refer to any of the Canaanite gods or to their leader in particular . The name thus seems to have meant the "Well of the God" or "Source of the God". Its present Arabic name Jubayl ( جبيل ) or J ( e ) beil is a direct descendant of these earlier names, although apparently modified by a misunderstanding of the name as the triliteral root GBL or JBL , meaning " mountain ". When

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2226-503: The older site. The pottery was more developed with red washes and more varied forms and elaborate decorations, buildings were poorer with unplastered floors. The Late Neolithic period showed development from the middle in building design, a wider range of more developed flint tools and a far larger variety of pottery with fabrication including silica. The Late Chalcolithic featured developments of " Canaanite blades " and fan scrapers. Adult burials in jars started to appear along with metal in

2279-450: The oldest Egyptian words for an oceangoing boat was "Byblos ship". Archaeologists have recovered Egyptian -made artifacts as old as a vessel fragment bearing the name of the Second dynasty ruler Khasekhemwy , although this "may easily have reached Byblos through trade and/or at a later period". Objects have been found at Byblos naming the 13th Dynasty Egyptian king Neferhotep I . The rulers of Byblos maintained close relationships with

2332-409: The picturesque mountains that surround it make it an ideal tourist destination. The city is known for its fish restaurants, open-air bars, and outdoor cafes. Yachts cruise into its harbor today as they did in the 1960s and 1970s when Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra were regular visitors to the city. Byblos was crowned as the "Arab Tour Capital" for the year 2016 by the Lebanese minister of tourism in

2385-469: The region where is now present-day Romania . The largest Genoese colonies in the region were Calafat , Licostomo, Galați (Caladda), Constanța , Giurgiu (San Giorgio) and Vicina . These Genoese settlements served primarily to protect the maritime trade routes that made the Republic a power in this area. In 1155, Genoa was given a fondaco (store and market quarter) at Galata ( Pera ), facing Constantinople , by emperor Manuel Komnenos , although in

2438-400: The tell was published by E.S. Boynton in 1960 with further studies by R. Erich in 1954 and Van Liere and Henri de Contenson in 1964. Prehistoric settlements at Byblos were divided up by Dunand into the following five periods, which were recently expanded and re-calibrated by Yosef Garfinkel to correlate with Tell es-Sultan (Jericho): The site first appears to have been settled during

2491-411: The temple of Resheph was elaborately rebuilt, and the city, though smaller than its neighbours such as Tyrus and Zidonia, was a centre for the cult of Adonis . King Herod of Judaea , known for his extensive building projects, including beyond his own kingdom, constructed a city wall for Byblos. In the 3rd century, a small but impressive theatre was constructed. With the rise of Christianity ,

2544-484: The third millennium BC and it developed into a city making it one of the oldest cities in the world , if not the oldest. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site . It was in Ancient Byblos that the Phoenician alphabet , likely the ancestor of the Greek , Latin and all other Western alphabets, was developed. Eusebius' Onomasticon stated that Byblos was called "Gobel / Gebal" in Hebrew. The name appears as Kebny in Egyptian hieroglyphic records going back to

2597-508: The third millennium BC. Early Bronze Age remains were characterised by the development of Byblos combed ware and a lithic assemblage studied by Jacques Cauvin. Watson Mills and Roger Bullard suggest that during the Old Kingdom of Egypt and Middle Kingdom of Egypt Byblos was virtually an Egyptian colony. The growing city was a wealthy one and seems to have been an ally (among "those who are on his waters") of Egypt for many centuries. First Dynasty tombs used timbers from Byblos. One of

2650-406: The town, Anrep withdrew. Calafat was declared a municipiu in 1997. Calafat lies on the river corridor VII-Danube and the pan-European corridor IV, which starts in Germany and ends in Istanbul and Thessaloniki . The city is at the crossroads of National Roads DN56, DN56A, and DN55A and European route E79 . The city of Calafat and its neighbour, Vidin (Bulgaria), are linked by a bridge over

2703-477: Was conducted by Ernest Renan in 1860, documented in his work "Mission de Phénicie" (1865–1874) . This was succeeded by Pierre Montet 's efforts from 1921 to 1924, and later by Maurice Dunand , who continued excavations from 1925 for a span of forty years. Renan's expedition was to "provide the evidence that the city did not move and that Gebeil is Byblos". Fragments attributed to the semi-legendary pre- Homeric Phoenician priest Sanchuniathon say Byblos

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2756-400: Was founded by those Shi`i Muslims. Byblos has three representatives in the Parliament of Lebanon : two Maronites and one Shi`i Muslim. As of 2022, the religious make-up of the town's 9,247 registered voters were roughly 65.8% Maronite Catholics , 8.7% Armenian Orthodox , 7.2% Shia , 6.3% Sunni , 4.6% Greek Orthodox , and 7.4% others. Byblos is home to the professional schools of

2809-447: Was the first city erected in Phoenicia and was established by the god Cronus . (Cronus was considered the nearest equivalent to the Canaanite Baal / Baal Hammon in the syncretising system used by the ancient Greeks and Romans.) According to the writer Philo of Byblos (quoting Sanchuniathon, and quoted in Eusebius ), Byblos was founded by the Phoenician shrine god El (whom the Greeks identified with their god Cronus ). During

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