BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

The Dead Cities of Christian Syria

Early Syrian churches and the spread of Christianity

“Nestled amid the hills and valleys of the rugged limestone highlands of the Aleppo Plateau in northwest Syria stand the remains of ancient towns and churches built by some of the Middle East’s earliest Christian communities,” opens Sandra Scham’s article in the Summer 2026 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review. Between the fourth and sixth centuries, the Roman province of Syria saw an unprecedented boom in Christian worship. Early Christian communities thrived especially on the Aleppo Plateau, where agriculture and trade generated considerable wealth and prosperity. Titled “The Dead Cities of Christian Syria,” Scham’s article introduces readers to these now-deserted sites of Christian Syria.

Abandoned ruins of towns and villages across the Aleppo Plateau bear witness to the glorious past of Christian Syria. Built with local limestone, these settlements feature ancient churches, bathhouses and other public buildings, as well as private villas. An archaeologist who focuses on international development and cultural heritage, Sandra Scham leads her readers across the rugged limestone highlands that are often considered the “cradle of Christianity.” Indeed, under Roman and Byzantine rule, ancient Syria became the first predominantly Christian province in the Middle East. And several formative figures of the early Church were born in Syria, including the apostle Paul.

As the early Christian communities in Syria thrived and grew in numbers, they built multitudes of churches. Some of these church complexes rose around or above places associated with early saints who lived and practiced their faith on the Aleppo Plateau. Among them was the ascetic monk Simeon the Stylite (390–459 CE), who for 37 years worshiped on top of a pillar. Named after the saint, the church complex at Qal‘at Sim‘an grew to include monumental basilicas, churches, and pilgrims’ hostels around Simeon’s famous pillar. Only a stub remains of the original pillar, but the monumental architecture and rich literature bring witness to the once-thriving pilgrimage site.

“All this splendor came to an end in the seventh and eighth centuries for reasons that are still not completely understood. Some scholars have speculated that the cities of the plateau were overly dependent on olive oil and wine production, arguing that when this trade declined, the settlements followed suit,” writes Scham, presenting the argument that the same factors that once made Christian Syria so wealthy also led to its final demise. On the other hand, Scham writes: “Others have assumed the cities were deserted because of the Islamic conquests.” “Even though the cities of the plateau were not directly in the path of invading armies,” she writes, “some scholars have suggested that trade routes were so disrupted that the region’s inhabitants were forced to give up and move elsewhere.”

As with other historical cases of demographic, economic, and cultural decline, we can assume that multiple factors played a role. Scholars have come up with a number of events and trends, but it was likely only their accumulation that ultimately turned the once-thriving towns of Christian Syria into the “Dead Cities.”

To further explore the multitude of early Christian churches in Syria, read Sandra Scham’s article “The Dead Cities of Christian Syria,” published in the Summer 2026 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

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Subscribers: Read the full article “The Dead Cities of Christian Syria” by Sandra Scham in the Summer 2026 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

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