Byblos (Jbeil)

Byblos is one of the oldest towns in the world, go back at least 7000 years. The rise and fall of nearly two-dozen successive levels of human culture on this site make it one of the richest archaeological areas in the country.

Under the domination of  the Egyptian Pharaohs in the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC, Byblos was a commercial and religious capital of the Phoenician coast. It was here that the first linear alphabet, ancestor of all modern alphabets (through Greek and Latin), was invented. The
sarcophagus of Byblos’ King Ahiram, now in the National Museum, bears the oldest known Phoenician inscription. Byblos was also the center of the Adonis cult, the god of vegetation who dies in winter and renewed each spring.

Like its sister cities, Byblos was destroyed in the earthquake of 551 AD. It regained some consequence in Crusader times when it came under the County of Tripoli. A modest town under the Mamlukes and Ottomans, Byblos grew rapidly during the recent war in Lebanon when commercial activities moved from Beirut to regional capitals.

The busy modern town, 36 kilometers north of Beirut, has as its tourist hub the Roman-medieval port. In this area the Crusader Castle and church as well as the extensive remains of the city’s past-from Neolithic times to the Crusader era. A beautiful mosque adds to the cultural mix in the old part of Byblos. Cafes and restaurants, plus an interesting wax museum can be visited.