Examining Cultural Heritages Harmed by Religious Fanaticism: Sample of the Palmyra Ancient City

Year 2017, Volume: 19 Issue: 2, 1 - 10, 01.12.2017

Osman Zeybek , Mukerrem Arslan

Abstract

Palmyra was an important religious and trade center of inner Syria in
ancient times, and included on the World Heritage List by UNESCO in 1980.
Palmyra’s origin dates back to the Neolithic era. The city, known as “bride of
the desert” or “pearl of the desert”, and frequented by caravans, lived the
most splendid times during the Roman Empire. Thanks to the welfare of those
times, many statues and monumental buildings were built. Nevertheless, the city
has been harmed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), who have
been terrorizing Middle East lately, since May 2015. The reason of collapsing,
dynamiting or destroying those heritages is attributed by Islamic terrorist
groups to symbolizing idolization, what Islam ideologically refuses. In this
paper, information gathered about The Ancient City of Palmyra, and the
importance of the problem will be highlighted by evaluating the conditions
before and after the destruction.

Keywords

Palmyra, religious fanaticism, ancient city, cultural heritage

Dini Fanatizm Tarafından Zarar Görmüş Kültürel Mirasların İrdelenmesi: Palmyra Antik Kenti Örneği

Abstract

Palmyra,
antik zamanlarda Suriye'nin önemli bir dini ve ticaret merkeziydi ve 1980'de
UNESCO tarafından Dünya Mirası Listesi'ne dâhil edildi. Palmyra'nın kökeni,
Neolitik Çağ'a kadar uzanmaktadır. "Çölün gelini" veya "çölün
incisi" olarak bilinen, karavanlarla ziyaret edilen şehir, Roma
İmparatorluğu döneminde en görkemli zamanlarını yaşamıştır. O zamanların refahı
sayesinde birçok heykel ve anıtsal yapılar inşa edilmiştir. Lakin Mayıs
2015'ten beri Orta Doğu'yu terörize eden Irak Şam İslam Devleti (IŞİD) isimli
terör örgütü, kente büyük zararlar vermektedir. Sözde İslami terör örgütleri
tarafından bu mirasların yıkılması, bozulması ya da yok edilmesinin sebebi ise,
bu yapıların İslamın reddettiği ikonlaştırmayı temsil etmeleri olarak
gösterilmektedir. Bu çalışmada, Palmyra Antik Kenti hakkında toplanan bilgiler
ve yıkım öncesi ve sonrasındaki koşullar değerlendirilerek sorunun önemi vurgulanmıştır.

Keywords

Palmyra, dini fanatizm, antik kent, kültürel miras

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