|
One only has to observe the numerous and sometimes very
important artificial mounds scattered in the steppe between the
Euphrates and the mountains of the Taurus, or in the Djezirah to be
convinced of such prosperity. Five or six thousand years ago,
flourishing villages existed in these lands. The passage of armies from
the 3rd millenary B.C., and even more later on, the bloody rivalries
between sedentary populations and nomads have noticeably altered the
economy in this area.
Today the re-claiming of this part of the Syrian soil is helped by a
very interesting discovery in the Djezirah: Hydrocarbons that will allow
the whole country to cater its own needs and obtain an exportable
surplus.
A large number of foreign companies have already established themselves
in Deir-Ezzor and are actually conducting exploration works on a large
scheme. If the Djezirah does not present a great interest for the
tourist, it is not the case for the Euphrates valley.
An excellent road from Aleppo to Abou-Kemal runs along the valley and a
trans-desert tarmaced road from Deir-Ezzor to Palmyra and Damascus will
allow you to come back by a different road.
The most ancient cities, such as Mari and Emar, near Maskaneh EI-Qadimah,
are not the most interesting for tourists although fascinating for
archeologists. Built of brittle materials and sometimes according to a
complex stratification, their intricate buildings have come loose a
little after their unearthing by the shovel and the pickaxe of the
archeologist. But much less older sites such as Resafa with the
Byzantine monuments still enclosed in a well-preserved enclosure wall,
and Doura Europos, guardian of a passage of the Euphrates which was
disputed by the Seleucids, the Parths, the Romans, the Palmyranians, and
the Sassanide Persians, have a greater attraction. |
|
