Abstract
The existence of a pre-Roman settlement of Palmyra is attested by literary sources. But, the location of this early settlement was unknown until recently. By several reasons its location was supposed to be located in the area outside the later roman city. In 1997 and 1998, a geophysical prospection in the area south of the Wadi was carried out. A zone of about 2 ha was prospected by Caesium–Magnetometry. About 100 m2 of this zone was measured also by electric resistivity. Result: Without excavation, a complete city plan can be recognized under the sand. Based on the magnetogram, small stratigraphic archaeological excavations proved a dating of these building structures between the third century BC and the third century AD. Thus, the location, date and part of the urban structure of ancient Palmyra were proved. Furthermore, the whole area can be protected now as antiquities zone by the Syrian authorities.
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Schmidt-Colinet, A. (2020). Remote Sensing Work in Palmyra/Syria. In: Hadjimitsis, D., et al. Remote Sensing for Archaeology and Cultural Landscapes. Springer Remote Sensing/Photogrammetry. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10979-0_15
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