Sacred Destinations

Damascus National Museum

National Museum of Damascus, Syria
National Museum entrance, which incorporates a desert castle gate.
Photo Creative Commons License upyernoz.


First Linera Alphabet
First linear alphabet from Ugarit. Photo © Peter Brubacher.


Mural of the Exodus from the 3rd-century synagogue at Dura Europos. Photo © Richard Beck.


Fresco of Abraham from the synagogue at Dura Europos. Public domain.




The National Museum in Damascus contains a world-class archaeological and historical collection spread over two wings. Many of the most important finds from excavations throughout Syria are on display here.

What to See

The artifacts on display begins even before you enter: the façade incorporates the transplanted gate of Qasr al-Heir al-Gharbi, a desert castle near Palmyra. Inside, the west wing contains pre-classical and Arab Islamic collections, and the east wing contains Classical and Byzantine collections.

The star exhibit of the National Museum is the fully-reassembled 2nd-century synagogue from Dura-Europos. Its walls are covered with Talmudic injunctions and bright figurative paintings of biblical scenes. (The celebrated church found at Dura-Europos is now in the museum of Yale University.)

The west wing has rooms devoted to Ugarit, whose exhibits include the small clay tablets containing the oldest alphabet in the world. It also contains the ivory head of an unknown prince, a collection of cylinder seals, and Mycenaean pottery imported from Greece. Another room is devoted to Mari, the Bronze Age sight on the Euphrates, with the 3rd millennium treasure of King Cansud.

Further on is a room concentrating on finds from Raqqa, the Abbassid city on the Euphrates. Another hall contains Islamic jewelry, coins and armor, and the final hall is the Damascus Salon, a wood-and-marble paneled room from an 18th-century palace.

The east wing contains rooms of pottery, sculptures and glassware ranging from the Phoenician to Classical. There are rooms concentrating on the Hauran and Jebel al Arab, where most objects are made of basalt. Another hall contains classical statues, found at Palmyra, carved in ivory, bronze, and marble.

Quick Facts

Site Information
Names: Damascus National Museum
Location:Damascus, Syria
Faith:Museum
Category: Museums
Visitor Information
Address:Sharia Shoukri al-Quwatli, Damascus, Syria
Coordinates: 33.512667° N, 36.289837° E   (view on Google Maps)
Lodging:View hotels near this location
Opening hours:Apr-Sep: Wed-Mon 9am-6pm
Oct-Mar: Wed-Mon 9am-4pm
Cost:S£150

Note: This information was accurate when published and we do our best to keep it updated, but details such as opening hours can change without notice. To avoid disappointment, please check with the site directly before making a special trip.

Travel Resources

Location Map

Below is a location map and aerial view of Damascus National Museum. Using the buttons on the left, zoom in for a closer look or zoom out to get your bearings. Click and drag the map to move around. For a larger view, see our Damascus Map.

Article Sources

  1. "The National Museum of Damascus." Syria Gate (2006).
  2. Lonely Planet Syria and Lebanon, 3rd ed. (July 2008), 95-97.


Last updated on July 30, 2010.






Sacred Destinations Home     About     Contact     Using Images     Advertise     Blog     Twitter     Privacy Policy
Stock photos of religious art and architecture for licensing: Art History Images
Except where indicated otherwise, all content and images © 2005-11 Sacred Destinations. All rights reserved.

Sacred Destinations is an online travel guide to sacred sites, pilgrimages, holy places, religious history, sacred places, historical religious sites, archaeological sites,
religious festivals, sacred sites, spiritual retreats, religious travel and spiritual journeys.
Free content for your Google homepage or website! Get the Sacred Destinations Daily Photo Gadget

Travel resources: Spiritual Tour Directory, Sightseeing Tours, Hotels, Travel Insurance
Popular categories: Biblical Sites, Cathedrals, Catholic Shrines, Footsteps of Jesus, Luther Sites, Megalithic Mysteries
Popular sacred sites: Easter Island, Lourdes, Notre-Dame Cathedral, Oberammergau Passion Play, Shroud of Turin, Sistine Chapel, St. Mark's Basilica, St. Peter's Basilica, Stonehenge
Popular city guides: Rome, Ravenna, Ephesus, Assisi, Paris, Jerusalem
Popular maps: England Map, Italy Map, Jerusalem Map, London Map, Paris Map, Rome Map