Dura Europos

Named Europos by the Greeks and Dura by the Romans, the history of Dura-Europos is founded on powerful cultural and religious crosscurrents of late antiqu

ity. Located in modern day Syria, the ancient city overlooks the Euphrates River and is protected by cliffs on three sides. The fourth side looks out across a flat steepe toward the ancient oasis Palmyra. The location of the city was ideal for strategic control over the manufacture and trade of the rich Mesopotamia agricultural lands nearby. Although superficially a Greek city, foreign imperial powers based in the Mediterranean or Iran dominated the city politically and wielded heavy cultural influence, while Syro-Mesopotamian people and nomadic caravans flocked

to the urban center. Art Historically, the city is of profound significance for in its walls are preserved remains of more than a dozen different cult buildings and shrines of the polytheistic religions of the Near East and the Mediterranean. Furthermore, excavations have revealed rare early worship centers for the monotheistic creeds of Christianity and Judaism, long before acceptance by the Roman state.

Macedonian and Parthian Rule

A Macedonian Greek of the Seleucid Empire around 300 BCE founded Dura-Europos, sometime after Alexander the Great’s death. The initial city planning was laid out in a Hellenistic design with a central agora and marketplace. By the end of the second century BCE, Dura-Europos was in the hands of the Parthian Empire. Both the Macedonians and Parthian were tolerant of other religions and cultures, allowing for early hybridization of many different traditions, cultures, and art. Over a hundred parchment and papyrus fragments and many inscriptions dated to the period have revealed texts in Greek Palmyrenean, Hebrew, Hatrian, Safaitic, and Pahlavi. Some the religious buildings of this period exemplify the blending of cultures with Greek deities assuming more Semitic or Eastern representation.

Limestone cult relief of two godesses

Roman Rule

The Roman emperor, Trajan, captured the city in 115 CE, erecting a ceremonial arch outside the city, but Dura-Europors returned to Parthian control shortly thereafter. Marcus Aurelius reseized the city in 165 CE and established a permanent garrison, transforming Dura-Europos into a frontier fort. During the Roman occupation, the city experienced a number of important changes. In order to accommodate the Roman military population, many temples and shrines were demolished or built over. Four new religious buildings were introduced in this period: a temple to Jupiter Dolichenus, the Mithraem, the Jewish synagogue, and the Christian domus ecclesia.

Map of the city with location details

Sasanian Victory

Dura-Europos fell in 256 CE to the Sasanian Empire, under King Shapur, heirs to the Parthian Empire. While there is no written record of how the siege of Dura-Europos unfolded, the Sasanian victory is a critical fixed point in the history of the city, because the Romans fortified the town so extensively from the anticipated siege that many of the buildings were buried by an earthen wall and left intact. The actual battles between the Romans and Sasanians also have offered remarkable material for art historians; both armies built extensive underground trenches, breaches, and mines that have preserved military equipment and skeletons of soldiers. After the conquest, the city was abandoned altogether transitioning into “clear zone” between the Romans and Sasanians; nothing was built over it and no later building programs obscured the architectonic features of the city, hence the popular name “Pompeii of the desert.”

“Re-Discovery” by Indian Troops under British Command

Although the existence of Dura-Europos was known in various literary sources, it was not “rediscovered” until the Arab Revolt in the aftermath of World War I. On March 30, 1920, a soldier digging a trench uncovered brilliantly fresh wall paintings. Archeological digs immediately began. World War II intervened, halting all excavations and publishing of findings. Since 1986, excavations have resumed under a joint Franco-Syrian effort.

Palmyra Gate

The House Church

The Christian house church at Dura Europos was the earliest house church discovered by archaeologists. Like the synagogue nearby, layers of dirt used to defend against Persian siege protected it. Yale University dismantled and reconstructed the structure in the 1930’s, so only the foundation remains at the actual site.

Ruins of the house church and possible baptismal pool

The church is extremely important to Christian history, because it proves that some parts of the Roman world tolerated Christianity alongside other religions. Although the early church faced severe persecution at certain times, this church proves that religious persecution did not permeate all societies in the Empire.

House Church: Structure and Organization

The house church was set up in a upper class home typical of the Roman Empire. Its structure consisted of a large house surrounding a courtyard, with Christians gathering in the center atrium. A pool in the middle of the atrium was used as a baptistery, and the raised table to the side was where the bishop would reside over the Eucharist.

Here, the reconstruction at Yale University shows what the church probably looked like.

Layout of the church