Dar Talas for Studies and Publishing · 1st edition 1991
Written by the researcher Abd al-Rahman Ayyub, born in Rastan in 1936, holder of a degree in the humanities — history department, and a member of the Historical Society in Homs. The book was published by Dar Talas in Damascus in 1991, and in it Bashir Zahdi (then curator of the National Museum of Damascus) contributed an extensive introduction, from which — as from the book's text — we excerpt the following passages.
«To her whom I see standing with open eyes and keen hearing, whose heartbeat I feel, who urges her son and his pen to speak of her majesty and greatness — like her sister cities, of which no one has ever written enough. To her I dedicate this humble effort.»
«The city of Alrastan is among those Syrian cities that have witnessed the events of history since their founding, developing through the eras of the ancient Arabs — the Amorites, Canaanites, Arameans, Palmyrenes, Ghassanids and Muslims — owing to its distinguished geographic position, red earth and fertile land, which bind its people to their soil and lead them to work it with seriousness, devotion and love.»
«After the Macedonian conquest, the Seleucids sought to give Syria a Greek character by replacing the local geographic names with Greek ones; thus they gave this beautiful city the name Arethusa — a water nymph whose legend has come down to us … When the Seleucids took Syria and divided it administratively into provinces, they made Apamea the centre of Syria Secunda, to which the towns of Alrastan, Hama and Shaizar belonged.»
«A great and beautiful marble sarcophagus of the local ruler and his wife, one face of which is adorned with the famous scene of the Battle of Troy, in a craftsmanship that marks the summit reached by the sculpture of that age. And a fine white marble sarcophagus, one face of which is decorated with the legend of the goddess Diana, the youth Meleager, and the wild beast the goddess sent.»
«Part of a complete mosaic panel discovered in Alrastan: it depicts the Orontes, on whose waters a small boat glides, carrying four winged children — figures of the god of love Cupid — and two working men, while a wooden bridge and, on either side, the buildings of the city are shown.»
«The traces of a straight, broad, paved street resembling the straight streets of Damascus, Palmyra and Apamea; the bases of its massive columns were still visible, extending some 300 m before vanishing among the houses … Wherever one turns, one sees the remains of columns — one of them of granite — along with wall foundations, building thresholds and various shattered carved stones.»
«Before the caravanserai stood the Rastan bridge, whose repair or rebuilding some attribute to Sinan Pasha. This bridge ran from west to east for 140 m, was 4.5 m wide and had twelve arches. Beside it were weir openings over which the Orontes flowed, made to hold back part of the water and channel it to a nearby mill.»
«Worthy of note are its beautiful stone buildings set atop the hill, overlooking the Orontes in the loveliest setting of nature — a sight the eye delights in, stirring gladness, joy and serenity in the heart. And the bright, beautiful local dress in which the women of Alrastan wrap themselves as they come and go bespeaks their artistic taste and their sense of beauty.»
«My aim is to reveal and bring to light the history of this town, past and present — a record for the coming generation … especially as this town has become the strongest muscle of the modern Syrian economy, as witnessed by its clear growth across every field of agriculture. This humble study of the town is also a cry and a call to the Directorate of Antiquities and Museums to undertake a thorough survey of the ancient city of Alrastan, slumbering on the arm of the Orontes.»
