Palmyra: Kulturbegegnung im Grenzbereich.

• Author: Cussini, Eleonora

Edited by ANDREAS SCHMIDT-COLINET. Zaberns Bildbande zur Archaologie, vol. 27. Mainz am Rhein: PHILIPP VON ZABERN, 1985. Pp. v + 82 (including 126 plates). DM 48.

This beautifully illustrated volume edited by Andreas Schmidt-Colinet gathers a collection of contributions by an international group of leading scholars in the field of Palmyrene studies. The work opens with a chapter by Kh. al-As ad and by Schmidt-Colinet (pp. 2-11), introducing the reader to the history of the site through a general historical overview, analyzing the economic and political role of Palmyra "between East and West." In the second article, A. Bounni (pp. 12-20) sums up the history and the results of forty years of excavation, as well as of restoration of monument, conducted at Palmyra by the Syrian Department of Antiquities and Museums. M. Gawlikowski, in the third contribution (pp. 21-27), focuses on one segment of the longstanding undertaking of the Polish Mission at Palmyra: the clearing and study of the so-called Camp of Diocletian. The fourth article by al-As ad and Schmidt-Colinet (pp. 28-52) centers on the major theme of the work, already stressed in the subtitle of the volume: the role of Palmyra as a cross-cultural center on the periphery of the Roman Empire. Next, al-As ad, J. Chehade, and Schmidt-Colinet (pp. 54-56) present an international project aimed at conserving and studying textile fragments recovered during tomb excavations. The sixth chapter, by A. Stauffer (pp. 5771), is a study of archaeologically attested textiles: wool, linen, cotton, and silk, with attention to local production and the impact of international trade, mostly of silk-textile imports from China. A brief section follows, devoted to H. Bohmer's analysis of colors from textile samples (p. 72). Students of ancient textiles will find these three sections particularly valuable for Stauffer's excellent presentation of the material and for the well-preserved new findings of recent years, supplementing the older works on Palmyrene textiles published by R. Pfister (Textiles de Palmyre; Nouveaux textiles de Palmyre; Textiles de Palmyre [Paris: Les...