Ain Dara (archaeological site)

The Ain Dara temple is an Iron Age Syro-Hittite temple noted for its similarities to Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple, as described in the Hebrew Bible. It is located near the village of Ain Dara, in Afrin, Syria. According to the excavator Ali Abu Assaf, it existed from 1300 BC until 740 BC and remained almost unchanged during the construction of Solomon's Temple (1000–900 BC) as it had been before, so that it predates the Temple. The temples of Emar, Mumbaqa, and Ebla (Temple D) are also comparable, as is the nearby 8th-century Tell Tayinat temple. The surviving sculptures depict lions and sphinxes (comparable to the cherubim of the First Temple). Massive footprints were carved into the floor; whether of giants, humans or animals is debatable. Also left to speculation is to whom the temple is dedicated. Ain Dara may have been devoted to Ishtar, goddess of fertility, or to the related female goddess Astarte. It also might have been dedicated to the deity Ba'al Hadad; or it might have been an oracle temple on a road known as "the international highway" between the Syrian Desert and Mediterranean Sea. According to the Assad government, In late January 2018, the temple was significantly damaged by Turkish Air Force jets in the course of their Afrin offensive. Reports indicate that at least 60% percent of the structure was reduced to rubble. Viewing photos and video released online, one can see that the entire front facade of the temple has been destroyed. The site's emblematic basalt lion was stolen in December 2019 by members of the al-Hamzat militia, a part of the Syrian National Army. Ain Dara temple is located in north Syria, northwest of Aleppo near the Syro-Turkish border. It was built on a terrace known as the "acropolis of the tell". The tell itself is precipitous-faced and overlooks the Afrin Valley. The area is divided in two parts, the main tell that is above the surrounding plain, and the lower acropolis which covers an area of . Just east of the temple site is the modern-day village of Ain Dara.