SYRIA: Historical Masyaf Castle excavated and restored, reveals much about Ismaili history in Syria

Record ID: 278770

  • Title: SYRIA: Historical Masyaf Castle excavated and restored, reveals much about Ismaili history in Syria
  • Date: 13th July 2007
  • Summary: VIEW FROM A CASTLE WINDOW OVERLOOKING THE TOWN
  • Embargoed: 28th July 2007 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky,Travel / Tourism
  • Reuters ID: LVA2COZU4EVS6YE5093MSMSKAZJE
  • Story Text: Masyaf citadel, one of Syria's historical sites, has been restored by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture. Located at the foot of Syria's coastal mountains, the excavations and restoration of the citadel have uncovered much information about the history of the Ismailis in Syria. Nestled at the foot of Syria's coastal mountains, an ancient citadel has been put on the tourist map by restoration and excavation that revealed mysteries of the medieval Assassins sect, once based there.
    Saladin, the great Muslim leader, laid siege to Masyaf castle in the 12th century. But he thought twice before launching an assault on the Assassins, who had a reputation for mounting daring operations to slay their foes.
    Although Saladin had conquered Crusader castles with much stronger defenses, historians believe the Assassins' death threats forced the Kurdish warrior to lift the siege at Masyaf. Perched on a rock and overlooking a boulder-strewn plain, the castle has been restored by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, a non-profitable Ismaili organisation which aims to restore the most important tourist places in Syria in co-ordination with Syrian Ministry of Culture.
    Tonnes of debris have been cleared from the site since 2000, allowing researchers to learn more about the citadel's secretive occupants.
    "The schedule that we have organised, for the restoration of Masyaf castle, began with the areas in most danger and moved on to the areas in least danger, eventually working on the whole castle from the removal of non-original stones to reinforcing the areas most in need of it in different locations. Then we designed a full plan for the castle adding all the new discoveries we found during restoration," says Baydaa Housseino, the engineer responsible for the restoration of the castle.
    The restoration project, completed during the last year, has revealed much about the history of the Ismailis in Syria while also saving parts of the castle from collapse. Chambers, walls, passageways, coins and ceramics from the time have been unearthed.
    Locals had built houses right up to the gate of the citadel and Ismailis were living in the citadel as recently as the last century and the fortress is still part of the fabric of the town.
    Much of the restoration work was done by hand using traditional techniques. Materials were reproduced to match those used by the original builders. Concrete used in preservation efforts in the 1980s was replaced with authentic materials.
    Some archaeologists who worked on the restoration believe that the construction of the fort indicates that the Assassins were not very good at building castles, even though the citadel is has lasted well and looks impressive.
    The Assassins had tried to copy the castles of the Crusaders and Saladin, but were unable to do so well -- a suggestion that this might have indicated their relative poverty, say archaeologists.
    But what the Assassins lacked in might, they made up for in stealth. Saladin himself narrowly escaped one assassination attempt by their knife-wielding agents.
    The Assassins were led by Rashid al-Din Sinan, also known as "The Old Man of the Mountain". He used Masyaf as a base for spreading the beliefs of the Nizari Ismaili sect of Islam to which he and his followers belonged. Nizari Ismailis, followers of a branch of Shi'ite Islam, today take the Aga Khan as their spiritual guide.
    Syria already boasts a list of well-preserved castles dating to the period, including the imposing Crac des Chevaliers -- a Crusader fort just an hour's drive from Masyaf.
    Like the Citadel of Saladin near today's coastal city of Latakia and the fortress at the city of Aleppo, Crac des Chevaliers has the status of a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    The Aga Khan Trust for Culture has also conducted restoration work at the citadels of Saladin and Aleppo.
    Husseino, herself an Ismaili, hopes tourists will add the smaller fortress at Masyaf to their list of sites to see.
    Ali Souleiman, a visitor, say that: "The citadel is fine and beautiful but there is still a big part of it that needs to be restored. So we request to work on it so it returns how it was in the past."
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