The Tetrapylon, Palmyra. The structure was originally built in pink granite, but only one of its sixteen pillars is still of that material; much of the tetrapylon has been reconstructed. This imposing structure served as a sort of traffic roundabout, a function in which it is still useful, as the photograph indicates. 2009.

Triumphal Arch and Grand Colonnade Palmyra

The Temple of Bel was an ancient temple located in Palmyra, Syria. The temple, consecrated to the Mesopotamian god Bel was dedicated in 32 AD. Its ruins were considered among the best preserved at Palmyra, until they were destroyed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in August 2015.

Valley of the Tombs, Palmyra. This valley extends for close to a mile and contains numerous tower tombs mostly dating from the first century AD. They are several stories high and contain elaborate funerary statuary. The dead were mummified and stacked in holes in the wall five high, with sculpted likenesses of the deceased at the ends.