Interfax reports progress in the reconstruction of the Arch of Triumph in Palmyra, Syria, which was blown up in 2015. Natalya Solovyova, leader of the restoration project, head of the Center of Rescue Archeology, and deputy director of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute for the History of Material Culture, said at a press conference with Interfax on Monday “We are now starting the practical work on the logistical stage, namely the procurement of equipment [and] sending this equipment to Palmyra. We will most likely start working in Palmyra approximately in the middle of September.” Solovyova added that the restoration may be completed within three years, perhaps even less.
The project to restore the Arch of Triumph was approved at a meeting of the UNESCO committee for Palmyra in Damascus in late May, which was attended by international experts, she said.
In August 2020, the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute for the History of Material Culture gave the Syrian Directorate-General of Antiquities & Museums an improved 3D-model of the current state of Palmyra. An expedition comprising archeologists, restoration experts, geologists, and designers carried out work in Syria in late 2021 and developed a plan for the project.
The Arch of Triumph dates to the third century A.D. and is the most famous architectural structure of the ancient city of Palmyra and a symbol of Syria. It was destroyed in May 2015 by militants of the terrorist group ISIL.
