The ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, under threat from advancing Islamic State group jihadists, has withstood the last two thousand years with its immaculate temples and colonnaded streets. Palmyra, which means City of Palms, is known in Syria as Tadmor, or City of Dates. Though surrounded by desert dunes, Palmyra developed into a luxurious metropolis thanks to the trade of spices, perfumes, silk and ivory from the east, and statues and glasswork from Phoenicia. In the year 129 A.D., Roman emperor Hadrian declared Palmyra a "free city" within his empire.
Palmyra, the ancient pearl of Syria’s desert
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