City Tyre

Tyre is a city in southern Lebanon, on the Mediterranean coast. In Arabic it is called Sour. Like Byblos, it is one of the oldest cities in the world. Its history goes back more than 5,000 years.

Tyre was a major Phoenician city-state. It helped spread Phoenician culture and trade across the Mediterranean. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Historical Significance

1. Phoenician Powerhouse: Tyre was one of the strongest Phoenician city-states. Its sailors were famous. It founded colonies. The best known is Carthage, in North Africa.
2. Purple Dye Production: Tyre made Tyrian purple. This dye came from the murex snail. It was worth a great deal, and people linked it with royalty and the elite.
3. Alexander the Great: Tyre held out against Alexander. In 332 BCE he laid siege to it for seven months. He took the city by building a causeway from the mainland to the island. That siege changed the course of the city.
4. Roman Era: Tyre did well under Rome and grew into a large city. The Romans built temples, a triumphal arch, a hippodrome and an aqueduct there.
5. Christianity: Tyre had a part in the early spread of Christianity. The New Testament names it as a place Paul the Apostle visited. Later, in the Roman and Byzantine periods, it became an important Christian center.

Cultural and Archaeological Sites

1. Al Mina Archaeological Site: Here you find remains of ancient Tyre. The Roman Hippodrome could hold up to 20,000 people. There are also Roman baths, roads and mosaic floors.
2. Al Bass Archaeological Site: This site is on the mainland. It has a huge Roman necropolis, a triumphal arch and the remains of an aqueduct. It shows how the Romans laid out and built the city.
3. Tyre’s Ancient Port: Tyre’s power at sea started in its port. Much of it is under water today. It is still a symbol of the city’s seafaring past.
4. The Cathedral of Tyre: The Crusaders built it in the 12th century. It was an important church in the Middle Ages. Today it is mostly ruins. It once held the tomb of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa.
5. The Great Necropolis: This burial ground has hundreds of tombs from the Roman and Byzantine periods. The tombs and sarcophagi are elaborate. They show how wealthy the city was and how people buried their dead.

Modern Tyre

Tyre is a lively city today. Old ruins and daily life sit side by side. Its beaches draw locals and tourists. The old town still has narrow alleys, traditional houses and busy markets.

Its archaeological sites are among the most important in Lebanon. Scholars and tourists come for them. New roads and buildings stand next to ruins that are thousands of years old.

Tyre is still an important Mediterranean city.

Tyre was originally an island

Tyre started as an island city off the coast of what is now southern Lebanon. The island lay about 800 meters (2,625 feet) from the mainland. Water surrounded it on all sides. That made it a strong fortress in ancient times.

The Transformation from Island to Peninsula

1. Island City: For much of its early history Tyre really was an island. Its people lived from the sea. Its location made it a big player in regional trade and a center of the Phoenician world. Strong walls protected it. It had two harbors, and these served its trade routes across the Mediterranean.
2. Siege by Alexander the Great: The turning point came in 332 BCE. Alexander laid siege to the city. The water and the walls made Tyre hard to take. So Alexander ordered a huge causeway, also called a mole, from the mainland to the island. His army used it to break through. After seven months the city fell.
3. Permanent Land Connection: The causeway slowly changed the coast around Tyre. Sand and silt built up along it. The causeway grew wider. In the end it joined the island to the mainland for good. Tyre was no longer an island. It was a peninsula.

Modern Tyre

The old island is now part of a narrow peninsula reaching into the Mediterranean. You can still see the line of the original causeway in the city’s layout. Today Tyre has two parts: the ancient city on the former island, and newer districts on the mainland.