{{about|the ancient village in southern Syria|the depopulated village in historic Palestine|al-Masmiyya al-Kabira}} {{Infobox settlement |name = Al-Masmiyah |official_name = Al-Mismiyah |other_name = Musmiyeh <br> Mesmiyeh |native_name = المسمية <!-- for cities whose native name is not in English --> |image_skyline = Masmiyah-Phaena temple.jpg |imagesize = 250px |image_caption = 19th-century drawing of interior space of the Roman temple ("Praetorium") in al-Masmiyah<ref>Sturgis (1907), p. [https://archive.org/stream/historyofarchite01sturuoft#page/291/mode/1up 291].</ref> |image_flag = |flag_size = |pushpin_map = Syria |pushpin_label_position= bottom |pushpin_map_caption= Location in Syria |pushpin_mapsize = 250 |subdivision_type = Country |subdivision_name = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Syrian revolution.svg}} Syria |subdivision_type1 = Governorate |subdivision_name1 = Daraa |subdivision_type2 = District |subdivision_name2 = al-Sanamayn |subdivision_type3 = Subdistrict |subdivision_name3 = al-Masmiyah |settlement_type = Town |leader_title = |leader_name = |established_date = |area_magnitude = |unit_pref = Metric |area_total_km2 = |population_as_of = 2004 |population_total = 1,498 |population_blank1_title = Ethnicities |population_blank2_title = Religions |timezone = AST |utc_offset = +3 |timezone_DST = |utc_offset_DST = |coordinates = {{coord|33|7|45|N|36|23|38|E|region:SY|display=inline,title}} | grid_position = 280/281 PAL |elevation_footnotes= |elevation_m = |postal_code_type = <!-- enter ZIP code, Postcode, Post code, Postal code... --> |postal_code = |area_code = }} {{Commons category|Al-Masmiyah}}
'''Al-Masmiyah''' ({{langx|ar|المسمية}}, also spelled '''Musmiyeh''', '''Mesmiyeh''', '''Mismiya''', '''Mismia''' and '''Musmeih''') is a town in southern Syria, administratively part of the Daraa Governorate, located northeast of Daraa in the al-Sanamayn District. Nearby localities include Jabab and Muthabin to the west, Ghabaghib to the northeast, Jubb al-Safa to the north, Burraq to the northeast, Khalkhalah and al-Surah al-Saghirah to the southeast and Dama to the south.<ref>[http://mapcarta.com/12692602 Mismiyah Map]. Mapcarta. Map depicts al-Masmiyah and nearby localities.</ref>
==History== The ancient city of Phaena, judging by the ruin field still visible at Masmiya in the 19th century, had a radius of roughly three miles, making it as large as the ancient walled area of Damascus and larger than the Old City of Jerusalem<ref name= Porter502/> (which is of Early Muslim date in its present outline and smaller than some of its earlier iterations).
===Roman period=== Al-Masmiyah is identified with the Roman-era town of '''Phaena'''.<ref name= Socin422/> Phaena was the capital of the Trachonitis district of Roman Syria, as confirmed by a Greek inscription on the Roman temple which reads "Julius Saturninus to the people of Phaena, capital of Trachon."<ref name= Porter503>Porter (1858), p. 503.</ref> The ruins of a Roman era house built in the Batanean architectural style is believed to have possibly served as the home of the Roman governor of Trachonitis.<ref>Freshfield (1869), p. [https://archive.org/stream/travelsincentra00fresgoog#page/n80/mode/1up 57].</ref> One of the rooms on the ground-level floor was supported by an 18-foot arch and had a cornice-decorated ceiling. The town contains the ruins of a Roman-era pagan temple, called the Praetorium,<ref name= VanMillingen12/><ref>Ball (2002), pp. [https://books.google.com/books?id=73-JAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA242 242]-243.</ref> that was constructed by the commander of the Third Gallic Legion between 160–169 CE during the reign of the Roman emperors Aurelius Antoninus and Lucius Aurelius Verus.<ref name= Porter503/>
In the early 3rd century CE, Phaena was still an important village known as a ''metrocomia''.<ref>Donahue (1988, p. 172.</ref>
===Byzantine period=== The Praetorium was transformed into a church during the Byzantine period and the structural plan makes it one of the oldest examples of Byzantine church architecture.{{clarify |Nonsensical. The entire "structural plan" was that of a pagan temple. How is it at all an "example of Byzantine church architecture"? Or were there any modifications made? If so, we must know which! |date= March 2024}}<ref name= Longfellow238/> During the Byzantine period it became an episcopal see, whose bishops participated in the ecumenical councils of Ephesus (431) and Chalcedon (451).<ref name= Socin422/><ref name= Porter503/>
===Ottoman period=== ====19th century==== In 1810, Swiss explorer Johann Burckhardt was the first contemporary scholar to visit al-Masmiyah and he was later followed by Bankes and Barry, who sketched a precise plan of the Praetorium, in 1819.<ref name= Segal110>Segal (2008), p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC&pg=PA110 110].</ref> In 1838, Biblical scholar Eli Smith reported that Kurds inhabited the village.<ref name=Smith155>Smith; in Robinson and Smith (1841), vol 3, Second appendix, B, p. [https://archive.org/stream/biblicalresearch03robiuoft#page/155/mode/1up 155].</ref> By the late 1860s a few impoverished Arab families from the Sulut tribe reportedly lived inside the ruins of al-Masmiyah.<ref>Freshfield (1869), p. [https://archive.org/stream/travelsincentra00fresgoog#page/n82/mode/1up 59].</ref> Apparently, the village was abandoned most of the time, but was occasionally occupied by nomadic Arab families seeking shelter in its ruins.<ref name= Porter502/>
In the 1870s, al-Masmiyah was an uninhabited village.<ref name= Socin422>Socin (1876), p. [https://archive.org/details/02950227.5448.emory.edu/page/n484/mode/1up 422].</ref> However, it was later settled when the Ottoman sultan Abdul Hamid II (1876–1909) acquired al-Masmiyah and six other nearby Hauran villages in the late 19th century as a personal estate. The farmers he employed in the village were afforded security, giving them protection from nomadic raiders. They were also exempt from conscription, protected from monetary collections from local notables and at times were loaned money without interest. These factors resulted in the prosperity of al-Masmiyah and the larger estate.<ref name= Issawi330/>
In 1875, before Abdul Hamid's reign, the Ottoman army took apart the Praetorium for the construction material used to build a nearby army barracks at Burraq.<ref name= Segal110/>
In 1886, al-Masmiyah was briefly occupied by the Druze clans of Atrash and Halabi during a quarrel with the Sulut tribe.<ref>Firro (1992), pp. [https://books.google.com/books?id=usEUXYnYWxAC&pg=PA216 216]-217.</ref>
====20th century==== Following the Young Turk Revolution in 1908, the sultan ceded estate to the treasury department of the Damascus government and consequently, the inhabitants, who were both tenants of the government and permanent residents of the villages, had to pay 20–22% of their agricultural products to the authorities. Nonetheless, the conditions of the inhabitants of the government estate were better than the estates of the notables.<ref name= Issawi330>Issawi (1988), p. 330.</ref> In 1915 the population of al-Masmiyah was estimated as 300 Melkites (Greek Catholics) and 20 Sunni Muslims.
==Archaeological remains== According to Western traveler Josias Leslie Porter who visited the region in the late 1850s, the ruins of al-Masmiyah "are among the most interesting and beautiful in the Hauran," not least due to its numerous Greek inscriptions.<ref name= Porter502>Porter (1858), pp. 502-503.</ref> The majority of the ancient city's homes were in rubble, but a number of public buildings were relatively well-preserved.<ref name= Porter502/> Porter further remarked that except for the Roman temple "there are several other buildings ... but they are not remarkable either for their size or architecture.<ref name= Porter503/>
===Roman temple=== The temple was destroyed in 1875 or 76 by the Ottoman army, who used its stones to build a barracks at Burraq. The temple had earlier been photographed by Tancrède Dumas.<ref name= Segal110/> It still remained the subject of study by scholars in Greco-Roman architecture after its dismantlement.
This is a description based on traveler reports predating the 1875 destruction.
Along with the Roman temple dedicated to Tyche in nearby al-Sanamayn, the so-called "Praetorium" of al-Masmiyah was the only Roman temple in the Levant that contained niches for statues in the ''cella''. This unique feature in Roman architecture was likely inspired by pre-Roman architecture, particularly the temple of Baal-Shamin in the Syrian Desert town of Palmyra or in various Arabian cities.<ref>Segal (2008), p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC&pg=PA107 107].</ref> The Praetorium was situated atop a podium in a ''temenos'' surrounded by colonnades.<ref name= Segal110/>
It was relatively small, measuring 24.8 x 16.4 meters.<ref name= Segal110/> It had a rectangular ground plan with a semi-circular apse that projected onto one side of the building opposite of the doorway.<ref name= Sturgis292/> Both sides of the doorway contained niches reserved for statues.<ref name= Freshfield56/> The interior space consisted of a single room, which was the ''naos'',<ref name= Segal110/> and measured 15.09 x 13.78 meters.<ref name= Segal111>Segal (2008), p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC&pg=PA111 111].</ref>
The "Praetorium" was formerly topped by a square domed roof, likely a cloister vault, which had already collapsed by the 19th century.<ref name= Sturgis292>Sturgis (1907), p. [https://archive.org/stream/historyofarchite01sturuoft#page/292/mode/1up 292].</ref><ref name= Freshfield56>Freshfield (1869), p. [https://archive.org/stream/travelsincentra00fresgoog#page/n79/mode/1up 56].</ref> The roof had been supported by four free-standing columns fixed at the inner angles of cross-vaulted arches,<ref name= VanMillingen12>Van Millingen (2010), p. [https://archive.org/details/byzantinechurche014623mbp/page/n29/mode/1up 2].</ref> which together formed a Greek cross.<ref name= Longfellow238>Longfellow (1903), p. [https://archive.org/stream/cyclopaediaofwor00longuoft#page/238/mode/1up 238].</ref> On the opposite end of each columns stood a half-column, making for a total of four main columns, eight half-columns, and four quarter columns (situated at each corner) inside the ''naos''.<ref name= Segal111/> The arches sat on lintels that spanned the space between the outer wall and the columns supporting the roof.<ref name= VanMillingen12/>
There were six niches against the walls that were reserved for the placement of statues and in the center of them was the main space, the ''adyton'', used to hold the main statue of the pagan cult. The ''adyton'' was topped by a conch-shaped half-dome.<ref>Segal (2008), p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC&pg=PA112 112].</ref> The building had two windows, a rare feature in Classical pagan temples, and a total of three entryways.<ref name= Segal111/> Of the entryways, there was a principal central doorway that was higher and broader than the two side-doors.<ref>Segal (2008), p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC&pg=PA117 117]</ref>
The temple ruins contained a partially destroyed portico with six columns.<ref name= Longfellow238/> The material used for the building was dry stone.<ref name= Sturgis292/> Other than the dome and the portico, the building had been well preserved until the 19th century.<ref name= Freshfield56/>
==Demographics== According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), al-Masmiyah had a population of 1,498 in the 2004 census. It is the administrative center of the al-Masmiyah ''nahiyah'' ("subdistrict") which consists of 16 localities with a collective population of 8,773 in 2004.<ref name= CBS>[https://web.archive.org/web/20191223100132/http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB12-10-2004.htm General Census of Population and Housing 2004]. Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Daraa Governorate. {{in lang|ar}}</ref> As of the early 20th century, its inhabitants were largely Melkite Christians, though there was a small Muslim community as well. In 2004, the village still had a significant Melkite Christian population.<ref name= DickONECNEWA>{{cite news |last1=Dick |first1=Marlin |title=Deep Roots in a Fertile Land |url=http://www.cnewa.org/default.aspx?ID=3123&pagetypeID=4&sitecode=pm&pageno=2 |access-date=4 November 2018 |work=ONE Magazine |publisher=Catholic Near East Welfare Association |date=May–June 2004}}</ref>
In 2011, the Melkite Greek Catholic Church had approximately 3,000 believers.<ref>https://www.melkitepat.org/melkite_greek_catholic_church/Metropole-of-Bosra-and-Hauran</ref>
==Religious buildings== * Our Lady of the Annunciation Melkite Greek Catholic Church<ref>https://albishara.net/church/details/3142</ref><ref>https://www.melkitepat.org/melkite_greek_catholic_church/Metropole-of-Bosra-and-Hauran</ref>
==See also== *Christians in Syria *Hejaz railway: Mismia was one of the first stations built
==References== {{reflist|25em}}
==Bibliography== {{refbegin}}
*{{cite book|last= Ball|first=W.|author-link=Warwick Ball|title=Rome in the East|year=2002|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9780415243575|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=73-JAgAAQBAJ}}
*{{cite book|last= Donahue|first=Alice A.|title=Xoana and the Origins of Greek Sculpture|publisher=Scholars Press|year=1988|isbn=9780891309550|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kT4MAQAAMAAJ&q=Mismiya}}
*{{cite book|last= Firro|first=Kais|title=A History of the Druzes|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=usEUXYnYWxAC&q=Najran+Hauran|volume=1|publisher=BRILL|year=1992|isbn=9004094377}}
*{{cite book|last= Freshfield|first=D.|author-link=Douglas Freshfield|url=https://archive.org/details/travelsincentra00fresgoog |title=Travels in the central Caucasus and Bashan: including visits to Ararat and Tabreez and ascents of Kazbek and Elbruz|publisher=Longmans, Green, & Co|year=1869}}
*{{cite book|last= Issawi|first=Charles Phillip|title=The Fertile Crescent, 1800-1914: A Documentary Economic History |publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1988|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F2TGkO7G43oC&q=Masmiyah+Syria|isbn=0195049519}} *{{cite book |last=Longfellow|first=William Pitt Preble|title=A Cyclopaedia of Works of Architecture: in Italy, Greece, and the Levant|url=https://archive.org/details/cyclopaediaofwor00longuoft |publisher=Scribner|year=1903}}
*{{cite book |last=Porter|first=J.L.|author-link=Josias Leslie Porter |title=A Handbook for Travellers in Syria and Palestine|volume=1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AwSatmeOEUgC&q=Hawarin+inhab.+Qara|publisher=Murray|year=1858}}
*{{cite book|last1= Robinson|first1=E.|author-link1=Edward Robinson (scholar)|last2=Smith|first2=E.|author-link2=Eli Smith|year=1841|url=https://archive.org/details/biblicalresearch03robiuoft |title=Biblical Researches in Palestine, Mount Sinai and Arabia Petraea: A Journal of Travels in the year 1838| location=Boston|publisher=Crocker & Brewster|volume=3}}
*{{cite book |last=Segal|first=Arthur|chapter=Religious Architecture in the Roman Near East: Temples of the Basalt Lands (Trachon and Hauran).|pages= 97-132 (The temple at Masmiyeh (AD 164-9): [https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC&pg=PA109 109]-[https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC&pg=PA112 112])|editor-last=Kaizer|editor-first=Ted|title=The Variety of Local Religious Life in the Near East: In the Hellenistic and Roman Periods|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC|publisher=BRILL|year=2008|isbn=978-9004167353}} Suggested reconstruction of Mismiyeh temple: [https://books.google.com/books?id=KgVD3WL0vAsC&q=Mismiyeh Pl. XXVIII].
*{{cite book|last= Socin|first=A.|author-link=Albert Socin|title=Palestine and Syria: handbook for travellers|publisher= Baedeker|url=https://archive.org/details/02950227.5448.emory.edu|year=1876}} *{{cite book|last= Sturgis|first=R.|author-link=Russell Sturgis|title=A history of architecture having special regard to the natural artistic results of construction and those methods of design which are the result of abstract thinking and of the pure sense of form|volume=1|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofarchite01sturuoft |publisher=Baker|location=New York |year=1907}}
*{{cite book |last= Van Millingen |first=A.|author-link=Alexander van Millingen|title=Byzantine Churches In Constantinople|url=https://archive.org/details/byzantinechurche014623mbp/page/n3 |publisher=Echo Library|year=1912 |edition=Illustrated}} {{refend}}
==External links== *[https://www.google.com/maps/@33.1297159,36.3929414,15z Map of town], Google Maps *[http://www.nla.gov.au/apps/cdview/?pi=nla.map-vn745520-s19mb-v Mesmiye-map; 19M] {{Daraa Governorate|sanamayn}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Masmiyah}} Category:Towns in Syria Category:Populated places in As-Sanamayn District Category:Roman towns and cities in Syria Category:Melkite Christian communities in Syria Category:Christian communities in Syria