Shhiim (Arabic: شحيم) (IPA: ʃħiːm) alternatively written as Shheem or Chhim/Chehim is a town in Lebanon which is located 40 kilometres south-east of Beirut.
The largest Sunni Muslim town in the Chouf region, Shhiim has a population of approximately 49,000. Situated on four mountains, the town is often regarded as the capital of the Iqlim el-Kharrub, which is the coastal part of the Chouf.
The town is notable for a very well-preserved archaeological site located there, including a Roman sanctuary, a Christian basilica, residential structures, and oil presses.[1]
Geography
Shhiim is often confused within size due to many parts of it having different names; some more familiar parts of Shhiim include Marj-Ali, Sahle, Jabal Swed, Chamis and Jirid. [citation needed]
In the era of prosperity in the 2nd century AD, the villagers of Shleem decided to erect a Roman temple on the southern end of the settlement. A small edifice built in the Corinthian style probably matched their rising ambitions. We do not know what deity was worshiped there, but its long-standing cult ended with the arrival of Christianity. The temple was abandoned, and a church was built opposite it at the end of the 5th century.[citation needed]
Weather
Shhiim has warm, dry and humid summers, with cold and wet winters.[citation needed]
Archaeological site
The archaeological site lies on a slope of a hill on the outskirts of the city. It is a Roman-Byzantine village with a Roman temple towering above the rest of the ancient architecture. The temple faces east and has a small porch. There is a carving of the sun godHelios on one of the doorframes. Another carving portrays the image of a priest with outstretched arms.[3]
Mosaic from the Christian basilica in Chhim, on display at the Beirut Airport
The settlement was founded at the turn of the eras, although the oldest finds date to the Bronze Age. Parts of the village are remarkably well preserved. Apart from the Roman temple, archaeologists discovered houses clustered along narrow streets, oil presses, and a Christian basilica with mosaics, dated to AD 498. A necropolis surrounded the settlement. The village ceased to function in the 7th century.[5]
Multicolored mosaics covering the whole floor of the basilica are among the most spectacular discoveries made on the site. Most of them depict geometrical patterns, but floral and figural motifs also occur; birds and vessels appear on the surfaces between columns.[6] In the central part of the presbytery, there is a mosaic with a lioness, and in the west aisle, a panel with two antelopes.[7] The iconography of these mosaics bears many similarities to other Byzantine churches in the province of Phoenicia, e.g., in Zahrani and Ghiné.[6]
^Waliszewski T. and Ortali-Tarazi R., 2000 ans d’Historie au cœur d’un village antique du Liban. Catalogue de l'exposition Palais de Beiteddine 7 septembre 2002 - 7 janvier 2003.
^Waliszewski, T. and Wicenciak, U. (2015). Chhim, Lebanon: a Roman and Late Antique village in the Sidon hinterland. Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology & Heritage Studies, 3(4).
References
Waliszewski, T. and Wicenciak, U. (2015). Chhim, Lebanon: a Roman and Late Antique village in the Sidon hinterland. Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology & Heritage Studies, 3(4).
Waliszewski T. and Ortali-Tarazi R., 2000 ans d’Historie au cœur d’un village antique du Liban. Catalogue de l'exposition Palais de Beiteddine 7 septembre 2002 - 7 janvier 2003.
.svg){kind=small}
