Syrian glassblowing is a two‑millennia‑old artisanal craft central to Syria’s heritage, with regional origins also credited to Phoenician artisans.

Syrian craftsmen are credited with inventing glassblowing in the 1st century BC.

Damascus developed a distinct craft of glass decoration and painting, often with Islamic motifs.

Stained glass holds strong cultural significance in Damascus’s traditional crafts.

Artisans fuse sand into molten glass, then shape it by blowing through a tube and using specialized tools.

They melt recycled glass in ovens, hand‑shape and decorate pieces such as hookah bottles and cups, and transmit knowledge via masters, apprentices, and families; the practice is regarded as a plastic art.

Urem Al‑Kubra (Aleppo) is renowned for skilled glassblowers who revived production after liberation, with veteran masters like Hussein Najjar still working and training others.

War, economic decline, and reduced exports have severely hurt the craft, forcing many to stop due to high costs and low demand.

Traditional glassblowing artisans have declined by about 50%, with thousands closing workshops or migrating.

War‑time migration accelerated the loss of heritage professions, leaving only a few traditional practitioners in some areas.

Damascus’s historic Tkiyet glass market was evacuated for restoration and remains in disrepair, pending craftsmen’s promised return.

UNESCO lists Syrian glassblowing as endangered and in urgent need of safeguarding, citing war and a shortage of skilled artisans as key drivers.

The General Union of Craftsmen and the Ministry of Culture are coordinating preservation efforts.

The Dummar Central Incubator for Craft Arts supports glassblowing to preserve heritage crafts.

The Ministry of Tourism and Handicrafts and civil associations provide training and grants to artisans and youth apprentices.

These measures aim to preserve Syrian identity by keeping the tradition alive.

Syrian glassblowing is a two‑millennia‑old artisanal craft central to Syria’s heritage, with regional origins also credited to Phoenician artisans.

Title:

Content: Art of glassblowing returns again in Aleppo countryside liberated from terrorism

The town of Urem Al-Kubra in Aleppo province in northern Syria has historically been famous for its skilled glassblowing craftsmen. The war considerably affected this traditional craft inherited from our ancestors, but after the liberation of the city from terrorism, some artisans have brought it back to life. The artisan, Yassin Arab learned the glassblowing craft from his father when he was a child, and after the town was liberated from terrorism, he returned to his small facility, where he worked to restore it and start working again. Arab does not hide his enormous passion for the craft of glassblowing and his belief in the need to preserve this ancient Syrian heritage. Regarding the working mechanism, the artisan explained to SANA that he uses recycled glass, melts it again in the oven at high temperature, and then chooses a specific shape for its manufacture, whether hookah bottles, vases, plates, small jugs, fish houses for decoration, decorated cups and antiques of different sizes. After that, t he piece is blown, rotated and processed by the artisan until it takes its final shape using white and brown colors, and once the manufacturing of the product is finished, it is decorated and colored to give it the required aesthetics. For his part, Hussein Najjar noted that he learned the craft of blowing glass manually since he was young and has been working in this field for 40 years. He added that he is able to make any shape or glass container, using his imagination, and considered that the art of glassblowing is one of the types of plastic arts. Traditional glassblowing is a profession that dates back more than two thousand years (since the time of the Phoenicians) and was included in December 2023 by UNESCO on the list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity that needs urgent preservation. Source: Syrian Arab News Agency

Syrian craftsmen are credited with inventing glassblowing in the 1st century BC.

Title:

Content: Bella Hadid flashes her toned figure in shorts and a cropped sports top while showing off her creative side as she learns the art of glassblowing

It appears Bella Hadid has found a new hobby that showcases her artistic side.

On Sunday, the catwalk queen took to her Instagram page and posted a step-by-step video of herself making her own glass piece, using classic glassblowing technique in a workshop.

Considering the extreme temperatures it takes to make glass from beginning to end, Bella opted to keep her cloths to a minimum and wore skimpy white shorts with a cropped purple sports top.

Showing her creative side: Bella Hadid, 25, learned the classic art of glassblowing to make her own glass piece and posting a video on her Instagram page on Sunday

Glass is made from the process of heating sand to an extremely high temperature so that it turns into a moldable liquid. When it solidifies, a piece of glass is formed in whatever shape the creator has molded it into.

In the video, viewers will find Bella at the stage where she's working to shape the molten red hot material.

She can be seen sitting down and jabbing a long, sharp wrench-like tool with her scorching hot material, which was attached to a hollow blow pole about three feet long.

She was concerned with safety and wore goggles to protect her eyes.

Shaping: The video shows Bella at the stage where she's working to shape the molten red hot material that is attached to a blow pole

Working it: An instructor can be heard voicing a couple of tips as she spins that object around to the point where a small hole begins to form

Dose of heat: By the end of the first clip, Bella gets up and gives the hot material another dose of intense heat by placing it into a fiery furnace

An instructor can be heard voicing a couple of tips as she spins that object round and round to the point where a small hole begins to form.

By the end of the first clip, Bella gets up and gives the hot material another dose of intense heat by placing it into the fiery furnace.

For the next phase, the instructor assists Bella and slowly spins the blow pole while she sands down the still-molten red piece with two black blocks.

The heat is so intense that you can see steam floating into the air as they continue the sanding-down process.

Honing it: For the next phase, the instructor assists Bella and slowly spins the blow pole while she sands down the still molten red piece with two black blocks

Team work: Bella and the instructor work together to begin molding the molten hot object into shape with those two black blocks

Trippy: Bella gave her 53.7 million Instagram fans and followers a look at how her glass piece is looking at this stage of the process

More intense heat: At one point, the Washington, DC, native can be seen kneeling down using a small propane tank to heat up the object to make a few more changes

At one point, the Washington, DC, native can be seen kneeling down using a small propane tank to heat up the object to make a few more changes.

'Oh yeah, that's the one right there,' a man's voice from behind the camera can be heard saying as they continue to spin the object while jabbing it with that sharp tool.

As the process continues, Bella sits down, spinning the blow pole back and forth as it rests in a round plate that she holds with her right hand.

'It's a perfect shape,' the instructors says in encouragement.

'Here it is, ladies and gentlemen,' the man continues just as Bella gets up to blow into the pole to expand the molten hot material out to form some sort of glassware or vase.

Example: The catwalk queen drew out the shape of her piece she was trying to attain with chalk

Rounding it out: As the process continues, Bella sits down and spins the blow pole back and forth as it rests in a round plate that she holds with her right hand

Major phase: 'Here it is, ladies and gentlemen,' the man from behind the camera continues as Bella starts blowing into the pole

Expanding: Bella then process of blowing into the pole to expand the molten material out to form some sort of glassware

Old technique: Glassblowing is the practice of shaping a mass of glass that has been softened by heat by blowing air into it through a tube, or in this case a pole

The final clips shows a closeup of Bella spinning the glass while adding a few intricate touches to the piece with a prong-like tool.

Glassblowing is the practice of shaping a mass of glass that has been softened by heat by blowing air into it through a tube

It was was invented by Syrian craftsmen in the area of Sidon, Aleppo, Hama and Palmyra in the 1st century BC, according to Britannica.

The technique has remained essentially the same to the present day.

Ancient art form: Glassblowing was was invented by Syrian craftsmen in the area of Sidon, Aleppo, Hama and Palmyra in the 1st century bc, according to Britannica

Lovin' it: The glassblowing technique has remained basically the same to the present day

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Bella Hadid flashes her toned figure in shorts and a crop top while learning the art of glassblowing

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Damascus developed a distinct craft of glass decoration and painting, often with Islamic motifs.

Title:

Content: Samples of the Damascene Literary Heritage Attend an Exhibition and Seminar in the Culture of Infection
Damascus-Sana
In the exhibition “Heritage Crafts are Inherited by the Fragrance of History ” hosted by the Adawi Cultural Center, the artworks varied between glass decoration, Damascene brocade and various handicrafts.
The exhibition was followed by an introductory seminar on these arts for the Sheikhs of Carr and craftsmen specialized in these professions under the supervision of the handicraft trainer Rowaa Yousef.
Youssef Lassana explained that the exhibition was dedicated to traditional professions in general and handicrafts, especially such as brocade, painting on glass, Islamic motifs and handicrafts to maintain their continuity and importance.
Mohammed Bassam Rayhan Sheikh Al-Karar in painting on glass and decoration spoke in his intervention about the history of this craft, its forms, fields of work and materials used in it, pointing out that the glass, which was the first to be invented by the Phoenicians, evolved in Damascus throughout history and was painted on the mishkat and lanterns using oxides and various materials, thermal colors, acrlik and others.
The Damascene brocade craftsman Mohammed Rankous explained in his intervention that this cloth is made of natural silk and golden reed yarns and attributed to Damascus because it took its character, heritage and environment, such as the painting of Omar Khayyam, the Levantine Rose, grape clusters, the lover and the beloved, and the octagonal geometric drawings, pointing out that this craft entered the cultures of different civilizations.
Nasruddin Mohammed is a graduate of applied arts and a drawing teacher who participated in paintings for his students from children and boys. In his intervention, he explained the history of the Damascene plant decoration, its methods, types and schools such as Andalusian, Persian and Damascene, and its differences in decoration, diggings, mirrors and miniatures, indicating that its history dates back to the Andalusian civilization, which was its main creativity in palaces and buildings.
Mohammed Sabha is a bridal craftsman who participated in a group of decorative glass works for brides and explained that he has completed a model of a waterfall flowing from an electric mountain that is operated by hand from cardboard, wood and cork inspired by his ideas.
Rana Ayoub participated in a group of works of three-dimensional models and miniatures of the Levant environment. She explained that she chose this environment because she grew up and lived in it and adored it. It is necessary to inform future generations of their heritage and history, pointing out that she works with cork, wood, natural materials, gypsum, ceramic paste and others.
Bilal Ahmed

Stained glass holds strong cultural significance in Damascus’s traditional crafts.

Title:

Content: Or Elias...
Embraced the traditional crafts in its small museum Baharat Hanania Damascene
Damascus-Sana
You cannot pass through the Damascene neighborhood of Hanania in Bab Sharqi without being stopped by the time at the gallery of Mrs. Sophia Al-Ashqar “Um Elias ”. The smell of the place leads you voluntarily to stand at the heritage of nearly a hundred years old, looking at the cloth, moving your eyes to the copper and mosaic, and drowning in the place to come the laugh of Umm Elias and take you back to its small museum.
As her sons and residents of Haret Hananiya describe it as a “fortress ”, it is a fortress that stands as the steadfastness of Syrian women through time. Umm Elias does not only tell visitors to her heritage museum about the concept and value of the work, but she sees it embodied in her spirit and in every piece she weaved with her management of the gallery for nearly 70 years, including during the war on Syria. The development of the Syrian kaftan.
The love of the homeland and the authenticity of Umm Elias overshadowed her work many times, and she acted as a guide to the foreign tourist about the history of Syria and the age of each piece she acquired, reminding them that Damascus is the oldest inhabited city in history, and stressing that she did not tire and did not tire of that task, especially when visiting tourist delegations to Haret Hanania and their acquisition of the heritage craft in the gallery.
Mrs. Al-Ashqar talked about how she developed the Damascene kaftan from a traditional folk costume to a modern one that has been mixed for centuries until the present day. Umm Elias, 83, manipulated velvet, silk, agbani and brocade fabrics with her fingers as if she were manipulating her grandchildren, to come up with a piece of kaftan that mimics the fashion of our times and the new taste.
The icon of Haret Hanania moves around the gallery, continuing to talk, and with her warm voice narrates her beginning with the needle and thread since she was ten years old, and like any girl, the first dress she knitted was for her little doll, and developed her passion for cloth and sewing, considering that her father and grandfather have been professionals for a long time. Qar received the third prize in the mosaic industry at the Damascus Exhibition in 1936.
Umm Elias did not spare us time, and despite her fatigue, which seemed clear on the features of her face, love and determination had a stronger presence appeared in the explanation and give the most accurate information. She talked about the visit of senior guests to the gallery of artists, intellectuals and prominent personalities. However, she did not think to move to another area outside Bab Sharqi. Glass, as well as icons, begins to live from 45 years to almost 100 years.
Umm Elias goes back to an ancient time whose effects were evident on a copper table occupied by Damascene hands, through the technique of downloading silver on copper, and is more than eighty years old, in addition to the types of wood such as mosaic, which is famous for her father 's craftsman Haneen Ashqar. With her hands she opens a wooden piece of art created by her father, a mosaic table that includes several levels of toys. Sometimes chess, sometimes Elias's mother turns it into a dice game.
It then moves on to Damascene ornaments, icons and small brides made of cloth to stained glass, which gives the place the spirit of life and confirms that each piece and masterpiece has a cultural significance rooted in the culture of Syria.
So that Umm Elias remains one of the many Syrian women who went through the war, and their heads are nostalgic like the ears of wheat, but they did not break them, and they remain tender and shameless, raising their muses to them whenever their names are mentioned.
Najwa Aida Mariam Hajir
Follow SANA news on Telegram https: / / t.me / SyrianArabNewsAgen
Look, too.
Umm Elias Museum of Traditional Crafts in the Damascus neighborhood of Hanania

Artisans fuse sand into molten glass, then shape it by blowing through a tube and using specialized tools.

They melt recycled glass in ovens, hand‑shape and decorate pieces such as hookah bottles and cups, and transmit knowledge via masters, apprentices, and families; the practice is regarded as a plastic art.

Urem Al‑Kubra (Aleppo) is renowned for skilled glassblowers who revived production after liberation, with veteran masters like Hussein Najjar still working and training others.

War, economic decline, and reduced exports have severely hurt the craft, forcing many to stop due to high costs and low demand.

Traditional glassblowing artisans have declined by about 50%, with thousands closing workshops or migrating.

Title:

Content: What is the reality of traditional and traditional professions in Syria?
DAMASCUS – The traditional professions and crafts in Syria were not immune to the repercussions of the war. In light of the difficult economic and security conditions that the country has been witnessing for more than a decade, these professions are suffering from an unprecedented decline related to production and market conditions, which makes them today threatened with extinction.
The head of the Union of Craftsmen in the province of Latakia Jihad Pro, in a recent statement to the local newspaper Al-Watan, the decline of the production of handicrafts and handicrafts of various kinds by 50% within the province, considering the high costs of production inputs and increased income taxes as direct reasons for this decline.
Bassam Qalaji, head of the artisanal association for confectionery in Damascus, told the local newspaper Global last month that more than half of the confectionery craftsmen had stopped producing and switched to other professions due to low demand and insufficient profits.
Successive statements reveal the reality of Syrian traditional and traditional crafts, which are suffering under the weight of the economic decline that the country is suffering from.
This situation has prompted thousands of craftsmen to close their workshops and shops and switch to other jobs, or migrate and move their work abroad, amid the real threat of the disappearance of many traditional traditional traditional professions and handicrafts, which constitute vital sectors of the economic sector in the country and an integral part of its cultural identity.
What are the main reasons for this decline?
How does it affect the economic life of the country?
Lack of support and unequal competition
Anton, a 42-year-old Damascene craftsman and former owner of a mosaic workshop in rural Damascus, says his struggle for years to keep his workshop open, producing and selling enough to pay its workers has been futile.
He adds in an interview with Al Jazeera Net: "I tried hard to maintain the workshop and its workers for as long as possible, but the constant high prices of wood (local and imported) in an inappropriate manner, the long interruption of electricity (16-18 hours a day), and the low demand for mosaic in the domestic and foreign market, all factors forced me to lay off workers, and later to close the workshop after months, during which I received only two orders."
In addition to these factors, Anton attributed the low demand for "original" mosaics and other handicrafts and heritage artifacts (copperware, damask, antika, textiles) to:
The reality of the market at the moment in the absence of tourists.
• The decline of external demand for the commodity as a result of the interruption of trade relations with foreign markets.
• Migration of brokers and traders and thus reduced export.
• Unequal competition.
With heritage products becoming “more than luxury ” for Syrians suffering from poor purchasing power (average monthly salaries of about $20), and the lack of support for craftsmen and awareness of the importance and authenticity of these products by trade unions and government agencies, Syria ’ s craftsmen face major challenges to continue their craft.
Although there are no accurate figures on the number of craftsmen who have been driven by working conditions to emigrate outside the country, the head of the Damascus Craftsmen ’ s Union, Ali Qarmashti, revealed in an interview with the local news website Click News last year that the percentage of Damascene craftsmen migrating has become very high, especially among young people.
Repellent economic and social policies
In addition to the direct economic factors that led to the decline of traditional crafts during the past few years, represented by the high prices of raw materials, the poor reality of services, and the decline of the sale and purchase movement, there were indirect factors that affected these crafts.
Syrian economist Younis Karim believes that the artisan crisis began in 2008 after being subjected to great pressures due to the change of the general economic orientation in the country.
He said in an interview with Al Jazeera Net: "Since 2008, the authorities have put their hands on the spread of these industries due to the importance of their geographical location, and work to change their features in favor of wealthy investors, or provide them as donations to countries that Damascus seeks to establish bilateral relations with."
According to the expert, the reality of the work of traditional crafts after 2011 became more complex and difficult with "the continued adoption of economic and social policies by the regime that restrict the owners of these crafts, exclude them from support, take their places of deployment, in addition to the cessation of exhibitions and the difficulty of participating in external events because of the political positions of the regime.
Karim explains that the family and social disintegration suffered by Syrians as a result of large-scale migration during the last decade was an added reason for the decline of these crafts, which “relied on inheritance between generations of the same family as a tradition followed by Syrian craftsmen long ago. ”
Kilo to Piece and Pieces
It seems that some traditional crafts and crafts are in the same trench with traditional crafts in their war against extinction, where the owners of many traditional crafts are no less original than those of heritage, especially the confectioners from the high costs of raw materials in production, high costs of energy stands, and successive losses due to the reluctance of citizens to buy expensive Arabic sweets.
Suhaib, 55, owner of a sweets shop in the Jazmatiya area of Damascus, told Al Jazeera Net: "Days pass without selling a total of a kilo of various items, and two years ago the stagnation of goods in the shop became a familiar phenomenon to us, and had it not been for the holiday seasons, and some occasions and weddings held here and there, we would have closed long ago."
Al-Halwani Al-Damascene adds in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net: "Our profits, and the profits of most of the shops of Halwanis in Damascus, have decreased by a large percentage since the beginning of the economic crisis in the country."
Al-Halwani pointed out that the price of a kilo of some varieties of Arabic sweets has exceeded 400 thousand pounds recently, adding: "Which is not able for Syrians to buy, so we have become selling methods in which we rely on small quantities, so we sell baklava, crystal, shaped, asian, brominated and other items in ounces, grain (piece) and two grains to keep the sales movement, and do not stop customers from our shop."
As for the reasons why sweets in Damascus stopped working and many of them emigrated outside the country, Al-Halwani said: “Many reasons start from the large annual taxes that are inconsistent with high operating costs and low profits, in addition to the high prices of commercial electricity and fuel needed to operate shops and laboratories, the huge increase in the prices of raw materials, the high wages of workers, and the reluctance of customers to buy these sweets except on occasions. ”
High prices
Prices of food, nuts and other components of Arabic sweets have risen by varying rates recently, as the price of a kilo of animal margarine reached 150 thousand pounds ($equivalent to about 2511 pounds), while the price of a kilo of pistachio love rose to 300 thousand, and the price of a kilo of walnuts to 120 thousand.
The prices of popular sweets such as Al-Barazek and Al-Ma ’ amoul in Damascus markets, by the holy month of Ramadan, were between 100 and 130 thousand pounds per kilo, while the prices of medium and luxury sweets such as “Al-Belouria ”,“ Al-Mashkeel ”, “Kool and Shakour ”,“ Aish Al-Bulbul ” and “Baklava ” ranged between 250 and 500 thousand per kilo, which is equivalent to the salary of a Syrian employee in the public sector.
The head of the artisanal association for confectionery industry, Bassam Qalaji, attributed this rise in confectionery prices to the government lifting subsidies on oil derivatives, which led to a direct increase in costs by 150%, pointing out that raising the price of electricity by 5 times will lead to an increase in the price of about 650 products.
Qalaji said in a statement to the local newspaper Al-Watan last month that the largest number of confectionery craftsmen emigrated, and their first destination was Algeria followed by Germany.
In March last year, the head of the artisanal association for the confectionery industry revealed that 70% of the workshops of the confectionery industry were closed due to the economic crisis and the low demand for sweets and refreshments.
A severe blow to the economy
This gradual disappearance of traditional crafts is a painful blow to the Syrian economy, says economist Younis Karim, “For decades these crafts have been the largest incubator of Syrian labor, and their contribution to the economy before 2011 ranged from 40 to 50%. ”
This is what Matanios Habib, a researcher and former Syrian oil minister, said in a research paper entitled “The private sector in Syria ” (2005), when he pointed out that the private industrial sector in Syria tended to invest in crafts for fear of nationalization policies, whether during the era of Syrian-Egyptian unity (1958-1961) or after the revolution of March 8 (1967).
Karim stresses that the crisis of workers in traditional crafts, such as confectioners and others, dates back to before 2011, specifically to the period between 2007 and 2009, when there was “an attempt by the regime to pressure the owners of traditional crafts and crafts by forcing them to pay taxes, and to keep them away from city centers in favor of large investors. ”
Younis Karim believes that the gradual demise of these crafts will have negative effects on the Syrian economy because of their role in "providing job opportunities beyond those provided by large laboratories and their excellence in ease of operation and achievement, and the ability to spread.
Source: The Island

War‑time migration accelerated the loss of heritage professions, leaving only a few traditional practitioners in some areas.

Title:

Content: Private.
The last one in Qamishli.
A career that accompanied his family for 400 years.
Posted in: Last Updated:
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Inside his old mud workshop in the courtyard of his house in the al-Tay neighborhood on the outskirts of the city of Qamishli in northeastern Syria, the Armenian uncle Mesak Pedrosyan, who is almost 90 years old, continues to practice the profession of grandparents, which he inherited from his family four and a half centuries ago.
Uncle Misak hits his foot on the pottery cupboard of his clay factory with its low wooden roof, its dilapidated walls and clay floor that emits the fragrance of the past.
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The elderly Armenian also passes his fingers on pieces of clay to twist them as he likes, and art collections of different sizes come out of his palms to dazzle the hearts.
My last break on the island.
This elderly man inherited this traditional profession for his children and grandchildren, and he is one of the pioneers of pottery and pottery, the first and last in the Syrian Jazira region.
He is fluent in four languages — Armenian, Kurdish, Arabic and Turkish — but he and his family, like most Armenian families in northeastern Syria, prefer to speak Kurdish.
As for his profession, he said in an interview with Arabic.
“I was watching my parents, grandparents and uncles make the finest crockery in the city of Susan, Turkey, before we emigrated. ”
To Aleppo
Uncle Misak recounted the family ’ s flight from the massacres of the Ottomans in Turkey towards Syria, and ended up in Qamishli, saying: “My father arrived in the city of Aleppo and then moved to Qamishli, and opened his small workshop in the neighborhood of Qadurbek, and then the family traveled to the southern outskirts of the city, which is now known as the sailors of Tay, which did not exist nearly eighty years ago. ”
He added: “We ’ ve built our house since then and it ’ s still intact.
We started our work in the profession and over the years people came to live near us until it turned into a very popular neighborhood that we were the first founders of. ”
He got run over.
As for the stages of the manufacture of pottery, the old man confirmed that he is keen himself to choose the type of soil, and put it in special ponds prepared for it for days after sifting and running him down with feet.
Then Anton, Misak ’ s 45-year-old son, begins the process of kneading the legs in a primitive way, and sprinkles large amounts of clay with water until it is ready to form on the manufacturing wheel that Misak and his son work on, manufacturing clay skirts, vases, pigments, matte pots and special orders that some customers want.
Then the son and father prepare the pottery to be placed in two furnaces, one in the manufacturing workshop for small pots, and the second in the yard for large pieces such as skirts.
The drying phase begins by exposing them to air, and then roast them in a clay oven at a high temperature of 1200 degrees for about 15 hours and leave to cool and prepare for sale.
Low turnout.
“The turnout is low compared to previous years, and our work is related to the special requests of customers, but recently we have been receiving requests from restaurant owners who prefer to cook some foods in crockery and serve them to their customers, due to the healthy value of cooking with pottery, ” he said.
The Armenian uncle recalled the seasons of the pond earlier, as he described, and the pressure of working long hours to meet the demands of the owners of nurseries, who were planting varieties of roses, wind and various seedlings of planting in pottery pots, and regrets the Armenian uncle replaced them today with nylon bags, and the demand of the owners of nurseries to use them because of their cheap prices.
"We will pass it on to our grandchildren."
Several workshops in Aleppo, Damascus, Idlib and Qamishli continue to make pottery throughout Syria, despite the war conditions experienced by the country, and their owners are trying to save the profession of parents and grandparents from extinction, despite the low acquisition and use of pottery, as Mesak Pedrosyan explained in his speech.
"We will resist, preserve and hold on to the legacy of our ancestors and pass it on to our children and grandchildren."
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Damascus’s historic Tkiyet glass market was evacuated for restoration and remains in disrepair, pending craftsmen’s promised return.

Title:

Content: Sulaymaniyah in Damascus.
Do you want to throw out your guards?
While the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent saw in his dream that he was in a grove in the center of the capital Damascus, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) appeared to him and instructed him to build a mosque in that land. The Ottoman Sultan awoke from his sleep pleased with what he saw and heard. He immediately ordered to cut off a side of that grove and build a large kiosk in the middle of it. He was in a dream and pointed out.
This is the story conveyed by a number of writers and historians, the latest of which was Sheikh Najmuddin al-Ghazi in his book "The Walking Planets in the Eyes of the Tenth Hundred", about the decision of the legal sultan to build the Tekke Sulaymaniyah (west of Damascus) in the 16th century, one of the most prominent Ottoman tekaya and the most modern style and the most beautiful architecture, according to specialists.
Historically, the Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah was a place to perform religious duties and a resting place for pilgrims and a refuge for the maqtada and poor people of Damascus, Muslims and others, and remained so until the French colonizer entered the country in 1920; where General Guru and his forces took from the Tkiyet as a residence.
With the departure of colonialism and the advent of 1948, the Shari ’ ah school in Tkiyet returned to hold educational seminars and memorization of the Quran, and since the mid-seventies of the last century began to embrace dozens of shops of ancient Damascene handicrafts, and expanded this part to be known later as the market of handicrafts.
Recently, this complex cultural and religious identity of the heritage teacher has become threatened, after the Ministry of Tourism (in the government of the Syrian regime) notified professionals to vacate their shops before the end of the year under the pretext of restoration.
From Al-Ablaq Palace to Al-Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah
The site of Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah, west of Damascus, was known for the construction of a number of royal residences, the last of which was the palace of the owner of the Mamluk Sultan Baqiris (1228-1277 AD), which was named after the colors of the stones of its construction black and yellow brought from Aleppo and Daraa.
However, large parts of the palace were burned during the conquest of Damascus by the Mongol commander Tamerlane in 803 A.D. (1402 A.D.), and it was not until the Ottoman Sultan Selim I entered Damascus in 923 A.D. (1517 A.D.) that the Ablaq palace was restored and rehabilitated.
By 959 A.D. (1502 A.D.), Sultan Selim the Magnificent commissioned the famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan to develop a modern architectural plan for a hospice on the site of the Al-Ablaq Palace. In 960 A.D. (1553 A.D.), a large number of workers began building the hospice under the supervision of the Damascene engineer Shahabuddin ibn Al-Attar.
Then rest on the banks of the Barada River "a luxurious architectural group that captivates the hearts of the hearts with its regular domes like knots around a large main dome, surrounded by two minarets, and interspersed with gardens and trees whose beauty blends with the beauty of architecture makes this spot in Damascus one of the most beautiful and beautiful spots", the Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah, as described by Abdul Qader Rihawi in his book "Architecture in Arabic".
Ottoman architecture and Damascene motifs
The building of the Sulaymaniyah Tekke consists of two similar architectural blocks, one large and includes the mosque and the other small and includes the school, and linked between these two blocks was a market dedicated to the caravans of pilgrims, and the Ottoman engineering effects on the planning and construction, while the Damascene artistic touch overshadows the designs of doors and windows and decorations that decorate the walls and rooms of the place.
The two architectural blocks are surrounded by relatively low walls, while the middle of them are two rectangular pools fed by water vertical fountains used for ablution, and the mosque with its narrow minarets tops the southern block, while the school mosque with its smooth dome tops the eastern block, and on the sides of the blocks spread buildings are shops and narrow rooms covered with low domes interspersed with low The chimneys are shaped like minarets and are led by shady arcades with ornate arches.
The Sulaymaniyah Tikkiye market extends from its easternmost to its westernmost, and is lined with dozens of shops that were previously commercial shops, and have since the 1970s turned into handicrafts shops.
In addition to its traditional role as a place for the betters, the poor and the needy, the Sulaymaniyah Tekke was designed to be a stop for pilgrims on the pilgrimage route to Mecca, where the place was equipped with spacious kitchens, bakeries, rest rooms, several prayer rooms, a sea for ablution and other necessary services for pilgrims.
When it became a teachers ’ house in 1923, it stopped hosting guests and sheltering arrivals for the first time since its establishment four centuries ago, but soon regained its identity as a hospitable place when it hosted a number of Palestinian families displaced to Damascus following the 1948 Nakba.
While the Sulaymaniyah school was famous for receiving students of Sharia sciences from all parts of the world, before turning, with the opening of the Syrian University in Damascus in 1934, into a place to teach dentistry, and then into an archaeological landmark that includes a war museum with the continuation of religious activities in the chapels and mosque to this day.
From an incubator to a bounty hunter.
In mid-October, the Ministry of Tourism in the government of the regime warned the Karar sheikhs of craftsmen in the handicrafts market to evacuate their shops before the new year 2023 for the purpose of restoration.
Despite the appeals of the craftsmen to the concerned authorities through the local newspapers and media, and the intervention of the Damascus Chamber of Tourism to promise the craftsmen their return after the completion of the restoration operations, Nidal Mashfej, Assistant Minister of Tourism, stressed that there is no legal provision obliging the ministry to renew the contracts of craftsmen after the end of each year. Shopkeepers have the right to claim any malfunction, damage, injustice or the like, the official told the official Tishreen newspaper.
A member of the Damascus Chamber of Tourism, Arafat Oza Bashi, points out that all the shopkeepers in the Sulaymaniyah Tkiyet hope to return to their shops after the completion of the restoration, to continue their work and preserve the intangible heritage threatened with extinction.
Haj Abu Mohammed, 57 years old, owner of a shop in Tkiyet, told Al Jazeera Net, "Years ago they evacuated the glass market of Tkiyet under the pretext of restoring it, and it is still a wreck and it is not clear if it will return to a glass market, and I do not exclude that our shop has a similar fate."
"As if they were not satisfied with the stagnation of the market in the last 10 years and the absence of tourists and visitors from our shops, which the simple citizen can not buy goods from them because of their high cost, and all the losses we suffered to continue to revive these crafts during the war."
The Sulaymaniyah Tikkiye has been undergoing restoration since 2019, and the first phase aimed to restore part of the Tikkiye and what is known as the glass market, while the second phase is dedicated to the handicrafts market and some parts of the interior of the Tikkiye “to preserve the archaeological site from landings and structural cracks, ” according to Nidal Mashfaj.
Source: The Island

UNESCO lists Syrian glassblowing as endangered and in urgent need of safeguarding, citing war and a shortage of skilled artisans as key drivers.

The General Union of Craftsmen and the Ministry of Culture are coordinating preservation efforts.

Title:

Content: The news tape.
The aroma of roses reeks in the Arab Cultural Center in Abu Rummaneh
Damascus-Sana
The Directorate of Culture of Damascus, in cooperation with Dummar Central Incubator for Craft Arts, organized today a seminar entitled “Extraction of essential and plant oils and perfume design ” at the Arab Cultural Center in Abu Rummaneh.
The seminar was presented by the trainer Mohammed Mazen Zakour and included an exhibition of various traditional handicraft products within the plan of the Ministry of Culture to support and encourage craftsmen.
The head of the General Union of Craftsmen, Naji al-Hadwa, said in a statement that traditional crafts are a treasure we possess and reflect the quality of the Syrian worker's professionalism through what he produces and the duty of the General Union of Craftsmen to preserve and develop it, including the establishment of such kind of exhibitions and seminars, which may be framed within the productive institutions owned by the General Union or in partnership with other ministries such as the Ministry of Culture.
Al-Hadwa stressed that the General Union is following up within its plan to qualify and train cadres on an ongoing basis to maintain these crafts as well as create promotional and marketing opportunities for them through the establishment of such events.
Amani Frog
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Damascus-SANA With their vision, they mastered the arts of playing, singing, reciting poetry, acting and with their delicate emotions.

The Dummar Central Incubator for Craft Arts supports glassblowing to preserve heritage crafts.

Title:

Content: Dummar Incubator for Heritage Crafts is the first development project to protect the Syrian heritage from extinction and maintain its continuity, and provides the right conditions for professionals to innovate, develop ideas and access heritage products with creative ideas.
Khobar Code: 576992
Publication date: 27 September 2021
The incubator is the product of an idea that is part of an integrated scientific research entitled "Syrian heritage between the heritage of the past and the challenges of the present", a research that won the Syrian Innovation Award for 2014, and was invested by the General Federation of Craft Associations with interest and support from the central leadership of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party.
He pointed out that the incubator consists of several departments, including the Assad Academy of Craft Arts, in addition to workshops for craftsmen, a cultural center, an exhibition hall, and a commercial center whose mission is to promote and market the craft product in local and foreign markets.
He complained that the incubator provides support for small projects.
The Director of Dummar Incubator for Traditional Crafts said that the incubator ’ s work is based on providing the possibility of gathering various “kar sheikhs ” and craftsmen in one place, which leads to the generation of new ideas through this convergence and convergence and access to new projects.
On the objectives of the incubator, he stressed that "it aims to establish branches in all the province and friendly countries as the basis for the development of small projects."
In turn, Nabil Karkutli, who specializes in alternative energy, pointed out that the objectives of the presence of his craft in the incubator aims to qualify cadres to make alternatives to imports to face the Caesar law as well as recycling materials, in addition to the production of alternative energy devices, especially solar energy.
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The Ministry of Tourism and Handicrafts and civil associations provide training and grants to artisans and youth apprentices.

Title:

Content: Exhibition of craft products by Syrian and Russian artists in the public park in Aleppo
Halab-Sana
On the grounds of the public park in the city of Aleppo, the activities of the exhibition of craft products were launched today, with the participation of 20 craftsmen and artists from Syria and the Russian Federation.
The exhibition, organized by the Ministry of Industry in cooperation with the Russian Cultural Center in Damascus, the Federation of Artisans in Aleppo and the Syrian Professional Center Association, includes a collection of heritage and artistic works, paintings of Ajami thread, ornaments and handicrafts of wool, orphans, leather, rugs, carpets, bamboo and silver industry.
According to the President of the Union of Artisans in Aleppo, Mohammed Hossam Hallak, in a statement to SANA correspondent, the exhibition aims to highlight the traditional handicrafts and crafts and folklore professions to revive them by training the younger generations and mastering their industry to preserve them.
Mustafa al-Nu, President of the Syrian Professional Center Association, pointed out that the association worked to attract professionals and handicrafts, and provided them with financial grants to encourage them to continue their work, to preserve these crafts from extinction, in addition to training young people wishing to learn these crafts and develop them to suit the times.
The Russian artist Yuri Lishin, famous for the manufacture of blowing on glass, talked about his professionalism for more than 54 years, and his participation in many exhibitions in the world, indicating that his visit to Syria to learn about the glass industry, and participate in workshops on the manufacture of hand glass in Syria.
A number of participants noted the importance of the exhibition, which allows for the marketing of their products, where Zakaria Sultan, who works in the craft of silver and peat breaking, explained that he participates with silver and copper products and accessories made by hand in various forms for swimming pools, steadfastness, image cadres and chandeliers, in addition to grafting copper on wood, calling for providing the necessary support to maintain this profession.
The craftsman Ayman Saeed presented the results of the drawing on wood, which is called Ajami art, and stated that he learned to make this art and plant motifs and painting in Arabic calligraphy in the association, and became a trainer contributing to the revival of heritage, and that the exhibition is an important opportunity to market his products.
Artist Tala Naravyan participated in watercolor, oil and other paintings painted with pencils and charcoal, talking about the Armenian and Arab heritage and the neighborhoods of Aleppo and its citadel, pointing out that she participates to introduce people to the components of the rich Syrian heritage through painting because it constitutes the language of the world.
Samira Misto, who works in the craft of making the ancient traditional macrame, using colored threads and ropes to decorate the Koran, mirrors, clothes and jewelry, pointed out that she is working to develop this profession by adding beads and tree trunks to revive and preserve it.
Qusay Razzouk
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Aleppo Public Park

These measures aim to preserve Syrian identity by keeping the tradition alive.


Traditional glassblowing in Damascus is a craft with roots over two millennia old, tracing back to Phoenician times and evolving within the city’s cultural fabric. [1].

The technique emerged in the Levant around the 1st century BC, with Syrian craftsmen advancing glassblowing in cities such as Sidon, Aleppo, Hama, and Palmyra.

Damascus developed and refined these early methods, embedding glasswork among the city’s traditional professions and heritage practices.

The craft is transmitted across generations, with families inheriting the profession from their ancestors in places like Urem Al-Kubra and other Syrian towns.

In practice, artisans heat sand to extremely high temperatures, soften the glass, and shape it by blowing through a tube and working the piece with tools while rotating the blow pole.

Many Syrian artisans emphasize that traditional glassblowing is a form of plastic art, requiring mastery of heat, manual control, and collaborative workshop skills.

Damascus workshops commonly use recycled glass melted in high-temperature ovens, combining sustainability with tradition.

Craftspeople produce items such as vases, plates, and hookah bottles, often decorating and coloring them so that each piece is unique.

Decorative practices include painting on glass with oxides and thermal colors and integrating mixed materials for aesthetic effect, reflecting techniques that evolved locally from Phoenician foundations.

The history and evolution of glassblowing are tightly woven into Damascus’s identity, with glass decoration recognized as part of the city’s living heritage. [2].

As an element of Syria’s intangible cultural heritage, glassblowing contributes to national identity and cultural continuity through traditional industries, exhibitions, and cultural programs. [8].

Museums and cultural institutions in Damascus showcase and safeguard related heritage, collaborating with international partners to preserve collections and public understanding.

Today, the precise number of traditional glassblowers active in Damascus is not available in published sources.

Broader indicators point to a sharp contraction of traditional crafts nationwide—production fell by roughly 50% in recent years amid high costs, low demand, and taxation pressures—factors that also affect glassblowing.

War-related damage and displacement have destroyed workshops and heritage pieces, compounding the fragility of the craft’s ecosystem.

In some locales outside Damascus, only a handful of elder practitioners remain, underscoring the urgency of safeguarding; for example, Qamishli reportedly has one traditional glassblower nearing 90 years old.

Despite these pressures, artisans such as Yassin Arab and Hussein Najjar have worked to revive and sustain the craft using recycled glass and long-honed skills.

Support mechanisms include local exhibitions, training initiatives, and craft incubators like the Dummar Central Incubator, which promotes marketing, skills, and small-project support for heritage crafts. [4].

UNESCO inscribed traditional Syrian glassblowing on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in December 2023. [1].

The urgent listing responds to the craft’s cultural significance and the acute threats posed by years of conflict, economic decline, dwindling practitioner numbers, and market competition from cheaper alternatives. [1][6].

UNESCO’s recognition aims to mobilize protection and transmission so that this millennia-old Damascene and Syrian tradition can be preserved for future generations. [1].

While exact counts for Damascus remain unavailable, the combined evidence of decline, aging practitioners, and ongoing recovery efforts explains why safeguarding is both timely and essential. [10][9].

Traditional glassblowing in Damascus is a craft with roots over two millennia old, tracing back to Phoenician times and evolving within the city’s cultural fabric. [1].

Title:

Content: Samples of the Damascene Literary Heritage Attend an Exhibition and Seminar in the Culture of Infection
Damascus-Sana
In the exhibition “Heritage Crafts are Inherited by the Fragrance of History ” hosted by the Adawi Cultural Center, the artworks varied between glass decoration, Damascene brocade and various handicrafts.
The exhibition was followed by an introductory seminar on these arts for the Sheikhs of Carr and craftsmen specialized in these professions under the supervision of the handicraft trainer Rowaa Yousef.
Youssef Lassana explained that the exhibition was dedicated to traditional professions in general and handicrafts, especially such as brocade, painting on glass, Islamic motifs and handicrafts to maintain their continuity and importance.
Mohammed Bassam Rayhan Sheikh Al-Karar in painting on glass and decoration spoke in his intervention about the history of this craft, its forms, fields of work and materials used in it, pointing out that the glass, which was the first to be invented by the Phoenicians, evolved in Damascus throughout history and was painted on the mishkat and lanterns using oxides and various materials, thermal colors, acrlik and others.
The Damascene brocade craftsman Mohammed Rankous explained in his intervention that this cloth is made of natural silk and golden reed yarns and attributed to Damascus because it took its character, heritage and environment, such as the painting of Omar Khayyam, the Levantine Rose, grape clusters, the lover and the beloved, and the octagonal geometric drawings, pointing out that this craft entered the cultures of different civilizations.
Nasruddin Mohammed is a graduate of applied arts and a drawing teacher who participated in paintings for his students from children and boys. In his intervention, he explained the history of the Damascene plant decoration, its methods, types and schools such as Andalusian, Persian and Damascene, and its differences in decoration, diggings, mirrors and miniatures, indicating that its history dates back to the Andalusian civilization, which was its main creativity in palaces and buildings.
Mohammed Sabha is a bridal craftsman who participated in a group of decorative glass works for brides and explained that he has completed a model of a waterfall flowing from an electric mountain that is operated by hand from cardboard, wood and cork inspired by his ideas.
Rana Ayoub participated in a group of works of three-dimensional models and miniatures of the Levant environment. She explained that she chose this environment because she grew up and lived in it and adored it. It is necessary to inform future generations of their heritage and history, pointing out that she works with cork, wood, natural materials, gypsum, ceramic paste and others.
Bilal Ahmed

The technique emerged in the Levant around the 1st century BC, with Syrian craftsmen advancing glassblowing in cities such as Sidon, Aleppo, Hama, and Palmyra.

Title:

Content: Bella Hadid flashes her toned figure in shorts and a cropped sports top while showing off her creative side as she learns the art of glassblowing

It appears Bella Hadid has found a new hobby that showcases her artistic side.

On Sunday, the catwalk queen took to her Instagram page and posted a step-by-step video of herself making her own glass piece, using classic glassblowing technique in a workshop.

Considering the extreme temperatures it takes to make glass from beginning to end, Bella opted to keep her cloths to a minimum and wore skimpy white shorts with a cropped purple sports top.

Showing her creative side: Bella Hadid, 25, learned the classic art of glassblowing to make her own glass piece and posting a video on her Instagram page on Sunday

Glass is made from the process of heating sand to an extremely high temperature so that it turns into a moldable liquid. When it solidifies, a piece of glass is formed in whatever shape the creator has molded it into.

In the video, viewers will find Bella at the stage where she's working to shape the molten red hot material.

She can be seen sitting down and jabbing a long, sharp wrench-like tool with her scorching hot material, which was attached to a hollow blow pole about three feet long.

She was concerned with safety and wore goggles to protect her eyes.

Shaping: The video shows Bella at the stage where she's working to shape the molten red hot material that is attached to a blow pole

Working it: An instructor can be heard voicing a couple of tips as she spins that object around to the point where a small hole begins to form

Dose of heat: By the end of the first clip, Bella gets up and gives the hot material another dose of intense heat by placing it into a fiery furnace

An instructor can be heard voicing a couple of tips as she spins that object round and round to the point where a small hole begins to form.

By the end of the first clip, Bella gets up and gives the hot material another dose of intense heat by placing it into the fiery furnace.

For the next phase, the instructor assists Bella and slowly spins the blow pole while she sands down the still-molten red piece with two black blocks.

The heat is so intense that you can see steam floating into the air as they continue the sanding-down process.

Honing it: For the next phase, the instructor assists Bella and slowly spins the blow pole while she sands down the still molten red piece with two black blocks

Team work: Bella and the instructor work together to begin molding the molten hot object into shape with those two black blocks

Trippy: Bella gave her 53.7 million Instagram fans and followers a look at how her glass piece is looking at this stage of the process

More intense heat: At one point, the Washington, DC, native can be seen kneeling down using a small propane tank to heat up the object to make a few more changes

At one point, the Washington, DC, native can be seen kneeling down using a small propane tank to heat up the object to make a few more changes.

'Oh yeah, that's the one right there,' a man's voice from behind the camera can be heard saying as they continue to spin the object while jabbing it with that sharp tool.

As the process continues, Bella sits down, spinning the blow pole back and forth as it rests in a round plate that she holds with her right hand.

'It's a perfect shape,' the instructors says in encouragement.

'Here it is, ladies and gentlemen,' the man continues just as Bella gets up to blow into the pole to expand the molten hot material out to form some sort of glassware or vase.

Example: The catwalk queen drew out the shape of her piece she was trying to attain with chalk

Rounding it out: As the process continues, Bella sits down and spins the blow pole back and forth as it rests in a round plate that she holds with her right hand

Major phase: 'Here it is, ladies and gentlemen,' the man from behind the camera continues as Bella starts blowing into the pole

Expanding: Bella then process of blowing into the pole to expand the molten material out to form some sort of glassware

Old technique: Glassblowing is the practice of shaping a mass of glass that has been softened by heat by blowing air into it through a tube, or in this case a pole

The final clips shows a closeup of Bella spinning the glass while adding a few intricate touches to the piece with a prong-like tool.

Glassblowing is the practice of shaping a mass of glass that has been softened by heat by blowing air into it through a tube

It was was invented by Syrian craftsmen in the area of Sidon, Aleppo, Hama and Palmyra in the 1st century BC, according to Britannica.

The technique has remained essentially the same to the present day.

Ancient art form: Glassblowing was was invented by Syrian craftsmen in the area of Sidon, Aleppo, Hama and Palmyra in the 1st century bc, according to Britannica

Lovin' it: The glassblowing technique has remained basically the same to the present day

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Bella Hadid flashes her toned figure in shorts and a crop top while learning the art of glassblowing

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Damascus developed and refined these early methods, embedding glasswork among the city’s traditional professions and heritage practices.

The craft is transmitted across generations, with families inheriting the profession from their ancestors in places like Urem Al-Kubra and other Syrian towns.

Title:

Content: Art of glassblowing returns again in Aleppo countryside liberated from terrorism

The town of Urem Al-Kubra in Aleppo province in northern Syria has historically been famous for its skilled glassblowing craftsmen. The war considerably affected this traditional craft inherited from our ancestors, but after the liberation of the city from terrorism, some artisans have brought it back to life. The artisan, Yassin Arab learned the glassblowing craft from his father when he was a child, and after the town was liberated from terrorism, he returned to his small facility, where he worked to restore it and start working again. Arab does not hide his enormous passion for the craft of glassblowing and his belief in the need to preserve this ancient Syrian heritage. Regarding the working mechanism, the artisan explained to SANA that he uses recycled glass, melts it again in the oven at high temperature, and then chooses a specific shape for its manufacture, whether hookah bottles, vases, plates, small jugs, fish houses for decoration, decorated cups and antiques of different sizes. After that, t he piece is blown, rotated and processed by the artisan until it takes its final shape using white and brown colors, and once the manufacturing of the product is finished, it is decorated and colored to give it the required aesthetics. For his part, Hussein Najjar noted that he learned the craft of blowing glass manually since he was young and has been working in this field for 40 years. He added that he is able to make any shape or glass container, using his imagination, and considered that the art of glassblowing is one of the types of plastic arts. Traditional glassblowing is a profession that dates back more than two thousand years (since the time of the Phoenicians) and was included in December 2023 by UNESCO on the list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity that needs urgent preservation. Source: Syrian Arab News Agency

In practice, artisans heat sand to extremely high temperatures, soften the glass, and shape it by blowing through a tube and working the piece with tools while rotating the blow pole.

Many Syrian artisans emphasize that traditional glassblowing is a form of plastic art, requiring mastery of heat, manual control, and collaborative workshop skills.

Damascus workshops commonly use recycled glass melted in high-temperature ovens, combining sustainability with tradition.

Craftspeople produce items such as vases, plates, and hookah bottles, often decorating and coloring them so that each piece is unique.

Decorative practices include painting on glass with oxides and thermal colors and integrating mixed materials for aesthetic effect, reflecting techniques that evolved locally from Phoenician foundations.

The history and evolution of glassblowing are tightly woven into Damascus’s identity, with glass decoration recognized as part of the city’s living heritage. [2].

Title:

Content: 00: 00
Expo 2020 Dubai Today
Ancient Crafts Blown by Technology
T + T - normal size
Thuriyeh is the Syrian capital, Damascus, with its aesthetics, ancient walks and attractive colors.
It is filled with the cultural and societal vocabulary of distinct traditional industries, manifested in one of its prominent images by ancient professions, which have been associated with and named, since ancient times, by specific families who have practiced them.
However, these names, which are full of cultural and historical content, have become threatened by the threat of modern technology, which, with its various fields, has been “stolen ” by the descendants of the“ industrialists ” of the ancient Damascene professions.
The names of the majority of Damascene families are attributed to many of the names of traditional professions, where we find the names of families who worked in the textile professions and derivatives, including Bait al-Hayek, ropes, kattan, nouilati, maslati, Sabbagh, wool, and many more.
We also find that there are families that practiced the manufacture of shoes called Bait al-Jazmati, al-Sakafi, al-Kandarji, al-Bawabiji, Kabaqibi, while the families that practiced the profession of al-Samana, for example, Bait al-Khodari, al-Fakhani, al-Kuzbari, al-Khallati, al-Arqsoussi, al-Jabban, al-Labban, al-Zayat, and Sharabati.
The families working in the field of clothing and fabrics were named Bait al-Khayat, al-Kawa, and al-Hariri.
It is clear that these names have an important historical and social value, as they are linked to a cultural and historical component that tells the stories of the place and reflects its heritage and features of attractiveness, but it is remarkable that these nicknames, which were associated with important unique professions and were a strong indication of an influential presence. As they melt and disappear, the grandchildren abandon the origins of the craft or abandon it altogether, and they see it as useless and profitable.
This will lead in the future to the loss of a rich heritage, as Mohammed Samer al-Mahayri confirms to Al-Bayan, whose family is famous for the craft of making hodges and then boxes, hence the name, where he shows that hundreds of families in Damascus were associated with the names of professions as the city was an important commercial and economic center, pointing out that “there are many families with the same surname, but they are not related. It is not a city or a province, and one of these families is the Mahayri family, for example. ”
He pointed out that modern technology has become a real threat to an important traditional heritage component, namely the traditional crafts group, which has been abandoned by grandchildren.
Reflection
Al-Mahayri points out that the naming of families by the names of professions that were prevalent in Damascus reflected the values, culture and socio-economic level of those families.
He also explains that these crafts, together with the families, have left a great impact on the life of the Damascene community, a beautiful impact that should not be absent, and there must be specialized projects that protect and care for it by preserving the component of these traditional professions.
He continues: You find that it has developed professions and ended some professions turned owners to other professions, the barber family some of them moved to work in the soap industry and trade in the market of Bzouria, and the Arqsousi turned to carpentry also, and they originally were selling liquor, and many others.
Continuation.
In turn, Mahmoud Hamami, who insisted on challenging the waves of technological temptation and preserving the profession of his grandparents, where his family works in the profession of Damascene baths as a law graduate, but he continues to manage family-owned baths for decades, pointing out that « his brothers went to work in other professions, and this is the case of most families whose name was associated with the names of professions ».
Diversification
It is worth mentioning that the names of the Damascene families referred to are related to the variety of professions. At the level of confectionery industry, we find many family names associated with these professions, such as: Bait Ka ’ ikati, Halwani, Sukari, Knivati, Baggati.
While we find the house of Kahwaji, Hakawati, Rawi, Tetunji Tanbokji, and Arkeli.
As for the professions related to education, we find: the families of the house of the professor, the teacher, the teacher, the haja, and the osta, while the families famous for science, culture and medicine are called the house of the poet, the writer, the writer, the writer, the Arab writer, the wise, the surgeon and the case.
There are also many families that bore the name of the profession of blacksmithing, such as: Sankari, Bawabiri, Mujlakh, and Sheikh blacksmiths, while the families that made musical instruments were called the house of string, and Awad, while the families were named after the house of castles, stones and flint for those who practiced the profession of stone quarries.
There are family names associated with military professions such as: the house of the soldier, the lieutenant colonel, the soldier, and the brigadier.
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As an element of Syria’s intangible cultural heritage, glassblowing contributes to national identity and cultural continuity through traditional industries, exhibitions, and cultural programs. [8].

Title:

Content: The news tape.
The aroma of roses reeks in the Arab Cultural Center in Abu Rummaneh
Damascus-Sana
The Directorate of Culture of Damascus, in cooperation with Dummar Central Incubator for Craft Arts, organized today a seminar entitled “Extraction of essential and plant oils and perfume design ” at the Arab Cultural Center in Abu Rummaneh.
The seminar was presented by the trainer Mohammed Mazen Zakour and included an exhibition of various traditional handicraft products within the plan of the Ministry of Culture to support and encourage craftsmen.
The head of the General Union of Craftsmen, Naji al-Hadwa, said in a statement that traditional crafts are a treasure we possess and reflect the quality of the Syrian worker's professionalism through what he produces and the duty of the General Union of Craftsmen to preserve and develop it, including the establishment of such kind of exhibitions and seminars, which may be framed within the productive institutions owned by the General Union or in partnership with other ministries such as the Ministry of Culture.
Al-Hadwa stressed that the General Union is following up within its plan to qualify and train cadres on an ongoing basis to maintain these crafts as well as create promotional and marketing opportunities for them through the establishment of such events.
Amani Frog
Follow SANA news on Telegram https: / / t.me / SyrianArabNewsAgency
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Sight of the Spirit Spreads their Creativity in Jadak Al Ghaith on a Cultural Theater in Kafarsousa - Video
Damascus-SANA With their vision, they mastered the arts of playing, singing, reciting poetry, acting and with their delicate emotions.

Museums and cultural institutions in Damascus showcase and safeguard related heritage, collaborating with international partners to preserve collections and public understanding.

Title:

Content: Syria participates in the Ninth Nishan Forum of World Civilizations in China
Syria participates in the Museums Sub-Forum within the Ninth Nishan Forum of World Civilizations, which is entitled “Museums …
A bridge between the past, present and future ”, in Kufu, Shandong Province, China.
During the forum, the curator of the National Museum in Damascus, Dr. Rima Khawam, presented a lecture entitled “The National Museum in Damascus..
The importance of international exhibitions, during which she reviewed the history of Syria and its geographical location, which is located at the crossroads between the African continent and the European continent.
Khawam explained that Syria is one of the countries in the world that includes a large number of archaeological sites, numbering more than 5,000 sites, including 2,865 registered and documented sites, including six sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Khawam stressed that the treasures of Syrian civilizations are preserved in more than 40 museums across the country, and are considered valuable and rare, and include many elements of traditional Syrian culture and overlapping accumulations of cultures that have spread throughout the country.
Khawam referred to the terrorist war in Syria that has made the Syrian World Heritage a target of deliberate destruction, while initiatives are being established to restore and preserve Syrian antiquities.
She stressed that the preservation of cultural heritage is not only important to strengthen the Syrian identity, but also helps to consolidate cultural continuity in the development of humanity, in addition to the fact that this cultural heritage belongs to future generations, pointing to the history of the establishment of the National Museum in Damascus, which dates back more than 105 years.
She explained that after 2011, the National Museum in Damascus was closed and turned into a large store of antiquities, where the work in the museum during times of crisis revolved around the rescue, protection, preservation and restoration of Syrian museums.
“In 2018, after security stabilized in the country, the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums worked to open a single section in the National Museum, the Classical Section, to reconnect with the local community, ” Khawam said.
On the importance of international exhibitions, Khawam explained that the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums in 2020 worked in cooperation with a number of cultural institutions in the field of international exhibitions to hold international exhibitions, including temporary exhibitions at the National Museum of Oman between 2020-2022, and an exhibition at the National Museum of Prague in 2022. ".
She added that the agreement and cooperation to hold six exhibitions in six museums belonging to different Chinese provinces, the first of which was in the Nashan Museum, entitled “Surprising Syria ” since 2021 and for two years, during which 195 artifacts representing the most important models that bear witness to the achievements of human societies that lived in Syria for thousands of years since prehistoric times that date back to more than one million years until the 19th century.
Khawam pointed out that the number of visitors to the amazing exhibition of Syria in the Chinese provinces has reached nearly one million visitors, and its visit is still available in the Guagdong Museum, which is part of the Guagdong province and will continue until October 20, indicating that the cooperation between Syria and China to display Syrian antiquities was recently extended for two new years.
Khawam pointed out that the cultural project, which came in cooperation with the Chinese Antiquities and Arts Fair and the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums, is successful for many reasons that go beyond cultural exchange. It enhances the cultural identity of the Syrian archaeological heritage in danger since the beginning of the war. “We are looking forward to strengthening the connection and connection with the past in which cultural exchange was established for a long time between our two countries via the Silk Road. ”
Khawam pointed out that the authenticity of Syrian artifacts participating in international exhibitions is a fundamental value in an era in which artificial intelligence is rapidly developing around the world, which will seem a rare opportunity for visitors in the coming years, stressing that preserving the beauty of our ancestors ’ knowledge and highlighting it as a heritage of humanity and protecting it for future generations is one of the main roles of museums and its extensions through cultural exchange of international exhibitions.
Khawam concluded her speech by stressing the importance of enhancing the image of museums at the international level, and their role in spreading culture with the participation of different communities, to provide diverse experiences in education, enjoyment, reflection, knowledge exchange and interaction with the relics of ancient civilizations as a source of learning and education about historical, scientific and cultural facts that have occurred throughout history.
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Today, the precise number of traditional glassblowers active in Damascus is not available in published sources.

Title:

Content: What is the reality of traditional and traditional professions in Syria?
DAMASCUS – The traditional professions and crafts in Syria were not immune to the repercussions of the war. In light of the difficult economic and security conditions that the country has been witnessing for more than a decade, these professions are suffering from an unprecedented decline related to production and market conditions, which makes them today threatened with extinction.
The head of the Union of Craftsmen in the province of Latakia Jihad Pro, in a recent statement to the local newspaper Al-Watan, the decline of the production of handicrafts and handicrafts of various kinds by 50% within the province, considering the high costs of production inputs and increased income taxes as direct reasons for this decline.
Bassam Qalaji, head of the artisanal association for confectionery in Damascus, told the local newspaper Global last month that more than half of the confectionery craftsmen had stopped producing and switched to other professions due to low demand and insufficient profits.
Successive statements reveal the reality of Syrian traditional and traditional crafts, which are suffering under the weight of the economic decline that the country is suffering from.
This situation has prompted thousands of craftsmen to close their workshops and shops and switch to other jobs, or migrate and move their work abroad, amid the real threat of the disappearance of many traditional traditional traditional professions and handicrafts, which constitute vital sectors of the economic sector in the country and an integral part of its cultural identity.
What are the main reasons for this decline?
How does it affect the economic life of the country?
Lack of support and unequal competition
Anton, a 42-year-old Damascene craftsman and former owner of a mosaic workshop in rural Damascus, says his struggle for years to keep his workshop open, producing and selling enough to pay its workers has been futile.
He adds in an interview with Al Jazeera Net: "I tried hard to maintain the workshop and its workers for as long as possible, but the constant high prices of wood (local and imported) in an inappropriate manner, the long interruption of electricity (16-18 hours a day), and the low demand for mosaic in the domestic and foreign market, all factors forced me to lay off workers, and later to close the workshop after months, during which I received only two orders."
In addition to these factors, Anton attributed the low demand for "original" mosaics and other handicrafts and heritage artifacts (copperware, damask, antika, textiles) to:
The reality of the market at the moment in the absence of tourists.
• The decline of external demand for the commodity as a result of the interruption of trade relations with foreign markets.
• Migration of brokers and traders and thus reduced export.
• Unequal competition.
With heritage products becoming “more than luxury ” for Syrians suffering from poor purchasing power (average monthly salaries of about $20), and the lack of support for craftsmen and awareness of the importance and authenticity of these products by trade unions and government agencies, Syria ’ s craftsmen face major challenges to continue their craft.
Although there are no accurate figures on the number of craftsmen who have been driven by working conditions to emigrate outside the country, the head of the Damascus Craftsmen ’ s Union, Ali Qarmashti, revealed in an interview with the local news website Click News last year that the percentage of Damascene craftsmen migrating has become very high, especially among young people.
Repellent economic and social policies
In addition to the direct economic factors that led to the decline of traditional crafts during the past few years, represented by the high prices of raw materials, the poor reality of services, and the decline of the sale and purchase movement, there were indirect factors that affected these crafts.
Syrian economist Younis Karim believes that the artisan crisis began in 2008 after being subjected to great pressures due to the change of the general economic orientation in the country.
He said in an interview with Al Jazeera Net: "Since 2008, the authorities have put their hands on the spread of these industries due to the importance of their geographical location, and work to change their features in favor of wealthy investors, or provide them as donations to countries that Damascus seeks to establish bilateral relations with."
According to the expert, the reality of the work of traditional crafts after 2011 became more complex and difficult with "the continued adoption of economic and social policies by the regime that restrict the owners of these crafts, exclude them from support, take their places of deployment, in addition to the cessation of exhibitions and the difficulty of participating in external events because of the political positions of the regime.
Karim explains that the family and social disintegration suffered by Syrians as a result of large-scale migration during the last decade was an added reason for the decline of these crafts, which “relied on inheritance between generations of the same family as a tradition followed by Syrian craftsmen long ago. ”
Kilo to Piece and Pieces
It seems that some traditional crafts and crafts are in the same trench with traditional crafts in their war against extinction, where the owners of many traditional crafts are no less original than those of heritage, especially the confectioners from the high costs of raw materials in production, high costs of energy stands, and successive losses due to the reluctance of citizens to buy expensive Arabic sweets.
Suhaib, 55, owner of a sweets shop in the Jazmatiya area of Damascus, told Al Jazeera Net: "Days pass without selling a total of a kilo of various items, and two years ago the stagnation of goods in the shop became a familiar phenomenon to us, and had it not been for the holiday seasons, and some occasions and weddings held here and there, we would have closed long ago."
Al-Halwani Al-Damascene adds in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net: "Our profits, and the profits of most of the shops of Halwanis in Damascus, have decreased by a large percentage since the beginning of the economic crisis in the country."
Al-Halwani pointed out that the price of a kilo of some varieties of Arabic sweets has exceeded 400 thousand pounds recently, adding: "Which is not able for Syrians to buy, so we have become selling methods in which we rely on small quantities, so we sell baklava, crystal, shaped, asian, brominated and other items in ounces, grain (piece) and two grains to keep the sales movement, and do not stop customers from our shop."
As for the reasons why sweets in Damascus stopped working and many of them emigrated outside the country, Al-Halwani said: “Many reasons start from the large annual taxes that are inconsistent with high operating costs and low profits, in addition to the high prices of commercial electricity and fuel needed to operate shops and laboratories, the huge increase in the prices of raw materials, the high wages of workers, and the reluctance of customers to buy these sweets except on occasions. ”
High prices
Prices of food, nuts and other components of Arabic sweets have risen by varying rates recently, as the price of a kilo of animal margarine reached 150 thousand pounds ($equivalent to about 2511 pounds), while the price of a kilo of pistachio love rose to 300 thousand, and the price of a kilo of walnuts to 120 thousand.
The prices of popular sweets such as Al-Barazek and Al-Ma ’ amoul in Damascus markets, by the holy month of Ramadan, were between 100 and 130 thousand pounds per kilo, while the prices of medium and luxury sweets such as “Al-Belouria ”,“ Al-Mashkeel ”, “Kool and Shakour ”,“ Aish Al-Bulbul ” and “Baklava ” ranged between 250 and 500 thousand per kilo, which is equivalent to the salary of a Syrian employee in the public sector.
The head of the artisanal association for confectionery industry, Bassam Qalaji, attributed this rise in confectionery prices to the government lifting subsidies on oil derivatives, which led to a direct increase in costs by 150%, pointing out that raising the price of electricity by 5 times will lead to an increase in the price of about 650 products.
Qalaji said in a statement to the local newspaper Al-Watan last month that the largest number of confectionery craftsmen emigrated, and their first destination was Algeria followed by Germany.
In March last year, the head of the artisanal association for the confectionery industry revealed that 70% of the workshops of the confectionery industry were closed due to the economic crisis and the low demand for sweets and refreshments.
A severe blow to the economy
This gradual disappearance of traditional crafts is a painful blow to the Syrian economy, says economist Younis Karim, “For decades these crafts have been the largest incubator of Syrian labor, and their contribution to the economy before 2011 ranged from 40 to 50%. ”
This is what Matanios Habib, a researcher and former Syrian oil minister, said in a research paper entitled “The private sector in Syria ” (2005), when he pointed out that the private industrial sector in Syria tended to invest in crafts for fear of nationalization policies, whether during the era of Syrian-Egyptian unity (1958-1961) or after the revolution of March 8 (1967).
Karim stresses that the crisis of workers in traditional crafts, such as confectioners and others, dates back to before 2011, specifically to the period between 2007 and 2009, when there was “an attempt by the regime to pressure the owners of traditional crafts and crafts by forcing them to pay taxes, and to keep them away from city centers in favor of large investors. ”
Younis Karim believes that the gradual demise of these crafts will have negative effects on the Syrian economy because of their role in "providing job opportunities beyond those provided by large laboratories and their excellence in ease of operation and achievement, and the ability to spread.
Source: The Island

Broader indicators point to a sharp contraction of traditional crafts nationwide—production fell by roughly 50% in recent years amid high costs, low demand, and taxation pressures—factors that also affect glassblowing.

War-related damage and displacement have destroyed workshops and heritage pieces, compounding the fragility of the craft’s ecosystem.

Title:

Content: Lifestyle
« Mamoun » Syrian old man revives heritage pieces with traditional machines: the lathe is part of my soul
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In one of the still vibrant Syrian cities, the old man sits bent over to make heritage pieces. Amoun, a 70-year-old barber, still revives the heritage of his beloved country in the capital Damascus. Although the war lost him his old shop and workshop, one of his friends honored his hospitality with a small workshop where he makes his simple works to continue the work he used to do since his childhood.
Unique heritage pieces with a hand filled with the veins of old age
He did not despair of his profession and was not hindered by his old age or the war, the old man is still eager to make more heritage pieces, which express the Syrian beauty that still lives amid the war that destroyed many cities, Mamoun Barber works according to his story to Sky News in heritage pieces since his childhood, saying: "The lathe is my soul existed before my birth and my children Bardo my soul, but I love my work and make heritage pieces It ’ s like a coffee grinder and a small hookah, so that whoever takes them knows where to find them easily. ”
As for the pieces themselves, the old man said, they are purely local heritage products, such as Al-Mahbaj and others: “A visitor can buy a piece of these ancient Syrian products, which are deeply rooted in our ancient cultural roots and take them with him. ”
He had his workshop in the war, and his friend gave him his shop.
Before Mamoun moved to Damascus, he had a workshop that included thousands of beautiful heritage pieces, but he lost them in the war. However, he did not give up and decided to resort to his friend, who gave him his shop to make new pieces and display them in exhibitions. In spite of the pain, and in spite of all that trouble, there is no financial reward for the work: “God is your agent, sometimes I have to put it out of my pocket, ” but the lathe is not complete, and yet he makes his piece very professionally.
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In some locales outside Damascus, only a handful of elder practitioners remain, underscoring the urgency of safeguarding; for example, Qamishli reportedly has one traditional glassblower nearing 90 years old.

Title:

Content: Private.
The last one in Qamishli.
A career that accompanied his family for 400 years.
Posted in: Last Updated:
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Inside his old mud workshop in the courtyard of his house in the al-Tay neighborhood on the outskirts of the city of Qamishli in northeastern Syria, the Armenian uncle Mesak Pedrosyan, who is almost 90 years old, continues to practice the profession of grandparents, which he inherited from his family four and a half centuries ago.
Uncle Misak hits his foot on the pottery cupboard of his clay factory with its low wooden roof, its dilapidated walls and clay floor that emits the fragrance of the past.
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The elderly Armenian also passes his fingers on pieces of clay to twist them as he likes, and art collections of different sizes come out of his palms to dazzle the hearts.
My last break on the island.
This elderly man inherited this traditional profession for his children and grandchildren, and he is one of the pioneers of pottery and pottery, the first and last in the Syrian Jazira region.
He is fluent in four languages — Armenian, Kurdish, Arabic and Turkish — but he and his family, like most Armenian families in northeastern Syria, prefer to speak Kurdish.
As for his profession, he said in an interview with Arabic.
“I was watching my parents, grandparents and uncles make the finest crockery in the city of Susan, Turkey, before we emigrated. ”
To Aleppo
Uncle Misak recounted the family ’ s flight from the massacres of the Ottomans in Turkey towards Syria, and ended up in Qamishli, saying: “My father arrived in the city of Aleppo and then moved to Qamishli, and opened his small workshop in the neighborhood of Qadurbek, and then the family traveled to the southern outskirts of the city, which is now known as the sailors of Tay, which did not exist nearly eighty years ago. ”
He added: “We ’ ve built our house since then and it ’ s still intact.
We started our work in the profession and over the years people came to live near us until it turned into a very popular neighborhood that we were the first founders of. ”
He got run over.
As for the stages of the manufacture of pottery, the old man confirmed that he is keen himself to choose the type of soil, and put it in special ponds prepared for it for days after sifting and running him down with feet.
Then Anton, Misak ’ s 45-year-old son, begins the process of kneading the legs in a primitive way, and sprinkles large amounts of clay with water until it is ready to form on the manufacturing wheel that Misak and his son work on, manufacturing clay skirts, vases, pigments, matte pots and special orders that some customers want.
Then the son and father prepare the pottery to be placed in two furnaces, one in the manufacturing workshop for small pots, and the second in the yard for large pieces such as skirts.
The drying phase begins by exposing them to air, and then roast them in a clay oven at a high temperature of 1200 degrees for about 15 hours and leave to cool and prepare for sale.
Low turnout.
“The turnout is low compared to previous years, and our work is related to the special requests of customers, but recently we have been receiving requests from restaurant owners who prefer to cook some foods in crockery and serve them to their customers, due to the healthy value of cooking with pottery, ” he said.
The Armenian uncle recalled the seasons of the pond earlier, as he described, and the pressure of working long hours to meet the demands of the owners of nurseries, who were planting varieties of roses, wind and various seedlings of planting in pottery pots, and regrets the Armenian uncle replaced them today with nylon bags, and the demand of the owners of nurseries to use them because of their cheap prices.
"We will pass it on to our grandchildren."
Several workshops in Aleppo, Damascus, Idlib and Qamishli continue to make pottery throughout Syria, despite the war conditions experienced by the country, and their owners are trying to save the profession of parents and grandparents from extinction, despite the low acquisition and use of pottery, as Mesak Pedrosyan explained in his speech.
"We will resist, preserve and hold on to the legacy of our ancestors and pass it on to our children and grandchildren."
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Despite these pressures, artisans such as Yassin Arab and Hussein Najjar have worked to revive and sustain the craft using recycled glass and long-honed skills.

Support mechanisms include local exhibitions, training initiatives, and craft incubators like the Dummar Central Incubator, which promotes marketing, skills, and small-project support for heritage crafts. [4].

Title:

Content: Dummar Incubator for Heritage Crafts is the first development project to protect the Syrian heritage from extinction and maintain its continuity, and provides the right conditions for professionals to innovate, develop ideas and access heritage products with creative ideas.
Khobar Code: 576992
Publication date: 27 September 2021
The incubator is the product of an idea that is part of an integrated scientific research entitled "Syrian heritage between the heritage of the past and the challenges of the present", a research that won the Syrian Innovation Award for 2014, and was invested by the General Federation of Craft Associations with interest and support from the central leadership of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party.
He pointed out that the incubator consists of several departments, including the Assad Academy of Craft Arts, in addition to workshops for craftsmen, a cultural center, an exhibition hall, and a commercial center whose mission is to promote and market the craft product in local and foreign markets.
He complained that the incubator provides support for small projects.
The Director of Dummar Incubator for Traditional Crafts said that the incubator ’ s work is based on providing the possibility of gathering various “kar sheikhs ” and craftsmen in one place, which leads to the generation of new ideas through this convergence and convergence and access to new projects.
On the objectives of the incubator, he stressed that "it aims to establish branches in all the province and friendly countries as the basis for the development of small projects."
In turn, Nabil Karkutli, who specializes in alternative energy, pointed out that the objectives of the presence of his craft in the incubator aims to qualify cadres to make alternatives to imports to face the Caesar law as well as recycling materials, in addition to the production of alternative energy devices, especially solar energy.
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UNESCO inscribed traditional Syrian glassblowing on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in December 2023. [1].

Title:

Content: Red Sea Festival in Jeddah
Arab culture in 2023.
Achievements and Creations
The year 2023 witnessed a large number of important cultural events in the Arab world. In addition to the periodic film, theater and visual festivals and book fairs, there was a real presence of creative ideas and new initiatives not witnessed in the cultural arena in previous years.
The sixth edition of the Cultural Summit was held in Manarat Al Saadiyat under the theme ‘ A Matter of Time ’, to explore how culture is changing the world ’ s perception of time, alongside the Al Hosn Festival, which documents the heritage of this ancient city.
The Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, one of the top 10 literary festivals around the world, also kicked off in Dubai, UAE, and hosted more than 260 writers, creators and thought leaders from around the world and the Arab world in more than 300 events covering all topics, such as literature, arts, culture and more.
Saudi Arabia launched the Culture Index in the Islamic World project, which monitors the transformation of the cultural landscape and its development and documents its achievements in Islamic countries within four dimensions and axes: “Culture for Economic Development, Culture for Environment, Climate and Resilience, Culture for Social Development, and Culture for Openness and Diversity. ”
Red Sea Film Festival selects 17 films for its official competition
The Red Sea International Film Festival (RIFF), the first international film festival in Saudi Arabia, was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in early December. In addition to film screenings and competitions, the festival will feature “Talent Days ”, which will provide specialized discussion sessions and orientation workshops for filmmakers who are passionate about learning the craft and enhancing their skills and artistic tools.
In the context of cinema, the year 2023 witnessed Arab participation in a number of film festivals, most notably the Cannes Film Festival, which witnessed the culmination of three Arab films in the "Some Look" competition dedicated to encouraging young talents in the field of film.
The Moroccan film "Hunting Dogs" by Kamal Lazrak won the jury award, the Moroccan director Asma Al-Mader won the directing award for her documentary "White Lie", while the Sudanese film "Goodbye Julia" by Mohamed Kordafani won the freedom award, the first participation of a Sudanese film in this prestigious festival.
At the Berlin Film Festival, the Lebanese film “Yarqa ” for the sisters Michel and Manuel Ksarwani won the“ Golden Bear for Best Short Film ”, while the Yemeni director Amr Jamal ’ s “The Tired ” won the Amnesty International Human Rights Award at the same festival.
In the field of literature, the winning of the Iraqi novelist Firat al-Ani Award for Arabic Literature, presented by the Jean-Luc Lagardère Foundation and the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, for his novel “I Remember Fallujah ”. Similarly, the Omani novelist Zahran Al Qasimi won the International Prize for Arabic Fiction“ Poker ” for his novel “Taghriba Al Qaffer ”. The novel.
In an earlier interview with Erm News...
How did Zahran Al Qasimi predict that his novel would win poker?
Continuing the literary prizes, Ashraf Ashmawy of Egypt won two prizes from Katara of Qatar, while Mohammed Al Yahyaei of Oman won the prize for his novel “The War ”.
As for the intangible cultural heritage, the inclusion of the Syrian glass blowing element on UNESCO ’ s lists of urgent conservation is a milestone achieved by Damascus.
The losses of Arab creators remain a milestone in the scene, including, for example, the Lebanese composer Elie Choueiri, the Syrian novelist Khaled Khalifa, and the pioneer of children ’ s literature in Egypt Yacoub Sharouni.
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The urgent listing responds to the craft’s cultural significance and the acute threats posed by years of conflict, economic decline, dwindling practitioner numbers, and market competition from cheaper alternatives. [1][6].

UNESCO’s recognition aims to mobilize protection and transmission so that this millennia-old Damascene and Syrian tradition can be preserved for future generations. [1].

While exact counts for Damascus remain unavailable, the combined evidence of decline, aging practitioners, and ongoing recovery efforts explains why safeguarding is both timely and essential. [10][9].