Syrian traditional glassblowing, renowned for its origins in Damascus and Aleppo, is an ancient craft with a history exceeding two millennia, tracing back to the Phoenician era.

The basic glassblowing technique—melting recycled glass and shaping it by hand-blowing and rotation—has survived across generations, with evidence of its persistence since at least the 1st century BC in centers such as Damascus, Aleppo, Sidon, Hama, and Palmyra.

Damascus glassblowing developed a unique aesthetic identity through painted lanterns, mosque lamps with oxides and colored motifs, and a blending of artistry tailored to different civilizations and environments .

Glassblowing has been seen as a vital component of Syrian plastic arts.

The process utilizes recycled glass, shaped into functional and decorative objects such as vases, plates, small jugs, cups, and hookah bottles.

Traditional knowledge is typically handed down through families, reinforcing a generational bond and deepening the craft’s cultural significance.

For practitioners and the broader public, glassblowing symbolizes Syrian creative resilience and identity .

The contemporary status of Syrian glassblowing is precarious.

The industry has suffered extensively due to war, economic hardship, and modernization.

Many craftsmen were forced to abandon their workshops, with only a small core—sometimes in isolated areas like Urem Al-Kubra—continuing or trying to revive the tradition.

The current community of traditional glassblowers is markedly diminished, threatening the survival of centuries-old methods.

In Damascus, additional pressures include restoration and urban redevelopment projects that displace artisans, reduced demand linked to tourism decline, and the high cost of handmade goods in comparison to mass-produced alternatives .

UNESCO included Syrian traditional glassblowing on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in December 2023.

This designation underscores the craft’s status as an endangered living heritage and is intended to prompt efforts that ensure its survival.

UNESCO’s rationale highlights the alarming decline in practicing craftspeople and the risk that, without intervention, the specialized knowledge and skills that characterize this tradition could disappear entirely.

The safeguarding call supports both direct assistance to surviving artisans and broader initiatives to document, celebrate, and transmit the craft’s legacy.

Preserving glassblowing is crucial, not just for the integrity of Syrian culture but also to maintain diversity in global heritage at risk from conflict, economic shifts, and globalization .

In sum, Syrian glassblowing stands as an ancient, yet endangered, cultural practice.

Its history is richly intertwined with Syrian identity, artistry, and communal continuity.

Today, it is at risk, with only a small number of remaining craftsmen and several dire challenges.

UNESCO’s urgent safeguarding status is a recognition of this fragility—as well as a call to preserve and reinvigorate an irreplaceable cultural heritage.

Syrian traditional glassblowing, renowned for its origins in Damascus and Aleppo, is an ancient craft with a history exceeding two millennia, tracing back to the Phoenician era.

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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The basic glassblowing technique—melting recycled glass and shaping it by hand-blowing and rotation—has survived across generations, with evidence of its persistence since at least the 1st century BC in centers such as Damascus, Aleppo, Sidon, Hama, and Palmyra.

Damascus glassblowing developed a unique aesthetic identity through painted lanterns, mosque lamps with oxides and colored motifs, and a blending of artistry tailored to different civilizations and environments .

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

Glassblowing has been seen as a vital component of Syrian plastic arts.

The process utilizes recycled glass, shaped into functional and decorative objects such as vases, plates, small jugs, cups, and hookah bottles.

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

Traditional knowledge is typically handed down through families, reinforcing a generational bond and deepening the craft’s cultural significance.

Title:

Content: Culture of Al-Baath Newspaper
Intangible heritage contributions to the protection of national identity
Amina Abbas
Heritage researchers and scholars agree that the Levant region is the most important heritage repository for humanity, as it has the oldest and richest heritage, and this heritage, both material and intangible, was coveted by the colonists since ancient times to destroy culture and identity, there is no identity without heritage based on it, and no heritage without identity, so Syria is keen through its institutions and bodies to emphasize the importance of preserving it.
Hence, the Quneitra branch of the Arab Writers Union, in celebration of World Heritage Day, decided to hold a seminar in the Levant Hall of the National Museum entitled “Contributions of Intangible Heritage to the Protection of National Identity ” with the participation of Dr. Amal Daccak, Professor Ruba Al-Diab, Qas Ghassan Houranieh and Dr. Rima Diab, Head of the Quneitra branch of the Arab Writers Union. It represents not only traditions and the past, but society in all its layers, and links the past to the present and the future, and it is a means for each people to prove its existence in the world and its authenticity, while stressing that the intangible heritage contributes to the preservation of identity and personality. Our identity and our heritage in the era of globalization, which is trying to eliminate our heritage and culture to be part of this lost world.
This was also confirmed by Dr. Dakak in her participation: “The Syrian tangible and intangible heritage is rich in its authenticity and civilization that dates back thousands of years, so it was and still is coveted by the colonists who stole many treasures to be in their world museums, and their war on Syria recently was aimed at destroying culture and identity and stealing antiquities. ” It is an integrated cultural unit formed by man throughout his long history with his creative thinking, observations, reflections and experiences accumulated generation after generation, and it is the social environment occupied by man and the components and pillars produced by previous generations until it reached subsequent generations and has the function of supervising the behavior of the individual and his sociocultural upbringing because it is a reflection of the social, intellectual and cultural life of peoples. As Daccak pointed out, the identity is the set of psychological, social and civilizational features of our nation throughout its long history, and the folklore constitutes the identity of a homeland rich in culture and civilization, calling in the era of globalization to seek to preserve our cultural identity and heritage, which represents this identity to face the challenges of globalization that invade us and want to eliminate our identity and culture. And our originality by drawing different borders in which national identity is absent and killing people in their country.
Because the Levantine rose and its associated practices and traditional crafts are important Syrian heritage elements inherited from generation after generation, and was included by UNESCO in 2019 in the list of intangible human heritage was talked about by Professor Al-Diab, who was crowned queen of roses and became Syrian ambassador to the world: “The Levantine rose was found painted on the wall of a palace on the island of Crete and was introduced to France during wars. As the poet Nizar Qabbani wrote about her,“ I am your Damascene rose, O people of the Levant, and whoever finds me should put me in the first vase, ” referring to the areas of its cultivation in Damascus countryside and Ghubartha. The project was launched by the Syrian Secretariat for Development in 2020 with the support of First Lady Asma al-Assad, affirming that Syrians consider the Levantine Rose an important part of their culture. The Ministry of Tourism has taken it as its slogan, in addition to many medical and cosmetic companies and building a path that is architecturally designed in the form of a Levantine Rose, explaining that the elements of the Syrian intangible cultural heritage include: Traditions and expressions “qaṣīda, mawwāl, ataba, dalaouna, zaghārīd, folk proverbs ” and the arts:“ Aleppo qadūd, coastal dabka, Circassian dance, Syriac church music ” Social practices “preparing and serving bitter coffee ” Knowledge and practices related to nature and the universe:“ cupping, traditional architecture ” Skills related to traditional crafts “wooden mosaic, brocade ” The crafts associated with the Levantine Rose ”, and that the elements of the intangible Syrian heritage included in the lists of human heritage are: falcon hunting, shadow fiction theater, Levantine Rose, Aleppo cod, glass blowing and making sticks and playing on them.
It is noteworthy that the seminar included the presentation of a film prepared by dr.
Amal Daccak spoke about heritage in our contemporary lives and its role in preserving our national identity, and the participation of the storyteller Ghassan Houranieh through a short story titled “The Levantine Rose ”.

For practitioners and the broader public, glassblowing symbolizes Syrian creative resilience and identity .

The contemporary status of Syrian glassblowing is precarious.

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

The industry has suffered extensively due to war, economic hardship, and modernization.

Title:

Content: Last one.
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Syrian Oud on UNESCO ’ s List of Cultural Heritage
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has inscribed the Syrian oud on its list of intangible cultural heritage for its unique sound and intricately handcrafted curves.
Although the oud machine is present throughout the region, the Syrian oud is known for its pure tones and unique and harmonious sounds.
Tony Tawil, who is one of the makers of the oud, said: "Many composers whose melodies are made on the oud, they do not use a second instrument because the oud plays more than 200 maqām, which gives the mark, half the mark, a quarter of the mark, and half the mark other than the guitar, which gives you the sound and half the sound."
"When we hit the chord, the chord recoil enters the cavity and then comes back out of the holes, the chord must be accurately occupied and the wood is correct and dry until it gives more resonance and the mark comes out pure and there is purity in the chord sound," he said.
But the oud industry was hit hard by the war and economic crisis in the years that followed, with demand for musical instruments declining.
With the oud inscribed on UNESCO ’ s list of intangible cultural heritage, the Syrian Secretariat for Development will cooperate with the International Organization for the Support of Artisans in promoting and selling their products in order to preserve the industry.
Rasha Barhoum, executive assistant of the Living Heritage Program of the Syrian Secretariat for Development, said:
This year the conservation plan will be launched and in the coming years there will certainly be bigger projects. ”
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Many craftsmen were forced to abandon their workshops, with only a small core—sometimes in isolated areas like Urem Al-Kubra—continuing or trying to revive the tradition.

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The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
Follow us via
EXCLUSIVE
“Copper is the brother of gold, its value is preserved, increases and does not decrease, no matter how high its price is. ”
With these words, the Septuagint craftsman, Mahmoud Haj Mustafa, demonstrates the status of his heritage and his passion for his copper works, which, according to him, “are jewelled whenever they are emancipated as ‘ the daughter of assets ’. ”
Hajj Mustafa, one of the few Karar sheikhs left in the “copper market ” heritage city of Aleppo, after the migration of the majority of his craftsmen during the war years, and the subsequent American siege, the heritage professions were the first victims, in addition to the death of a number of the most skilled craftsmen by age, leaving only a few trying by all means to preserve this heritage craft and prevent it from disappearing.
The craftsman Haj Mustafa speaks to Sputnik with a lot of love and passion about his profession, which he did not inherit from his grandfather and father, but learned as a hobby to become day after day, part of his life and the only source of his blue.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
Sheikh Al-Karar said:
I began to learn the craft of copper since I was ten years old, possessed by its arts and engravings, and when I gained sufficient experience opened my own shop in the copper market, which is more than 400 years old, I spent 54 years, lived with it the most beautiful days, and I transferred my love for this craft to my children.
Restoration operations in the copper market in Aleppo have been delayed until now, so that its craftsmen describe it as the “forgotten market ”, in fact, although it has received a large share of the effects of the Syrian crisis, but it remains less destructive compared to the markets around it, which forced the sheikhs of hate to do their work in their old shops for fear that“ their hands will rust ”. And you can't live without him.
The kids are coming back.
The craftsman Haj Mustafa is one of the professionals who worked with copper by hand engraving, but he confirms that the introduction of modern machines has been a great advantage in the development of this craft and save time and effort.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
Haj Mustafa recalls the years before the start of the crisis that hit Aleppo ’ s heritage markets in particular: “The market was full of customers since the early morning, to the extent that the visitor may become“ deaf ” from the frequent methods of craftsmen on copper tools and the noise of negotiating prices between customers and sellers, which is a sign of good health. ”
Despite the stagnant copper market, the Aleppo craftsman is optimistic about the improvement of his conditions in the coming days, stressing "the need to preserve the copper market and return to its previous era, Aleppo was and will remain the mother of heritage industry and oriental, and this is achieved by teaching this craft to future generations to protect this heritage profession.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
Due to the harsh conditions imposed by the American siege on the Syrian people, and the disruption of livelihoods inside the country, the children rushed to seek a livelihood to support them and their parents, and scattered in the neighboring countries near and far.
"My son had to travel to Lebanon and work there, but he will return to Aleppo," said the craftsman, "and with a mixture of confident hope, Haj Mustafa confirms that his son:" He will work with this craft in the copper market, completing my career, especially when teaching his children the arts of this authentic heritage. "
The brass don't rust.
The ancient craftsman said that the coppers do not rust, like the copper they work, and therefore they persevere in their work in all circumstances.
“If the coppers don ’ t rust, what about the customers, ” Sputnik asks, and the craftsman responds by stressing that those who say that the copper pieces turned into decorative pieces after being too expensive, because in his opinion, the market still requires this type of work, which is used for daily use, especially in the countryside, restaurants, confectionery shops, hotels, religious centers and other places that prefer to use copper over aluminum.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
There are other opinions that sense the great decline in the acquisition of copper, as Ahmed Haj Omar, a 40-year-old craftsman who inherited his profession from a grandfather, asserts that the state of stagnation and the difficult economic reality made copper pieces of decoration and heritage exhibits only.
He called on the Syrian government to provide electricity regularly to the workshops and shops of the copper market in Aleppo, to reduce costs and increase production and lighting at night for fear of theft.
An overwhelming nostalgia before the war.
The craftsman Yahya al-Nahhas, who took his family name from the copper profession and most of his family work in it, longs for the old days, when dozens of customers waiting in front of his shop since the early morning to secure their orders of copper tools needed for their daily lives and seasons.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The copper craftsman works with three of his brothers and his son in this craft, and he believes that it will return to the glory it was before the war, unlike these days, when the demands have subsided due to war conditions, purchasing power and the cutting of roads between the countryside and the city.
To compensate for the decline in sales, the copper craftsman often has to go to the countryside himself after agreeing with families who want to repair and restore the copper tools they have, to preserve his blueness and protect the endangered copper profession.
Al-Nahhas believes that the responsibility of maintaining this craft is also the responsibility of the Syrian government, as it is supposed to provide facilities that reduce costs on craftsmen, and contribute to increasing production, which decreased with the large rise in copper prices, stressing that a small copper pile is costing millions of pounds, he said.
Coming back soon for the craftsmen.
The return of the copper market to its former condition depends on the return of its people, according to the opinion of the craftsman Abdul Rahman al-Nahas, confirming to "Sputnik" that this is around the corner.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The copper craftsman proves his point by revealing that a number of craftsmen residing in Turkey have contacted him to help them renovate their shops and reopen them, especially after the establishment of the last province of Kayseri, and this will have a direct positive impact on the state of this historic market, he asserts.
Fathers and Sons
The copper market, located between the iron gates and the victory, includes more than 100 shops, some of which have not been restored, the effects of the disastrous years are still strongly present, but the remaining craftsmen took the initiative to rehabilitate and open their shops despite the destruction of the heritage market, while other shops remained closed until now, after the migration of the largest number of craftsmen, leaving only 10 craftsmen trying each way to revive the copper market.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The craftsman Abdul Wahab Habash, who inherited the copper trade from his father, who is known as one of the sheikhs of Hirha, speaks of Sputnik teaching his 14-year-old son to keep his “son and career together, ” he says, and to form a beautiful painting that confirms that this craft survives despite all obstacles and difficult circumstances.
The craftsman Habash said:
“This profession must be learned from a young age, not waiting until the age of youth. I participated in training a number of young people in cooperation with local and international organizations, but unfortunately, none of them completed it, especially since there is no desire and love for this craft, so it is preferable to learn it from a young age by organizing training courses and incorporating it with other traditional crafts in the school curriculum. ”
Export to Europe
Habash draws attention to the changing skills of the craft between the past and the present: “Previously, it was based on decoration and manual formation, and the craftsmen performed their work carefully and accurately, resulting in high quality, but in the 1990s the introduction of the machine transformed this profession, which contributed to the acceleration of production and quantities at the expense of quality, depending on the purchasing power of citizens, especially during difficult years. ”
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
“Today, very few can afford to buy copper tools, so the craftsman has to make them of varying quality, so that the customer can replace them every once in a while depending on his financial ability. ”
Despite this, Habash stresses that there is a good buying movement for copper artifacts made in Aleppo, both in the domestic and foreign market, specifically to European countries after the increase in the number of Syrian and Arab communities.
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The current community of traditional glassblowers is markedly diminished, threatening the survival of centuries-old methods.

In Damascus, additional pressures include restoration and urban redevelopment projects that displace artisans, reduced demand linked to tourism decline, and the high cost of handmade goods in comparison to mass-produced alternatives .

UNESCO included Syrian traditional glassblowing on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in December 2023.

This designation underscores the craft’s status as an endangered living heritage and is intended to prompt efforts that ensure its survival.

Title:

Content: UNESCO considers Arab and international nominations for inscription on the Intangible Heritage List
UNESCO is considering new nominations from several countries to inscribe intangible cultural arts on the World Heritage List at the 17th meeting of the UNESCO Committee, which opened Monday in Rabat.
The list includes 56 files, four of which require urgent measures to protect them from extinction, such as the porcelain art of the Cham nationality in Vietnam, according to the organization.
It also includes several nominations from Arab countries such as the Algerian Rai music, the Tunisian Harissa hot sauce, the Omani dagger and the heritage sites of the “Journey of the Holy Family ” in Egypt.
Iran and Syria have submitted a joint dossier on “the art of making and playing sticks. ”
The files that are accepted will be announced from Tuesday to Saturday, at UNESCO ’ s Twitter account.
To avoid creating any confusion, the organization emphasizes that the goal is primarily to celebrate and preserve traditions, practices and skills from extinction.
She explained, for example, that the fact that a baguette is an intangible world heritage does not mean that the baguette itself is the object of preservation, “but rather the traditional skills and culture surrounding its manufacture. ”
The same is true of Cuban rum, which will be celebrated for its manufacture and not for the drink itself.
The list includes cultural elements from around the world such as Azerbaijani / Turkish tea traditions and techniques of distilling selvowitz from peach alcohol in Serbia.
UNESCO Deputy Director-General for Culture Ernesto Otton told AFP that “this is a living heritage represented by the communities concerned with its preservation, as opposed to the material heritage, ” and can be found in more than one country.
The organization has already registered cultural arts of this kind, such as the famous couscous dish in the Maghreb, after the joint nomination of Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia in 2020.
Morocco ’ s ambassador to UNESCO, Samir Dahar, who is chairing the session, said in a press statement on Monday that “we would have hoped to present a joint file on the art of Algerian opinion, which is also present in Morocco, ” had it not been for the diplomatic break between the two countries.
“We hope from God that we will present common files when conditions improve one day, ” he said, stressing that the philosophy of the UN Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Heritage is“ to bring people and cultures closer together. ”
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UNESCO’s rationale highlights the alarming decline in practicing craftspeople and the risk that, without intervention, the specialized knowledge and skills that characterize this tradition could disappear entirely.

The safeguarding call supports both direct assistance to surviving artisans and broader initiatives to document, celebrate, and transmit the craft’s legacy.

Preserving glassblowing is crucial, not just for the integrity of Syrian culture but also to maintain diversity in global heritage at risk from conflict, economic shifts, and globalization .

In sum, Syrian glassblowing stands as an ancient, yet endangered, cultural practice.

Its history is richly intertwined with Syrian identity, artistry, and communal continuity.

Today, it is at risk, with only a small number of remaining craftsmen and several dire challenges.

UNESCO’s urgent safeguarding status is a recognition of this fragility—as well as a call to preserve and reinvigorate an irreplaceable cultural heritage.


Syrian traditional glassblowing is an artisanal craft with origins tracing back over two thousand years to Phoenician times, with Damascus and Aleppo emerging as historic centers for the technique.

The invention and refinement of glassblowing technology in Syria enabled the production of blown glass vessels, revolutionizing glass manufacture and dissemination throughout the ancient world.

Syrian glassblowers became renowned for their creativity and skill, often using recycled glass heated to high temperatures, forming vessels by blowing and hand-shaping, then decorating items like bottles and vases with paints, oxides, and distinctive motifs—including those inspired by Islamic art.

These methods, passed down through generations, became emblematic of Syria’s cultural and artistic identity and contributed to Damascus’s reputation as a city of artisans .

Historically, marketplaces in Damascus, such as Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah, were famous for glass workshops that attracted admirers and buyers from around the world.

However, ongoing war, economic hardship, mass production, government redevelopment, and declining tourism have drastically reduced the number of traditional glassblowers.

Only a few masters remain, and younger generations are seldom entering the field, placing the craft in serious jeopardy .

UNESCO has recognized traditional glassblowing in Syria as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding, citing the dwindling number of practitioners, destruction of cultural sites, and the lack of apprenticeships as major threats to its survival.

Preservation efforts now focus on supporting artisans through exhibitions, training, and financial backing, aiming to keep this unique and historic craft alive for future generations .

Syrian traditional glassblowing is an artisanal craft with origins tracing back over two thousand years to Phoenician times, with Damascus and Aleppo emerging as historic centers for the technique.

Title:

Content: British Museum displays newly restored ancient glass vessels damaged in Beirut explosion

Discoveries made during the reconstruction process shed light on glass production in Lebanon 2,000 years ago

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Eight ancient glass vessels, damaged in the 2020 Beirut port explosion, have just gone on display at the British Museum in London as part of the exhibition Shattered Glass of Beirut.

The vessels, dating back to the Roman, Islamic and Byzantine periods, include bowls, a flask, beaker, jug and cup that were meticulously pieced back together as part of an ongoing collaborative restoration project between the British Museum and the Archaeological Museum of the American University of Beirut, which began last year.

On August 2020, a stockpile of ammonium nitrate exploded at the port of Beirut in Lebanon, killing at least 218 people, injuring 7,000, displacing 300,000 and causing $15 billion worth of damage.

The explosion shattered the AUB museum’s windows, doors and a case containing 74 glass vessels, shattering all but two pieces.

As part of an emergency recovery campaign, 18 vessels have been pieced back together. Conservators at the British Museum and the AUB museum hope that at least half of the remaining 46 objects can also be restored soon.

Over three months, experts from the Archaeological Museum and the British Museum laboriously sorted through fragments of the broken vessels and sensitively reassembled them.

Conservators at both institutions made the decision to reconstruct the vessels to be structurally sound but leave the visible damage caused by the explosion. Lighting will be used in the display to highlight the flaws and cracks in the glass, which have now become part of the history of the ancient objects.

“Reconstructing these fragmented glass vessels one tiny bit at a time, helped to reunite, to recognise their heritage value and to build a sense of community,” said Nadine Panayot, curator of AUB's Archaeological Museum.

“To see these shattered and delicate vessels reassembled not only sparked a healing process, but also inspired me to hope for a better future.”

Playing footage of the reconstruction process alongside recorded interviews with the conservators, Shattered Glass of Beirut will demonstrate the emotional impact of the explosion, and the emergency response to it.

“The footage of the Beirut explosion came as a huge shock, and I replayed the images repeatedly in disbelief,” said Zeina Klink-Hoppe, curator at the British Museum.

“Working with colleagues at the British Museum and at the Archaeological Museum in Beirut to piece together some of the artefacts that were shattered in the explosion has been an emotional journey, but also a meaningful small step in the preservation of Beirut’s heritage and pride and in the recovery of its citizens as they gradually rebuild their lives.”

During the reconstruction process, individual fragments underwent scientific analysis at the British Museum and University College London’s Institute of Archaeology. Non-destructive scanning techniques revealed new information about the provenance of glass production and the nature of the glass materials, along with interesting manufacturing details.

The vessels were made at sites along the eastern Mediterranean coast — six were produced using early glass-blowing technology, revealing experimentation in the function and form of the pieces. Two others date to the early Islamic and late Byzantine periods, and were possibly imported to Lebanon from present-day Syria or Egypt.

Some of the vessels revealed signs of recycling in their production, with craftspeople possibly using older glass to make new objects.

While experts have found it fascinating to identify the similarities between today's glass recycling techniques and those from 2,000 years ago, the discoveries have also shed light on the habits and practices of glass producers and consumers of Lebanon in the first century BC.

The development of glass-blowing technology in the Levant enabled the mass production of glass objects, revolutionising production of the material in the region.

The Shattered Glass of Beirut exhibition will be on show at The Asahi Shimbun Displays, British Museum, until October 23.

British Museum Egyptian hieroglyphs exhibition - in pictures

Updated: August 29, 2022, 3:05 PM
MORE FROM THE NATIONAL

The invention and refinement of glassblowing technology in Syria enabled the production of blown glass vessels, revolutionizing glass manufacture and dissemination throughout the ancient world.

Syrian glassblowers became renowned for their creativity and skill, often using recycled glass heated to high temperatures, forming vessels by blowing and hand-shaping, then decorating items like bottles and vases with paints, oxides, and distinctive motifs—including those inspired by Islamic art.

These methods, passed down through generations, became emblematic of Syria’s cultural and artistic identity and contributed to Damascus’s reputation as a city of artisans .

Title:

Content: Culture of Al-Baath Newspaper
Intangible heritage contributions to the protection of national identity
Amina Abbas
Heritage researchers and scholars agree that the Levant region is the most important heritage repository for humanity, as it has the oldest and richest heritage, and this heritage, both material and intangible, was coveted by the colonists since ancient times to destroy culture and identity, there is no identity without heritage based on it, and no heritage without identity, so Syria is keen through its institutions and bodies to emphasize the importance of preserving it.
Hence, the Quneitra branch of the Arab Writers Union, in celebration of World Heritage Day, decided to hold a seminar in the Levant Hall of the National Museum entitled “Contributions of Intangible Heritage to the Protection of National Identity ” with the participation of Dr. Amal Daccak, Professor Ruba Al-Diab, Qas Ghassan Houranieh and Dr. Rima Diab, Head of the Quneitra branch of the Arab Writers Union. It represents not only traditions and the past, but society in all its layers, and links the past to the present and the future, and it is a means for each people to prove its existence in the world and its authenticity, while stressing that the intangible heritage contributes to the preservation of identity and personality. Our identity and our heritage in the era of globalization, which is trying to eliminate our heritage and culture to be part of this lost world.
This was also confirmed by Dr. Dakak in her participation: “The Syrian tangible and intangible heritage is rich in its authenticity and civilization that dates back thousands of years, so it was and still is coveted by the colonists who stole many treasures to be in their world museums, and their war on Syria recently was aimed at destroying culture and identity and stealing antiquities. ” It is an integrated cultural unit formed by man throughout his long history with his creative thinking, observations, reflections and experiences accumulated generation after generation, and it is the social environment occupied by man and the components and pillars produced by previous generations until it reached subsequent generations and has the function of supervising the behavior of the individual and his sociocultural upbringing because it is a reflection of the social, intellectual and cultural life of peoples. As Daccak pointed out, the identity is the set of psychological, social and civilizational features of our nation throughout its long history, and the folklore constitutes the identity of a homeland rich in culture and civilization, calling in the era of globalization to seek to preserve our cultural identity and heritage, which represents this identity to face the challenges of globalization that invade us and want to eliminate our identity and culture. And our originality by drawing different borders in which national identity is absent and killing people in their country.
Because the Levantine rose and its associated practices and traditional crafts are important Syrian heritage elements inherited from generation after generation, and was included by UNESCO in 2019 in the list of intangible human heritage was talked about by Professor Al-Diab, who was crowned queen of roses and became Syrian ambassador to the world: “The Levantine rose was found painted on the wall of a palace on the island of Crete and was introduced to France during wars. As the poet Nizar Qabbani wrote about her,“ I am your Damascene rose, O people of the Levant, and whoever finds me should put me in the first vase, ” referring to the areas of its cultivation in Damascus countryside and Ghubartha. The project was launched by the Syrian Secretariat for Development in 2020 with the support of First Lady Asma al-Assad, affirming that Syrians consider the Levantine Rose an important part of their culture. The Ministry of Tourism has taken it as its slogan, in addition to many medical and cosmetic companies and building a path that is architecturally designed in the form of a Levantine Rose, explaining that the elements of the Syrian intangible cultural heritage include: Traditions and expressions “qaṣīda, mawwāl, ataba, dalaouna, zaghārīd, folk proverbs ” and the arts:“ Aleppo qadūd, coastal dabka, Circassian dance, Syriac church music ” Social practices “preparing and serving bitter coffee ” Knowledge and practices related to nature and the universe:“ cupping, traditional architecture ” Skills related to traditional crafts “wooden mosaic, brocade ” The crafts associated with the Levantine Rose ”, and that the elements of the intangible Syrian heritage included in the lists of human heritage are: falcon hunting, shadow fiction theater, Levantine Rose, Aleppo cod, glass blowing and making sticks and playing on them.
It is noteworthy that the seminar included the presentation of a film prepared by dr.
Amal Daccak spoke about heritage in our contemporary lives and its role in preserving our national identity, and the participation of the storyteller Ghassan Houranieh through a short story titled “The Levantine Rose ”.

Historically, marketplaces in Damascus, such as Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah, were famous for glass workshops that attracted admirers and buyers from around the world.

However, ongoing war, economic hardship, mass production, government redevelopment, and declining tourism have drastically reduced the number of traditional glassblowers.

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

Only a few masters remain, and younger generations are seldom entering the field, placing the craft in serious jeopardy .

Title:

Content: Culture of Al-Baath Newspaper
I'm sorry.
Fouad Tubal..
The integration of the arts unit in his exhibition “Block and Color ”
Shweikani's wife.
The polyester sculpture of the flute player in her blue dress, which did not hide the curves of her swaying body with the melodious flute tones that wrap around her slender waist, filled a side of the artist ’ s exhibition.
Fouad Tubal, professor of Fine Arts at the Faculty of Fine Arts, sculptor, painter, researcher, critic and oud player, entitled “Block and Color ”, which was held at the Arab Cultural Center – Abu Rumman – at the invitation of the Ministry of Culture – Directorate of Culture of Damascus.
Toubal is known for his passion for the world of sculpture and works in the middle of the places and squares of some countries. He found in the hardness of flint stone, basalt and marble types magic and turned the hardness into a soft paste, while wood was suitable for his poetic sense of sculpture, in addition to the techniques of photography, graphics and ceramics he employed with his works inspired by nature, life and heritage.
His creativity was not limited to sculpture and photography, the doctorate he received from the Petersburg Academy was the beginning of his diligent research in the art of destruction and the art of ancient civilizations and ancient Egyptian civilization in particular, and he wrote books and presented many researches.
Despite all his preoccupations, he was interested in the musical heritage and the history of plastic art and participated and supervised many activities and seminars in cultural centers.
Variety of methods
His exhibition “Block and Color ” was filled with different variations, techniques and styles, as the materials and sizes of the sculptures, paintings and flat figures varied, and it looked like a small museum that reduced the experience of dr.
The decades-long Fuad Tubal.
He began his talk to “Al-Baath ” from the title: I called the exhibition“ Block and Color ” because I worked in sculpture, photography, graphic and painting on glass and porcelain, and the color was present even with sculptures, because today we have reached a merger between arts and cultures, a unit of currents and a fusion unit of the body and the painting even the advertisement sometimes merges with the body. Expressive, impressionistic, symbolic and even realistic styles, between photography, sculpture, architectural psychology, wood, stone and polyester materials.
Then I stopped with him about the flat sculpture “burnt ”, which was inspired by the burning of a young woman after a fire in her house: I happened to find a piece of wood from the walnut tree and part of it was burned at the workshop of my friend Bashar al-Halabi, the chopper maker, and I could maneuver only about five centimeters, to carve the movement of the neck and turn and I completed the leg from the trunk of the dark color of the wood. Burn and add oil only.
Goddess Ishtar
I participated in a meeting in Damascus Castle and found a cypress tree with many branches and trunks. The small branches I cut seemed to be roses inside the dress. The female repeats my works such as the sculpture of the birth of Ishtar, the goddess of love and beauty, because it symbolizes everything, and the sculpture of the woman in front of the mirror. And the woman in the shower, which I carved out of a very hard stone, volunteered it to become a soft paste.
Painting on glass
In the field of photography, I carried out with the technique of drawing on glass an interesting architectural scene that I saw in Saudi Arabia of a mosque, and analyzed it and then turned it into lines and painted it directly with the juice in bright colors on a blue background.
As for the large mural of the painting of faces, I was inspired by a historical and heritage scene from the duality of life and death, the astronomical symbol and a number of different personalities, including the Mawlawi, Sheikh and al-Shaabi (Qabadi), and then I stopped with him about the old polyester sculpture of Mount Qasyoun and what it means to Damascus.
Big names.
As for the views of visitors at the exhibition, he said that it found positive echoes of different readings according to the culture and vision of the recipient, and the exhibition was visited by elite artists and large names in the Syrian visual scene.
Cultural Communication
The exhibition expressed my message of cultural communication from the cultural centers, especially as I presented many cultural activities and critical seminars. I welcomed the invitation of the Ministry of Culture, the Directorate of Culture of Damascus, as culture is spreading despite the difficult situation in Syria.
The sculpture's still shy?
At the end of the discussion with dr.
Fouad Tubal asked him about the sculptural scene that is still shy in front of the photography?
He replied: We have good sculptors who fled to photography because of the difficulty of performing the sculptural work, which requires the use of electric machines that produce disturbing sounds to the neighborhood, the sculpture needs a special place to perform, while the artist can paint at home.
And the demand of students in the Faculty of Fine Arts for the Department of Sculpture?
He noted that most students tend to decoration and graphics, and some students choose sculpture willingly, and others join the Department of Sculpture according to differentiation, however, the Department of Sculpture includes students who were able to deal with materials and tools skillfully, and noted the skill of female students sculptors and their tolerance of stone, rocket and dust, and the fact that the Faculty of Fine Arts in all its departments graduated students. Hren.

UNESCO has recognized traditional glassblowing in Syria as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding, citing the dwindling number of practitioners, destruction of cultural sites, and the lack of apprenticeships as major threats to its survival.

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

Preservation efforts now focus on supporting artisans through exhibitions, training, and financial backing, aiming to keep this unique and historic craft alive for future generations .

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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