Al Mina
Al Mina is an ancient site located in present-day northern Syria, historically significant as a commercial port at the mouth of the river Orontes. It was established around 825-800 BC as a major trading post, primarily utilized by seamen and merchants from Euboean cities such as Chalcis and Eretria. This bustling emporion facilitated the exchange of valuable goods, including gold and ivory, between the Near East and other Mediterranean regions, particularly through connections with Greece and Etruscan territories. The site experienced periods of destruction and rebuilding, notably being destroyed around 700 BC during a revolt against Assyrian rule but later revitalized with a stronger Greek presence. Excavations have uncovered structures such as mud-brick warehouses and workshops, indicating its role as a vibrant center of trade and commerce. Despite its eventual decline with the rise of Seleucia in Pieria, Al Mina remains a crucial point of interest for understanding ancient trade networks and cultural interactions in the region.
Subject Terms
Al Mina
(ancient name unknown)
A commercial port in northern Syria (now the Turkish province of Hatay), at the mouth of the river Orontes (Nahr el-Asi). There are traces of Bronze Age (Mycenaean) occupation and commerce at a nearby hill site (Sabouni), but the main settlement and trading post (emporion) was established in c 825–800 BC. Cypriots and Phoenicians played a part, but the principal role was enacted by seamen and businessmen from Chalcis and Eretria in Euboea, who acquired gold and ivory, etc. in the near east and, from the eighth century onward, dispatched these objects from Al Mina (via the Eretrian colony of Corcyra [Corfu]) to other Euboean trading stations at Pithecusae (Ischia) and Cumae (Cuma) beside the Gulf of Cumae (Bay of Naples) in Campania (southwest Italy), where they were exchanged with the Etruscans for copper and iron. Other Greek coastal settlements in north Syria include Posidium (Ras-el-Bassit) and Tell Sukas (Paltus).
Al Mina seems to have been destroyed in c 700, in the course of a Cilician revolt against Assyrian domination, but was rebuilt with a stronger Greek element than before, demonstrated by the presence of Corinthian ware (perhaps brought partly by Aeginetans) and by pottery from various eastern Greek centers as well. During the later seventh century there was further rebuilding, followed by a period of inactivity, perhaps resulting from Babylonian conquest. From c 520, however, under Persian rule, a new town was built, and imports from Greece, especially Athens, became increasingly extensive, until Al Mina was eclipsed by the founding of Seleucia in Pieria by Seleucus I Nicator (301). Excavations at Al Mina have revealed a series of single-storeyed warehouses constructed of mud brick on stone foundations around courtyards, and adjoined by shops and workshops.