Kafr Latah, a Medieval Village of Stone Tombs near Ariha

A village just south-east of Ariha, on the southern edge of a narrow valley, set against the slope of Jabal al-Arbain. Medieval sources mention it often. The Crusaders took it in 1110, and in the 13th century Yaqut al-Hamawi described it as a town with gardens and a Friday mosque. Early in the 19th century the Swiss traveller Johann Ludwig Burckhardt noted the rocky ground around it for its stone sarcophagi. The reason to come is not one monument but the houses built of old stone and the burial grounds on either side of the village.

Where Kafr Latah is

Right beside Ariha, south of Idlib. The old name of Jabal al-Arbain is Jabal Bani Ulaym; the village sits at its foot, on a slope facing the valley. It fits into the same day as Ariha.

What happened here in the Middle Ages

In 1110 the Crusader commander Tancred took the town from the Ismailis. The Aleppan historian Ibn al-Adim mentions a strong castle called Kafr Latha on the nearby mountain: it passed to the Franks, and Nur al-Din Zangi took it back and had it pulled down. Where the castle stood is not known today.

In the 1220s Yaqut al-Hamawi described Kafr Latah as a town with gardens, running water and a Friday mosque, and recorded that its people were Ismailis.

What Burckhardt saw

Early in the 19th century Burckhardt counted 40-50 houses. They were built from squared stones taken from older buildings, and the village belonged to the Ibn Ziyaf family of Aleppo. What held his attention was the rocky ground around it: a great many stone sarcophagi and tombs.

Records from the early 20th century show burial grounds east and west of the village, and in the valley to the north a domed monument on four columns built over a spring.

What there is to see today

Arabic sources say the village has a mosque five centuries old. We could not verify whether the sarcophagi, the burial grounds or the domed monument at the spring are still standing; ask in the village.

How long it takes

An hour for the village and the burial grounds around it.

Before you go

In 2013 the village was on the front line near the M4 highway. Unexploded ordnance remains a risk across Idlib governorate: stay on paths, and do not walk into fields or the rocky burial grounds without someone local. Roads and checkpoints change; check the current situation before you set out.

Don’t miss

The track down into the valley to the north. If the domed monument over the spring still stands, it is the least known structure in the village.