Ugarit
The mound 11 kilometres north of Latakia where one of the earliest alphabets was found. The Bronze Age palace, how long a visit takes, and when to go.
- Entry
- Varies — confirm at the gate
- Duration
- 90 minutes
- Best time
- Morning; there is no shade on the mound
- Period
- Bronze Age
- Address
- Ras Shamra, 11 km north of Latakia
A mound and an idea. Between the 15th and 13th centuries BC Ugarit was one of the busiest ports of the eastern Mediterranean, and the clay tablets found here in 1929 carried a writing system of about thirty cuneiform signs. One of the earliest known alphabets came out of this hill.
Getting there
11 kilometres north of Latakia, at the place called Ras Shamra. Twenty minutes by car from the city, a short turn inland off the coast road.
What to see
The foundations of the royal palace are standing and the plan reads on the ground: close to ninety rooms, courtyards, archive chambers. Most of the tablets went to museums after they were found, but the scale of the palace is still here.
Do not miss
The archive rooms on the north-west side of the palace. That is where the tablets came from, and most visitors walk straight to the main courtyard and past them.
Tips
- No shade: a hat and water
- The archive rooms are north-west of the palace and are what most visitors skip
- The stone ground is uneven; solid soles help