valley of tombs

the ruins at palmyra spread across to the valley of tombs on the horizon to the right.


the valley is dotted with funerary towers, tall square-based structures built from blocks of stone, usually with four or five levels.




some are in remarkably good condition, others crumbling away in the desert sand.


a tomb with a view


and another


the sarcophagi were slotted into vertical niches and sealed with stone slabs carved with effigies of the deceased. we saw quite a few of these in the museum, with lovely sculptures of faces, some showing figures with clothing and jewellery carved in fine detail.