It is not just a building, or a compilation of stones and cracked pieces, it is an important and historical archaeological site in frequent and multilateral danger. Despite the threats it faces, the site is witness to a community devoted to protecting their heritage time after time again. The museum is located in the town of Qalaat al-Madiq, in the northwestern part of Hama governorate. It is around 65 km away from the governorate center. It contains many artifacts and mosaic paintings discovered in Apamea and its vicinity, dating back to different eras, most notably the Roman and Hellenistic.

After the beginning of the conflict in Syria and its intensification in mid 2012, many specialists and volunteers initiated protection works to help maintain the museum and several other buildings throughout the region. Such places included the Museum of Maarrat al-Numan and other archaeological sites like al-Bara and Sergila. The voluntary initiative to maintain and oversee these locations was due to the importance of the collections, work that required skills only specialists in the field could provide. At the beginning of May 2019, military clashes escalated in the northern Hama countryside, prompting me to inquire about the situation of Apamea Museum due to its proximity to the fighting. The work of the volunteers was woven into the stones and walls of the museum in which they worked, each restoration or repair leaving a new mark on the long history of the structure. Over the past few years, It was an honor to achieve some modest works for the museum as part of archeological protection initiative. The work was about providing basic protection of the artifacts, in addition to restoration and assessment of damage to the building and its contents. Throughout the work, I have seen and closely examined the great efforts made by local organizations. They are aware of these sites and the important need to protect them.

In the beginning of the uprising in Syria, looting and illegal excavations became common due to the lack of security. Nevertheless, some local and international associations concerned with the preservation of heritage  have been able to remedy some of the damage and provide adequate protection for those archaeological sites, despite the risks in many locations. Unfortunately, the museum recently witnessed violent clashes between the regime and the opposition due to its location on the frontline. Currently the museum is under the regime’s control.

The museum building dates back to the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, in the second half of the 16th century. It functioned as a caravanserai, a building constructed for the purpose of hosting convoys and pilgrims heading to Mecca. The caravanserai is a square-shaped building with a length of approximately 83 meters, a tiled stone floor with a fountain in the middle. The museum was renovated in 1982 by the General Directorate of Antiquities and Museums and was opened as a museum of mosaics discovered in Apamia and neighboring sites.

The museum was damaged in structure and content. Each party blames the other for the destruction and looting that happened to the museum and the archaeological site. In 2012, French TV channel France 24 published a report on archaeological sites and the situation of those in Syria. The reports focused on the condition of the Apamea site, its museum, and looting and vandalism that affected them. According to a report by Shatha al-Madad in Damas Post, this was not the first time museums were attacked in Hama without the government intervening. Apamea museum in Hama governorate was robbed by unknown persons, described by the General Directorate of Antiquities as armed gangs, who stole high value paintings from it.

Recently, Dr. Mahmoud Hammoud, Director of Antiquities and Museums, told SANA that the museum had been subjected to acts of looting and destruction of many of its contents by armed gangs. The preliminary survey of the directorate revealed that many paintings and archaeological pieces had been either stolen or destroyed. The building itself had suffered damage to its columns and walls, indicating illegal excavations. Naif al-Qadour, an archeologist, described in an article on Syrian Portal published in early May 2019 that regime forces stationed at the top of the al-Madeeq Castle targeted the museum with various weapons several times, causing various damages. Over the past few years, Syrian Heritage Protection Center (a local Syrian organization dedicated to the protection of antiquities and heritage) has made great efforts through a group of Syrian archaeologists and academics to conserve many archaeological sites and their contents in several areas of Syria, such as the Ma’arat al-Nu’man Museum and the Apamea Museum.

I contacted Abdulrahman al-Yahya, the director of the Maarat al-Numan Museum and Center of Syrian Cultural Heritage Protection, to inquire about the status of the museum until it fell under regime control. He explained that during the last four years the organization has been able to prepare a detailed study of the maintenance and structural repair needed to reverse the damage that had occurred as a result of military action. The work included the protection of the museum’s antiquities, the protection of the mosaics and the preservation of the mosaic paintings, which were wrapped in cloth and then with sandbags, and likewise surrounding the pieces, such as sarcophagus and pottery, completely with bags of sand. They also placed small artifacts in a safe place and stored them according to technical standards. The organization continued to work in the museum until the Syrian regime forces captured the region after the last military operation.

The museum’s condition is still unknown. There are no signs of its current status after the conflict escalation in Idlib and northern Hama’s countryside. However, the only known thing is the displacement and exclusion of locals and all those who made an effort during the war to save as much as possible from the museum and its artifacts. The past days have shown continued escalation and increased dangers in the monuments in areas of conflict in Syria. ​​Idlib and its surrounding areas remain the most dangerous areas to humans and stone. The relevant international organizations must intervene to protect these ruins from damage and theft, and to preserve the remains of the Apamea museum and the rest of archaeological sites in various locations of Syria. This heritage is not owned by a government or people, it belongs to everyone, Syrians or others. The priority now for the international community with all its players is to exert  pressure to stop attacks on the remaining areas of conflict in Syria.