Destroyed by Isis, Palmyra's Arch of Triumph rises again - in London

Replica of Palmyra's archaeological 'jewel' will tour the world before going to Syria

A 1,800-year-old triumphal arch destroyed by Isis in the Syrian city of Palmyra last year is rising again in London.

The recreation of Palmyra’s Arch of Triumph will stand for four days in Trafalgar Square after being made by carving stone to the exact shape of the original, working from a database of 3D photographs collected by the Institute of Digital Archaeology (IDA).

After its stay in London – which has been timed to coincide with World Heritage Week - the recreated arch will be taken around the world, visiting New York’s Times Square and Dubai, before being taken to Syria.

Maamoun Abdulkarim, Syria’s director-general of antiquities and museums, who was in London to watch the £100,000, 12-ton, scale model being installed, said: “It is a message of raising awareness in the world. We have common heritage. Our heritage is universal - it is not just for Syrian people."

The world was appalled in May last year when Isis captured Palmyra and set about using dynamite, bulldozers and pickaxes to destroy monuments at the Unesco World Heritage site.

At least 280 people were executed during the occupation, which only ended in March. Among them was Khaled al-Asaad, an 82-year-old archaeologist who had devoted his life to Palmyra. He was reportedly tortured by Isis for a month and then beheaded, having refused to reveal where some of the ancient city’s most valuable artefacts had been hidden.

In October Isis destroyed the 20ft Arch of Triumph, which had been described as the ‘jewel in the collection’ at the Palmyra site.

Standing at the head of a grand colonnade leading to Palmyra’s temple to the Mesopotamian god Bel, the arch had been built between 193 and 211 AD, in honour of the Roman emperor Septimius Severus, who had visited the city which at the time had been one of Rome’s wealthiest colonies.

The arch’s destruction was described by Mr Abdulkarim as “a crime in every sense of the word.”

The creation of the 5.5m (18ft) high scale model began when Roger Michel, the IDA’s executive director realised the Institute’s Million Images Database of 3D photographs taken by volunteers could be used to provide a blueprint for a replica arch.

"It is extraordinary to have a vision about something and see it come together in such a palpable way," Mr Michel told the BBC.

He explained he wanted London to be the first stop on the arch’s itinerary because the city had itself been reconstructed after the Blitz of the Second World War.

He hoped, he said, that "anybody who appreciates free speech" would understand the importance of recreating the Arch. Recognising the economic importance to Syria of Palmyra, a site which used to be visited by 150,000 tourists a year, Mr Michel added: "It doesn't mean because you mourn the loss of life that you should leave your country in ruins. No one can bring back the dead, but you can improve the lives of the living."

Mr Abdulkarim, who visited Palmyra a week after its liberation from Isis, admitted: “We can never have the same image as before Isis. "We are trying to be realistic.

"But what we want to do is respect the scientific method and the identity of Palmyra as a historic site."