Replica of Palmyra’s arch to be unveiled for G7 in Florence

FLORENCE, ITALY – A recreation of Palmyra’s Arch of Triumph will be unveiled in Florence for the G7 of the culture. The meeting will be held in Florence, on March 30 and 31, 2017.

The original Roman arch was destroyed two years ago by the Islamic State militants in the Middle East. It has become the symbol of civilization against the barbarity of ISIS.

In March 2016, director of antiquities Maamoun Abdelkarim stated that the Monumental Arch, along with the Temples of Bel and Baalshamin, will be rebuilt using existing remains, a process called anastylosis. According to a Syrian official, reconstructing the arch would not be difficult since many of its stones still survive.

A team of archeologists at Oxford University’s Institute for Digital archeology (IDA) set about recreating it. The recreated Palmyra’s arch is made of Egyptian marble and was built using 3D printing technology, based on photographs of the original arch.

The monumental Palmyra’s arch, also called the Arch of Triumph  or the Arch of Septimius Severus, was a Roman ornamental archway in Palmyra, Syria. It was built in the 3rd century during the reign of emperor Septimius Severus.

Its ruins later became one of the main attractions of Palmyra, until it was destroyed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in October 2015. Most of its stonework still survives and there are plans to rebuild it.

First put on display in Trafalgar square (London), the park of City Hall in New York and Dubai, the 11-tonne arch replica will be placed in piazza Signoria, the heart of the city of Florence, symbol of the Renaissance.

The occasion will be the summit of all ministers of culture of the G7, set in the Tuscan capital. The arch will ne not roped off, allowing visitors to walk under it and touch it.