Shaqqa

Shaqqa شقا
Al-Qaysariye residential palace in Shaqqa
Shaqqa Location in Syria
Coordinates: 32°53′50″N 36°41′53″E
Country	Syria
Governorate	As-Suwayda Governorate
District	Shahba District
Elevation	1,070 m (3,510 ft)
Population
• Total	8,000

Shaqqa or Shakka (Arabic: شقا‎) a Syrian town in As Suwayda Governorate in Southern Syria. It is located 7 kilometres east of Shahba. Nowadays it is a town with about 8,000 inhabitants, in the northern fringes of Jabal el Druze volcanic plateau at 1070 metres above sea level.

Shaqqa enjoyed some significance in Roman and Byzantine times in the province of Arabia, when it was known as Maximianopolis.

Archaeology

Shaqqa has many archaeological constructions from the Roman and early Christian era. The most notable are:

• The Al-Qaysariye, which was a residential palace for the Roman governors. It has a number of rooms and halls with floral decorations.

• A Roman basilica, later transformed into a church dedicated to Saint George. It is believed that this church is the oldest one dedicated to Martyr George for a Greek inscription naming the building for the "holy and triumphant" martyr George. It is dated, according to the Christian calendar, either A.D. 368 or 197.

• A Kalybe, an old architectural style of temples typical for the Roman era southern Syria.