Anfeh
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2009) |
Enfeh | |
|---|---|
City | |
| File:Enfeh3.jpg | |
| Country |  Lebanon |
| Governorate | North Governorate |
| District | Koura District |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Dialing code | +961 |
Enfeh is a fishing town on the coast of North Lebanon, in El-Koura district (capital Amioun)
Enfeh (or Anfeh) is built around the ruins of several short-lived cities going back to the pre-Phoenician period. Natural dwelling caves abound on the surrounding hill of Al-Gheer; the original city lies on a small near-island about half a kilometer into the sea. Its outstanding feature is that it is the only town throughout the eastern coast of the Mediterranean to be carved out of its rocky surroundings.
Some of the carvings go all the way back to the Phoenician period, and possibly earlier, as witness to the fact that the name of Enfeh appears in the Tell-Amarna tablets of ancient Egypt; (see letter no. 2 by Yapa-Hadda). The remains of subsequent settlements include dwelling caves, places of worship, cisterns, water tanks and wine presses, as well as steps and roads all carved in the rock. One ancient quarry, known as the Great Trench, was used by the Phoenicians as a dry dock; it served for defensive purposes during the Crusader period.
Enfeh harbors a number of ancient churches, the oldest of which contains remnants of its original Byzantine frescoes; it is rather poetically called 'Saydet el Reeh," or Our Lady of the Wind. Also in Enfeh is Lebanon's sole surviving Romanesque Church which was built by the Crusaders. Large numbers of presses and jars of a wide range of styles and origins, made of clay, have been found both inland and under water and continue to be discovered to this day. According to archeologists, they are evidence of Enfeh's once pre-eminent manufacturing and commercial position.
Along the length of the bay, the salt marshes add a typically picturesque note to the landscape, especially in places with the traditional wind wheel which pumps seawater better than the noisy and polluting diesel engine! The production of sea salt is a staple of the local economy. "White gold", as it is called, provides for an inexhaustible natural resource which can thus be extracted without endangering the environment
Threats to Enfeh's Archaeology
The ancient archaeological site was put in danger by a proposed expansion to the adjacent port that would have compromised its historical integrity. Even after the project was sidelined, development pressures from nearby communities continue to threaten the long-term preservation of the site.[1]
See also
- Metropolitan Elias Audeh
- El-koura