Drafting and Designing. Roman Architectural Drawings and their Meaning for the Construction of Heliopolis/Baalbek, Lebanon

For the monumental Roman temples of Baalbek, although preserved exceptionally well, many questions about the construction methods remain unanswered. With the discovery of numerous architectural drawings etched into stone surfaces in the course of the excavation works of the 1940s until 1975, and now recently in the last years, some of these questions can be answered. For the first time, these scarcely published drawings are compiled and identified entirely now.

A recently discovered and documented reduced scale partial floor plan drawing suggests new theories about the construction of the hexagonal forecourt to the Jupiter sanctuary. This case shows the degree of abstraction in designing as a first theoretical step before practical construction starts. Details of this outstanding etching show an alternative design, and appear in an unsuitable scale for execution. On the other hand, several discovered full scale drawings of construction details explain the practical construction process used to dimension and assemble the giant ashlars used for the construction of the Baalbek temples.

In combination with the rooms and wall surfaces that were used to etch the lines into, the drawings help to progress our understanding of the former appearance as well as the construction process of Baalbeks temples substantially.