Seleucia ad Belum

Template:Short description Seleucia (Template:Langx, Seleukeia), distinguished as Seleucia-near-BelusTemplate:Sfnp (Template:Langx, Seleúkeia pròs Bḗlōi, or , pròs tôi Bḗlōi;Template:Sfnp Template:Langx or Template:Sfnp) and later known as Seleucobelus (, Seleukóbēlos)Template:Sfnp or Seleucopolis,Template:Sfnp was an ancient Greek and Roman city on the Orontes River. Its location remains uncertain.

Name

The name of the settlement honored Seleucus I Nicator,Template:Sfnp one of the Diadochi successors to the empire of Alexander the Great, although it may have been a foundation by his son and successor Antiochus.Template:Sfnp It was distinguished from other cities named Seleucia by reference to "Belus" or "the Belus", a toponym which was variously applied to Syria's Limestone Massif, which lies to the city's north,Template:Sfnp and to various rivers in Syria.Template:Sfnp In this case, it appears that the name Belus was a title of the Orontes.Template:Sfnp

History

The city was a Hellenistic foundation of the Seleucid Empire.Template:Sfnp It sat on the Orontes'sTemplate:Sfnp west bank near its headwaters, positioning it to function as a depot for overland trade in the area. During the heyday of the Seleucid Empire, it formed a suburb of the nearby and larger settlement ApameaTemplate:Sfnp (originally Pella),Template:Sfnp which Ptolemy placed ½° to its east. The entire area held over half a million people.

After the 2nd century, it typically appeared under the name Seleucobelus.Template:Sfnp

The precise location of the settlement remains uncertain,Template:Sfnp with various scholars placing it near Al-Suqaylabiyah,Template:Sfnp Jisr al-Shughur or Bara.Template:Sfnp

See also

• Other Seleucias
• Chalcis ad Belum, another Syrian city on a different river Belus

References

Bibliography

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