3D VISUALIZATION AND PHOTO-REALISTIC RECONSTRUCTION OF THE GREAT TEMPLE OF BEL

Abstract. The Great Temple of Bel in Palmyra was a unique edifice which had blended the well established lines of Greco-Roman architecture with the art and taste of the Orient. With the gilded bronze capitals of its 41 Corinthian columns it was the product of enormous effort and budget. It was the gem of a remarkable epoch of wealthy Palmyra and mighty Roma. With its splendidly decorated adyta ceilings it became a source of inspiration and imagination for Western architecture and decorative arts. While continuing to captivate the World, it was leveled and vanished as a grim result of conflict based vandalism. The aim of this work is to piece together this, the most eloquent and stupendous monument of the Roman East, from its ruins and reconstruct it as it was once extant. Its loss is irreplacable, but its photo-realistic reconstruction can offer some solace by waking the memories of the great temple as in the past. The lost reality of the Great Temple of Bel is revived here by digitally constructing its “ghost images".