Baalbeck is a beautiful ancient town in the Bequaa Valley of Lebanon. This lies to the east of the River Litani. Also called Heliopolis when the Romans ruled, this was one of the largest sanctuaries in the kingdom them. It has some of the best ruins of the Roman era in Lebanon. There has been considerable local influence in lying out and planning the temples which is implicitly evident in these ancient megaliths and mysteries.
Baalbeck is today the venue for the annual Baalbeck International festival. It lies around 85 km to the northeast of Beirut. With a moderate population, comprising mainly of Shia Muslims it is truly an ancient site to cherish.
Archaeological finds have been the mainstay of the region when these structures were discovered in deep trenches at the boundary of the Jupiter temple during the time there were cleaning operations here. These finds go back to the time of Neolithic and Iron Age. They also have pottery, a teapot spout that goes back to the time of the Bronze Age. Earlier excavations show that there were three skeletons with an occasional Persian pottery coming up. This goes back to 550 BC. The colossal nature of the structures here along with the Imperial Roman architecture makes this a fascination for all. Today Baalbeck is a World Heritage Site and it was announced thus in 1984.
There was a quarry in this ancient site at a higher level than the main temple. There were big stones that had to be lifted. But there was no such lifting done. There was a brief study in 1977 to remove these blocks. Then they were removed with pulley blocks and capstans. This is a very tedious process but it was done for the benefit of tourists who see the Baalbeck that stands tall today.