Ricerc@Sapienza

The Italian Archaeological Expedition to Ebla has always paid attention to the preservation of the site. When the Royal Palace G was brought to light, the expedition started considering the problem of its preservation and/or restoration in the interest of the Syrian Authorities of the site and for the general public’s curiosity. In the late 1990s, thanks to an important grant from the European Community, a plan for the preservation of all the monuments of the site started. Another aspect of the Italian mission activities concerns a plan for the rehabilitation of the region where the tell sits, including three villages – Mardikh itself, Anqarati, and Mar Dibsi – aiming at exploiting the resources of the archaeological site, in order to revitalise the local economy. The last phase of the preservation of Tell Mardikh occurred in the most recent years of work of the Italian Expedition: the refurbishing of the Idlib Museum thanks to an important grant by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.