Editing Sidon (section)

=== Excavation history ===
The area around Sidon contains a number of important necropoli (below in order of age, and noting their principal excavators):<ref>Nina Jidéjian, [http://www.ahlebanon.com/images/PDF/Issue%2010%20-%20The%20Millenium%20Edition/Greater%20Sidon%20and%20its%20Cities%20Of%20The%20Dead%20-%20Nina%20Jidejian.pdf "Greater Sidon and its 'Cities of the Dead{{'"}}], ''National Museum News'', page 24. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125093459/http://www.ahlebanon.com/images/PDF/Issue%2010%20-%20The%20Millenium%20Edition/Greater%20Sidon%20and%20its%20Cities%20Of%20The%20Dead%20-%20Nina%20Jidejian.pdf |date=25 January 2021 }}.</ref>
* Dakerman (Roger Saidah, 1968–1969)
* Tambourit (Saidah, 1977)
* Magharet Abloun ([[Aimé Péretié]], 1855; [[Ernest Renan]], 1864; [[Georges Contenau]], 1920)
* Ayaa (William King Eddy, 1887; [[Osman Hamdi Bey]], 1892; Contenau, 1920)
* [[Ain al-Hilweh]] ([[Charles Cutler Torrey]], 1919–1920)
* El-Merah (Contenau, 1920)
* Qrayé (Contenau, 1920)
* Almoun, (Conenau, 1924)
* El-Harah ([[Theodore Makridi]], 1904; Contenau, 1924)
* Magharet Abloun, Greco-Roman part (Renan, 1864; Contenau, 1914–1924)
* Helalié/Baramié/Mar Elias ([[William John Bankes]], 1816; Renan 1864; Contenau, 1914; M. Meurdrac & L. Albanèse, 1938–1939)

In indication of the high-profile of the old city of Sidon in archaeological expeditions, and mainly in the 19th century, in October 1860 the famous French scholar [[Ernest Renan]] was entrusted with an archaeological mission to Lebanon, which included the search for the antique parts of Sidon. The Phoenician inscriptions that he discovered, and his field data, were eventually published in his notebook the: ''Mission de Phénicie'' (1864–1874; ''Phoenician Expedition'').

The [[Saint Louis Castle|St. Louis castle]] grounds were excavated in 1914–1920 by a French team.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sidon Excavation {{!}} Sidon Excavation |url=https://www.sidonexcavation.com/ |access-date=2024-05-28 |language=en}}</ref> Then eastwards a new site was also excavated by another generation of French expeditions in the 1960s. This same site received renewed attention in 1998 when the [[Directorate General of Antiquities]] in Lebanon authorized the [[British Museum]] to begin excavations on this area of land that was specifically demarcated for archaeological research. This has resulted in published papers, with a special focus on studying ceramics.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sidonexcavation.org/ht_d_pre/ht_d_pre1.html |title=Previous Excavation |publisher=SidonExcavation |access-date=26 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020419074213/http://www.sidonexcavation.org/ht_d_pre/ht_d_pre1.html |archive-date=19 April 2002}}</ref>

The archaeological fieldwork was not fully undertaken since the independence of the Lebanon. The main finds are displayed in the [[National Museum of Beirut|National Museum in Beirut]]. The fieldwork was also interrupted during the long civil war period, and it is now resumed but at a timid and slow scale, and not involving major international expeditions or expertise. Perhaps this is also indicative of the general lack in cultural interests among the authorities of this city, and almost of the non-existence of notable intellectual activities in its modern life. There are signs that the locals are beginning to recognize the value of the medieval quarters, but this remains linked to minor individual initiatives and not a coordinated collective effort to rehabilitate it like it has been the case with [[Byblos]], even though the old district of Sidon contains a great wealth in old and ancient architecture.

During the [[2024 Israeli invasion of Lebanon]], [[UNESCO]] gave enhanced protection to 34 cultural sites in Lebanon including the archaeological sites at Sidon to safeguard them from [[Destruction of cultural heritage during the Israeli invasion of Lebanon|damage]].<ref>{{Cite news |title=Cultural property under enhanced protection Lebanon |url=https://www.unesco.org/en/culture/cultural-property-under-enhanced-protection-lebanon |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231104017/https://www.unesco.org/en/culture/cultural-property-under-enhanced-protection-lebanon |archive-date=31 December 2024 |access-date=2025-01-01 |language=en |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Lebanon: 34 cultural properties placed under enhanced protection |url=https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/lebanon-34-cultural-properties-placed-under-enhanced-protection |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241227163437/https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/lebanon-34-cultural-properties-placed-under-enhanced-protection |archive-date=27 December 2024 |access-date=2025-01-01 |language=en |url-status=live }}</ref>