Before the end of World War I, Syria had no museums. The museum of Damascus was established in 1919, one year before the establishment of the French mandate, and is thus oldest cultural heritage institution in Syria. It was first located in al-Madrasa al-Adiliyeh, an historical building in the old city dating to the 12th/13th centuries. A new building was constructed between 1936 and 1979, and it became what is today the National Museum of Syria. Since these years, the collections have been enriched by many new finds from numerous excavations. The objects are divided chronologically: prehistory, ancient Orient, Greek, Roman Byzantine, Islamic antiquities, and modern art.
Dr. Imad Samir, Damascus University