An ancient oasis and caravan city, Palmyra lies in the middle of the Syrian Desert, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980. Sadly, over the last decade most of the news from the site has concerned heart-breaking loss, of both people and archaeology, during the devastating civil war in Syria.

Thousands of ancient inhabitants’ portraits once graced lavish family tombs in cemeteries just beyond the desert city. On the latest episode of The PastCast, Professor Rubina Raja of Aarhus University in Denmark discusses what recent research into these funerary portraits tell us about ancient life in Palmyra.

Raja is the co-author of an article on the subject in the latest issue of Current World Archaeology magazine, which is also available in full on The Past website. On this episode she spoke with regular PastCast presenter, Calum Henderson. Calum also caught up with Current World Archaeology editor Matt Symonds to find out what else is in the latest issue.

The Past brings together the most exciting stories and the very best writing from the realms of history, archaeology, heritage, and the ancient world. You can subscribe to The Past today for just £7.99. If you enjoyed this podcast, please consider liking it, subscribing, and sharing it around.