Beit Mery

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title: "Beit Mery" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["populated-places-in-matn-district", "maronite-christian-communities-in-lebanon", "eastern-orthodox-christian-communities-in-lebanon", "melkite-christian-communities-in-lebanon", "heavy-neolithic-sites", "neolithic-settlements", "archaeological-sites-in-lebanon", "society-of-lebanon", "coloniae-(roman)", "tourist-attractions-in-lebanon"] topic_path: "philosophy" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beit_Mery" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
name	Beit Mery
native_name	بيت مري
native_name_lang	ara
settlement_type	City
image_skyline	BeitMery.jpg
image_caption	View over the hill
pushpin_map	Lebanon
pushpin_map_alt	Map showing the location of Beit Mery within Lebanon
pushpin_map_caption	Location within Lebanon
coordinates
subdivision_type	Country
subdivision_name	Lebanon
subdivision_type1	Governorate
subdivision_name1	Mount Lebanon Governorate
subdivision_type2	District
subdivision_name2	Matn District
established_title
elevation_m	800
timezone1	EET
utc_offset1	+2
timezone1_DST	EEST
utc_offset1_DST	+3
postal_code_type	Postal code
area_code_type	Dialing code
area_code	+961-4-
::

| name = Beit Mery | native_name = بيت مري | native_name_lang = ara | settlement_type = City

| image_skyline = BeitMery.jpg | image_alt = | image_caption = View over the hill

| pushpin_map = Lebanon | pushpin_label_position = | pushpin_map_alt = Map showing the location of Beit Mery within Lebanon | pushpin_map_caption = Location within Lebanon

| coordinates = | coordinates_footnotes =

| established_title = | established_date = | founder =

| leader_party = | leader_title = | leader_name =

Beit Mery ( ; also Beit Mer, Beir Meri) is a Lebanese town overlooking the capital Beirut. The town has been a summer mountain resort since the times of the Phoenicians and later the Romans.

The name derives from Aramaic and means "The house of my Lord". On one of the three hills of Beit Mery (Southern end of town) along the Lebanon Western mountain range are the ruins of the old Phoenician and Roman temples that were erected in the same general area in what is now known as Deir El-Qala'a (دير القلعة).

At present, a Christian church and monastery sit on top of parts of the old Roman temple. Les Scouts Du Liban Groupe Sainte Marie Beit Mery is one of the biggest movement in town and it is located in College des Freres since 1969. Beit Mery is home to a Lebanese Red Cross First Aid Center.

Culture

The town is the site of the annual Al Bustan festival, held in the theatre of the Al Bustan Hotel.

Demography

The residents of Beit Mery are mainly Christian, (predominantly Maronite Catholic, with a significant minority of Greek Orthodox, Greek Catholic and Armenian Orthodox), and Druze.

Geography

Beit Mery occupies a hill, 700 – above sea level, which gives the town views of the Beirut peninsula and part of Lebanon's Mediterranean coast. It has an area of 5.48 km2. Since 2000 Beit Mery started to be a suburban town and is 16 km away from Beirut.

History

Beit Mery's history dates back to ancient times. The town is home to the ruins of a Roman temple, indicating its importance during the Roman Empire. This temple, dedicated to the god Mercury, was part of a larger network of Roman religious sites throughout the region. The presence of such a structure suggests that Beit Mery was a notable settlement during Roman times. The Roman rulers of Lebanon made Beit Mery their summer resort due to its high location and summer weather.

Archaeology

There are two prehistoric archaeological sites in Beit Mery where flint industries have been found by Jesuit archaeologists:

Beit Mery I is on the right bank of the Beirut River, south southwest of the town at an altitude of approximately 125 m above sea level. It was found by Jesuit Father Dillenseger who determined it to be an Acheulean site. The material was donated to the Saint Joseph University by the French Faculty of Medicine.
Beit Mery II is east of the road from Beit Mery to Deir el Qala'a on a sloping plateau facing the junction of the Nahr Meten and Nahr Jamani. It was found by M. Gautier who recovered Heavy Neolithic flint tools from the surface. V. Hankey also recovered some retouched blades from this area.

But what makes Beit Mery notable, including for tourism, are the scattered ruins of the Roman era, that lasted five centuries plus the two of the Byzantine era.

The Monastery of Saint John the Baptist (Deir El Kalaa), built by Maronite monks in the 18th century, includes Roman ruins dating back to the first century AD. "The site has the remains of a Byzantine church, a Roman bathhouse, the remains of a Roman villa and a street that would have been the local market of the town, showing the remains of shops and houses".

Tourism

The town has ancient Roman and Byzantine ruins as well as the historic Maronite Monastery of Saint John the Baptist, (Deir el Kalaa) which was built in 1750. The town, which is only 16 km from Beirut, continues to be a summer resort in Lebanon with a landmark hotel, the Al Bustan. Pine forests surround the town. Restaurants with views of the valleys and the sea make Beit Mery a favorite summer spot.

Climate

| Jan mean C = 9.2 | Feb mean C = 9.7 | Mar mean C = 11.6 | Apr mean C = 15.3 | May mean C = 18.9 | Jun mean C = 21.8 | Jul mean C = 23.1 | Aug mean C = 23.6 | Sep mean C = 21.6 | Oct mean C = 19.4 | Nov mean C = 15.0 | Dec mean C = 11.4 | year mean C = | Jan low C = 5.6 | Feb low C = 5.9 | Mar low C = 7.3 | Apr low C = 10.2 | May low C = 13.3 | Jun low C = 16.1 | Jul low C = 17.3 | Aug low C = 17.7 | Sep low C = 16.1 | Oct low C = 14.2 | Nov low C = 10.5 | Dec low C = 7.5 |precipitation colour= green |Jan precipitation mm=251 |Feb precipitation mm=215 |Mar precipitation mm=171 |Apr precipitation mm=80 |May precipitation mm=31 |Jun precipitation mm=1 |Jul precipitation mm=1 |Aug precipitation mm=1 |Sep precipitation mm=7 |Oct precipitation mm=43 |Nov precipitation mm=121 |Dec precipitation mm=198 |source 1 = Climate-Data.org{{cite web |url = https://en.climate-data.org/location/418690/ |title = Climate: Beit Meri |publisher=Climate-Data.org |access-date = August 7, 2020}}

References

[http://www.dm.net.lb/redcross/our_centers.html Our Centers] {{webarchive. link. (February 12, 2006)
[http://www.albustanfestival.com/ Al Bustan Festival]
"Hotel Al Bustan - Beirut".
[http://www.ikamalebanon.com/accommodations/region/mount_acc/city_village/beitmery.htm Beit Mery] {{webarchive. link. (August 14, 2007)
(October 2023). "Inventory of Stone-Age sites in Lebanon, p. 75". Imprimerie Catholique}}{{Dead link.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjNOyvRiGaU Roman Beit Mery video]
[http://livelovelebanon.com/en/deir-al-qalaa Roman remains in Beit Mery]
Ghali, Maghie. "Lebanon art show at Beit Meri's Roman ruins portrays tragedy in a delicate way".
[http://www.ikamalebanon.com/national_heritage/mount_nh/mt_cities_nh/beitmery.htm Beit Mery] {{webarchive. link. (November 17, 2006)

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