Mrs. Asma al-Assad joins locals of al-Marah village in harvesting their Damascene Rose

Damascus Countryside, SANA- Society has a memory which carries its customs, traditions and remains with the human being throughout their lives… the memory is represented in rituals that parents pass on to their children, a generation after generation, this memory embaded deeply in their identity, spirit of its society and its culture.

In al-Marah village, located in Qalamoun Mountains, in Damascus Countryside, there is a village named  the “Village of Damascene Rose”, where with the first moments of the sunrise, at this time of each year, farmers begin the season of harvesting the Damascene rose. This rose has been associated with their lands hundreds of years ago in a way that its name has linked to them, and its fragrance spreads to the whole world, carrying its Syrian identity and heritage.

Reviving heritage in all its forms constitutes a continuation of life and preserving it is a cling to identity. First Lady, Mrs. Asma al-Assad, continues to sponsor and support those who hold strongly to their heritage and passes it on to their children.

On Thursday, the First Lady joined the local people of al-Marah village  in harvesting their Damascene rose, the jewel of their life and icon of their continued livelihood.. the rituals of harvesting the rose each year demonstrate the rose’s social and cultural importance in protecting and preserving this heritage.

Ladies of the Diplomatic Club in Syria and other dignitaries’,  artists’ figures and personalities  who are concerned with preserving and protecting the Syrian heritage joined them.

The cultivation of the Damascene rose, which were inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2019,  is expanded to include other areas and town. A year after a year, from al-Marah to Hama, Aleppo and other provinces,  this rose remains an image from Syria and a source of its productivity and cultivation.

Hala Zain