Editing Cardo (section)

===Beirut, Lebanon===
The ''cardo maximus'' was the main north–south street of Roman [[Berytus]]. A section of the street – 100 meters long or so – was discovered during excavation works, flanked by two rows of limestone pedestals. These pedestals once carried 6-meter-high columns supporting roofed colonnades on either side of the street. A stairway in the eastern colonnade gave access to a large building complex.

The ''cardo maximus'' connected the forum to another complex that extended from the present Al-Azariyeh building to [[Riad Al Solh Square]]. Archaeological excavations uncovered two successive levels of the street, the oldest dating to the 2nd century CE. The later, wider street was laid out during the 4th century AD. The floors of the colonnades on both levels of the ''cardo maximus'' were embellished with mosaic pavements. These were covered, in the 6th century CE, with a thin coat of white lime plaster. Fragments of the floors remained in use until the 19th century. Roman columns were re-used in the foundations of later buildings constructed within the pavement of the ''cardo'', reducing the main street of Roman Berytus into a small alley.<ref>Saghieh-Beydoun, Muntaha, 'Allam, Mahmoud, 'Ala'Eddine, Abdallah and Abulhosn, Sana (1998–9), "The Monumental Street ''Cardo Maximus'' and the Replanning of Roman Berytus", Bulletin d'Archéologie et d'Architecture Libanaises 3:95-126.</ref>