Don McCullin has been thrown in jail, endured broken limbs and overcome a stroke. But, as shown by his recent journey to Palmyra, the ancient Syrian city bombed by Isil, the 82-yearold photographer is still passionate about documenting the drama and devastation of war. By Jessamy Calkin. Photographs by Don McCullin

This page What remains of the Temple of Bel, Palmyra, in 2018, after its destruction by Isil.

Opposite Photographer Don McCullin

About 20 years ago, photographer Don McCullin was at a crossroads. He wouldn't call it a midlife crisis nothing as banal as that more of a loose end with a philosophical edge. He needed a project that wasn't about war, and his mind turned to his old friend Bruce Chatwin, who he had often travelled with, and an inspiring journey they'd taken together in the 1970s to an old Roman town in Algeria. McCullin decided that his next project should be to photograph the frontiers of the Roman Empire in north Africa. It was an intimidating prospect. He was in his early 60s, and, he says, `Bear in mind I didn't go to school or university or anything like that; I'm just a silly old photographer, not an educated archaeologist.' But off he went, firstly to Leptis Magna in Libya, a spectacular Roman city, and on to Baalbek, Lebanon. `Then I crossed the border and went into Syria, and I found myself going to Palmyra for the first time.' Palmyra, a World Heritage Site whose monumental ruins were largely constructed under the Roman Empire, has now become emblematic of the destruction wreaked by Isil after they blew up many of its buildings, including the iconic Temple of Bel, three years ago. Since May 2015, Palmyra has changed hands on four occasions and undergone further desecration; it is currently under the control of the Syrian army. But when McCullin first saw it back then, `It got under my skin. When you've seen it once you become drugged by it. After the sun's gone and dusk sets in, there's a mood that is unaccountable. It's compulsive, despite the damage. The damage that's been done to it is the greatest tragedy in archaeology.' After that first trip, he took his photographs to his publishers and suggested doing a book. `They're always supportive of me, and they said yes but with a slight yawn attached to it, and gave me a pretty miserable advance.' McCullin teamed up with writer and publisher Barnaby Rogerson, who put the book into historical context, and they went on journeys together through the Roman frontiers from Algeria to Syria. Southern Frontiers:

A Journey Across the Roman Empire was published in 2010. `And when Isil blew up the temple in Palmyra, the value of my book went up so much, it was absurd,' says McCullin, with his usual deadpan delivery. (The current price for a new copy on Amazon is PS873.69.) McCullin has been back several times, and was one of the last photographers to shoot the site...