In 1919, the 24-year-old Charles Corm started a journal of ideas that helped define the goals and aspirations of the nascent Lebanese state. The first issue of ‘La Revue Phénicienne’ (The Phoenician Review) was published at a critical time when the fate of the former Arab Ottoman provinces were still very much in flux.

The Revue was to be the cornerstone to the publishing house bearing the same name created a decade later. By the 1930s, the catalogue included poetry collections, plays, essays from the notable francophone writers of the day, as well as Corm’s most famous work, The Sacred Mountain.

In his publishing forecast, Corm planned to expand publications to Lebanese authors of the diaspora and publish in several languages.

In the aftermath of the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990), the publishing house was re-launched by Charles Corm’s children, releasing unpublished works by Charles Corm, such as his collected poetical works, plays, novels and short stories. Contemporary authors were also published, amongst them Hareth Boustany, Diane Mazloum, Alain Tasso, Nabil al Azan and Yasmine Khlat.

More recently, the publishing house released a special edition to mark the 100 anniversary of the Revue Phénicienne focused on some of the latest archeological discoveries pertaining to the Phoenicians.