In 1980, the German Archaeological Institute opened the "Damascus Station" in a rented flat at Sharia Ahmad Shauki 54 in the Malki district. As founding director, Michael Meinecke initiated various research projects on classical antiquity and the Islamic periods in Raqqa and promoted scientific exchange between national and international guests from the very beginning.

He was succeeded in 1988 by Thilo Ulbert, who directed the station until 1994 and focussed his research on Resafa-Sergiupolis and Christian archaeology in particular.

During the term of his successor Klaus Stefan Freyberger, the DAI was reorganised and the Orient Department was re-established in 1996, turning the "Damascus Station" into the "Damascus Branch". In 1999, it moved to the former building of the GDR Consulate General in the nearby Sharia Adnan al-Malki 8. The building is also used by the Goethe-Institut - important areas of German cultural policy in Syria are united here under one roof. Klaus Stefan Freyberger researched Greco-Roman architecture and art in Syria, particularly in Qanawat, one of the urban centres of the imperial period in southern Syria, as well as temples in Hauran and Lebanon.

In 2003, Karin Bartl took over the direction of the Damascus Branch, the first time a female Near Eastern archaeologist had held this position. In addition to extensive surveys, her term also included excavation projects and scientific studies ranging from the Stone Age to the Islamic period. Karin Bartl's term in Damascus was interrupted by the upheavals in the country in 2011. However, a move to Amman and the resulting spatial adjacency to the German Protestant Institute (GPIA) also led to numerous research projects in Jordan, which made it possible to build on the research already being carried out in Syria. Since then, the DAI has maintained a research unit in Amman.

Claudia Bührig took over the direction of the branch in 2017. She consolidated and expanded the DAI's work and presence in Jordan. In addition to interests in architectural history, her research interests include surveys of the area around Gadara on questions of settlement, landscape and economic archaeology, as well as excavations in Gadara itself and activities on topics of cultural preservation and knowledge transfer, capacity building and nature conservation.

Directors of the Damascus Branch

• since 2017 Claudia Bührig
• 2003-2017 Karin Bartl
• 1994-2003 Klaus Stefan Freyberger
• 1988-1994 Thilo Ulbert
• 1980-1988 Michael Meinecke