La grande mosquée des Omeyyades de Damas, construite entre 706 et 715, est un édifice religieux musulman bâti par le calife omeyyade Al Walid Ier.
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The Umayyad Mosque, also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus, located in the old city of Damascus, the capital of Syria, is one of the largest and oldest mosques in the world. Its religious importance stems from the eschatological reports concerning the mosque and historic events associated with it. Christian and Muslim tradition alike consider it the burial place of John the Baptist's head, a tradition originating in the 6th century. Two shrines inside the premises commemorate the Islamic prophet Muhammad's grandson Husayn ibn Ali, whose martyrdom is frequently compared to that of John the Baptist. It is considered to be the oldest mosque still in use in its original form.
The site has been used as a house of worship since the Iron Age, when the Arameans built on it a temple dedicated to their god of rain, Hadad. It was later associated with the Greek god Zeus during the Hellenistic period. Under Roman rule after 64 CE, it was converted into the center of the imperial cult of Jupiter, the Roman god of rain, becoming one of the largest temples in Syria. The current walls of the mosque were the inner walls of the Temple of Jupiter. When the empire in Syria transitioned to Christian Byzantine rule, Emperor Theodosius I transformed it into a cathedral and the seat of the second-highest-ranking bishop in the Patriarchate of Antioch.
After the Muslim conquest of Damascus in 634, part of the cathedral was designated as a small prayer house for the Muslim conquerors. As the Muslim community grew, the Umayyad caliph al-Walid I confiscated the rest of the cathedral for Muslim use, returning to the Christians other properties in the city as compensation. The structure was largely demolished and a grand congregational mosque complex was built in its place. The new structure was built over nine years by thousands of laborers and artisans from across the Islamic and Byzantine empires at considerable expense and was funded by the war booty of Umayyad conquests and taxes on the Arab troops of Damascus. Unlike the simpler mosques of the time, the Umayyad Mosque had a large basilical plan with three parallel aisles and a perpendicular central nave leading from the mosque's entrance to the world's second concave mihrab. The mosque was noted for its rich compositions of marble paneling and its extensive gold mosaics of vegetal motifs, covering some 4,000 square metres, likely the largest in the world.
Under Abbasid rule, new structures were added, including the Dome of the Treasury and the Minaret of the Bride, while the Mamluks undertook major restoration efforts and added the Minaret of Qaytbay. The Umayyad Mosque innovated and influenced nascent Islamic architecture by introducing a more organized and monumental design compared to earlier mosques. It enjoyed great prestige throughout its history and was regarded as a "wonder of the world" by many medieval Muslim writers. Although the original structure has been altered several times due to fire, war damage, and repairs, it is one of the few mosques to maintain the same form and architectural features of its 8th-century construction, as well as its Umayyad character.
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Qubbat al-Khazna, also known as the Bayt al-Mal or Beit al-Mal, is an old structure within the courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria. It is an octagonal structure decorated with mosaics, standing on eight Roman columns.
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The Khadra Palace, known in Arabic as Qubbat al-Khadra, was a residence of the Umayyad caliphs in Damascus. It was founded by the first Umayyad caliph, Mu'awiya I, while he was governor of Syria under Caliph Uthman. The Khadra Palace consisted of a series of interconnected buildings, including the caliphal residence, stables, mint and prison, situated directly behind the Umayyad Mosque. Little information is available describing the structure, other than the green color of its dome, its construction from baked brick, timber and marble pavement and its setting amid gardens.
It remained in official use after the fall of the Umayyads and transfer of the caliphate to Iraq by the Abbasids in 750. It was probably destroyed during the Fatimid period in the 10th or 11th century and there are no known traces of the structure.
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The Mausoleum of Saladin holds the resting place and grave of the medieval Muslim Ayyubid Sultan Saladin. It is adjacent to the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria. It was built in 1196, three years after the death of Saladin. In addition to the tomb, the tomb complex included Madrassah al-Aziziah, of which little remains, except a few columns and an internal arch adjacent to the renovated tomb.
The mausoleum presently houses two sarcophagi: one made of wood, said to contain Saladin's remains, and one made of marble, was built in homage to Saladin in late nineteenth century by Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid II and was later restored by German emperor Wilhelm II. Along with a marble sarcophagus, a golden ornate gilt bronze wreath was also put on the marble sarcophagus, which was later removed by either Faisal I or Lawrence of Arabia, who later deposited it in the Imperial War Museum.
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Al-Azm Palace is a palace in Damascus, Syria, built in 1749. Located north of Al-Buzuriyah Souq in the Ancient City of Damascus, the palace was built in 1749 to be the private residence for As'ad Pasha al-Azm, the governor of Damascus; during the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon, it housed the French Institute.
After the Syrian government had purchased the buildings from the Al-Azm family and extensive reconstruction, the palace houses the Museum of Arts and Popular Traditions.