Umayyad Palace

Welcome, esteemed travelers and fellow students of history, to the magnificent Amman Citadel. I am absolutely delighted to be your guide as we embark on this scholarly journey through time, exploring one of the most remarkable…

As we move further into the Citadel complex, we arrive at the monumental Temple of Hercules, which is widely considered to be the most significant Roman structure remaining here on the Amman Citadel hill. When the site became…

Leaving the towering columns of the Roman era behind us, we take a short walk to arrive at the remnants of the Byzantine Church. The transition from the massive pagan temple we just visited to this Christian house of worship…

As we continue our walking tour, we transition into a transformative chapter of the Citadel's history. The site eventually came under Muslim rule in the year six hundred and sixty-one AD, marking the arrival of the Umayyad…

We now arrive at the true crown jewel of the Islamic era on this hill, the magnificent Umayyad Palace complex, known in Arabic as Al-Qasr. This grand administrative and residential compound was built during the first half of the…

Passing through the Monumental Gateway, we now step onto the grand Colonnaded Street. This impressive thoroughfare, which firmly dates from seven hundred and thirty AD, served as the primary artery of the entire Umayyad Palace…

We have now reached the most secluded and private section of Al-Qasr, the inner courtyards and residential quarters. The architecture of this vast palace is systematically composed of three main areas, with this final zone…

No grand palace perched atop a high hill can survive without a masterful feat of engineering to secure its most precious resource, water. Just adjacent to the residential quarters of the palace, we encounter exactly that, the…

As we conclude our exploration of the inner palace and move toward the southern perimeter of the Citadel, we encounter structures that speak to the later, more turbulent chapters of this site's history. Following the fall of the…

As our walking tour of the Amman Citadel and the breathtaking Umayyad Palace draws to a close, let us take one final moment to stand near the ancient walls and look out over the thriving modern city below. The Umayyad caliphs,…