Qasr Al-Qastal: An Early Umayyad Palace in Photos

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In the village of Al-Qastal south of Amman, Qasr Al-Qastal is one of the earliest Umayyad settlements in Jordan, probably begun under Caliph Abd al-Malik (685–705). This album walks round the square palace and its towers, visits the ruined mosque and its round minaret, the arches of the buildings around them and the carved stones lying on the ground, and ends at the reservoir and cisterns that stored the winter rain.

In this album

35 photos of Qasr Al-Qastal

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An arched niche and doorways in the palace wall with carved stones in front, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
01The Palace Doorways
A carved cornice block in front of the palace wall, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
02A Carved Cornice
Doorways and rooms of large limestone blocks, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
03Doorways and Rooms
High palace walls with doorways, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
04High Walls
The palace courtyard with paving and a fallen column, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
05The Courtyard
A half-round tower of the palace wall, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
06A Round Tower
A paved passage beside a rounded tower, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
07A Paved Passage
Palace walls and a tower of large blocks, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
08Walls and Tower
Mosque Minaret, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
09Mosque Minaret
Umayyad Mosque, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
10Umayyad Mosque
Umayyad Mosque, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
11Umayyad Mosque
Mosque Minaret, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
12Mosque Minaret
Stairs in the Mosque Minaret, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
13Stairs in the Mosque Minaret
Stairs in the Mosque Minaret, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
14Stairs in the Mosque Minaret
The ruined wall of the mosque with a doorway, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
15The Mosque Wall
A single stone arch standing above fallen blocks, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
16A Standing Arch
A row of stone arches among fallen blocks, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
17A Row of Arches
Stone arches that once carried a roof, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
18Arches in a Row
Arches rising above ruined walls, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
19Arches and Walls
An open court with a plastered floor and flowers, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
20An Open Court
Small rooms with rough stone walls, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
21Later Houses
A block carved with a fish-scale pattern, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
22Fish-Scale Carving
A block carved with deep scrolls and rosettes, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
23Carved Scrolls
A block carved with a band of leaves, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
24A Leaf Band
A capital carved with acanthus leaves, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
25An Acanthus Capital
Carved blocks lying in front of a wall with doorways, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
26Carved Blocks by the Wall
Carved and moulded blocks among dry grass, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
27Blocks in the Grass
Carved blocks in front of a building with windows, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
28Blocks by a Building
Fallen blocks along a palace wall, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
29Along the Wall
Carved blocks in front of vaulted rooms, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
30Before the Vaults
Cistern openings in a court below the palace walls, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
31Cistern Mouths
The quarry-cut reservoir with village houses behind, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
32The Reservoir
The cut rock walls of the reservoir, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
33Inside the Reservoir
A cistern opening cut in the rock, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
34A Cistern Opening
Two cistern openings side by side, Qasr Al-Qastal, Jordan
35Two Cisterns

About this album

Site

Qasr Al-Qastal, Eastern Desert

Region

Eastern Desert

Coordinates

31.7458° N, 35.9399° E

Photos

35 photos

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