Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. Umayyad Mosque in Damascus: description, relics and shrines

Citadel.

Construction of the citadel began in 1076. At that time, the citadel was the residence of the ruler, where his chambers, barracks, guards, warehouses, mint, prison, mosque and family graves were located. Only twice a year, on great religious holidays, the ruler left the fortress steppes to visit the main shrine of the city - the Umayyad mosque.
The citadel acquired its current appearance in the 13th century, when it was strengthened by Sultan Malik Adil, the brother of Salah ad-Din. It took 12 years to strengthen and rebuild the citadel. But everything was destroyed during the Mongol invasion in 1260.

Under Sultan Baybars, the fortress was revived, but in 1400, during the invasion of Tamerlane, it was again badly damaged.
It has not been restored since then. Until 1985, there was a prison here. In recent years, restoration work and excavations have been carried out here.
Located next to the citadel and the entrance to the covered market monument to Saladin- the legendary sultan who began a victorious war with the crusaders.
Next to the citadel and the monument is the entrance to the Old Town and the famous Hamidiya market (Souk al-Hamidiya).

Hamidiya market. Morning.

Hamidiya market. Evening.

Once there was a city gate, Bab al-Nasr (Victory Gate), but it was dismantled in 1864. The market is named after the Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II, under whom the market was covered with an iron roof in 1885. This place has been a trading place since ancient times.

Bakdash Ice Cream.Damascus. Syria.
Don't pass by Bakdash Ice Cream- This is one of the most famous ice cream shops in Syria, the shop-cafe was opened in Hamidiya in 1885. Thick and elastic ice cream is made from powder of dried orchid tubers and mastic tree resins, sprinkled with pistachios on top. The ice cream is so thick that the ice cream makers constantly knead the ice cream, beating out a rhythm.

At the end of the market street, 12-meter columns rise, supporting a fragment of the pediment - this is what remains of Ancient Roman Temple of Jupiter, built in the 3rd century.

Temple of Jupiter. Damascus. Syria.

Umayyad Mosque considered one of the most famous mosques in the world.

The outer walls of the marking were lined with houses, which the Ottoman authorities began to demolish. However, when the Turks left, the owners of the houses returned and rebuilt. In the 80s The mosque was again cleared away from the houses and a small square was built.

In the square in front of the Umayyad Mosque. Damascus.

The wall surrounding the mosque is very old. Temples have been built here since ancient times.

Wall around the Umayyad Mosque.

First, the Arameans erected a sanctuary to their god Hadad, then the Romans - a temple to Jupiter of Damascus, in the 4th century. Byzantine Emperor Theodosius erected the Basilica of St. Zacharias, in 635 the temple was divided into two parts - Christian and Muslim.
In 708, Caliph Walid, wanting to build in Damascus a mosque worthy of his dynasty was confiscated by St. John's Cathedral, in which Muslims and Christians had prayed side by side for 70 years - some in the western half, others in the eastern.
Talented architects and artisans from all over the country were involved in the construction of the mosque, and the best materials were used. The Umayyad Mosque was supposed to personify the glory and power of the Arab state and amaze with the luxury and beauty of its decoration.

The northern minaret or minaret of the Bride dates back to 705, but its upper part was completed later. The southeastern minaret of Isa, i.e. Jesus was erected in 1347 on the ruins of the tower of the Temple of Jupiter. According to legend, Jesus Christ will descend to earth through this minaret on the eve of the Last Judgment. The southwestern minaret of Muhammad was also built on the site of an ancient tower before the 12th century.
The mosque suffered from major fires 11 times, the last of which was in 1893. Each time the mosque was restored.

The entrance for tourists is on the left side. Here you can buy a ticket (50 SP), women receive dark capes (bare shoulders, arms and head are not allowed). When entering the mosque, both women and men must remove their shoes.

An elegant structure on eight columns - Qubbat al-Khazna- a treasury into which there is no access directly from the ground (787) Once in one of the treasuries the theft of government money stored there “under the protection of Allah” was committed, since then they began to build treasuries without entry from the ground.

In the center of the yard - Qubbat an-Nofara- a fountain for ablutions with a pool (1200; dome - 18th century).

The walls of the mosque are decorated with faience tiles and mosaics (VIII-XIII centuries). The prayer hall has 22 doors, two rows of Corinthian columns divide the hall into three naves.

In the wall of the hall there are richly decorated niches called "mihrab". Initially, the mihrab was a place of honor for the caliph; later it began to simply designate the qibla - the direction towards Mecca, where the faces of those praying should be turned.

Umayyad Mosque. Mihrab. Damascus. Syria.

The Umayyads entered the mosques minbars- pulpits for reading the Koran and delivering sermons. A tall minbar with a staircase is usually located to the left of the mihrab.
In the prayer hall there is cancer of St. John the Baptist.

Umayyad Mosque. Shrine of St. John the Baptist.

Here lies the head of the saint, which, according to legend, was found in 705 in one of the underground crypts during the reconstruction of the basilica into a mosque. If you believe the legend, Caliph Walid wanted to remove this shrine and even began to dig up the head himself, but when he touched the skull, he became numb; believing in a miracle, the Caliph decided to leave the Christian relic in place. This place is equally revered by both Christians and Muslims. Saint John the Baptist in the Muslim tradition is the prophet Yahya.

Nearby are a Byzantine well and font.
In the portico of the eastern wall there is a sanctuary where he rests Hussein's head- son of the fourth “righteous caliph” Ali. This is a place of pilgrimage for Shiites. There are two trash cans inside the room; in one is the head of Hussein, killed by Umayyad soldiers in 680 at the Battle of Karbala (Iraq), in the second is a strand of the Prophet’s hair.

In the same courtyard where the entrance for tourists is located Mausoleum of Salah ad-Din- the legendary Arab sultan, the commander who began a victorious war with the crusading knights, whom Europeans called Saladin.

Open 9.00-16.00 seven days a week

Saladin, Salah ad-Din Yusuf Ibn Ayyub (in Arabic Salah ad-Din means "Honor of the Faith"), the first Sultan of Egypt from the Ayyubid dynasty. Born in Tekrit in 1138 (modern Iraq). By origin, Saladin was an Armenian Kurd. His father Ayyub ibn Shadi and uncle Asad ad-Din Shirkukh, sons of Shadi Ajdanakan, were military leaders in the army of Zengi.
In 1139, Ayyub received control of Baalbek from Zengi, and in 1146, after his death, he supported Zengi’s second son, the future unifier of Syria, Nur ad-Din, and helped him conquer Aleppo. Thus, Saladin was brought up at the Aleppo court, he received an education in the best traditions of Muslim culture.
His career can be divided into three periods: the conquest of Egypt (1164 - 1174), the annexation of Syria and Mesopotamia (1174 - 1186), the conquest of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and other campaigns against Christians (1187 - 1192).
The conquest of Egypt was necessary for Nur ad-Din. Egypt threatened his power from the south and was a stronghold of heretical caliphs.
In 1164, Nur ad-Din decided to send a corps to Egypt to help the Fatimid state repel the Crusader invasion. The corps was led by Shirkuh, with whom his brother Ayyub and his son Salah ad-Din went. After several years spent in battle, Shirkuh became vizier under the Fatimid caliph, but he died suddenly in 1169. He was succeeded by Saladin.
After the Fatimid caliph Adid died in 1171 and Nur ad-Din in 1174, power over Egypt and Syria was concentrated in the hands of Saladin.
Saladin founded his Ayyubid dynasty. He restored the Sunni faith in Egypt in 1171. And in 1174 he entered Damascus, took Hams and Hama, and in 1175 captured Baalbek and the cities surrounding Aleppo.
Saladin owed his success primarily to his well-trained regular army of Turkish slaves (Mamluks), consisting of horse archers and horse spearmen.
The next step was to achieve political independence.

Salah ad-Din constantly fought with the crusaders. In 1187, a decisive battle took place near Hittin between Christians and Muslims. Saladin avoided battle for a long time, firing at the crusaders with bows. Under the scorching rays of the sun, the knights roasted in their heavy armor. When they reached their limit, Salah ad-Din managed to separate the crusader cavalry from the infantry and defeated them. Few of the crusaders managed to survive or avoid capture. Even the king of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, Guido Lusignan, was captured, but was released with honors on an oath never again to raise a sword against Muslims (which he later violated). Also taken prisoner was the Grand Master of the Templar Order, Raynald of Chatillon, whom Saladin personally executed.
After the Battle of Hittin, Saladin's victories followed one after another, including Saladin capturing Jerusalem and performing a ritual of its purification, while showing magnanimity towards Christians. The townspeople were released for a ransom; those who could not pay the ransom were enslaved.
This turn of events puzzled Christian Europe.
Another crusade took place, one of the leaders of which was the King of England, Richard I the Lionheart. King Philip II Augustus of France and German Emperor Frederick I also took part in the campaign. Richard the Lionheart recaptured some of the cities and fortresses from Saladin. Among them was Acre, when the Muslim garrison capitulated without Saladin's permission. Richard I put 2,000 hostages to death. Salah ad-Din was upset by the severity of the enemy; in such cases, he himself gave captives into slavery.
But this did not stop him from arranging the marriage of his younger brother and sister Richard I, after which a peace was concluded in November 1192, under the terms of which the interior of Syria was recognized as Muslim with the right of unhindered passage for Christian pilgrims, and Palestine was divided approximately equally.
History has confirmed that this was a wise move on the part of Salah ad-Din, which allowed the Arabs to gain a foothold in the conquered territories and prepare for a further attack on the possessions of the crusaders.
Salah ad-Din died in March 1193 of fever at the age of 55. He was buried in Damascus and mourned throughout the East.
His grave is one of the places revered by Muslims. He became famous as an outstanding commander and defender of Islam, as a patron of education, who founded schools and seminaries in Egypt and Syria.


Streets of Old Damascus.

Streets of Old Damascus.

In the very center of old Damascus stands one of the greatest shrines of the Muslim world - the Umayyah, or Umayyad Mosque, the Great Mosque, built at the beginning of the 8th century. Caliph al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik.

In ancient times, the Romans built the Temple of Jupiter on this site with the surrounding architectural ensemble. In the 4th century. The Byzantines came and, having destroyed the pagan temple, built an Orthodox cathedral from its rubble in the name of the Christian prophet John the Baptist, executed by King Herod.

At the beginning of the 7th century. Muslim Arabs, having captured Syria with its churches and monasteries, were amazed at their luxury and the splendor of the religious rituals of the conquered Byzantines. The commander Khaled ben Walid, to whose troops the garrison of Damascus surrendered in 636, guaranteed in writing “the inviolability of the inhabitants of the city, their property, churches and city walls.” The main cathedral of the city became a place of prayer for Muslim soldiers; Christians were also allowed here for their prayers. In a word, there was enough space for everyone. Thus, for several decades, an atmosphere of religious tolerance and mutual respect between the Christian and Muslim communities was maintained; the ringing of bells over the gigantic basilica dedicated to John the Baptist alternated with the prayerful singing of the muezzin.

But time passed, and Damascus from an ordinary city during the times of the Prophet Muhammad and his first successors turned into the capital of a huge caliphate founded by the Umayyad dynasty (661-750). The number of adherents of Islam increased so much that the grandiose Basilica of St. John with its three 140-meter spans-naves could not accommodate everyone, and Christians were completely superfluous here. In addition, the new capital grew rich, flourished, and the Umayyad caliphs rightly decided that it should have its own sanctuary, similar to the first mosques in Mecca, Medina, Kufa, Basra... And the sixth caliph from the Umayyad clan, al Walid ibn Abd al-Malik ( 705-715), whose possessions stretched from the east to the Pyrenees and the Atlantic in the west, began negotiations with representatives of the Christian community of Damascus, offering them to cede the territory of the basilica to the Muslims in exchange for permission to freely use the five temples in the city. Christians became stubborn. Then the Caliph threatened to order the destruction of the Church of St. Thomas, which was even larger in size than the Church of St. John. The Christian elders had to submit. By the way, subsequently all Christian churches were destroyed or turned into mosques, except for the Church of St. Mary, which today is the main cathedral of the Patriarch of Antioch.

Al-Walid ordered the destruction of the basilica, the removal of the remains of the Roman buildings on the site of which it was erected, and began the construction of a mosque, “which has never been and never will be more beautiful.” According to the Arab historian Abd al-Rashid al-Bakuwi, construction continued throughout the ten years of the caliph's reign with the participation of 12 thousand workers. The ruler spent seven years' kharaj (income) of the state on him. When papers with bills were delivered to him on eighteen camels, he did not even look at them and said: “This is what we spent for the sake of Allah, so let’s not regret it.”

The creation “for the sake of Allah” was truly grandiose. What Arab architects created at the beginning of the 8th century served as a model for the entire Muslim world for centuries. During the construction of the Umayyad mosque, technical and artistic techniques of Sasanian and Byzantine architecture were used; many elements of the ancient temples on the site of which construction took place were even preserved. However, the mosque's plan and internal structure received a completely different interpretation. And its decor was famous for its incomparable perfection.

The ensemble of the mosque is a rectangle 156x97 meters in plan. The prayer hall is freely visible in all directions - ancient columns, preserved from the Romans and Byzantines, are spaced five or more meters from each other. Two-tier arches rest on them, emphasizing the height of the hall, crowned in the center with a dome on four supports, which is called “qubbat an-nasr” - “the dome of victory.”

The hall of the mosque is illuminated by massive European-style crystal chandeliers. In the 19th century The prayer hall has changed its appearance somewhat. In particular, the windows and openings of the arches of the northern wall were decorated with bright, colorful stained glass windows.
A steep staircase behind carved high doors leads to a high pulpit (minbar) made of white marble. From here, spiritual sermons are now broadcast on radio throughout the country.

The Great Mosque has three minarets, each standing on foundations from Roman-Byzantine times. All of them have names: the minaret of the Bride (a quadrangular tower, since the ancient base is square), the minaret of Isa, that is, Jesus Christ (towers above the southwestern corner of the mosque), and the western minaret of Muhammad (erected in 1184).

Muslims believe that on the eve of the Last Judgment, Isa (Jesus Christ) will descend to earth near “his” minaret to fight the Antichrist. And when this happens, a girl from the Ghassanid tribe will emerge from the minaret of the Bride: she was the bride of Jesus, but the beauty was walled up in the walls of the tower that once stood in this place.

This huge mosque has many mysterious and mysterious places. In the depths of her courtyard, among the columns of the gallery, there is a small door leading to the so-called Mashhad Hussein - the Hussein Chapel: everyone in Damascus knows that here, in a capsule under a veil embroidered with Koranic inscriptions, lies the head of the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad - Hussein, a martyr of Islam, who was killed at the Battle of Karbala in 681. His head was cut off, delivered to Damascus to the ruler of Syria, Mu'awiya, and hung on the city gates - in the very place where King Herod once ordered the head of John the Baptist to be displayed. The nightingales, the legend tells, sang in the gardens of the city so sadly that all its inhabitants wept. Then Muawiyah, full of repentance, ordered the head to be placed in a golden sarcophagus and installed in a crypt, which later ended up inside the Umayyad mosque. They say that Muhammad's hair, which he cut before his last pilgrimage to Mecca, is also kept there. Near the crypt, day and night, the mullah reads the Koran.
Umayyad Mosque in Damascus
And the capsule with the head of John the Baptist, known in Rus' as John the Baptist (in the Koran he is called Yuhann), is also located here, in the Umayyad mosque. It is kept in the center of the temple, in a small elegant pavilion with a dome, repeating the shape of the arch spanned above it, and behind lattice windows. How did she get here? It has always been here, but they say it was found several centuries ago, during restoration work.

Through the famous Umayyad ivan (colonnade) the inner courtyard of the mosque is clearly visible. In the center of the courtyard is a fountain for ablution, for the temple is a place of purification.
Perhaps nowhere in the world can you find such a mosaic as in the Umayyad Mosque. The panels, with a total area of ​​35x7.5 meters, were made by hammering glass or gilded smalt cubes into a binding mass - this is how mosaics were created in the Roman Empire. According to legend, this panel was made by craftsmen hired by al-Walid from Constantinople. Whatever is depicted here: rural landscapes, flowering corners of Damascus, and the Barad River with castles on its banks. The heirs of al-Walid, fearing the wrath of Allah, ordered these images to be covered with lime mortar - examples of the culture of the early Islamic period, combining ornament and image, symbol and realistic reproduction of the earthly world. Now they have been restored.

When the envoys of Byzantium first saw the Great Mosque, they could not contain their admiration, uttering the historical phrase: “The beautiful mosque made us convinced that the Arabs had finally gained a foothold in this country and we would never be able to return here.”

Unfortunately, misfortunes and disasters did not spare this masterpiece of architecture - between 1068 and 1893, the mosque and its individual parts burned countless times. Three times - in 1157, 1200 and 1759 - it was seriously damaged by earthquakes. Since Damascus ceased to be the capital of the caliphate, Syria was subjected to devastating raids by the Seljuks, the Mongols, and the Ottomans. But each time the mosque rose up and again delighted the Muslim world with its splendor.

Muslims from all over the world still flock to the Umayyad Mosque. It is the most visited in Damascus. Muslims come here to cleanse themselves and pray, to hear and see the Word of Allah there, to become familiar with beauty, for, as the prophet said: “Allah loves the beautiful,” only with His help, with His blessing, such a miracle of harmony could appear on earth - a temple in the center of the Muslim world, open to all believers.

One of the most glorious mosques of Islam in terms of beauty and perfection of construction, unusual appearance, splendor of decoration and decoration. Its generally recognized fame allows us not to waste time on its description. One of the wonderful phenomena observed there is that the spider does not weave a web there, and the swallow does not penetrate there and does not build nests...

Ibn Jubayr. Travel... Moscow, 1984, p. 186

The admiration of the famous Arab traveler of the late 12th century becomes clear as soon as you find yourself within the walls of this oldest mosque in the world, welcoming everyone who wants to worship God and admire its beauty. Since its creation in 706–711, during the days of glory and power of the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750) and the prosperity of their capital city, Damascus, this truly unique structure remains the most attractive spiritual and historical center of modern Syria.

Damascus Jami' al-Kabir al-Umawiy - The Great Umayyad Mosque, which retained the name of a long-vanished dynasty in its name, was conceived as the main religious building of the first Muslim power; it had to meet the prestige of a young and strong state and testify to the piety of its rulers. According to the Damascus historian Ibn Asakir (c. 1160), the Umayyad caliph al-Walid (705–715), who is credited with creating this monument, wrote to the Byzantine emperor: “I want to build a mosque, the like of which has never been built and never will be built again."

According to tradition, the ancient temple site in the city center was chosen as the site for construction, the original sanctity of which was supposed to affirm the sacred essence of any religious building erected on it. Archaeological finds have suggested that in the 1st millennium BC. e. here was the temple of the Aramaic deity Hadad.

In the 1st century, the ancient temple was replaced by a large sanctuary of the Syrian god, whom the Romans called Jupiter of Damascus. Partially preserved from the ancient structure are the massive stone walls that enclosed the rectangular territory of the sanctuary, the monumental eastern gate Bab Jairun (now Bab al-Nafura - Fountain Gate) with a beautiful columned portico and a magnificent marble colonnade, which still leads to the mosque from the west. During the reign of Emperor Theodosius I (379–395), when Syria was under Byzantine rule, the ancient temple was converted into the Church of St. John the Baptist.

The history of the emergence of a Muslim religious building on the temple site of ancient Damascus takes us to the autumn of 635, when Arab troops entered the city from different sides, some by agreement with the local Syrian ruler, who ordered the opening of the city gates, others with battle, due to resistance provided by the Byzantine garrison. Ibn Jubayr, following early medieval historians, reports that the Arab detachments met in the center of the territory of the Church of St. John the Baptist, after which its eastern part, taken in battle, remained with the Muslims, and the larger western part, in which the temple stood, in accordance with the peace treaty , was returned to the Christians of Damascus. Signed by the Arab military commander Khalid al-Walid, this treaty, as reported by the Christian historian Eutyches (d. 940), stated: “I grant you the inviolability of your blood, your dwellings, your property and your churches, promising that they will neither be destroyed, neither occupied, and they will be given to you.”

For 70 years, Muslims shared the sacred site with Christians, until Caliph al-Walid, popularly nicknamed the Builder, began work on the construction of the main mosque in the Caliphate, Jami' al-Kabir - the Great Mosque. His activities were aimed at creating the main religious building of Muslims, and of such merits that it would compare favorably with Christian buildings and could stand up to them with the beauty of its architecture and decoration. “He saw,” wrote the Jerusalem historian al-Muqaddasi in 985 in explanation and approval of al-Walid’s actions, “that Syria was a country long occupied by Christians, and he noticed there beautiful churches ... so enchantingly beautiful and so famous for their splendor, like al-Kumama (the Arabic name for the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem) ... Therefore, he sought to build a mosque for Muslims that would prevent them from looking at those churches and would become the only one - and a miracle for the whole world!

To fulfill his plans, the caliph attracted the best specialists, used the most valuable materials and did not skimp on expenses.

“They say,” reported al-Muqaddasi, “al-Walid gathered craftsmen from Persia, India, the Maghreb and Rum to build the Damascus mosque and spent the kharaj (that is, tax income) of Syria on it for seven years, and also added 18 ships loaded gold and silver and those who sailed from Cyprus, not counting the precious stones, utensils and mosaics donated by the king (that is, the Byzantine emperor) and the Muslim rulers.”

The building really turned out to be very beautiful, majestic and proportionate. Its creators did not destroy the previous building, as some authors mistakenly insist, but actively used many of its parts, details and materials, planning and design techniques, construction and decoration techniques. The architecture of the Damascus Umayyad Mosque provides the earliest and most remarkable example of the organic transformation of an early Byzantine temple into a building of worship for Islam. Preserving the stylistic features of Syrian architecture of the Byzantine era, this beautiful building fully possesses features that affirm the foundations of Islamic religious architecture itself. It was in Damascus that the idea of ​​a columned mosque was first embodied in the classical forms of a monumental structure.

The Muslim prayer building, 157.5 m long and 100 m wide, fits perfectly into the rectangle of ancient stone walls stretched from west to east. On the remains of the corner antique square towers, used as powerful and durable bases, four minarets were erected, which presumably replaced Christian bell towers. None of these first minarets in Islam have survived. Only the ancient tower on the southwest corner has remained intact to this day; The three-tiered minaret that now stands on it, the elegant multifaceted al-Gharbiya (Western), was erected in 1488 by the Mamluk Sultan Qaitbey. The tetrahedral southeastern minaret, named after the prophet Isa (peace be upon him), dates back to 1340.

In the middle of the northern wall, perhaps under the Umayyads, a third minaret was erected, rebuilt at the end of the 12th century, and then expanded during the reign of the Mamluk or Ottoman sultans.

The space inside the ancient walls was freed up for a spacious courtyard - sahn, an indispensable condition of the cathedral mosque. The northern, western and eastern sides of the courtyard were decorated with galleries with wooden beamed ceilings on two-tier arcades. The pillars, arches and walls of the galleries were covered with marble cladding, stone carvings and magnificent mosaics made of colored smalt glass cubes. The floor of the courtyard was covered with slabs of white marble.

The southern side of the sakhna was occupied by a huge prayer hall - a haram, almost 136 m long and more than 37 m wide, open to the courtyard with an arcade. After the fire of 1893, the arched spans were closed with wooden doors and windows with colored glass. The tall and bright prayer hall inside is divided along its entire length into three longitudinal passages-nave, parallel to the wall of the qibla, with two rows of marble columns, carrying, like the courtyard arcades, two tiers of arches. Each longitudinal nave has its own ceiling, made of painted wooden beams, and its own gable roof on the rafters - a feature later repeated in the Great Mosque of Cordoba and al-Qaraouine in Fez. Widely spaced columns of the arcades created convenient transverse passages from the courtyard to the wall of the qibla. The central transverse passage-transept, covered with a gable roof, is raised above the naves by more than 10 m and is noticeably wider than the other passages. The courtyard facade of the transept with tiers of elegant arches and windows is completed with a simple triangular pediment, crowning the beautiful main entrance to the hall, reminiscent of a triumphal arch; it is “guarded” by tall buttresses decorated with marble and carvings.

The transept defined the main, sacred axis of the mosque, as if crossing the courtyard from the northern minaret. At the southern end of the axis-transept, a large mihrab was built into the wall of the qibla, which still exists today, but in an updated design. Much earlier, in the eastern half of the southern wall of the mosque, the famous mihrab of the Companions of the Prophet (PBUH) was installed, which did not have a niche until the construction undertaken by Caliph al-Walid.

It was here that the first Muslims of Damascus came to pray, and it was here that the first maksura (“fenced”) in Islam was built for the founder of the Umayyad dynasty, Caliph Muawiya.

In medieval Great Mosques, maksura was the area around the mihrab and minbar, fenced with a wooden lattice or other fence in order to protect the caliph, imam or ruler. Ibn Jubayr saw small maksurs in the corners of the hall, separated by lattice wooden screens; The ulema used them “for copying books, for studying, or for seclusion from the crowd.” In the western part of the southern nave there was a maksura of the Hanifites, where they gathered for study and prayer. Therefore, the third medieval mihrab installed on the western side of the qibla wall began to be called Hanafi. The fourth mihrab was made in the 20th century.

In the eastern half of the southern nave, between the arches, there is a small marble structure in the form of a cube, decorated with columns and crowned with a dome - the mashhad of the head of the prophet and righteous man Yahya, the son of Zakariyya (peace be upon him). Geographer of the early 10th century. Ibn al-Faqih cites an early Muslim tradition according to which, during the construction of a mosque, workers stumbled upon a dungeon and reported it to al-Walid. At night, the Caliph himself went down into the dungeon and discovered inside “an elegant church three cubits in width and length. There was a chest in it, and in the chest there was a basket with the inscription: this is the head of Yahya, the son of Zakariya.” By order of al-Walid, the basket was placed under the pillar he indicated, “lined with marble, the fourth, eastern, known as al-Sakasika.” On the site of the present-day imposing tomb, Ibn Jubayr in 1184 saw “a wooden box between the columns, and above it a lamp like hollow crystal, like a large bowl.”

The center of the hall - the intersection of the middle nave and the transept leading to the Great Mihrab - is overshadowed by a large stone dome raised on four massive marble-clad pillars. Originally, in accordance with Syrian tradition, the dome was apparently made of wood. Al-Muqaddasi claims that its top was decorated with a golden orange topped with a golden garnet. At the time of Ibn Jubayr, the dome had two shells: an outer one, lined with lead, and an inner one, made of bent wooden ribs, with a gallery between them. Through the windows of the “small dome” the traveler and his companions saw the prayer hall and the people in it, and from the “lead gallery” encircling the upper dome, they “opened up to a sight that darkened the mind” - a panorama of medieval Damascus. The highly elevated dome is still clearly visible today from different points of the Old City and serves as a landmark pointing to the sacred part of Jami' al-Umawiy - a prayer hall with a mihrab. According to Ibn Jubayr, the inhabitants of Damascus likened it to “a flying eagle: the dome itself is like a head, the passage below (transept) is like a chest, and half the wall of the right passage and half of the left (naves on the sides of the transept) are like the two wings of an eagle” and called this part an-Nasr (Eagle) mosque. When viewed from above, the body of the prayer hall truly resembles a giant bird spreading its wings.

The Umayyad Mosque in Damascus initially received everything that the main mosque of the city and state was obliged to have. One of the important features of the Great Mosque during the Caliphate era was the House of Property - Bayt al-mal, the storage place for the treasury of the Muslim community. The bayt al-mal of the Damascus mosque, still standing on the west side of the courtyard, may have been the earliest Islamic structure of this type.

Its shape resembles an octagonal box with a dome lid lined with sheet lead.

The body of the "box" is composed of alternating courses of stone and brick and is protected by being raised high on eight smooth marble columns with magnificently carved Corinthian capitals, and a small door in its north-western face can only be reached by a ladder. All eight sides of the treasury were lined with smalt mosaics with patterns and architectural landscapes on a golden background, which is why Ibn Jubair called it “beautiful as a garden.” According to him, the Damascus Bayt al-mal was built by al-Walid, and money was kept in it - income from harvests and taxes levied. Directly below the treasury, inside a ring of columns, there was a fountain with a pool surrounded by a parapet. Its purpose is not entirely clear, since a fountain for ablutions and drinking, a sabil, obligatory for every mosque, was built in the center of the courtyard and marked one of the most important points on the sacred axis of the mosque.

On the eastern side, the composition of the courtyard is “balanced” by a pavilion resembling a gazebo with a dome on eight pillars. The time and reason for its construction also remain a mystery. It has been suggested that this was the body of the famous water clock of the Damascus Mosque, however, according to Ibn Jubayr, this clock was located “to the right of the exit from Bab Jayrun”, in a room that “looks like a large round sphere with yellow copper windows open like small doors according to the number of daylight hours and driven by a mechanical device. After each hour of the day, Ibn Jubair explained, a copper weight falls from the beaks of two falcons of yellow copper, towering above two copper dishes, with one falcon located under the right door... and the second under the last one, on the left. There are holes made in both saucers, and when the nut weights fall there, they return through the inside of the wall, and now you see how both falcons stretch their necks with nuts in their beaks towards the dishes and quickly throw them thanks to an amazing mechanism, which appears in the imagination as magic. When the nuts fall into both dishes, their ringing is heard, and at the same time the door corresponding to the given hour is closed with a plate of yellow copper.” At night, the glass, inserted into 12 round lattice openings of red copper, is alternately illuminated by a lamp located behind them, “which is rotated by water at the rate of one circle per hour. After an hour, the light of the lamp covers the corresponding strip of glass and its beam falls on a round hole located opposite, and it appears as a red circle. This action then continues to the next hole until the night hours have passed and all the round holes are colored red.”

Upon completion of construction, the mosque was dressed from top to bottom in a luxurious multi-colored outfit. The lower surfaces to the height of the trunks of columns and pillars were lined with marble with large geometric patterns, set with figured tiles and strips of colored stone.

They were complemented by window grilles, delighting with the witty simplicity of the patterns, which at first glance were intricately woven. Higher up, up to the beamed ceilings, the kingdom of marble was replaced by magnificent mosaics made of miniature cubes of gold and multi-colored smalt. They represent outlandish plants and trees, spreading giant branches covered with leaves or hung with fruits, landscapes with patterned tents and multi-tiered palaces surrounded by green groves, on the banks of a deep river. These fabulous-looking compositions are consonant with the pictures of the Gardens of Eden described in the Koran, where “good dwellings” are prepared for the righteous (9:72), blessed rivers flow (47:15, 17), various kinds of shrubs and trees grow, providing shade and abundant fruits, not exhausted and not forbidden (56:11–34). According to the Arab historian Ibn Shakir (14th century), in the prayer hall “the Kaaba was placed above the mihrab, and other countries were depicted on the right and left, with everything that they produced from trees, remarkable for their fruits or flowers or other objects.”

The courtyard, decorated with outlandish landscapes, with inexhaustible sources of water and shady galleries, was in itself a paradise, where even today the residents of Damascus love to hide from the bustle of the city, the noise of the bazaar surrounding the mosque, the dust and heat of the city streets. In the Middle Ages, Damascus Jami' al-Umawiy was the heart of not only religious, spiritual, but also social life, where the townspeople communicated with each other and spent their leisure time. Ibn Jubayr noted that the courtyard of the mosque “is the most pleasant and beautiful of sights. Here is a meeting place for city residents, a place for their walks and recreation. Every evening they can be seen there moving from east to west, from the Jairun gate to the al-Barid gate. One here is talking with a friend, the other is reading the Koran.”

Over the twelve centuries of the building's existence, its precious cover has partly disappeared, partly been replaced by new decor or hidden by layers of plaster. Since the late 1920s, the hard work of researchers and restorers has gradually returned the mosque to its original appearance.

The Great Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, the creators of which willingly took advantage of the experience of previous cultures, became an example of a Muslim cathedral religious building. Remaining a one-of-a-kind architectural monument, it is responsible for many subsequent creations by architects of the Islamic world.

Tatyana Starodub-Enikeeva, Doctor of Art History, Leading Researcher at the Research Institute of Theory and History of Fine Arts of the Russian Academy of Arts, Moscow

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We came across this mosque by chance while walking through old Damascus. The Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, or otherwise the Great Mosque in Damascus, is one of the most revered and oldest in the world. From here, sermons are broadcast on television throughout Syria. Tourists can visit the mosque regardless of religion, which we actually took advantage of.

What is the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus

The mosque is huge. It is surrounded by high walls, which can be accessed through one of four gates. When entering, you must take off your shoes, which you can leave here, as we did, or take them with you. There is a small entrance fee for non-Muslims, but as far as I remember, we went through without paying money, although I could be wrong.

Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. Courtyard. Video

Passing through one of the gates, you will find yourself in a courtyard, which is paved with smooth slabs. In the heat, they heat up and it’s hot to walk on them barefoot, but in January, when we visited this place, it was, on the contrary, very cold to walk on these slabs even in socks. In the courtyard there is a fountain for ablution, which is performed before prayer.

Near the wall stands an impressively sized cart: according to some sources, this is a ramming device that remained after Tamerlane’s assault on Damascus; according to others, this is a war chariot from the times of Ancient Rome. By the way, in the Roman era, on the site of this mosque stood the Temple of Jupiter, and in the Byzantine era - a Christian church.

Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. Prayer hall. Video

From the courtyard you enter an impressively sized prayer hall. The floor is covered with patterned carpets, the design of which marks places for prayer.

The relaxed behavior of people is surprising and pleasing: parishioners sit or even lie on the floor, read, take photographs, and communicate. There are cabinets with books near the walls, apparently you can take them out and read them.

• One of the mosque's three minarets is named after Jesus. Muslims revere Jesus as a prophet, but do not accept that He is the Son of God. According to the prophecy, Isa (as Muslims call Jesus) will descend along this minaret to earth before the Last Judgment. They are waiting for Jesus, and the imam changes the carpet in front of the minaret every day; His foot must step on this carpet.
• In the center of the prayer hall there is the grave of another prophet known to Christians - John the Baptist. Or rather, the head of the Baptist is buried here. They found it when they built this mosque on the site of a Christian temple. Muslims, just like Christians, revere John the Baptist, calling him Yahya. The matter with this relic is unclear to this day: there are several heads of the prophet and their fragments. They are located in France, and in Italy, and in Nagorno-Karabakh, and in Greece on Mount Athos. Researchers count as many as twelve.

Muslims from all over the world try to find themselves at least once in their lives in the Umayyad mosque. It is one of the most majestic temple buildings in Syria. For the architectural heritage of the state, the value of the building is considered truly colossal. In addition, its location is very symbolic. For the temple is in Damascus. It is the oldest metropolis in the world. Read the description of the Umayyad Mosque below.

Oldest city

So, this cultural and architectural monument is located in the Syrian capital. Scientists believe that the city was founded about a thousand years ago. At the moment, it is rightfully the largest religious center in the entire Levant. And its highlight is the Umayyad Mosque.

Let us remember that the Levant is all the states of the eastern Mediterranean. Among them are Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, etc.

By the way, at one time the Apostle Paul visited the city of Damascus. After this, a new religious movement arose in the capital, which began to be called Christianity. By the way, the city is mentioned several times in the Bible.

Ancient history

In ancient times, the Syrian capital was conquered by the king of the Israeli state, David. And in 333 BC. e. Alexander the Great invaded this territory and captured the city. Several centuries later, the city of Damascus recognized the power of Rome.

On the site where the mosque now stands, there was a temple of Hadad. In this territory, the ancient Arameans held their respective services. By the way, a basalt stele from that building has survived.

When the power of the Roman governors extended to the territory of Damascus, the temple was destroyed. And in its place a sanctuary of Jupiter was built. Later it became known as the Church of John the Baptist.

Note that in those days, for seven decades, the church became a refuge for both Christians and Muslims. Services were held simultaneously for these denominations. At the same time, having conquered Damascus in 636, the Arabs not only did not destroy the structure, but also erected a small extension of bricks near the temple.

Destruction of a Roman basilica

Meanwhile, the city began to turn into a real capital of a large caliphate. And the number of Muslims has increased greatly. And the huge Roman temple was no longer able to accommodate everyone. Accordingly, adherents of Christianity turned out to be superfluous.

By this time, the caliphs understood that it was high time to build their own sanctuary in the city, as in Al-Kufa, Mecca, Basra, and Medina. This structure was supposed to differ for the better from Christian churches. It would counter them with the beauty of its decoration and architecture. But before construction began, the church was initially bought from Christians, and then completely destroyed.

By the way, subsequently all Christian religious buildings were destroyed. Some of them were turned into mosques. At the moment, only St. Mary's Church has been preserved. It is now considered the main cathedral of the Antioch Patriarchate.

Construction of a mosque

Having destroyed the Roman basilica, Arab architects began the actual construction of a mosque on the same site. Construction work lasted one decade. Twelve thousand workers were involved in them.

The Damascus authorities spent all the financial resources that were then in the Syrian treasury on construction.

Also, famous architects from Persia, India and the Maghreb were involved in the work process.

In addition, a number of rulers of the Levant decided to contribute to the construction of the structure, providing a colossal amount of precious stones for this purpose.

Architecture of the building

As a result, the Umayyad Mosque (Syria) really turned out to be majestic and very beautiful. It was separated from the city by thick walls.

You can enter the building from four sides through gates. By the way, at the left entrance there is a large wooden cart on huge wheels. Many believe that this structure is a ramming device. According to them, the great Tamerlane abandoned it when he stormed Damascus. Others believe that this cart is an ancient Roman war chariot.

Behind the gate is a courtyard lined with black and white marble slabs. Its length is 125 m and its width is 50. It is decorated with images of the Gardens of Eden and mosaics. By the way, this mosaic is rightfully considered the best decoration of the mosque. They say that they invited Constantinople craftsmen to make it. True, for a long time the mosaic was hidden under a large layer of plaster. And only in 1927 were restorers able to restore its former beauty.

There is a fountain and ablution pool in the center of the courtyard. As for the floor of the prayer hall, it is covered with carpets. There are almost 5 thousand of them there. Believers donated them to the mosque.

Minarets

Three minarets rise above the temple. They have been preserved almost in their original form. But, unfortunately, not all.

The oldest minaret is located in the northern part of the wall that surrounds the temple. The name of the structure is Al-Arouk Minaret. Alas, it is difficult to say what it looked like after construction. And after regular restoration work, the top of the building is made exclusively in modern style.

The minaret, which is located in the western part of the mosque, was named Al-Gharbiya. It was built in the fifteenth century and was crowned with a rather sharp spire.

Well, the southeastern minaret bears the name Isu, or Jesus. According to legend, when the Last Judgment comes, Christ will descend this minaret and end up in the mosque. After this, he must resurrect a prophet named Yahya. Then they will go to Jerusalem, where they will establish true justice throughout the Earth. By the way, this is why every day a completely new carpet is always laid in the place where Jesus steps.

Hussein Chapel

The huge mosque building also has its own secrets. So, in the depths of the courtyard, among the columns of the gallery, there is a small door that leads to the so-called. Hussein's chapel. It is perhaps one of the main shrines of the temple. It is in this building, in a capsule, that Hussein’s head is kept. He was the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and is considered a martyr. He was killed in one of the battles back in 681, and his head was cut off. After this she was taken to Damascus. By order of the Syrian ruler, the head was hung on the gates of the city. At one time, it was in this place that the legendary King Herod exhibited the head of John the Baptist. But we will return to this a little later.

When Hussein died, the birds, according to legend, began to make only sad trills. And all the townspeople were crying. The ruler of Syria repented and ordered the head to be placed in a tomb made of gold. Then she was placed in a crypt, and a little later - in a mosque.

In addition, adherents of Islam believe that the hair of the Prophet Muhammad lies in the chapel. Allegedly, he cut them while he was in Mecca. Note that the prophet was then in the city for the last time.

Head of John the Baptist (Prophet Yahya)

In the center of the mosque there is also a capsule with the head of John the Baptist. In Rus' he is called John the Baptist, in the Muslim world he is called Yahya.

This shrine was found completely by accident. When construction work on the construction of the mosque had just begun, Syrian architects were laying the foundation. It was then that the grave was found. Believers claim that this was the burial place of John the Baptist. Be that as it may, the ruler ordered the grave to be preserved. As a result, she remained in the same place where she was found later. It is located in the very center of the courtyard.

The tomb is made of white marble. It is surrounded by glass niches. Through them, believers can put a photograph or memorial note inside. In addition, there you can give money to this saint as a gift.

To be honest, the story has not yet been fully clarified. They say that the grave of the Prophet Yahya contains only part of his relics. Other parts of the head are found in Amiens, Athos and Rome.

Rules for visiting the temple

The Umayyad Mosque in Damascus is considered a very hospitable place. And for people of absolutely any religion. Guests and believers, as a rule, always behave quite relaxed. They can pray, sit, read, lie down and even sleep. And small children love to roll on the marble slabs of the yard. At the same time, the temple servants always treat everyone calmly and democratically. They never judge anyone, much less kick them out.

Guests of Damascus visit the Umayyad Mosque for a nominal fee. However, tourists are not allowed on Friday. When entering the temple, you must remove your shoes. It can be given to servants for safekeeping. True, for an additional fee. Otherwise, you should carry your shoes with you. Representatives of the fairer sex are given special black capes.

An important detail: in Syria the climate is very hot. And that is why the marble floor in the great mosque of Damascus is often literally heated to the limit. Accordingly, it is simply impossible to move on such a surface. In a word, tourists in such a situation take socks with them.

Tests

The Umayyad Mosque, the relics and shrines of which we examined, also went through a number of serious tests. Thus, some parts of the temple burned repeatedly. In addition, the building was damaged by natural disasters. Three times terrible earthquakes struck the temple. The Mongols, Ottomans and Seljuks also invaded the territory of Damascus. After such raids, the temple seemed to be completely destroyed. But despite this, the mosque was quickly restored. And the capital of Syria is still proud of this unique cultural monument.