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Mosque Name: Anjar Palace Mosque

Country: Lebanon

City: Anjar

Year of construction (AH): 95 AH

Year of construction (AD): 714 AD

GPS: 33°43’55.23”N 35°56’1.79”E

ArchNet: http://archnet.org/sites/3711

Gibson Classification: Petra

Rebuilt facing Mecca: never


Description:

The Anjar Mosque is located 58 kilometers from Beirut, just a short distance from the Litani River. Anjar is the only exclusively Umayyad site in Lebanon. Its name originates from the term “’Ayn Gerrah” which means “the source of Gerrah” in Arabic, referring to an ancient fortress in the region. Commissioned by the Umayyad Caliph al-Walid, son of ’Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan in the early 8th century, it prospered as a trading city, situated strategically at the crossroad of the north-south and east-west trade routes. However, by the conclusion of Umayyad political domination, no more than thirty years later, Anjar fell rapidly into disrepair and eventually was abandoned. Historically, it remains unique as the only inland commercial center in Lebanon. The entire complex including the palace and mosque are built with an orientation pointing towards Petra.

Dan Gibson goes into more detail on Anjar in his book Early Islamic Qiblas under the chapter on Obtaining Qibla Calculations.

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Anjar from the air.

Anjar from the air.

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Anjar City Plan (in French)

Anjar City Plan (in French)

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References:

Finster, Barbara, 2003. “Researches in ‘Anjar. I. Preliminary Report on the Architecture of ‘Anjar”, BAAL 7: 209-244.

Chehab, Hafez K., 1993. “On the Identification of ʿAnjar (ʿAyn al-Jarr) as an Umayyad Foundation”, Muqarnas 10, Essays in Honor of Oleg Grabar: 42-48.

Ory, Solange, 1967. “Les graffitis omeyyades de ʿAyn al-Garr”, Bulletin du Musie de Beyrouth 20: 97-148.

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