Name: Qasr Azraq
Country: Jordan
City: Azraq
GPS: 31.880208 36.827282
Gibson Classification: Petra
Rebuilt facing Mecca: Never
Mosque: The mosque faces the Between Qibla
For a Link to the Qibla Tool Click Here
Description:
The strategic significance of this Qasr is that it lies in the middle of the Azraq oasis, the only permanent source of fresh water in approximately 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 sq miles) of desert. Over the centuries, several civilizations are known to have occupied the site for its strategic value in this remote and arid desert area.
The area was inhabited by the Nabataean people but around 200 CE fell under the control of the Romans. The Romans built a stone structure using the local basalt stone that formed a basis for later constructions on the site. The history of the construction of the Qasr not clear, but the site was used by the Byzantines later by the Umayyads.
The Qasr as we know it today was constructed by Umayyad caliph Walid II, who used it for hunting and as a military base to defent the region. It underwent restoration in 1237 CE, when ‘Izz ad-Din Aybak, an emir of the Ayyubids fortified it further. The fortress in its present form is said to date to this period but no scholarly excavations have determined if this is true.
Later in the 16th century the Ottoman Turks stationed a garrison there, and T. E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) made the fortress his desert headquarters during the winter of 1917, during the Great Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire. His office was in the chamber above the entrance gatehouse. It had an additional advantage in modern warfare: the flat nearby desert was an ideal place to build an airfield.
The Qasr was built with the south west wall facing the City of Mecca. The internal mosque was constructed later, and had a Between Qibla.
The Qasr is made of black rock, while the mosque has a whiter cement roof. (center of the Qasr)
The Qasr was built so that the south west wall directly faced Petra.
Azraq is built of black rock. Several structures are three stories tall.
These are stairs to a second floor. Would you dare to go up?
The mihrab at the back of the mosque.
Inside the arches are set on round pillars with the mihrab nice set into the south facing wall. The mosque qibla is towards the Between Qibla.
The ceiling is made of longer rocks laid between the arches.
This mosque has a combination of square corners and round pillars. Note the round pillars on each side of the mihrab.
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