with a typical Damascene courtyard|241x241pxDamascus has a wealth of historical sites dating back to many different periods of the city's history. Since the city has been built up with every passing occupation, it has become almost impossible to excavate all the ruins of Damascus that lie up to below the modern level. The
Citadel of Damascus is located in the northwest corner of the Old City. The
Damascus Straight Street (referred to in the
conversion of
St. Paul in
Acts 9:11), also known as the
Via Recta, was the
decumanus (east–west main street) of Roman Damascus, and extended for over . Today, it consists of the street of Bab Sharqi and the Souk Medhat Pasha, a covered market. The
Bab Sharqi street is filled with small shops and leads to the old Christian quarter of
Bab Tuma (St. Thomas's Gate).
Medhat Pasha Souq is also a main market in Damascus and was named after
Midhat Pasha, the Ottoman governor of Syria who renovated the Souk. At the end of the Bab Sharqi street, one reaches the
House of Ananias, an underground chapel that was the cellar of
Ananias's house. The
Umayyad Mosque, also known as the Grand Mosque of Damascus, is one of the largest mosques in the world and also one of the oldest sites of continuous prayer since the rise of Islam. A shrine in the mosque is said to contain the body of
St. John the Baptist. The
mausoleum where
Saladin was buried is located in the gardens just outside the mosque.
Sayyidah Ruqayya Mosque, the shrine of the youngest daughter of
Husayn ibn Ali, can also be found near the Umayyad Mosque. The ancient district of
Amara is also within a walking distance from these sites.
Khans •
Khan Jaqmaq, completed in 1420. •
Khan al-Harir, completed in 1574. •
Khan Sulayman Pasha, completed in 1736, named after
Sulayman Pasha al-Azm. • ''
Khan As'ad Pasha'', completed in 1752, covering an area of . Situated along Al-Buzuriyah Souq, it was built and named after As'ad Pasha al-Azm.
Souqs •
Midhat Pasha Souq, (built after 64 BC) named after the then
Ottoman governor of Syria (and later
Grand Vizier)
Midhat Pasha. •
Al-Buzuriyah Souq, in length. •
Al-Hamidiyah Souq, built (1780–1884) during the reign of Sultan
Abdul Hamid I, and 15 meters wide, and completed during the rule of
Constantius II, previously a temple dedicated to
Hadad-Ramman, the god of thunderstorms and rain. •
Damascus Straight Street (), a
Roman street (
Decumanus Maximus) which runs from east to west in the old city, 1,500 metres in length.
11th-13th centuries •
Citadel of Damascus, built (1076–1078) and (1203–1216) by
Turkmen warlord
Atsiz ibn Uvaq, and
Al-Adil I. •
Nur al-Din Bimaristan, a large medieval
bimaristan ("hospital"), built and named after the
Zengid Sultan
Nur ad-Din in 1154. •
Mausoleum of Saladin, built in 1196, the resting place and grave of the medieval Muslim
Ayyubid Sultan Saladin.
17th-19th centuries •
Beit al-Mamlouka, a 17th-century Damascene house, serving as a luxury
boutique hotel within the old city since 2005. •
Azm Palace, built in 1750 as a residence for the
Ottoman governor of Damascus
As'ad Pasha al-Azm. •
Beit Al-Sibai house completed 1773-1774 (1184
Hijra). •
Bait Nizam 18th •
Bayt Farhi 18th-19th •
Maktab Anbar, a mid 19th-century Jewish private mansion, restored by the
Ministry of Culture in 1976 to serve as a library, exhibition centre, museum and craft workshops.
Madrasas •
Al-Joqmoqiyya Madrasa •
al-Nuriyya al-Kubra Madrasa, built in 1167 by
Nūr ad-Dīn Zangī. •
The Great Al-Adiliyah Madrasa, a 13th-century
madrasah named after Ayyubid
Al-Adil I •
Al-Zahiriyah Library, established in 1277, taking its name from its founder Mamluk Sultan
Baibars. •
Al-Fathiyah Madrasa, built in 1743 by an Ottoman official named Fethi Al-Defterdar. •
Al-Qaymariyya Madrasa •
Al-Joqmoqiyya Madrasa •
Al-Zahiriyah Madrasa, established in 1277, taking its name from its founder Sultan
Baibars. •
Al-Qilijiyah Madrasa, established in 1254.
Places of worship Mosques •
Umayyad Mosque or the
Great Mosque of Damascus, a mosque built between 705 and 715 on the site of
Aramean Temple of Hadad, which was converted into the
Temple of Jupiter, then into a
Christian basilica which was dedicated to
John the Baptist (
Yahya). •
Sayyidah Ruqayya Mosque contains the grave of
Sukayna bint Husayn, also known as Ruqayyah, the young daughter of
Al-Husayn ibn ‘Alī. •
Sinan Pasha Mosque an Ottoman-era mosque built in 1590, it was built upon another mosque called "Al-Basal mosque". • Al-Yaghushiyya Mosque • Al-Qali Mosque • Taftafiyya Mosque • Al-Khandaq Mosque • Al-Habbubi Mosque • Al-Bashura Mosque • Jafar Al-Saqid Mosque
Churches . •
House of Saint Ananias, an ancient underground structure in
Damascus, Syria, that is alleged to be the remains of the home of
Ananias of Damascus, where Ananias baptized Saul (who became
Paul the Apostle). •
Cathedral of the Dormition of Our Lady, also called "Greek-Melkite Patriarchal Cathedral of the Dormition of Our Lady", the Catholic cathedral of
Melkite Greek Church. •
Mariamite Cathedral of Damascus, the seat of the
Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch. After the
Muslim conquest of Damascus the church was closed until 706 AD when
al-Walid ordered to return it to the Christians as a compensation for the Church of John the Baptist which was turned into the
Umayyad Mosque. • al-Zeitoun Church Greek Catholic Patriarchate and Seminary •
Chapel of Saint Paul •
Cathedral of Saint George •
Syriac Catholic Cathedral of Saint Paul Synagogues •
Al-Faranj Synagogue •
Al-Raki Synagogue •
Menarsha Synagogue Gates The old part of the city is surrounded with thick, walls, pierced by the seven historical gates, the eighth gate was added later by Muslims. These are, clockwise from the north-east side: •
Bab Tuma (Gate of Thomas), dedicated to
Venus. •
Bab Sharqi (The Eastern Gate), dedicated to the Sun. •
Bab Kisan (Kisan Gate), dedicated to
Saturn. •
Bab al-Saghir (also called "Goristan-e-Ghariban"), dedicated to
Jupiter. •
Bab al-Jabiyah (Gate of the Water Trough), dedicated to
Mars. •
Bab al-Faradis (The Gate of the Paradise), dedicated to
Mercury. •
Bab al-Salam (The Gate of Peace), dedicated to the Moon. •
Bab al-Faraj (The Gate of Deliverance), a gate which was built completely after the
Muslim conquest of the Levant.
Hammams The presence of public baths (
ḥammāms) in Damascus started during the
Umayyad era, while some historians date them back to the
Roman era. The Damascene baths were mentioned by a number of Damascus historians, such as
Ibn 'Asakir (1106–1175 AD) in his famous book "The History of Damascus". There, Ibn 'Asakir named 77
hammams working at that time in the city. The historian
Ibn Shaddad counted 114 baths in Damascus in 1250 AD. The number of these baths increased to 365 during the
Ottoman era, then fell to reach 60 baths in the late 19th century. Since then, the number of baths in full operation has decreased to barely 20, the most well-preserved being the "
Nur al-Din al-Shahid" bath in use since around 1160 in the
Al-Buzuriyah Souq. • Hammam Al-Malek Al-Zaher • Hammam Nour Ed-din the Martyr • Hammam Al-Bakri ==Districts and subdivisions==