We took a trip out East, to the White Desert, close to the Saudi border. The White Desert is the subject of my next blog post. But on the way there, we stopped at two of the famous “Desert Castles”. Both are significant and unusual buildings from Jordan’s early Islamic period.
They belong to the era of the Umayyads, the first dynasty of caliphs to rule the Muslim world following the death of the Prophet Mohammed (the Prophet died in 632 AD, the Umayyads ruled 661 to 750 AD). The Umayyad caliphs made their capital at Damascus, but maintained close connections with the desert, the historic homeland of the Arabs. The Umayyads were great builders, and their most important legacy in Jordan is the buildings they constructed in remote locations across the Eastern Desert. These are collectively known as the Desert Castles, though most didn’t have a military function. I’ve already been to one – Qasr Mshatta – which I visited in August.
Our first stop on this journey was Qasr Kharana, an imposing stone edifice by the side of Highway 40. A massive square structure, it has high walls, with round towers at each corner. A single gate leads to an internal courtyard, surrounded by living quarters on two levels. The rooms are organised in eight self-contained suites – the Arabic word is “bayt” – comprising bedrooms around a central reception room. The Qasr is remarkably well preserved, though it has suffered earthquake damage on several occasions.
We were given an informative and entertaining tour by Mubarak, one of the warders. He pointed out Greek inscriptions on some of the stones, which suggest the Qasr had been built using recycled material from a much earlier structure. Graffiti in one of the upper rooms dates the building to 710 AD, though it could be even older than that.
But what was Qasr Kharana built for? It looks like a castle, but the towers can’t be manned, and the arrow-slits are in fact ventilation shafts, an early form of air-conditioning (it is pleasantly cool inside). Perhaps it was a roadside inn, a caravanserai for merchants and travellers crossing the desert? But it is a large building for such a remote location, and it lacks its own water source. The truth is: nobody knows why it was built. The best guess is it was some form of meeting house, where the caliph could hold occasional conferences with tribal chieftains. Political power always depends on a degree of illusion. The scale and grandeur of Qasr Kharana would have been enough to awe the caliph’s subjects; it didn’t matter that it wasn’t practically useful as a stronghold.
The next “castle” on our journey, Qusayr Amra, was even less useful: it was a bathhouse. On the outside, it doesn’t look much, but the delights are all within: the walls are covered with frescoes, which were painted around 730-740 AD. They are an extremely rare example of the rich decorative culture of the Umayyads; there is nothing else like this anywhere in the world. In recognition of its importance, Qusayr Amra is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of the six places in Jordan with that designation.
Why did an Umayyad caliph build a fancy painted bathhouse out here in the desert? Unlike Qasr Kharana, Qusayr Amra does have a water source, the nearby Wadi Butm. Even at this dry time of year greenery grows in the shallow riverbed. To this oasis, the caliph came seeking seclusion, a retreat from the public scrutiny of court life at Damascus. Here he could enjoy some relaxation and recreation, away from judgemental eyes.
When he looked at the frescoes decorating the inside of Qusayr Amra, the caliph would have seen a vision of paradise. Here were lush gardens and fruitful orchards, exotic animals, and scenes of hunting and feasting. And on almost every wall, naked women. It was a bathhouse after all, so you wouldn’t expect them to keep their clothes on!
It is thought the caliph in question was Walid Ibn Yazid (790-744 AD), who had the Qusayr built while he was crown prince, before his brief reign as Walid II (743-44). He was also responsible for the palace of Qasr Mshatta. As I mentioned in my earlier post, Walid was notoriously decadent, and devoted himself to having a good time in his desert retreats, rather than attending to matters of state in Damascus. The frescoes at Qusayr Amra are an eloquent testament to a hedonistic lifestyle.
One wonders how the frescoes survived. Later Muslim rulers ordered the obliteration of all images because they regarded them as idolatrous. And these paintings would have been particularly offensive to them, because of the nudity, and the sinful pleasures they represent. But it seems Qusayr Amra’s remote location helped it to escape destruction. And it is a secular building, a bathhouse – the purging of images tended to be directed at religious buildings and seats of power.
Whatever the reason, happily the frescoes remain for all to enjoy, and have recently been conserved and given improved protection from the elements.
After our short breaks to discover the histories of Qasr Kharana and Qusayr Amra, we continued our journey eastward, to the town of Azraq, and then on to the White Desert…
Home in Amman 
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