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 | Aleppo Umayyad Mosque Reviews | Tips 1 - 10 of 28 |  |
 | |  |  | Umayyad Mosque: Omayyad Mosque of Aleppo | Tip Rating:    |  |  | |  |
The Great (Omayyad) Mosque of Aleppo was first built in 715 AD, only 10 years after its namesake mosque in Damascus. Much like the Damascus mosque, the site chosen for the construction had been used for worship for centuries, first as a Semitic temple, then a Roman temple which later became the Byzantine Cathedral of Saint Helena's (mother of Constantine the Great). In fact, the mosque was constructed only on the gardens and courtyard of St Helena's, leaving the adjacent Cathedral intact for use by Christians until the 12th century. Over the years, the mosque suffered several tragic destructions caused by earthquakes, fires and invasions. The most damaging one came at the hands of the Mongols when they invaded Syria in the 13th century. Only the stunning 11th century square Minaret survived the invasions to this day, while the rest of the edifice dates from the reconstruction following the Mongol invasion. The mosque has a spacious courtyard and a vaulted prayer hall, which contains the shrine of Zachariah, father of John the Baptist (whose shrine is in the Omayyad Mosque of Damascus). For more photos of this architectural masterpiece, check out my travelogue "The Omayyad Mosque of Aleppo." Directions: In the Old City, north of the Souk
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| | | | Umayyad Mosque: Great Mosque | Tip Rating: | | | | |
Aleppo's Great Mosque or Al Jamaa al Kebir, has several alternative names, including, confusingly, like its twin mosque in Damascus, the Umayyad Mosque. The Great Mosque was built between 705 and 715 AD, making it just 10 years' younger than the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, which it looks very similar to. The mosque is arranged into a rectangle of about 150m x 100m ,with a large courtyard in the middle . There is a gate in each of the four sides allowing access into the mosque through the courtyard, apart from the eastern gate which connects straight to the prayer hall. Foreign visitors are charged a small admission fee, but are free to wander anywhere inside the mosque and take photos. Leave a Comment
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