Qasr Kharana, desert castle, Jordan. This room has a vaulted ceiling, pilasters, small slit windows and shows a Sassanid influence. This building was built c. 710 in the early Umayyad period under the Caliph Walid I although its purpose is unknown. It did not have a military function. It is a square building with small projecting corner turrets and a projecting round entrance seen here on the South side. It has 60 rooms inside over two floors around a central courtyard where rain is collected. The small slit windows are for light and ventilation. It fell out of use and was damaged by several earthquakes before being rediscovered in 1901 and restored in the 1970s. Picture by Manuel Cohen
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