Hisham's Palace

Khirbat al-Mafjar / قصر هشام

Palestine · Jericho and Al-Aghwar

PalaceIntermittent excavation
Approximate period724 CE — 950 CEUmayyad and later Early Islamic periods See on the map ↓

In brief

The site north of Jericho consists of a palace, baths, a mosque and buildings associated with an agricultural estate. Excavations and surveys of the surrounding area have shown that the complex was supplied by an advanced water system.

What was found?

  • 1Tree of Life mosaic

    It is a colorful mosaic on the floor of the reception room known as the diwan. The depictions of a tree and animals show the place of figurative decoration in Umayyad palace art.

  • 2Mosaics of the great hall

    Mosaic panels with different patterns cover the floor of the great reception hall. Their preservation together allows the flooring art of the early Islamic period to be studied in detail.

  • 3Carved stucco decorations

    These are plaster-based decorations adorning the halls and the diwan. Floral and geometric patterns, together with human figures, reveal the building's rich decorative program.

  • 4Star-shaped window

    It is a rosette- or star-shaped architectural element found in the main courtyard during excavation. It is a striking example of the palace's stonework.

  • 5Water conveyance system

    It consists of aqueducts, channels, bridges and a large reservoir. It reveals the shared water infrastructure of the palace, baths and agricultural land.

What does it point to?

The decorations point to the living environment of the Umayyad elite, which brought together different artistic traditions. According to researchers, the water system and surrounding agricultural land show that the palace stood at the center of a large agricultural estate.

What did it teach us?

  1. Showed that depictions of humans and animals were used in early Islamic palace art.
  2. Revealed that Byzantine and Sasanian artistic traditions were reworked in Umayyad architecture.
  3. Showed that understanding the palace's economic foundations also requires studying the surrounding agriculture and water infrastructure.

Images

Hisham Palace in Jericho2
Randa Fawzi · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Record

Culture
Umayyad; Abbasid
First modern dig
1935
Team / historical
Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and University of Chicago
Coordinates
31.8825°, 35.4597°

Sources

  1. whc.unesco.org
  2. pef.org.uk
  3. en.wikipedia.org
  4. UNESCO Dünya Mirası Merkezi — Filistin'in Geçici Liste dosyası

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