The walls
Half-round towers.
Vyacheslav Argenberg — CC BY 4.0 · Vyacheslav Argenberg — CC BY 4.0 · Vyacheslav Argenberg — CC BY 4.0 · Vyacheslav Argenberg — CC BY 4.0 · Vyacheslav Argenberg — CC BY 4.0
Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi is an Umayyad castle in the heart of the Syrian Desert, about 28 km from the town of al-Sukhnah. It is one of the Umayyad desert castles, built by the caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik in 728 or 729 in an area rich in desert wildlife, and seems to have been a military post and hunting lodge. It was built a year after its counterpart, Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi, and like other Umayyad buildings it shows Byzantine and Sasanian influences. It has three main parts, the Small Enclosure, the Large Enclosure and the Outer Enclosure. During the recent war years the site was looted and vandalised, and it returned to state control in 2017. You see high sand-coloured walls of stone and brick guarded by huge half-round towers, and a main gate between two great towers. Inside are wide courtyards with columns and fallen arches, with the silent desert stretching away on every side. The golden stone looks finest in morning and late-afternoon light. Palmyra is about 94 km away in a straight line. The road crosses remote desert, so carry enough water. Some photos here predate the recent war years. The UK Foreign Office currently advises against all travel to Syria, and British consular help is not available there, so check official guidance before making any plans.
Half-round towers.
Between two towers.
Columns and arches.
Near al-Sukhnah, Syrian Desert, Syria
The Umayyad caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik.
It is remote desert, so ask locally before going.