Damascus Bab al-Saghir tombs
Syria, History, 11/10/2000

One will not find anything about the Cemetery of Bab Saghir in tour books about old Damascus because travel writers do not seem to regard cemeteries as sites to see. Nonetheless, graveyards often tell more about the history of a city than do public monuments.

When it comes to Damascus, the world's oldest continuously inhabited city, a trip to Bab Saghir Cemetery is definitely worth the effort, particularly if one is interested in Islamic history.

For the benefit of interested foreigners, the best way to find the historical cemetery is to inquire of merchants or ask a taxi driver to take them to Bab Saghir (in Arabic it means little gate) in the southwest sector of the Old City.

What will a visitor find? The actual tomb of Muawiyah, the first Umayyad Caliph of the Arab Empire who reigned from 661 to 680: Bilal the first Muezzin ( the man who calls the faithful to prayer) in Islam: and the tomb of the martyrs of the battle of Karbala which occurred in 681 in Iraq.

History tells us that the political conflict between the Umayyads of Damascus and other Arab parties came to a head at the battle of Karbala. Hussein, the second son of Imam Ali, and the grandson of the prophet Muhammad led the adversaries of the Umyyads. Three of Hussein's comrades in arms are believed to be buried in Bab Saghir cemetery.

Of these persons are the smaller Zeinab ( Um Kulthum), daughter of Ali and sister of Hussein; Sukainah, daughter of Hussein and great grand-daughter of the prophet Muhammad, and Abdullah Bin Zein al-Abidin, son of Husein. The stories are legion as to the burial place of Zeinab.

Some say she was buried in Cairo, Medina and other Islamic cities.

Although of great religious import to the Shiite, the tombs of these three are reputed to have been relatively simple burials until around 1910 when an Ottoman governor constructed a triple-domed mosque to contain them. Visitors will have no difficulty locating the mosque since the domes and minaret are painted green..

This is definitely a woman's mosque, few men are observed on the grounds. On any Friday, women covered in black chador place garlands on tomb stones and enter the exotic green onion- domed mosque ablaze with lights from crystal chandeliers to chant the prayers.

Proceeding south-west from Bab Saghir, one will pass another green-domed tomb that houses the grave of Bilal, the black servant of Muhammad, who died in Damascus. Nearby is a small marble mausoleum containing the tombs of the Damascus Azm family built by Muhammad Fawzi Pasha al-Azm.

In the oldest sector of the graveyard, one will find the tombs of Muawiya and Ibn Asaker ( historian and traveler ( 1105-1175), the famous Damascene historian.

Interspersed among the grave stones and mausoleums of the famous are poignant tombs where small size indicate they contain children. Ornate iron grill trellises of a century ago and a myriad stone stelae marking graves of the city's rich and not too rich tell a tale of remarkable city and the people who made it so.

Previous Stories:
  Al Sayeda Zeinab Mosque, between originality and modernization   (9/6/2000)
  Book review: Arts of administrative writing   (1/30/1999)
  Aleppo: An ancient city molded by a history of commerce   (12/2/1998)
  Collapse of the Umayyad empire   (4/29/1998)
  Caliph Yazid and the Umayyad dynasties   (3/23/1998)
  Two churches dug out in Palmyra   (10/27/1997)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search