Qasr Burqu' is a set of

ruins Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

and an

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or recorded history, historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline ...

in the ''badia'' of eastern

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

and is the site of one of the earliest of the

Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a membe ...

desert castles The desert castles or ''qasrs'' are often called Umayyad desert castles, since the vast majority of these fortified palaces or castles were built by the Umayyad dynasty in their province of Bilad ash-Sham, with a few Abbasid exceptions. The des ...

Background

Under the

Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a member o ...

, nobles and wealthy families belonging to the Umayyad dynasty erected new complexes or adapted preexisting ones for a multitude of purposes, many being suggested: to control the roads, monitor and tax the seasonal movement of people and their

livestock Livestock are the Domestication, domesticated animals that are raised in an Agriculture, agricultural setting to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, Egg as food, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The t ...

, impress travellers and local tribes, establish nuclei for the development of new cities, develop agriculture in semi-arid areas, and enjoy desert retreats for relaxation and hunting (see

Desert castles The desert castles or ''qasrs'' are often called Umayyad desert castles, since the vast majority of these fortified palaces or castles were built by the Umayyad dynasty in their province of Bilad ash-Sham, with a few Abbasid exceptions. The des ...

History

Ghadir Burqu () has been occupied since prehistoric times, with archaeological surveys documenting sites dating to the

Epipalaeolithic In archaeology, the Epipalaeolithic or Epipaleolithic (sometimes Epi-paleolithic etc.) is a period occurring between the Upper Paleolithic and Neolithic during the Stone Age. Mesolithic also falls between these two periods, and the two are someti ...

Early Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wi ...

, and

Late Neolithic In the Near Eastern archaeology, archaeology of Southwest Asia, the Late Neolithic, also known as the Ceramic Neolithic or Pottery Neolithic, is the final part of the Neolithic period, following on from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic and preceding th ...

periods.Betts, A.V. G. (ed), ''The Harra and the Hamad: Excavations and Explorations in Eastern Jordan,'' Sheffield Academic Press, Sheffield, UK, Chapter 1 The most substantial prehistoric remains are from the Late Neolithic period ( 7th–6th millennium BCE), when the lake was used by nomadic herders to pasture flocks of sheep and goat, probably in the summer months when water was scarce elsewhere. Archaeological excavations reveal that a Roman fort was established on the site and a monastery was built there during the Byzantine period. It became an Umayyad castle complex in around 700 CE when

al-Walid I Al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (; – 23 February 715), commonly known as al-Walid I (), was the sixth Umayyad caliph, ruling from October 705 until his death in 715. He was the eldest son of his predecessor, Caliph Abd al-Malik (). As ...

, who was still

emir Emir (; ' (), also Romanization of Arabic, transliterated as amir, is a word of Arabic language, Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocratic, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person po ...

, rather than

caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

, either built it, or repaired existing structures to form a new palace complex. Qasr Burqu' is one of the earliest of the Umayyad

in Jordan.Helms, S., "A New Architectural Survey of Qaṣr Burquʽ, Eastern Jordan", Vol. 71, September 1991, pp 191-215; Helmes, S., "A New Architectural Survey of Qasr Burqu', Eastern Jordan, ''The Antiquaries Journal,'' Volume 71, xford University Press 1991, pp 191-193

Location and description

Although it is often described as one of the Umayyad desert castles, Svend Helms notes "it is neither a castle, nor is it in the desert" and most of the structures predate the Umayyad Caliphate. It counts as one of the lesser desert castles in Jordan. Qasr Burqu' is located in the far northeast of Jordan and is one of a number of Umayyad desert castles in the semi-arid region. It is situated in the black basalt desert, about 100 km east of ad-Diyatheh, 70 km south-east of an-Namara, and about 2 km from the Wadi Minqat, which holds water from the winter rains. It sits on the edge of an oasis formed on the edge of a basalt region in eastern Jordan. The site was important due to its natural shallow basin, which collected rain waters in ponds.Kennedy & Riley, p. 71 Various water-catchment systems, of uncertain origin and unknown date, have been added to the site over time, in order to sustain larger populations that may have lived in the area at different times. The site's most significant surviving structure is a 5-metre tower, probably of Roman origin, and originally estimated to have been 13 metres in height. The early Islamic palace complex was constructed around the Roman tower. The enclosures are constructed of basalt, and were used to pen animals by nomadic peoples attracted to the location to water their herds. Rock-carved inscriptions show that Bedouin tribes used the site as a seasonal encampment each spring throughout the Medieval period.

Conservation and tourism

The

Burqu Nature Reserve There are at least seven nature reserves in Jordan. In 1966, the organization that would later start Jordan's nature reserves, the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature, was founded. RSCN's first efforts involved bringing back severely enda ...

, a 900 km²

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

centred on Burqu', was established by the

Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature The Royal Society for The Conservation of Nature (RSCN) (الجمعية الملكية لحماية الطبيعة) is an independent voluntary organization that is devoted to the conservation of the county of Jordan's natural resources; it was ...

(RSCN) in 2020. The RSCN hopes to encourage

ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of nature-oriented tourism intended to contribute to the Ecological conservation, conservation of the natural environment, generally defined as being minimally impactful, and including providing both contributions to conserv ...

in the area, opening an

eco hotel An eco hotel, or a green hotel, is an environmentally sustainable hotel or accommodation that has made important environmental improvements to its structure in order to minimize its impact on the natural environment. The basic definition of an ec ...

near Qasr Burqu' and promoting it together with

Azraq Wetland Reserve The Azraq Wetland Reserve is a nature reserve located in the town of Azraq in the eastern desert of Jordan. An oasis for migratory birds, the reserve was established in 1978 and covers . The natural springs dried up in 1992 and most migratory bir ...

and

Shaumari Wildlife Reserve The Shaumari Wildlife Reserve is a Jordanian nature reserve near the town of Azraq, approximately east of Amman. It is a regionally important reserve created in 1975 by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature as a breeding center for ...

as part of the "Eastern Badia Trail". Previously, the site was not well-known and difficult to access, being located nearly 20 km from the nearest paved road.

References

External links

Photos of Qasr Burqu'
The American Center of Research
Photos of Qasr Burqu'
at the

Manar al-Athar Manar al-Athar is a photo archive based at the Faculty of Classics at the University of Oxford which aims to provide high-quality open-access images of archaeological sites and buildings. The archive's collection focuses on areas of the Roman Em ...