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Qasr Ibn Wardan

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HobWahid
HobWahid
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4 out of 5
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Qasr Ibn Wardan

  • January 26, 2005
  • Rated 4 of 5 by HobWahid from Damascus, Syria
Qasr Ibn Wardan

When you first arrive at Qasr Ibn Wardan, two questions invariably enter your mind. The first is, "Who the heck would build a fortress in such a godforsaken place?" and the second is, "Where in the world is the gatekeeper?" The first question really is a bit of mystery, and you will have plenty of time to ponder it while walking along the outside of the ruins waiting for the gatekeeper to pop out of his house nearby and pull up in his red pick-up. Even though the ruins are no more than 30 minutes from the lush plains around Hama, this Byzantine fortification is built along a stretch of complete desert. It really is a wonder just how a Byzantine outpost could have survived here, but as you can tell by the size of the ruins, they not only survived but thrived.

There are two main complexes that remain today. The smaller, yet architecturally more interesting, of the two is a Byzantine church containing a beautiful lintel engraved with Greek, along with some lovely marble columns that contrast starkly with the red-and-brown bricks of the walls. Next to the church is a larger building that was once a palace. The most impressive part of the palace is the large central courtyard with a series of rooms extending out from the side, the most interesting of which is a long, narrow hallway not even big enough for my shoulders that ends in what is presumably the royal water closet. Also from the courtyard you clan climb a set of stairs to get up to the second floor, where you will find the best views of the surrounding desert. From here you can see how the Byzantines would have found this spot helpful in their constant efforts to exert control over the Bedouins of the surrounding desert. Across from the palace and the church you will find the one tower that remains of the barracks, and usually it is surrounded by a flock of sheep grazing on the small blades of grass poking out of the ground.

The gatekeeper is a friendly local who lives in a nearby house and opens the gates for visitors when he is not tending to his sheep. He speaks no English whatsoever, so unless you speak Arabic, he won’t be able to give any sort of tour around the ruins, but he will still greet you with the same friendliness so typical of Syria.

Getting to and from Qasr Ibn Wardan is incredibly easy by your own car or by hiring one in Hama. If you come on your own or with a hired car, though, and you have another hour or two to spare, make sure you continue on to the never-visited ruins of Andarin. You won’t be disappointed.

From journal Hama and the Orontes Valley

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