Temple of Jupiter

As was the case in Baalbek and Jerusalem, the dimensions of the pagan temple of Damascus were imposing. Under the Romans, the sanctuary occupied nearly 117,000 square meters, as opposed to the 16,000 square meters of the modern ʾUmayyād Mosque. Jupiter's temple consisted of three areas marking a gradual transition from the profane to the sacred. 

1. Peribolos. Contained between the sanctuary's double enclosure, this outer space was approached from the west by a propylaeum, the remnants of which could still be seen in al-Miskīyyā. The main entrance to the temple, however, was through an eastern propylaeum, as the crowds proceeded from the agora through Via Sacra (modern al-Qaymarīyyā Street) towards Bāb Ǧayrūn. The peribolos served as a meeting place for pilgrims and merchants, serving, in addition to its religious purpose, as a marketplace and fairground.

2. Temenos. The temple proper, where sacrifices took place under the supervision of priests. It was approximately five meters higher than the peribolos. The temenos was rectangular in shape, and its four corners were occupied by towers. Its area corresponds roughly to that of the ʾUmayyād Mosque. 

3.  Cella. Housing the idol or a representation of the deity. Entrance to this innermost sanctuary was forbidden to laymen, only priests were allowed into this holiest of the holy, where the intimate rituals were performed. The god's image was nevertheless periodically paraded outside in solemn processions before the crowds.

The top figure (Dussaud) is a reconstruction of the eastern facade of the temenos, the temple's main entrance under the Romans.

Ross Burns. Damascus, a History. Routledge 2005.

Wulzinger & Watzinger. Damaskus, die antike Stadt 1921 (p. 3-42). 

René Dussaud. Le temple de Jupiter Damascénien et ses transformations aux époques chrétienne et musulmane. Syria 1922 (p. 219-250).