Opening inside the city walls, the East Gate of the Citadel is endowed with a double structure.
The original entrance is located between Towers 6 & 7. This curtain is a solid structure and the highest in the Citadel, reaching to the level of the roofs of the towers. The frontal base boasts the characteristic rusticated facing-stones of the Ayyubid al-Adil (early 13th century). The upper portion is ashlar and bears an inscription of al-Nasir Muhammad (son of the Mameluke sultan Qalawun) dated 1313 CE and recording the construction of the curtains. The wall has three levels of defenses:
1. Al-Adil's arrow slits at the base.
2. on a level sightly above the wall-walk (French chemin de ronde), a pair of brattices (bretèche) with one large slot each and a single loophole between.
3. Almost level with the roofs of the towers, a single brattice with three openings between two arrow slits.
This entrance is doubled by an outer gate built between the flanks of Towers 6 and 7, enclosing the space between them as a sort of barbican. The gate proper opens on the barbican, the wall of which resembles the main curtain to a considerable extent.
Photo is early-mid 20th century.
The Defences of the Citadel of Damascus; a Great Mohammedan Fortress of the Time of the Crusades
The original entrance is located between Towers 6 & 7. This curtain is a solid structure and the highest in the Citadel, reaching to the level of the roofs of the towers. The frontal base boasts the characteristic rusticated facing-stones of the Ayyubid al-Adil (early 13th century). The upper portion is ashlar and bears an inscription of al-Nasir Muhammad (son of the Mameluke sultan Qalawun) dated 1313 CE and recording the construction of the curtains. The wall has three levels of defenses:
1. Al-Adil's arrow slits at the base.
2. on a level sightly above the wall-walk (French chemin de ronde), a pair of brattices (bretèche) with one large slot each and a single loophole between.
3. Almost level with the roofs of the towers, a single brattice with three openings between two arrow slits.
This entrance is doubled by an outer gate built between the flanks of Towers 6 and 7, enclosing the space between them as a sort of barbican. The gate proper opens on the barbican, the wall of which resembles the main curtain to a considerable extent.
Photo is early-mid 20th century.
The Defences of the Citadel of Damascus; a Great Mohammedan Fortress of the Time of the Crusades
D. J. Cathcart King
Archaeologica, Volume XCIV, 1951
تفاصيل من السور الشرقي لقلعة دمشق
ReplyDeleteصورة للبدنة (أي الجدار الفاصل بين برجين والكلام هنا عن البرجين ٦-٧) في النصف الأوّل من القرن العشرين. يطلّ هذا الجزء من سور القلعة على سوق العصرونيّة داخل سور المدينة. يضاهي ارتفاع السور في هذا الموقع ارتفاع الأبراج أي أنّه الأعلى في القلعة. نرى في الأسفل الأحجار المحدّبة التي تعود لعهد الملك العادل الأيّوبي ومطلع القرن الثالث عشر للميلاد وفوقها الأحجار الملساء المنحوتة مع نقش كتابي من مطلع القرن الرابع عشر وعهد السلطان المملوكي الناصر محمّد (ابن المنصور قلاوون). علاوة على السور يتمتّع المدافعون بثلاث مستويات من الدفاع: شقوق للسهام في الأسفل، يليها زوج من البنى البارزة (لم أستطع الحصول على المصطلح العربي وهي تدعى بالانجليزيّة Brattice وبالفرنسيّة bretèche) مزوّدة بدورها بشقوق للسهام، وأخيراً -تقريباً على مستوى سقف الأبراج- brattice إضافيّة أشبه بالروشن machicoulis لها ثلاث فتحات تتوسّط شقّين للسهام. تقع هذه البدنة خلف باشورة Barbican يشبه جدارها جدار البدنة إلى درجة لا بأس بها وتفتح عليها البوّابة الرئيسة