Turbā al-Ḥāfiẓīyyā: Portal

 

The main feature of this small building is its entrance. The ratio of the bay's depth to its width is three to two. The bay is covered by a cloister vault, decorated with a large conch in the background. The ribs of this conch stretch over the whole vault and form a lobed arch at the front. This motif occurs again from that time onward. It clearly demonstrates the original connection between conch and lobed arch.

Ernst Herzfeld. Damascus, Studies in Architecture III. Ars Islamica XI-XII 1946 (p. 1-71).

Wulzinger and Watzinger, Damaskus, die Islamische Stadt. Berlin: W. de Gruyter, 1924 (p. 140).