Qasr Mshash

Once a grand city in the desert, the rather large Umayyad settlement of Mshash now sadly lies in virtual ruin. It blends into the environment and is difficult to spot, standing on the very edge of the Wadi. Mshash forms an extensive complex with a variety of structures, the most prominent of which are hydraulic installations, including reservoirs, cisterns, and dams found nearby and farther away from the central area of the complex. The site of Qasr Mshash is 2 sq km and can be divided into two areas of use, 1.5 km apart. Preliminary results of the topographical survey and geophysical research indicate a core area that might have been used as a caravan halt and surrounding structures of different use. The central part of the site consists of a caravanserai-like building, a bath, and a large reservoir buried in sand with only the southern wall and plastered settling tank visible. Domestic structures surround this area, forming a small settlement that was likely used for the supply of the caravan halt. Investigations on the water supply have revealed that only the winter rains that drained in small watercourses from the north into Wadi Mshash were used. The streamlets flowed into the settlement’s cisterns and reservoirs, which could be controlled more easily than the considerably larger Wadi Mshash. The use of this water necessitated a means of raising water, such as a water wheel or lift, but no traces of such structures are present today. Further investigations are necessary to determine the conduits to the water storage facilities. Mshash itself is a small 26 sq m building with 13 rooms around the courtyard and the entrance in the east. Its function as a halt on the way from Amman/Philadelphia and Wadi Sirhan has to be seen in relation to other Desert Castles nearby, like Qasr Al-Muwaqqar, Qasr Kharana, and Qasr Amra, which are more or less coeval and located at a distance of 15 to 20 km from each other. A cooperation project between the Orient Department of the German Archaeological Institute and the Jordan Department of Antiquities (DoA) began in 2011 with several different aims: the documentation of all archaeological sites within a radius of 10 km from the settlement, the creation of a new plan of the entire settlement site that should serve as the basis for a 3D-model, and investigations on the water supply for the site. Qasr Mshash is classified as one of the Early Islamic “Desert Castles,” which refers to opulent complexes situated in remote desert areas that served as temporary residences for Umayyad rulers between 661-750 A.D. The building, referred to as ‘Qasr,’ has a square shape and a side length of 26 meters. It is located on the north bank of Wadi Mshash and is partially preserved. In 1901, A. Musil was the first to visit the site and provide a brief description. A. Stein extensively documented the complex during his Limes project in 1939. Later, in the early 1980s, G. King conducted a comprehensive survey of early Byzantine and Early Islamic ruins in northern Jordan, where he revisited and described the site. In 1982 and 1983, G. Bisheh directed excavations focused on the Qasr, bath, and one cistern. In 2011, work resumed at Qasr Mshash with a primary focus on the water supply system, which was previously poorly understood.