AN INTERPRETATION OF THE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT
SAMARRA (DAR AL-KHILAFA ORJAWSAQ AL-KHAQANI)
BY ALASTAIR NORTHEDGE
THE MAIN PALACE BUILT BYAL-MUcTASIM AT SAMARRA AT
the time ofthe foundation ofthe city in 221/836
is one of the most famous of Islamic palaces,
although it is not in fact preserved in very good
condition. Nevertheless, itis one ofthe few examples
of a great imperial palace of (at least later)
antiquity where the complete plan is also known.
The site is best known from Creswell's Early
Muslim Architecture, based on the work of the
German Samarra Expedition of 1911-13.' Although
Herzfeld's plan of the palace (fig. 1) is
frequently published, the reader is often left with
the impression ofan incomprehensible and unanalyzed
grand mass of rooms, although sometimes
tacit editing ofthe plan is done, perhaps to make
the plan fit the page.2
A new overall presentation of the palace is
needed, and itis hoped that thiswill eventually be
done within the context of a proposed publication
ofthe excavation sites ofthe Samarra Expedition.
Several constraints limit me to a kind of
preliminary report on this objective. In the first
place the subject is a large one, requiring the
correlation of the small finds, the stucco and
other decorations, and the wall paintings. Secondly
the fieldjournals have notyet been worked
through, nor all the drawings prepared for publication.
Nevertheless itwas thought worthwhile
to publish the progress that has been made, although
the ideas presented are not necessarily
final.
It should be said at the beginning that the
designation ofthe palace-al-Jawsaq al-Khaqaniused
by Herzfeld, s
subsequently by Creswell, and
which has come to be used generally in Western
scholarly circles, cannot be correct. The reasons
for this will be explained below, but it is evident
that the name used in Iraq-Qasr al-Khalifa (Palace
of the Caliph)-is in fact quite close to the
terminology used in the third/ninth century. AlJawsaq
al-Khaqani may be an attractive and exotic
name-though one which incorrectly suggests
that the palace was in some way Turkish4
-but the
palace of al-Jawsaq must have been part of the
overall complex, not the entire complex itself.
Some name such as Palace ofthe Caliph or Dar alKhilafa
ismore appropriate for English-language
usage.
PastWork on the Palace
It was not surprising that the site should have
attracted the interest of Western visitors in the
nineteenth century.5
InJune 1834 the surgeon of
the British Residency at Baghdad, John Ross,
visited Samarra, and published thefollowing careful
description:6
The Kasr-el-Khalifah, or Khalif's palace, is a long Tshaped
mass of ruins on the edge of a high bank,
divided by three cross walls: its extreme length landwards
is about 900 paces, the breadth of face towards
the river 130 paces, and of the landward face 580; and
it consists ofranges of gateways, arched rooms, vaults
under ground, &c., with empty areas divided by cross
walls. Onevault excavated to a great depth, calledJibb,
ispointed out as the prison: its entrance is by a narrow
shaft, and people must have been lowered into it and
hauled up by means of a rope. Another deep square
hollow close toit iscalled Birket-el-Seba', or the Lions'den.
A narrow subterranean passage is cut from the
Jibb to theBirket, from the door ofwhich, criminals are
said to have been thrown to the wild beasts. From the
face towards the river, an inclined platform, resting on
arches, leads down to the hawi; and outside of the
palace, atits N.W. corner, stand fine ruins ofa turreted
building called Hamam, or the bath.
In April 1846 LieutenantJ. F.Jones ofthe Indian
Navy also visited the site.7 However, it was only at
the beginning of the twentieth century-half a
century afterthe opening ofWestern archaeological
work on the Assyrian royal cities, for example-that
Samarra became the object of more
serious scholarly attention.
The first efforts were French: General L. de
Beyli6 published in 1907 the results of a visit to
Samarra and other sites in Iraq.8
The French
architect Henri Viollet prospected and surveyed
the site in 1908, and then returned to
excavate in the palace in June 1910, digging
twenty-four small sondages in six weeks. He published
his work promptly, bringing outa short but
ALASTAIR NORTHEDGE
excellently illustrated monograph on each ofthe
two campaigns.9
The German interest in Samarra began with a
visit by Herzfeld in 1903,10 but came to fruition
later in the German Samarra Expedition, which
conducted twofield campaignsin 1911 and 1913."
Herzfeld turned his attention to excavating the
palace in the second campaign. Some 11,000 m
square (equal to about a quarter) of the square
reception-hall blockwere cleared, and about 5,000
m square elsewhere, for a total of 18,000 m
square.
In 1923, after the First World War, Herzfeld
noted his regret that the excavated remains
had been robbed out.' 2
This was not unusual;
the robbing of fired bricks was common
throughout Iraq before the introduction of
concrete construction. The city walls built
in the 1830s were entirely constructed of Abbasid
bricks.
In 1914 apreliminary report on the excavation
of the palace was published in DerIslam.'3
In this
article the first version of the grand plan of the
palace was published. The plan (fig. 1) was, of
course, mainly the result of surface reconnaissance,
but also incorporates the excavation areas.'4
Herzfeld's reading of the surface remains seems
to have been good, and there is much drawn
which would be difficult to recover today. The
main failure seems to have been in the northeast
corner, where he only drew parts of the small
palace-type units at H283 and H294 (see fig. 2 for
building numbers).5 However, after the graphically
primitive version published in the report of
1914, the final version, as published by Creswell,
was "corrected," with a number of buildings
squared up, where air photographs show the
original version to have been more accurate. The
polo maydan at the east end is in fact a parallelogram,
not a rectangle.
In 1923, in volume 1 of the Ausgrabungen von
Samarra,Herzfeld published thewall decorations
uncovered by the expedition; in 1927, in volume
3, the wall paintings; and in 1948, in the posthumous
volume 6, his analysis of the historical
topography.'6
However, as is well known, the
volumes planned on the architecture of Samarra
were never published: to be more precise, it was
the final report on the excavation itself that was
not published. Creswell, in his EarlyMuslimArchitecture,
straightforwardly quotes Herzfeld, using
the preliminary report of 1914. Unpublished
drawings and the fieldjournals are in the Herzfeld
Archive at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery in
Washington, D.C., and the negatives of the
expedition's photographs, taken by Sarre, are in
the Staatliche Museen in Berlin.
Fieldwork on the complex was subsequently
taken up again by the Iraqi Directorate ofAntiquities,
although only after a long delay.'7
The Bab
al-Amma was cleared and consolidated, and the
rooms on itsnorth side were excavated sometime
in the 1960s or 1970s. However, for the mostpart
excavations were conducted elsewhere at Samarra,
and it was only with the beginning of the
"Project for the Revival of the Two Archaeological
Cities of Samarra' and Mutawakkiliyya" in
1981 that new work was done on the palace. In
1981 a certain amount of clearance work was
done in Herzfeld's excavation area in the reception-hall
block, but it was given up as unprofitable.
However, the tunnel which runs under the
great courtyard-the Great Esplanade, to use
Herzfeld's terminology-was excavated, together
with six secondary buildings on the north side
of the courtyard.'s In 1983 work turned to clearance
and restoration of the Small Serdab (Hawiyat
al-Siba'). The project was finished in 1986,
and published in the same year.'9
Work began in
1986-87 on the excavation of the Large Serdab;
by early 1989 the excavation was fairly complete,
and the restoration was finished before myvisit in
early 1990. Unfortunately the publication in the
journal Sumer, the manuscript of which has been
completed, has been delayed by the effects ofthe
Kuwait war. Work has also recently been done on
the range ofrooms on the south side ofthe Bab
al-'Amma, and on a poorly preserved octagonal
fountain or pavilion in the great courtyard.
Descriptionofthe Site
The palace complex is located on the conglomerate
ofthe east bank ofthe Tigris, which was laid
down by earlier river beds in Tertiary times. The
relative softness of this material made possible
the cutting ofunderground structures on a large
scale. On the west side of the palace, there is a
steep descent ofabout 10 m to the flood plain of
the Tigris, and the garden on this side is located
in the flood plain. Although the frequent movements
of the Tigris bed within the flood plain are
not capable of carving away much of the conglomerate,
the river has removed the southwest
part of the western garden since the third/ninth
century. In the middle of the 1950s a barrage was
constructed atSamarra to divertflood waterfrom
144
AN INTERPRETATION OF THE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT SAMARRA
the Tigris into the Tharthar depression. The lake
behind the barrage flooded the low-lying land of
the flood plain, including all parts of the complex
west of the Bab al-Amma. By the end of the
1980s deposition of silt carried by the Tigris had
turned the lake area into a marsh, and the area of
the garden has reemerged aswetland. It is uncertain
whether it will ever be possible to recover
material from this area, where nothing is visible
today.
The layout is based on two architectural palace
units. The first, on the south side, is composed of
a square building of 180 x 200 m (H343), containing
the Bab al-Amma, the throne halls, and the
harim,with a large courtyard on the east side (the
Great Esplanade; H302). This layout of square
building and courtyard can be paralleled at
Balkuwara, 20
and the palace at P16 at Qadisiyya.2
1
On the north side a second palace structure,
termed by Herzfeld the "treasury" (H293),
with a smaller square reception-hall block
and residential apartments, is situated within
an outer enclosure wall, as one sees at al-Ukhay-
dir22
and the Dar al-Imara at Kufa.?
On the west side of the southern unit is a large
formal garden; there is probably another garden
ofa different type on the south side. Between the
two palace units there is a large circular sunken
basin, termed by Herzfeld the Large Serdab, and
in Iraq the Birka Handasiyya (H301). Further to
the east is a complex including what Herzfeld
termed the Rotundabau (H353), and, at the east
end, a smaller square sunken basin, termed the
Small Serdab, and inIraq Hawiyatal-Siba' (Lions'
Den) .2
4On the north and south sides of the basin
are courtyards with two pavilions, and lines of
parallel halls,which Herzfeld called the "stables."
On the east side there is a maydan with a spectators'
lodge, and the start line of racecourse 2,
stretching away to the east.5 On the south side of
the main courtyard is an iwan pavilion in an
enclosure (H313), adjacent to what must have
originally been the main entrance of the complex
leading to the city, and a further square
building, adjacent to the main reception-hall
block (H311). The palace may be described as a
complex of architectural units.
Construction was evidently begun in 221/836,
and the last reference to it as an occupied building
dates to 269/884.26 The known occupation
lasted forty-eight years. Itis obvious that a considerable
process of change must have taken place
during this time. The palace is not one which was
designed, constructed, and then abandoned in
its original state, although there are many such
buildings in earlyIslam; rather over the years units
may have been added, rebuilt, or abandoned.
The firstinterpreter of the palace,Viollet, starting
from the Bab al-'Amma, saw the complex as
consisting of the square building, the great courtyard,
and attached buildings-the two Serdabs,
the maydan, and racecourse 2. It was Herzfeld
who included the northern palace building in
the complex, and called it the treasury. Buildings
H326 and H327 in the southeast corner, although
included in Herzfeld's plan, probably have no
connection with the palace.
The area defined by Herzfeld is 175 ha. The
dimensions are 1,346 m east-west from the pavilion
on the Tigris to the spectator's lodge
overlooking racecourse 2, and 1,160 m northsouth
from the north palace to the south gate.
The western garden (H339; fig. 3). The western
formal garden appears to have led down to the
Tigris, whose exact course in the third/ninth
century is not known. A flight of monumental
steps, 60 m wide, leading down from the Bab al'Amma
cannot be seen today, but can be seen on
aerial photographs (fig. 5). On the west of the
steps was a square ornamental pool 115 x 130 m.
From the pool a pair of walls 220 m apart
defining a longitudinal axis run directly west to
the end ofthe garden as it survives. Perhaps this
was a formal avenue for the approach of the
caliph to or from a landing stage on the river.
Such a procession is mentioned on the occasion
of the investiture of the heirs ofal-Mutawakkil in
235/849-50.27
When al-Mutawakkil appointed his heirs from among
his children, he rode at Samarra in a procession, finer
than which had never been seen. The heirs rode in
front ofhim, and the Turks in front ofthem, and their
children marching in front ofal-Mutawakkil, with belts
of gold in their hands ... then he descended into the
water, and sat in it, and the army with him in
jawankhiyyat28
and the rest of the boats, and he came
until he stopped in the qasrwhichis called al-'Arus, and
he gave permission to the people, and they entered
into his presence.9
At the far western end a square raised terrace 48
x 40 m appears to represent the site of a garden
pavilion.
A pair ofwalls 47 m apart also define a northsouth
axis on the westside ofthe pool. It ispossible
to make out the plan of several small buildings
between the walls.
145
ALASTAIR NORTHEDGE
The garden may be the Bustan al-Khaqani
mentioned in an event of 254/868, and which
apparently lay between the Jawsaq and the
Tigris:
Bugha came to the bridge [al-Jisr] in the first third of
the night, and when the boat approached the bridge,
those entrustedwith it sentfor thosein the boat ... ,and
Bugha disembarked into the Bustan al-Khaqani, and a
number of [the guards of the bridge] attached themselves
to him ... and he rushed to al-Jawsaq. He asked
permission of al-Mutazz [to enter], and al-MuCtazz
gave permission to him.30
The Bab al-Amma and the square reception-hall
block (H343; figs. 6-7). The main reception-hall
block of the southern palace is nearly square in
form, measuring 180 x 200 m. The Bab al-cAmma
is the only part still standing; elsewhere only
fragments of walls remained above floor level,
and in places the bricks have been robbed down
into the foundations.
In the center of the west side stands the main
outside entrance, the famous triple iwan known
as the Bab al-'Amma. This consists of a main
central tunnel-vaulted iwan, and two shallow side
iwans, each ofwhich has a semi-dome carried on
squinches, which lead into closed tunnel-vaulted
halls behind.
The photographs taken by Viollet and those
taken by Sarre for the German Expedition show
quite clearly a block of masonry projecting from
the top of the building. This suggests that there
was a second story. A ramp has also been excavated
on the south side ofthegate. Presumably there
was a majlis (formal reception room) in this
second story, with a view over the Tigris and the
flood plain (fig. 8), on the pattern of similar
rooms described over the gates of the Round City
ofBaghdad,3
and the rooms found over the gates
ofUmayyad desert qu.siir.32
However, there are no
indications that the remainder of the square
building had two stories.
After the Bab al-'Amma, the visitor passed
through five rectangular halls placed transversely,
to reach, at the center of the building, a
courtyard with a basin. The courtyard was
excavated by the German expedition, together
with a bath on its south side. On the north side of
this axis was a courtyard building with a central
circular feature 31 m across, almost certainly a
basin. There are several underground vaulted
rooms in this area. The south side of this western
part has not been clarified, although a sequence
of rooms has been excavated in recent years on
the south side of the Bab al-'Amma.3 3
At the east end of the central axis was a cruciform
plan, more normally found in the center of
such a square building. The centerpiece was a
dome chamber with four pillared halls. On the
east, west, and south sides were courtyards beyond
the pillared halls; on the east side a large
transverse hall, which led straight out into the
great courtyard (Grand Esplanade). It is possible
that this last hall is a subsequent addition, as the
wall thicknesses do not match those of the remainder
ofthe square building.
The courtyard on the north side of this central
dome chamber has not been excavated, butthose
on the west and south sides were excavated by
Herzfeld. That on the south side constitutedwhat
Herzfeld called the harem. On the south side of
this courtyard there was a square room with four
piers, and this contained a circular basin carved
from a single piece ofEgyptian granite, which was
named Kasat Fir'un (Pharaoh's cup), and is
thought to be of ancient Egyptian origin.3 4
The
remainder ofthe surround of the courtyard consisted
ofa warren ofsmall rooms, which Herzfeld
says had been repeatedly rebuilt.
The harem was richly decorated, notably with
wall paintings published in Herzfeld's Malereien
von Samarra.35
Its identification as a harim rests
principally on the figural character of the paintings,
which is comparable with the art of the
private palaces of the Umayyad period. Without
doubt these paintings should belong to the last
period of occupation of the palace: Herzfeld
notes the rebuilding, and elsewhere at Samarra
up to three layers ofwall painting can be seen on
fragments." By that time, in the reign of alMu'tamid,
the area of the complex occupied may
have been reduced. This part of the palace may
only have become a private residence at a late
date in its occupation.
The great courtyard (H301). On the east side of
the square building the principal feature is the
great courtyard, a rectangle measuring 360 x 186
m, and called by Herzfeld the Great Esplanade.
The courtyard is surrounded by a wall of mud
brick with arched niches and stucco moldings.
The wall was topped with stepped merlons. 3 7
The courtyard was divided in two by a depression,
which Herzfeld thought in his preliminary
account to be acanal.? Excavations in 1982 showed
this to be a tunnel leading under the courtyard,
the roof ofwhich had fallen in.3 9
Clearance ofthe
146
AN INTERPRETATION OFTHE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT SAMARRA
north wall at this time also produced evidence of
six small secondary courtyard buildings. These
were well aligned with the enclosure wall and
were evidently constructed before the abandonment
of the palace. 4
0 On the west side of the
tunnel, Herzfeld's plan indicates two circular
features: recent excavation has shown the eastern
one to be a poorly preserved octagonal foun-
tain.4
1 The plan also shows a series of rectilinear
lines in the eastern part: photographs confirm
the existence of these lines, but it is not known
what they represented, and they have now disappeared.
Herzfeld thought theywere canals, based
on his supposition that the transverse depression
was a canal.4 Perhaps they were walls delimiting
a reduction in the size of the courtyard to accommodate
the secondary buildings mentioned
above.
The south side of the complex. The area on the
south side of the great courtyard is one of the
most difficult to explain. There are a great number
of different buildings, and no excavation has
taken place in this part, except for a small area
excavated bythe German expedition on the north
side ofbuilding H313. The area is demarcated by
an exterior enclosure wall running east-west 390
m south of the great courtyard (H363), and
divided by a north-south wall running on the west
side of building H323 (H364).
A monumental avenue, 65 m wide and narrowed
by later overbuilding to awidth ofabout 12
m, approached the point where this north-south
wall joined the outer enclosure wall (fig. 9). It is
evident that this avenue is not to be identified
with the Grand Avenue (Shari' al-A'zam) described
by al-Ya'qubi, which passed by the palace,
but with the Shari' Abi Ahmad, which ended at
the Bab al-Bustan (Gate of the Garden) and the
qu6sr al-khatfa (palaces of the caliph).4s As this
avenue, the most monumental of Surra Man
Ra'a,44
is not highly regarded by al-Ya'qubi, it
must belong to the early period at Samarra, the
original layout ofal-Mu'tasim.45 Therefore amain
south gate probably stood at this point, with a
passage into the great courtyard. On Herzfeld's
plan, on the west side of the north-south wall, a
passage can be seen turning west around building
H313. However, on the aerial photographs
the avenue definitely approaches the east side of
the wall, through the space occupied by building
H323, and to an inner gate by courtyard
H314 (H374). If this latter situation were the
case, then the entrance may have been moved
later to west of the wall, and building H323 may
be a late construction.
At any rate the idea of a double gate is given
support by an event in 256/870: al-Muhtadi "left
through Bab al-Masaff, until hewent out through
the gate known by the name of Itakh, then to
Suwayqat Masrur, then Darb al-Wathiq, until he
came out to the Bab al-'Amma."46
Al-Muhtadi's
itinerary is to leave the palace by the south gate,
turn west, and then go north to the Bab al'Amma.
The house of Itakh was next to the south
gate,4 7
and evidently the name Bab al-Bustan has
here been replaced by the Gate of Itakh.48
Building H313 on the west side at the north end
of this proposed passageway has a building with a
single iwan in a courtyard and small courtyard
buildings around the periphery. If Herzfeld's
plan is correct,4 9
then the building corresponds
with a pattern quite common in Iraqi Abbasid
architecture. At Ukhaydir there is a separate
single iwan structure between the inner building
and the outer wall.5 At al-Musharrahat a similar
separate building is to be seen in the northeast
corner of the enclosure, with a slightly variant
plan.51
There is a further separate building with
an iwan and a mosque by the entrance of Sur'Isa
at Samarra.5 2
These buildings give the impression
of being the majlis of someone responsible for
the building itself, or for its security. One is
reminded of the situation in the Round City of
Baghdad, where the central circular courtyard
contained a building for the guard (aras) and a
portico for the police (shurta), but it is not possible
to be certain.5 3
To the east of this north-south
alignment, buildings H324, H325, H337, and
H357 seem to be store and service buildings.
At the west end ofthe south side, directly south
of the square reception-hall block, a building 70
m square has been built on a slightly different
alignment (H31 1), and this has been linked with
the south side of the reception-hall block.
Between this building and the north-south
alignment of the entrance from the south gate
the terrain is uneven, cut by a wadi with three
branches. There are three groups of lines of
roomswith courtyards on different alignmentsH316,
H317, and H358. These buildings are indistinct
on the aerial photographs, and were
apparently not ofsolidconstruction. In fact there
are two references in the texts that suggest that
the area was once a garden-firstly the name of
the gate discussed above as the Bab al-Bustan,
and secondly a reference in 248/862 to going
from al-'Umari "through the gardens."5 4
This
147
ALASTAIR NORTHEDGE
interpretation is supported by the plan of alJa'fari
(fig. 18), which also has an empty enclosure
on the south side. It would evidently be a
garden ofa different type from the formal layout
on the west side.
The building complexes at H316, H317, and
H358 can probably best be explained by noting
that the palace was the center ofdisturbances and
military operations during the 860s, notably in
248/862, 55
252/866, and 256/870.56
On the first day of Rajab, 252 [866], a battle took place
between the Maghariba and the Turks. .... They overcame
the Turks at al-Jawsaq and expelled them, saying,
"Every dayyou kill one caliph, depose another, andkill
a vizier." ... When the Maghariba expelled the Turks
from al-Jawsaq, and overcame them at the treasury (bayt
aLmal), they seized fifty mounts from them.57
At times the palace was evidently an armed camp,
and temporary pis6 barracks would no doubt
have been put up in any empty space to accommodate
a garrison.
The Large Serdab (H301; fig 10). On the north
side of the great courtyard the main feature, lying
between the two palace units, is the Large Serdab.
It is not a genuine sirdab-that is, an underground
room for use in summer-but rather a
sunken basin cut into the conglomerate with
surrounding rooms intended for the same purpose
of escaping the heat of summer. A number
of the surface buildings were excavated by the
German expedition. The sunken area was excavated
by the Iraq Directorate of Antiquities between
1987 and 1990, and called the Birka Handasiyya
(Geometric Basin).
There is an outer buttressed wall 180 m on a
side, with courtyard buildings on the inside at the
surface level. Herzfeld noted that some of these
rooms contained stores: Chinese pottery, materials
for pavements, and luster tiles.5 8
In the southeastcorner
Herzfeld excavated halfofa rectangular
building composed offive thick parallel walls.
Obviously these were supports for a thick-walled
elevated building. Al-Ja'fari has asimilar building
type: a central building supported on heavy walls,
surrounded bycourtyard buildings (building A12;
fig. 11 ). Itis apparently a traditional Mesopotamian
building type, for a similar structure exists in
the northeast corner ofthe South Palace atBabylon,
constructed by Nebuchadnezzar at the
beginning of the sixth century B.C., called by
Koldewey the "vaulted building."5 9
The building
type is presumably a storehouse for valuable
objects which needed to be raised above ground
level for security.
The sunken center ofthe structure is cruciform
in shape and 115 m across. At the center there is
a circular basin 65 m in diameter, with amphorae
set into the brick walls, in which fish bones were
found. Straight monumental staircases lead down
to the interior from north and south. The basin is
fed by a qanatcoming from the east, which is not
visible on the surface; and a further drain qanat
exits to the west. At all four points of the cross
there are service ramps at right angles to the
monumental staircases, although not all were in
use: on the west side one was used for a rubbish
dump and found full of ash, pottery, and glass.
The rooms around the basin were arranged radially,
although based on a four-iwan plan. In the
southeast corner there is a large bath, with furnace
and hypocaust.
The rooms surrounding the basin are extensively
decorated with stucco dadoes, which are all
of the vine-leaf ornament, style A. While the
sequence ofSamarran stuccoes needs new work,
it is certain that this style was already in existence
before the foundation of Samarra in 221/836,
but also continues later than Samarra.6? The
buildings at Samarra, which are extensively decorated
with the vine-leaf ornament, that is, the
Bab al-'Amma with its mixed style A and style B
ornament, 61
and the upper and lower palaces at
al-Huwaysilat, one of which is to be identified
with the Qasr al-Juss of al-Mu'tasim,6 2
are normally
attributed to the beginning of the Samarra
period.The datingevidence ofthe stuccoes, though
weak, suggests that the Large Serdab is an early
building, part ofthe original plan ofthe palace.
The Rotundabau (H353; fig. 12). To the east of
the Large Serdab, there is a further complex of
courtyard buildings (H333, H353). The reception
room was excavated by Herzfeld and called
by him the Rotundabau or Rundsaal. The plan
was never published.' It consists of a typical
Samarran grand house-a reception block followed
by a courtyard and a further iwan. There is
afurther building with rooms around a courtyard
on thewest side (H333), and four more indistinct
enclosures on the east and north sides.
The reception block itself consists of a transverse
hall measuring 18 x 7 m projecting into the
great courtyard, which seems to be an addition to
the original structure. Then there is a further
transverse hall 13.8 x 4 m, similar to the portico of
a T-shaped iwan, and this is flanked by two rooms
148
AN INTERPRETATION OFTHE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT SAMARRA
with niches. The niches were subsequently covered
up by beveled-style, style C, stucco dadoes.
The principal hall is circular, 9.4 m in diameter,
with four curious smallhexagonal rooms with low
vaults on the east and west sides. The plan indicates
that the circular form is secondary and that
the hall had originally been square, with doorways
into side rooms decoratedwith engaged piers.
The building and its associated dependencies
give the impression of being the majlis of an
official closely associated with the functioning of
the palace, one who had need ofwork space and
service buildings. 4
The east end and the Small Serdab (fig. 13). The
east end of the great courtyard is marked by a
group of structures: a smaller, square sunken
basin (the Small Serdab, or Hawiyat al-Siba':
H29), six long galleries, two pavilions, a polo maydan,
spectators' lodge, and racecourse.
The Small Serdab (H29; fig. 14) was first investigated
by Viollet6&and then by Herzfeld, who
cleared the surface entrance and one staircase
and prepared a plan. The Iraq Directorate-General
ofAntiquities and Heritage began work on
the site in 1983 and cleared and reconstructed
the site, finishing it in 1986.6
The entrance was situated in the center of the
east wall of the great courtyard. Herzfeld describes
this entrance as a square room in which
was found a frieze ofpainted stucco representing
two-humped camels.6 7
It has been reconstructed
as a domed chamber with niches, much as a
typical entrance to one of the grand houses at
Samarra. On the surface level the structure measures
60 x 54 m, and is represented by Herzfeld as
a series of rooms around the basin. It has been
reconstructed as an arcade, with the arches perpendicular
to the sides of the basin.
The basin itself is functionally the same as the
Large Serdab, but smaller and square (21 m a
side), and sunkabout 8 minto theconglomerate.
There is a triple iwan on each side of the basin,
and all are decoratedwith stuccoes of the beveled
style, style C. A qanitenters by the north central
iwan, and the water drained by a further qanat
towards the south. One staircase descended
from the south side of the main entrance,
and a second descended to the northeast
corner of the basin.
The stables and pavilions. On each side of the
Small Serdab there are three long galleries (H330,
H320); four of the six measure 106 x 11 m, and
the remaining two 96 x 11 m. There are five
entrances into the adjacent courtyards. Herzfeld
identified these galleries as the stables for the
polo maydan.?8 Although it may seem surprising
that the stables should have been built adjacent
to a pleasant spot intended for the caliph's repose,
with the obvious inconveniences of smell,
he may have been right. The form of the galleries
resembles a building plan which exists also in a
group ofbuildings at al-Ja'fari (A208-16; fig. 15).
Atal-Ja'fari the galleries surround a central courtyard,
and the group of buildings is placed at a
distance from the inhabited parts ofthe palaceal-Ja'fari
being later, this placement was possibly
the result of an unpleasant experience with the
complex under discussion here.` This arrangement
of galleries around a central courtyard is in
fact the same as the usual arrangement of the
stable galleries in Iranian caravansarays, also found
in Iraq.
Al-Yaqubi, however, describes the caliph's public
and private stables as being located in the
center ofthe city on the Sharic
al-Sarija (= Shari' alA'zam)
.70 The site can be identified approximately,
and there is no sign ofthis type ofbuilding (fig.
9). Nevertheless it is evident that stables located
in the center of the city, five kilometers from the
palace, were concerned with the long-term questions
of raising and provisioning mounts for
the palace and the army, rather than the dayto-day
stabling of animals available to the palace,
and particularly the polo ponies and race-
horses.
North and south of these courtyards with stables,
there are two courtyards (H321 and H331)
with pavilions (H322 and H332). The north pavilion
is constructed of mud brick and is still partly
standing to the transition of the dome of the
side iwan. The building was excavated by
Herzfeld (H332; fig. 16), but never published.
7
The building consists of a central T-iwan, of
which the front portico measures 16 x 5 m, and
the iwan itself 5.5 x 8.5 m. In addition there are
two shallow side iwans, measuring 4.2 x 3.2 m,
which were covered by semi-domes mounted on
squinches. These side iwans obviously resembled
those of the Bab al-'Amma, but had no door
through into the hall behind. The exterior is
rectangular, measuring 38.5 x 22.5 m, and has
round buttresses. The southern pavilion (H322)
seems to be similar. The two pavilions would
appear to be intended for inspections of the
caliph's polo ponies and racehorses.
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ALASTAIR NORTHEDGE
The polo maydan (H328) and the spectators'
lodge (H329). From the Small Serdab a
passageway led through into a square courtyard
and then to a long rectangular maydan. The
gateway into the maydan was excavated by
Herzfeld.? The long rectangular maydan with
half-round buttresses measures 525 x 66 m. According
to the evidence of robbing, the walls were
of fired brick.
On the far side of the maydan there is a spectators'
lodge (H329), which looks out both onto
the maydan and the start of racecourse 2. This
building measures 28 x 45 m and is constructed of
fired brick, with two buttresses on the eastern
corners. The plan is one of a chamber running
through east-west, which represents the passageway
of a gate. On each side there are five chambers
arranged north-south. This is obviously the
substructure ofan upper story, where the viewing
platform would have been.
The maydan is identified by Herzfeld as intended
for polo.7 3
Thisjudgment is obviously correct,
for the arrangement of a long rectangular maydan
and pavilion with a viewing platform on the
upper story has a close parallel in the Safavid
Maydan-i Shah in Isfahan (524x 159 m), built in
1590-1604, with its pavilion, the 'Ali Qapu.7 4
Ibn
Qutayba confirms that polo grounds in the Abbasid
period were much like the maydans of
Samarra by remarking that "the width of the
maydan is made 60 cubits [31 m] so that [the
spectators] who are sitting on its wall will not be
interfered with or assaulted."75
There are twelve
examples of similarmaydans atSamarra, all smaller
than H328 and all located in or adjacent to palaces.
Racecourse 2. Racecourse 2 is an out-and-back
racecourse, which stretches east in a bottle shape
from the spectators' lodge.76
The sides of the
course diverge from the pavilion, and then on the
south side there is an S-bend after 1,510 m. After
the bend, the sides are more nearly parallel with
one another, and there is a straight of 2,200 m
before the curve. The track is 80 m wide; the
length seems to have been 10,420 m. 77
These units discussed at the east end seem to
represent a single coherent entity. The Small
Serdab, stable galleries, and two pavilions are
approximately symmetrical. There is a change of
alignment at the polo maydan, but the north
and south walls of the maydan retain the
original alignment, creating a parallelogram,
and the stables and pavilions take account of
the existence of the maydan. So the maydan is
contemporary with this firstgroup, in spite ofthe
change ofalignment. The maydan is aligned with
the racecourse; the only reason it has been possible
to detect why the racecourse should have a
different alignment from the axis of the palace in
the flat terrain is that, had itfollowed that original
axis, it would have cut a musalla (Y6) in the
steppe, used for the festival prayers of 'Id al-Fitr
and c'Id al-Adha (fig. 9). Y6 is the mufallaclosest to
the palace, and was perhaps sufficiently popular
to force a change ofalignment in the racecourse.78
It is not certain that racecourse 2 is part of the
same constructional program as the maydan, but
it seems probable. There is some relative dating
on racecourse 2: it is later than racecourse 1,
which it cuts.7 9
The implication would be that this east end
group is a secondary addition to the palace.
There are some minor points which tend to
support this idea: the east end group is not perfectly
aligned with the great courtyard. The Small
Serdab is decorated with beveled-style style C
stuccoes. Evidently the group is a sports and
leisure complex, for racing, polo, and passing the
summer days comfortably.
The barracks. In the northwest corner of the
palace complex, Herzfeld included a group of
three blocks ofcourtyard buildings (H286, H288,
H291), enclosed within a compound. H286 consists
of 62 units round three sides of a courtyard,
and H288 consists of 34 such units. H291 has 8
units with rooms on opposing sides of the courtyard,
making a total of 104 units. In addition
there are three smallmosques (H287, H290, H292).
Herzfeld identified this area as the barracks
of the palace guard. This seems possible;
there are many different patterns to military
accommodation at Samarra, the only unifying
factor being that accommodation is always in the
form of courtyard houses, rather than barracks of
single rooms. Some confirmation is to be seen in
the striking fact that there are three mosques,
implying three separate groups. Presumably these
were ethnic groups, who had to be kept apart,
such as the Turks, the Faraghina, and the Maghariba.
The pointed provision of mosques seems to
be part of an ostentatious display of Islam for the
lightly Islamized steppe Turks, and is noticeable
again at Sur Ashnas (see below).
Al-Hanunam (H345). To the south of the barracks
area and northwest of the square reception-
150
AN INTERPRETATION OF THE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT SAMARRA
hall block, at the edge of the slope down to the
flood plain, there is a small square building with
heavy walling and three round buttresses. The
building was identified by Viollet with that described
as al-Hammam by John Ross. Two sondages
were dug in the area by Viollet, and extensive
stucco decorations were recovered, of styles
A and B, similar to those of the Bab al-'Amma.80
The building appears to be an elevated belvedere.
Similar structures are known on the east
and west sides of the Qasr al-'Ashiq.
The north palace (H293; fig. 17). The major
structure on the north side of the complex is a
palace building within a buttressed outer enclosure.
The remains have never been excavated,
and were not included in the complex by Viollet.
Herzfeld included it,because he correctly thought
that there was no logical northern limit to the
palace complex without it.Regrettably many crucial
details are obscured by the front-line trenches
dug by the British Mesopotamian Expeditionary
Force in 1917.
The rectangular outer enclosure, oriented eastwest,
is 330 m wide and can be traced for a
distance of 462 m eastwards. The wall is equipped
with massive half-round buttresses about 11 m in
diameter.8
' The remains give the impression that
the east wall was later demolished, and replaced
with a newwall which is aligned with the maydan
(H328).
At the west end there is a square reception-hall
block (H352), measuring approximately 120 x
130 m, with a buttressed exterior. It is raised on a
terrace, and seems to have been of the type of
plan with a domed chamber at the center. However,
a correct plan is unlikely to be recovered
without excavation.
On the east of the reception-hall block, the
main body ofthe building (H297) is 220 m wide,
and can be traced for a distance of285 m to the
east. The east end is not clear. Ifthe building were
symmetrical, it would have been about 340 m
long. If it had originally been of this length, it
would have corresponded to a rectangle with
the proportions 2:3, as found in the Samarran
mosques, but would have been cut by
building H294. Like the outer enclosure wall,
it appears to have been truncated by demolition
at the east end, to make way for new
construction. 2
Apparently at the original center, there was a
courtyard measuring 80 x 55 m, approached by
two streets on the north and south sides. On the
east side there appears to be a further courtyard
ofsimilar dimensions, separated byawall. On the
west of the central courtyard, there is a long hall
about 25 m long and 12 m wide, followed by a
transverse hall.8 3
Then there is asquare courtyard
and the approach to the raised terrace. On the
north and south sides of the central courtyard,
there are courtyard buildings which appear to be
residential apartments. All the construction of
major reception rooms was in fired brick, and has
been robbed out; the residential apartments appear
to have been constructed in mud brick orpis.
In the area where the enclosure was extended,
to the southeast of the main building, Herzfeld's
plan marks two further building complexes (H295
and H296); their plan was not elaborated by him,
nor are their remains very clear on the aerial
photographs. However, in the northeast corner
of the compound, there is a very clear plan of a
residential building, apparently a small palace
(H294), not on Herzfeld's plan. It hasthe form of
a parallelogram, measuring 169 x 90 m. There is
a square reception block in fired brick-which
has been robbed out-adjacent to the north wall,
and afurther reception room on the south side of
a central courtyard.
Outside the enclosure of the complex at the
northeast corner, there is a further small palace
(H283), measuring 106 x 170 m. This has a
central square reception block in fired brick, with
courtyards on the north and south sides.
Discussion of the archaeological evidence. In its
latest form, then, the palace consisted of two
major palace structures, each of which is larger
than other Samarran palaces, with the exception
of al-Ja'fari. The south palace had a square reception-hall
block with a large courtyard, but very
little residential accommodation in the form of
courtyard houses, normally an important feature
in early Islamic palaces. The north palace, on
the other hand, consists almost entirely of
residential accommodations.
Although it is not possible at the moment to
date all the structures described here, it seems
that the original elements of the palace included
the square reception-hall block and great courtyard-and
possibly the western garden. Attached
to this, the Large Serdab (H301) and al-Hammam
(H345) seem to be original on the basis of their
decorations. The north palace must also be original,
partly because ofits plan which recalls that
of earlier palaces, but also because the Large
Serdab, itself apparently early, has monumental
151
ALASTAIR NORTHEDGE
stairways leading to both the north and south
palaces.
The major later additions seem to be, firstly,
the east end of the south palace, including the
Small Serdab, the north and south pavilions, the
maydan, and probably racecourse 2. Secondly,
there is the east extension of the north palace.
The one identifiable building in this extension is
a palace (H294), which perpetuates the residential
character ofthe compound. It is strange that
part of the original palace would appear to have
been demolished, but the evidence is not clear
enough to be certain what happened. There are
also many other structures whose relative dating
within the complex is uncertain.
The Topography of thePalacein the Texts
The most recent traditional name for the palace
has been Qasr or Bayt al-Khalifa, 8 4
which is
still used today in Iraq.8 5
However, by the time of
his preliminary report of 1914, Herzfeld was calling
the site al-Jawsaq al-Khaqani, possibly relying
on the work ofSchwarz." In 1983 al-cAni pointed
out that there are two different palaces mentioned
in the texts, al-Jawsaq and the Dar al'Amma,
and that Herzfeld could not be right in
applying the name of al-Jawsaq to the palace
complex.8 7
The crucial text is from the Tafikh of
al-Ya'qubi: 88
He [Muctasim] stopped at the site on which isthe Dar
al-Amma, and there was there a monastery of the
Christians, and he bought the land from the people of
the monastery, and he laid out [buildings] on the site,
and he went to the site of the palace known as theJawsaq
on the Tigris, and built there a number of palaces.
All the texts confirm that two buildings are in
question, but other texts mention events at both
together, as though there was no great distance
between them.89
The Dar al-CAmma. At the top of the range of
terminology are expressions which call the palace
the House of the Caliph or House of the
Caliphate. Al-Ya'qubi uses Dar al-Khalifa, 9
0 Tabari
uses Dar al-Khilafa,91
Dar al-Sultan,9 2
and Dar
Amir al-Mu'minin. 93
Dar al-Khilafa could also
have the abstract meaning of the caliph's household.
94
In 256/870 the complex is simply called
al-Dar. 95
This type of terminology predated
the use of Dar al-Khilafa for the caliphal
palace complex in Baghdad from the reign ofalMutadid
(892-908) onwards.96
It isclear that the
modern traditional name of Qasr al-Khalifa is a
descendant of this term.
This group of names may have represented an
overall designation of a complex which had a
number ofpalaces within it,aswas the case for the
Dar al-Khilafa in Baghdad; but it is perhaps more
likely that they were simple synonyms of Dar al'Amma;
al-Ya'qubi in fact explains Dar al-Khalifa
in this latter way.97
The Dar al-'Amma was the public palace in
which the caliph sat in audience on Mondays and
Thursdays. 8
The caliphs also seem to have conducted
a large part of their business there. Only
the caliph had the right to make appointments
there,9
the oath of allegiance was taken to alMusta'in
there in 248/862, and al-Muhtadi sat in
the court ofjustice (mazalim) there. l°°
It is specifically stated that the Dar al-'Amma
was built on the site of the monastery which had
previously been there, and the monastery building
became the treasury (bayt al-mal). l All texts
link the bayt al-mal with the Dar al-'Amma, notably
an occasion in 231/845-46 when "thieves
made ahole into the baytal-milwhichis in the Dar
al-'Amma in the heart of the palace, and took
42,000 dirhams." 0 2
One may suppose that as a
result of this event the monastery was replaced
with a more secure building, for there is no sign
ofa monastery building on the ground.
Also closely associated with the Dar al-'Amma is
the Bab al-'Amma. In the texts, the Bab al-'Amma
is the site for formal arrivals at the palace. °0 3
For
example, when the rebel Babak was brought to
Samarra in 223/838, "the people came to look at
him from al-Matira to Bab al-'Amma, and he was
brought into the Dar al-'Amma to the Prince of
Believers."'0 4
In 241/855-56 al-Qummi "stood at
the Bab al-'Amma with some of the Bujja, 70
ghulamson riding camels. "
05
These events were
triumphal processions, reminiscent of Roman
triumphs.
However, the Bab al-'Amma is also identified
with public punishments. In 226/841, they "crucified
[al-Afshin] on the Bab al-'Amma so that the
people should see him.... The body was burnt,
and the ashes taken and thrown in the Tigris."'06
In 256/870 the head of Salih b. Wasif "was hung
up at the Bab al-Amma for an hour."'0 7
In 259/
872-73 "they beat [a Christian secretary of Kanjur]
... 1000 lashes at Bab al-'Amma, and he
died. " 08
Itseems thatthe sinister reputation ofthe
palace in the modern tradition (in the description
152
AN INTERPRETATION OF THE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT SAMARRA
ofJohn Ross above) derives from these events,
although it has spread from the Bab al-'Amma to
other parts of the palace.'° 9
In the texts the Bab al-'Amma is localized in the
west of the palace-one could go out from the
Bab al-'Amma towards al-Haruni, which layin the
flood plain ofthe Tigris"°--and in relation to the
"avenue," that is the Shari' al-A'zam or Shari' alSarija."'
One could see the Bab al-'Amma and
the Dar al-'Amma from the avenue.1 12
So the
traditional identification of the Bab al-'Amma
with the triple iwan on the west facade of the
palace mustbe correct, and the square receptionhall
block ofthe south palace must be the Dar al-
'Amma.
It seems strange that the main avenue should
be said to have passed through the formal, presumably
private, garden of the caliph, and the
identification ofthe Bab al-'Amma has been doubted
for this reason." 3
The solution appears to lie in
a chronological sequence. The archaeological
evidence of the western garden is compatible
with, although it does not prove, the hypothesis
that it is early in date and belongs to the original
period of construction at the palace.11 4
The first
mention of the Bab al-'Amma as a place open to
the public dates to 223/838, and the description
of the Shari' al-A'zam by al-Ya'qubi dates to after
the death of al-Mutawakkil in 247/861.15 It may
not have been possible to keep private what was
planned by the architects as a private garden,
when the palace itself was dedicated as a public
building. Atany rate themostlogical place forthe
avenue to have crossed the garden is between the
north-south walls (figs. 3 and 9).
The bayt al-mal is associated with the Bab al'Amma
and the avenue in an event of 248/862,
and thus may be building H311 on the south side
of the square reception-hall block."6
If this were
not so, one would have preferred to identify the
bayt al-mal with the vaulted building (H338) in
the enclosure ofthe Large Serdab, which seems
more secure, and could be described as a Mesopotamian
version of the raised bayt al-malin the
Umayyad mosque of Damascus.
Al-Jawsaq. According to al-Ya'qubi al-Jawsaq belonged
to the original construction of Samarra,
and was called al-Jawsaq al-Khaqani, after Khaqan
'Urtuj Abu al-Fath b. Khaqan, who was responsible
for its construction and who was assigned a
qa.'aadjacent to it."7
An iwan is mentioned in
it."8
There was also a tower called al-Lu'lu'a (the
Pearl), which was built as aprison for al-Afshin;
it was possible for a guard to walk around
underneath it."9
Al-Jawsaq is clearly signaled in the texts as the
private residence where the caliphs lived. AlMu'tasim
was buried there in 227/842.120 AlWathiq
(227/842-232/847) built and moved to
al-Haruni, where al-Mutawakkil also lived formost
of his reign (232/847-247/861). Butal-Mutawakkil
settled his son al-Muntasir at al-Jawsaq,' 2
' and
according to Ibn A'tham al-Kufi (d. 314/926) alMuntasir
was buried there in 248/862.122 AlMusta'in,
al-Mu'tazz and al-Muhtadi all lived in alJawsaq,'23
and the latter two were buried there,
together with al-Muntasir. 24
Al-Mu'tamid lived in
al-Jawsaq, until a move to al-Ma'shuq, and returned
there for alast time in 269/884.125 In 290/
903 al-Muktafi decided to reestablish the capital
at Samarra, but seems to have found al-Jawsaq a
ruin, for he was forced to camp there. 2 6
The limited evidence for women in the palace
is related to al-Jawsaq: in 255/869 Qabiha, the
mother of al-Mu'tazz, "brought out the money,
jewels, and valuable possessions in the stores
within al-Jawsaq" to pay the Turks.'2 7
In 256/870
aletterwas published, which awoman had brought
"from the area adjacent to the Qasr al-Ahmar
(normally associated with al-Jawsaq)."' 2 8
Al-Jawsaq was used tojail distinguished prisoners.
The first in 225/839-40 was al-Afshin Khaydar
b. Kawus al-Ushrusani, for whom a special
prison was built. 1
29
In 248/862 al-Musta'in imprisoned
the two sons of al-Mutawakkil, al-Mu'tazz
and al-Mu'ayyad in a room in al-Jawsaq. 130
Released
in 251/865, al-Mu'tazz was made caliph,
and reimprisoned the unfortunate al-Muayyad,
who ultimately died in prison.'3
' In 256/870 alMu'tamid
was brought out of prison in al-Jawsaq
to be made caliph.'3 2
When one approached the palace by the Shari'
Abi Ahmad, according to al-Ya'qubi, one approached
the Bab al-Bustan and the qusiir alkhalifa
(palaces of the caliph, a phrase which
appears to mean the private residences of the
caliph). Al-Ya'qubi does not mention al-Jawsaq or
al-Jawsaq al-Khaqani in his description of the
avenues of Samarra, and one must presume that
it is here subsumed among the residences of the
caliph.l 3
In some way the residences of the caliph
lay at the east end of the palace. In 256/870, also,
Musab. Bugha "took to al-Hayr'34 ... until he came
to the gate of al-Hayrwhich is adjacent to al-Jawsaq
and al-Qasr al-Ahmar."'-5 Al-Jawsaq is described as
looking out over al-Hayr-to the east, though
also mentioned as "al-Jawsaq on the Tigris."'3 6
153
ALASTAIR NORTHEDGE
The obvious candidate for the identification of
al-Jawsaq is the north palace in the complex
(H293). It is the only building of the appropriate
scale to serve as the residence of the caliphs-it
has residential apartments, which the square building
does not. The cantonment to the north (site
X) is a good candidate for the qaFi'aof Khaqan
'Urtuj, which is mentioned as having been adjacent
to al-Jawsaq. S3 7
The palace at H294, in the added eastern extension
of the compound, could be identified
with the palace ofal-Kamil, built for al-Mu'tazz by
al-Mutawakkil within al-Jawsaq, and perhaps added
to in his own reign by a building designed by
his mother. 13
8
Al-Qasr al-Ahmar, closely associated
with, but separate from, al-Jawsaq, and located
near an east gate into the complex, could be
identified with H283.'3 9
Discussion
The dual nature of the palace, in both the
textual sources and the archaeological evidence,
is quite striking. On the one hand, there is a
square palace with no residential accommodation,
facing onto the Sharic al-A'zam and the
garden on the west and onto agrand courtyard to
the east. On the other hand, there is apalace with
residential accommodation, enclosed within a
massive buttressed wall. In the textual evidence
there is the Dar al-'Amma, a public palace where
caliphs are made and unmade'4 0
and sit in audience
andjudgment. On the other hand, there is
a private residence, al-Jawsaq, where caliphs live,
die, and are buried, and which seems to be the
domain of the women.
These features are confirmed by the similarities
and differences in the plan of al-Ja'fari (fig.
18). Without doubt the caliphal palace of alMutawakkiliyya,
built in 245/859-247/861, was
intended to match, and was to a certain extent a
copy of, the caliphal palace of Surra Man Ra'a.
The area of the main palace, 176 ha., is almost
identical to that of the Dar al-Khilafa, but the
building is separated from the city by a space of
between 1,100 m and 2,300 m, which can only
have been intended for the caliph's peace and
security. The reception-hall block on the Tigris is
smaller (125 x 125 m), and the body of the palace
is dominated by blocks of courtyard houses, obviously
used as residential apartments. To the north
and east, the large area and organization of
storehouses and workshops is impressive, by
comparison with the apparently piecemeal arrangements
of the Dar al-Khilafa. According to
Tabari, there was a Bab al-'Amma at al-Ja'fari,
which is not yet precisely identified,' 4
' but it is
obvious that the role of public palace was, firstly,
integrated into an overall design, and, secondly,
far less important than at the Dar al-Khilafa. AlMutawakkil
had been caliph for twelve yearswhen
he began al-Mutawakkiliyya in 245/859, and had
no doubt grown tired of the hurly-burly of politics.'4
2
This failure on the part of al-Mutawakkil emphasizes
al-Mu'tasim's political vision in constructing
a prominent public palace. Al-Mu'tasim had
his relationship with his people foremost in his
mind when he laid out the Dar al-'Amma. There
are only two other extant early Islamic palaces
where orientation towards the public is regarded
as important; one is the four-iwan reception hall
at the entrance of the Umayyad palace in Amman,
and the other is the palace of Ashnas at alKarkh,
SurAshnas, where the main entrance leads
into a courtyard with a mosque in its center.'14
It is striking that it is the public palace which
received the attention in terms of additions,
improvements, and quality of construction, although
the two structures are of similar dimensions.
The square palace is entirely constructed
of fired brick; thenorth palace is partly constructed
of mud brick and pis&.Several complexeswere
either built originally or subsequently added to
the great courtyard ofthe south palace, including
the sports and leisure complex at the east end.
The only addition made to the north palace was
the small palace H294, whereas part of the original
structure appears to have been demolished.
This disparity could be explained ifone considers
the public palace as the domain of the men
and the private palace as the domain of the
women. No doubt the caliphs spent their days in
the Dar al-'Amma, not merely the two days of
public audience.'4 4
The sporting facilities are
attached to the public, not the private, palace. It
is common for more to be spent on the facilities
for those who control the finances.
Lastly there is no doubt that some of the more
peculiar features can be attributed to the complex
history of the palace. In particular, towards
the end, under al-Mu'tamid (256/870-279/892),
who had little power or influence, occupation
may have been reduced, and the square building
mayhave been the last to be occupied, which may
explain the private nature of the wall paintings in
the so-called haim.
154
AN INTERPRETATION OF THE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT SAMARRA
Notes
I am grateful to the Iraq Directorate of Antiquities,
notably its Director-General Dr. Mu'ayyad Damerji,
and the head of the project in Samarra, Sd. Hafiz alHayani,
for their kind reception and sharing of information
on a site on which I did not myselfwork. Iwould
like to thank the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Washington,
D.C., for access to the Herzfeld Archive, and the
Islamisches Museum, Staatliche Museen, Berlin, for
access to materials of the Samarra Expedition. The
archaeological analysis depends upon publication work
for the archaeological survey of Samarra carried out
with the support of the Fondation Max van Berchem,
the British School of Archaeology in Iraq, and the
British Academy. The research for the textual part of
this studywas carried out during the tenure of a fellowship
of the Alexander von Humboldt Stiftung at Universitiit
Tfibingen in 1989-91, and I am grateful to
Professor Heinz Gaube and the students of the Orientalisches
Seminar for their stimulating reaction to the
first presentation of this subject.
I. K. A. C. Creswell, EarlyMuslim Architecture, 1st ed.,
2 vols. (hereafterEMA) (Oxford, 1940), 2:232-45;
Ernst Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten der
zweiten Kampagne von Samarra," Der Islam 5
(1914): 196-204.
2. This has happened inJames Allan's new edition of
Creswell's ShortAccount ofEarly MuslimArchitecture
(Aldershot, 1989), fig. 210. In Creswell's original
edition of the ShortAccount, the plan of the palace
was not included at all, no doubt for reasons of
space.
3. Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten," 196;
Herzfeld, Ausgrabungen von Samarra,'vol. 6, GeschichtederStadtSamarra(Hamburg,
1948), passim.
4. E.g., E. Esin, "The Turk al-c'Aam of Samarra and
the Paintings Attributable to Them in the 6awsaq
al-Haqani," Kunst des Orients9 (1973-74): 47-88.
5. There was, ofcourse, no question ofrediscovery of
the site, whose location had always been known.
6. John Ross, "AJourney from Baghdad to the Ruins
ofOpis and the Median Wall in 1834,"Journalofthe
Royal GeographicSociety 11 (1841): 121-36.
7. J. F.Jones, 'Journal ofa Steam Voyage to the North
of Baghdad in April 1846," Journal of the Royal
GeographicalSociety 18 (1848): 1-19.
8. General L. de Beyli6, Prome et Samarra: Voyage
archiologiqueen Birmanie et en Misopotamie (Paris,
1907); de Beyli6, "L'architecture des Abbassides
au IXe
siecle. Voyage archeologique a Samara,
dans le bassin du Tigre," Revue archiologique, 4th
ser., 10 (1907): 1-18.
9. Henri Viollet, "Description du palais de al-Moutasim
fils d'Haroun-al-Raschid i Samara et quelques
monuments arabes peu connus de la Mesopotamie,"
Mimoirespresentisd lAcadimie des Inscriptions
etdesBelles-Lettres12 (1909): 567-94; H.Viollet, "Le
palais de al-Moutasim ils d'Haroun-al-Raschid a
Samara et quelques monuments arabes peu connus
de la Mesopotamie," Comptes Rendus de
l'Acadimiedes Inscriptionset des Belles-Lettres(1909):
370-75; H. Viollet, "Fouilles i Samara en Mesopotamie:
Un palais musulman du IXe siecle," Mimoires
presentis l'Acadimie des Inscriptions et des BellesLettres
12 (1911): 685-717; H. Viollet, "Fouilles a
Samara: Ruines du palais d'Al Moutasim," Comptes
Rendus de l'Acadimie des Inscriptions et des BellesLettres
(1911): 275-86.
10. Ernst Herzfeld, Samarra:Aufnahmen und Untersuchungen
zur islamischen Archdologie (Berlin,
1907).
11. The origins and events of the German Samarra
Expedition are briefly recounted in Alastair
Northedge, "Creswell, Herzfeld and Samarra,"
Muqarnas8 (1991): 74-93.
12. "The excavations in the palaces have been completely
robbed of bricks; one sees only the trenches,
instead of walls. No pavements. The other
excavations are blown away [i.e., silted] and vegetation
begins to grow over them" (Journal N-83, p.
16, in the Herzfeld Archive, Arthur M. Sackler
Gallery, Washington, D.C.).
13. Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten."
14. The original field notes still exist in the Herzfeld
Archive.
15. For the purposes of my survey and catalogue of
sites at Samarra, the various site areas have been
allotted letter designations from A to Z to identify
them. For individual buildings and archaeological
sites, numbers are added to the letters in the series.
For example, P7 is a group of three brick kilns in
site P.
16. Ernst Herzfeld, DieAusgrabungenvon Samarra,vol.
1,DerWandschmuck derBauten vonSamarraundseine
Ornamentik(Berlin, 1923); vol. 3, DieMalereienvon
Samarra(Berlin, 1927); vol. 6, Geschichte der Stadt
Samarra(Hamburg, 1948).
17. Khalid KhalTl Hammildi, "Qasr al-khalifa alMu'tasim
fi Samarra," Sumer38 (1982): 168-205;
on 168, he remarks that work on the palace was
155
ALASTAIR NORTHEDGE
carried out from 1936 onwards, although it is not
evident what this work was.
18. Hammfid, "Qasr al-khalifa al-Muctasim."
19. The publication is HAfiz Husayn HIayan!, "al-Hir,"
Sumer44 (1985-86): 139-57 (Ar. sect.). The structure
is identified in thisarticle and on the information
signs at the site as "the palace of al-Hayr," a
building whose location is not given in the texts
which refer to it (Walid b. 'Ubayd al-Buhturi,
Diwanal-Buhtuni,ed. Hasan Kamil al-Sayrafi [Cairo,
1963-64], 1.44; Yaqfit b. 'Abdallah al-Hamawl alRfimi
al-Baghdadi, KitabMujam al-Buldan,6vols.,
ed. Wuistenfeld [Leipzig, 1866-73], s.v. al-.Hayr).
Hayani does not explain the identification or tell
us who first proposed it.
20. Creswell, EMA, 2:265-70; Creswell-Allan, ShortAccount,
365-67.
21. Alastair Northedge and R. Falkner, "The 1986
SurveySeason atSamarra,"Iraq49(1987): 143-73.
22. Creswell, EMA, 2:50-98; Creswell-Allan, Short Account,
248-63.
23. Creswell-Allan, ShortAccount, 10-15.
24. HaydnT, "al-Hir."
25. Alastair Northedge, '"The Racecourses at Samarra,"
Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African
Studies 53 (1990): 31-56.
26. Muhammad b.Jarir al-Tabari, Taiikhal-Rusulwa'Mulik,
ed. de Goeje et al. (Leiden, 1879-1901),
3:2040.
27. Tabari, Tarikh al-Rusulwa'l-Mulik, 3:1394-1403.
28. A type ofboat.
29. Abi al-Faraj 'Al b. Husayn al-Isfahani, Kitab alAghani,
21 vols. (Bulaq, 1867), 9:32.
30. Tabarl, Tanikh al-Rusul wa'L-Mulfk, 3:1696.
31. J. Lassner, The Topography of Baghdad in the Early
Middle Ages (Detroit, 1970), 54.
32. E.g., Qasr Kharana (Creswell-Allan, ShortAccount,
96-105); orJabal Sais (pp. 118-22).
33. Not so far published.
34. In 1977 this basin was in the courtyard of the
Abbasid Palace in Baghdad. Previously it had been
in the Khan Mirjan (F. Basmachi, Treasuresof the
IraqMuseum [Baghdad, 1976]).
35. Herzfeld, DieAusgrabungen,vol. 3.
36. Surface fragments found at al-Haruni in 1989.
37. Creswell, EMA, 243, fig. 193.
38. Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten."
39. H.ammfid, "Qasr al-khalifa al-Mu'tasim," 187.
40. H.ammfldi, "Qasr al-khalifa al-Muctasim," 201,204.
41. Information from Sd. Hafiz Hayani.
42. Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten."
43. Ahmad b. Abi Ya'qfib b. Wd.ih al-Yac'qibi, KitabalBuldan,
ed. M. J. de Goeje, Bibliotheca GeographorumArabicorum
7 (Leiden, 1892), 261; Tabari,
Tanikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muliik, 3:1807.
44. The name Surra Man Ra'a, which appears to have
been the formal name ofthe city ofal-Muctasim, is
used here to refer to the central city, in contrast to
the outlying cantonments of al-Matira and al-Karkh,
and the city of al-Mutawakkiliyya.
45. The full argumentation of the subject of this avenue
and its relationship to the layout of the original
Surra Man Ra'a must be reserved for another
publication.
46. Tabari, Trniikh al-Rusulwa'l-Muliik, 3:1820-22.
47. Al-Ya'qibi, Buldan, 262. At this point there is a
grand palace on the east side of the avenue, and
another on the west. One should be identified with
the house ofItakh, and the other probably with al'Umari
(al-Yac'qibl, Buldin,258; Tabari, Tafikh alRusul
wa'l-Mulhk, 3:1300-1, 1503, 1504; Abfi alHasancAli
b. al-Husayn al-MasCidi, Muruijal-Dhahab
wa Maaidinal-Jawahir,ed. and trans. C. Barbier de
Reinard and P. de Courteille, 9 vols. [Paris, 1861-
77], 7:122).
48. It should be remembered that the written sources
are ofvaried origins. Consistency in naming structures
cannot be expected.
49. Herzfeld excavated the entrance to this building
from the great courtyard. However, his reading of
the plan differs somewhat from the impression
given by the aerial photographs.
50. Creswell, EMA, fig. 64.
51. The plan of the palace at al-Musharrahat can be
156
AN INTERPRETATION OF THE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT SAMARRA
consulted in Northedge, "Creswell, Herzfeld and
Samarra," fig. 12, and Northedge, 'The Palace of
al-Istabulat at Samarra," Archiologie islamique 3
(1993), fig. 8; a publication is being prepared by
Petersen and Northedge.
52. The plan of Sur 'Isa regrettably remains unpublished.
See drawing D-1084 in the Herzfeld Archive,
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery,Washington, D.C.
53. Al-Ya'qiibi, Buldan, 240.
54. Tabarl, Tdaikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muliik, 3:1503, 1504.
55. Tabari, Tahrkh al-Rusul wa'l-Muliik, 3:1504.
56. Tabarl, Tahikhal-Rusulwa'-Muluk, 3:1815,1823-24.
57. Tabarl, Tiinkh al-Rusulwa'l-Muliik,3:1680. Translation
ofG. Saliba.
58. Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten," 201.
59. J. Oates, Babylon (London, 1979), 151, ill. 101; R.
Koldewey, Das Wiedererstehende Babylon (Leipzig,
1925). Koldewey in fact proposed that the vaulted
building was the site of the Hanging Gardens of
Babylon, although he recognized that the hypothesis
"bristled with difficulties." The building contained
an archive of tablets detailing listsof rations
for foreign exiles in the city and an unusual type of
triple well. A series ofwells is also to be found in the
similar building A12 at al-Jacfari.
60. By contrast no examples of the cross-hatch style,
style B, or the beveled style, style C, are yet known
dating from before the foundation of Samarra.
61. It is ofcourse possible that the decoration of the
Bab al-'Amma is later than the building itself. In
fact, one would expect the building to have been
redecorated during its occupation.
62. Directorate General of Antiquities, Hafriyyat
Samarr, 1936-39, 2 vols. (Baghdad, 1940).
63. Herzfeld Archive, drawings D-1049 and D-1125.
64. It is assumed that a service department of the
palace would require a majlis for the chief which
would be impressive in proportion to the individual's
importance, and thatthe work areaswould lie
behind and perhaps out of sight. An alternative
explanation might be that this complex is the
residence ofsomeone close tothe caliph, although
this building does nothave any apartments for the
accommodation of dependents.
65. Viollet, Fouilles Samara,pl. III.
66. H.aynT, "al-H.ir," 139-57.
67. Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten."
68. Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten."
69. Modification of building plans to correct problems
evident in earlier versions is known elsewhere
at Samarra: one can argue that the plan of the
cloverleaf racecourse was dictated by the obvious
difficulty of the traditional out-and-back plan (racecourses
1and 2), that the caliph could not see the
whole race (Northedge, "Racecourses at Samarra").
The cloverleaf racecourse also appears to
date to the reign of al-Mutwakkil. One suspects
that these modifications were the result of the
personal intervention of al-Mutawakkil, who was a
great lover of architecture, and personally supervised
the construction of al-Mutawakkiliyya from
the palaces of al-Muhammadiyya on the raised
canal levee ofthe Qatul al-Kisrawi to the east of the
site of the Abu Dulaf mosque (Tabari, Tiikh alRusulwa
'l-Muluk, 3:1438).
70. Al-Yac'qibl, Buldan, 260.
71. Viollet, Fouillesd Samarra,pl. III; Herzfeld Archive,
drawings D-1031 and D-1124.
72. Herzfeld Archive, drawing D-1044.
73. Herzfeld, "Mitteilung fiber die Arbeiten."
74. Arthur Upham Pope and PhyllisAckerman, eds., A
Survey of PersianArt from Prehistoric Times to the
Present,4 vols. (Oxford, 1938-39), 1407, fig. 512.
R. D. McChesney, "Four Sources on the Building
ofIsfahan," Muqarnas5(1988): 103-35, quotes the
Nuqawit al-Athir of Mahmfid b. Hidayat Allah
Natanzi on the purpose of the Maydan-i Shah:
'T"For polo (chtigan-bz1) and horse racing (asb-tzi)
the maidan was leveled." In a second phase, however,
the purpose ofthe maydan was changed.
75. Ibn Qutayba, 'Uyin al-Akhbar, 2 vols., ed. Brockelmann
(Berlin, 1900), 1:166; A. Mez, DieRenaissance
deslslams(Heidelberg, 1922),385. Mez incorrectly
noted the width as 60 meters. The caliph's maydan
was no doubt larger than those of ordinary nota-
bles.
76. For a detailed discussion of the sport of horse
racing, see Northedge, "Racecourses at Samarra."
77. In Northedge, "Racecourses at Samarra," the figure
of 10,500 m was quoted as the length of
racecourse 3. The new figure of 10,420 m is based
upon electronic measurement of the same map
source dated 1917, cf. Northedge, "Racecourses at
157
ALASAIR NORTHEDGE
Samarra," n. 87. Nevertheless the new figure seems
to be more correct, for it matches a corrected
measurement forracecourse 1of 10,417 m. Ifthese
distances represented 20,000 cubits, then the cubit
was 0.52 m.
78. Y6 is one of a group of five identical structures in
the steppe which are oriented to the qibla and
would appear to be musallas.
79. Northedge, "Racecourses at Samarra."
80. Viollet, Fouillesd Samara,25, pls. XIV, XXI.
81. The buttresses were presumably 20 cubits in diameter
(20 x .52 m = 10.4 m).
82. Demolition seems to be the most logical explanation
for the disappearance of the east end which
appears on Herzfeld's plan and seems to be confirmed
by examination ofthe aerial photographs.
Regrettably I did not address this question during
a visit to this site in 1989.
83. This plan is paralleled in a building in al-Jacfari
(A188), but not in any ofthe excavated buildings.
84. Cf. above, description byRoss, 'Journey from Bagh-
dad."
85. E.g., Hammfdi, "Qasr al-khalifa al-Mutasim";
HayanT, "al-Hlir."
86. P. Schwartz, DieAbbasiden-Residenz Samarra. Neue
historisch-geographischeUntersuchungen (Leipzig,
1909).
87. A. A. N. al-CAni, "Istadrikat trikhiyya li-maw5qi'
athariyya III," Sumer39 (1983): 261-66 (Ar. sect.).
88. Al-YaCqfibi, Tanikh, 2:473.
89. Tabarl, Tinkh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulk, 3:1787-88,
1823-24.
90. Al-Ya'qibi, Buldan, 261.
91. Tabari, Tii kh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulik, 3:1350, 1788.
92. Tabari, Tiinkh al-Rusul wa'l-Muliik, 3:1706.
93. Tabari, Tankh al-Rusul wa'l-Muluik, 3:1804, 1807.
94. Tabari, Taiikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muluk, 3:1383.
95. Tabari, Tanikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muluk, 3:1787-88,
1820-22, 1823-24.
96. Lassner, Topography of Baghdad, 85-91. The
possibility that the usage of Dar al-Khilafa at
Samarra is a back projection from later times
seems to be excluded byits use by a contemporary
author such as al-Yacqfibi.
97. Al-Ya'qfbil, Buldan, 261.
98. Al-Yacqlbi, Buldan, 261.
99. Cf.Tabari, Tnikhal-Rusulwa'I-Muliik,3:1350, for
an exception.
100. Tabari, Tiiikh al-Rusulwa '-Mulfik, 3:1503, 1788.
The mazilim was the law court presided over by
the caliph.
101. Al-Ya'qbil, Buldan, 255.
102. TabarT, Trikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulhk, 3:1350-51,
1503.
103. Dominique Sourdel ("Questions de c6r6monial
abbaside," Revue des itudes islamiques 38 [1960]:
121-48) must be right in saying that the Bab alcAmma
was not itself a reception room.
104. Tabari, Tanikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulihk, 3:1230.
105. Tabarl, Taikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulfik, 3:1433. The
Bujja were from Nubia. Cf. also Ahmad b. Abi
Yacqfib b. Wad.ib al-Yacqfibi, Thankh, ed. M. Houtsma,
2 vols. (Leiden, 1883), 2:480, for the arrival
of the rebel Abu Harb al-Mubarqac from Pales-
tine.
106. Tabari, Tanikh al-Rusulwa'l-Mulfk, 3:1318. The
bodies are said to have been crucified after execu-
tion.
107. Tabari, Tarikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muluhk, 3:1811.
108. Tabarl, Taiikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulih, 3:1874. Cf.
also Tabari, Tanikh al-Rusul wa'I-Muliik, 3:1419,
1434, 1522, 1722-23, 1859.
109. The sinister reputation of the Bab al-'Amma may
also explain why it is that the fired bricks of the
triple iwan have not been robbed out along with
the rest of the palace.
110. Tabarl, Taiikh al-Rusulwa'l-Mulfk, 3:1504.
111. Tabari, Tiinkh al-Rusulwa'I-Muliih, 3:1503, 1505,
1722-23, 1821, 1823-24.
112. Al-Ya'qfib, Buldiin, 261.
113. Sourdel, "Questions de c6r6monial," 126-27.
There is no sign ofa monumental avenue on the
158
AN INTERPRETATION OF THE PALACE OF THE CALIPH AT SAMARRA
east side of the palace, a possibility suggested by
Sourdel.
114. The principal arguments for proposing that the
garden is original are (1) what did the Bab alcAmma
look out onto if the garden was not there?
(2) There is no evidence that it replaced other
construction, and it is well adapted to the architecture
of the palace. (3) The palace of Balkuwara,
which is a single-phase building, was constructed
with a garden facing onto the Tigris
(Creswell, EMA, fig. 214).
115. Al-Yacqfibl, Buldan, 260.
116. Tabari, Tafnkh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulfik, 3:1503.
117. Al-Yacqfibi, Buldan, 258. There is also a mention
of "al-Jawsaq al-Ibrahimi," which cost 2 million
dirhams (Abfi al-Faraj Ali b. H.usayn al-Isfahani,
Kitab adab al-ghurabi', ed. S. Munajjid [Beirut,
1972], 47-50), and "al-Jawsaq fi Maydan al-Sahn"
or "al-Sakhr," which cost 500,000 dirhams (AlIsfahani,
Kitabadabal-ghurab&;Yaqit, Mu'jam alBuldiin,
s.v. Samarra). Both constructions are attributed
to al-Mutawakkil.
118. Tabari, Tafikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulik, 3:1881.
119. Tabari, Tarnkh al-Rusulwa'l-Mulfk, 3:1307.
120. Al-Yacqfibl, Tankh, 2:478.
121. Al-Yaqfibi, Buldan, 265; Tabari, Tahikh al-Rusul
wa'-Mulfk, 3:1446.
122. Abf Muhammad Ahmad ibn Actham al-Kffi, Kitab
al-Futuih, 8 vols. (Haydarabad, 1975), 8:354; alKhatib
al-Baghdadi, Tanikh Baghdad, Cairo, ed.
2:121. Already doubted by Oleg Grabar ('The
Earliest Islamic Commemorative Structures: Notes
and Documents," Ars Orientalis6 [1966]: 7-46)
and Sheila Blair ('The Octagonal Pavilion at Natanz,"
Muqarnas1 [1983]: 69-94), Herzfeld's view
that the Qubbat al-Sulaybiyya was the mausoleum
of al-Muntasir now seems definitely incorrect
(Friedrich Sarre and Ernst Herzfeld, Archiologische
Reise im Euphrat-und Tigris-gebiet, 4 vols. [Berlin:
D. Reimer, 1911-20], 2:86; Creswell, EMA, 285).
123. Al-Yacqfibl, Buldiin, 267.
124. Tabarf, Tdarfkh al-Rusulwa 'l-Muluk, 3:1711,
1823.
125. Al-Yacqfibi, Buldan, 267; Tabari, Taiikh al-Rusul
wa 'l-Mulik, 3:2040.
126. Tabari, Tikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulk, 3:2223-24;
'Izz al-Din ibn al-Athir, al-Kamilfial-Taikh,ed. C.
J. Tornberg, 14 vols. (Leiden, 1866-71), 6:108.
127. Tabari, Tanikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulfik, 3:1716.
128. Tabari, Taikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muliihk, 3:1791.
129. Tabari, Tainkh al-Rusulwa'l-Mulfik, 3:1307.
130. Tabari, Taikh al-Rusulwa'-Mulikt, 3:1507, 1545.
131. Tabari, Tanikh al-Rusulwa'l-Mulfik, 3:1545, 1668.
132. Tabarl, Tainkh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulfk, 3:1831.
133. Cf. also "al-Jawsaq and other maqasir" (Tabari,
Taikh al-Rusul wa'-Muliik, 3:1820); "al-Jawsaq
and the palaces of the Caliphate" (al-Yacqfibi,
Buldan,267).
134. The hunting reserve east of the city. The area
seems later to have lost its specific function, but
the name remained in use.
135. Tabari, Tarikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulfik, 3:1787-88.
136. Tabarl, Tiifikh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulhk, 3:2040; alYaqibT1,
Tainkh, 2:473.
137. The evidence of relationship with racecourse 1
and Tell al-'Alij shows that site X must be early in
date (Northedge, "Racecourses at Samarra").
138. Al-Isfahani, Adab, 47-50; Abu al-Hasan Al b.
Muhammad al-Shabushti, Kitab al-Diyarat, ed.
Gurgis Awwad, 2nd ed. (Baghdad, 1966), 170.
139. Tabarl, TanikhalRusulwa 'l-Mulfik, 3:1788, 1791,
1823-24.
140. Tabari, Taiikh al-Rusul wa'-Mulik, 3:1787-88,
1820-24.
141. Tabarl, Taiinh al-Rusul wa'l-Mulh, 3:1479.
142. Al-Mutawakkil was said to have neglected his public
duties in the weeks before his murder (Tabari,
Taiikh al-Rusulwa'l-Mulfik, 3:1453-54).
143. Regrettably Sur Ashnas is not published. For the
Turkish cantonments of al-Karkh, see A. Northedge,
"Archaeology and New Urban Settlement
in Early Islamic Syria and Iraq," in Studies in Late
Antiquity andEarly Islam, ed. G. R. D. King and A.
Cameron, vol. 2, SettlementPatternsin theByzantine
andEarlyIslamic NearEast (forthcoming).
144. Sourdel, "Questions de ceremonial," 126; Tabard,
Taiikhal-Rusul wa '-Muliik, 3:1496.
159