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Bayt Farhi
Ottoman-era courtyard palace in Damascus From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Bayt Farhi (Arabic: بيت فرحي) is a large late-18th-century courtyard mansion in the Old City of Damascus, Syria. Built for the Farhi family, a prominent Sephardic Jewish dynasty active in Ottoman provincial finance and administration, the house is among the most elaborate surviving examples of Damascene domestic architecture, noted for its multiple courtyards, richly painted and gilded wooden interiors (ʿajamī), marble pavements and fountains.[1] The mansion functioned as the Farhi family seat in Damascus during their political ascendancy c. 1780–1840 and later underwent partial restoration in the early 21st century.[1]
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Background
The history of Bayt Farhi is inseparable from the story of the Farhi family, a powerful Sephardic Jewish family in Ottoman Syria. The Farhi family arrived in Damascus in 1670, having come from Constantinople (Istanbul) where they had settled after the expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492.[2]
Description
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The house is located in the Jewish Quarter of Damascus.[3] Outwardly modest in appearance, the house follows a pattern typical of grand Damascene residences, where plain street façades conceal elaborate interiors. Entry is arranged through angled passageways, preventing direct views into the private space and thereby, increasing the house's security.[4]
Inside, the building is organized around five courtyards, each serving different social and domestic functions.[4] The outer court (barrani), intended for the reception of visitors, was finished in ablaq masonry, the alternating light and dark stonework characteristic of Damascus.[4] Above the entrance to the principal reception hall was a carved and gilded inscription. The inscription was in Hebrew and contained a blessing from Deuteronomy, reflecting the Jewish identity of the residents.[4]
The reception rooms, used seasonally depending on climate, were richly decorated.[4] Walls and ceilings combined painted woodwork, raised plasterwork, and inscriptions. In the so-called "Pink Room," Hebrew and Aramaic texts invoked prosperity, fertility, and divine favor for the family. Similar themes appear in contemporary houses of Muslim and Christian families in Damascus, showing how different communities employed a shared artistic language to express wealth, faith, and family identity.[4]
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History
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In 1812, Lady Hester Stanhope and her physician, Dr. Charles Lewis Meryon, visited Bayt Farhi and recorded their admiration for its scale and decoration.[5] Meryon described the residence in vivid terms: "On entering, the eye was struck with the glitter of the walls and ceiling, resembling the descriptions of fairy palaces. Mock precious stones, mirrors, gilding and arabesque paintings covered it everywhere, and the floor was of elegant mosaic. The pipes with their amber heads; the coffee cups with a gold stud at the bottom, on which ambergris was stuck to perfume the beverage as it dissolved in it; the embroidered napkins to wipe the mouth with; and the brilliant colours and high flavour of the sherbets corresponded with the grandeur of the house."[6][5] Later, in 1873, the British artist Sir Frederic Leighton visited the house and depicted one of its courtyards in his painting Gathering Citrons.[5]
By 2001, Bayt Farhi was described as being "in a dilapidated state" and subdivided among numerous families.[5] The mansion remained in the possession of the Farhi family until 2004, when it was sold to Hakam Roukbi, a Syrian-born architect. Roukbi initiated a comprehensive program of restoration with the intention of transforming the property into a boutique hotel.[3][2] Renovation works were carried out between 2004 and 2011, but the project was never completed and has since been suspended due to the outbreak of the Syrian civil war.[3]
Roman era remains
During the renovation of Bayt Farhi, several Roman-era remains were uncovered beneath and within the structure. Excavations revealed large ashlar masonry walls, including a long east–west wall in the basement that aligned with Straight Street, part of Damascus's ancient Roman grid.[3] This wall continued upward into the southern room of the service courtyard. Additional north–south walls of similar construction were exposed at ground level in the service courtyard and adjoining rooms, likewise oriented to the Roman street plan. Together, these finds point to the presence of a monumental Roman building in the south-eastern quarter of the old city, a sector about which little is otherwise known archaeologically.[3] According to archaeologists, the remains appear to belong to "a monumental public structure that was constructed sometime between the second half of the 1st century BC and the late 2nd century AD."[3]
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