Khan al-Ruzz

The name comes from the rice trade: this was a storage khan for the merchants who brought rice and wheat up from the coast. It stands at the south end of the Al-Bzouriyah Souq, in a side alley on its east side, with its back wall on Straight Street. Two large domes cover the square court.

Getting there

Walk the Al-Bzouriyah Souq southwards. Near the end of the souq a narrow alley opens on the east side, and the khan is in that alley. It is the one clear example of the storage layout behind the spice souq: if the stalls were at the front, the goods were at the back, and the back was here.

What to see

Look up as soon as you are inside. Each of the two domes has a large round opening at its centre, and both openings were later closed with corrugated sheet; the light leaks in around the edges of that sheet. On the pointed arches that carry the domes, black and white stone alternates course by course. The court is still a store.

When it was built

The sources disagree: one says the 17th century, another the 18th. No detailed study has been written about the building, only entries in Arabic lists. Treat any text that gives you an exact year with caution.

How long it takes

15 minutes. It belongs to a walk through the Al-Bzouriyah Souq.

Don’t miss

Step into the middle of the court and take in both domes at once. Few khans in Damascus roof a single court with two domes, and the arrangement makes the building read as a closed warehouse rather than an inn for travellers, which is what it was.