Souq al-Farrayin

This is the way in for anyone approaching the souq from the south. It is the main southern entrance to Al-Madina Souq and it takes its name from a trade: a farra is a worker in fur. Most of the 77 shops along the lane still deal in fur and leather. The roof is stone vaulting from one end to the other.

A lane that still does what it says

In the Aleppo souq most lanes have given up the trade they are named after. Cloth is sold in the herb lane, carpets in the firewood lane. Al-Farrayin is one of the exceptions. It carries the furriers’ name and the bulk of its shops still work in fur and leather. Like the rest of the market, the lane goes back to the 14th century.

Getting there

Coming from the south, through the streets below the Great Mosque, this is where you enter the market. Walk inward and the lane joins the covered lanes at the centre. The easiest way to keep your bearings in the Aleppo souq is to know which door you came through: az-Zirb is the east end, al-Farrayin the south.

How long it takes

Twenty minutes is enough. The lane is not long and what there is to stop for is the shop fronts; unless you are buying fur, the walk goes quickly. Put al-Farrayin at the start or the end of a souq walk rather than in the middle. It is a door, not a stop.

What most people miss

What the lane looks like with the shutters down. The shop fronts are wood, set side by side, and once they close the lane turns into a wooden corridor and the stone of the vault finally shows. Come early in the morning or late in the afternoon and you catch one state or the other.