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he Arab Culture Palace, known by many people in Syria as Maktab Anbar, is viewed by researchers, historians
and architects as a rich and beautiful monumental edifice. The palace, which is a crystal clear witness to Islamic
Arab architecture on one hand, and Damascene houses on the other, is famed for its wonderful decoration, mosaic
and arabesque. The halls, rooms and (4) courtyards of the Culture Palace in addition to its marble basins represent
the major constituents of the building which occupies an area of land totalling 4000 square meters in the middle
of the old city of Damascus near the Omayyad Mosque.
The Culture Palace contains 40 rooms, 6 halls, 4 courtyards and several stone basins. In fact, the culture Palace
shows also aspects of the baroque which was prevailing in Europe in the 19th century A.D. The Culture Palace was
built in 1876. At the beginning of the 20th century, this Palace was turned into an elementary, preparatory and
secondary school.
Many people today still remember that it was at this school that the students protest demonstrations took place
against the Ottoman occupation and later the French occupation. Today, the palace is the headquarters of the council
which is in charge of the conservation the old city of Damascus. Different festivals and celebrations including
Damascus Heritage Festival, Damascus Handicrafts Fair and Damascus Photography Exhibition take place at the Culture
Palace every year. And if a visitor wants to see the Culture Palace he or she will not find any difficulty in finding
other architectural treasures like the Omayyad mosque, the Azem palace, Nureddin Bath-house, the old souks of Damascus,
etc. These monuments are in the near vicinity of the Culture Palace.
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