Süleymaniye Tekke

The Sulaymaniyya Takiyya is a spiritual and service complex built between 1554 and 1559 AD by order of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent on the remains of the Mamluk “Ablaq Palace,” with a design attributed to the Ottoman architect Sinan. The complex occupies an area of 11,000 square meters on the banks of the Barada River and consists of a two-domed mosque framed by two graceful minarets, a khanqah, ovens, and dining rooms for pilgrims heading to the Two Holy Mosques. The layout is based on two courtyards، the larger one for worshippers and the smaller one for dervishes. The white limestone combined with black basalt reveals a deep Ottoman influence. Part of the Takiyya has been transformed into a “handicrafts market,” promoting traditional crafts such as woodcarving and Damascene embroidery, making the site a vibrant economic center that combines spiritual function with craft innovation.