Umayyad Desert Palaces

In the 8th century, Umayyad caliphs built a band of desert palaces and hunting lodges east of Amman as retreats and provincial centres. Their decorative art — frescoes at Quseir Amra, stone carving at Mshatta — is unexpectedly refined.

The sites stand in rolling gravel plains that seem untouched by time. They reward patience. Travellers who hire car & driver in Jordan spend a quiet day east of the capital, and full package tours to Jordan add them to a cultural loop.