Dar al-Hajar, the Rock Palace

Dar al-Hajar stands atop a protruding rock formation in Wadi Dhahr, a fertile and pleasant valley of small villages and clay-walled orchards. Pictured in many books about Yemen, it has become a symbol of the country itself.

Imam Yahya (1911-48) built the five-storey palace in the 1930s as a summer residence. Building a palace in such an extraordinary place was not his idea; there were already ruins of a prehistoric building on top of the hill. The well penetrating the rocks next to the house is said to date from then. This summer palace of Imam Yahya is actually a group of palaces famous for its delightful location and its beautiful gypsum ornamentation in the Sana'a style.

(Source: wikimapia.org)

Dar Al-Hajar – is a historical monument, considered one of the symbols of Yemen. It is located in the village of Souk Al Wadi, and often referred to as the Palace of Islam. The exact date of the original construction of the castle is unknown. However, there is a perception that the first buildings appeared long before the advent of Islam. In the Middle Ages the castle was completely destroyed by the Turks, and only in the eighteenth century, partially restored.

(Source: freeyork.org)