Qasr al-Qatraneh

[1] As noted by archaeologist Reem Samed Al Shqour, ancient khans and their courtyard fortifications were obvious models upon which later peoples could build (literally and metaphorically).

"[1] Historical texts confirm that it was a hostel in AH 926/1520 CE, when a Shami caravan returned from the Hajj, and pilgrims stayed in the al-Hasa region.

[1][clarification needed] There are two phases at the site (followed by restoration work done by the Jordanian Department of Antiquities in the 1970s): the original building, including the first row of arrowslits and crenellations, followed in the 18th century by the addition of box machicolations.

[1] It seems that such forts served as dwelling places, trade centers, storehouses for pilgrims, and, perhaps uniquely in the case of Qatrana, as a rudimentary postal office in the 19th century.

[1] The residents that lived in the region during the Byzantine and Roman periods developed a system to bring water from vast, extensive terrain to the cities, towns, and villages and their buildings.

[6] The two channels lead the water to a settling basin, then to a large pool where it was collected, and from there the wayer flowed to a well[dubious – discuss] located inside the castle.

[clarification needed] What remains of these foundational stones discovered on the site near the valley demonstrates a high degree of mastery in construction and design.

[6] The walls of the castle were built of polished stones, and the palace from clay and limestone tiles,[dubious – discuss] as was common in the region during the Mamluk period.

—Al-Khiyari, in Rihlat al-Khiyari: Tuhfat' al-Udaba wa-Salwat al-Ghuraba[1]Figures in history who mention Qatrana explicitly in their writings are here listed in chronological order, from the 16th–late 19th centuries:[1] Efforts to restore and conserve the site are ongoing in the face of recent "sabotage," "vandalism," and unofficial excavations.