Posted at Nov 28/2007 04:22PM:
aviad: Qasr are desert palaces that emerged throughout the steppe during the Umayyad period. Contrary to their name, they are not all in deserts, nor are they all palaces. (ian: though most of them are.)

There are two main theories about the purpose of these structures:

1. The family members of the caliph were not especially religious and therefore they chose to live it up in the steppe in private. This is supported by Qasr Amra, which has a lascivious bathhouse and appears rather secular.

2. The caliphs built qasr as a means of extending their power into the steppe. By building an impressive structure, they show their power visually to the nomads of the steppe, and potentially gain power over them as well. They may also have served the purpose of "making the desert bloom" that is, reclaiming harvestable land for the Umayyads.

The qasr are mainly products of the Umayyads, as they do not continue into the Abassid period. They are significant for being another form of architecture and construction that the Umayyad undertook, and for their debatable purpose.

Posted at Dec 10/2007 08:56AM:
ian: The key here is to note that the Umayyad building projects in greater Syria were not restricted to the cities but engages with the steppe and the important constituancy of the nomadic tribes that formed much of the bassi of support for the Umayyads.