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Masmak Fort is important in Saudi history and a showcase of doors

29 December 2023 6:11 am

Masmak Fort main door

Main door with al-khokha

Masmak Fort, close-up of al-khokha

Imagine the spear tip just near the bottom and to the right of the X

Last week, we spent hours roaming through the Masmak Fort, a clay and mud brick structure in the heart of Riyadh.

Built in 1865 for prince ‘Abdurrahman ibn Sulaiman AlDabaan, the fort played an integral role in the nation’s history. The Battle of Riyadh, one of the most important conflicts leading to the reunification of Saudi Arabia, took place in the fort in 1902.

Since 1995 it has been a museum, covering the battle and many other aspects of Saudi history.
You are most welcome to look up details of the battle (way too much information to report here), but I want to share the doors. I have never seen so many different doors in one building.

The first pic shows the gate at the entrance. The rectangular opening in the lower part of the main door is called an al-khokha. It is just big enough for one person to pass at a time, and is a defensive feature designed to allow people in and out without opening the door. The second pic is a close-up of the al-khokha. The guide showed us the tip of a spear stuck in the door just to the right of the al-khokha. It’s a remnant of the battle in 1902, but impossible to photograph. Pretend you can see it.

Masmak Fort shutters

Window shutters

Masmak Fort door with circles Masmak Fort door

Some doors are plain, some are colourful, many are faded. Here’s a selection including one set of window shutters. There are very few captions.

Masmak Fort door

Masmak Fort

Masmak Fort

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Posted by leggypeggy

Categories: Middle East, Saudi Arabia

Tags: , , , , , , ,

42 Responses to “Masmak Fort is important in Saudi history and a showcase of doors”

  1. What a great collection. The first window shutter picture is my fav 🙂 Maggie

    Liked by 2 people

    By Monkey's Tale on 29 December 2023 at 6:34 am

    1. The shutters are gorgeous.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 29 December 2023 at 6:56 am

  2. Very interesting Peggy. Yes the doors are magnificent..maybe there was a local contest!

    Liked by 1 person

    By Phyllis on 29 December 2023 at 6:55 am

    1. Anything is possible given the variety.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 29 December 2023 at 6:57 am

  3. Thanks for sharing this idea. Anita

    Liked by 1 person

    By 100 Country Trek on 29 December 2023 at 7:35 am

    1. You are most welcome.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 29 December 2023 at 1:37 pm

  4. A fascinating lesson to absorb and get away from nature trying to take over our lives in our part of Down Under . . . enjoy and thanks!

    Liked by 1 person

    By Eha on 29 December 2023 at 9:11 am

    1. I always like looking at doors. These were exceptionally interesting.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 29 December 2023 at 1:39 pm

  5. What an interesting lot of doors. I think we westerners could do with a bit of door variation (and decoration). Makes the buildings much more interesting. 😀

    Liked by 1 person

    By Vicki on 29 December 2023 at 10:19 am

    1. I’ll have to be on the lookout for interesting doors when I get home.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 29 December 2023 at 1:42 pm

  6. Such beautiful doors and shutters! Love these!

    Liked by 1 person

    By Anna on 29 December 2023 at 10:31 am

    1. Me too. The shutters are especially creative.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 29 December 2023 at 1:44 pm

  7. Old doors had character. Modern doors have uniformity. 🤔

    Liked by 1 person

    By ralietravels on 29 December 2023 at 1:35 pm

    1. I should do more posts on doors. I have seen some amazing ones on our travels.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 29 December 2023 at 1:45 pm

  8. A fantastic photo collection! I remember this fort from the last time I was in Riyadh but visits weren’t available then. Thanks for the tour.

    Liked by 1 person

    By Lynette d'Arty-Cross on 29 December 2023 at 4:16 pm

    1. Delighted to be able to take you there.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 30 December 2023 at 10:05 pm

  9. Showing someone the door has new perspective now. Lovely history of doors.

    Liked by 1 person

    By gerard oosterman on 29 December 2023 at 6:42 pm

    1. I have loads of pics of doors from around the world. I should do more posts.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 30 December 2023 at 10:06 pm

  10. I looked up the battle.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Riyadh_(1902)
    The doors are indeed fascinating, Peggy, and I didn’t even know there were castles in Saudi Arabia.
    Best wishes, Pete.

    Like

    By beetleypete on 29 December 2023 at 10:18 pm

    1. Saudi has been full of surprises.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 30 December 2023 at 10:07 pm

  11. What amazing doors but surprisingly modern date. I thought they were going to date to the 11th century or older.

    Liked by 1 person

    By Emma Cownie on 30 December 2023 at 1:54 am

    1. There is a lot here that is much older.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 30 December 2023 at 10:07 pm

  12. Thanks again Peggy for the wonderful and colorful narrative…
    Sent from my iPhone

    Liked by 1 person

    By Sherry Thomas on 30 December 2023 at 4:17 am

    1. The colourful doors are so gorgeous.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 30 December 2023 at 10:08 pm

  13. Your photos are spectacular. I feel the warmth of sunshine through WIFI!

    Liked by 1 person

    By Rebecca Budd on 30 December 2023 at 8:55 am

    1. It’s been hot enough here to come through the wifi.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 30 December 2023 at 10:09 pm

  14. Fantastic doors. Absolutely wonderful. A huge fort as well. They remind me of doors in Pakistan particularly up north and in Morocco. Many early doors in Nepal and parts of India are similar. But, it astounds me that the fort was built in 1865. Are the doors contemporary?

    I like the hint at defence. The fort wouldn’t survive against modern artillery in 1865. But, one gets the suspicion that they were worried about things much closer to home. Like the Shogunate in Japan.

    Thanks
    Tony
    https://www.breadtagsagas.com/

    Liked by 2 people

    By tony on 2 January 2024 at 3:56 pm

    1. The doors were definitely old. Also according to the video re-enactment we saw at the fort, the early battles with spears, swords, simple rifles and hand-to-hand fighting.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 6 January 2024 at 6:19 am

  15. Dear Peggy,

    Your exploration of the Masmak Fort is absolutely fascinating! The blend of history and architecture, particularly the diverse doors and the al-khokha, is captivating. It’s amazing how a simple element like a door can tell so much about a place’s past and culture. Thanks for sharing these insights and beautiful photographs!

    Warm regards,
    Mike

    Liked by 1 person

    By MichaelStephenWills on 18 January 2024 at 10:15 pm

    1. Thanks so much Mike. The fort was amazing, and so much to take in. My head is still reeling from all the sights we’ve seen.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 19 January 2024 at 3:50 pm

  16. Peggy, these are amazing photos from Arabia. A country whose history is not readily seen or known to me. Thank you!

    Liked by 1 person

    By kunstkitchen on 28 January 2024 at 3:14 am

    1. Thanks to you too. Lots more to come.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 28 January 2024 at 10:52 pm

      1. Looking forward to your next journey.

        Liked by 1 person

        By kunstkitchen on 29 January 2024 at 5:42 am

  17. An interesting collection, for sure, and lovely patterns.

    Liked by 1 person

    By Christie on 29 February 2024 at 9:02 am

    1. Makes me think I should paint a door at my house.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 29 February 2024 at 11:25 am

      1. Not a bad idea! I also plan to paint our garage.. some day😊

        Liked by 1 person

        By Christie on 1 March 2024 at 1:59 am

  18. Just read an article about large lava tubes in the Middle East that were used by people 7000 ago. Remnants of some human and animal habitation recently were found. Also cave carvings of animals with stick figure people were there.
    People were using them to escape the desert heat as living areas.

    Liked by 1 person

    By Kunstkitchen on 10 May 2024 at 3:13 am

    1. Caves were an important way to escape the heat. I know of the lava tubes, but we haven’t visited them.

      Like

      By leggypeggy on 11 May 2024 at 3:01 pm

  19. These doors are fascinating! No wonder you took such pictures of them. x

    Liked by 1 person

    By jeanleesworld on 6 July 2024 at 1:33 am

    1. Doors fascinate me. Our glass front door is covered in dog nose prints.

      Liked by 1 person

      By leggypeggy on 6 July 2024 at 8:20 am

      1. As it should be! How else do they get to smell the world, lol? I don’t remember that much with our own doors, but I do remember our big collie/lab doing that to the van windows that open at the side at an angle. The mucus spray on those things was gross and hilarious lol.

        Liked by 1 person

        By jeanleesworld on 6 July 2024 at 8:30 pm

      2. Oh yeah, gross and hilarious.

        Like

        By leggypeggy on 6 July 2024 at 8:56 pm

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