The name of Yemen, located in the southwest corner of the Arabian Peninsula, simply means south. It's history goes back more than 2500 years. Sana'a is an extremely old city that has been through all of the usual conquerors and empires of the region, such as the conquests after the founding of Islam and later the Ottomans.
With the recent conflict and bombing involving Yemen, I thought it would be a good time to review the unique architecture that it is known for, in the hope that these irreplaceable buildings can be preserved.Yemen being involved in a proxy war between outside powers is nothing new. In the 1960s, there was conflict between royalists and republicans, with Saudis taking the royalist side and Egypt the republican side. There was another civil war, as South Yemen tried to withdraw from union with North Yemen.
The long-time leader Ali Abdullah Saleh was forced to resign in the uprisings of the Arab Spring, and was replaced by Abed Hadi. But a Shiite group called the Houthis seized control of much of the country, and were allied with Saleh until he turned against them and they assassinated him. Saudi Arabia and Iran were playing out their own regional rivalry, with the Iranians supporting the Houthis and the Saudis opposing them.
There are multiple scenes following. To see the scenes, after the first one, you must first click the up arrow, ^, before you can move on to the next scene by clicking the right or forward arrow, >. After clicking the up arrow you can then hide the previews of successive scenes, if you wish.
https://www.google.com/maps/@15.3535493,44.2059042,3a,75y,198.13h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-iv5rPVtBl8I%2FV6WGhYiM_GI%2FAAAAAAAAAWM%2FjkJ4VW_CYgs4ZGkeh8yYhGG-zDw4o2jOwCLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2F-iv5rPVtBl8I%2FV6WGhYiM_GI%2FAAAAAAAAAWM%2FjkJ4VW_CYgs4ZGkeh8yYhGG-zDw4o2jOwCLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya194-ro0-fo100%2F!7i9982!8i4990
In the southern part of Sana'a, here are some scenes in and around the Ali Saleh Mosque, named for the former president of the country. The first four scenes are from Google Street View.
https://www.google.com/maps/@15.3256671,44.2080493,3a,75y,354.71h,112.4t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipPc-5i44wA9qex3JOYDaa7YyqEj85u7R3ld7mAD!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipPc-5i44wA9qex3JOYDaa7YyqEj85u7R3ld7mAD%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-22.4015-ya354.7092-ro-0-fo100!7i5472!8i2736
Here is the city of Seiyun, further east in the country, with it's well-known palace. The first two scenes are from Google Street View. The second scene is the palace.
https://www.google.com/maps/@15.9441064,48.7869318,3a,75y,100t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipMfOrrQgsjmpbZAtWnv9-AtR84sA4G8x3QCSbBi!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipMfOrrQgsjmpbZAtWnv9-AtR84sA4G8x3QCSbBi%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-10-ya358-ro-0-fo100!7i8704!8i4352
This is Al Houta. There is more of the really unique Yemeni architecture.
https://www.google.com/maps/@15.90861,48.668537,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-a1XLupWeED0%2FVDxD8E8lhsI%2FAAAAAAAAFFs%2F71ymkDErqN4Gzva5n27lzu1Oj1aAb5N_w!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-a1XLupWeED0%2FVDxD8E8lhsI%2FAAAAAAAAFFs%2F71ymkDErqN4Gzva5n27lzu1Oj1aAb5N_w%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya191-ro0-fo100%2F!7i7168!8i3100
The Bible describes King Solomon being visited by the queen of a distant country, and her retinue. This is the Queen of Sheba. The queen is not a subject of Solomon, but a peer from a country of her own. The visit is described in one chapter, in two separate places in the Old Testament, and really does not give much information about the Queen of Sheba. But that has not stopped her from becoming a legend, as a vast number of stories have been spun around her down through the centuries. These legends are mostly Christian, Jewish and, Moslem, but her name has become known throughout the world.
The legends spun out of the scant information provided about the Queen of Sheba mirror those around the Magi, who came to visit the newborn Jesus in the New Testament. The Gospel of Matthew gives only a brief description of their visit and does not even state how many of them there were, only that they brought three gifts.
Of course, there were stories that the Queen of Sheba secretly gave birth to children of Solomon, and who the descendants of these children might be. This is especially important to the Solomonic Dynasty of Ethiopia.
Anyway, while the Queen of Sheba remains shrouded in mystery, we do have an idea of where she was from. These are the ruins of Marib, in what is today part of Yemen. The first two scenes are from Google Street View.
The long-time leader Ali Abdullah Saleh was forced to resign in the uprisings of the Arab Spring, and was replaced by Abed Hadi. But a Shiite group called the Houthis seized control of much of the country, and were allied with Saleh until he turned against them and they assassinated him. Saudi Arabia and Iran were playing out their own regional rivalry, with the Iranians supporting the Houthis and the Saudis opposing them.
Iran is widely presumed to be supporting the Houthis. If you wonder why Iran would be so interested in distant Yemen, remember that Yemen was part of the pre-Islamic Sassanid Empire. The turquoise area in the bottom center of the following map is what is now Yemen.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sasanian_Empire#/media/File%3AThe_Sasanian_Empire_at_its_apex_under_Khosrow_II.svg
The capital city of Yemen is called Sana'a. it was formerly the capital of North Yemen, before the union with South Yemen, which was sometimes known as Aden. Sana'a, like Cairo, also has a city square called Tahrir Square. The following scenes are of the unique traditional architecture of Sana'a, starting in Tahrir Square. The thick walls absorb the heat of the sun by day, and then release it by night. The first two scenes are from Google Street View.
The capital city of Yemen is called Sana'a. it was formerly the capital of North Yemen, before the union with South Yemen, which was sometimes known as Aden. Sana'a, like Cairo, also has a city square called Tahrir Square. The following scenes are of the unique traditional architecture of Sana'a, starting in Tahrir Square. The thick walls absorb the heat of the sun by day, and then release it by night. The first two scenes are from Google Street View.
There are multiple scenes following. To see the scenes, after the first one, you must first click the up arrow, ^, before you can move on to the next scene by clicking the right or forward arrow, >. After clicking the up arrow you can then hide the previews of successive scenes, if you wish.
In the southern part of Sana'a, here are some scenes in and around the Ali Saleh Mosque, named for the former president of the country. The first four scenes are from Google Street View.
https://www.google.com/maps/@15.3256671,44.2080493,3a,75y,354.71h,112.4t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipPc-5i44wA9qex3JOYDaa7YyqEj85u7R3ld7mAD!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipPc-5i44wA9qex3JOYDaa7YyqEj85u7R3ld7mAD%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-22.4015-ya354.7092-ro-0-fo100!7i5472!8i2736
Here is the city of Seiyun, further east in the country, with it's well-known palace. The first two scenes are from Google Street View. The second scene is the palace.
https://www.google.com/maps/@15.9441064,48.7869318,3a,75y,100t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipMfOrrQgsjmpbZAtWnv9-AtR84sA4G8x3QCSbBi!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipMfOrrQgsjmpbZAtWnv9-AtR84sA4G8x3QCSbBi%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-10-ya358-ro-0-fo100!7i8704!8i4352
This is Al Houta. There is more of the really unique Yemeni architecture.
https://www.google.com/maps/@15.90861,48.668537,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-a1XLupWeED0%2FVDxD8E8lhsI%2FAAAAAAAAFFs%2F71ymkDErqN4Gzva5n27lzu1Oj1aAb5N_w!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-a1XLupWeED0%2FVDxD8E8lhsI%2FAAAAAAAAFFs%2F71ymkDErqN4Gzva5n27lzu1Oj1aAb5N_w%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya191-ro0-fo100%2F!7i7168!8i3100
The Bible describes King Solomon being visited by the queen of a distant country, and her retinue. This is the Queen of Sheba. The queen is not a subject of Solomon, but a peer from a country of her own. The visit is described in one chapter, in two separate places in the Old Testament, and really does not give much information about the Queen of Sheba. But that has not stopped her from becoming a legend, as a vast number of stories have been spun around her down through the centuries. These legends are mostly Christian, Jewish and, Moslem, but her name has become known throughout the world.
The legends spun out of the scant information provided about the Queen of Sheba mirror those around the Magi, who came to visit the newborn Jesus in the New Testament. The Gospel of Matthew gives only a brief description of their visit and does not even state how many of them there were, only that they brought three gifts.
Of course, there were stories that the Queen of Sheba secretly gave birth to children of Solomon, and who the descendants of these children might be. This is especially important to the Solomonic Dynasty of Ethiopia.
Anyway, while the Queen of Sheba remains shrouded in mystery, we do have an idea of where she was from. These are the ruins of Marib, in what is today part of Yemen. The first two scenes are from Google Street View.
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