Jabreen Castle, Ad Dakhiliyah, Oman
Jan 8, 2024
Built 1675 CE by Imam Bil’arab bin Sultan of the Yaruba dynasty of Oman, Jabreen Castle is not that old, but it is quaintly quirky. Sitting squarely in the middle of a desert, the four storeyed castle has a bird’s eyeview over the plain onto the distant mountain ridge. The oasis in which it is situated supports the date palm grove and all life here, just as it did before in the past.
The interior courtyard is open to the sky with balconies and windows of each floor looking down on it. There are several staircases that go up and down. Some are grand, some are narrow backstairs and some are entirely unexpected. They start at odd corners and just when you think they must come out at a certain point, they come out at an entirely different place. It is a sheer delight to explore!
The rooms are also a maze, with several on each floor. The grandest are spacious, meant to receive dignitaries. The ceilings are painted in intricate patterns reminiscent of Khiva in Uzbekistan. Despite the sparse furnishings, I can just imagine the rooms replete with opulent luxury. One small room off a larger one is labeled whispering room. Just what was whispered there and why? I have no answers but plenty of questions. The smallest of the rooms are dank and tiny; the sign says it was meant to be cells for prisoners. The castle well is deep – I can barely glimpse the reflection in the water below.
The windows and balconies hark of the designs common in India during the Mughal dynasty. As in India and even Lahore in Pakistan, these have the same ornate moldings and designs. It is hardly surprising, given that they were built around the same era and centuries-old active trade between Oman and India would have meant sharing architecture and probably even artisans.
ITCHY FEET TRAVELS 