Details of the courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque

The Umayyad mosque was built in 706 by the sixth Umayyad caliph, al-Walid. The mosque gave birth to a number of key elements in Muslim architecture such as the horseshoe arch and the square minaret. The mosque is one of the oldest and holiest shrines of Islam. One of the three minarets of the mosque is called the minaret of Jesus (as), as Islamic traditons say that he (as) would appear at that minaret on his return. The prayer hall contains the shrine of Yahya/John the Baptist (as), where his (as) head or maybe entire body is burried. Another part of the mosque contains the head of Zachariah, father of Yahya/John the Baptist (as).