AZEM PALACE :

This also stands at the heart of the Old City,  on the southern side of the Omayyad Mosque, and very close to it.  It is an  astonishing example of a Damascene house, where the simple, almost primitive, exterior contrasts rather sharply with the beauty and sophistication of the interior.

Here one finds a sense of space, a wealth of polychrome stone, splendid marble, cascading fountains, and fragrant flowers.

The palace was built in the mid-eighteenth century for the Governor of Damascus. The palace now houses the Museum of Arts and Popular Traditions.