The old Darayya house was not merely a residential building. It reflected the social and economic life of Darayya (Rural Damascus governorate), as its interior and exterior design were tied to residents’ customs, ways of living, and the nature of an agricultural society that depended on household production, food storage, and large extended families living under one roof.
Traditional building methods remained in use in Darayya until the early 1960s, before modern materials, led by cement, gradually entered the construction sector and influenced the shape, size, height, and room distribution of homes, eventually leading to the modern housing patterns that later spread.
Although many old houses disappeared or changed over time, some remained standing and inhabited until the first decade of the third millennium, after changes imposed by living conditions and urban expansion.
What remained of these homes later sustained extensive damage during the military operations Darayya witnessed from 2012 onward, especially from shelling and barrel bombs that struck the city’s neighborhoods, causing the loss of an important part of this architectural heritage.
In this report, Enab Baladi recalls the features of the old Darayya house, including building materials, interior design, service facilities, and related living patterns, based on information collected from multiple sources and a documentary interview with engineer Mahmoud Sharbaji, a graduate of the Faculty of Fine Arts in the early 1980s. Sharbaji is interested in interior architecture, building methods, and decoration, and his professional career has ranged from teaching to interior engineering.
The Darayya House, A Space for the Extended Family
Until the 1960s, Darayya knew the model of the open, one-story “Arab house” and was not familiar with modern housing models such as villas or duplex apartments, which appeared only at later stages.
The area of the old Darayya house ranged between about 300 and 400 square meters, and could increase or decrease depending on the number of family members and the family’s financial situation.
Darayya’s main residential block was centered in the old neighborhoods around the Grand Mosque, Harat al-Hammam, al-Hara al-Qibliya, Harat al-Khoulani, and Harat al-Masihiya, areas that formed Darayya’s urban core for decades.
With the urban expansion the city witnessed during the 1970s and 1980s, homes began extending into new areas beyond the city’s traditional boundaries, especially the area surrounding al-Moadamiya Street, known as “Hazaya,” at the end of the 1970s.
This expansion led to the emergence of larger houses, with some reaching about one and a half dunams, or nearly 1,500 square meters, reflecting the urban and social transformations the city witnessed during that period.
Mudbrick and Stone, The Basis of Traditional Construction
Traditional architecture in Darayya, until the 1960s, relied on “lubn,” a mudbrick made from clay mixed with water, straw, and fine gravel.
This type of construction was distinguished by its high thermal insulation, as it prevented heat and cold from moving between the inside and outside of the house, providing residents with a comfortable environment in both summer and winter.
To make mudbricks, clay was mixed with water, straw, and fine gravel, then the mixture was left for four to five days until it became homogeneous.
After that, it was mixed again and kneaded by foot before being poured into a movable square or rectangular wooden mold, then struck against the ground to form one brick at a time.
Once the bricks were ready, the foundation digging stage began, with stones laid together with clay to form the building bases below ground level.
These foundations rose slightly above ground level to protect the house from rainwater and floods.
After the foundations were completed, the walls were built.
The exterior walls of the house were about 60 centimeters thick, equivalent to roughly one and a half mudbricks, to provide both structural support and thermal insulation.
The interior walls separating the rooms were about 40 centimeters thick, equivalent to roughly one mudbrick.
After the walls were built, they were covered inside and outside with a layer of clay in a process locally known as “tarmikh,” then coated with lime or white gypsum.
Remains of a house belonging to the al-Abbar family in northern Darayya, showing thick mud walls, parts of the interior sections, and door openings that remained standing despite the destruction the building sustained during the war years, 2026. (Enab Baladi)
Parts of an exterior wall in a house belonging to the al-Abbar family in northern Darayya, showing the traditional construction method using sun-dried mudbrick blocks stacked with mud mortar, 2026. (Enab Baladi)
Roofs of Poplar, Thorns, and Soil
The roofs of old Darayya houses relied on poplar trunks, which were brought from Eastern Ghouta or Wadi Barada and were also sold in several areas of Damascus, including Mezzeh.
The roof began with the placement of a thick, long wooden beam in the middle of the room, with thinner wooden poles then placed above it, extending between the room’s walls.
Wooden strips were then laid over the poles and covered with a layer of dry thorns.
Above the thorns, a layer of soil was placed and compacted well until it reached about 20 centimeters in thickness.
After about ten days, the roof was covered with a layer of clay mixed with straw, then this layer was carefully compacted until it became sealed and prevented rainwater from leaking through.
To prevent water from accumulating on the roof during winter, the roof was built with a slight slope of roughly 20 to 30 centimeters.
This structural system was common in most old houses before modern materials entered the construction sector.
The wooden ceiling as seen from inside an old house belonging to the Khashini family in southern Darayya, showing the tree trunks and wooden strips used in traditional house roofs, 2012. (Enab Baladi, Jawad Sharbaji)
From Mudbrick to Cement
The features of construction in Darayya began to change gradually with the arrival of cement in the city during the 1970s.
Cement blocks gradually replaced Mudbrick, and new trades appeared in connection with modern building materials.
The “batinji” emerged, a worker responsible for preparing the house’s foundations and roofs using concrete, along with the “muammarji,” a worker specialized in building walls and dividing the house using cement blocks.
That period also saw the construction of a limited number of cement apartments that relied on ordinary concrete roofs known as “slabs,” before the later spread of the “hollow block slab” system.
During the 1990s, the “hollow block slab,” a system based on hollow cement blocks, became the most common form in modern buildings.
The Guest Room, A Display of Social Status
Upon entering the old Darayya house, the deliberate distribution of the rooms became clear, taking into account privacy and the social customs prevailing at the time.
The guest room was located near the house’s main door, allowing guests to reach it directly without passing through the rest of the house, which ensured privacy for the family, especially women and children.
This room was not merely a place to receive visitors. It reflected the family’s prestige, social standing, and economic situation.
It contained “kanabat,” or wooden benches, often made of walnut wood and built in various forms. Some were flat, some polygonal, and others carved and decorated with flowers or geometric engravings.
Some benches were also decorated with mother-of-pearl and made using precise craftsmanship that reflected the skill of local artisans.
The room’s corners were decorated with large brass trays hung on the walls, in addition to chandeliers hanging from the ceiling.
The walls also included wooden shelves known as “kitabi,” the plural of “kitbiya,” on which copper utensils, plates, vases, and various oriental ornaments were displayed.
This furnishing style continued until about the mid-1980s, when modern foam-filled sofas upholstered in fabric gradually began replacing the traditional carved wooden benches.
A stone arch and wooden ceiling in a Darayya house belonging to the Khashini family, showing a chandelier and decorated wooden furniture among the traditional interior architectural features that distinguished Darayya homes before the spread of concrete construction, 2012. (Enab Baladi, Jawad Sharbaji)
The Householder’s Room
Immediately after the guest room came the householder’s room. In some homes, the two rooms were separated by what was known as the “diwan.”
The design of this room took into account its relative distance from the children’s rooms, ensuring independence and privacy for its occupants.
It was considered the main bedroom in the house, so it contained the finest furniture the family owned. It was often furnished with walnut wood pieces and included a long mirror inlaid with mother-of-pearl, decorated with silver, and set with ivory, one of the items considered an essential part of a bride’s trousseau at the time.
A decorated wooden wardrobe inlaid with mother-of-pearl in an old house belonging to the Khashini family in southern Darayya, one of the furniture pieces that decorated guest rooms and bedrooms in traditional Darayya homes, reflecting the skill of craftsmen in wood carving and inlay work, 2012. (Enab Baladi, Jawad Sharbaji)
The Pantry, A Kitchen for the Whole Year
In another corner of the house stood the “beit al-mouneh,” the pantry, which for many years served as the traditional alternative to the modern kitchen.
This space was designed specifically to store food and household provisions, and it did not contain water installations or the features known in modern kitchens.
Among its most notable contents were the clay “khawabi,” huge vessels, each of which held more than 100 liters and was used to store olive oil and local ghee.
It also contained the “mughal,” a large wooden grain chest about two and a half meters high, with space for nearly 500 kilograms of wheat.
Wheat was poured into the mughal from the top, then gradually withdrawn through a lower opening when needed or when it was to be taken to the mill.
The pantry also contained a wood stove equipped with a chimney to vent smoke.
The presence of the stove inside the pantry was not a fixed rule in all houses, as some families used another stove located in the courtyard.
Reliance on wood stoves continued until the arrival of the “babour,” or kerosene stove, during the 1970s.
At the time, Darayya was known for a shop specializing in repairing these stoves near Ma’an bin Zaida School, known as “al-Samkari,” the tinsmith.
Inside the house, families also used the “dest,” a huge copper pot under which wood was lit.
It was used to heat bathing water, make different kinds of “maoud,” or jam-like preserves, and prepare foods that required large vessels, such as shakriya.
Another important facility was the “namliyeh,” a wooden cabinet surrounded by mesh and made entirely of wood, open on three sides to ventilate daily food and protect it from insects.
The house also contained a straw tray, which was hung from the ceiling of the “sofa.”
The sofa was a small central space or room, either partly open to the sky or roofed, located between the children’s rooms and known for being relatively cool.
The straw tray was used to dry vegetables such as eggplant, okra, and zucchini.
At times, trays filled with milk were also placed on it, then covered with another tray until morning to collect the local cream that formed on the milk’s surface.
Remains of the pantry in a house belonging to the Sharbaji family in northern Darayya, showing a mudbrick arch and traditional building walls. The pantry was used to store provisions, grains, oil, and ghee in old Darayya homes in 2026. (Enab Baladi, Saeed Khashfeh)
The Water Basin, A Daily Water Facility
Dishwashing and laundry were not done inside the pantry. Instead, a separate facility known as the “masnaa” was set aside for them.
The masnaa was a basin built of stone or blocks and placed in an isolated spot away from the rooms and the pantry.
It was carefully plastered on the inside to make it suitable for holding water.
It was filled with water, and a tap or faucet was fixed to its lower wall for washing household dishes, performing ablution, and meeting the family’s daily needs.
The masnaa was also used to wash dishes and clothes, as well as for ablution and other household uses related to water.
Remains of the water basin in a house belonging to the Sharbaji family in northern Darayya. The water basin, used for washing dishes and clothes and for ablution, appears in the foreground. It was a service facility built in an isolated spot away from the living rooms and pantry in traditional Darayya homes, 2026. (Enab Baladi, Saeed Khashfeh)
The “Water Room” and Bathing
The toilet, or what was known as “beit al-mi,” the water room, was isolated from the rest of the house’s facilities and built near the main door and the guest room.
Because Darayya had no public sewage networks before the 1970s, each house had its own deep drainage pit dug within the property boundaries, called the “technical pit.”
Bathing was not done inside a separate bathroom as it is today. Instead, it took place inside the bedrooms themselves, specifically at the thresholds of the rooms.
A stone channel was allocated for this purpose, beginning under the room’s door and extending in a hidden way toward the courtyard.
The channels from different rooms connected to one another and emptied into an earthen spot away from the rooms, making it difficult to know which room had been used for bathing.
This design reflects the simplicity of the means available at the time and residents’ ability to adapt to the absence of modern infrastructure.
The Room Threshold, A Small Space With Several Uses
The room door in the old Darayya house was not placed in the middle of the wall as is common today, but was designed at one end of the room.
Upon entering the room, a person first reaches the threshold known as the “Ataba,” a space about half a meter lower than the room floor and roughly one and a half meters wide.
The threshold was not merely an entrance to the room. It served an important practical function. In winter, the “mangal,” a thick iron brazier holding embers to heat the room, was placed there.
The brazier continued to be used for decades before the tradition gradually began to disappear after the 1970s, with the spread of wood and diesel heaters.
The floors of rooms and thresholds were made of carefully smoothed cement.
In wealthier homes, the floors were covered with handmade and hand-painted tiles, adding a distinctive aesthetic touch to the house.
Wall Shelves, Open Cabinets of Household Memory
The Darayya house relied on several internal architectural elements that no longer exist in most modern homes.
Among the most prominent were the wooden wall shelves extending along both sides of the room. They were used to display “ishani,” or qishani ceramics, copper utensils, plates, and various oriental ornaments.
At the front of the room was the “yook,” or “look,” an open wall cabinet without a door, reserved for storing mattresses, quilts, and covers.
A piece of cloth was placed in front of its contents to cover what was inside and preserve the room’s appearance.
On both sides of the yook, there were also additional shelves of the “kitabi” type, where utensils, ornaments, and decorative items were displayed.
Directly above the room door was a wall opening known as the “mandaloun.”
The mandaloun was framed in wood and closed with glass on both sides. It was used as an internal shelf to store some household savings and dry foods such as walnuts, almonds, garlic, and onions.
All these elements reflect the nature of interior architecture that sought to use the walls themselves as spaces for storage and display, at a time when modern cabinets were not widespread in the form known today.
Remains of the wall cupboard and wall shelves in one room of a house belonging to the Sharbaji family in northern Darayya. The wall cupboard was used to store mattresses and quilts, while the side shelves were reserved for displaying utensils and household ornaments, 2026. (Enab Baladi, Saeed Khashfeh)
Side wall shelves in a house belonging to the Khashini family in southern Darayya, used to display household utensils and belongings and store some everyday items, 2012. (Enab Baladi, Jawad Sharbaji)
Furniture, Between Simplicity and Prestige
The old Darayya house was dominated by what was known as the “Med Arabi,” a furnishing style based on carpets, floor mattresses, and traditional rugs.
Among the most widespread types of rugs were those handmade from scraps of old clothes, which were cut and woven to form durable and low-cost floor coverings.
Sheepskins were also used in household furnishings after being salted and dried.
Wealthier homes, especially their guest rooms, contained luxurious wooden benches made of walnut wood.
Brass trays engraved with Quranic verses were part of the room’s basic decoration.
Long mirrors inlaid with mother-of-pearl and ivory were also common and were considered valuable pieces at the time.
By the mid-1980s, modern upholstered sofas gradually began replacing traditional carved wooden benches.
wooden cabinet covered with mirrors and inlaid with mother-of-pearl inside a house belonging to the Khashini family in southern Darayya. These pieces combined storage and decoration and held a prominent place in guest rooms and sitting rooms alongside wooden ceilings and heritage architectural features, 2012. (Enab Baladi, Jawad Sharbaji)
Lighting Before Electricity
Before electricity reached Darayya, residents relied on several forms of lighting that formed an essential part of daily life.
The portable kerosene lantern was the most widespread means of movable lighting inside and outside the house.
The lantern was used when moving between houses and alleys, as well as during the “addan,” the tracking of water flow in irrigation channels at night. Its use continued until the 1970s.
Alongside the lantern, there was another means of fixed lighting inside rooms known as the “kaz.”
This lamp resembled the lantern in how it worked, but was designed to remain fixed in place. It contained a cotton wick soaked in kerosene that could be raised and lowered with a special key to control the strength of the light, and it was surrounded by a glass cylinder to protect the flame from going out.
This type remained in use in some homes until the 1990s because of long power outages.
During the 1980s, the “lux,” which operated through kerosene pressure, began to spread.
It contained a white or pink “mantle,” a thermal fabric wick that glowed strongly after being lit, giving it the ability to produce much stronger light than traditional lighting methods.
Because this mantle was fragile and easily damaged, the lux was placed in a fixed location to avoid being shaken or broken.
The lux was used on social occasions and during nighttime wheat harvest seasons that required strong lighting.
Also widespread was a battery-powered lamp.
Farmers relied on it heavily during nighttime irrigation work, especially during the “addan,” when they watered agricultural land at night.
model of the portable lantern used in old Darayya. (Canva)
model of the fixed kerosene lamp used in old Darayya. (Canva)
model of the pressure kerosene lamp used in old Darayya. (Canva)
More Than Walls and a Roof
The details of the old Darayya house reveal that architecture was not merely a matter of construction, but a direct reflection of the society that lived inside these homes.
The distribution of rooms, the location of the guest room, the presence of the pantry, the water basin, the yook, the mandaloun, and even the shape of the roof and the building materials were all elements connected to an entire way of life that prevailed in Darayya for decades.
With the arrival of cement and modern building patterns, followed by the urban transformations the city witnessed in later decades, many of these details disappeared or became less present.
Darayya homes remain present in the memory of the city’s people as part of Darayya’s social and cultural history, and as a witness to a whole stage in the lives of its residents, when houses were more than places to live. They were a living record of relationships, customs, and local identity.
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