Yemen - Jibla and its surroundings

"Jibla old one is capital of the Highlands, from 1064 to 1138. The region was dominated by Sulayhides dynasty founded by Ali-as-Sulayhi. His son succeeded him but his wife Queen Arwa who assumed the duties of the Head of State (Arwa, second wife after Balkis the legendary Queen of Sheba have ruled the Yemen). It transfers the capital Jibla and the city experienced a boom without equal. The road that leads through terraced fields of sorghum, the terraces here and the bristling of jujube trees, carob trees, cacti and euphorbia candelabra, which indicate a relatively low altitude and warm temperatures. The city is hanging on the side of a mountain and taken by the basalt canyons of two rivers that two magnificent stone bridges span. The city is inseparable from the surrounding landscape setting, with which it is a great example of integrated cultural landscape. This architectural, the smoothness of the finest it has been seen in Yemen, consists of stone buildings and numerous monuments of the Fatimid era. Jibla is virtually inaccessible to cars. The cobbled streets are lined with tall stone terraced on the hillside. These houses without decorative coating brightened by beautiful grounds and stucco reliefs and doors are carved wooden bear inscriptions from the Koran. The Grand Mosque built during the reign of Queen Arwa (Fatimid) in 1088, where she rests, Tune is the oldest and most beautiful of Yemen. You can admire beautiful stucco reliefs and a beautiful painted ceiling and its restoration is satisfactory. Later a beautiful little mosque Qubbat Bay az-Zum. The aqueduct built during the reign of Queen Arwa always brings water from the mountains. The important ruins of the Queen's Palace has 365 rooms, one for each night the legend says. The suq is still alive and authentic..." Source: UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List

Gopat beit Al Zoum mosque in Jiblah. I bought this postcard at the Yemen Pavilion at 2010 Shanghai World Expo in October, 2010.