A brief overview of Khan Asa’ad Pasha Al-Azm
The Khan was built by Asa’ad Pacha Al-Azm in 1753. The building comprises of four wings on the lower floor and an upper floor that was used to house wealthy merchants. The centre of the courtyard is occupied by a seasonal musallah (Islamic prayer space), used mostly in the summer. The building is located on the south side of Abi Al’Alaa Street across from the Khan of Murad Pasha. Separating the two buildings is a small square.
The building is currently part of the Ma’arra Mosaics museum complex and acts as an overflow storage and activity area for the museum. A part of the building had also been used recently as a medical facility housing a CT scanner (since moved). There are plans to turn the Khan to a museum of local ethnography in the future, once the conflict ends.
