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The Ottoman pilgrim fort at al-Hijr was built in the eighteenth century beside the wells of al-Hijr, ancient Hegra, a station of the Syrian Hajj road.…
The Ottoman pilgrim fort at al-Hijr was built in the eighteenth century beside the wells of al-Hijr, ancient Hegra, a station of the Syrian Hajj road. Caravans stopped here to water and rest before continuing south to Al-Ula and Madinah. The forts of the route stored provisions, including food for the pilgrims' return journey, and gave shelter to the poor, to lost travellers and to those separated from their caravans. The fort stands close to the Hegra station of the Hejaz Railway, at the edge of the Hegra archaeological site. It is one of the sites of the Syrian Hajj Road, which Saudi Arabia has placed on UNESCO's Tentative List.