Northeast of Amman was originally a Roman fortress and dates back to the 3rd century. It was built on what is believed to have been a Nabatean site. The site was rebuilt of limestone and black basal during the reign the Umayyad caliph Hisham in the 8th century.

The complex included a castle, a mosque and a bath house with decorations of mosaics and frescoes. Some fragments of the mosaics depicting animals can still be seen in rooms off the courtyard, others were removed from the site.