# Ziade Palace

The Ziade Palace (Arabic: قصر زيادة, romanized: Qasr Ziade, lit. 'Ziade Palace') is a 19th-century grand mansion located in Beirut's Zokak el-Blat quarter.

## History

The mansion was commissioned in 1860 by an unknown person and built by an Italian architect known solely as Altina. It was purchased ten years later by Youssef Nasr, a wealthy Lebanese expatriate in England. In 1930 the mansion was bought by the Ziade brothers; Joseph a physician and Louis an accomplished lawyer and president of the Aleppo bar association. The Ziades were related to the-then Maronite archbishop of Beirut Ignatius Ziade and to the renowned feminist poet, writer and essayist May Ziade. In addition to its singular architecture, the mansion gained notoriety following an incident involving Joseph and May Ziade. May suffered severe depression and neurasthenia for years after the loss of both her parents, and Khalil Gibran, with whom she maintained an extensive written correspondence. In 1938, Joseph Ziade visited May in Egypt and convinced the disconsolate poet to return to Beirut and to stayin the family mansion, among friends and family. May returned to Beirut in 1939; days after her arrival in the Ziade palace, May was forcibly institutionalized at the 'Asfourieh asylum in Hazmieh. Joseph tried to seize control of her estate, claiming she was incapable of managing her own properties. However, May eventually regained her lucidity and returned to Cairo, where she passed away on October 17, 1941. The house was occupied by the Ziades until the beginning of the Lebanese civil war in 1975. The mansion was pillaged and occupied by militias during the conflict, and it was left with a bullet-peppered facade and a poor condition.

## Location and historical geography

Löytved's map of Beirut shows the mansion, which predates the 1876 document. The mansion was located at the western outskirts of the nascent Zokak-el-Blat district. Before the development of the neighborhood, the mansion's west and south facing arched galleries opened up on the dunes of Ramlat az-Zarif, which extended all the way to the Ras Beirut peninsula. To the North, the mansion's main facade opened towards the garden-clad Qantari neighborhood and to the Minet el-Hosn bay. The road skirting the western walled garden of the mansion was named after Beirut's sand hills, Tariq ar-Raml (meaning the sand road, later renamed Abdel-Kader street) follows the course of the flat valley rising from north to south. To the opposite of Tariq ar-Raml stood mulberry and citrus orchards interdispersed by small irregular buildings. The Zokak el-Blat gardens persisted from the start of the suburban expansion of Beirut until the early 20th century.
Today, Qasr Ziade stands on the western edge of Beirut's Zokak el-Blat quarter, on the southeast intersection of Rue Abdel-Kader and Hussein Beyhum streets; the mansion's western facade faces the Selim Bustani street. Today, the neighborhood of Zokak el-Blat is composed of heterogeneous buildings with contrasting architectural types and different epochs that characterize Beirut's urbanized peripheral quarters.

## Architecture

The sandstone mansion comprises three stories_ a ground floor and two residential levels. The ground floor is a large vaulted space used for the storage of goods. The residential part of the mansion take the form of a typical Lebanese central hall house with a facade lined with the iconic three arches and numerous Oeil-de-boeufs that are typical to 19th century Lebanese aristocratic houses. The mansion is also characterized by a riwaq on its eastern facade, it is a decorated covered area in a gallery, with broken arches opening onto a garden. The roof is made up of red tiles and is decorated with twin towers on the structure's northern facade.

## Conservation status

In 2010, the Ziade mansion along with other 19th century mansions were protected by a ministerial decree by then culture minister Salim Wardeh. The Lebanese Ministry of Culture listed the Ziade palace on the General National Heritage Inventory List, officially recognizing their historical significance and preventing any alterations or demolition. The decision followed concerns over the deteriorating condition of the buildings, including fire damage and water infiltration, which threatened their structural integrity. The listing was prompted by the National Heritage Committee’s efforts during a cultural heritage event in May 2009, which revealed restricted access to the palaces. The listing does not constitute expropriation but imposes restrictions on modifications, ensuring that any restorations preserve the palaces’ historical and architectural integrity under the supervision of the Lebanese Directorate General of Antiquities. The classification also allows owners to request state assistance for restoration work.