The story of the Seven Sleepers occurs both in Islam (as Sura 18 of The Quran) and in Christianity ('The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus' in Jacobus de Voragine's 13th century collection of apocrypha known as 'The Golden Legend'). In each case the story concerns a group of young men escaping from persecution by a local pagan ruler who fall asleep in a cave.

Through divine intervention they sleep safely for a hundred years or more and wake up after the area has converted to the appropriate religion. Although Voragine sets the story in Ephesus (in modern Turkey), the Koranic version is clearly identified with this cave in a southern suburb of Amman. This identification must have occurred by the 8th century as the Umayyads built a mosque outside and it appears to have been something of a pilgrimage site.

The 'cave' is actually a rock-cut Byzantine necropolis containing seven sarcophagi, one of which is considerably smaller than the rest (in the Sura 18 version it's six men and their dog - hence the smaller tomb).
Although it's well and truly off the tourist trail, the cave is wonderfully atmospheric and well worth a visit. The contrast between the beauty and tranquillity inside the cave and the chaotic road outside is amazing. The door is normally locked but the custodian of the adjacent mosque will be happy to let you in. If you want to ask directions or instruct a taxi driver, the local name is "Ahl al Kahf".

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