he Damascus Room originally served as a bedroom for Doris Duke’s stepdaughter. But following Duke’s divorce from James Cromwell in the 1940s and a trip to Syria and Lebanon in the early 1950s, she transformed the space. On her trip she purchased an 18th-century Syrian interior. In 1955, the painted and gilded wood panels, ceiling, vitrines, and doors were installed at Shangri La. The new Damascus Room, however, continued to serve as a bedroom for visitors, staff, and family.
Lovely views of the ocean and Diamond Head can be seen from the Damascus Room. A wood, screen door in the room leads to the roof of the Moroccan Room and Doris Duke’s Bedroom, at the end of which is the jali (lattice screen) pavilion. The pavilion is composed from remaining pieces of the marble bedroom and bathroom suite that Duke commissioned in India in 1935. Duke used the pavilion recreationally for sunning, playing backgammon, and sewing.
Learn more about Damascus rooms:The Hagop Kevorkian Center, New York UniversityThe Damascus Room at The Metropolitan Museum of ArtSyria-Lebanon Room, Cathedral of Learning, University of PittsburghConservation of a Syrian interior in Dresden, GermanyThe Syrian Room at Shangri La