 Originally, under the Roman Empire, the Great Mosque was the site of the city's pagan temple for the sun god ("El-Gabal").The temple gained Emesa (Homs) prominence in the region as an important center of paganism and one of its priests, Elagabalus, became Emperor of Rome.El-Gabal's temple was paid tribute by Aurelian after he attributed his victory of Zenobia to the deity.