Hidden Passages and Doors

Secret ways of traveling throughout, gaining access to or exit from buildings without someone’s knowledge is done by means of hidden passage ways or tunnels. Some have well hidden doors masqueraded as part of the structure of the building such as a bookcase, fireplace or just part of a wall, which can be opened in only a secretive way, while other such entrances are much simpler and not so secretive such as a trap door merely hidden by a rug or piece of furniture.

These passage ways have been known to lead to rooms, which too are hidden and used for many different acts some fiction some not, some are written in history. These acts include legal and non legal activities of people to carry out or to hide from.

Buildings of the past, such as medieval castles would have these passage ways and tunnels built into the original structure for the purpose of escape routes during a war or for an underground water source to be used during extended wars.

A Bab Al-Sirr is hidden door whose name comes from the six gates that are cut in an ancient wall in what today is know as Yemen. It is to be used only as an emergency escape route which is why it is known as the door of treason in the Arab fortress of Benquerencia in modern-day Spain. Some old Arabic houses have this emergency exit hidden by a window ledge or bookcase built into the wall.

While some passages and tunnels are built with the original structure some are not. Some are built after the original structure especially the very secretive ones, these are usually escape tunnels used to escape from prisoners or prisoners of war. These types usually always require secretive doors or special walls and mechanisms within the construction of the building.