A few hundred metres from the Imam Husayn Shrine, across the open plaza of Bayn al-Haramayn, stands the mausoleum of Abbas ibn Ali — Husayn's half-brother, his standard-bearer at Karbala, and the second-most-revered figure of the battle. The two shrines are almost always visited together; pilgrims walk back and forth between them in a continuous loop.
The Al-Abbas shrine is smaller than its neighbour but no less elaborate. Inside the gold-tiled courtyard, the silver-grilled tomb is the focus of the most fervent prayers. The Library of Al-Abbas Holy Shrine, housed inside the complex, holds tens of thousands of manuscripts and is one of the oldest libraries in Iraq.