Some architectural elements used as part of the structure date to pre-Islamic times .
Part is widely accepted by both Arab and Western scholars that the Dome of the Chain was originally built in 691 by the Umayyad caliph Abd al - Malik .
Some architectural elements used as part of the structure date to pre-Islamic times , but it is widely accepted by both Arab and Western scholars that the Dome of the Chain was originally built in 691 by the Umayyad caliph Abd al - Malik .