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metres. Water from the countryside was channeled into this basin first, where sediments fell and were deposited. When the water level was high enough, water from this basin then flowed into the larger basin to the southeast via an outlet. The larger basin is a 48-sided polygon measuring 128 metres in diameter. The basin is 4.8 metres deep and has a capacity of over 57,000 cubic metres. Here water was stored for further use, while undergoing some further filtration. Lastly, the water was allowed to flow into two small rectangular cisterns on the large basin's southeast side. These cisterns are covered by barrel vaults supported by arches supported by pillars. The vaulted ceilings are pierced by six openings through which water could then be drawn.
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314:. The waters were diverted by a system of small dams, weirs, and canals to the reservoirs. An aqueduct was also built that brought water from springs in the Shreshira (or Chrechira) Mountains, 36 kilometres west of Kairouan. It was probably also built during the Aghlabid period, but made use of some existing Roman-era infrastructure. Later, in 961, the
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In the middle of the largest water basin today is a polylobed masonry pillar which may have been part of the foundations of a leisure pavilion used by the rulers. This pavilion is described by al-Bakri (the aforementioned 11th-century writer), according to whom it was an octagonal tower topped by an
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and covered in a waterproof coating, with rounded tops and edges. Their walls are reinforced with semi-circular buttresses both on the inside and outside. For the larger (western) reservoir, the small basin is a 17-sided polygon measuring 37.4 metres in diameter. It has a capacity of 4000 cubic
326:, the new Fatimid capital built near Kairouan, before the remaining water was brought to the main city's reservoirs. A 70-metre-long elevated section of this aqueduct, crossing over a ravine, has been preserved near the present town of
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the water before it was supplied to the city. Both reservoirs are composed of several connected sections: a smaller water basin, a larger basin, and a set of covered water tanks. The basins, circular in appearance, are built with
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They were built between 860 and 862 and the construction was supervised by Khalaf al-Fata, an emancipated slave who served Abu
Ibrahim Ahmad. Many of the city's residents lived in houses that were supplied by their own private
184:. Unlike most major towns of the era, it was not near a river or other abundant source of water, which meant that the provision of water was a perennial concern. According to the 11th-century
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200:(r. 724–743) ordered the construction of 15 water reservoirs outside Kairouan, but these have not survived to the present day. In the 9th century, when Kairouan was the center of the
765:
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Binous, Jamila; Baklouti, Naceur; Ben
Tanfous, Aziza; Bouteraa, Kadri; Rammah, Mourad; Zouari, Ali (2010). "IV.2.a. Fatimid Bridge-Aqueduct of Chrechira".
95:
730:
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Binous, Jamila; Baklouti, Naceur; Ben
Tanfous, Aziza; Bouteraa, Kadri; Rammah, Mourad; Zouari, Ali (2002). "V.1.g. The Aghlabid Reservoirs".
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During the
Aghlabid period, water was brought to the city and the reservoirs from the surrounding plains and lowlands by drawing it from
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refurbished the aqueduct, adding a second canal on top of the aqueduct's earlier canal. The
Fatimid aqueduct diverted water first to
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708:. Islamic Art in the Mediterranean. Museum With No Frontiers & Ministry of Culture, the National Institute of Heritage, Tunis.
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Glick, Thomas F. (2007). "Aqueduct". In Fleet, Kate; Krämer, Gudrun; Matringe, Denis; Nawas, John; Rowson, Everett (eds.).
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236:. Another Aghlabid water reservoir that has been preserved up to modern times was built to supply their new capital at
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There are two surviving reservoirs today, located close to each other at a short distance north of the old city (
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240:(founded in 876), near Kairouan. It has a trapezoidal form, with the longest side measuring 182 metres long.
647:
Marçais, Georges (1995). "Raḳḳāda". In
Bosworth, C.E.; van Donzel, E.; Heinrichs, W.P.; Lecomte, G. (eds.).
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212:(r. 856–63) commissioned the construction of the two large reservoirs which are still visible today.
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View of the largest water basin (of the western reservoir), with the pillar in its center
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Revisiting Al-Andalus: Perspectives on the
Material Culture of Islamic Iberia and Beyond
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Architecture of the
Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, 700-1800
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Architecture et urbanisme en Ifrîqiya: proposition pour une nouvelle approche
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open-sided kiosk covered by a dome. The pillar is 2.85 metres wide but
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Ifriqiya: Thirteen
Centuries of Art and Architecture in Tunisia
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Ifriqiya: Thirteen
Centuries of Art and Architecture in Tunisia
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M. Bloom, Jonathan; S. Blair, Sheila, eds. (2009). "Kairouan".
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Anderson, Glaire D.; Rosser-Owen, Mariam, eds. (2007).
204:, which governed the region nominally on behalf of the
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rule in the 9th century to supply the city with water.
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The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture
565:. Paris: Arts et métiers graphiques. pp. 37–38.
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suggested that the pavilion was likely supported by
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286:which would have allowed it to have a wider floor.
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366:. University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 166.
626:(2nd ed.). Museum With No Frontiers, MWNF.
678:Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers
452:Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers
16:Historic water reservoirs in Kairouan, Tunisia
422:Early Islamic North Africa: A New Perspective
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260:) of Kairouan. The reservoirs functioned as
180:in 670, is located in the middle of an arid
764:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
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527:"Qantara - The Aghlabid Pools"
363:Islamic Gardens and Landscapes
360:Ruggles, D. Fairchild (2011).
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396:Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three
580:. Oxford University Press.
486:Bloom, Jonathan M. (2020).
419:Fenwick, Corisande (2020).
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561:Marçais, Georges (1954).
425:. Bloomsbury Publishing.
176:Kairouan, founded by the
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111:35.686556°N 10.095583°E
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783:Aghlabid architecture
448:"Aghlabid Reservoirs"
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172:Historical background
33:The eastern reservoir
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127:Construction started
116:35.686556; 10.095583
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58:Architectural style
43:General information
674:"Fatimid Aqueduct"
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99:35°41′11.6″N
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89:Coordinates
777:Categories
683:2022-12-04
536:2022-12-03
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334:References
154:reservoirs
760:cite book
398:. Brill.
320:al-Mu'izz
230:livestock
135:Completed
52:Reservoir
788:Kairouan
310:and its
266:purified
234:caravans
222:cisterns
190:al-Bakri
186:Andalusi
166:Aghlabid
158:Kairouan
75:Kairouan
66:Aghlabid
328:Haffouz
318:caliph
316:Fatimid
300:Haffouz
284:corbels
238:Raqqada
226:drought
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194:Umayyad
162:Tunisia
83:Tunisia
80:Country
62:Islamic
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258:medina
198:Hisham
192:, the
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218:wells
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232:and
220:and
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