Name of Monument:

Fatimid Aqueduct

Location:

Haffouz, Kairouan, Tunisia

Date of Monument:

Hegira 348 / AD 960

Period / Dynasty:

Fatimid

Patron(s):

The Fatimid Caliph Al-Mu‘izz li-Din Allah.

Description:

The underground water collection system at Bir al-Udhine, 36 km to the west of Kaiouran, is held to be one of the most important monuments in Tunisia. Conscious of the need to supply water to his capital and his palaces, al-Mu'izz built an aqueduct straddling hills and ravines which brought water not only to Sabra but as far as the Aghlabid reservoirs. In this substantial work of engineering the builders probably used existing Roman and Aghlabid ruins. The different systems, comprising sourcing, ducting, collection, storage and distribution, are still visible. The most majestic part of these works is the 70 m-long aqueduct spanning the Musa wadi (dry river course). Consisting mostly of a blank wall, it becomes a bridge with four semi-circular arches down at the level of the river bed. This bridge measures 38 m long by 10 m high. Two superposed ducts carry the water. One dates from the Fatimid period and the other, harder to define, is possibly Aghlabid. There is nothing in this construction which suggests Roman architectural norms. Its origin is undoubtedly Muslim. However, the cut stone seems to have come from a Roman monument, which suggests that there was probably an ancient aqueduct at the site. The foundations and some of the debris are likely to have been used by the Fatimid builders. This edifice became a model for other similar North African works, mainly in Morocco.

This bridge appears to have been built upon the foundations of an ancient monument, and is one of the most important hydraulic structures in Tunisia. In order to provide water to his capital and his palace, Fatimid caliph al-Mu‘izz built an aqueduct across the hills and ravines to his capital Sabra and the Aghlabid pools. The building technique used for this aqueduct differs from Roman architectural standards, and the Islamic origin of the specifically North African model is unquestionable, with similar constructions found in Morocco.

How Monument was dated:

A hagiographic text from the Caliph al-Mu'izz al-Nu'man dwells on problems relating to the construction of the ducting. Another text from the geographer al-Muqaddasi (died end of the 4th / 10th century) corroborates al-Nu'man's text.

Selected bibliography:

Rammah, M., “A propos de la datation des installations hydrauliques de l'Ifriqiya au haut Moyen Âge”, Actes du XIIIe congrès des archéologues arabes, Tunis, 1997, pp.334–50.
Solignac, M., “Les installations hydrauliques de Kaiouran”, Annales de l'institut d'études orientales, t. XI, 1953.

Citation of this web page:

Saloua Zangar "Fatimid Aqueduct" in Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. 2024. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;tn;Mon01;20;en

Prepared by: Saloua ZangarSaloua Zangar

Saloua Khaddar Zangar est née en 1953 à Nabeul, titulaire d'une maîtrise d'histoire de l'Université de Tunis, S. Zangar a obtenu son doctorat en histoire moderne et contemporaine à l'Université de Bordeaux III.
Spécialiste de l'histoire du mouvement national tunisien, elle a été directeur du Centre d'histoire du mouvement national de 1980 à 1982. Directeur de recherche, responsable des publications à l'Institut national du patrimoine depuis 1992, elle est nommée en mars 2006 directeur du département Coopération, programmation, formation et publications de l'INP.
Auteur de divers articles et contributions à des ouvrages sur l'histoire du monde arabo-musulman au lendemain de la Première Guerre mondiale et de la Tunisie à l'époque coloniale, elle a publié notamment La Presse française et le monde arabo-musulman en 1920 (1982), Le cap Bon passé et présent (1993), La femme tunisienne à travers les âges (1997), La femme tunisienne entre hier et aujourd'hui (2002). Elle participe également à un site Web et à un CD sur la femme tunisienne (2005).
Translation by: David Ash
Translation copyedited by: Mandi GomezMandi Gomez

Amanda Gomez is a freelance copy-editor and proofreader working in London. She studied Art History and Literature at Essex University (1986–89) and received her MA (Area Studies Africa: Art, Literature, African Thought) from SOAS in 1990. She worked as an editorial assistant for the independent publisher Bellew Publishing (1991–94) and studied at Bookhouse and the London College of Printing on day release. She was publications officer at the Museum of London until 2000 and then took a role at Art Books International, where she worked on projects for independent publishers and arts institutions that included MWNF’s English-language editions of the books series Islamic Art in the Mediterranean. She was part of the editorial team for further MWNF iterations: Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean Virtual Museum and the illustrated volume Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean.

True to its ethos of connecting people through the arts, MWNF has provided Amanda with valuable opportunities for discovery and learning, increased her editorial experience, and connected her with publishers and institutions all over the world. More recently, the projects she has worked on include MWNF’s Sharing History Virtual Museum and Exhibition series, Vitra Design Museum’s Victor Papanek and Objects of Desire, and Haus der Kulturen der Welt’s online publication 2 or 3 Tigers and its volume Race, Nation, Class.

MWNF Working Number: TN 20