The amazing city of Ghadames on the edge of the desert

Ghadames, known as the "pearl of the desert", is located in an oasis in the southwest of Libya (the historical region of Tripolitania). It is one of the oldest cities on the border of the Sahara and an outstanding example of a traditional settlement. The town has a population of about 10,000, mostly Berbers, who live in traditional houses made of clay, bricks and palm trees, closely clustered like a honeycomb. Its residential architecture is characterized by a vertical division of functions: the first floor is used for storing supplies, the next floor is for family living and, finally, at the top there is an open terrace intended for women. The terraces are connected by passages that allow women to move freely, remaining hidden from male eyes.

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1. Shaped like a circle, the ancient city of Ghadames is a dense cluster of houses. The fortified outer walls of houses along the edges of the city form a fortress wall. This city wall is breached here and there by numerous doors and ramparts.

2. Ghadames is an ancient city. The first mention of it dates back to the Romanesque period, when the settlement was known as Tsidamus, a fortified city built in the first century BC.

3. None of the surviving buildings belong to the early Berber period or the period of the ancient Romans. However, the remarkable style of residential architecture distinguishes Ghadames from other North African cities and settlements that stretch along the northern border of the Sahara from Libya to Mauritania.

4. Today Ghadames is a small oasis located next to a palm grove.

5. The historical part of Ghadames was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1986.

6. Buildings hanging over street passages create what looks like a network of covered galleries or corridors instead of ordinary streets. These galleries are "reserved" exclusively for men.

7. While men walk on the ground, women walk “on roofs”, or rather, on terraces connected by transitions. Terraces are a female realm, giving them, according to local residents, great freedom. So they can be friends with neighbors and move around the city.

8. All houses have at least two main floors. The first floor, which is often sunk into the ground, is accessed through a single door, behind which is a narrow passage leading to a room where supplies are stored. At the back there is usually a staircase leading to a much more spacious second floor.

9. The residential floor, as a rule, includes an attic and bedrooms, and sometimes a living room. Occasionally, there is another floor above it with a similar layout.

10. Standing on the ground, it is almost impossible to see either the surrounding city or the sky above your head.

11. But the terraces of neighboring houses, connecting with each other, form an open urban landscape.

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