The Kharbaqa dam has traditionally been attributed to the Romans, but more recent research has argued that it was constructed in the Umayyad period as part of the irrigation networks linked to Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi. The dam is around 345 metres wide and 20 metres high, but how long it remained useful is debated as the southern side of the dam is completely silted up and it is believed that this process happened relatively early in the life of the dam limiting its value to the local irrigation system.
Creator
Emma Loosley
Date of Visit
22nd July 2001
Contributor
Daniel Hull
Rights
Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons
unless otherwise indicated
Related Resources
The photographs of the 2001-2003 survey and excavation seasons have been lodged with the Archaeological Data Service and are reproduced here with their permission. For those who would like more specialised information such as context and intervention numbers or direction of shot please refer to: http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archives/view/dmeap_ahrb_2004/gallery.cfm.
Type
Architecture
Tags
Dam, Irrigation system, Kharbaqa, Roman, Syria, Umayyad
Collection
Citation
Emma Loosley, “Kharbaqa dam,” Architecture and Asceticism, accessed April 19, 2024, https://architectureandasceticism.exeter.ac.uk/items/show/335.