Call for contribution to preserve Shebam Historic Town
The Source: www.sabanews.net - 11/11/2008
Home \
Culture News
Minister of Culture Abu Bakr al-Muflahi has called on international
organizations interested in preserving cultural heritage to contribute
to protect the Shebam town and keep its historical identity.
The
town was among several areas in the Hadramout province hit by heavy
rains that affected people, buildings and agricultural lands.
Al-Muflahi
said the town has been hugely affected by the rains, adding many of its
historical building were destroyed and cracked and some others of its
historic buildings are threatened with collapse.
He stressed
the importance of taking quick measures to rescue this historical
landmark and rallying efforts to rebuild the affected parts of the
town.
Shebam is a historic town of mud-brick houses, a
16th-century city in Yemen, which is regarded as one of the earliest
examples of urban planning based on the principle of vertical
construction.
Shebam was made up of over 500 tower houses,
each one rising 5 to 11 storeys high, with each floor being an
apartment occupied by a single family.
The city was built in this way in order to protect it from Bedouin attacks.
Shebam has the tallest mud buildings in the world, with some of them being over 30 meters high.
It was prescribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2007.
|