Great Marib Dam

The Dam is the most famous of all ancient Yemeni ruins. The dam is 8km to the south-west of the city of Marib and is located in between the northern and central Balaq mountains. The waters from the eastern heights of Yemen used to be collected by the dam. The huge structure's drains indicate that the dam was 35m high, 720m long and 60m wide at the foundations. The foundations were built of huge pieces of stone covered with rough volcanic stones. At the tip of the dam two gaps were left open through which water flowed into the irrigation system and canals and gravel on the sides. The surface of the exterior wall was covered with rough volcanic stones. At the tip of the dam two gaps were left open through which water flowed into the irrigation system and canals. The wall of the two openings (Al-Sadafain), still exist, as described by Al-Hamadani more than 1000years ago. The ingenuity of the irrigation system centerd on the collection of water flowing from a number of valleys, when the water level had risen the irrigation of the largest possible area of the Land of Two Heavens was possible. This was achieved through an ingenuous and precise engineering system consisting of an irrigation network linked to the drains either side of the dam, and was the most sophisticated engineering work of ancient times. It is believed that more than 70 sq. km of arable land in the Marib Valley was cultivated using the Dam's irrigation network.The construction of the dam, according to inscriptions, dates back to the 8th century BC. However, the resulte of a study made by a German archaeological expedition, on a diversion dam in the Dhanan valley (Construction A), indicate that plans for building the dam underwent many stages and long periods between the start of the 2nd and 1 st Millennium BC. Whatever the date of the start of construction, it is an indisputable fact that the Great Marib Dam continued as a working monument through all ages of Yemen civilization from the beginnings of civilization until its collapse. Inscriptions indicate that the Dam did collapse and was renovated several times. The last time major work were carried out on the dam was during the Abyssinian occupation of Yemen in the 6th century AD.