Cisterns of Tawila

The tanks were hewn from the volcanic rocks of Wadi Tawila and then lined with a special stucco that included volcanic ash to create a strong, natural cement that rendered the tanks' walls impermeable in order to retain water for extended periods.

The proposed Himyaritic origins of the tanks may help explain a recessed, rectangular area in the Coghlan tank that, according to the Director of the site, could have been used in pre-Islamic times for animal sacrifice (a ritual that the Himyarites were known to perform for a variety of occasions, including drought).

By the time of the British occupation of Aden (beginning in 1839), the Tanks had been almost completely buried by debris carried down the mountains by successive floods.

Playfair hoped that the Tanks, once repaired, could provide a reliable source of water for public consumption.

With the intention of storing the greatest quantity of water possible, British engineers replaced an intricate network of numerous, small, cascading cisterns along the valley walls with a few, larger tanks.

The Tanks' ability to both control floods and store water was thus hampered, and the site that tourists visit today is very much a Victorian British creation.