système hydraulique géographie des citernes

The study of Alexandria's water system

4th century BC to 19th century AD

The geography of the cisterns

Isabelle Hairy

The information presented below has been integrated into the Geographic Information System of the Centre d'Etudes Alexandrines and superimposed upon a map of Alexandria developed from the cadastral plans (1938 to 1950) on 1/500 and 1/1000 scale. Each location is marked by a code number to which are linked the data describing the cistern.

Locations taken from the Kamil files (fully integrated)

These have been superimposed onto the map of Alexandria. This type of information has been exploitable thanks to the "Goad Plans" of Alexandria, which were drawn up between 1898 and 1905 by a British insurance company. The memories of Alexandrians have also been a useful source of information. In general, we have cross-referenced different research criteria: toponymy, surrounding activities, names of Alexandrian notables and sometimes the persistence of characteristic forms in the urban fabric (particularly in the case of districts that have not changed since the end of the 19th century, such as Kom el Dikka). In the first instance, the positioning has been marked by simple points and we are now working to integrate the old plans into the actual urban parcels.

Locations taken from a map of the Royal Geographic Society in Cairo. (fully integrated)

SIn the year 2000, we discovered, within the Royal Geographic Society in Cairo, a cadastral assembly map from the 1950s on which hand been marked in hand location marks, the numbering of which corresponded with that of the Kamil files. Neither date nor the name of the author was noted. The reference points were transferred to our Alexandria GIS map as a valuable addition to our existing knowledge. For the new locations thus discovered, we are now integrating the old plans into the actual urban parcels.

Locations of Alexandria's cisterns as discovered from the Kamil files and the SRG map.

Archives CEA - Map I. Hairy - © CEA

Locations taken from previous excavation (being integrated)

Paraskevas

When possible the plan of the cistern is integrated into the actual urban parcels

Verified locations (being integrated)

This involves all the cisterns that have been seen and/or excavated. The database grows with each new discovery.

Plan of the cistern situated beneath the parcel of the Greek Orthodox cathedral, Evangelismos. Drawn by I. Hairy, 2000, integrated into the GIS.