Gharyan

Gharyan is the largest town of the eastern Jebel Nafusa and is known for a form of building found in a handful of places around the Mediterranean: a courtyard some ten metres across dug straight down into the soft rock, with rooms cut horizontally off it, so that the house is invisible from the surface and stays cool through the summer. Several are kept and shown, one of them furnished. Pottery is also made in the town.

History

Gharyan lay on the trade routes south to the Fezzan and over the Nafusa Mountains, and its earliest settlement was in caves, below ground (Wikipedia, Gharyan).

What's there

• The underground houses - courtyards dug down into the rock with rooms cut off them.
• The furnished example - the house kept and shown as it was lived in.
• The thermal effect - dwellings that stay cool through the summer heat.
• The pottery - the ceramic work the town produces.

When to go

March to May and October to November are the comfortable months. The houses stay cool in summer, which is the point of them. Winter is cold on the plateau.

Practical notes

Most of the underground houses are abandoned or used as stores. Visits depend on the owners being available. Travel in Libya requires arrangements through a licensed operator.

Nearby

Yefren is west, and Tripoli is north.

Key facts