Shibam
Walled city of sun-dried mud-brick tower houses from the 16th century (UNESCO) · Wadi Hadhramaut, Hadhramaut Governorate, Yemen
Photo: Jialiang Gao / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0), as also published in Street Art Utopia.
Shibam is a walled town in Wadi Hadhramaut, eastern Yemen, packed with tall tower houses of sun-dried mud brick. UNESCO describes it as a 16th-century walled city built on a rectangular grid, an urban answer to rival families’ need for refuge and protection. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1982 and placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2015. People still live there, though rain, floods and lack of funding keep damaging its houses. Source Source Source Source Checked
Standing Jan 2026: Al Jazeera reported that part of a three-story house collapsed hours before a planned demolition, with no casualties; the city of more than 465 houses still stands but its heritage office works with almost no budget. Source Reported
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💡 4 things to know
- A city that built upwardInside its wall, Shibam is packed with tall mud-brick tower houses. UNESCO speaks of dwellings up to seven stories; Al Jazeera counts more than 465 houses and buildings, most of 5 to 8 stories, while Wikipedia gives about 500 towers of 5 to 11 stories. Source Source Source Conflicting
- Built for refugeUNESCO calls the dense, many-storied city an urban response to the need for refuge and protection by rival families. Al Jazeera notes a single main gate that historically controlled who came in and out. Source Source Checked
- ‘Manhattan of the desert’UNESCO notes it is called the ‘Manhattan’ or ‘Chicago’ of the desert, and Al Jazeera and Al-Ain use the same nickname. Source Source Source Checked
- Mud, rain and warUNESCO calls floods the most distressing threat. Heavy rain in 2020 brought down at least four multi-story buildings and damaged 15 more houses, and since 2015 Shibam has been on UNESCO’s danger list because of Yemen’s conflict. Source Source Source Checked
📍 Where it is
Shibam lies in Wadi Hadhramaut on the main road through the valley; the nearest towns are Seiyun, which has an airport, and Tarim. The walled city has a single main gate, and its tower houses are homes where people still live. Source Source Reported
Opens a Google Maps search for the coordinates (15.92694, 48.62667); no Street View panorama was checked for this file.
🗓️ Sightings
- 1982
Al Jazeera notes UNESCO World Heritage inscription in 1982
- 200824 Feb
Towers above the whitewashed edge of town · camera date
- 2015
Al Jazeera notes World Heritage in Danger listing in 2015
- 20202 Nov
Rain topples at least 4 buildings, damages 15 houses · Al-Ain
- 20259 Nov
Shibam lit up at night (BasilAlsaidiyemen) · camera date
- 202614 Jan
Part of a 3-story house collapses; city still inhabited · Al Jazeera
Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark dated records and reports. Publication dates are not camera dates.
🗞️ In the sources
بعد انهيار أحد منازلها.. شبام حضرموت التاريخية تصرخ في وجه الإهمال
“وتضم المدينة، التي تتلاصق بيوتها ببعضها، أكثر من 465 منزلا ومبنى، تتكون غالبيتها من 5 إلى 8 طوابق، وهو ما جعل الكثير يطلقون عليها اسم “العالية” أو “مانهاتن الصحراء”، كما تتميز المدينة ببوابة رئيسية واحدة كانت للدخول تستخدم تاريخيا للتحكم في الدخول والخروج لحمايتها من الهجمات.”
The city, whose houses are packed against each other, has more than 465 houses and buildings, most of them 5 to 8 stories high, which led many to call it ‘Al-Aliya’ or ‘Manhattan of the Desert’; it also has a single main gate historically used to control entry and exit to protect it from attacks.
بعد انهيار أحد منازلها.. شبام حضرموت التاريخية تصرخ في وجه الإهمال
“قبل ساعات من شروع السلطات في هدمه، انهار جزء من منزل مكون من 3 طوابق في مدينة شبام التاريخية”
Hours before the authorities were to begin demolishing it, part of a three-story house collapsed in the historic city of Shibam.
“منهاتن الصحراء” باليمن.. أقدم مدينة ناطحة سحاب بالعالم ضحية للأمطار
“وتحدّث عن انهيار ما لا يقل عن 4 أبنية متعدّدة الطوابق بالكامل، وتضرّر 15 منزلا آخر في هذا الموقع التاريخي العائد للقرن السادس عشر.”
He spoke of the complete collapse of at least 4 multi-story buildings and damage to 15 other houses at this historic site dating to the 16th century.
✅ The facts
- Built
- Walled city of tower houses from the 16th century; town older (3rd-century inscription) Source Source Source Source Checked
- Built by
- No named architect; UNESCO calls the towers a response to rival families’ need for refuge Source Checked
- Height
- Up to 7 stories (UNESCO) / mostly 5–8 (Al Jazeera) / 5–11 (Wikipedia) Source Source Source Conflicting
🔗 Related
All sources & image credits
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Old Walled City of Shibam
- Wikipedia: Shibam (accessed Nov 2026)
- Al Jazeera: بعد انهيار أحد منازلها.. شبام حضرموت التاريخية تصرخ في وجه الإهمال (14 Jan 2026)
- Al-Ain News: “منهاتن الصحراء” باليمن.. أقدم مدينة ناطحة سحاب بالعالم ضحية للأمطار (2 Nov 2020)
- Hero photo: Jialiang Gao / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
- More photos: Dan from Brussels, Europe / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 (camera date 2008-02-24)
- More photos: BasilAlsaidiyemen / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (camera date 2025-11-09)
- Share image: the hero photo on a 16:9 canvas, made from the WAU media copy.
Last checked: 5 November 2026. How we verify art