The Old City of Yemen's capital is a strikingly atmospheric warren surrounded by clay walls six to nine metres high and dating back some 2,500 years and characterized by multistory rammed-earth "tower houses" like these, decorated with geometric patterns. Among its thousands of buildings are 103 mosques (including the "Great Mosque,"Jami' al-Kabir, one of the world's oldest), 13 hammans (bath houses), and various marketplaces. It's also listed by UNESCO as endangered, largely due to the depredations of the civil war.



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