4-story Ghorfas - Medenine

The ghorfa is the basic element of a ksar found in the Maghreb. A ghorfa is a kind of attic used to store foodstuffs: cereals in the lower part, olives and cheeses in the upper part. Ventilation is provided by two holes in the exterior and interior walls creating a draft. These vaulted cells have the shape of a half-cylinder closed on the exterior side of the ksar and provided with a door opening onto the courtyard. Each ksar can have from one to six floors with hundreds of ghorfas