Traditional Water Cisterns

All over the Bodrum peninsula you’ll see white dome-shaped water cisterns.  They were built out of field stones during the Ottoman period.

I’ve seen these water cisterns referred to locally as Gümbet’s and Kümbet’s – but more regularly they’re referred to as Sarnıç’s.  Traditionally they were used to gather winter rainwater and local spring water, to be used for the fields and livestock during the summer months.

We drove past these graffiti covered examples on the road from Gümüşlük to Bodrum.

You’ll see Sarnıçs in towns and villages, scattered on hilltops, or on the side of the road, and many of them have been renovated, and some have been converted to another use, for example, one is being used as an Art Gallery in Yalikavak.