Agricultural watchtowers in Al-Tireh quarter and 'Ain Qinia Village, Ramallah, Palestine

Abstract

Al-Tireh quarter and ‘Ain Qinia village on the fringes of the city of Ramallah, Palestine, contains a remarkable variety of watchtower structures that are still standing within their landscape environment. This research project documented 167 watchtowers distributed on an area of approximately 3,000 dunums (1 dunum is 1000 m2). Their deteriorating state is quite alarming, due to several factors, mainly the continuing Arab-Israeli conflict, the rapid modernization of the Palestinian community, the largely unorganized urban expansion seen on the area, lack of public awareness, and the declining importance of agricultural activity within the Palestinian society. As a result, a large number of the agricultural watchtowers in this area have been abandoned and destroyed over the past few decades. The main aim of this study is to discuss the case of the agricultural watchtowers as an existing architectural feature in the areas of Al-Tireh Quarter and ‘Ain-Qinia Village. The methodology includes direct observations through site visits, fieldwork, and documentation of all existing watchtowers; interviews with owners and other residents of the study area; and selection of certain cases to be examined, surveyed, documented, and described, in addition to surveying of the existing literature related to the subject.