Photo Gallery

Béni Abbès, in the north-western Algerian Sahara, is the prototype of a Saharan oasis. Here, the roots of the palm trees are bathed by the waters of the Wadi Saoura, but the immense dunes of the western Great Ergs loom menacingly in the background. In a country where the sand is 75 degrees Celsius in summer, the main architectural problem is to create shady and cool zones. - Algeria - 1971

The Oued Saoura in the region of Béni Abbès on the western edge of the Western Great Ergs. - Algeria - 1971

The Oued Saoura in the region of Béni Abbès on the western edge of the Western Great Ergs. - Algeria - 1966

Béni Abbès is an oasis town in western Algeria inhabited mainly by Berbers. It is located on the Oued Saoura, which only has water in winter and spring and forms the western border of the Western Great Erga, the second largest sand sea in the Sahara. The new town of Béni Abbès is situated on a rocky plateau above the valley floor. The plain is surrounded by sand dunes that rise almost 40 m above the surface of the plateau in the immediate vicinity of the town. Other dunes reach a height of more than 80 m. - Algeria - 1971

Béni Abbès is an oasis town in western Algeria inhabited mainly by Berbers. It is located on the Oued Saoura, which only has water in winter and spring and forms the western border of the Western Great Erga, the second largest sand sea in the Sahara. The new town of Béni Abbès is situated on a rocky plateau above the valley floor. The plain is surrounded by sand dunes that rise almost 40 m above the surface of the plateau in the immediate vicinity of the town. Other dunes reach a height of more than 80 m. - Algeria - 1966