That the dwellings are not all caves probably arises from the fact that there is not always sufficient space in the mountains for the many large chambers required to accommodate a number of people. The cave is the original dwelling; the house followed as an appendage. The hedged-in enclosure mentioned can be utilised as a shelter for cattle.
Near Tatuin I noticed, in passing, a rock cave that was merely an irregularly dug hole. It was inhabited.
In the mountains I discovered several of the same description, but uninhabited; being occupied in harvest time, when the dates and olives need guarding.
At Tujan I saw, excavated in the cliffs, several ancient caves with small terraces in front of them; they had long been abandoned as dwellings.
MEDININ.
Lastly, I must touch briefly on a mode of building found on the plains, in the villages of Metamer and Medinin, and evidently deriving its origin from the cave.
Small, oblong, domed houses are built side by side in a square, thus forming a complete citadel of exactly the same form as a cave dwelling; the plan of cave construction having been copied aboveground.
BEDOUIN WOMEN GROUPED BEFORE THEIR HUT.